The next day, inside the warehouse prison.
Jason, as usual, squatted in the corner of his cell, looking dejected. It had been over half a month since the wizards from the breeding park had arrived at this enclosed prison. During this long period, they had endured a filthy environment where they couldn't wash. Now, no matter where they went, they could smell a disgusting, sour stench. It wasn't until one day they realized they seemed to have lost their sense of smell, completely unaware of the odor, that they discovered people had passively adapted to this environment.
In addition, the monotonous diet of boiled potatoes day after day made everyone feel like they were breaking down. Even when they received their single apple each week, many shed tears mixed with emotion and grievance. Only at that moment did they truly appreciate the preciousness of freedom.
Apart from the despair-inducing environment, the prison itself maintained a relatively quiet atmosphere, though only relatively so. After spending a long time here, the wizards and Muggles gradually noticed the characteristics of the guards. As long as they didn't make inflammatory remarks, or shout, fight, or argue loudly, these constantly invisible Silver Spears guards would not overly restrict everyone's speech.
Because of this, after many days of communication, everyone in the various cells had basically become familiar with each other, and at the same time, they had clarified the full story of what had happened to them. Their past experiences were very similar; they were basically ordinary wizards living in various wizard gathering areas, with no background and varying spellcasting abilities. Their commonality was that they were relatively familiar with the people from the civilian groups in the gathering areas, and subsequently, they were enticed by these people to join the breeding park, becoming its employees. However, those with excellent grades in Care of Magical Creatures would become veterinarians in the park after training, while most of the others were assigned to the maintenance team.
At the same time, they also learned that although they belonged to different parks, the internal configuration, layout, and even personnel salaries were all very consistent. This also confirmed one thing for them: all parks were affiliated with the Silver Spears club, which meant that the various civilian groups that introduced them had unclear ties with the club. And this led to many associations for everyone. It should be known that many civilian groups in Germany were at loggerheads with each other.
But what was the result? They all had the same superior, which was the Silver Spears! Among these wizards, there were also intelligent people. They quickly connected this to the division that had occurred in the German wizarding world over the past decade, and their current discoveries all pointed to the same conclusion. That is, the entire division of Germany was orchestrated by the Silver Spears manipulating those civilian groups!
And the most infuriating thing was that the patrol team members, who were the club's collaborators, openly admitted to this, with many of them even mocking them for being foolish, for being so easily led astray and becoming the Silver Spears' secret accomplices. Perhaps in the hearts of these collaborators, they and these ordinary wizards were never on the same side from the beginning, and perhaps one day, when the time came, they would be released by the Silver Spears and once again become noble collaborators!
Because of this, the conflict between most of the common wizards and the patrol team wizards in the prison became increasingly heated, with several clashes even breaking out in these short ten-plus days. Of course, similar arguments or fights would quickly be stopped by the Silver Spears, and after punishing both sides equally, they would be thrown back into their original cells. But even in such circumstances, those patrol team wizards would still consider themselves insiders of the club and constantly make things difficult for the other common wizards.
Although most wizards were indifferent to this, and even sparked conflicts again, there were still many timid common wizards who chose to give in. Perhaps in their eyes, they had no hope or future, and it was better to rely on those collaborators, thinking their situation might be better in the future. But Jason could not accept such a result, and these many days of experience only strengthened his idea of escaping.
At the same time, after many days of effort, his and Bob's progress was very impressive. Now they were already able to cast the Disillusionment Charm through wandless magic, and their Transfiguration progress was also very fast. Escaping from their current cell was basically a sure thing for them. But the problem now facing them was how to approach that fireplace without alerting the Silver Spears? These Silver Spears guards remained invisible almost every day except when distributing food, which always put an invisible pressure on them.
Jason silently raised his head from the corner, then casually glanced around, finally fixing his gaze on Bob. Bob also felt his gaze at this moment, and after meeting Jason's eyes, he still frowned and shook his head.
*Still unable to make up his mind?* Jason secretly sighed. He had been trying such probes for several days, but he and Bob still couldn't determine the opportune moment to escape. After all, such an opportunity might only come once, and failure would likely mean death.
And just at this moment, the invisible Silver Spears suddenly revealed themselves. Jason was not surprised by this; it was time for dinner again. However, this time, most of the people in the prison stood up, as if expecting something. At this point, Jason also realized that today was the weekly fruit distribution day, no wonder everyone was so excited.
*Since when could a single apple tug at everyone's heartstrings?* Watching the absurd scene before him, Jason couldn't help but shake his head in mockery.
Sure enough, today's meal, in addition to the nauseating boiled potatoes, also included a small basin containing exactly ten apples. These low-quality fruits, yellowish-red and unwashed, looked terrible, but at this moment, they seemed more alluring than Galleons in everyone's eyes. The prisoners watched with wide eyes as the Silver Spears carried the wooden basin of fruit into the cells, and then everyone scrambled forward, as if it would disappear if they were a moment too late.
Jason swallowed, looking at the apples. It had been a long time since he had tasted anything other than potatoes, but at this moment, he still knew to prioritize. Anyway, the Silver Spears distributed them very evenly, so there was no need to rush to snatch them.
Then Jason suddenly saw Jimmy, who had rushed forward first, now holding two apples and grinning as he came up to him. "Captain, I grabbed your share too. I guarantee they're the two biggest ones in the basin. Here, take this bigger one."
"Thanks, but everyone gets a share, there's really no need for this." Jason took the fruit Jimmy offered, a little exasperated. Jimmy was still the same as before, a bit reckless but also very loyal.
"Even if everyone gets a share, there's still a difference in size! You know, in this godforsaken place, let alone meat, it's rare to taste anything other than potatoes. I'll even swallow the core of this apple, I swear." Jimmy grumbled and then took a big bite of the apple in his hand, not even wiping off the dirt clinging to it, then showed a look of ecstasy.
Looking at Jimmy's optimistic demeanor, Jason also chuckled self-deprecatingly. What was in this kid's head anyway? How could he entertain himself anywhere he went?
And just as Jason was about to savor this hard-won delicacy, he suddenly heard a sobbing sound. He and Jimmy looked toward the sound and saw an elderly man, covered in dirt, sitting on the ground, his face bitter and tears streaming down. Having lived together for so long, Jason naturally knew this old man. He was a Squib from the Eastern Park, considered a good old man in their cell, always polite to everyone, and never causing trouble.
"What's going on? Why is Old Willie suddenly crying?" Jason leaned over to another wizard nearby and asked, somewhat puzzled.
"What else could it be? Sike just snatched Old Willie's apple. You know Old Willie's personality, he doesn't know how to react when someone takes his things," the wizard next to him said with a sigh and a shake of his head.
Hearing this, Jason understood what was going on. That Sike was a patrol team member who had once been in the same park as him and Jimmy. He had almost clashed with Jimmy before, but Jason had stopped it. And at this moment, Sike was eating the apple in his hand, bite after bite. Seeing Jason and Jimmy looking over, he glared at them provocatively.
"That bastard! He only knows how to bully people!" When Jimmy saw the other party's hateful expression, he immediately became furious and rolled up his sleeves, ready to go forward.
Jason, seeing this, naturally immediately stopped Jimmy. "Don't be impulsive! Jimmy, actively causing trouble won't end well."
"But you saw that guy's face! We're all prisoners locked up together, and he still bullies fellow inmates. He's simply inhumane!" Jimmy complained to Jason with an angry face, while also trying to break free from his restraint.
"Jimmy!" Jason dared not let him act recklessly, so he quickly hugged Jimmy and dragged him back. "Even if you go and fight him now, you can't help Old Willie, can you? And you'll get yourself punished. Don't be reckless, listen to me!"
Jimmy found that he really couldn't break free, and immediately cursed in frustration, "So are we just going to watch him do whatever he wants? This can't go on like this!"
"Sigh... We're all prisoners in cages now. It's good enough if we can take care of ourselves. Don't meddle in other people's business anymore. That guy will get his comeuppance sooner or later." Jason sighed helplessly.
And as if in response to Jason's words, a Silver Spears guard suddenly materialized in the central corridor of the prison and shouted loudly, "Everyone listen up!"