"Reducto!"
A piercing red light cut through the pitch-black night sky, surging toward the enemy.
The figure that had been rushing forward suddenly blurred, transforming into a lean jackal. With a leap into the air, it evaded the Blasting Curse and continued its lunge toward the young man.
"Protego!"
Remaining calm and collected, the young man raised his hand and cast a Shield Charm.
*Thud!*
The jackal was knocked back by the Shield Charm, which simultaneously deflected several sneak-attack spells.
Meanwhile, another young man standing beside him quickly filled the gap, blocking a spell aimed at his companion's back.
On this dark field, a dangerously fierce pursuit was unfolding.
Five young people were coordinating with seamless precision, fending off enemies attacking from all directions.
Floating just a short distance ahead of them was a massive beast—more specifically, the carcass of a beast.
This was the squad dispatched by the Knights Templar that had successfully located the Chimaera's remains.
The wizards besieging them were all cloaked, their faces hidden by masks.
This group was silent and ruthless. Notably, some of their masks were embroidered with a prominent silver Ashwinder emblem.
Although the strength of these individuals varied, none were stronger than the five young men in a one-on-one duel.
However, there were simply too many of them.
Thus, despite the coordination and superior skill of the five young men, all of them had already sustained injuries.
Yet, just as the opposing wizards were vicious, these youths were equally fierce. Even trapped in a heavy encirclement, they showed little sign of panic.
In truth, they had undergone far more grueling training than this in the past.
Furthermore, a distress signal had already been sent. They held absolute trust in their teammates, believing that reinforcements would arrive shortly.
Spells of various colors tore through the night sky, and the roar of explosions echoed across the wilderness.
Remarkably, not a single one of these dense attacks landed on the Chimaera.
Both sides placed extreme importance on this precious carcass.
Nevertheless, the youths were outnumbered.
As time passed, their strength began to wane. Facing the relentless siege, they were starting to feel overwhelmed.
Suddenly, a series of sounds like whips cracking against the ground erupted from a nearby clearing.
Five more young people joined the fray!
Other squads from the Knights Templar nearby had arrived to provide support.
In an instant, the pressure on the five struggling youths was significantly alleviated.
Seeing their teammates arrive, their spirits surged.
Clearly, the arrival of the new squad had disrupted the opposing wizards' plans.
The once orderly offensive formation was thrown into chaos.
The wizards finally showed signs of panic. As five or six of them were struck down by the fresh reinforcements, the rest began to scatter and flee.
Before long, the battle here ceased.
"Brian, how are you guys?"
Taking advantage of the enemy's retreat, the newly arrived squad quickly ran over to regroup.
"We've got some injuries, but it's nothing serious. Still, the enemy's retreat was too sudden—it's abnormal. I'm worried they'll regroup and come back. We need to leave this place immediately," a young man with freckles said urgently.
"Right. Can you still move? Let's go! We have to bring this Chimaera back to the Professor."
The two squads merged quickly and prepared to leave. However, since they couldn't Apparate while carrying the Chimaera's body, they had to use Levitation Charms to carry it as they ran.
"It's a pity we came in such a hurry and didn't bring brooms. Otherwise, we could move faster," the captain of the reinforcement squad said regretfully.
"Field, brooms would be even more unsafe. If we were attacked in the air, we'd have no way to dodge. It's better to stay on the ground. Even if the enemy returns, we can keep resisting and buy time," Brian replied, limping as he walked.
"That makes sense. Don't worry, the others should be arriving soon. Once more of our people get here, we won't have to worry about those poachers at all."
"They aren't ordinary poachers, otherwise we wouldn't be in such a mess. Field... they're members of the Ashwinders," Brian said solemnly.
"The Ashwinders?" Field's expression turned grave.
The Ashwinders were an ancient and notorious organization of poachers. Their publicly stated mission was to eradicate all dangerous creatures that threatened humanity.
But those were just pretty words. The magical creatures they hunted were never limited to just the dangerous ones.
They poached these creatures solely for profit.
Many of the magical creature materials of unknown origin, as well as live beasts sold in Knockturn Alley, were provided by them.
Many years ago, this organization had dispatched a large number of personnel to station themselves long-term in the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts, wielding immense power.
Later, a mysterious and powerful wizard suddenly appeared in the Forbidden Forest and eradicated their strongholds one by one. The influence of the Ashwinders was severely diminished because of this.
Consequently, the Ashwinders gradually faded from view. However, they had merely gone into hiding to rebuild in secret; they had never been completely wiped out.
Perhaps having learned their lesson and fearing another mysterious wizard who might nearly slaughter them all...
Even now, as their power gradually returned to its peak, they were no longer as flamboyant as they had been in the past.
For such an organization of poachers, the lure of a Chimaera was simply too great.
Even dragons, which weren't exactly rare, were worth a fortune with every part of them being a treasure.
Let alone the rare Chimaera...
Rarity equals value. Chimaeras were few in number and difficult for ordinary wizards to hunt, which meant their value was far higher than that of a dragon.
"Since it's the Ashwinders, they definitely won't give up! We need to hurry..." Field handed several bottles of Invigoration Draught to Brian.
Now was not the time to treat wounds. They could only use these potions that forcibly restored mental and physical strength to temporarily regain some combat effectiveness.
Brian's squad said nothing more, simply taking the potions and drinking them quickly.
They didn't dally for a moment, fleeing as fast as they could.
But walking speed was slow to begin with, and with a massive beast's carcass, they were even slower.
These experienced youths clearly understood this.
However, not one of these silently fleeing young men suggested abandoning the Chimaera to escape.
Because this was a magical creature's carcass that the Professor needed, and it was exactly the kind that met the Professor's requirements...
Since they had already acknowledged the Professor as their master, they would execute his orders unconditionally.
Loyalty! This was their first lesson upon entering the Nurmengard Institute of Magic, and the most important one.
*Whoosh!*
A black shadow suddenly blocked the moonlight, and the sound of heavy wind rushing came from above.
The ten young people stopped in unison, quickly assuming a defensive formation.
Even if they were outnumbered, they could not easily expose their backs to the enemy—this was also a lesson they had learned since childhood.
In the sky, a massive figure tore through the wind, hovering in mid-air in a manner that exceeded everyone's understanding and was completely different from any dragon.
It was a strange-looking dragon, larger than a Ukrainian Ironbelly.
Around its neck was a silver-white collar. Its entire body was a deep, eerie blue, unlike any dragon they had ever seen.
Beneath its outspread wings, gale-force winds surged, maintaining its massive body's hover.
Standing upon that ferocious dragon head was a human figure.
The person wore a red cloak and, unlike the others, did not wear a mask, revealing a thin, gaunt face.
Even if the youths of the Knights Templar couldn't see his face clearly, they could feel those cold, hollow, and sinisterly bright eyes...
Below the dragon, the Ashwinder wizards who had just fled had gathered once more. Magic wands and crossbows in hand, they glared at the ten young men as if they were prey in a death struggle.
"Leave the item and go."
The man on the dragon's head spoke, his voice hoarse, his words brief and forceful.
The Knights Templar were wary of the Ashwinders, but the Ashwinders were clearly also aware of their opponents' capabilities.
To truly wipe out these youths, the Ashwinders would certainly suffer heavy casualties.
Moreover, no one knew how many more of these young people were on their way.
Prolonging the fight wouldn't benefit either side.
The youths of the Knights Templar remained silent, merely staring at the enemies before them, their wand hands as steady as rocks.
"Not going?" The man's voice grew colder as he raised a hand and gave a light wave.
From the shadows in the distance, even more members of the Ashwinders appeared via Apparition!
In the sky, many more wizards on broomsticks were arriving from afar.
At this, the expressions of the Knights Templar youths finally changed.
Even if a Chimaera was incredibly valuable, the number of personnel the Ashwinders had deployed was excessive.
Was this really necessary?
"We will leave, of course, but we're taking this Chimaera with us," Brian said, his tone resolute as he glanced at the surrounding enemies.
The man on the dragon's head nodded and gave the final command.
"Kill them."
*Boom!*
Countless spells, like falling stars, cut through the night sky, crashing toward the ten young people in the center from all directions.
A flash of despair and acceptance crossed Brian's eyes, but he suddenly raised his wand, pointing it at the man on the dragon's head. "Avada Kedavra!"
Just like Brian, the rest of the youths made the same choice. They ignored the spells rushing toward them, concentrating all their firepower to attack the man on the dragon's head!
Since there was no way for the ten of them to block these attacks anyway, and Apparating away would be a violation of their orders, they chose to perish together.
Even in death, they would take down the highest-ranking person on the other side with them!
If the mission failed, they would die.
Ruthless and resolute.
This was the most obvious mark the Acolytes had left on them.
Clearly, Grindelwald had raised these young people to be suicide soldiers.
However, the hovering dragon's movements were unexpectedly agile!
It suddenly snapped its massive wings shut! Ten sickly green Killing Curses struck its wings simultaneously and vanished without a trace!
Only then did the youths of the Knights Templar see clearly that the dragon's wings were inlaid with metal plates that were completely different from any biological structure.
This meant the final desperate strike of the ten youths didn't even wound the dragon!
Brian and Field looked at each other, both seeing the helplessness in the other's eyes.
The failure of this strike meant they would not have a second chance to attack.
Because the attacks from the Ashwinders were already about to reach them...
*Hum—*
Just then, a soft hum vibrated in everyone's hearts.
Immediately after, the meteor-like spells froze in place, as if they were a photograph!
Then, these aggressive spells all silently vanished into thin air, as if they had never existed!
Before anyone could react, a white light shone from among the ten youths.
Following that, a phantom-like, semi-transparent white palace appeared out of thin air, growing larger and larger!
The massive palace bore a Chinese architectural style, blocking out the sky and moon in a dazzling display of splendor.
As soon as it appeared, it covered everyone within its reach!
Looking closely, every pillar and roof tile of this palace shimmered with a dazzling sequence of runes.
Brian looked at the palace that had appeared out of nowhere, a flash of joy crossing his eyes.
"The Professor! The Professor is here!"
The youths were instantly invigorated!
While the Ashwinders were too shocked by the scene to move, a clear set of footsteps suddenly echoed from a distance.
*Tap! Tap! Tap!*
It sounded as if someone were actually walking on the golden floor tiles of the palace...
The pupils of the man on the dragon shrank because he saw two more people suddenly appear across from him.
In the distance, two figures appeared simultaneously, stepping onto the floor of this virtual palace and walking over step by step.
One was a young man who looked to be around twenty-eight, and the other was a girl of impossible beauty.
"Are they your people?" the man on the dragon asked.
"Yes," Victor Wick nodded. He looked up at the dragon in the sky. "Come down. I don't like anyone standing higher than me."
No sooner had he spoken than the people in the sky, shrouded by the palace's phantom, began screaming and falling like stones!
Even the dragon, which had been hovering steadily, seemed to lose its ability to fly, plummeting with a long, mournful roar.
*CRAAASH!*
The dragon slammed into the ground, letting out a piteous wail.
The man on the dragon's head also tumbled down miserably, suffering severe injuries from the fall...
He struggled on the ground, trying to crawl up, but seemed to have lost all his strength.
He could only barely lift his head, staring at the man before him with eyes full of terror.
'Because in that very instant, he could feel that all magic within the palace's range had failed!'
'His original plan to Apparate and leave the dragon's head in advance had also failed!'
'Anti-magic? This... what kind of magic is this?'
Victor Wick walked slowly to the man's side, looking down at him.
"Mm, that feels much better."
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