Following the direction of the voice, Wentworth turned and saw Newt urgently raising his wand. At the same moment, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a spell hurtling toward them from the opposite side.
Though Newt had already lifted his wand, the spell was moving too fast. There was clearly no time to counter it.
Just as the spell was about to strike, Yukina, who had been standing beside Wentworth, vanished without warning, replaced by a swirling mass of shadowy black mist, pulsing with dark, ominous energy.
The black mist rapidly expanded. The incoming spell disappeared the moment it sank into the fog, vanishing without a trace. The only indication of impact was a faint shiver in the eerie cloud.
From the direction the spell had come, a shocked voice cried out in confusion:
"Merlin's beard, what is that?!"
Wentworth's heart sank. He had a feeling he knew.
Turning toward the source of the exclamation, he glimpsed several shadowy figures moving stealthily through the trees. One of them stood frozen, wand raised, staring dumbfounded in their direction.
Another figure gave a surprised "Eh?" before exclaiming, almost in disbelief:
"Is that... an Obscurus?! Why would an Obscurus appear here?!"
Wentworth studied the newly arrived group. Though he didn't recognize any of them, something about their bearing felt... familiar.
At that moment, he heard the sound of footsteps behind him, and Newt's voice rang out urgently:
"Be careful! They're Wizard Hunters!"
At Newt's words, Wentworth suddenly understood. The manner and aura of these interlopers were unmistakably similar to those dark witches and wizards he had encountered during his first year, when the Portkey had dragged him from Hogwarts.
Meanwhile, the mass of black mist, standing guard in front of Wentworth, began to respond to the attack. It slowly contracted before suddenly launching itself toward the intruders.
Seeing this, Newt shouted frantically:
"Wentworth! Stop her!"
Snapping back to his senses, Wentworth called out quickly:
"Stop! Yukina, stop at once! I command you to stop, now!"
The black mist, which had been charging ahead with reckless intent, faltered at his command, visibly hesitating.
Seizing the moment, Wentworth added:
"Don't worry, just a few wizards. I can handle them myself. And don't forget, we have Mr. Scamander here. He's the man who once personally captured the first Dark Lord, Gellert Grindelwald!"
At these words, the dark fog gradually settled and shrank back. Slowly, the form of Yukina reappeared, though her face had gone pale.
She forced a weak smile and said softly:
"It seems... the Obscurus within me listens to me more now..."
Wentworth's heart ached at her words.
Rushing to her side, he frowned at her ashen face and snapped:
"Didn't I just tell you not to use the power of the Obscurus again?! How could you forget that already?!"
Though he was scolding her, Yukina's lips curled into a faint smile. She stuck her tongue out mischievously and murmured:
"I won't do it again, Wentworth."
Relieved, Wentworth nodded slowly. Then, turning to the stunned Wizard Hunters, his expression darkened. He snarled:
"You lot aren't leaving here alive!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than the sound of footsteps—shff shff shff—filled the air as more unfamiliar wizards emerged from all directions, surrounding them.
Wentworth's face froze, but he clenched his teeth and growled:
"Fine. Then at least some of you are going to die today!"
...
Meanwhile, on the island of Minami Iwo Jima, at the Mahoutokoro School of Magic, Professor Snape was showing no restraint. He had seized Juma Kalembo by the hair and, without a word, yanked a vial of potion from his robes. In full view of the others, he forced it down Juma's throat.
The panic in Juma's eyes soon faded into a blank, vacant stare. The gathered witches and wizards quickly realized what the potion was—Veritaserum.
Sure enough, as the potion took effect, Snape wasted no time with pleasantries:
"How did you find out the location of today's Wizarding Schools Potions Championship?"
Juma answered dully:
"Minamoto Nagasora told me. He also gave me a potion and said that drinking it was the only way to avoid being affected by the strange phenomena on the island."
At that, Minamoto opened his mouth to protest, but under Dumbledore's piercing gaze, he said nothing. He sank back into his seat with a heavy sigh.
Snape pressed on:
"How many Wizard Hunters did you send after Wentworth?"
Juma frowned slightly before answering:
"About twenty or thirty. Most of them are seasoned veterans, well-known hunters. I deceived them. I told them I represented Koldovstoretz, the Russian school of magic, and that Wentworth was a rival who needed to be eliminated. They believed me. Happily."
At that, Snape's eyes widened with a mixture of fury and disbelief. His glare at Juma was venomous.
Still restraining his rising anger, Snape asked again:
"What exactly did you leave behind on that island?"
Juma's brow furrowed deeper. Sweat beaded on his forehead. He was clearly fighting the potion's effects, but in the end, he couldn't resist. He confessed in a flat voice:
"It's a triggered curse. Minamoto told me the rules of the tournament. I knew they'd all have to reach the top of that dormant volcano. And once someone sets foot on the summit—"
"—the volcano will explode."
At that, Snape lunged forward, seizing Juma by the throat and lifting him clean off the ground, voice cold with fury:
"This is your trump card? You wanted to blow Wentworth to pieces?!"
But Juma merely gave a twisted smile.
"No," he said smugly. "I never counted on the spell actually killing Wentworth. For all I knew, he might not even be the first to arrive."
"My goal... was to reawaken the volcano."
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This fanfic has been fully translated!