He led a hyper-vigilant Lupin, who was constantly looking around, into one of the most deserted corners of Knockturn Alley. Ian figured if there were any werewolves hiding here, they'd definitely be in the most remote areas.
Even most dark wizards avoided and feared that particular group.
"How do you know werewolves are here? Did you plan all of this in advance?" Lupin suddenly glanced at a dilapidated alley up ahead.
The buildings there were in ruins, with broken structures everywhere and no one bothering to fix them.
Even the ground was overrun with weeds.
"So, I was right?" Ian picked up on Lupin's reaction, it was clear that Lupin did know where the werewolf gathering spots were in Knockturn Alley.
He had just chosen not to tell Ian earlier.
"Not every werewolf is as easy to get along with as I am. Most have the worst kind of personalities you can imagine," Lupin said again, trying to stop Ian from going any farther.
But—
He found his hand had only grasped a wisp of illusion that faded away on the breeze.
"When did he—!?"
Lupin looked down at his empty hand in shock.
"That's called Mirror Flower, Water Moon, just a little magical trick. Casting a silent spell while holding your wand isn't exactly difficult… I'd say my skill level is fairly decent,"
Ian's voice came from right behind Lupin.
Startled, Lupin turned around.
And saw—
Ian had somehow acquired an ice cream cone and was chomping on it with enthusiasm, still managing to keep a spoonful in his mouth while talking.
"You… you're eating that all by yourself?" Lupin had almost shouted Nightmare in alarm, but at the last second, his words were replaced by a slightly bitter complaint.
It was the middle of summer.
The sun blazed down from above.
He had been dying for some water or ice for a while now.
"Oh, this ice cream? Some weird old man gave it to me earlier. You could go find your own weird old man too. But remember: he'll only give you a clean, poison-free ice cream after you've shoved his head up his own backside. Otherwise, all you'll get is a hypnotic drug disguised as ice cream."
Ian gave this advice in a perfectly serious tone, like some kind of rule-bound urban legend.
Lupin's pupils contracted at the sound of it.
"Is that ice cream on your robes?" Lupin noticed that the hem of Ian's robes was stained and suspected it was blood from some dark wizard that the kid had accidentally picked up.
"Nope. That's the tear stains from when the weird old man repented." Ian blinked innocently.
His casual tone made it impossible for Lupin to tell whether he was joking. Honestly, Lupin suspected it was blood and brain matter, but he couldn't get close enough to Ian to confirm it.
"Did you kill someone?" Lupin now had to re-evaluate this kid Dumbledore had entrusted to him. In terms of both power and personality, he realized his understanding of Ian might have been drastically off.
"He's still alive," Ian replied with a smile.
But his slightly emotionless tone sent a chill down Lupin's spine.
And just as Lupin's scalp started to prickle—
"Whoosh~"
A sudden charm shot out from a hidden corner, aimed directly at Lupin, clearly perceived as the bigger threat.
As a member of the Order of the Phoenix, Lupin's reflexes were sharp.
He instantly pulled off a classic evasive move: the donkey roll.
Lupin flung himself forward and rolled to the ground, looking a bit ridiculous, but effectively dodging the sudden attack from the shadows.
"Diffindo!"
Lupin's counterattack was just as swift. He aimed at the building concealing the assailant and cast the severing spell, causing the already fragile structure to collapse into rubble.
Stones buried the entire space.
"I told you we shouldn't have come here! Get your wand out, some werewolves have already lost their minds!" Lupin yelled toward Ian while keeping his eyes locked on the pile of debris, unsure if the enemy wizard had been buried or not.
But then,
Lupin didn't get a response from behind him.
"Doesn't look crazy to me."
Just as Lupin was beginning to think Ian had been attacked, he whipped his head around, only to freeze in place. Ian had casually walked out from beside the building ruins.
"And he's incredibly alert. Nearly spotted me." At some unknown point, Ian had changed outfits again. He was now holding onto an unmoving foot with one hand.
He was dragging along a man knocked out cold by Stupefy, or rather, a werewolf completely covered in fur.
"Which one of you is the real one!?" Lupin's eyes widened in disbelief as he looked back, sure enough, the "Ian" who'd just been talking to him had vanished into a wisp of blue smoke.
"If I told you, would this magic still be called Mirror Flower, Water Moon? Don't you know the meaning of being cautious? We are in Knockturn Alley, you know." Ian righteously refused to answer Lupin's question.
"This guy's got something wrong with him."
Ian didn't wait for Lupin to respond. He directly tossed the unconscious werewolf forward. Seeing the transformed creature, Lupin frowned deeply.
"Indeed... Tonight is the full moon... Did you agitate his mind somehow?" Lupin crouched down to check the werewolf's condition, his expression turning grave.
"Does reading his memories count?" Ian tilted his head, looking a little unsure.
"You can do Legilimency!?" Lupin couldn't even remember how many times he'd been shocked today.
"They call me a natural-born Legilimens." Ian didn't mean to show off, he just felt that since the opportunity had fallen into his lap, the one responsible for making him show off... was Lupin himself.
"..."
Lupin was speechless.
He opened his mouth.
But said nothing.
Still, his thoughts were boiling over.
"No wonder they call him... the strongest mixed-blood."
Thousands of words.
All condensed into one sigh.
"Smack~"
Still a bit dazed, Lupin suddenly felt a slap across his face, as if the very air had jumped up and hit him.
"That one was fake, too?"
It didn't really hurt. But it definitely made him snap.
"True and false, false and true... We are in Knockturn Alley."
Ian, the one still in front of him, replied with deep solemnity.
"Aren't you being a bit too cautious...?" Lupin's eye twitched.
He had absolutely no idea where to look anymore.
"Maybe."
The Ian across from him turned into a piece of wood.
And then yet another Ian walked out from a nearby room, Lupin would bet his little ponytail this one wasn't the real one either.
Worse still—
Lupin started to realize a painful truth: Every time he figured out an Ian was fake, that one would vanish... only for another "Ian" to pop up.
"You're even guarding against me?" Lupin's tone held a bit of disbelief.
But mostly?
It was wounded bitterness.
"How could I, senior? You're just overthinking things…" The Ian who had just emerged rolled his eyes, then crouched down and pulled out a huge syringe to begin drawing blood from the werewolf.
Lupin didn't stop him.
After all, this werewolf's instincts had clearly been aimed at killing him earlier.
"Unless you completely enraged him, he shouldn't be able to transform outside the full moon. I think they may have found a way to trigger transformation at will."
Lupin spoke firmly, his frown deepening.
No one understood werewolves better than he did.
"They have found a way to do voluntary transformations…" Ian's eyes glinted faintly as he replied, and his words made Lupin's expression grow even more serious.
"A potion, maybe?" Lupin ventured a guess.
Ian's nod confirmed Lupin's guess.
"There's actually someone capable of brewing this kind of potion? Don't tell me it's your uncle secretly conducting some dark experiment here in Knockturn Alley?"
A worried look appeared on Lupin's face.
He made no effort to hide his disdain for Snape.
"I wish it were my dear uncle." Ian let out a heavy sigh.
He put away the syringe.
Then raised his head to look at Lupin.
"I'll be discussing this matter with Headmaster Dumbledore." Ian's words left Lupin visibly shocked.
"You know who it is?" Lupin stared intently at Ian.
"If you read his memories, you'll hear a name…" Ian didn't want to say too much, but it was clear Lupin was the type who wouldn't stop until he got an answer.
"I can use Legilimency too." As he spoke, he immediately cast the magic, Lupin might not be a master of Legilimency, but his skill still exceeded that of most Hogwarts graduates.
There are no weaklings in the Order of the Phoenix.
Reading the mind of a werewolf knocked out cold by Stupefy wasn't exactly hard for Lupin.
And sure enough—
A few moments later—
Lupin's eyes flew open in shock and horror.
"That's impossible!"
Clearly, he had seen something in the werewolf's memory that defied belief.
(End of this chapter)
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