As Cohen passed by, he could practically see the witch's mind spinning like a montage—she must've felt a chilling dread, as if an invisible murderer had just brushed past her, fleeing the scene. That's the kind of vibe the griffin gave off.
But Cohen and his crew didn't have time to linger. Word would soon spread through the Greek Ministry of Magic, and they needed to take out the remaining traitors before those moles realized someone was hunting them.
Information traveled fast for humans, but for the hyper-efficient little Dementor-like creatures, it wasn't quite quick enough. In just a few minutes, Cohen, riding the old griffin, had cleared the first floor and was now on the third. Only one name remained on the traitor list: the Greek Deputy Minister.
Meanwhile, news of a killer slaughtering wizards in a gruesome, bloody fashion had reached the upper ranks. The Aurors had sprung into action the moment that witch's scream echoed, but they stayed on the first floor.
Why? They'd found a severed hand pinning down a list of underground deals—pretty damning evidence.
The witch who'd brushed past the invisible feathered creature had confirmed something crucial: this was a targeted magical creature revenge plot.
Greece had seen similar incidents before, and they usually ended tragically—for both the wizards and the creatures involved.
So, when the Aurors found a second body with another piece of evidence tied to illegal activities, their pursuit slowed from "full speed ahead" to "let's hold off a bit." After all, with their measly monthly pay, why risk their lives unprepared against a cunning, methodical, and dangerous magical creature?
Cohen, meanwhile, hit a snag at the final traitor's location.
The Deputy Minister, being a clever one, had caught wind of the chaos and slipped into the Minister's office under the pretense of discussing government affairs.
None of the other Ministry officials, upon hearing that those involved in illegal trades were being hunted by a griffin-like creature, had fled. Running now would be a dead giveaway of guilt. The Deputy Minister, Dimitri, figured the vengeful griffin couldn't get past the Minister's Aurors and kill him in front of the Minister himself.
He'd heard about the rare, talking griffin that had escaped from the Silver Keys, but he hadn't expected it to come for them—the ones pulling strings behind the scenes—instead of targeting the Keys directly. Wait a second…
Dimitri realized something chilling.
Even if this griffin was clever, how could it possibly know who the masterminds were, hidden behind the whole operation?
While Dimitri discussed trivial yet economically significant matters like international cauldron trade with the Minister, all the while bracing for an invisible griffin to burst in, the office door was suddenly blasted open with a bang.
"Who's there?" The Greek Minister, a white-bearded little man who looked like he'd stepped out of a fairy tale, slid off his chair, glaring toward the door. "Yar? Mok?"
He called out the names of the Aurors stationed outside, but there was no reply. The old sea serpent had knocked them out with a couple of tail swipes.
They were speaking Greek, which Cohen couldn't understand, so he left it to the griffin. He just reminded it that the tall, lanky guy was the target.
Dimitri, far less relaxed than the Minister, whipped out his wand and fired red curses at the seemingly empty doorway. They seemed to hit something, but it didn't do much. A second later, the griffin's ferocious screech filled the air.
Right on cue, the griffin and the sea serpent revealed themselves just before the attack, as Cohen had planned. Cohen, still invisible, slipped beside Dimitri and restrained him as he tried to Apparate away.
In less than a minute from the moment they burst in, the griffin had torn out Dimitri's throat. The Minister, trembling, pointed his wand at the griffin, but he didn't cast a spell—not just because the griffin showed no intent to attack him, but because of the sea serpent with dulled gemstones coiled on its back.
"Esai… ekeino to kerasfrodiofidi? (Are you… that Horned Serpent?)" the white-bearded Minister gaped, unable to tear his eyes from the creature.
He muttered something, but neither Cohen nor the sea serpent understood. The griffin glanced thoughtfully at the serpent, but having Cohen translate would reveal there was an invisible human in the room…
So, after Cohen pulled the evidence—a scroll of parchment—from Dimitri's body and placed it beside him, the old griffin, with Cohen and the sea serpent on its back, smashed through the wall and flew off.
"He actually seemed kind of happy at first," Cohen remarked. "But after you smashed through his office wall, he didn't look so thrilled."
[Why was that wizard staring at me?] the sea serpent mused from the griffin's back. [Did you catch what he said, my precious grandkid? I hope I didn't steal fish from his family…]
[Wizards don't care that much about fish…] Cohen said, rubbing his face. [When are you going to get over this guilt complex?]
Still, Cohen was curious about the connection between the sea serpent and the current Minister, so he asked the griffin—the only one among them who understood Greek.
"The wizard said the old thing—your grandpa—was his savior," the griffin said, flapping its wings. "He asked if it remembered him."
"Just keep calling it 'old thing,'" Cohen said with a smirk.
[What? What?] The sea serpent poked its head over Cohen's shoulder, curious. [What'd that wizard say?]
---
In Cohen's mind, the relief of finishing off the main targets was supposed to last through the rest of his vacation.
That is, until they returned to the griffin's hideout and faced Newt's question.
"Did you catch those Ministry traitors?" Newt asked.
"Uh…" Cohen hesitated, his eyes darting between the griffin and the sea serpent before he made up his mind.
"It did it!"
The griffin sighed. "Yeah, yeah, I did it. Couldn't hold back…"
"What?" Newt blinked, not quite catching Cohen's meaning—but it clicked soon enough.
Those traitors' fates were probably a bit… messy.