Hydrus flew above the clouds. Below her feet was a torrential downpour, flashing with thunder and lightning, yet above the clouds, the sun shone brightly and the skies were calm and clear.
In the distance, an object moved toward her at extreme speed. From being a mere speck to appearing right before her eyes, it took only a few seconds.
Hydrus had underestimated the missile's speed; in a momentary daze, she let the missile fly right past her!
'This thing is much faster than I am!'
Hydrus immediately performed a series of successive Apparitions to catch up with the missile. She strained to keep pace with the massive object before her; on its pure white casing, the designation UR-100 was clearly visible.
Hydrus knew she couldn't afford any delay. In a dozen or so more seconds, this missile would land near the Black Sea Shipyard, either on land or in the sea—after all, the precision of the UR-100 was not high.
But the coverage of a nuclear warhead was so vast, who would care about that bit of error?
The Vanishing Spell!
This was the solution Hydrus came up with. She could perhaps have used Transfiguration, but knowing nothing about missiles, she didn't know if the nuclear warhead would still explode if the Transfiguration failed—if it exploded inside her suitcase or fragrance bag, her losses would be catastrophic.
As for the boast she once made—that long-range missiles were useless against wizards...
In reality, that was completely incorrect.
On the entire planet, the number of wizards who could follow a missile with high-frequency Apparition like she was doing now definitely did not exceed five!
After one final Apparition, Hydrus waved her wand.
The Vanishing Spell struck the missile. The missile was instantly cast out beyond the atmosphere. To hit its target, an old model like this relied on a massive amount of calculations performed before launch; as long as it was diverted from its course, it would no longer pose a threat.
This version of the Vanishing Spell, which could transport objects to a designated location, was a high-grade technique from the Gryffindor inheritance. Compared to the currently popular version where 'the object has vanished, but only Merlin knows where it went,' the safety factor was much better!
At least after she learned this move, Muggles would no longer be mysteriously struck by flying objects. [On the Troubles Caused to Muggles by Lazy Wizards]
On this day, over the skies of Europe, people saw two suns.
...
...
Audrey no longer wanted to care about what kind of trial the President would face. Her summer job period was finally coming to an end, and she was about to enter a long ten-month vacation!
Perhaps subsequent holidays would cover the entire year!
The transformation of Ukraine was also on track. Even without her, there would be absolutely no problem here!
The world had become different, both the wizarding world and the Muggle world.
However, the Hogwarts Express was still the Hogwarts Express.
The rhythmic 'clack-clack, clack-clack' sound made one feel drowsy. Audrey sighed, complaining to Isaline:
"Why do I have to ride this antique! Isaline, haven't you given up on the idea of making me socialized in school?"
Isaline explained solemnly, "Hmph, Lady Vinda Rosier told me to cure your laziness. I must keep you moving at all times, Your Majesty, Queen of Ukraine!"
"Oh, my Isaline is still angry! Calm down, I didn't hide it from you on purpose!"
Isaline turned her head toward the window, looking as if she didn't want to talk to Audrey at all.
Audrey smiled mischievously. "If you ignore me, I'll revoke your position as the Vice CEO of the AA Group, and I'll fire you as the administrative head of the Warren district too!"
"You dare threaten me!" Isaline glared at Audrey huffily. "Hiding your true identity from me was wrong! And I treated you as my best friend! Hydrus Lestrange!!"
Yes, yes, the friendship of two little crayfish!
"Best friend?"
Regarding this question, Audrey had something to say.
"I wonder who it was that gave me a generic mass-produced Christmas gift but hand-knitted a scarf for Edmond!"
Isaline's face turned beet red as she stammered, "That's different! Edmond did so many things for you, I was thanking him on your behalf!"
"Well, thank you very much! I treated you as a best friend, but you want to be my aunt!"
Chapter 152: On the Hogwarts Express (2 / 2)
Just as the two were messing around,
The carriage door was pushed open.
"Sorry, is there an empty..."
"Ah, it's Audrey!"
The newcomers were two young witches.
Ginny Weasley and Luna Lovegood.
"Please come in, there are seats here."
The young witches sat down.
"Audrey," Ginny spoke up.
"You didn't come to the Burrow this summer. Mom was disappointed for a long time, but Dad said you were busy with big business. What big things were you doing?"
"Oh, nothing special, just expanded the influence of my industries and set off a large firework along the way."
Luna suddenly interjected, "Professor Astley, are you still our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor this semester?"
"No, Luna," Audrey smiled, "my fees are very expensive, and Dumbledore can no longer afford my salary. So this semester you will have a new professor!"
Hearty laughter rang out from outside the door.
"Not one professor, but two!"
The door was opened again, and outside stood two adult men.
One Audrey recognized; it was her silly, foolish uncle—Sirius Black. The other looked somewhat destitute, the edges of his coat frayed. Although Audrey had a suspicion in her heart, she wasn't certain.
"Haven't seen you all summer, Sirius, you look quite well!"
"Hahaha, thanks to you,"
Sirius replied boisterously.
"Let me introduce you. This is Remus Lupin—" Audrey: 'As expected!' "—the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor who is taking over your position this school year. He will be responsible for teaching the lower-year students!"
Sirius suddenly held his head high and chest out, looking quite satisfied with himself. "And I will take over Snivellus's position and become the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for the higher-year students!"
This was the first time Audrey had heard this news. She was slightly surprised. Dumbledore had recruited two Defense Against the Dark Arts professors simultaneously—what was he trying to do?
Could it be because she and Snape hadn't suffered any serious consequences last semester, so Dumbledore thought he could use numbers to disperse the power of the so-called Voldemort curse?
Don't be ridiculous! Last semester was only fine because of her! Given Voldemort's usual nature, the method he used to determine friend from foe was bloodline! Just like the traps in the Gaunt shack, they were completely ineffective against her!
She felt a moment of silence for the two gentlemen before her. Sharing the curse might be useful—at least they wouldn't break their necks—but if some other accident occurred, it would be hard to say!
Of course, Audrey also felt pity for another person—
—Not only was the Defense Against the Dark Arts position he coveted stolen, but he also had to become colleagues with two of his enemies...
A moment of silence for our dear Head of Slytherin.
"Hello, Miss Astley," Professor Lupin greeted with a smile, "I've heard a lot about you!"
This gentle man...
Audrey knew that Remus Lupin was actually a werewolf.
And he had another identity—the future beloved man of her dear cousin, Nymphadora Tonks.
Lupin had always felt inferior because of his lycanthropy; it was the greatest chasm that stood between them.
Poor Cousin Tonks...
Perhaps, this semester, she should try to break the werewolf curse?
Well, and the curse on her future sister-in-law...
Astoria Greengrass!
Audrey didn't want her future nephews or nieces to lose their mother at such a young age.
Fine, even if it was a vacation, she had to find something to do, otherwise it would be too boring!
Audrey made such excuses, setting her goals for the new school year.
Little did she know that after the turbulent changes in Ukraine, her state of mind had already undergone a transformation.
"Hello, Professor Lupin."
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