Just as Luna was about to soothe the owl, the stream not far away suddenly churned, and a huge figure emerged from the water.
Thanks to his meditative state, the sudden change did not startle Vizette.
He sensed the figure extending its tail to sweep toward the two of them.
In that critical moment, fear did not cloud his judgment.
Vizette grabbed Luna's arm, and the two lunged forward simultaneously, narrowly avoiding the attack.
Bang!
The creature's tail grazed Vizette's shoulder before plunging deep into the grass.
The ground shook violently, and the figure pulled back its tail, kicking up a cloud of dust and grass clippings.
Hiss!
More water sprayed out, and the figure emerged from the water with a chilling hissing sound, landing on the shore.
This was a strange snake that Vizette had never seen before; its upright body was at least two meters tall.
What surprised him most was that this strange snake had three heads.
The three-headed snake was not only enormous and bizarre in appearance, but it was also covered with a layer of orange-red spiky scales.
The orange-red color on this layer of scales wasn't particularly vibrant; it had a deathly gray hue, giving it a sense of being old and frail.
As the three-headed snake hissed softly, Vizette could clearly see that inside the snake's right head were a pair of fangs that gleamed with an eerie green light.
The three-headed snake was as thick as a cartwheel, and it writhed and twisted as it lunged at them.
Hiss!
The three-headed serpent launched another attack, its right head suddenly bursting out, opening its gaping maw to reveal sharp fangs.
Although the snake head's attack was unexpected, it was restrained by the other two snake heads and failed to bite Vizette immediately.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Vizette led Luna back again, narrowly avoiding the snake's bite.
The snake's head plunged into the grass, stirring up another cloud of dust and grass clippings.
"Vizette, this is a Runespoor. It's probably old and not very agile." Luna's voice was calm. "Its three heads are all intelligent and could easily fight amongst themselves."
At this moment, the snake's head in the middle opened its eyes and hissed, as if it were saying something.
The snake head on the left was also flicking its tongue and shaking its head, seemingly scolding the other two snake heads.
The three snake heads exchanged a glance, bared their teeth, and actually began to attack each other.
As Luna said, the Runespoor was fighting amongst itself.
"This is a magical creature of the XXXX. Why is it here?" Luna got up from the ground.
"You're injured!" Her voice was filled with panic when she saw the blood seeping from Vizette's shoulder.
Luna quickly pulled Vizette up and helped him run towards home.
Seemingly realizing they were about to be outmaneuvered by their prey, the Runespoor stopped fighting amongst itself and chased after Vizette and his companions at an extremely fast speed.
Through meditation, Vizette could sense the movements behind him.
The Runespoor was incredibly fast, like a motorcycle at full speed, and could probably launch another attack in just a few seconds.
Just as he was pondering a solution, Luna pushed him forward first, saying in an unusually resolute tone, "Vizette, you're injured, I'll distract it."
Vizette was extremely surprised.
He never expected that Luna would do this in such a critical moment.
In his previous life, no one had ever treated him like this.
He turned around abruptly, and everything around him seemed to slow down.
The three snake heads drew closer and closer to Luna, causing her long, pale golden hair to flutter in the wind.
Through Luna's eyes, Vizette saw no panic, only composure and determination.
Protect your family?
Vizette recalled his past life, in which he desperately longed for his family to take him home after he learned he was in an orphanage.
I'll accept any kind of family member, no matter the cost.
At that moment, he understood Luna, and he understood why Luna had made such a decision—
Back then, Luna was powerless and lost her family;
Now, she didn't want to repeat the same mistake.
Vizette felt the same way. He had finally gained a family and didn't want to see anything happen to them, especially anything that happened while protecting him.
The details of Ancient Magic: Shield flashed through his mind, each detail so clear.
He was now confident that he could complete this magic.
His current desire was incredibly strong—the Runespoor must never harm Luna!
Vizette clasped his hands together, silently drawing out powerful ancient magical energy that surged within him.
The fangs of the Runespoor were so close, they almost touched Luna's slender neck.
The gestures were executed in one fluid motion, the power gathering between the hands into a sphere of light that continuously expanded outwards...
The ball of light dissipated once again, but this time, the power did not return to Vizette's body.
In the next instant, silver-blue light permeated Luna's entire body, rapidly expanding outwards to form a spherical barrier.
The barrier shone with a dazzling silver-blue light, and when the fangs of a serpent struck it, they shattered into countless tiny pieces.
Vizette, in a moment of inspiration, pulled apart his index finger and thumb, which had been touching each other.
The barrier immediately expanded outwards, as if the Runespoor had been forcibly pushed back into the stream.
This was the first time Vizette had cast a shield spell, but the barrier was unexpectedly large.
To maintain such a massive barrier, he constantly squeezed the power of the Obscurus.
The silent creature became restless, and the chains binding it swayed constantly, as if they might break at any moment.
Hiss!
As the Runespoor returned, the three snake heads let out a synchronized hiss.
After all, this was just a shield spell, and at least for now, it was not offensive and could not cause enough damage to the Runespoor.
Just then, a tabby cat suddenly darted out from a distance.
The tabby cat leaped into the air and quickly transformed into human form.
An elderly witch wearing glasses appeared, dressed in a dark green robe and holding a wand.
She pointed her wand at the Runespoor, then flicked it gently...
The streams surrounding the Runespoor transformed into an iron cage, imprisoning the enraged serpent within.
"Merlin's beard! Thank goodness you're all alright! Healed as before!" The witch strode up to Vizette, a vibrant green light emanating from the tip of her wand.
Vizette felt a tingling sensation in his shoulder, and within a breath, the bloodstains and wounds on his shoulder disappeared completely.
"Is this magic too?" Vizette grabbed Luna's outstretched hand and scrambled to his feet.
"Yes!" The witch pursed her lips, barely showing her teeth as she spoke, appearing somewhat serious.
"You will be able to learn all of these spells at Hogwarts. Luckily I arrived in time; if you had been bitten by a Runespoor, you would probably have had to go to St. Mungo's for treatment."
"Thank you!" Vizette thanked her repeatedly. "May I ask your name, madam?"
The witch gave a faint smile. "I forgot to introduce myself! Minerva McGonagall, Professor of Transfiguration at Hogwarts."
"The Hogwarts acceptance letter. My purpose in coming here is to deliver it to you." She took a parchment envelope from her pocket and handed it to Vizette.
Vizette accepted the parchment envelope with both hands. The envelope was sealed with a wax seal, which was a coat of arms with a shield pattern.
The emblem featured a capital "H" at its center, surrounded by a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake…