Andre Rosier had been there for a long time, hidden in the darkness of the tunnel entrance, watching everything that unfolded in the underground hall.
As to when exactly he arrived, it must have been after Terence appeared.
The tunnel wasn't wide. Terence couldn't have walked past without noticing him if Andre had been there first.
Rey had only spotted Andre at the tunnel entrance after slapping the exorcism circle onto Terence's forehead. The pain hadn't just given him a better understanding of his own body; it had sharpened his senses to a razor's edge.
This was thanks to his exceptionally resilient body and powerful soul. Otherwise, after enduring the Cruciatus Curse for so long, his soul would inevitably have suffered damage.
Upon discovering Andre, Rey didn't call him out immediately.
This guy was watching from the shadows without intervening. No matter how you looked at it, this "noble wizard" named Andre Rosier was up to no good.
That was why Rey had made his execution of the thin wizard look as effortless as possible. He needed to appear strong to make Andre wary.
Casually raising a hand and killing a man with a single flick—that had indeed surprised Andre in the shadows.
The smooth, fluid motion, devoid of any wasted effort... to Andre, it looked as if Rey had inherited the true teachings of Godric Gryffindor, the maniacal duelist.
"You don't seem surprised at all?"
Andre stepped out of the shadows, speaking suddenly. Seeing Rey so calm, he felt a twinge of suspicion.
The boy should have been surprised—just like Helena Ravenclaw, whose face registered shock upon seeing him.
Andre had hidden himself well. Terence Barrow hadn't noticed him, the thin wizard hadn't noticed him, and Helena hadn't noticed him. Logically, Rey shouldn't have been able to detect him either.
But Andre didn't know that, baptized by pain, Rey was currently in a state of peak arousal. His perception of his surroundings had transcended normal human limits.
"What's there to be surprised about? Since you knew Terence was faking the intel, shouldn't you have been here even earlier? Besides... we aren't the only ones still alive in this hall."
Rey spoke nonchalantly, but his words confused Andre.
Helena looked at Rey in bewilderment. She trusted him, but she genuinely couldn't see anyone else alive in the hall besides the four of them.
---
Andre scanned the room, his gaze finally locking onto the furthest corner of the underground hall.
In that corner, Tabos, the Ascetic in tattered robes, was crawling in a pool of blood.
He was soaked in blood—whether it was his own, or that of the werewolves and elves, was impossible to tell.
Wizards have keen senses. Having been exposed and pinpointed by Andre's gaze, Tabos stopped pretending. He scrambled to his feet, using both hands and legs.
It was clear that he bore wounds from the unleashed form of the black cloak.
His pale body looked as if it had lost a lot of blood, and the wounds hadn't fully healed. However, having avoided a fatal blow and rested for a bit, his mobility wasn't severely compromised.
After standing up, he didn't even glance at Andre or the frozen Terence. His eyes were fixed on Rey, as if terrified Rey would vanish if he looked away.
Clenching his fists, Tabos let out a roar. There was pain in his voice, but his body began to grow, transforming back into the massive form of a Fallen Werewolf.
He was resuming the transformation that had been interrupted earlier. As he changed, the wounds on his body closed up at a visible rate.
ROAR!
A massive howl echoed through the underground hall. Except for the frozen Terence, everyone's expression changed.
Tabos, now fully transformed into a Fallen Werewolf, stood on bowed legs that looked like coiled springs.
Those legs only needed to twitch slightly to launch him with the force of a longbow. That kind of explosive speed made it seem as if even magic couldn't keep up with his rhythm.
Powerful magic is useless if it doesn't hit the target. And no matter how fast a spell is, you still have to wave the wand first.
Despite the transformation, Tabos hadn't lost his mind. His eyes were clear, locked onto Rey without wavering.
His target was definite.
Rey was the culprit who had destroyed the summoning circle and caused this disaster. Tabos was the chief officer in charge of this defense.
With the circle destroyed, Tabos couldn't escape the blame. His only hope for leniency was to kill Rey, the source of the catastrophe.
---
"Interesting," Andre remarked with a tone of appraisal after seeing Tabos's transformation.
"His target is you. And what I'm going to do... is release Terence from his exorcism."
Rey stayed silent, but Andre chattered on about his intentions. He wanted to see Rey's reaction—to see what choice Rey would make.
"Who are you?" Rey frowned slightly.
He really couldn't read this Andre Rosier. If he was a Church spy, he hadn't stopped Rey from destroying the summoning circle. If he was on Hogwarts' side, he showed no intention of helping.
Now, he wanted to interrupt Terence's exorcism. His actions were unpredictable, seemingly whimsical and without clear purpose.
Tabos, now a werewolf, finally shifted his gaze, giving Andre a cold look.
He shared Rey's confusion, which was why he hadn't attacked immediately after transforming. He couldn't tell if Andre was friend or foe.
"We've met before. I had hoped you would become my assistant; I had high hopes for you. But now... I think he's more suitable."
Andre smiled as he explained, gesturing toward the frozen Terence Barrow.
Seeing Rey still didn't quite get it, Andre waved his right hand over himself. His body began to change. Unlike Tabos growing larger, Andre's body shrank.
It was like the effects of Polyjuice Potion wearing off—a twisting body accompanied by dissipating black mist.
Moments later, the tall, noble wizard Andre Rosier had transformed into a short, elderly man in black robes holding a withered staff.
"It's you!" Rey's face finally showed genuine surprise.
This black-robed old man with the withered staff was Caractacus Burke—the same little old man who had lured Rey out of the protective charm outside Stonehenge when he first arrived in this era. The same man who had taught him several dark spells.
"Yes, it is I." Caractacus Burke looked very satisfied with Rey's surprised expression.
Caractacus Burke, a relic left behind by Hell in the mortal world, surviving for who knew how many years.
When the Four Founders repaired the Stonehenge portal, the leakage of dark power had allowed him to linger in the world, leading him to find Rey.
He had sensed the pure dark magic within Rey and wanted to claim him for his own use.
But now, Terence also possessed dark magic. Although it wasn't as pure as Rey's, a person already corrupted by dark magic was naturally easier to control.
So, he needed to interrupt Terence's exorcism.
A manic Terence was the servant he wanted. Someone who could control dark magic, like Rey, wasn't suitable to be his subordinate.
---
The enemy of my enemy is my temporary friend. Tabos made up his mind quickly.
Caractacus Burke wanted to stop the exorcism, and Tabos wanted to kill Rey. It was a simple consensus.
"So, are you going to stop me? or are you going to focus on saving your own life?"
Burke in his black robes looked at Rey with a playful grin. He loved forcing people into dilemmas. He loved watching the agony of making a choice.
However, things didn't go quite as Caractacus Burke expected.
Suddenly, a white light erupted from the ground where the summoning circle used to be.
The light formed a ring—a small teleportation circle. A blurry figure flashed within the array, signaling someone was about to be transported through.
Seeing the shift in the circle, Tabos looked terrified. He let out a roar, pushed off with his powerful legs, and charged straight at Rey.
He recognized the person about to appear. He had to kill Rey, the culprit, before that person arrived.
Only then might he have a sliver of a chance to survive.