LRAB Chapter 113 Lupin's Christmas Eve
Chapter 113 Lupin's Christmas Eve
Chapter 113 Lupin's Christmas Eve
It was Christmas Eve. Lupin raised his head slightly, glanced at the somewhat dim night sky, and nodded.
I wonder how Miss Hamilton spent her Christmas. Lupin smiled gently, then shook his head and gripped his wand.
You need to be careful, this is a place where that person has been, or rather, left traces.
He pushed those thoughts aside and walked lightly to the entrance of the somewhat dilapidated ruins next to the tent.
He had already unlocked the magic array here using Miss Hamilton's method, and even explored it a bit. He found traces that someone seemed to have lived there, and then saw some scattered animal bones.
This may have been left behind by that person—who wasn't prepared at the time and chose to retreat temporarily.
However, in the following days, he thought a lot about Miss Hamilton and the past he had not accepted—he was preparing to finish his mission as soon as possible and return to Hogwarts, not only because of Miss Hamilton, but also because of the boy named Harry Potter.
Lupin realized he had been shirking responsibility for far too long—he was clearly the only one who could have shown that child care in the past twelve years, and the one who most deserved to do so.
In the past, he chose to run away because of his werewolf identity, but now—with Miss Hamilton's help—Lupin shook his head and stopped thinking about it, about something he already knew the answer to.
He turned his attention back to his current work, which was to explore the magical ruins where it was uncertain whether that person actually existed.
With a few quick steps, Lupin ventured deeper into the ruins. The campfire lit at the entrance no longer illuminated this area, so he carefully wiped his wand and said, "Flicker."
As the tip of his staff emitted light, he was able to see the winding staircase leading downwards in the ruins.
He had stopped here before—even the animal skeletons he had seen last time were still here.
call--
Taking a deep breath, Lupin nodded firmly. This time he was ready, and even if he faced that person in person, he was confident he could escape.
As for defeating him—Lupin gave a wry smile; it seemed a bit difficult for a wizard like himself who wasn't very skilled.
"Pat-pat-pat-"
The leather shoes clicked crisply on the steps in the empty ruins. If that person really was here, he probably already knew about it. Or perhaps he knew about it after I opened the magic array last time.
So he's not actually here?
Lupin subconsciously thought this—he was indeed somewhat afraid of that person—so much so that he had to give himself some positive affirmations.
After all, if he already knew he was coming but still didn't leave, then this place must be a trap.
"——"
The downward staircase soon came to an end, and what came into Lupin's view was a narrow passageway leading into the endless darkness.
"Gulp—" Lupin swallowed hard, but there was no fear on his face. He raised his wand and flicked it: "Powerful Fluorescence."
As he chanted his incantation, the point of light at the tip of his staff slowly flew out and was tossed to the other end of the passageway.
The white light illuminated the dimly lit corridor and the end of the passageway.
It was a small, empty room.
It was completely empty inside.
This was all Lupin saw, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, but at the same time, he was a little disappointed.
He breathed a sigh of relief because he no longer had to worry about running into that person, but he was disappointed because it meant that his months of work had been in vain.
Lupin shook his head, thinking that Dumbledore would be very disappointed. He took a deep breath, but then coughed twice because he had inhaled too much dust.
"Cough cough cough."
His cough echoed far down the corridor, and the strange resonance made him raise an eyebrow.
I should explore carefully before leaving—what if he actually left some traces?
Lupin did not want the man to escape because of his negligence.
So he slowly approached the room at the end of the room, gripping his wand tightly.
If something suddenly popped out, he would instinctively retaliate—but this tense atmosphere quickly dissipated.
Even though his feet were already in the room, nothing happened—it seemed he had really been overthinking things.
Lupin subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief, then began to look around the room with great interest.
I don't know what this room was used for. Maybe it was used by ancient wizards to study spells?
Lupin felt surprisingly good; he even had the mind to think about these things.
The room was empty, without even a chair, except for a completely unrecognizable, corroded statue.
And the spiders that swarmed around—
"Tsk—"
Lupin clicked his tongue unconsciously. It seemed there really was nothing here. Maybe there was a magic circle here, but he decided to give up with his abilities—if Miss Hamilton were here, she might be able to study it.
He nodded slightly, making a mental note of the location. If Miss Hamilton was interested in such ancient ruins, he could bring her here next time.
Well then—this exploration has come to an end, and the Christmas Eve activities seem a bit lackluster—he couldn't help but think of Christmases he spent at Hogwarts—always so much fun—always so lively—
"Clatter".
Suddenly, a soft sound came from a distance, in the direction Lupin had come from. He was startled for a moment, then immediately raised his wand.
"Who?" he asked, his body tensing up.
"—"
No one answered him; there was only a rustling sound.
Lupin took a deep breath and flicked his wand: "Intense Fluorescence."
The light that had just flown out of the room landed in front of Lu Ping along the passageway.
That is--
Lu Ping stared at the thing in front of him, slightly taken aback. It wasn't a person, but a snake, a huge python.
Does Albania have such a creature? Lupin wasn't sure, after all, he wasn't a magizoologist, but seeing that it wasn't human made him feel much more relaxed.
This isn't as scary as a man in black holding a magic wand, right?
"Hiss hiss hiss~" As if it had seen Lupin appear, the huge python flicked its tongue and made a sound that sent chills down one's spine.
Fortunately, Lupin wasn't afraid of snakes. He gently raised his wand, ready to use Apparition to leave. He wasn't going to get entangled with any wild animals.
But just as he raised his wand, he suddenly saw the snake slowly arch its body and then twist and coil itself up—
Then, he stared in astonishment as a woman with long black hair poked her head out of the snake, as if by magic, the python had transformed into a woman in a long black dress.
She was a very beautiful woman, with Asian features, but she looked somewhat strange. Her expression was slightly distorted, and her eyes, ears, and the corners of her mouth twitched slightly, as if they did not belong to their owner.
"Ah—." Lupin stared speechlessly at the scene before him. So—so this is an Animagus?
"Hello—Miss?" Lupin pursed his lips and chose to greet her first, but at the same time he tightened his grip on his wand.
"Hiss!" The woman hissed immediately upon hearing the sound, then her expression became even more contorted: "Help—please—help—me—"
"You..." Lupin instinctively took a few steps back after hearing her voice. Even he was genuinely startled by the scene before him.
"Hiss—ha—hiss—" The woman struggled to lie on the ground, and then her body began to twist again. As her body coiled up in a strange arc, a snake slowly reappeared in front of Lupin.
Lupin stared at the snake, unsure what to do with his wand. He didn't know if it was friend or foe, or whether he should help it.
"Hiss!" But it seems the snake doesn't have that much emotion.
It suddenly arched its body and then charged towards Lupin like lightning.
"He collapsed to the ground!" Lupin, seeing this, didn't have time to think and instinctively raised his wand and flicked it.
Unfortunately, the swift red spell did not strike the python; instead, it dodged it with its elusive crawling motion.
Seeing this, Lupin quickly took a few steps back: "Phantom—"
Before the incantation was finished, the python lunged at him. Lu Ping tried to dodge, but there was hardly any space in the narrow passage, so he could only lean back instinctively, and the python crashed into him.
"Bang!"
A soft sound came, and Lupin realized that it was the sound of the necklace Miss Hamilton had sent him. Clearly, the snake had triggered the magic-blocking array.
The python was bounced aside because it blocked the magic circle, and Lupin, who was lying on his back, hurriedly tried to get up and wave his magic wand.
But the passageway was too small—he didn't have time to get up.
"Hiss!" The python's fangs appeared exceptionally sharp under the glow spell, and Lupin could only raise his arm to shield himself in his haste.
"what!"
The sharp teeth bit into his arm, causing him to scream and desperately slam his arm against the wall of the passageway.
His head slammed against the wall, loosening the python's teeth and allowing Lupin to temporarily escape its venomous fangs—but—.
Lupin immediately felt a stinging pain travel from his arm to his entire body—the python was venomous.
"Hiss." Lupin gasped, trying to grab the wand that had loosened in pain, but the numbness made it impossible for him to move—his vision began to dim, but Lupin felt his thoughts suddenly speeding up.
Remus Lupin had thought countless times about how he would die. At first, he thought he would die as a werewolf amidst countless taunts and ridicule. Later, he thought he would grow old in the company of his friends.
Then he thought he would die in the battle against Voldemort, and for a long time he was numb to the thought that he would never be the same again after one night.
Until recently, he suddenly stopped thinking about this question—because he felt as if he had started a new life, a life where he shouldn't think about death, or rather, a life where he should be afraid of death.
Thankfully, he hadn't met Harry—he couldn't believe he was having such thoughts at this moment.
Then, he immediately realized that he shouldn't have made such a promise to Miss Hamilton so easily...
Lupin numbly closed his eyes, but in a daze, he seemed to see a silver figure appear in front of him.
"Mr. Lupin?!"
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