Chapitre 128: Trap Setup

Meanwhile, Alex had already left the area, cloaked in disillusionment. The moment Raven II triggered an alert at the outer wall, Alex acted swiftly, slipping into a fireplace and concealing himself. He directed Raven I to hover outside a window on the third floor, ensuring he left no traces of his presence.

Through careful observation, Alex deduced that the house's outer walls, windows, and doors were heavily protected by alarm and defense spells, making external breaches nearly impossible. A looking glass hung on the second floor, likely enchanted to monitor any unusual activity. The inner walls and fireplace, however, seemed free of such protections. If he wanted to infiltrate without setting off alarms, those were his best options.

In his mind, Alex sketched a detailed, three-dimensional map of the house, analyzing every possible route. After evaluating the risks, he nodded to himself. The plan was feasible, and the success rate looked promising. All that was left was preparation. Alex quickly returned to the Leaky Cauldron, securing a room for the night. Tom, the innkeeper, greeted him warmly and even waived the fee, pleased to have his company.

Not long after settling into his room, an owl named Tailwind arrived with a message. Augusta had received Alex's earlier note, and the arrival of the owl confirmed her acknowledgment. Alex gave the owl a fond scratch on the head. "You've done well," he said softly. "Rest here for now. There's still work ahead, so don't let me down."

After feeding Tailwind some water and nuts, Alex cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself and slipped out through the window. Outside, he unfurled a map of London, scanning for his next target. Moments later, his eyes lit up, and he set off toward a specific location. His destination: a small warehouse stocked with medical equipment and chemical supplies.

Back at the Leaky Cauldron, Tailwind dozed peacefully. A few hours later, as darkness blanketed the city, the sound of the room's window creaking open startled the owl awake.

With a chubby owl perched on his arm, Alex walked downstairs as though nothing unusual had happened. Once in the kitchen, he prepared an impressive spread of dishes, cooking enough to fill the table for himself, Tom, and Tailwind. The aroma of the food wafted through the bar, catching the attention of lingering customers, who kept glancing over curiously.

Tom, the bar's owner, joined Alex at the table, chatting with him while savoring the delicious meal. Their conversation and dinner stretched leisurely into the evening, only wrapping up after nine o'clock. With a satisfied sigh, Alex stood up, bid Tom goodnight, and headed back to his room with his owl in tow.

Once inside, Alex got straight to work. He went to his desk, pulled out some parchment, and began writing letters. After sealing the last one, he turned to Tailwind, speaking in a serious tone. "Tailwind, tonight's mission is critical. I'll attach a messenger claw ring to you in a bit. Pay attention to the signals I send—just like we practiced in the Forbidden Forest. Got it?"

Tailwind, who had never seen his master so solemn, stared at Alex with wide eyes before nodding firmly. "Good. These two letters are your top priority." Alex held up two white envelopes. "If you get a signal from me tonight, it means things have gone wrong, and I need backup. Deliver these immediately—one to Moody and the other to Dumbledore at the Ministry of Magic. Understood?"

Tailwind tilted his head, clearly processing the instructions, and gave another nod. Alex then picked up two brown envelopes. "Now, if you receive two signals, it means the operation is going smoothly. Deliver one of these to Moody at the Ministry by 6 a.m., and take the other to Rita Skeeter at the Daily Prophet by 10 a.m. Make sure she acknowledges receiving it personally."

Tailwind's feathers ruffled slightly as he tilted his head again but nodded, showing his understanding. Finally, Alex laid out the last contingency. "If you receive three signals, it means the operation can't proceed, but the enemy hasn't found me. In that case, you don't need to do anything tonight. Just take this final letter to Augusta tomorrow afternoon. After that, head straight to Longbottom's house and wait for me there. No coming back early, understood?"

Tailwind bobbed his head enthusiastically. Alex repeated the instructions a few more times, making sure his owl was clear on the mission. Once satisfied, he sorted the letters neatly on his desk and patted Tailwind gently on the head.

After preparing everything, Alex cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself, grabbed his equipment, and climbed out of the window, disappearing into the dark night.

Diagon Alley was quiet under the moonlight. The streets were mostly empty, save for the occasional wizard walking briskly through the alley. Most of the shops had long since closed their shutters, leaving the area eerily silent.

Hovering just a foot above the ground to avoid leaving tracks, Alex moved swiftly and silently toward the house where five Death Eaters were hiding. The building was dark and unassuming. Emmeline Vance, who had been monitoring the location earlier, was now nowhere to be seen.

Not knowing if the Aurors had gone home or were still hiding nearby, Alex carefully scouted the area, checking several possible surveillance spots. Once he was certain no one was watching, he summoned a raven and sent it to the third-floor windowsill to observe.

The raven reported back through their shared vision: four of the five guest rooms had their curtains drawn and lights out. The fifth room, dimly lit, revealed Yaxley sitting at a desk under the glow of an oil lamp, folding a letter and sealing it in an envelope. After finishing, Yaxley stretched, removed his coat and shoes, and climbed into bed, wand in hand. Before lying down, he flicked his wand toward the window, drawing the curtains shut.

"They're sleeping fully armed—ready to bolt if something happens," Alex murmured, impressed by their preparedness. Keeping his Disillusionment Charm active, he slipped into a narrow alley beside the house and waited.

Half an hour later, convinced they were asleep, Alex floated silently up to the roof. Summoning another raven, he sent it down the chimney to scout the third floor while the first raven remained on the windowsill, keeping watch.

Raven No. 2 flitted through the shadows, noting that the looking glass from earlier had been moved to the third floor. However, it remained inert, failing to react to the raven. After circling the third floor and confirming there were no traps, the raven returned to Alex on the roof. "Good, their nighttime defenses haven't changed. Time to get started," Alex muttered, exhaling slowly to steady himself.

Alex worked swiftly. A bundle of plastic hoses in various shapes and sizes floated silently in the air under his control. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he manipulated them carefully, keeping noise to an absolute minimum. First, he attached a thick industrial plastic hose to the gas cylinder, securing it tightly. On the other end, he installed a diverter, connecting it with meticulous precision before lowering a rubber hose slowly down the chimney.

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Chapitre 129: Asphodel

With the groundwork laid, Alex summoned several ravens. Each bird clutched bundles of thin tubing in their talons or beaks, fluttering silently into the third floor through the chimney. Upon arrival, the ravens sprang into action. Two of them adjusted the thick tube, pulling it carefully out of the fireplace, while the others busied themselves connecting the thin tubes to the diverter. The connectors were secured with metal nuts, forcing the ravens to tighten them one by one using their beaks.

By the time the setup was complete, Alex was drenched in sweat. Controlling multiple ravens simultaneously while remaining completely silent was no easy feat. He allowed himself a moment to catch his breath, his chest rising and falling heavily.

Once the tools were ready, Alex directed the ravens to carry the thin tubes to the doors of each bedroom. With painstaking care, he guided the tubes through the cracks under the doors, one room at a time, ensuring not to disturb the doors and risk triggering an alarm. His hands trembled slightly from the strain, but he kept his focus sharp.

When all the preparations were complete, Alex opened the valve on the gas cylinder. Asphodel vapor began to flow through the main pipe, the diverter, and the thin tubes, seeping into each room. He glanced at his pocket watch, mentally calculating. "Inhaling this at a concentration of 3% for more than two milliliters will cause unconsciousness," he murmured under his breath. "Judging by the size of these rooms, they should be out cold in three minutes. Just to be safe, I'll wait four. Can't afford any mistakes." His gaze darkened. "Let's hope none of them have heart conditions. If they do... well, that's their bad luck."

*Asphodel is main material for Draught of Living Death. Its properties are associated with sleep, death-like states, and potent magical effects.

Alex recalled his earlier reconnaissance of the house. The rooms had been restructured with temporary magic, creating five uniform spaces that didn't quite fit properly within the frame of the house. This made the doors loose, with wider gaps at the bottom—perfect for his plan. The windows, sealed tightly, made ether the ideal choice to incapacitate his targets.

When four minutes elapsed, Alex quickly shut the valve and sent a raven to peck lightly at one of the doors, testing the reaction. No movement. He repeated the test twice more, but the house remained eerily silent. A small grin broke across his face. "Looks like it worked," he muttered, wasting no time as he disassembled the gas setup. After securing the cylinder and putting on a gas mask, Alex prepared to move in.

Using a floating spell, Alex hovered up to a window overlooking the third-floor living room. A quick unlocking spell opened the latch, and he slipped inside. Warning magic flickered faintly, indicating that the house's defenses were still active, but Alex wasn't worried. Their masters were already unconscious.

The magical surveillance device—a spinning glass orb suspended in the living room—emitted bright flashes and sharp whirring noises, alerting anyone nearby of a breach. Alex froze it effortlessly with a spell, its frantic movements halting instantly.

Moving quickly and efficiently, Alex bypassed the flickering lights of warning spells and unlocked the nearest bedroom door. Inside, a Death Eater lay unconscious. Without hesitation, Alex snatched the wand from the sleeping figure's side and bound him with a spell. A flick of his wrist opened the windows, allowing fresh air to rush in and disperse the lingering ether. The volatile fumes made him uneasy; any spark could ignite them.

He repeated this process in each of the five bedrooms, taking wands, binding the unconscious Death Eaters, and ventilating the rooms. Once the task was done, Alex moved the incapacitated individuals to the second floor, ensuring they were out of sight, and closed the curtains. Only then did he begin dismantling the house's security spells.

The Death Eaters appeared to have inhaled an overdose of Asphodel, remaining deeply unconscious. Alex checked their vitals—no signs of life-threatening harm. Satisfied, he turned his attention to the house itself, layering it with silencing and shielding spells to prevent any noise from leaking out during the next phase of his plan. By the time he finished, his pocket watch read midnight. "Six hours until dawn," he muttered, steeling himself for what came next. "I'd better get moving."

Alex approached the unconscious Death Eaters, his face calm but his movements brisk. From his pocket, he retrieved an enchanted hammer he jokingly called the "No Damage Hammer." Without hesitation, he delivered a smash to each of them, jolting them awake.

"Ahhh!" The room erupted in screams and panicked cries as the Death Eaters stirred, their eyes wide with fear and confusion. Alex stood over them, his face illuminated by the dim light of the room, a sly grin spreading across his lips. "Good morning," he said casually. "Let's have a little chat, shall we?"

Everyone was jolted awake by a sharp, searing pain. In the dim light, they could barely make out one another's faces, but no one could figure out what had happened. Just moments ago, they had been sleeping. How were they now lying on the cold, hard floor of the second floor? Struggling to rise, one of them realized he was restrained by thick, glowing chains of magic. No matter how much he squirmed or tugged, he couldn't move an inch.

Suddenly, the room was bathed in light. A glowing orb of magic hovered above them, illuminating the space like daylight. The sudden brightness stung their eyes, forcing them to squint and shield their faces before they could adjust. The light revealed a sparsely furnished room with a single shelf on one wall, filled with strange and ominous tools.

The sound of metal clinking together broke the tense silence. A calm yet unsettling voice followed, dripping with mock courtesy. "Oh, sorry about that," the voice said. "I forgot you all can't see in the dark. Let me fix that for you."

As their vision adjusted, they saw a young man standing casually near the shelf. He had dark hair and a handsome but cold face. The tools on the shelf beside him were far from ordinary—pliers, long metal picks, a device resembling a clock, chains, a thick syringe, and empty potion bottles lined up neatly. Each item seemed more unsettling than the last.

"Who are you? What do you think you're doing here? Let us go! Someone, help!" Karkaroff shouted, panic rising in his voice as he struggled against his chains. His eyes darted around the room, looking for any sign of escape.

The young man, Alex, didn't even flinch. He continued to arrange the tools in his hand, his tone calm and almost amused. "Help?" he echoed with a small chuckle. "You think help is coming? That's cute."

Yaxley, his face red with anger, snarled, "You filthy little worm! Do you even realize where you are? How dare you barge into the Travers family's private estate! You must have a death wish!"

But before Yaxley could continue his tirade, another voice cut through his rant. "Enough, Yaxley." Torquil, calm and calculating, spoke up. "You're just wasting your breath. This boy clearly planned all of this. Barking at him won't do us any good." Turning his gaze to Alex, he added with a smirk, "We've met before, haven't we? King's Cross Station, wasn't it? What's your goal here?"

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