章節 38: Chapter 36
I sure managed to get myself tangled up in ancient legends. Oh well. At least it adds some variety to these damp, monotonous days I've been having too many of lately. A few risky adventures won't hurt now and then. But only a few — no need to overdo it.
Besides, I'm confident they wouldn't have sent me on an impossible mission. First, my name isn't Tom, and second, my death would be completely useless to my mentor. She's a very... eccentric person, and her view of modern wizards is, to put it mildly, not the best. And seriously, who else but someone as dumb as me would take on these kinds of tasks? It's not like she'd do it herself.
The rest of our journey was filled with light conversation about various trivial topics, supposedly driven by curiosity. Well, in Winnie's case, that might actually be true. By the way, I should ask her real name at some point. I doubt her mother was that creative, so it's probably a nickname. Or a shortened version, like mine.
Meanwhile, the flattery-prone bird (something my companion had also noticed) continued enlightening its ignorant guests. Slowly but surely, I was steering the conversation toward asking about the sword that lay here. It was tough, given that local legends were like a dense forest to me, but with Winnie's inadvertent help, it was gradually coming together.
...But that was just it — gradually.
We'd already covered a considerable distance at a leisurely pace, and suddenly, the forest ended. Blinking, I replayed the last few minutes in my mind and was surprised to note that it had seemed like the forest stretched on much farther.
Damn illusions. Lucky for us we were walking — if we'd been running, we'd have burst out into the open field in front of the hill.
A large hill, upon which the ruins of a castle lay, its upper part barely visible earlier.
The once-majestic structure was now overgrown with greenery, but of course, that wasn't the real problem.
The real problem was the dozens of Fomorians wandering around. And some of them had massive crossbows. The kind you could take down a dragon with. The thought of what would happen if they hit us... Only Protego Maxima could shield us. Or maybe something even more taxing from my repertoire of Dark Magic.
"Kar-r-rk..." Just in time, I grabbed the crow's beak, preventing it from cawing.
"Apologies, but that would attract those creatures' attention," I hastily explained as I released my grip.
"Kar-r-r... Alright," the familiar managed to mutter almost in a whisper. Apparently, it could be quiet when it wanted to be.
"What do we do?" Winnie caught my eye, nervously clutching her hat and pulling it further down over her head.
She was anxious, which was understandable. The question was, what do we do...
"Could you cast Tenebris Occultatio?" I asked, though considering her skill level, it was unlikely — but hope dies last.
"No, I've never tried." ...and there goes hope, officially dead. "Wait — you're planning to go down there?!"
"Yup." Looks like I'd have to clear this dungeon solo. "There's someone scarier than a bunch of monsters vulnerable to magic."
"Monsters the size of trolls, with crossbows and artifacts!" she whisper-shouted, looking at me like I'd lost my mind. To be fair, she had a point.
"Well, I'm not exactly a sweet little girl either," I shrugged. "Despite how terrifying they look, they aren't all that strong. Plenty of chimerae are more dangerous, even considering their lack of intelligence." Plus, I've got a ton of items enchanted for protection and shielding spells like Protego. I'd remembered the idea from the Weasley twins in the canon, and it turned out to be pretty easy to implement.
When my mother found out, she was impressed, but then strictly forbade me from telling anyone. She said it was a new family secret.
A pity, but as long as the adults stay out of the way, the kids can have their fun, right?
"Alright, I'm not stupid enough to change my opinion of you now. Do your thing, but I think I'll stay here. I don't have any ancient, terrifying family secrets up my sleeve." The witch spread her hands, nervously glancing at the ruins.
"No problem, I'm not forcing you. But if I don't make it back, which is unlikely but still..." I weighed the pros and cons of revealing this information and... "We believe that in a few years, there'll be a big conflict in Britain. I suggest you get out and head to the continent by then."
"Really?" she raised her eyebrows. And yes, she was only about a meter and a half tall. "That doesn't sound like public information, so... thanks for the trust."
"Don't mention it. Now, don't distract me for a couple of minutes, and please, you..." I glanced at the crow, which had been watching us with great interest the entire time. "Would you mind getting off my shoulder?"
"Kar-r-r!" That must have been agreement, because the bird flapped over to a very shocked Winnie's shoulder.
"Good. Now then..." I closed my eyes and began to focus on the emotions I'd need.
Even though only the Three Unforgivable Curses rely on powerful emotions, nearly all Dark Magic requires a calm and composed mind. Yet, emotions are still necessary. Not strong ones, but very specific and clearly defined emotions.
One of the oldest spells of Latin origin, Tenebris Occultatio, or "Dark Concealment" in its literal translation, demands from the caster a desire to vanish from the world. The caster must wish to disappear from the gaze of everyone, from all who see them, whether they be alive or dead, sentient or not, large or small, wizard or Muggle. It's about immersing oneself in a state akin to depression, where the wizard wishes to be alone because everyone else seems to see only an empty space, not them...
Drawing the required sigil in the air with my wand came effortlessly, a long-practiced motion. A pleasant chill of goosebumps spread across my body, and then I opened my eyes.
Unfortunately, this magic has its side effect — the world is temporarily washed in shades of violet.
"What the..." muttered Winnie, shaking her head involuntarily. "Does it always have such a strong effect?"
"Kar-r-r... The German is both here and not here... Kar-r-r," the crow commented, as I had anticipated, indicating it could still see me. Probably not well, but my silhouette was definitely visible. "He waved, kar-r-r," confirmed the bird, passing my gesture to Winnie without any trouble.
Sounds coming from my body would destabilize the magic. It could handle things like footsteps and rustling, but even a whisper could cause issues. The spell wouldn't fully break, but it would take a long time to recover its full strength.
"The German is gone, kar-r-r," the bird continued to comment, but I was no longer paying attention.
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