great-warnovel Chapter 286 Intermittent Buzzing
Chapter 286 Intermittent Buzzing
Chapter 286 Intermittent Buzzing
As the professor predicted, Snape and a few werewolves alone were not enough to stop Lily and Barty from leaving.
The day after the battle ended, the two-way mirror connected to Lily started ringing.
"I have arrived outside the castle, but for the sake of the purity of the ritual, I cannot enter the school until it is completed. The barrier will sever my connection with the Black Lake, and the magic in the castle will leave me with too many chaotic auras." This two-way mirror is a new product from Beauxbatons, capable of transmitting sound simultaneously, essentially a wizard's video phone.
Her expression was normal, her clothes were neat, and her voice sounded steady, as if Snape's sudden appearance had not affected her.
"I found a cave under the lake cliffs on the east side, and I will hold the ceremony here after everything is ready."
To prevent the news from leaking out, Hermione was the only person in the headmaster's office besides the two headmasters, Moody, and James. They listened quietly to Lily's voice coming from the two-way mirror.
"Can't we hold it back in the castle? That would increase the danger." James frowned.
But that's how magical rituals are, especially since this is a massive ritual aimed at purification; the rigorous process increases the success rate of the ritual.
"But the bad news is that Snape found us. Although we managed to escape with Barty Jr.'s help, he knows what we were doing."
Lily's expression was serious: "I've tried my best to hide the cave's location and erased the scent to confuse the tracking spell, but I can't guarantee he won't come looking for me again."
That was Snape, after all; he had improved quite rapidly under Voldemort's tutelage.
Dumbledore and McGonagall exchanged a glance, then Dumbledore coughed lightly and said, "In that case, it's time for you to know."
Even Moody looked confused, except for Hermione.
"Snape has been in secret contact with me, and he's on our side."
James jumped up: "That snotty-nosed brat!?"
"He's actually on our side!?"
His expression was one of utter disbelief and disgust.
Even Lily on the other side of the mirror was so shocked that she was speechless for a moment, silently lost in thought.
"Oh my god, that's pretty unbelievable." Moody paused for a moment, then said with a hint of delight.
"But this is good news, isn't it? Since Snape is one of us, it doesn't matter if he finds out."
He probably won't tell Voldemort or Greyback, right? He could just say they couldn't find them.
"That guy's a Slytherin, is he really reliable?" James was still muttering to himself, unable to change his mind anytime soon because of old grudges from his student days.
"We rescued Neville and the others entirely thanks to Snape's intelligence. Otherwise, how much important information do you think Mundungus, a newcomer to the Green Flame, could possibly know?" Dumbledore shook his head.
"Ha! Fletcher, he's really tight-lipped when it comes to keeping things from me!" Moody muttered under his breath. As the leader of the Order of the Phoenix's external struggles, he didn't even know Mundungus's real contact.
"Whether Snape is credible or not, he didn't find us alone; he was accompanied by many werewolves," Lily's voice rang out again.
She composed herself and said, "No matter what he thinks, I don't think he can completely hide our actions."
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"We need to be prepared for the ceremony to be interrupted."
These words made everyone fall into deep thought again. With others present, Snape couldn't very well lie through his teeth, so he could only assume that Greyback already knew about the purification ritual.
"He'll definitely try his best to find Lily's location and focus his main efforts on destroying the ritual," McGonagall said, pursing her lips. "He might not be able to find me; werewolves can't smell me." Lily said.
Her potions were more effective against enemies with a keen sense of smell, and her only worry at the moment was Snape, but now that she knew he was one of her own, she felt relieved.
The fact that the werewolves couldn't find her, and that Snape would likely only go through the motions, greatly increased her confidence in the cave's secrecy.
"But we still need to be prepared for the worst; we can't rely on Barty alone in a critical moment," Dumbledore said.
"Is he there now?" James asked.
"He leaves false clues elsewhere, which can mislead the enemy's investigation," Lily replied.
"It's rare for this guy to put in this much effort; it's all because of Hermione's magic, I suppose," Mr. Potter snorted.
"We can also send wizards to set up defenses in some decoy locations to lure Greyback into dividing his forces, and then we can retreat in time," Moody suggested.
"The mermaids have suffered heavy losses and should be unable to launch an attack for a short time. We can send some members of the Order of the Phoenix out to let the wizards from the Spells Research Magazine fill the gaps in our defenses."
McGonagall nodded in agreement: "I think it's a good idea too. What we lack now is time. As long as Lily can complete the purification ritual, the Black Lake will no longer be a threat, and even that giant squid—"
"If it could regain its senses and help us fight, everyone recalled the scene they witnessed that afternoon: a giant squid the size of a mountain, larger than a sea monster with a horse's head and a fish's tail."
It was almost exactly the real sea monster described in novels that caused the shipwreck.
Not to mention that the mermaids could offer help in return, the giant squid alone was enough to keep the werewolves from easily approaching the water's edge.
Hermione touched her nose a little guiltily. She had shattered one of the giant squid's tentacles with a single shot, and she wondered if the big guy would hold a grudge.
Dumbledore nodded: "You can arrange the manpower, Alastor. Thank you for your hard work these past few days."
Moody shook his head. He had followed Dumbledore for so many years and had never complained. His sense of justice and ideals were what drove him to fight on.
After leaving the principal's office, Hermione hurriedly went to the Great Hall and ate a few bites of food.
However, she unusually had little appetite. During the nearly day-long battle, she didn't play a significant role much, mainly controlling the Radiant Core to eliminate threatening targets.
Compared to others, she hardly felt tired.
She also longed to become a fearless battle maniac, charging into the monster horde and wreaking havoc, or unleashing a terrifying celestial disaster to bury everything around her in ice and snow.
But she can't do that yet. Unbeknownst to her, she has already become one of the leaders of this school. In this formal situation, which can be described as war, no one will allow her to take any risks easily, even though her strength far surpasses that of the others.
But it is precisely because she has such strength at such a young age that others hope she can grow up safely.
"Hermione, let us join the battle outside the castle next time! Casting spells together in the tower is so boring!" Harry and the others complained as they gathered around.
"Dad and Godfather are fighting in the sky outside, Mom is setting up the ritual somewhere, and I can only cooperate with the others to maintain the magic circle and infuse magic power—"
All of this made the war-crazed boy extremely frustrated.
"You think I don't want to?!" Hermione rolled her eyes and viciously bit off the rat's leg.