Imina strode forward with the confident click of her brown high-heeled boots, her long legs crossing the courtyard with purpose. Without so much as a greeting, she sat down across from Lyle and slapped a bulging coin pouch onto the stone table with a loud thud.
"All here—sixty-one silver coins and seven coppers. Every single one of the hundred healing potions you gave me has been sold....
In the outermost ring of the Central Residential District sat a two-courtyard home.
The building was an intriguing blend of Byzantine and European architectural styles. Though the house itself wasn't large, it boasted a surprisingly spacious courtyard.
The entire place exuded a certain refined elegance—well, it would have, if not for the wild overgrowth of weeds in the yard and ...
By the time Lyle left the workshop, his pouch was a good deal heavier—an extra 100 gold coins jingled at his side. Combined with his previous earnings, his savings now totaled 700 gold.
The herbs he had gathered from deep within the Forest of Tob had turned out to be even more valuable than he'd anticipated.
This sparked a bold thought in his mind—perhaps he could take control...
Lizzie's Workshop.
A modest but renowned alchemy shop run by the Bareare family, specializing in all kinds of healing potions.
Unfortunately, business hadn't been great lately.
Thanks to the mysterious happenings deep within the Great Forest of Tob, the Adventurer's Guild had yet to provide any clear information. As a result, the number of adventurers going out on expeditio...
"It was a scroll."
The rasping, grating voice of the Alliance Master broke the silence, like fingernails across metal, as he listened to the account of his subordinate's demise.
"A scroll? Are you sure?" Khajiit blinked, still struggling to process what he'd just heard.
Revived from death, Khajiit felt weak to the core, but oddly… more clear-headed than he'd ever been in ...
Lyle stepped onto the crumbling stone steps of the ruined temple, stopping beside the corpse of Khajit. The stench of blood hung heavy in the air, thick and tinged with rot.
Khajiit's decapitated head had rolled to the side, eyes wide open with bitter resentment, as if even in death he refused to accept his fate.
Lyle let out a quiet sigh—not out of pity, but rather surprise. At...
Lyle stared at the information revealed by the appraisal spell, his brows rising in surprise as his eyes flickered with intrigue.
"If this magic artifact was man-made, then fine," he muttered. "But if it formed naturally… now that would be something else entirely."
In this strange world, naturally formed magic items did exist. One example was "The Frost Pain," one of the four sa...
Khajiit's disbelieving, shrill voice echoed through the graveyard, his face twisting into an expression of pure terror.
In the distance.
Six fiery Archangels radiated blinding light, making them the only source of illumination in the graveyard.
An invisible pressure surged.
Khajiit's throat spasmed as beads of sweat appeared on his bare forehead.
If the scene ...
Two Flame Archangels?!
The confident smile vanished from Khajiit's face, replaced by a frown of genuine concern.
Two? That's not right. He had assumed the summoning of dual Guardian Angels earlier was thanks to some rare magical relic. But summoning two Flame Archangels at once? That threw his theory right out the window.
Which could only mean one thing—this man was at le...
In an instant!
A pulse of overwhelming magical energy burst out from around Khajiit, forming a wave of pure negative energy that swept outward in every direction like a shockwave of death.
Lyle's eyes narrowed sharply as he instinctively braced himself.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The wings of his two Guardian Angels flared open behind him and, with a soft hum, positioned themse...
The first thing to emerge from the underground tunnel was the smooth, bald head of Khajiit. The necromancer's cold gaze swept past the gaps in the surrounding zombies, staring directly toward the outside of the temple.
Barren gravestones and skeletal trees filled the landscape. Not a single undead could be seen.
Khajiit's eyes narrowed.
He had intentionally stationed severa...
Bang! Bang!
Two bursts of white light flared to life.
Twin Guardian Angels wielding long spears materialized at Lyle's sides, their forms glowing with divine radiance.
"Khajiit's abilities… I know a bit about them," Lyle murmured, eyes narrowing, "but what he's shown in public may not be all he's capable of. Someone with his record wouldn't reveal all his cards."
H...
Ghosts—remnants of deceased witches and wizards—are the final traces they leave in the realm of the living.
They can still speak, walk, and move about freely.
But because they chose the most meager form of continued existence, ghosts are unable to enjoy anything—no delicious food, no beautiful ornaments, no warmth or touch.
…
At this moment, Hermione was in s...
Eighth Floor, Headmaster's Office, Hogwarts Castle
"Albus… what should I do?" Professor McGonagall's voice trembled. "I was the one who took her and her parents to Diagon Alley. I was there when she bought her wand…"
"And now I have to tell them their daughter died at Hogwarts…"
Unlike before, when she had been holding back her emotions, the moment she stepped into th...
The moment the Killing Curse was unleashed, Ino instinctively dove into the sanctuary.
It wasn't that he didn't trust Fawkes, but having just fought Voldemort, the sight of that green, death-laced light triggered a deeply ingrained reflex—an automatic reaction to evade.
And yet, just as he retreated, he caught a glimpse of a familiar figure stepping in front of him.
It wa...
Wizards are often driven by emotion.
Their deep regard for feelings, their willingness to invest in them, makes them remarkably sensitive—and at times, even irrational.
This trait also leads them to cherish emotional connections more than ordinary people.
Throughout history, this has been reflected in countless individuals:
Lily's sacrifice, Snape's enduring love, ...
There seems to be only one constant in the world: everything changes.
If there were truly something unchanging, it would be that nothing ever stays the same.
At Professor McGonagall's insistence, Ino had now spent two full days in the infirmary.
Though there had been numerous attempts to visit him, nearly all were turned away by Madam Pomfrey—including even the Minister o...
"Professor! Please, just hear me out—this really isn't necessary."
Inside a spotless, ten-square-meter hospital room, Ino sat upright on the bed, voicing his final protest to Professor McGonagall.
"Lie down. Now," she ordered sternly, ignoring his objection. After a brief pause to rephrase herself, she added,
"You just… you weren't yourself a moment ago. Not at all."
When all was said and done, and the chaos gradually gave way to silence,
The snow, too, ceased its delicate waltz.
At some unknown moment, it quietly withdrew from the stage of Hogsmeade.
Leaving behind a world cloaked in white, so serene it felt as though time itself had frozen—
A beauty so still, it was almost heartbreaking.
With Voldemort's departure,
Ino slowly drift...
Hogsmeade Village
One hundred feet above ground
The moment Voldemort sensed the aura of annihilation, he instinctively attempted to Apparate away.
But as expected, Amelia's preparations were effective.
Finding himself unable to Apparate, he genuinely felt a flicker of regret—regret for provoking someone so thoroughly unhinged.
After all, this kind of annihil...
The fierce battle in the sky raged on.
But whether it was Professor McGonagall or Mad-Eye Moody on the ground, neither knew how to intervene, even with their wands in hand.
It was a moment of helplessness—one that carried a deep, sorrowful weight.
Then, suddenly, a series of soft cracks echoed around Moody as figures began appearing out of thin air all around him.
...
On the winding path to Hogsmeade—
Professor McGonagall's expression turned visibly rigid the moment she spotted a familiar figure hovering in the distant sky.
There was no mistaking that silhouette.
A single man, responsible for plunging the entire British Isles into more than a decade of darkness and fear—Voldemort.
"Orim, go with Filius and help evacuate below....
During the Christmas holidays, Hogsmeade was usually calm and peaceful.
But today felt... different.
Sure, snow was a common sight this time of year, but it rarely fell so heavily—and continuously—as it had since noon.
…
Outside, a blizzard howled, blanketing everything in white. Inside the cottage, all was silent and still.
Perhaps it was due to the rec...
Hogwarts, During the Holiday Break
Even though many students had chosen to visit Hogsmeade, the castle remained unusually lively.
Gryffindor Common Room
With a flash of orange-red light, Hermione suddenly appeared in the common room.
"Merlin's beard!" Ron exclaimed from a corner, staring in shock.
But when he saw who had arrived, he muttered under his breath, ...
Hogsmeade, wrapped in a faint chill, was gently blanketed by the snowflakes that had suddenly begun to fall.
High above, the drifting snow drew Mad-Eye Moody's gaze to the sky.
"You two, head back on your own. I'll pretend I didn't see anything."
Moody's gruff voice cut through the cold air as he addressed two clearly underage students, no older than third-years.
The...
The Christmas Ball had lasted until midnight.
Though dancing was no small exertion, the young witches and wizards of Hogwarts seemed to carry around their own supply of energy potions. Even after hours on the dance floor, many were still reluctant to stop when the final song ended.
Perhaps, for many, especially the seventh-years about to graduate, this ball would remain one of the...
The dormitory was quiet.
Rick was still tirelessly unwrapping presents, the constant rustle of tearing paper echoing softly in the room.
But Ino had lost all interest in opening gifts.
Although he had earlier pieced together Voldemort's underlying strategy, what truly lingered in his mind was a growing understanding of Snape's position.
Was Snape a brilliant man? Wit...
Inside a dormitory piled high with Christmas gifts—
As the Boggart slithered back into the shadows, Ino's tense expression gradually softened.
The parcel wasn't cursed or hexed as he had initially suspected. In fact, it only carried a faint trace of dark magic—just a lingering aura rather than an actual spell.
With his concerns dismissed, Ino casually unwrapped the parc...
A dimly lit chamber.
Snape sat silently at the desk. Compared to human hearts, he trusted potions more.
Just like that night, fifteen years ago.
Godric's Hollow.
Everything that happened there felt absurd—too coincidental, as if it had all been meticulously orchestrated.
Since that night, he had stopped trusting people altogether.
Even now, when he wa...
"Oh my…"
Hermione covered her mouth, letting out a soft gasp of delight.
Inside a four-inch gift box lay a set of jewelry shimmering with the gentle glow of moonlight.
The first thing that caught the eye was a stunning necklace. The chain was delicately woven from fine strands of silver, and at its center hung a smooth, teardrop-shaped moonstone pendant.
Even thoug...