In the depths of the Armenian forest, within the temporary woodland dwellings of the werewolves.

With a soft sigh from Erina, the expressions of the werewolf wizards instantly froze.

A blade of light as radiant as moonlight extended from the tail of "Valkyrie," forming wings on either side.

Then, Erina's figure blurred, briefly disappearing from everyone's sight.

Before anyone could react, the brilliant moonlight burst forth, turning the dark forest into a silver expanse. It was as if a moon had suddenly risen in the sky, or more precisely, a mirror reflecting the silver moon had sliced through the air, cutting the sky from the ground.

Three seconds later, the girl's "graceful, tall" figure reappeared in its original position, as if it had never left.

"From now on, you have died twice."

Erina clapped her hands lightly, tilting her head and saying cheerfully.

"Therefore, please cherish your third life and tell me your answers as soon as possible."

"What are you talking about—"

A middle-aged man behind Antilicia McIntosh shouted impatiently, preparing to wave his wand.

Just then, a series of dull, rustling sounds came from all around.

Within a hundred-meter radius centered on the mysterious girl, trees that would have taken two or three adults to encircle crashed to the ground.

The breaks were neatly cut off three meters above the ground, the cuts so clean and even that it seemed as if they had always been that way.

If someone were looking down from above, they would see that a perfect circular clearing had suddenly appeared in the dense Armenian forest.

"The speed of sound in air is 340 meters per second, and in non-magical aerospace descriptions, Mach numbers are commonly used to express the relationship between an aircraft and the speed of sound. For example, if a broom's flying speed is 340 meters per second, then its speed is exactly Mach 1."

"And in half a second, Valkyrie can instantaneously accelerate to Mach 1.9. That's 1.9 times the speed of sound..."

"If these contents still sound a bit complicated, I can use a more relatable analogy."

Erina smiled at the stunned werewolves, elegantly gesturing towards the "large-scale forestry" blooming around her like flowers.

"If I wanted to kill all of you, and please don't misunderstand, I'm not targeting any one person, I mean... everyone present, then by the time you hear this sentence, I would have killed you twice over—the werewolf's body shouldn't be much harder than these logs, right?"

"Is this threat... enough?"

"Or do you think you can be faster than sound?"

"I—"

Antilicia McIntosh swallowed, not yet having formed her words.

The next moment, a series of muffled sounds suddenly rang out behind her.

The wooden cabin they had been using to "interrogate" Lockhart was shattered into pieces like scattered building blocks in an instant.

There wasn't even a piece larger than 1.2 meters to be found in the ruins, and they didn't even know how it had happened. They had only seen a flash of white light. This magic, beyond their imagination, undoubtedly became the final blow to break the psychological defenses of the werewolf wizards.

It was precisely because they were wizards that they understood how unbelievable everything happening before their eyes was.

Of course, even the Muggle-turned werewolves knew what they should do at this moment.

*Clatter.*

*Clatter, clatter...*

The sound of wands falling on the wooden planks carried particularly far in the silence.

Werewolves might have wildness hidden deep in their hearts, but they were definitely not stupid.

Under the relentless pursuit of the Aurors, those foolish fellows were either sent to prison or "accidentally" killed. They could not have survived to this point, let alone concealed their tracks and crossed hundreds of kilometers to gather in this primeval forest far from the reach of various countries' Auror forces.

As a marginalized group struggling in the shadows of society, werewolves were far more perceptive of danger than most people.

Compared to this mysterious girl who was always smiling and speaking sweetly, Gilderoy Lockhart was as harmless as a Floberworm.

"Is this... the true strength of the wizarding world?"

Romulus's right hand, holding the rifle, twitched as he looked at the smooth-cut tree rings around him.

Not far from him, the sound of the werewolf wizards' wands hitting the ground undoubtedly signaled the end of this standoff.

Ever since he accidentally became a werewolf, his world had seemed to have had a veil lifted from it. A magical world he had never imagined appeared before the eyes of this former Soviet Air Force corporal. However, for a considerable amount of time, he still held a small pride and confidence in his heart.

The magical world did not seem as developed or intelligent as Romulus had imagined. In Romulus's opinion, wizards lacked too much common sense.

Even those werewolf companions transformed from wizards might not have much of an advantage against firearms.

Werewolf wizards had enviable magical knowledge, while they possessed the experience of using technological creations.

Until this day...

A Striking Witch, dangerous, elegant, powerful, the ultimate combination of science and magic, appeared before his eyes.

No wonder those werewolf wizard companions often said that in the eyes of others, they might be wizards, but in the eyes of other wizards, they were just a group of half-human, half-beasts living at the very bottom. Even though the magical world had long developed Wolfsbane Potion, they were still the lowest rung.

Obviously, in the upper magical world that Romulus could not see, there was a realm he could hardly imagine.

Romulus suddenly remembered a rumor, a story he had heard from an old soldier.

In that bitter winter, those researchers who had disappeared from people's sight were not, as the conspiracy theories suggested, assassinated or kidnapped.

Many had actually chosen to sell their souls to the devil in exchange for enough potatoes, flour, salt, and sugar.

And it was precisely by relying on these transactions from the devil that billions of former Soviets were able to barely survive the famine, avoiding being devoured by those greedy capitalists from the outside world, and not staying in the snowy winds of Moscow along with the red flag of the hammer and sickle when the avalanche came.

Romulus took a deep look at the mysterious girl hovering in the air like an elf.

When he first saw the girl's streamlined, beautiful blue and white tail wings, he felt a sense of familiarity.

As the bright blade of light cut through the surrounding trees, shattered the wizards' interrogation room, and the mysterious girl explained "Mach," two words inexplicably popped into Romulus's mind: Barents Sea Scalpel, Sukhoi Su-27.

Perhaps, he roughly guessed where the devil came from, and where those missing researchers were now.

…………

Ignoring the werewolves who had fallen silent around her.

Erina beckoned, retrieving the confiscated wands.

"Alright, that's all for today. Lockhart, prepare to return—"

This was Valkyrie's first campaign, so it needed some spoils. Although as the Fairy Queen and the largest shareholder of Ollivander's Wand Shop, she didn't care about these little things, but in terms of proportional retaliation and symbolism, this process was quite necessary.

The full moon night was approaching, and she didn't want to face a group of irrational, pitiful fellows: it wouldn't be good if she accidentally killed someone.

*Buzz, buzz, buzz—*

Just as Erina was about to rise again and urge Lockhart to Apparate away.

The Tarot cards in their pockets suddenly vibrated a few times, becoming a little hot.

Erina and Lockhart exchanged a glance, simultaneously taking out their respective Tarot cards.

Sure enough, the borders of their Tarot cards began to flash with golden runes, like constantly flowing golden liquid, looking particularly conspicuous.

This was the initiation signal for a Major Arcana emergency remote meeting.

And at this time, the ones most likely to initiate a remote meeting would probably only be...

Erina frowned, her wand lightly touching the face of the "Fool" card, and magic unlocked, entering the temporary meeting. At the very center of the card face, two small Major Arcana titles were already suspended: "The Hierophant" and "The Tower."

Sure enough, it was these two who initiated the emergency meeting! Could there be an emergency on the Hyperion?

However, the current environment seemed a bit delicate...

Erina glanced at the werewolves around her, who were pricking up their ears to eavesdrop, and quickly said.

"This is 'The Fool,' I have found Lockhart, and there are dozens of werewolves around..."

"I know your current situation."

Before Erina could finish speaking, Grindelwald interrupted her, his voice sounding particularly serious.

"This is a trap, please evacuate immediately—"

Then, he quickly gave a summary of the intelligence analysis regarding Gringotts and the Black-Clad Wizards, the abnormal movements of the Aurors in various countries, and the possible subsequent ambushes, speaking quickly and clearly. The "dual-channel" broadcast allowed everyone to hear clearly.

As for his disagreements with Dumbledore before, they were naturally unimportant details, at least for now.

"So... the Aurors will enter the forest at dawn to conduct a search?"

"I understand. Don't worry, Lockhart and I will return immediately."

Erina occasionally asked for some details, and after Grindelwald finished speaking, she made a decision without hesitation.

"I've changed my mind, you can temporarily keep your wands—"

She casually threw the pile of spoils back to the werewolf wizards' feet, saying in a cold voice.

"Now hurry up and run for your lives. If you're lucky enough, register at Gringotts Wizarding Bank afterwards—Lockhart has told you how to apply for loans and register. The goblins know what to do. Of course, you can also stay where you are and wait for the Aurors to catch you."

"As for you, Mr. Gilderoy Lockhart, you can leave now, right?"

Erina glanced at Lockhart and then at the silent werewolves around her, her tone calm.

"The moon is about to rise, and your hero's dream should come to an end. The only thing you can do now is to think carefully about how much credit you can take for the time you wasted playing the hero today, in the deaths of those werewolves who die unexpectedly at dawn tomorrow..."

"Wait, leave now? Didn't Mr. Tower just say—"

"Yes, in order to solve the werewolf problem once and for all, the magic governments of half of Europe have joined forces to launch an all-out attack at dawn."

Erina's tone did not fluctuate at all, coldly saying softly, "So what? Do you want the Chosen Ones and the Ministries of Magic of various countries to play hide-and-seek in the forest at dawn, to see who can find the werewolves first? This is the end, Mr. Lockhart."

"The werewolves won't stay quietly in place, waiting for subsequent rescue."

"When the moon is completely full, all the werewolves present will immediately transform into werewolves and run through every corner of this forest..."

"There is only one way now, contact the bigwigs of the International Confederation of Wizards as soon as possible, such as Albus Dumbledore."

Erina paused, glancing at the Tarot card in her hand, which was still shining with golden light but not making any more sounds.

"The Ministries of Magic of various countries have laid a dragnet, and their actions must succeed this time—the werewolves will definitely be captured on a large scale. The only difference is whether they are alive or dead. If someone with enough influence speaks up to remind them, there shouldn't be too many casualties."

"But... the time now..."

Gilderoy Lockhart took out his pocket watch from his chest and looked at it.

"Yes, perhaps it's a bit too late, but at least it can have a little effect—"

Erina shrugged, slowly floating towards the sky, holding back from looking at the werewolves' bewildered eyes.

"If you really want to change something, then remember to detect these anomalies in advance next time... The Black-Clad Wizards and the Foundation possess the highest level of resource scheduling rights. I hope to know what will happen next time, not what is happening. As for this time..."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Lockhart, you had the opportunity to prevent all of this."

"If you had chosen to evacuate from the beginning and started investigating the anomalies, perhaps you could have bought some time..."

The Chosen Ones carry too much of the future, and she couldn't put all her companions in danger for an uncertain result.

Only...

Hesitating for a few seconds, Erina sighed heavily and turned back, shouting loudly to the werewolves who were still in a daze.

"What are you still standing there for? Run! Ministry of Magic officials can't monitor every corner of the forest's edge—remember not to take the main roads—"

"Wait, wait! Everyone is not allowed to go anywhere!"

Just then, a voice suddenly rang out, interrupting Erina's words.

"If... I mean if all the werewolves are still gathered in this area when dawn arrives..."

Lockhart's arms trembled, his muscles tensing as if saying these words would consume a lot of his strength.

"Can you replicate that rescue from a few months ago and lead the Hyperion to save everyone? The werewolves will be very weak after the transformation, and there will be no safety hazards after boarding the ship. As for the subsequent whereabouts... by that time, the gathering of the Black-Clad Wizards should also be completed."

"Hmm, what do you think? Are you worried about insufficient firepower?"

Erina raised an eyebrow and pointed to the cut-down giant trees around her.

"This ending sounds okay, somewhat like the Major Arcana, but the key is where is that missing 'if'?"

"I—"

"Hmm?"

"The real difference between a wolf and a werewolf lies in behavior. Real wolves are not very aggressive. But werewolves are different. Werewolves will almost only target humans. When there are humans nearby, they will attack frantically—of course, provided that the prey doesn't look dangerous."

"Before you formulate a new plan, I will continue to stay here and try to 'persuade' them not to leave."

The young "Hanged Man" sighed softly, calmly looking at the witch hovering in the air.

"So... I am that missing 'if,' Miss Fool."

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Yay! A new month! Let's set a big fLAg!

From now on, Fatty Chicken will not skip once and will write until the end of the year!