Hogwarts: Dumbledore reigned over the wizarding world

Chapter 185 Chaos and Traitors

If someone had been observing this affluent area from an overhead perspective, they would have seen the street where Kingsley and Lupin were enveloped by a sudden, massive explosion curse.

At the same time, the fighting also spread throughout the region.

No one knows exactly how all of this happened, including Donald Graves and Jacob Graves.

The two brothers scanned the houses standing in the darkness with shocked eyes, the screams coming from all around them like a curse assaulting their consciousness.

what happened?

Crack!

The sound of space distorting made the two and the surrounding Aurors instinctively point their wands in that direction. Then they saw a blood-covered figure burst out of thin air. He had split into two parts, and his lower body was gone.

But the wizard's vigorous vitality kept him alive!

Upon seeing Donald and Jacob, the wizard, coughing up blood, struggled and cried out, "Vice Minister, it was Jack... Captain Jack betrayed us! I saw him kill Gerald, Maria... Merlin..."

betray?

What unfamiliar words these are!
This had never happened to the Aurors before, for a simple reason: they all shared the surname Graves, they came from the same family, and under the system of aristocratic politics, Graves's rule over the Department of Magical Security was not just a figurehead position.

But now is clearly not the time to get to the bottom of things.

"Healer! Come quickly and treat Daniel's injuries!"

He ran over with two Aurors and cast a simple healing spell to barely stop the bleeding of the Auror named Daniel.

Donald suppressed his fear of the situation spiraling out of control and tried to manage his emotions.

As an Auror commander, he had extensive experience in handling unexpected combat missions, and this approach quickly proved effective.

When the accompanying therapist arrived and took over Daniel's care, Donald had calmed down and made a preliminary assessment.

There is no doubt that they are in a bad position right now.

When they first made their tactical arrangements, their goal was to surround William's residence. But now, with Jack Graves' betrayal, those tactical arrangements have turned into an encirclement against them!

Scanning the empty street where they were, Donald quickly made a judgment: "It's too open. Once those traitors complete their first wave of attack, they can attack here at will from the surrounding areas. We can't stay here any longer... Tom, gather all the Aurors who know the Mist Charm and create enough mist to cover a 50-foot radius as soon as possible!"

"Yes!"

One of the Auror captains agreed, and soon he and more than ten Aurors began chanting incantations, thick mist spewing from the tips of their wands.

As the fog spread, the traitors in the distant houses also noticed the strange occurrences. Some of the traitors who had already eliminated their targets fired spells in this direction.

But Donald had already made arrangements, and Jacob led the remaining Aurors, keeping watch over the surroundings.

They erected an ultimate armored spell, a thin, faintly glowing shield that blocked the scattered spells.

Donald quickly unfolded the parchment, and the writing on it refreshed like a waterfall:

[A large amount of magical fluctuations detected]

Offensive magic detected.

[The Auror team has suffered heavy casualties; Team 3 is completely silent; Team 4 is in abnormal condition; Team 5...]

[Deputy Minister Donald, what happened?]

On the other side of the parchment was the intelligence gathering agency of the Department of Magical Security, who had been transmitting intelligence about this area to him. They were also the direct contact agency for the Dreamcatcher Administration.

Donald stared at the parchment, at the last question that kept updating, and hesitated.

Dreamcatchers can detect every detail of an area, but Jack's betrayal, at least before the Big Bang Curse that bombed Lupin and Kingsley, meant he hadn't seen any unusual reports on the parchment.

He knew, of course, that the dreamcatcher was not omnipotent; it clearly could not see into people's hearts.

But Donald, who had just experienced betrayal, had to consider something even more terrifying—if Jack could betray the intelligence agency on the other side of the parchment, what about the intelligence agency?
Even more serious is the Dreamcatcher Management Bureau...

Shaking his head to shake off his unease and doubt, Donald produced a quill and wrote on the parchment:
"Jack Graves has betrayed us. Immediately transfer the intelligence to Congress. At the same time, in my capacity as Deputy Minister of Magical Security, I authorize you to temporarily command the Dreamcatcher Administration and activate the Dreamcatcher Space Blockade Protocol: Apparition Charm Banned in Boston!"

Donald's forehead was slightly sweaty as he wrote the order.

He was worried about whether there were traitors on the intelligence agency's side, and also because this order meant that he was putting his own fate, as well as the fate of all the surviving Aurors around him, on the edge of a knife!
But he must do it.

The faint sounds of battle around him hadn't subsided. He needed to find a way to rescue the Aurors, but before that, he first had to ensure the enemy couldn't use Apparition to easily infiltrate the battlefield—

This would prevent traitors from sending people into the street to create chaos.

It can also prevent the forces that support their betrayal from sending reinforcements!

Yes, Donald has determined that Jack's betrayal was a conspiracy orchestrated by a third party.

Jacob's fears came true; William, and the leak of the classified documents, were a bait.

They lured Congress, the Aurors, the WAC, and the Federation to appear here simultaneously to compete for classified documents.

"In the mastermind's plan, they wanted to see us fight with the WAC and the Federation over classified documents, even to the point of death and injury, and to create hatred. It should be said that their plan almost succeeded. The guy behind the scenes knew Michael very well."

"But they didn't expect that I would refrain from using force first after being persuaded by Jacob. Of course, more importantly, the WAC and the Federation didn't fall for it either... Vaughn Weasley..."

Donald felt a mix of emotions as he thought about the little bit of information that Nymphadora Tonks had inadvertently leaked not long ago.

When exactly did that 12-year-old wizard, whom we've never met before, see through the conspiracy?

.........

"Just as you predicted, there was indeed a hidden rat."

In the distance, neon lights illuminate the hotel rooftop.

Akinbad stood beneath the enormous sign, bathed in a dark red light, gazing out into the heart of the city as the neighborhood plunged into complete darkness.

The darkness was far from peaceful; flashes of light, representing various spells, would suddenly appear and then quickly fade away.

Intense magical fluctuations, as perceived, spread and expanded like chaotic ripples, sweeping across the night sky.

"It was a fierce battle. It seems the Magic Council has been heavily infiltrated, and quite a few Aurors have betrayed us."

"Yeah, I didn't expect that either."

Akinbad turned around and saw the shadow under the water tower behind him ripple. Vaughn, dressed in a long robe, stepped out, followed by the Guardian at his feet.

It seemed to have expended a lot of energy, its form appearing somewhat thin. Akinbad glanced at it: "Just summoned it back from over there?"

"Ah."

"What's the situation?"

"Fortunately, Lupin and Kingsley reacted quickly and were not seriously injured."

Akinbad shook his head: "You're too kind. Sometimes sacrifice is necessary for certain purposes. If you always worry about the safety of your subordinates, how will you be able to act decisively in the future?"

Vaughn glanced at him but said nothing.

People have different views, so there's not much to say. Akinbad has been running his business for decades, and in his hometown, he has countless subordinates in the federation. Compared to his political ambitions, human lives are indeed "insignificant."

"Are your men ready?" he changed the subject and asked.

Akinbad nodded: "They've already joined up with your men at the location you specified."

"Yes, inform them, tell them..."

The conversation suddenly stopped, and Vaughn looked up at the sky, which, in Akinbad's view, was empty.

In Vaughn's eyes, it was not a dark sky, nor was it just a place with drifting thick clouds. The entire sky was colorful, with translucent "ribbons" hanging down from the clouds, swaying and wriggling, as if an invisible giant beast was hidden in the stacked clouds.

It is reaching down its tentacles, touching the city!
For the past few days, these tentacles have been tightly enveloping the hotel where he is staying, probing every subtle movement within the hotel, not letting any information slip by.

However, at this moment, they finally left.

Those "ribbons" swept across the city, smooth and long, like curtains fluttering in the wind, filling the field of vision with their translucent light and shadow. Even so, there was still more hanging down from the sky.

The colorful light grew brighter and brighter.

Vaughn saw that some ribbons suddenly disappeared into the air... no, they were merging into the space!

The Dimensional Gate has significantly improved Vaughn's Apparition proficiency:

【Phantom Transformation LV3 (22/24)】

His increased proficiency in spells, coupled with his experience in developing dimensional gates, made him increasingly sensitive to changes in space. He could sense that as more and more ribbons disappeared, the space of the city was undergoing some kind of peculiar change.

They become more "stubborn," harder to twist or reverse, and harder to respond to the wizard's will!
“Spatial blockade…?” Vaughn murmured.

"What..." Akinbad was about to ask when he suddenly paused, then looked at Vaughn with a strange expression: "How exactly do you practice magic? I've used Apparition my whole life, and I still don't know as much as you do?"

"Just practice."

Vaughn gave a perfunctory reply, ignoring Akinbad's twitching expression, and muttered, "That Auror commander over there is even more decisive than I expected!"

"Heh, I should say I'm even more soft-hearted than you. A truly qualified commander, in the current situation, should prioritize getting the Aurors around him away from the battlefield as quickly as possible to preserve their strength. This should be more important than blindly rushing to rescue them!"

Akinbad instinctively retorted.

Both of them were astute, and the moment they sensed the spatial blockade, they understood the Auror Commander's intention in ordering Dreamcatcher to prevent Apparition.

Vaughn turned a deaf ear to his outrageous remarks, even though, from a rational standpoint, there was some truth to what Akinbad said.

After sensing for a moment, Vaughn twirled his wand in his fingers, gently stirring it in the air.

As he moved, Akinbad sensed the invisible ripples created by the disturbance in space, and he knew that Vaughn was trying to restore spatial magic.

But he wasn't optimistic.

Akinbad struggled to pull out his brick-like phone, muttering, "I need to tell them to fly over as soon as possible. Those damn Yankees, they're just troublemakers. Apparition is so convenient... Hello? Can you hear me?"

The signal seemed to be bad. The old wizard slapped the phone a few times and complained to Vaughn, "Don't waste your energy. The Dreamcatcher's blockade is equivalent to an enhanced Anti-Apparition Charm. Unless you know fairy magic, you can't break through it. All you're doing is interfering with my signal."

However, his complaints went unanswered by Vaughn. Upon hearing him mention "signal," Vaughn nodded and murmured, "Hmm, signal, an interesting analogy… Isn't normal Apparition like a signal transmission and reception mechanism? Wizards communicate with space using strong will and magic, causing space to respond and change. The principle of the Anti-Apparition Charm is to interfere with this transmission and reception mechanism, preventing space from responding to the wizard's will… This is similar to frequency interference. The magic of fairies, house-elves, and magical creatures is unaffected because they use a different 'frequency' than wizards…"

"..."

Akinbad thought Vaughn was crazy.

Just as he shook his head, preparing to walk away to make the call, he heard Vaughn's whisper carried on the wind: "By making some modifications to the original parameters, we can temporarily bypass this problem. Ordinary wizards can't do it, but I happen to be able to..."

"Science, or rather the methodology of science, is indeed the primary productive force!"

What kind of absurd rumors are these?

As an octogenarian wizard who had been exposed to Muggle doctrines, Arkinbad instinctively wanted to refute such "rebellious" words.

But the next second, his eyes widened.

In the hazy, neon light, he clearly saw that as Vaughn's wand swept across the room once more, a smooth, strange vortex suddenly appeared.

It is so strange that it looks like a vortex, a circle, a sphere, but upon closer inspection, it looks more like a columnar channel with only its cross-section exposed!

A passageway to another space.

It wasn't an illusion, because he could clearly feel a wind, different from the one on the roof, that seemed much damp, blowing out from the sphere and the passageway.

Splash! Splash!

He heard the sound of the ocean waves!
.........

"Apparition has been disabled!"

"Damn it!"

"Hahaha, coward Donald, all you can do is pull these petty tricks. Has anyone seen where he is?"

"He's still near that house, but he's already hidden inside the mist spell, coward!"

The fog spread, and mocking voices echoed from all around, but Donald paid no attention, continuing to look at the various intelligence updates on the parchment in his hand.

He was forcibly controlling his attention, because rather than responding to those traitors, he wanted to use intelligence analysis to figure out how to rescue more Aurors.

However, time and the enemy did not give him many opportunities.

A sudden explosion rang out in the distance, followed by a deafening roar. A woman's voice laughed loudly, "Marcus, you pathetic fellow, why are you still struggling? Donald has already given up on you, why don't you consider surrendering? As long as you swear to betray the Graves family, Jack and we might consider taking you in... Of course!"

The man's voice suddenly became loud, as if he had cast a loud spell: "There are others. Perhaps in your eyes now, Jack and we are traitors, but that's just because your thinking hasn't opened up yet. You're used to thinking about problems according to your habitual thought patterns, and you're used to seeing things from the perspective of the Graves family, as a member of the family."

“But my brothers and sisters, is habit always right? When you consider yourselves part of the Graves family, swearing to share its glory and its shame, how has the family treated us?”

“How do the esteemed patriarchs of the family… no, I should say the main line, usually order you around? Tart of Team 2, do you remember how you got injured two months ago? In such a short time, I'm sure you haven't forgotten. It was dear Lady Adela who sent you to Arizona to hunt ptarmigans, simply because dear Lady Adela wanted to get ptarmigan tail feathers to decorate her new hat!”

“Jacob, honey, are you there? I noticed you were injured before we left. Your chest isn’t healed yet, right? I heard Michael beat you up badly and broke your ribs. My God, what a miserable life. Michael wasn’t even that rough with his dog!”

“Oh, and of course you, Marcus, the story of your father and mother…”

"enough!"

boom!
Another roar came from that side.

Donald's hand holding the parchment trembled, not from being startled by the sound, but because he suddenly realized the true danger these traitors posed!
Marcus, don't be affected!
No!

Sweat beaded on his forehead, but unfortunately, fate did not turn in the direction of his prayers. From the place where the roaring sound came, there were several rapid, whistling sounds of incantations cutting through the air.

Marcus's angry shouts were replaced by screams of agony.

The woman laughed loudly and triumphantly.

A few breaths later, a dark shadow came flying from afar. Amidst the swirling mist, one could vaguely make out that it was a human body.

He collapsed about 20 feet away from Donald and the others, convulsing violently. Some kind of high-pressure liquid gushed from his body, filling the air with a strong, metallic stench.

At the same time, the crisp sound of high heels stepping on the ground gradually approached, until they reached the convulsing body.

You can vaguely see that she is a tall, slender woman.

She kicked the human body at her feet and clicked her tongue in dismay: "Poor Marcus. When we played together as kids, I worried that his mentality wasn't suited to be an Auror. Look, I was right. He's been too influenced by his Squirrel mother. He's insecure, cowardly, and sensitive... Donald Donald, don't you think?"

"Evelyn, you damned vile woman—"

Since the Mist Curse spread, the wizard named Tom, who had been guarding Donald's side, couldn't resist drawing his wand.

Jacob quickly grabbed him.

In the distance, Evelyn, who had heard the curses, shook her head: "Tsk tsk, Tom, my dear cousin, it's really hurtful that you're slandering me like this. Let's talk about your family and what you've been through, okay..."

Her voice stopped abruptly.

A red light pierced through the mist, which she flicked away with her wand, but it also interrupted her words.

It was Donald who made the move!
He knew he couldn't let the other person continue. He had been limited in his thinking before and hadn't realized the impact of Jack and the others' betrayal.

He didn't know the real reason for their betrayal, but they could fabricate a "reason," and based on the fact that they all shared the same surname and background, they could easily find the pain points of their former colleagues and evoke empathy.

Donald noticed that when Evelyn spoke, most of the Aurors around him had been listening attentively.

"They might just want to know why Evelyn betrayed them, but when Evelyn recounts Talter's ordeal, the resonance begins... because their ordeals are real, and the betrayal gradually takes on the guise of class conflict!"

Thinking about it, Donald gave a wry smile.

Is Evelyn's statement reasonable?

some.

Let alone ordinary Aurors, Donald should ask himself if he felt resentment and anger when he learned that Michael had hit Jacob.
Over the centuries, how much anger has been accumulated by the main branch's control and oppression of its branches?

It's just that these angers can't be vented normally, but today, no matter what the reason for the betrayal was, Jack and Evelyn really showed the Graves what "resistance" means!
"Ugh……"

With a sigh, Donald flicked his wand, and a silent spell rained down on Evelyn.

At the same time, he cast a loud spell on himself: "I am Donald Graves. All Aurors who hear my voice, do not believe Evelyn's spells. Do your best to preserve yourselves, and find an opportunity to mark your location. I will personally lead the rescue team. I mean what I say!"

As he spoke, he waved his hand, summoning a gust of wind that blew into the thick fog to pinpoint the location of the survivors and to help them see him and build their confidence.

This would undoubtedly expose oneself.

But he had no other choice!
The wind howled, sweeping over the shattered cement on the ground, whipping up his trench coat, and gradually peeling away the thick fog, revealing clearer vision.

Finally, he unleashed a disarming spell, forcing back Evelyn, who was already overwhelmed by his relentless attacks, with a thick red light. Donald sighed, adjusted his top hat, and addressed Tom, Jacob, and the Aurors who were looking at him from the left and right:

"I'm sorry, everyone, I didn't ask for your opinions. Please wait until after the rescue is complete before you speak!"

A strong wind swept through, and as the thick fog dissipated, the streets and Aurors were completely exposed.

In the darkness, countless complex, malicious, fanatical, and indifferent gazes were cast upon him. Meeting those gazes, Donald straightened up, not shrinking into the protection of the Aurors, but standing alone at the front of the line.

Just as he said, whether he stayed to save people or not, he had to expose himself to give others confidence in order to deal with Evelyn's provocative words.

It was all his decision alone; he didn't consult anyone in the team.

Naturally, he should be the first to bear the consequences!
Donald raised his wand, but instead of stopping the gale, he uttered two short spells that made the wind even fiercer and more violent.

Countless cement, soil, and gravel were hurled into the air by the gale. Amidst the flying sand and stones, Donald discreetly flicked his wand. A cloud of sand flew past, with a few glints of cold light hidden within, rushing towards Evelyn along the wind's trajectory.

Having just recovered from the shock of the disarming spell, Evelyn saw a gust of wind carrying mud and sand rushing towards her. Without hesitation, she dragged over a piece of debris and instantly turned it into a shield to protect herself.

Dangdang Dangdang!
A series of crisp metallic clanging sounds rang out, and Evelyn's face paled slightly, but she still chuckled: "Vice Minister, as expected of you, your fighting style is still as cunning as it was 10 years ago when we first became Aurors."

Donald remained silent with a stern face, but swung his wand more and more fiercely, blasting Evelyn away with two consecutive blasting spells.

At the same time, his intuition sensed an unusual movement approaching him from the left.

Donald stopped his pursuit, abruptly turned to the side, and an invisible object slicing through the air brushed past him. The next instant, out of the corner of his eye, he saw the concrete road behind him tremble violently, as if a piece of white paper had been struck by a high-speed whip, shattering in an instant.

Smoke and dust billowing!

"Severing Spell..."

Despite nearly being sliced ​​to pieces, Donald remained calm. He silently recited the name of the spell he had just used while reviewing his memories to analyze which traitor could have used the Severing Spell to such an effect.

Soon, a name came to mind.

His hand holding the wand moved unconsciously, spinning and lifting, the complex movements completed in an instant. The still-blowing wind had a wisp of turbulent current obeying his call, swirling in his palm.

The immense suction force instantly drew in the smoke and dust behind them.

The transformation magic was cast silently.

Donald waved his hand, scattering the dust he had gathered in his palm toward the direction from which the attack was coming. The white dust spread in the wind, and the countless particles that made up the dust magnified at a speed visible to the naked eye.

In just one second, they had transformed into a "meteor shower" of huge rocks, crashing down upon them.

A scream came from the other side, the shadow twisted, and a person hurriedly emerged, running frantically, trying to escape the range of the meteor shower.

His pupils reflected the fleeing figure. Donald remained expressionless as his wand glowed with a fiery red light, and the Great Explosion Spell was about to take shape. He was ready to blow the other person to death!
Then, he suddenly coughed.

"Cough cough cough-"

A sudden, violent cough interrupted his incantation. Donald felt as if his lungs had suddenly grown a fine hair, unbearably itchy, and a foul, putrid odor emanated from his trachea, mouth, and nose, as if his body had suddenly aged and rotted inside.

"curse!"

New enemy!

As soon as the idea came to him, Donald turned his wand upside down and tapped himself, casting the universally applicable spell "Immediate Stop" on himself.

While Curse Stop cannot remove the curse, it can suppress the intensity of the curse's onset during intense battles.

The instant the itching subsided, Donald twirled his finger, flicked his wand back, and suddenly pointed it to his right. Distracted by the curse, he couldn't maintain his silent spell technique, so he loudly recited the incantation:

"His true colors are revealed!"

A dazzling light exploded!

The ripples of light suddenly expanded outwards, the darkness dissipated, and the invisibility magic was also dispelled at the same time.

The same shadow, the same wizard hiding in the shadows—the moment Donald appeared, he had already unleashed a blast spell.

A massive, burning fireball hurtled down, and the man hastily raised his armor spell. Donald's other spell was already forming in his hand. Whether the wizard could withstand the Explosion Spell or not, his defeat seemed inevitable.

But Evelyn, having regrouped, has arrived!
The witch dragged over a pile of broken walls and ruins, the faint glow of her transformation magic flickering constantly. The various weapons and animals that the remains transformed into swarmed towards Donald, forcing him to abandon the spell he was about to cast and instead focus on defense.

The situation in the battle suddenly reversed.

Donald's expression finally changed, but it was bitter. Three wizards, three different attack methods, complemented each other, trapping the enemy in three ever-changing combinations of spells, forcing them to think of defensive strategies and running around in a frenzy.

He was very familiar with this triangle tactic.

The members of the Graves family have been trained in this tactic since they awakened their magic, and their past achievements have proven that it is very reasonable and efficient!
He never imagined that one day he would be trapped by this tactic.

All of this actually happened very quickly, in less than 10 seconds, but even though they realized that Donald was surrounded and in a bad situation, Jacob and the Aurors were unable to come to his aid for the time being, because they were also being attacked by the traitors.

Ordinary Aurors are not as powerful as Donald and do not enjoy the triangle tactics package, but because their enemies are their compatriots who have trained and grown up with them, the two sides are not only close in strength, but also know each other's routines and spell casting habits very well.

For a time, they were locked in a fierce and evenly matched battle, unable to extricate themselves from the fray.

However, in doing so, three people seemed to be subconsciously overlooked...

Beside the road, in the corner of a house that has become ruins.

Tonks stared wide-eyed at the battlefield outside, her excitement evident in her constantly changing hair color.

"Wow, these Aurors are all so strong!"

"What kind of spell is that? Is it some kind of American magic? It's so pretty and colorful... but it stinks. It's a curse..."

"Crushing Curse! Crucifixion! Merlin's socks! The witches who have been hit are in so much pain, their faces are contorted in agony!"

"Ahem!" Kingsley coughed and said helplessly, "With all that energy to shout and yell, could you please take care of us two injured people?"

"Oh……"

Tonks reluctantly left the half-open window, ran back to the two of them, and blinked, "What should I do?"

"I have broken ribs and a broken leg. Please reset them for me. Lu Ping also has broken ribs and needs to be reset and immobilized. The things are in my pocket... Don't rummage through them. There's also a gilded box. Take it out..."

Under Kingsley's direction, Tonks hastily searched for the tools to reset and fix the device.

(End of this chapter)