Hogwarts: Lacus doesn't want to be a witch who destroys nations.

Chapter 91 The Plan (5 chapters released)

These words instantly turned Anthony's face a deep purplish-red. He wanted to retort, but Lux's next words pinned him to the spot: "That vampire is called Eve. She only kills those who have come into contact with people who have been exposed to witchcraft. The soldiers in the military camp, your two henchmen, and you, Anthony, you are now her next target. You are the one being used to seduce the vampire."

"Impossible!" Anthony suddenly screamed, shoving Lux's wand aside and staggering back two steps. "I'm waiting for Lord Grindelwald's envoy! I'm here to rebuild pure-blood honor! How could I be bait? You're lying to me! You just want to steal my place!"

"Take your spot?" Lux scoffed. "Do you really think Grindelwald would send two of his most capable henchmen all the way to this godforsaken place just to show off your underground gang of a dozen or so members who can't even cast a Levitation Charm properly? Wake up, Anthony. Your value is just as a freshly baked, self-moving piece of high-grade bait."

Anthony's lips trembled as all the doubts he had deliberately ignored suddenly came together: the UMNO envoy was slow to contact him, Eve always found him with pinpoint accuracy, and his proud achievements suddenly seemed like a child's game in the face of death.

"No—it's not like that—" Anthony's voice trailed off as he slumped to the ground, running his hands through his disheveled hair. "I was clearly—I was clearly going to lead everyone to the light—"

"Then—what do we do now?" Anthony grabbed Lux's robe as if it were his last straw, his voice filled with desperate sobs. "She'll find me! She'll definitely find me! I'll be drained dry like them!"

"So you'll have to be useful." Lak pulled his robe back without any hesitation. "That thing reacts to Le—to the remnants of the magic of the cultist envoy. You've been in contact with those two corpses, and we need you to lure her out to a place we've chosen."

Anthony looked up, his eyes bloodshot. He glanced at the gun in Vova's hand, then at the wand in Lux's hand that could repel monsters. Finally, he collapsed under the double blow of the fear of death and the shattering of his faith.

He swallowed hard, his voice trembling: "Cooperation—how? I—what can I do?"

"Let's use her as bait," Lux said bluntly. "Eve is chasing you, so we'll find a place to set a trap and ambush her. She's too fast for me to catch her directly."

Anthony's face turned pale instantly: "A bait? You want me to go and get my life?"

"Don't worry, I won't let you really die." Lux conjured a Pandora's Box and weighed it in her hand.

"I'll set a trap. You'll lure her into the church, and Vova will keep watch around the perimeter. Once she steps into the trap, we'll make our move together."

"No! I won't!" Anthony screamed, shrinking back. "She'll kill me!"

"Oh?" Lux raised an eyebrow, twirling her wand between her fingers. "Then guess, is it faster for her to track you down from eight hundred miles away and kill you, or for me to tear you to pieces right now? Choose one?"

Anthony's scream caught in his throat. He looked at Lux's "I'm serious" expression, then at Vova next to him who looked like he thought, "She really would do that." Finally, he closed his eyes in despair, his face covered in snot and tears, and nodded heavily.

The site selection took some time. Lux rejected several locations that seemed easy to defend but could easily affect the villagers, and finally settled on the abandoned Orthodox church outside the village.

It stood alone on a snowfield, its walls mottled and its roof riddled with holes, but its structure was still relatively intact. It had only two doors, and most importantly, they were narrow enough to restrict Eve's movements.

For the next half day, Lux became the busiest contractor.

She directed Vova and several members of the Fireseed to roughly transform all the scrap metal they could find—rusty animal traps, broken carriage shafts, and even several tin buckets with holes—and leave them in the snow outside the church, which could barely be considered the first obstacle.

The real highlight is inside the church.

Since the skills given by the system are always slightly modified, Lux's test showed that five Scare Boxes can be placed without a time limit, seemingly because the boxes have a physical form.

Lux buried one at each of the entrance and exit points, and placed the remaining three next to Anthony.

After all, he was a level 14 vampire with 6,000 HP, so Lux decided to give him the highest respect.

They resort to all sorts of extreme measures: traps of justice, poisoning, ambushes, and gang fights.

If Anthony hadn't strongly objected, Lux would have wanted to give him some poison so Eve could suck his blood.

Anthony was tied to the center of the row of benches facing the gate with a rough rope, like a lamb to the slaughter.

His face was deathly pale, and he was trembling as if he had Parkinson's disease. He kept praying, his prayers ranging from Orthodox saints to Merlin and then to Merlin's great-uncle, in a chaotic manner.

"Save your energy," Lux patted him on the shoulder as she passed by. "Praying to the gods is less helpful than praying to my box."

Everything was ready, and the atmosphere was as oppressive as the calm before a blizzard.

Lux huddled in the shadows behind the side door, while Vova and two of the bolder members hid behind the confessional on the other side.

Time passed second by second, the sun set, the moon rose, and the mournful sound of the cold wind whistling through the air remained.

Suddenly, Anthony, who was bound, let out an extremely suppressed whimper, as if he were being choked, and frantically gestured with his eyes toward the door.

coming!

The church's broken wooden door was smashed open with a loud bang, and a white figure flashed in instantly.

It was Eve. Her black dress was torn in several places, revealing skin as pale as paper. Her eyes were devoid of any light, only a hollow, blood-red glare. Her gaze was fixed directly on Anthony.

Anthony's expression changed drastically. He tried to run away but was firmly tied to the stool by ropes.

She moved.

Like a black lightning bolt, she rushed into the church.

Just as her foot touched the church floor, with a soft "poof," a box painted with a clown's face suddenly sprang up from the ground, emitting a sharp and eerie "haha" laugh.

Eve paused noticeably, a hint of shock and fear flashing in her blood-red eyes.

She didn't know why she felt a strange fear of the clown box, and even had the urge to run away.

Especially noteworthy is the image of a blonde little girl behind the clown box, raising her arms and shouting, "Folks, she's terrified of me! Grab your weapons, let's gang up on her!"