The Butcher of Hogsmeade

Following the little elf's Apparition was an unpleasant experience for Shen Hou. It felt far worse than following Dumbledore, almost like using a Portkey. Upon landing, he felt a disorienting dizziness. Fortunately, he hadn't forgotten the purpose and danger of this trip, and the moment he landed, he forced himself to cast Quen Shield on himself and Fabian, despite the discomfort.

"Where is your master?" Fabian adapted faster than Shen Hou. After landing, he quickly calmed himself down, cast illusion spells on himself and Shen Hou, and looked around warily.

Dobby pointed hesitantly to a park in the distance. The park was next to a quiet street, on the other side of which was a similarly quiet suburban residential area.

Although the McKin family is a pure-blood family, they have always lived among Muggles. Even after their ancestral village was incorporated into the suburbs of the expanding city and underwent large-scale modern urban redevelopment, they did not move away. Instead, they transformed their old house into a more modern two-story detached house, maintaining a style consistent with the residential buildings in the same neighborhood.

Whether in the Pewter brothers' accounts or in the photographs left by Lucius Malfoy, Marlene's parents look more like a working-class Muggle couple nearing retirement than wizards.

"This is it, Marlene's house is over there." Fabian gazed at the residential area, feeling both excited and terrified. The fact that the house-elves had brought them here meant that Lucius and his Death Eater accomplices had arrived. If it weren't for today's law enforcement operation, and if it weren't for the accidental discovery of those photos, the next news they would receive about the McKinnon family would likely be devastating.

On the green space, several mothers could be seen playing with their children. A few children nearby were looking over, seemingly startled by the loud noise, but unable to see through the wizard and house-elves under the illusion spell.

Lucius Malfoy was nowhere to be seen on the green field.

"You're not lying to us, are you? Lucius really is there?" Fabian threatened the house-elf in a menacing tone, who shook its head repeatedly, too frightened to utter a sound.

"Don't worry, you're just following your mistress's orders. Mr. Malfoy won't blame you," Shen Hou patted Dobby on the back, offering gentle words of comfort. But just as the house-elf looked up at him gratefully, Fabian on the other side had already cast a spell: "Faint!"

Dobby didn't react at all and fell backward. Shen Hou supported the small body and hid him under a clump of green bushes by the roadside.

"Go and take a look, keep quiet, and don't let the Muggles notice anything unusual," Fabian instructed.

"I've always looked like a Muggle," Shen Hou said. "You might not have noticed, but I've always worn Muggle clothes. It's actually more likely that I'll attract attention when I'm walking around Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade."

Fabian thought about it and realized it made sense, so he quickly removed the illusion curse from Shen Hou.

"Lucius may have used the Disillusionment Charm like me, or he may be using the Invisibility Cloak. You are in the open, and I am in the shadows. Stay alert and be careful, as Lucius may have accomplices. They might be even more eager to kill you than they are to deal with Marlene. Hopefully, Sirius and the others will get here soon."

The two separated slightly, maintaining a distance that allowed them to support each other without being discovered at the same time, and led by Fabian, they made their way towards the residential area on the other side of the street.

The talk of catching Lucius Malfoy in the act was just something he said to appease Scrimgeour; who would take it seriously? The most important thing now is to ensure the safety of the McKinnon family.

Before the two could even reach the door of McKinley's house, a silent spell shot out from a secluded corner, struck the Quen shield, and made Shen Hou stagger, almost falling over.

The moment the shield shattered, Shen Hou's wand was already raised.

"Protego!"

An invisible "iron wall" rose from the ground, its lower edge sinking deep into the earth. With a loud bang, it left a deep rut on the sidewalk, protecting the entire front door of the McKinley farm—including Fabian, who had already reached the door—behind the wall.

The next moment, all sorts of spells rained down on the "iron wall." Under the violent collision of magic, the "iron wall" trembled and was about to collapse. A series of inexplicable thunderclaps suddenly rang out in broad daylight.

Instead of retreating, Shen Hou advanced, taking two steps forward and swinging his cane again, close to the inside of the "iron wall": "Protego!"

A new "iron wall" took shape five or six steps away, allowing Shen Hou to close the distance between himself and the enemy by five or six steps. The roads inside the residential area, including the sidewalks, were no more than ten steps wide, barely enough for two cars to pass each other; these five or six steps had already covered half the road.

"Don't let him come any closer! Don't let him near!" A terrified scream came from a secluded corner between the two houses across the street.

Fabian, who had concealed himself with a Disguise spell, stayed close to Shen Hou, discerning the direction of the voice. He struck Shen Hou from the edge of the "Iron Wall," shouting, "Shatter to pieces!"

A violent explosion occurred at the base of the wall of the opposite house, blasting out two disheveled figures.

Amidst the screams, the number of spells aimed at Shen Hou instantly decreased by two-thirds, easing the pressure on him. At the same time, Shen Hou also identified another location from which spells were being continuously fired. Taking advantage of the sudden decrease in the opponent's attack power, he took the initiative to step out of the protection of the "Iron Wall," used the Kun Seal to withstand one of the opponent's spells, and seized the opportunity to fire a "Blazing Flame."

Flames instantly engulfed all the open spaces between the houses. In the firelight, a figure in black robes was scrambling around, looking even more disheveled than the two who had been blasted out by Fabian earlier.

Just as Shen Hou and Fabian regained the upper hand and were preparing to press their advantage, a sudden explosion-like sound came from the back door of the McKinnon family's residence, startling them. Before they could decide whether to continue the pursuit or turn back to protect the McKinnon family, they heard a series of apparition-like explosions coming from the street behind them. Turning around, they saw Gideon arriving with Sirius Black, Emily, and Stoddard.

Of all the people, Sirius was the most ferocious. Before he had even landed properly, he waved his wand and charged toward the backyard of the McKinley farm. The others, fearing for his safety, could only follow him. Only Gideon turned back to help Shen Hou and the others.

"Run!" The figure forced out by Shen Hou's flames shouted to the other side, but before he could finish speaking, he was hit by Gideon's Stunning Curse and fell straight down.

The two Death Eaters on the other side panicked. One of them, disregarding everything, tried to Apparate by spinning around, but was blown to pieces by Fabian. His body spun around and fell to the ground, his limbs scattered as if flung out by centrifugal force.

The last remaining Death Eater was terrified and yelled, "He split! He split!" But he only managed to yell twice before Gideon finished him off with a Stunning Curse, and he fell down silently.

At that moment, an even more violent explosion came from the backyard of the McKinley farm, which almost echoed throughout the entire block.

"Damn it, this is going to be a big deal. Are they trying to call out the entire Muggle Mediation Committee?" Fabian muttered to himself.