Chapter 145: The Expected Ambush
However, this ambush had been anticipated by Phineas and the others.
Rather than saying the vampires ambushed Phineas and his group, it would be more accurate to say Phineas and the others ambushed the vampires. After all, while the vampires were making their preparations in response to the apparent panic of Phineas's side, Phineas was preparing for their ambush in turn. In short: I predicted your prediction.
The vampires may have planned to eliminate Phineas and his group at once—hence the use of Apparition-blocking magic—but this only gave Phineas an opportunity.
He intended to use this chance to capture every vampire involved in the ambush.
If everything went as expected, the old-school vampires would have received intelligence about this movement, and a significant number of the reformist high-level vampires would now be present.
If all went well, this might bring an end to the vampire civil war.
"As expected. Let's begin," Phineas said calmly as he looked at the vampires surrounding them. He turned slightly toward Lisa.
Lisa nodded and signaled the wizards nearby.
At once, they stopped forming a protective circle around Phineas. Wands drawn, they launched coordinated attacks on the vampires in every direction.
Unlike during the battle at the castle, this time they refrained from using the Killing Curse.
Phineas raised his wand and began casting. The ground before him shifted and changed. Thanks to the Gryffindor inheritance he had recently received, his Transfiguration skills had improved significantly. He could now cast intermediate-level Transfiguration silently.
At that moment, he was altering the terrain—transforming soil to help his allies resist the Killing Curse from the vampires.
The Killing Curse cannot be blocked by ordinary spells or magical artifacts. However, because it lacks a guaranteed effect, if an object can intercept the curse's trajectory, it can be stopped.
That's exactly what Phineas was doing—creating obstacles to intercept the spells. He did not attack directly. Any vampire who tried to get close was swiftly subdued by Puff, using house-elf magic triggered by a snap of her fingers.
Because Phineas had clearly stated he wanted many captives this time, Puff refrained from killing any attackers. Instead, she used control magic similar to Stunning Spells.
House-elf magic differed significantly from that of wizards. There were no incantations or gestures—the effects were shaped purely by intent.
With Puff guarding him, Phineas had effectively become a wizard who could cast spells uninterrupted.
His wand moved fluidly through the air, graceful and precise—almost like a musical sprite dancing. There was a noble elegance to his every motion, a sharp contrast to the chaos erupting across the battlefield.
Streams of mud, transformed from soil, flew through the air under Phineas's control, weaving between combatants and binding vampires one by one.
However, mud is still mud—it lacks the hardness and durability of metal. High-level vampires, empowered by the transformation from human to vampire, possessed strength well beyond human limits. With effort, they began to tear through the restraints formed by Phineas's masterful Transfiguration.
Phineas noticed this immediately.
He watched calmly as several vampires broke free and surged toward him. He didn't panic—not only because Puff stood ready at his side, but because he had expected exactly this outcome.
From the moment he had begun using soil Transfiguration to support his allies, Phineas knew it would not be enough to hold back enhanced vampires.
His true aim had been to buy time—for the magic he was about to cast next.
Turning his wand downward, he stabbed it into the ground.
His expression grew solemn, the veins in his face tense with concentration, as he gripped the wand tightly and pulled upward as though lifting something vast and heavy.
The wand seemed fused to the earth. But as Phineas exerted his magic, massive amounts of soil separated from the ground.
It spun upward in a reverse whirlwind, twisting into the air from the wand's tip.
The vortex climbed higher and higher as Phineas continued raising his wand.
By now, the high-level vampires had closed within several feet. Puff prepared to snap her fingers again—
"Wait," Phineas said, stopping her.
Because his magic had finally taken shape.
"You're quite lucky," he said, looking at the approaching vampires. "This spell took over two months—from inspiration to theory, to research and final formation. Today marks its first appearance. You're fortunate to be its first test subjects."
His wand spun again, twirling like a baton. The soil it controlled now surged outward, circling Phineas like a protective spiral.
In that instant, everyone—wizards and vampires alike—seemed to sense something.
They paused.
Every eye turned to the twelve-year-old boy in the center of the field, to the magic wand dancing in his hand, and to the swirling storm of soil.
Even the vampire lunging toward him halted, staring wide-eyed at the boy and feeling the thick, oppressive pressure in the air.
One thought overtook them all:
Run!
They had to flee, or they would never get another chance.
But thoughts are faster than the body—and by the time their instincts reached their limbs, it was already too late.
The soil surrounding Phineas expanded—no longer enclosing just his body, but the entire battlefield.
The spinning vortex intensified into a full-scale whirlwind. Sand and stone flew across the field, lashing the faces and bodies of all caught within.
Then Phineas's wand stopped spinning, settling back into his grasp.
The whirlwind dissipated.
But the soil did not fall randomly.
It moved deliberately, as if guided by will, flowing inward from every corner of the field—toward Phineas.