Rudy Mont sat quietly in the Auror Office, his posture relaxed but his mind alert.
His official identity was now that of an Auror of the British Ministry of Magic. To the outside world, he was a loyal public servant tasked with maintaining order. But within the Fire Serpent Party, he held far greater authority. He was a squadron leader, commanding more than two hundred brothers who answered directly to him. These men did not merely follow orders—they believed.
"Monty, quitting time!"
Kingsley Shacklebolt walked over and gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. Over the years, many people had remarked that Rudy resembled Arya, the former high-profile wizard whose name still occasionally surfaced in whispered conversations. But Rudy Mont's fluent, natural French accent, combined with the scars and weathered marks left on his face from years spent living as a low-level wizard, successfully deceived everyone around him.
More importantly, Rudy Mont was the Count's man.
And besides, Arya's alleged crimes had already been "cleared" many years ago. Officially, Arya was nothing more than a faded name in dusty files—unofficially, he was long since under the Imperius Curse. No one had any reason to pursue the truth, nor the courage to do so.
Rudy stood up and followed Kingsley toward the exit.
"Mr. Shacklebolt," Rudy said casually, "things have been far too peaceful lately. Such a major incident occurred in Merlin City—by all logic, the aftermath should have been chaotic for months. Yet there hasn't been a single serious case."
Kingsley smiled, clearly pleased.
"That's all thanks to Minister Dentis. It's truly remarkable to have Count Dentis leading us."
Hearing others praise his leader always filled Rudy with a quiet sense of pride. He nodded approvingly as they walked through the corridor.
"Tomorrow is the day Merlin City's second phase ascends," Rudy continued. "I'd like to request half a day off. Do you think Mr. Scrimgeour will approve?"
"Hahaha!"
Kingsley laughed heartily.
"How could he not? I wouldn't be surprised if all of you former attendants of the Count planned to ask for leave on the same day." He waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry. Us old-timers will hold the fort. Nothing will go wrong. Of course—if something truly unexpected happens, you'll need to return immediately."
"Of course," Rudy replied smoothly. "It's all for the people."
Kingsley paused mid-step.
"For the people?" he repeated, frowning slightly as he turned the phrase over in his mind. "That's an interesting way to put it."
Rudy chuckled awkwardly. He had been too excited and had accidentally blurted out a slogan he was accustomed to using within the Party. Fortunately, Kingsley did not dwell on it.
In Rudy's eyes, Kingsley Shacklebolt was far superior to Rufus Scrimgeour.
Take the Count's latest scheme, for example. Scrimgeour had participated in the initial stages of property speculation, driven by greed and short-sighted ambition. Now he had lost everything. With no home of his own, he was forced to live inside the Ministry of Magic with his wife and children, waiting for next month's salary before he could even consider renting a modest residence elsewhere.
Kingsley, on the other hand, had lost money when the pure-blood families first issued bonds, but he had wisely avoided the second wave of speculation. Although the Shacklebolt family had never been much wealthier than the Weasleys, their character was beyond reproach. They understood restraint and knew how to control their desires.
Most members of the Order of the Phoenix were not bad people at heart.
…
…
The second phase of Merlin City was about to ascend.
Not metaphorically.
Literally.
Crowds gathered from all directions, filling every open space, waiting for Minister Dentis's command. Those who had lost everything—those whose status had become dangerously uncertain—came as well. Even in desperation, they refused to miss this moment.
The Floating City.
This was the ultimate romance of wizardkind.
Even as their lives teetered on the edge of collapse, they were unwilling to look away from something destined to be written into history.
As they stared at properties that had once belonged to them, emotions churned violently in their hearts. Regret, bitterness, envy, disbelief—it all blended together.
They could not understand one thing.
Why had those great Chinese pure-blood families refused such prime properties? The prices had already been lowered dramatically. Any rational investor would have seized the opportunity.
After today, the British pure-blood families would be forced to cooperate with the "mudbloods" they had long despised. And then there were the wizards from other regions—
It was rumored that Gellert Grindelwald had escaped from prison just yesterday. He had done so openly, brazenly, once again raising the banner of the Witchcraft Party. Vida Rosier, who had been stationed in the East, immediately chose to return and pledge her allegiance to him.
Perhaps following Grindelwald would be a viable path.
After all, it was becoming increasingly difficult to survive in the Wizarding World. But if the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy were overturned, they could enter the Muggle world openly—and live lives of luxury there.
Once, they had vehemently opposed breaking the barrier between the two worlds. Now, they wished the Wizarding World would be exposed immediately.
In front of Muggles, they could still be the elite.
At exactly nine o'clock in the morning, the bronze bell in the central hall of Merlin City rang.
The sound echoed across the land.
Several kilometers away, Molly Weasley, standing at the Burrow, heard it clearly.
She still had housework waiting for her and no time to attend the ceremony in person. Fortunately, her home was close enough that she could witness the ascension from afar.
She stepped outside and looked toward the horizon.
Above Merlin City, a dense swarm of black dragons circled in the sky.
Count Dentis was clearly among them.
He leapt from Big Butt's back and, amid the collective gasps of the gathered wizards, descended slowly and gracefully until he stood before the monument at the very center of the second phase.
"The hour has come,"
Count Dentis declared, his voice calm and commanding.
"Merlin Floating City—ascend."
The monument erupted in dazzling magical light. The glow surged downward into the earth, and in an instant, complex and orderly magical patterns spread across the ground like a living network.
With a thunderous roar, the earth shook violently.
The tremor lasted seven or eight seconds before gradually subsiding. But within the second phase, fierce winds began to howl. For a brief moment, everyone felt their bodies grow heavy—then, seconds later, the sensation vanished, replaced by the uncanny feeling that the sky itself was drawing closer.
From her vantage point, Mrs. Weasley saw everything with terrifying clarity.
A massive chunk of land—only slightly smaller than Merlin City itself—rose from the ground and shot straight into the heavens. Even from kilometers away, its sheer scale was enough to steal her breath.
The Floating City rested upon a gigantic inverted cone of earth. Soil and stones cascaded downward like rain. At the very tip of the cone was a massive, transparent crystal—clearer than glass, yet far more profound.
Only wizards who had studied ancient magic would recognize it for what it truly was: a magic crystal formed by the convergence of vast quantities of magical power.
For this Floating City, the Count had used more than one-third of the Grebbato magic crystals stored on the second floor of Merlin's Vault.
Could a single Grebbato magic crystal support an entire Floating City?
That idea was a lie.
To lift something of this magnitude, one crystal was nowhere near sufficient.
And besides, the Count had never intended to create merely a spectacle.
What the Merlin Socialist Republic required was an invincible war fortress.
As the city continued to ascend, violent winds swept across the urban districts. With a snap of his fingers, Count Dentis activated another spell. A pale blue, transparent barrier rose instantly from the edges of the Floating City, halting the wind as if it had struck an invisible wall.
This barrier did far more than block air currents.
With the exception of high-yield nuclear weapons, it could withstand nearly all conventional Muggle thermal weaponry.
When the Floating City reached its designated altitude, it ceased rising and began moving slowly toward the high-altitude platform at the center of Merlin City below.
As it aligned itself directly above the platform, the structure beneath began to transform. The platform reshaped itself into a funnel-like support, enclosing the magic crystal at the base of the city and locking it firmly into place.
The ascension ceremony was complete.
Dark stone beneath the Floating City began to glow faintly, scattered points of magical light shining like a star-filled sky. The illumination spread evenly across Merlin City below, which now lay partially shaded from the sun.
A wonder.
A true wonder.
For the wizards who witnessed this event, no other words could describe what they felt.
That was, until Minister Dentis spoke again—his words striking with anticlimactic precision.
"The Floating City has successfully ascended," he announced.
"Non-relevant personnel, please vacate the Floating City immediately."
The so-called non-relevant personnel were the disappointed spectators who had come only to witness history.
The relevant personnel, naturally, were the members of the Fire Serpent Party.
"And my loyal attendants," the Count continued, his gaze sweeping across the crowd,
"come to my side. We must convene and discuss the future of the British Wizarding World."
For more chapters
patreon.com/Liamlivingstone