Lucas slept exceptionally well.
By the time Dumbledore finally woke him up gently, it was already noon the next day.
For a moment, Lucas stared blankly at the ceiling before suddenly noticing a neatly folded note placed beside his pillow.
The handwriting was delicate and elegant.
Clearly Cassandra's.
Lucas opened the note slowly.
Lucas,
Mum and Dad arrived this morning, so I had to return home with them.
Since you were sleeping so peacefully, none of us wanted to wake you up.
When Mum heard I was almost hit by a Killing Curse, she nearly fainted on the spot.
Even while leaving, they kept talking about how they needed repaying your life-saving kindness properly.
Of course, you saved me more than once.
And you even blocked that Killing Curse for me yourself.
Don't do something so stupid again in future. How can someone casually throw themselves in front of dark magic for another person?
Also…
After hearing what happened to you, Mum couldn't stop crying.
Dad said he'll personally arrange the best room at St Mungo's and hire the finest Healers for you.
Actually, I think staying at our house would be much better than St Mungo's anyway. My bedroom is far nicer than any hospital ward.
Well…
I hope we meet again soon.
Your most important— (crossed out violently)
Your friend,
Cassandra.
Lucas folded the letter carefully before storing it inside another undamaged pocket.
For several seconds, he sat there silently.
Then he suddenly laughed softly.
Honestly, it was probably for the best that Cassandra had left already.
The place he planned going today was genuinely dangerous.
Bringing her along would only increase the risk.
At that moment, Lucas finally noticed Dumbledore sitting quietly beside the bed watching him with a smile.
"Partings," the old wizard said gently, "often exist for the sake of future reunions."
Then he added knowingly:
"And that is not always a bad thing."
Clearly, Dumbledore had already been sitting there for quite some time, patiently waiting for Lucas to finish reading the letter.
Lucas's face reddened slightly in embarrassment.
"Professor Dumbledore… I think I delayed everyone quite a bit."
He genuinely hadn't expected sleeping until noon.
Dumbledore chuckled softly.
"Not at all. The additional helpers only arrived recently anyway."
Then he stood up slowly.
"I believe we still have time for lunch before departing."
Lucas immediately followed Dumbledore outside the tent.
The chaotic campsite from last night had changed completely.
All traces of battle had already disappeared.
Even the corpses of the werewolf wizards were gone.
In their place stood several large new tents while groups of witches and wizards moved busily throughout the area.
Lucas blinked slightly.
"These are… your 'few helpers'?"
"Oh, certainly."
Dumbledore sounded perfectly calm.
"Since we still don't know the exact whereabouts of the remaining children, we'll likely remain in Albania for several days while conducting a full search."
Then he looked toward Lucas.
"And considering what those children may have experienced… I invited several Healers from St Mungo's as well."
Dumbledore pointed toward a large white tent nearby.
"After lunch, I would recommend letting Madam Pomfrey examine your condition properly."
Then he added proudly:
"She serves as Hogwarts' matron. Believe me, persuading her to work at Hogwarts required tremendous effort on my part."
Lucas coughed awkwardly.
"Actually… Professor Dumbledore…"
He scratched his cheek slightly.
"I already know where their gathering point is."
Dumbledore's eyes immediately brightened.
"Oh?"
Lucas nodded seriously.
"If we're lucky, we might find them today."
Dumbledore instantly became visibly happier.
"That truly is excellent news!"
His expression turned far more serious afterwards.
"Every day those children remain captive is another day of suffering."
After lunch, Lucas finally revealed the location Rex confessed earlier.
Naturally, he completely ignored Dumbledore's suggestion about visiting Madam Pomfrey first.
After all, based on what he remembered from the original story, once Madam Pomfrey saw the scars covering his body, she probably wouldn't let him leave the medical tent alive.
The woman once dared throwing Dumbledore himself out of the hospital wing.
She definitely wouldn't show mercy toward Lucas.
Soon, the rescue force fully assembled.
And Lucas quickly realised just how seriously the wizarding world treated this incident.
Aurors from multiple Ministries of Magic had arrived.
After all, the werewolves had kidnapped magical children from numerous countries over several years.
Previously, the Ministries lacked concrete information regarding the victims' locations.
But now?
With Dumbledore personally leading the operation and Lucas providing the enemy's coordinates, every government involved immediately dispatched elite Aurors to Albania.
This time, they intended wiping out the werewolf organisation completely.
Cornelius Fudge had only recently become Minister for Magic and currently obeyed Dumbledore almost unquestioningly.
As a result, even the British Ministry sent a large number of highly skilled Aurors.
After hearing Lucas's story, many of them treated him extremely warmly.
Because without Lucas, nobody would have discovered the imprisoned children at all.
Eventually, the group decided travelling by broomstick would be fastest.
Originally, Lucas intended simply transforming into black mist and flying ahead personally.
Dumbledore immediately stopped him.
"That ability of yours should remain secret whenever possible."
His expression became unusually serious.
"If the wrong people learn about it, the consequences could become dangerous."
Lucas understood instantly.
After all, Obscurials had terrifying historical reputations.
In the end, Lucas rode a broomstick alongside Dumbledore instead.
Before departure, Dumbledore personally cast a Disillusionment Charm over him.
The sensation felt incredibly strange.
A cool ripple swept across his skin like flowing water before his body vanished completely from sight.
Even the broom beneath him became invisible.
Lucas glanced downward awkwardly.
It genuinely felt as though only his eyeballs were flying through the air.
The hidden werewolf camp wasn't actually very far away.
After flying for a little over an hour, the disguised Auror force finally spotted the gathering site concealed deep within the Albanian forest.
As they approached carefully—
Everyone suddenly froze.
Inside the camp, a werewolf wizard was currently torturing a half-dead child with the Cruciatus Curse.
The child's screams echoed throughout the forest.
Instantly, every Auror's expression turned furious.
....
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