"Xiao Wu?"
Suddenly, Maka's hand trembled slightly, causing the speck of light floating towards him in mid-air to sway slightly.
Although he didn't make a sound, with Wei Li's attentiveness, she also noticed some slight changes in him this time.
Just a few seconds later, Willie, who was lying on her side on the bed, quietly closed her eyes again and did not ask as before.
And at the next moment, Maka slowly closed her eyes like Willy. When he opened his eyes again, the solemnity in his eyes was no longer there, and all that remained was his depth and calmness as before.
The alienated Acromantula Xiao Wu died, which was naturally a very sad thing for Maka, who had raised him since childhood.
Even if he doesn't actually like creatures like "spiders", once they get along with them for a long time, they will inevitably develop feelings similar to those of friends or relatives.
Of course, as far as the current situation is concerned, Xiao Wu's death is not the biggest focus.
"At least Herbo himself hasn't entered St. Mungo's yet."
After putting the light spot she was transporting into the potion bottle, Maka picked up her left sleeve and glanced at her forearm.
There, there is a blue circle composed of many small symbols.
It was just like when Maka drew it on the skin before, just like an ordinary tattoo without any abnormal changes.
After casually glancing at it, Maka gently shook off her sleeves and returned to the monotonous movement cycle.
As long as Haierbo hasn't taken action himself, he is sure that he can at least get everyone to support him and free up their hands. What's more, even those little wizards who are about to reach adulthood are no longer children who are defenseless against enemies.
He just hoped that the situation in London would not be bad enough to force Harry to pull out the Sword of Gryffindor - if he were not there, the unfolding would have a nightmare ending.
so-
"I hope the Sorting Hat can be more reliable!"
Obviously, Maka, who already knew the nature of Gryffindor's sword to some extent, could not let Harry and the others use it casually.
After all, if the sharp sword that is also the source of disaster causes trouble, it is no worse than Haierbo's Devouring Mirror.
No longer thinking about it, Maka quickly focused her attention again and concentrated on the matter in front of her.
…
At the same time, Hogwarts.
Unlike St. Mungo's, where the undercurrent is surging, this place is calm on the outside.
During the holidays after the Christmas carnival, without the chatter of many students, the professors alone would not be able to make this place lively.
Of course, given their sad average age, they probably wouldn't be in the mood to mess around.
"... Professor Sinistra, change the angle of the star map and let me compare it."
"Oh well."
In the astronomy tower, two "ladies", one big and one small, were bathing in a sea of stars. One of them was kneeling on the floor, revising a huge piece of parchment, while the other was shaking his wand to adjust the movement of the stars in the room.
Listening to the conversation between the two, you can actually tell that the lady who looks a bit older is naturally Aurora Sinister, the astronomy professor at Hogwarts.
However, the age of the "little lady" lying on the ground cannot be compared with her petite appearance. As an individual who could not even be considered a "human", alchemy gave her an extremely long life, but it forgot to make up for the deficiencies in her soul.
Her name is "Sarah", that is, the product of the supreme alchemy... who enrolled in Hogwarts for the help of Maka.
But yes... she actually prefers to be a real human girl, rather than an item that might be called a "creature".
"alright."
Suddenly, Sarah clapped her little hands and stood up.
Her smooth feet were seen stepping lightly on the parchment, and she even walked back and forth a few times, as if she was doing a final inspection of the work she and Professor Sinistra had jointly created.
"Then let's give it a try!" Sinistra said with a smile. "If it can be successfully operated, this will be a wonderful combination of alchemy and astronomy... or, in other words, 'reshaping'."
During the heyday of alchemy, this knowledge system already included astronomy. Nowadays, most of that complicated and exquisite knowledge has been lost in the past, which is something that all wizards and scholars deeply regret.
Even the formation formed by the two of them now was something that had appeared in that era.
So now, although the research they have done can be said to be "creation", people are more willing to call it a "restoration" of history.
"Yes, let's try it," Sarah nodded. "After so many attempts, the possibility of success this time is very high... I think Maka must be impatient now."
Hearing Sarah mention Maka, Sinista's smile couldn't help but fade away, replaced by a heavy look.
Of course, it was impossible for Hogwarts not to know about the disaster that broke out in London. But in order to stay at the school to prevent accidents, Flitwick was the only one who helped out in the end.
After all, there are not many professors in the school during the holidays, so it is even more difficult to find people.
"Then let's get started!"
Sinista also nodded slightly, and then waved his wand to instantly cancel the sea of stars in the room, and the surrounding area became dim.
Fortunately, the curtains on the opposite window were half-closed, and the light from outside came in, forming a beam of light that hung diagonally on the wooden floor.
Seeing this, little Sarah pursed her lips habitually, and her eyes suddenly became extremely focused.
As she continued to spit out unfamiliar or familiar vocabulary syllables and strings of numbers, the alchemical symbols on the parchment also lit up with a faint light.
Different from the incantations of the magic system, the activation incantation of the formation formation is more like reading a mathematical calculation script, dry but more simple and practical.
And when all the symbols on the parchment were lit up under Sarah's recitation, the two of them felt that the entire space around them suddenly trembled.
Other than that, there don't seem to be any other changes.
"Is it done?"
Professor Sinister seemed unsure whether it would happen or not, but when she saw Sarah's affirmative expression, a hint of joy finally appeared on her face.
"That would be perfect."
…
Not long after, inside the Taotao Department Store under St. Mungo's.
Calculating the time, this moment happened to be the moment when all members of RA released the Patronus Charm at the same time, assisting Neville's Silver Lion to launch a siege on the big man.
To be honest, even Haierbo did not expect that these young wizards living in modern times could be so resistant.
"If we give McClain a few more years, maybe he can accomplish what Merlin couldn't do back then..."
For the group of RA members headed by Hermione, Harry and others, their performance during this period has to be said to be quite outstanding.
However, the good growth of these "young Hogwarts people" seems to be attributed entirely to Maka by Haierbo.
And just after Haierbo gave an appreciative chuckle, he suddenly put away his smile, and a sharp flash of light flashed in his eyes.
"Huh, someone once said it before... He said 'It's easier to destroy than to create'."
"So, if you foolish wizards prefer creation, then the path I love may be called 'destruction'."
Before he finished speaking, Haierbo stretched out his right hand, as if he was about to add some "entertainment that belongs only to him" to St. Mungo's Hospital of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
He suddenly felt an inexplicable tremor that was fleeting, causing him to stop what he was doing.
At the same time, Haierbo was slightly shocked to find that he could no longer sense the space where St. Mungo was located!
No, that's not right!
He calmed down and sensed it carefully, and found that the space was not out of his detection, but it was suddenly much blurry than before.
In the magical world of this era, is there such a deep space to hide magic
This is undoubtedly extremely incredible for Haierbo.
"...Is it a magic circle?"
If this was Maka's response to his "little gift" just now, it would make sense.
The young man named "Maka McLean" can really be regarded as the only wizard in this era that Haierbo can call his "rival".
Even though Haierbo didn't think Maka could withstand his next plan.
"Interesting, really interesting..." He shook his head and nodded a few times, and then said with great interest, "Then let me see what kind of tricks you are playing!"
Ever since before, Haierbo has been talking to himself here about "playing this game with Maka", but he has not yet discovered that he is actually just competing with the air.
As for the Maka he imagined "hiding in the dark like himself", he was not here at all right now.
But no matter what, the threat Herbo poses to St. Mungo's is real. Apart from his miscalculation of Maka's location, Maka was indeed playing chess with him from afar.
However, can Maka, who has chosen the chess path for this game in advance, be able to defeat Haierbo who is sitting in front of the chessboard and adapts to the situation again
To be honest, even Maka herself doesn’t know this question.
But fortunately, the move he made at this moment seems to have played a huge role in blocking Haierbo's offensive.
"Keep struggling! When you no longer have any backup options, that's the moment you put yourself in the game."