Why would Grindelwald bring a No-Maj here?
Could it be a sacrifice for some dark magic ritual?
Despite himself, Farrell was curious and his eyes opened wider.
The witch, Alison, was also taken aback by Grindelwald's sudden appearance and began to stammer, "I've put all those ingredients in as you ordered, but I'm not sure I'm up to the job, sir…"
Grindelwald approached the cauldron, keeping an eye on the brewing, and said, "Take it easy, Alison, I trust your skill with potions, you always did well at Durmstrang, didn't you? Potions are your strength…"
Alison nodded fearfully, looking a little apprehensive, despite Grindelwald's knowledge of potion brewing, which was beyond her knowledge, and the amount of ingredients used and what had to be done next.
"Don't forget our common goal… to give up something in order to achieve your goal. Just remember that these are necessary sacrifices…" Grindelwald said soothingly as he gently stirred the cauldron with his wand. When the boiling liquid in the cauldron had calmed down, he turned to Alison and continued.
"Now that the preparations are complete, we can move on to the next step…"
Alison hesitated, her eyes moving to the middle-aged man following Grindelwald…
"You're not thinking about your No-Maj father, are you, Alison? Or have you forgotten how he treated you?" Grindelwald asked coldly.
"Of course I haven't forgotten any of this!" Alison exclaimed. "He's a rogue drunk, a complete villain… not fit to be my father!"
Grindelwald's lips curled into a smile. "Well said, Alison. He may be your father, but he has done nothing for you but pain, and the wizarding world is your true home…"
"We are your family…" Grindelwald said gently, placing his hand on the witch's shoulder.
Alison sobbed quietly, tears rolling down her cheeks…
Grindelwald's eyes flashed with anger at Alison's lack of resolution, but he kept his tone gentle. "If you're against it, I'll choose someone else! He's not the only one for this ritual, anyone else would…"
"No!" Alison interrupted Grindelwald, wiping tears from her eyes. "I've wanted to kill him for a long time," she said, glaring at the middle-aged man. "If his death would be of any use to you, so much the better!"
Grindelwald's eyes twinkled as he used Legilimency to determine Alison's determination. He nodded in satisfaction, then removed a pendant from around his neck and slipped it onto his right hand.
Farrell stared at it. Grindelwald raised his finger slightly towards the No-Maj, and a faint green light gathered at the tip of his finger.
"Avada Kedavra ~ (Avada Kedavra)," Grindelwald coldly chanted.
A dark green beam of light flashed through the air, and the No-Maj who was standing in the room in a daze froze for a moment. Then, its eyes glazed over, and it collapsed to the ground.
Farrell's pupils contracted at the sight of a life being snuffed out in front of him, and the feeling of powerlessness made him sick.
However, he still did not reveal his intentions and did not say a word the entire time, because if he did, his fate would be the same as that No-Maj…
Grindelwald closed his eyes for the first time since he had killed the man, and stood very still. Wisps of ghostly blue mist began to seep out of his body and into the pendant, and one could make out the shape of a hideous man…
Was he…making a Horcrux? Ferrell, with his extensive anti-black experience, was able to guess what Grindelwald was up to, although he was unsure, as he had only read about it in some of the more advanced Dark Arts books.
Within a few seconds, Grindelwald opened his eyes, and the ordinary-looking pendant on his right hand suddenly became magical. It glowed with a blue light and had an irresistible charm…
Grindelwald strode over to the cauldron and threw the locket inside, then casually picked up the potion-cutting knife and, to Farrell's astonishment, stabbed it into his heart!
Was he out of his mind? Farrell was shocked by Grindelwald's sudden suicide.
To his further surprise, Grindelwald's body began to shake uncontrollably after the blade pierced his heart. Dark red blood spurted from the wound and dripped onto the wooden floor, corroding it like acid.
Not only that, but his pale, bloodless face was also beginning to wither, and he looked like a charred corpse.
It was only then that Farrell remembered the report that Britain had delivered to the International Confederation of Wizards a few days earlier. Grindelwald, who had escaped from Nurmengard, had apparently been injured in the course of a battle with Lord Voldemort, and had been struck by some sort of nearly unsolvable Dark Magic.
It is said that Dumbledore died because of this…
Now, however, Grindelwald seemed to have found a madness that would solve the problem once and for all: death!
For some powerful Dark Wizards, the boundary between life and death is not insurmountable, and Horcruxes are one of the ways to avoid death!
Farrell understood all of this in an instant. He tilted his head to look at the giant cauldron, certain that this was some sort of ritual to bring the dead back to life!
A short distance ahead, Grindelwald's body fell to the ground, and a moment later, the disembodied form rose from the corpse.
"Let's do it!" Grindelwald said to Alison, floating in midair.
Alison took a deep breath, opened the package on the floor, waved her wand, and began to read.
"A father's bone, inadvertently donated, will give birth to your son!"
"The meat of a servant…will…willfully donate…will revive…your master!" Alison said in a trembling voice, her left arm hanging over the cauldron and her right hand gripping her wand.
"If you do it fast enough, it won't hurt much, Alison! When I come back to life, your arm will be back on your arm…" Grindelwald drifted around the witch, his eyes shining with a strange light of encouragement. "For all I know, you're a brave witch, aren't you? Prove it!"
Alison gritted her teeth and was about to cast a spell when a voice called out.
"Don't let him fool you, witch!"
Farrell, who had been pretending to be unconscious, finally spoke up. Alison's hesitation made him realise that this was the best time for him to intervene.
"This man in front of you is a murderous maniac who has tried to destroy an entire Muggle city. I don't know what he promised you, but I can assure you that it was all a lie!"
"Think about it. You're standing in the presence of the Dark Lord, widely acknowledged throughout the wizarding world! Fifty years ago, many others like you were duped by him and lost their lives for no apparent reason. At the end of the day, he's just trying to use you, witch. Once he's done with you, he'll cast you aside without mercy…"
Farrell spoke rapidly, trying to reverse Alison's position.
Grindelwald was dead, and despite the presence of his spirit body, he could tell from what he knew of the ghosts that they were incapable of magic.
As long as he could convince Alison to change sides, not only would he be able to keep his life, but he would also be able to use this opportunity to completely end the Dark Lord!
At this thought, Farrell spoke again.
"Turn back, witch, I am sure you are not one to willingly associate with evil, and now that Grindelwald can do nothing, you need not fear him any more…
Also, as the Vice-President of the Magical Congress of North America, I can attest to the fact that Grindelwald coerced you into doing everything you did, and if this matter is resolved successfully, I promise you that you will not be punished for any of your previous actions!"
He could tell that Alison was not an evil Dark Wizard, and from what he had been told, he deduced that she hated Muggles because of her childhood, and thus was used by Grindelwald.
During his time as an Auror, he was exposed to similar cases, and not every Muggle parent was able to understand the "weirdness" of their child. In some relatively backward-thinking countries and regions, young witches and wizards with first-time magical outbursts were even killed by possession.
To avoid similar tragedies, almost every Ministry of Magic set up a section to deal with such cases, ensuring the safety of lesser witches and wizards, but such household matters were always difficult to deal with…
Farrell's words caused Alison to waver, her hand shaking more violently as she clutched her wand.
Grindelwald frowned and cast an unfriendly glance in Farrell's direction. He was in such a hurry to complete the resurrection ritual that he did not notice Farrell's movement.
However, he was not worried about Alison changing sides. Grindelwald would not have placed his life on the hands of a witch he had only recently met if he was not completely confident of controlling her…
"Don't you remember how your mother died, Alison?" Grindelwald said coldly, staring into the witch's eyes. "Shall I refresh your memory…"
(PS: I overestimated myself. I didn't finish two chapters. There are more than three thousand words in this chapter. Tomorrow, I'll write another big chapter with more than three thousand words… I won't make up another chapter alone.)