Creak!
The Sniffy was forced to let out an ugly shriek. Under the combined pull of the two magical forces, its body flew up and down like a leaf, but its four paws still clung tightly to the Resurrection Stone.
As the stalemate continued, Rolf plucked up the courage to point his wand at Grindelwald and shout, "Expelliarmus!"
A scarlet beam flashed across the gloomy room…
Normally, Grindelwald would not have cared for such a weak attack, but he was so focused on fighting Ivan that he was forced to retreat.
However, this momentary distraction caused the Sniff to fly away and land in Ivan's hand.
"Well done, Niffler, you've done a good job!" Ivan said happily, but he was not slow. He snatched the Resurrection Stone from Niffler's paw and stuffed it into his pocket.
The Niffler, which was glad that it had escaped, was stunned. It had not even warmed the treasure that it had gone through so much trouble to obtain, and it was gone just like that?
Before it could protest, however, it was thrown back to Rolf by Ivan, who turned on it faster than the pages of a book.
"Over there, Thunderbird!" Ivan did not hesitate. After securing the Resurrection Stone, he directed the Thunderbird toward the couple's coffin.
Grindelwald was not going to let Ivan get his hands on the Resurrection Stone. He furiously waved his wand, and the scattered blue flames on the ground immediately gathered and shot towards Ivan like fireballs.
"Wind!" Ivan shook his wand, and a violent storm swept through the room, causing the fireballs to explode.
The house, already on the verge of collapse, collapsed in on itself with a deafening explosion, and a deep darkness began to seep into the house from outside. Ivan and Rolfe both felt a sense of impending doom.
"Now how do we get out of here?" Rolfe asked grimly.
"We wait!" Ivan said slowly.
Wait? Wait for what? Rolf was very confused. If he waited any longer, this space would collapse completely!
Ivan focused his senses and looked at the two collapsed coffins in front of him. He waved his wand and used magic to lift them up.
The deep gloom had spread to their sides, and they could hear the faint rumble of space breaking.
"Now, get ready!" Ivan shouted.
"Ready for what?" Rolfe asked eagerly.
"Run!" Ivan shouted as he burst into white flames that engulfed Rolf, the Thunderbird, and the two coffins.
"Don't resist! I'll get you out…"
Rolfe heard a voice in his ear, then felt the world spin around him as endless flames filled his vision.
When Rolfe returned to his senses, he found that he was no longer in the shattered house. The clear blue sky came back into view, and a gentle breeze soothed his nerves.
The only similarity was that they were still standing on the Thunderbird's back, with the coffins of Mr and Mrs Nicolas Flamel suspended on either side.
"We're out?" Rolfe sat down on the bird's back, his arms and legs weak. He thought he was dead.
"How did you do it, Harls?" Rolfe asked curiously, turning to face him, remembering that there was no way to perform Apparition in that unique space.
"A respected professor once told me that when an independent space collapses, its occupants will be able to escape for a short period of time, and all protective measures will be disabled. If you can find the right moment, you will be able to escape," Ivan said with great emotion.
Rolfe looked at him, speechless. He could understand how dangerous this method was just by listening to Ivan's explanation, and it would not be an exaggeration to describe it as putting one's life on the line. Any second too slow and Ivan would have been torn to shreds by the turbulence.
However, who was the professor who taught them such strange knowledge?
Rolfe had a strange look on his face, but before he could ask any more questions, he was distracted by screams from below.
He sat on the Thunderbird's back and looked down. Towering buildings came into view, and he realized that he and the others were flying over the city on the Thunderbird.
"Where are we? Shouldn't we be in the forest where we entered?" Rolfe asked, frowning.
"We're in Paris, France! Apparently, there's also a gateway into that space!" Yvonne explained slowly, not looking very surprised.
When he was studying alchemy at Nicolas Flamel's, he was able to see the streets of Paris just by opening a window…
"I'm afraid we're in trouble…" Rolfe said, feeling a headache coming on. They had managed to get away from Grindelwald, and now trouble was coming their way.
It was no small matter to have so many Muggles see signs of magic and cause a large-scale riot. In the worst-case scenario, they might even end up in prison…
Rolfe could only hope that he and Ivan would be able to put a stop to the Grindelwald plot.
At the same time, in front of the Triumph Gate in Paris, hundreds of Muggles were looking up in unison at the golden bird flying over their heads.
"My God, what kind of bird is this?! It has three pairs of wings…"
"The coffin… the coffin is flying!"
"Look, there's someone on the bird!"
"I told you, there must be wizards in this world. It must be witchcraft!"
… .
The Muggles were so excited that some even took out their cameras to record the magical scene, while a few uniformed Muggle policemen pulled out their pistols, unsure if they should attack…
"Get down, get down, get to that roof!" Ivan shouted, also realising that something was wrong, and quickly directed the Thunderbird to stop on the roof of a building where every Muggle in the city could see them.
Obediently, the Thunderbird stopped, and Ivan put the two coffins down, then waved his wand to set up a Muggle Banishing Charm around them to prevent any Muggles from running towards them.
By the time Ivan finished, a dozen French Aurors had surrounded them.