"Madam Maxime, you may be a rather infrequent visitor. Welcome and welcome, come in quickly!" The carriage had just stopped, and Innkeeper Baltic, a man well over 60 with a face full of wrinkles, welcomed her. He asked, "How do you have the free time to come to Dijon?"
"We were passing by and decided to stop tomorrow morning," Madam Maxime replied from the carriage. "Please prepare supper for us and open four rooms."
"Rooms are not in high demand right now due to the current situation. Not many people dare to come to Dijon," Old Baltic sighed.
"What happened?" Madam Maxime inquired as she stopped at the bar entrance. "You look distressed. I remember your small tavern was quite prosperous the last time I came here."
"Recent times have been dreadful due to the menacing Owl-man," Baltic said, his face filled with wrinkles. "Even the local wizards are afraid to go out."
"Owl-man? What is that?" Evan asked, surprised as he looked at the Innkeeper.
"Honestly, I don't know what kind of monster it is. I haven't seen it. But according to eyewitnesses, it's a creature with a human-like build, half-covered in feathers, sharp ears, and sharp claws that resemble black pliers. Its feathers are silver-gray, and its eyes are entirely filled with bloodshot veins, resembling a person transformed into a terrifying owl..."
Listening to the description, Evan couldn't help but imagine the appearance of this creature.
"This creature is said to have come from Owl Fortress, a castle that has gained notoriety and attracts many wizards to visit Dijon each year. At first, everyone thought it was a joke or some foreign propaganda stunt, and no one took it seriously," Baltic continued. "But after what happened, everyone realized how serious it was."
"There was a witch who died, poor Mary. She was the last surviving member of one of the oldest pure-blood wizarding families in Dijon. This family was considered the last descendant of the Duke who founded this town. She was found dead in her family's mansion, weeks after she had gone missing," Baltic sighed heavily, continuing, "Aurors who investigated the scene described it as a scene from hell. Mary's skin had been brutally torn off, leaving behind a bloody mess, like a pile of rotten flesh. Her room's window was shattered, and owl feathers were scattered. Some eyewitnesses swear that it was the Owl-man who killed her..."
A silence fell upon Evan and his companions. They had not expected to hear such a strange and shocking murder as soon as they got off the carriage.
"To be honest, Mary's reputation wasn't great, and if she had died of natural causes, this might have become a topic of discussion over her substantial family wealth," Baltic said. "But with this situation, especially considering the increasing number of incidents, Dijon is doomed. We can't rely on the Ministry of Magic or those useless Aurors hiding far away in Paris. Our lives are in danger."
"I'll write a letter to our unit to inform them of this situation," Madam Maxime said. "I'm very sorry, Baltic, that we can't be of more help."
"We're delighted that you and your friends have come," Baltic bowed and looked curiously at Evan, Sirius, and Hagrid. "Dinner will take about 20 minutes to prepare. In the meantime, what would you and your companions like to drink? Beer or brandy?"
"Three glasses of brandy, one fruit juice, and the child can't drink," Madam Maxime said as she paused. "And if possible, please give me some fine malt whisky for my little one to mix with their feed."
"Give it to me, Olympe. I'll take care of them," Hagrid said as he led Abraxen toward the bar's backyard.
Evan, Sirius, and Madam Maxime followed the Innkeeper into the small tavern. The interior was dimly lit, and the space was quite cramped. The floor seemed to be covered in centuries-old dust. Evan couldn't help but wonder why wizards favored the aesthetics of medieval times for their taverns and inns. He would have preferred a modern muggle hotel or guesthouse if given the choice, but he knew the others would disagree.
As Innkeeper Baltic had mentioned, they were the only guests inside. The recent gruesome murder had cast a pall over the place, and everyone seemed to avoid discussing it.
Following Madam Maxime's recommendation, Evan tried the local red wine with egg, mixed dashi, and a French specialty of beef from the Dijon region. The flavors were delightful.
After finishing his meal, Evan left the dining table and returned to his room. Sirius, Hagrid, and Madam Maxime appeared to be planning to have a few more drinks. Evan wanted to take advantage of the time to go over the giant-related materials Hermione had collected and gather information about the Charybdis Whirlpool.
He didn't have much time to spare, so he needed to do his best to understand this aspect thoroughly.
The room in the tavern was spread across three buildings. While it wasn't very spacious, it featured a comfortable-looking bed, several well-polished oak furnishings, and small desks. The fireplace crackled with a comforting warmth.
Evan nodded in approval. Compared to the common areas downstairs, this room had clearly been tidied up with care and appeared much cleaner.
Before he reached the window to look outside, he observed their giant horse-drawn vehicles parked in the center of the courtyard, visible from his vantage point.
Drawing the window curtains, Evan took out his wand and cast several defensive spells. Then, he settled down to examine the materials Hermione had provided.
It was widely known that giants were a type of magical creature with immense power. They typically had massive builds, incredible brute force, and heights ranging from 30 to 50 feet. Giants possessed formidable magic resistance and could wield weapons.
Due to these characteristics, giants have been considered terrifying weapons of war since ancient times. A single giant could take on more than ten well-trained wizards in combat. Their natural disposition was cruel, and they intensely disliked magic.
In the past, giants had been deployed as destructive forces on the battlefield. In more recent history, there have been shocking giant-related incidents involving the slaughter of muggles.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Evan's index finger quickly scrolled down the parchment, searching for "Fridwulfa" in the long list of events. During Voldemort's reign, she and several giants had joined his camp and were responsible for several gruesome muggle slaughters. Fridwulfa and her companions had attacked a village, resulting in the brutal deaths of over a hundred muggles, causing shock throughout society. While muggles claimed it was a landslide, the wizarding community knew the truth.
Afterward, Fridwulfa had gone into hiding, and it was rumored that she had sought refuge with an overseas giant tribe with the help of wizards. Many, like Hagrid's father, believed in the giants' cause.
Evan set aside that parchment and picked up another containing information about the giant ancestor, Cyclops. In general magical belief, giants were considered descendants of the Cyclops, with their various abilities weakened compared to the Cyclops.
Cyclops primarily inhabited Sicily in Italy, and they were known for their immense size and single eye, which inspired fear. Giants were dwarfed in comparison; the Cyclops recorded in materials were at least 100 feet tall, almost as tall as Hogwarts Castle. It was said that the single eye on their forehead could cast curses upon anyone who met its gaze.
Evan made notes with his quill, realizing that the Cyclops' eye seemed to possess magical qualities similar to a basilisk's gaze. Dealing with such creatures required the Conjunctivitis Curse, but it wasn't as straightforward. Unlike giants, Cyclops had an innate mastery of thunder magic, a rare and formidable form of magic that wizards couldn't use directly. They had to rely on special magical instruments or alchemical products to harness thunder and lightning.
In Ravenclaw's memory, Gryffindor had mentioned this point and had a brutal encounter with a Cyclops in battle.
Hermione had compiled comprehensive materials for Evan, suggesting that Cyclops inherited this ability from their ancestor, the Titan. Simply put, the relationship between Cyclops and giants was similar to Cyclops being a further diluted descendant of the Titan. The specifics were unknown, as Titans were even more ancient and mysterious, with no one having seen them.
Debate persisted in the academic circles about whether Cyclops descended from Titans. In muggle Greek mythology, they were considered direct descendants of the sky god Uranus, a view that didn't hold within the magical community.
The last recorded Cyclops had died more than 700 years ago, and Titans were unquestionably more ancient than Cyclops. Wizards generally believed that Titans were the initial creators, considered spiritual gods who had started it all.
In recent years, a new theory has emerged in the American magical community, proposing that all magical creatures, including wizards, Merpeople, Goblins, Centaurs, and Cyclops, were descendants of the divine creative force of Titans. This theory suggested that in the early stages of Earth's existence, Titans had constructed these magical beings using soil, magma, and water, then departed from the world. Over time, these magical creatures evolved, shifting from inorganic forms to organic life forms through the "Flesh and Blood Curse." This process gave them physical bodies with blood, free will, and emotions, turning them into the initial life forms.
This new perspective on the origin of life was systematically explored by American wizards, backed by evidence from ancient ruins discovered around the world. These wizards even created different biological evolution atlases to illustrate the process of evolution.
Evan set aside the thick materials and sighed. While European wizards were preoccupied with Voldemort, their overseas counterparts studied life's origins.
Evan thought about exploring other countries' magical communities to experience their unique culture and style if given the chance.
The next moment, Evan abruptly shot up from his bed, wand in hand, aiming it in the direction in front of him.
His previously cast early warning spell had been triggered by something outside the window.
In the dim candlelight, Evan noticed a shadow on the curtains, the silhouette of a person drawing closer and closer.
Judging by the figure, it appeared to be a woman, her movements accompanied by a rustling sound. It seemed she was attempting to enter Evan's room. Still, she was thwarted by defensive magic that prevented her from opening the window.
During dinner, Sirius had jokingly warned Evan to be cautious, suggesting that French girls were amiable and that Evan, being alone, might attract some attention. Now, it seemed that Sirius' prediction was coming true.
However, Evan hoped the woman would choose the conventional way of entering through the door rather than attempting to crawl in through the window.
His wand moved gently upwardly, slicing through the window curtains. In the next instant, a terrified, grotesque face appeared before Evan.
It was like a scene from a horror movie. Evan was startled, and his heart raced, but his wand hand remained steady. A red burst of magic shot out almost instantly.
With a loud bang, the window shattered, and the creature outside, the Owl-man, was thrown back by the spell's force.
Evan wasted no time. He dashed forward, wand at the ready, and directed spells toward the creature in the courtyard. He unleashed several spells in quick succession.
Taken by surprise, the creature tumbled to the ground and emitted a strange, eerie cry.