No matter how dangerous the Forbidden Forest was, it was still part of Hogwarts. Yet Hoffa could never have imagined encountering Schmidt Rothloff within the school itself.
But there was no time left for him to think.
Spells crisscrossed through the air, casting purple and green light onto either side of Hoffa's face.
"Not a chance!"
Gritting his teeth, Hoffa turned sharply.
Without hesitation, he scooped up the stunned Aglaia and slipped into the shadows.
*Phantom Step!*
The world before him turned into shades of gray and white, and an eerie wind howled in his ears.
His magical energy burned through him like a raging fire.
The crisscrossing spells missed, striking the ground instead. Dirt flew into the air but was instantly frozen by the spells into eerie green ice shards.
Hoffa retreated rapidly into the shadows.
In the dense forest, countless Thestrals abruptly turned their heads away from the centaur they had been observing and took to the sky.
They swooped toward Hoffa and Aglaia like arrows.
"Do you think the same trick will work every time?"
Seeing his spells miss again, Schmidt spoke coldly. "Using magic beyond your limits always comes with a price beyond your limits. I'm curious—how long can you hold out?"
He tore open his shirt, revealing a strange creature coiled on his chest.
"Roar!"
The creature's head twisted, releasing a deafening roar. Its head began to swell rapidly, sharp spines protruding densely from its surface. It grew until it was the size of a person.
Thick gray smoke billowed out of the creature's head.
It was a Venom Sac Leopard—an extremely dangerous magical creature ranked at the 5X level.
Thankfully, it was still in its juvenile stage.
With Phantom Step, Hoffa moved swiftly, retreating over 80 meters in just ten seconds. He tore Aglaia's sleeve in half, tying one piece over her face and the other over his own.
*"Aguamenti!"*
He wet the cloth and gave Aglaia a shove.
"Run! Don't look back!"
Still shaken, Aglaia yanked the cloth off her face.
"But there's fog behind us!"
Hoffa hastily tied the wet cloth back over her face.
"Idiot! I don't have time to explain. If you don't want to die, wear it!"
Two dark wizards emerged from the shadows.
Tilting his head, Schmidt ordered, "Bring them to me alive."
Hoffa grabbed Aglaia and cast a Disillusionment Charm on his arm, attempting to sneak away unnoticed.
But in the next moment, he saw an old foe—the silver monkey.
Its silvery form darted through the treetops, chittering as it jumped from branch to branch. Every leap brought it directly above Hoffa, driving him nearly mad with frustration. The dark wizards only needed to follow the monkey to pinpoint Hoffa's location.
Aglaia noticed the unusual behavior above them as well. Raising her wand, she shouted:
*"Impedimenta!"*
The Phantom Monkey had already foreseen what was about to happen and leapt away nimbly.
Aglaia's spell missed, landing in empty air and further exposing their position.
The two pursuing dark wizards immediately cut off their escape from the opposite side.
One of them swept his cloak with a flourish, disappearing on the spot.
In the next moment, Hoffa, running at full speed, collided head-on with the dark wizard who reappeared from the other side of the forest.
The dark wizard in front of him raised his wand, aiming it directly at the invisible Hoffa.
At the critical moment, a loud shout echoed through the woods.
*"Expelliarmus!"*
The dark wizard's wand flew from his hand.
It was Joey, charging out of the forest astride a fully armored warhorse.
The horse's head struck the dark wizard, sending him flying through the air.
Joey caught the wand mid-air and hurled a glass orb forcefully at the spot where the dark wizard landed.
*Crack! Crack!*
The temperature plummeted sharply.
Within a ten-meter radius, every tree became encased in ice, creaking under the sudden frost.
The dark wizard reacted quickly, rolling several times to evade the deadly attack. Even so, his robe and boots were coated in a thick layer of frost, causing visible injuries.
"Kid, where are you?" Joey shouted.
Hoffa emerged from his stealth, yelling, *"Watch out!!"*
Another dark wizard swung his wand, and flames burst forth from its tip, surging like a fiery dragon toward Joey.
Joey spun around just in time. Using the horse's back as leverage, he kicked off and the horse instinctively leapt aside.
Joey propelled himself out of the fire's path with the counterforce.
In one swift motion, he unsheathed his broadsword, slashing it in a powerful arc through the air.
The dark wizard wielding the wand was caught off guard and struck on the shoulder.
He screamed in agony as the wound exposed bone.
Joey gripped his sword tightly and roared, "Get the girl out of here, kid! This isn't something you can handle!"
Before his words fully landed, another beastly roar shook the forest.
The air grew heavier with mist, and Joey's warhorse collapsed after taking a few shaky steps, succumbing to the toxic fumes.
Joey's face turned pale as he saw the spreading poison.
He tried to retrieve his wand to cast a water-purifying spell, but the dark wizard he had wounded suddenly turned savage, clutching the sword blade with bare hands. Blood streamed from his palms, yet he refused to let go.
Joey pushed the sword forward forcefully, causing the dark wizard to stagger back several steps.
At that moment, a sharp cry echoed behind them: *"Stupefy!"*
It was another of Schmidt's accomplices.
A bright red streak of light sliced through the darkness, striking both Joey and the dark wizard locked in combat.
The two were thrown into the air, tumbling twice before crashing to the ground.
Hoffa caught a glimpse of this but had no way to intervene. Clenching his teeth, he dragged Aglaia and bolted forward.
Aglaia, regaining some composure, asked anxiously, "Are we just going to leave him like this?"
Hoffa didn't respond, his lips pressed into a tight line as he ran toward the edge of the Forbidden Forest.
The only rational course of action now was to return to Hogwarts and summon reinforcements.
Schmidt immediately discerned Hoffa's intentions. He bent down to pick up his unconscious comrade's wand and waved it sharply.
The dense poison in the forest spread rapidly, forming a ring that raced after Hoffa in moments.
With a flick of Schmidt's fingers, the damp cloth covering Hoffa's face flew backward.
He intended to use the poison to subdue Hoffa.
Hoffa glanced at his dwindling magical reserves, now down to just 50%. Clenching his teeth, he knew he couldn't hesitate any longer.
He had no choice but to activate *Phantom Step* once again.
This time, he didn't cancel the ability but instead dragged Aglaia forward at full speed, cutting through the poisonous fog.
After emerging from Phantom Step, he wasted no time in activating it again.
The two consecutive bursts of high-speed movement allowed him to vanish completely from Schmidt's sight in an instant. Even the Phantom Monkey was unable to predict his path.
But the price for this brief escape was steep.
Some 150 meters away from their starting point, the two figures stumbled out of the shadow state.
The familiar sensation of his brain splitting apart overwhelmed Hoffa once again. He collapsed face-first onto the ground, inertia dragging Aglaia along like a plow clearing a layer of fallen leaves. Darkness filled his vision.
His magical reserves were entirely depleted.
And this time, he wasn't in the safety of a secure inn.
The dark forest fell silent for a few seconds.
Aglaia, covered in dirt and utterly disheveled, struggled to push herself up from the ground.
Then, as if startled, she snapped into action.
"Hey, hey!"
Seeing Hoffa lying motionless in the pile of leaves, panic overtook her. She dropped to her knees and shook him with all her strength.
"What's wrong with you?!"
Hoffa didn't respond. In truth, he could hear her, but he lacked the strength to answer.
Aglaia stood up, grabbed him, and dragged him to the base of a tree. She slapped his face repeatedly.
"Hey, are you dying?"
"Hey, you're so weak!"
"HEY, WAKE UP!"
With a shred of strength returning, the first thing Hoffa did was shove her hand away. "Don't touch me. My magic is completely drained."
Under normal circumstances, Aglaia would have taken the opportunity to mock him as a Muggle, but now she remained silent. She stood up, poked her head out cautiously, scanned the surroundings, and then pulled back, trembling.
"They're looking for us," she whispered. "We're surrounded on three sides. And the poison gas—"
"Shut up!" Hoffa snapped harshly.
His tone was anything but friendly. If not for her dragging him down, he wouldn't have needed two consecutive Phantom Steps just to cover this short distance. If not for her causing trouble, he wouldn't have fallen into this trap to begin with.
"Hey, aren't you supposed to be clever? Think of something already!"
"Can you stop talking for one second? Let me rest!"
Aglaia bit her lip and fell silent, standing up and pacing in circles like a headless chicken. She kept rubbing her head as if trying to come up with a solution.
Meanwhile, Hoffa used every second to meditate, trying to recover some of his magic.
After a while, Aglaia grew frantic.
"Have you come up with a plan yet? Someone's coming this way!"
Hoffa opened his eyes and took a deep breath. Turning his head with a grim expression, he said, "If we want to get out of here, the magic I have left isn't enough."
"Teach me that invisibility ability. I'll carry you out," Aglaia said anxiously.
"Hmph."
Hoffa scoffed dismissively. Setting aside whether she could even learn *Phantom Step*, he would never hand over his ultimate trump card so easily. He wasn't at the end of his rope—yet.
But now, he had to make a decision.
Faced with the threat of death, he set his pride aside without hesitation.
Reaching into his chest, Hoffa pulled out three vials of potion.
"How long do you need to brew a lesser recovery potion?"
Aglaia's expression shifted visibly when she saw the vials in his hand.
"Ten minutes—no, eight minutes."
"Five minutes," Hoffa said softly, his gaze fixed on the figures in the dense fog in the distance. "We don't have time. If you can't finish brewing it in five minutes, we'll die. Joey will die too."
Aglaia glanced at the sky around them, troubled. "It's too dark here. I can't see anything. Potion brewing has to be done with absolute precision."
"*Lumos*."
"Are you crazy?!" Aglaia whispered urgently, stamping her foot. "You're telling me to use *Lumos* now? We'd be sitting ducks!"
"I'll draw them away. You focus on brewing," Hoffa said, his voice pale but resolute.
"Are you… are you serious?" Aglaia's voice trembled slightly.
"It's our only chance."
Hoffa handed the potion vials to Aglaia steadily.
Aglaia hesitated, standing frozen for a moment as she looked at him.
"Hurry," Hoffa urged.
Aglaia stared at the dark hand in front of her, then finally reached out and took the vials. She cast one last glance at Hoffa.
Then, without looking back, she turned and disappeared into the forest.
(End of Chapter)
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