After hearing Hermione's question, Ryan realized something—there were no hairy crabs in the UK. So, to clear up her confusion, he decided to give her a proper explanation.
"This is a freshwater crab from the Eastern Celestial Empire. In their homeland, it's considered a delicacy. In the past, the wealthy would even use gold and silver to create special tableware just to eat them."
"Oh, so it's just an ordinary crab for eating, right?" Hermione said bluntly.
Ryan felt a sting of exasperation but quickly composed himself. "Ordinary freshwater crabs are about the size of a human palm. But this one… this one has evolved into a mythical beast known as the river crab. Legend has it that this creature holds the power to both destroy the world and recreate it."
His exaggerated tale seemed to satisfy Hermione's curiosity. She soon ran off again to continue practicing her Patronus Charm. Left alone for a while, Ryan sat down on the grass, bored, his mind wandering. He began thinking about the enemy that the shopkeeper in Mahogany Town had mentioned. Unfortunately, he had very little information to go on. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't deduce what their next move might be.
Meanwhile...
Far away, more than a hundred kilometers from their location, a shadowy figure darted swiftly through a forest under cover of dusk. Upon reaching a towering banyan tree, the figure knocked in a precise rhythm on a scarred patch of its trunk. Moments later, a dark portal opened—not on the same tree, but on a smaller banyan nearby. Without hesitation, the figure stepped in, and the portal vanished, the tree once again appearing completely normal.
The figure followed a dim, rugged tunnel for about two minutes before arriving at an underground building. A wizard in a brown robe, hunched behind a counter, looked up from his potions work and asked, "Pedro, did you notice anything unusual on your patrol?"
The figure in black was Pedro, now clearly visible. He wore a black cloak and a bark-like mask that concealed most of his face, leaving only his eyes and mouth exposed. He briefly scanned the brown-robed wizard before replying.
"Old Jose, just focus on your potions. You don't need to worry about what's happening outside. If you're truly curious, you should ask the boss directly."
Jose frowned in displeasure. "Pedro, show some respect for your elders. Otherwise, don't be surprised if your potion supplies suddenly dry up."
The subtle threat worked. Pedro shifted his tone. "Of course, I meant no disrespect. If someone as senior as you wants to know, it's no secret. I'll tell you. On my latest patrol, I didn't notice anything unusual in our immediate area. But the zone I was assigned to has Aurors passing through now and then."
"Aurors? Seems like they've caught a scent," Jose muttered. "Still, this is all within the plan. Everything is going exactly as the boss intended."
Pedro narrowed his eyes. "The boss's plan? Why haven't I heard anything specific about it? Could you at least tell me what's going on?"
Jose sighed and replied with a hint of superiority, "It's not my job to oversee outside operations. And frankly, it's not something you newcomers should be concerned with. All I can say is, once this hurdle is passed, maybe—just maybe—we'll be able to live openly under the sun."
"Living an upright life," Pedro muttered as he walked toward his quarters. He might be labeled a dark wizard now, but he never accepted that identity. In his view, he'd done nothing wrong—only used magic to survive. Why did that make him a dark wizard?
The truth was, Pedro wasn't alone. Many of the low-ranking members of the organization shared his story.
Just a year ago, Pedro had been a recent graduate from Castro Brussels, a magical institute. But as a Muggle-born, he was average in both academics and social standing. After graduation, he immediately faced unemployment—and worse, he couldn't return to the Muggle world.
He had no real education in the Muggle world—just a primary school certificate—and his family, overwhelmed with seven children, had no space for him. And after experiencing the wonders of the magical world, how could he return to living without magic? He felt exactly like Peter Pettigrew—someone who, despite spending over a decade living like a rat, would rather endure humiliation in the wizarding world than integrate back into the mundane, magicless existence.
Pedro could only watch, helpless and bitter, as pure-blood classmates—many of whom had performed worse than him at school—thrived in the magical world. Meanwhile, he had to rely on every spell and scrap of knowledge he had just to get by.
Then, six months after graduation, something inside him snapped.
One night, he used black magic he'd recently learned to break into a Muggle villa. Inside, he unleashed the resentment and fury he had bottled up for so long on the unsuspecting family of three that lived there.
When the rage cleared, he found himself standing amidst their corpses, a handful of gold and silver jewelry clutched in his bloodied hands. And then a chilling realization dawned on him:
"I was wronged... but I must never let the wizarding law punish me for this."
He fled the scene in a panic. Thankfully, it had happened in the Muggle world, where the Ministry paid little attention. The first responders were from the Accident Reversal Squad, not Aurors. That gave him just enough time to overpower them and escape. Had he been in the wizarding world, Aurors would've been dispatched immediately, and he would never have made it out alive.
From that day on, he became a wanted man.
But due to the Ministry's general apathy toward crimes against Muggles, his bounty was low. Few bounty hunters even bothered to track him. Still, it meant he had lost all opportunity to live normally: no job, no social life, not even a roof over his head. Aurors occasionally appeared, sniffing around his trail. Life became an endless flight.
Then, he met the organization's leader.
The leader took him in, gave him a place to stay, and a new purpose. Since then, Pedro had lived in this underground hideout. He couldn't go out freely, but he was safe. After his daily assignments, he could read the latest edition of the Star Times, study the magic books in the library, or even stroll around Mahogany Town—disguised by Polyjuice Potion.
Yet, whenever he saw the young wizards from prestigious families shopping carefree in Mahogany Town, hatred surged in his heart. That was why, when he heard their next operation might involve his former school, he immediately volunteered for patrol duty.
But something still gnawed at him. The leader's tolerance for European interference seemed... too lenient. Who were these foreigners to meddle in their affairs? He couldn't understand it.
Still, if this plan really could help them live openly again—without fear, without hiding—then perhaps it would be worth it.
Thinking these thoughts, Pedro changed out of his patrol gear and lay on his bed. He closed his eyes, his breathing slowing.
Sleep came quickly.
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