Deep within the dense forest, a strangely assembled poaching team moved cautiously.
At the front was a well-dressed goblin with a sinister expression, issuing orders in a shrill voice.
Beside him were three human Dark wizards with sharp, wary eyes, their wands held tightly as they scanned the surroundings.
Most conspicuous were the four Muggle strongmen at the front of the group. Their eyes were empty, their movements stiff. Each carried a double-barreled shotgun, the thick muzzles gleaming coldly, clearly capable of posing a deadly threat to an unprepared wizard.
At the center of the team stood a magically reinforced cage, inside which a trembling Thunderbird was imprisoned.
Its beautiful feathers were stained with blood. Nearby, several bulging magical bags were piled together, clearly filled with other unfortunate "trophies."
At that moment, the bushes to one side shook violently, and a sharp, accented shout cut through the oppressive silence of the forest.
"Drop your weapons! Release the Muggles immediately!"
A young man and woman rushed out, followed by a middle-aged wizard holding a wand.
All three wore practical dragon-hide jackets, sleek in design. The boy held his wand, tense and ready, while the girl fixed her gaze on the shotguns, her wand pointed directly at the goblin.
"So it's you persistent hyenas again. Your noses are quite sharp."
The goblin sneered, his voice grating. "Kill them. They'll make excellent feed for our 'goods.'"
Two Dark wizards grinned as they raised their wands, while the four Muggles, controlled by the Imperius Curse like puppets, stiffly lifted their shotguns, aiming the heavy barrels at the two young wizards.
"Stupe—" Aidan's spell had barely begun.
Bang! Bang!
Deafening gunshots erupted, pellets tearing through the air, striking the tree trunks nearby and sending splinters flying.
The sheer force of the blasts drained the color from the three American wizards' faces, forcing them to dive for cover behind trees. A simple Protego would not fully block a direct hit from such a large-caliber weapon.
"Haha! Like it? Muggle toys, metal wands!"
One of the Dark wizards laughed wildly. "Keep firing! Drive them out!"
The gunshots rang out again, a relentless barrage that pinned Aidan and Chloe down, leaving them no choice but to dodge frantically behind the trees.
"Reducto!"
The boy seized an opening and fired a blazing red spell, but it was deftly deflected by his opponent's Protego and struck nothing.
"Petrificus Totalus!"
The girl acted almost at the same moment. Her spell hit a Muggle who was charging forward blankly, causing him to stiffen and collapse to the ground.
For a moment, spells flashed in all directions through the dim forest, the shriek of magic tearing through the air and mixing with the deafening gunfire.
The three American wizards moved swiftly, their spells precise and forceful, clearly well-trained. But faced with superior numbers and experienced opponents, they quickly fell into a disadvantage.
The Muggles under the Imperius Curse charged without fear, while the goblin leader hid behind them, barking orders in his sharp voice and occasionally casting a cunning spell that forced the American wizards into disarray.
"Avada Kedavra!"
A brilliant green flash streaked past Chloe, striking the tree behind her and leaving a scorched mark.
"Crucio!"
Another blood-red spell hit Aidan. He let out a piercing scream, his body convulsing as he collapsed in agony.
"Haha, kill these meddling Americans! Kill them!"
The goblin shrieked in excitement.
The Dark wizards grinned as they began to close in, while the controlled Muggles mechanically reloaded their weapons.
Just as the battle was about to reach its conclusion, the sky suddenly darkened.
A massive shadow, like a descending storm cloud, spread across the clearing, swallowing all light.
A cold, suffocating pressure pressed down from above.
Everyone instinctively froze, slowly raising their heads to look up.
They saw a pitch-black, monstrous shadow hovering silently overhead, its immense form nearly blotting out the sky.
A chilling gaze seemed to fall upon them from above, as though death itself had descended.
"Merlin's beard…"
Chloe gasped, forgetting even to move. "What… what is that?!"
The poachers were equally terrified, all trace of their earlier arrogance gone.
The goblin's shrill laughter froze on his face, replaced by sheer terror.
The next second, at the heart of the shadow, Sagres's figure condensed and descended like a falling curtain, landing steadily on the ground.
His cold, hollow gaze swept across the scene, devoid of any emotion.
All sound ceased at once.
But after a brief moment of shock, the most reckless of the Dark wizards, driven by fear, lashed out with murderous intent. He roared, raising his wand toward Sagres.
"Avada—" Squelch!
Before he could finish, a blinding red light tore through his body.
Everyone flinched. The remaining two Dark wizards panicked and instinctively tried to Apparate away.
Sagres casually pointed his wand upward. The surrounding space was instantly sealed and anchored, rendering their Apparition useless and leaving them to cry out in despair.
At once, the forest around them seemed to surge with violent life.
Towering ancient trees twisted their trunks, bark splitting and shedding, transforming in an instant into massive serpentine forms that lunged into the fray.
Within seconds, the clearing was torn apart by the rampaging serpents, and the remaining Dark wizards were crushed into pulp.
Sagres extended a hand. With a slight motion, the goblin, paralyzed with fear, was dragged through the air and brought before him.
"No! My lord! Mercy! We were only… doing a little business…"
Legilimency invaded his mind without restraint. The goblin's pleas cut off abruptly, his body convulsing violently.
A moment later, he collapsed into the dirt, his face frozen in despair and terror.
There was no trace of Voldemort.
Sagres flicked his wand. The massive serpents burrowed back into the ground, then rose again, their forms twisting and reshaping. Branches sprouted, bark hardened, and in the blink of an eye, they reverted to silent, unmoving trees.
Only then did Sagres turn his attention to the four Muggles, who had fallen into a daze after the death of the one controlling them. He lightly tapped his wand.
"Obliviate."
"Stupefy."
The cloudiness in their eyes vanished at once. They then collapsed silently to the ground, falling into a deep sleep.
All their memories of that day were erased.
Finally, he looked at the pale American wizards.
Their hands, gripping their wands, trembled slightly. They had almost forgotten to raise them, their eyes filled with unprecedented fear.
Being struck by a Killing Curse might mean a swift death, but falling into the hands of the dangerous wizard before them was another matter entirely.
Sagres's gaze lingered on them for less than a second.
"You should not be here," he said flatly, without any attempt at courtesy. "The Albanian forest is not a place for American wizards to wander. Leave immediately."
"We… we are interns from the Magical Creatures Protection Association…"
The girl tried to explain, her voice still trembling. "We've been tracking this illegal trade route for a long time…"
"Then track it elsewhere."
Sagres cut her off, at the same time flicking his wand to open the bulging magical bags and release all the imprisoned creatures back into the forest. "There are no 'important leads' here, only the risk of losing your lives at any moment."
He said nothing more, not even asking their names. He left the stunned young American wizards and the unconscious Muggles where they stood.
The next moment, a massive raven-shaped shadow shot into the sky as he resumed his search.
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