Hogwarts: I graduated before the system came

Lupin raised his head and looked at the faint light coming through the cave ceiling.

"Douglas's medicine changed everything."

"Not only can it turn you back into a normal person, but it can help you find yourself again when you become a wolf."

"The pain will become a bearable soreness, like an overworked muscle. The confusion and bloodlust in the mind will be replaced by a strange calm."

Lupin smiled at the children and said, "Of course, the taste is also very special. There are five different flavors: sour, sweet, bitter, spicy and salty. It's very interesting."

The children looked at him with envy. They had only drunk low-quality wolfsbane potion, which tasted terrible.

Marco looked at the children in the tribe and said:

"Most of them are infected and abandoned. They don't deserve this kind of pain and those looks."

Lupin looked at the group of children.

"Yes, they should grow up like normal little wizards, with their parents by their side, then go to magic school and work..."

He suddenly looked at Douglas and immediately understood the real meaning of Douglas bringing him here.

Marco looked at the children whose faces showed hope again and asked Lupin in a hoarse voice:

"Mr. Lupin, even if we can get the potion, what will happen in the future? Can we return to normal society? Who will accept a group of... monsters?"

Lupin's eyes became deep, and he replied softly:

"I asked Douglas the same question. He said healing is only the first step. He's planning... a place where we can stand on our own two feet again. A mutual aid organization of our own."

His voice was not loud, but it was clearly heard by every werewolf around who pricked up their ears.

"It's not a free shelter. It requires us to work... It also provides us with job opportunities, allowing us to use our own hands in exchange for the potion that heals us, rather than waiting for charity..."

"...He even plans to establish a workshop so that companions who have been out of normal society for too long can relearn a craft, whether it's making potions or repairing magical artifacts. They can use their own labor to exchange for potions and dignity, rather than relying on charity."

"Help is not charity. Dignity must be earned."

Lupin himself hadn't realized that the melancholy, self-exiled air had vanished from him as he said this.

"What we need is not potion, but the right to live under the moonlight!"

His words, like seeds, were carefully planted into the hearts of all the werewolves present.

He was no longer just the mild-mannered Remus Lupin.

At this moment, he became the messenger of Douglas' business blueprint, a spokesperson who used his personal experience to sell hope.

Marco's heart was struck hard by these words.

He looked at Douglas, who was leaning against a rock, holding a rosemary sprig in his hand and fiddling with it leisurely, as if picking his teeth.

It was as if the miraculous treatment just now was just a home-cooked dish he made casually.

He looked at his tribesmen, some of whom were licking the last drop of soup from the bottom of their bowls, while others had fallen asleep leaning against the rock wall, snoring peacefully.

Watching the children gather around Lupin without any scruples.

Look at the cast iron pot that is still emitting warm aroma.

This was the first time in several months that he had seen such a peaceful scene in the tribe.

He knew that he made the right bet.

Professor Holmes brought not only a pot of soup, but also a spark that could change the fate of the entire ethnic group.

He took a deep breath, turned around and summoned the few remaining leaders in the tribe who were still able to fight.

In a corner of the cave, they held a brief but extremely important discussion.

No arguments, no hesitation.

When the right to survive is right in front of you and your children's future is within your reach, the choice becomes extremely simple.

Marco walked up to Douglas again.

This time, he didn't bend over, but straightened his back.

"Professor." He said in a deep voice, his voice carrying the determination and commitment of a wolf leader.

"You saved the Ember Claw."

His voice trembled slightly with excitement.

"Professor, you gave the Ash Claws hope of survival. We can never repay this kindness."

Marco's voice was extremely serious.

"From this day forward, the Ash Claw Tribe will become your most loyal ally in Italy. Our claws will be your weapons, and our eyes will be your sentinels."

He paused, a hint of sadness in his voice.

"We are very weak. The Adam Plan of the Church is like a sword hanging over our heads, ready to fall at any time. The lunatics of the Red Moon Brotherhood also regard us unclean werewolves as traitors. The Ministry of Magic is driving us everywhere."

"But we know every secret passage in these mountains, and we know every smuggler and mountain spirit who would exchange information with us."

"You want Greyback, and we'll dig him out of the ground for you."

Douglas threw away the rosemary in his hand, sat up straight again, and asked seriously:

"Don't you want to think about it again?"

Marco said firmly: "This is the result of our tribe's joint discussion!"

Douglas smiled and said:

"Very good, but I don't need your allegiance. We are in a cooperative relationship. You can talk to Remus for details. I think he will give you a satisfactory answer."

Douglas raised his eyes, his gaze sharp.

"Now, let's get down to business."

Douglas' tone suddenly changed, instantly bringing the warm dinner atmosphere in the cave back to the cold reality.

"I need you to help me find Greyback, but we can't wait for him to show up on his own."

He paused and came up with a plan that Marco didn't expect.

"In fact, I've already invited him here."

Chapter 407: Forget the Claws, Learn to Breathe

Douglas pulled a folded newspaper from his pocket and handed it over.

It was a copy of the Daily Prophet.

Marco unfolded the newspaper. On the front page, there was a magical photo of Lupin smiling gently, with a distant view of Hogwarts in the background.

The title read in bold, large letters:

Good news for werewolves! Remus Lupin is completely free of the wolfsbane curse, and Douglas Holmes ushers in a new era of magical healing!

The subtitle is even more provocative:

Mr. Lupin will go to Italy with hope to help his fellow countrymen who are suffering there!

"This is..." Marco's voice was a little dry.

"An invitation." Douglas's mouth curled up in a cold arc.

"An invitation addressed specifically to Fenrir Greyback."

His voice was very low, like a whisper before hunting.

"What is the most intolerable thing for someone like Greyback? Not a just trial, not being hunted by Aurors."

"But the fear he created was dismantled. The curse he inflicted was healed. In the dark, savage werewolf world he represented, a completely different king emerged."

"He will regard Remus's existence as the ultimate challenge to his authority. He will come, he must come, he will personally tear this hope apart and prove that he is the only eternal nightmare of the werewolf world."

Every word Douglas said was like a scalpel, precisely dissecting Greyback's soul.

"So, I don't need you to search for a needle in a haystack."

"I need you to spread a message among your intelligence network."

Douglas looked into Marco's eyes and spoke each word with clarity.

"Just say that you have found Remus and are about to receive my protection and antidote."

"Then, sit back and wait."

"When a wild dog from England, emitting the stench of decay and slaughter, follows the scent and comes to our door..."

A glimmer of excitement and cruelty, belonging to a hunter, flashed in Douglas' eyes.

“…and sound the alarm.”

Marco stared at the newspaper, and saw Lupin's gentle smile on the front page.

But in his eyes, it had become a wanted poster, a bloody bait specially designed to lure wild beasts.

"This is crazy."

Marco's voice cracked as he finally found his voice.

"If the news spreads to everyone, people from the Church and the Ministry of Magic will come knocking on your door."

Douglas glanced at him and asked doubtfully:

"Without this news, the Holy See and the Ministry of Magic would not be able to find you?"

Marco looked at his tribesmen who had been hiding everywhere in silence.

"After receiving this news, they will suspend their search for the Ash Claw. After all, all hunters will remain quiet until their prey appears."

Douglas stood up, walked to the cave entrance, and looked out at the deep night.

"So, Chief Marco, we must be the sole active party in this hunt."

Marco walked towards Lupin with heavy steps, holding the newspaper, not even knowing how to start.

However, Lupin raised his head first, looked over the newspaper, looked directly into Marco's eyes, and said calmly:

"I saw it when Douglas took it out."

He reached out and gently stroked his smiling face on the newspaper. There was no fear in his eyes, only a tempered determination. "He's right, Chief Marco. Nothing can attract a bloodthirsty beast more than a healed member of his own kind. This is my battle, and I'm ready."

His voice was calm, yet had the power to soothe.

"It is also the battle of all those who long to stand up again under the moonlight."

Marco took a deep breath, and the aroma of food and herbs in the cave seemed to finally enter his lungs again, dispelling the biting cold.

He had a brief discussion with Lupin. There were no unnecessary pleasantries, only confirmation of the action plan between the hunters.

Finally, Marco turned around and faced all his tribesmen.

There was no longer any hesitation in his voice.

"From now on, the Ember Claws are on combat readiness!"

The order from the leader wolf instantly made the tribe, which had just been immersed in comfort, tense up.

"Tonight is your last chance to rest. Our training will officially begin tomorrow!"

At dawn the next day, the atmosphere of the Ash Claw tribe changed completely.

The groans of despair and pain were replaced by a repressed, tense order.

In the open space in the center of the tribe, Lupin stood there.

Opposite him were a dozen werewolves who had just recovered from serious injuries.

Their bodies were still a little weak, but the deadness of yesterday's eyes was gone.

Instead, there was a concentration mixed with awe and curiosity.

"Forget your claws and fangs."

Lupin's voice was not loud, but it was clearly heard by everyone.

"Today, the first thing we learned is breathing."

As soon as these words were spoken, there was an immediate commotion among the crowd.

A particularly sturdy young werewolf asked first, his voice rough: