Hogwarts: I graduated before the system came

It's Lupin.

He didn't even raise his wand.

At the moment when the strong man charged, he just calmly kicked a piece of gravel the size of a fingernail with his toes.

The small stone rolled precisely into the other party's path.

A simple, human, even mischievous gesture.

But it is full of symbolic meaning of achieving great results with little effort.

He was fighting with his mind, not just curses and brute force.

This humiliation made Valerius's followers completely furious.

"Damn bastard!"

The witch screamed, and a thick, sickly green curse that seemed to carry the smell of a rotten swamp burst out from the wand in her hand.

"Spleen-crushing curse!"

The spell tore through the air with a teeth-grinding sound and headed straight for Lupin's face.

Douglas didn't even bother to draw his wand, just raised his hand casually.

"Armor protection."

An invisible barrier instantly formed in front of him, and the vicious beam of light hit it, like a rotten egg hitting glass, silently shattering and dissipating.

"Spleen-crushing curse."

Douglas tilted his head, as if critiquing a student's homework.

"Vile enough."

"But the magic structure is unbalanced, there's too much malice and not enough focus."

"I didn't take a deep breath before releasing the spell, causing the ending to be a bit erratic. At least 30% of the power was wasted. Be more careful next time."

His tone was so serious and sincere.

It was as if he really cared about a student's progress.

The witch's face turned purple and she was so angry that she couldn't speak.

Valerius watched Douglas easily deflect two attacks, and the last shred of hope in his heart disappeared.

He took a deep breath, and the breath seemed to carry the coldness of the tomb.

He forced himself to calm down.

He is crazy, but not stupid.

We couldn't fight here, at least not before Greyback arrived, and end up in a fight with this unfathomable man that would end in mutual destruction.

He quietly put his hands behind his back and pinched his palms with his fingernails. The intense pain made his confused thoughts clear again.

"We're not enemies yet... not yet."

Valerius' voice lost all its theatricality and became as pragmatic as a businessman.

He raised his hand and signaled his two men to step back.

"Fenrir Greyback was a true predator, he should have been one of us, sharing the glory of the night."

His eyes flickered between Marco and Douglas.

"You want to tame him, we want to recruit him, and in essence, our goal is the same - to control him."

"So, I'm here to make you a proposal."

"What's the proposal?" Marco growled, gripping the spear tighter in his hand.

Valerius gave what he considered a very charming smile.

"Hand over the one called Lupin."

He pointed at Lupin behind Douglas.

"We will deal with Greyback in our own way. He's the perfect bait, isn't he?"

"In return, the Red Moon Brotherhood will grant your tribe asylum."

His voice was full of temptation.

"Join us, Marco. Imagine the immortality and strategy of a vampire, combined with the ferocity and power of a werewolf. We will become the true masters of all magical creatures on this continent."

"otherwise."

His tone suddenly changed, becoming as cold as a knife.

"Just when the real war began, he was crushed to dust by Greyback and us."

His voice became arrogant again, as if he was bestowing supreme honor.

Seeing a hint of mockery in Douglas' eyes, Valerius immediately added, even with a hint of earnestness in his tone.

"We don't mean to hurt him, Mr. Holmes."

"We just invited him as a guest, to... protect him."

"The werewolf leader of the Red Moon Brotherhood, the real madman, has already brought his men here. We just got there first."

"Handing Lupin over to us will not only save your Ash Tribe from war, but will also protect him from being torn apart by his own kind. This is a good choice for everyone."

Marco let out a low, deep-throated laugh.

The laughter didn't sound human, but more like stones rolling deep in a cave, with the resonance of a wild beast.

"shelter?"

He repeated the word as if he were tasting rotten fruit.

"Your protection is a collar, Valerius."

He took a half step forward, and the tip of the spear covered with silver powder was as cold as a small piece of ice in the moonlight.

"We would rather face the Holy Flame of the Church than wear it."

A trace of offended rage flashed across Valerius's handsome face, and a crack appeared in his elegant disguise.

But he quickly healed the rift and returned to his aristocratic coldness.

He turned his gaze away from Marco, as if he were just a piece of furniture in the way, and returned it to Douglas.

"professor."

There was no longer any dramatic tone in Valerius' voice, only a dry, businesslike pragmatism.

"Your methods are... unusual. Your power is unquestionable."

He seemed to be trying to find a position where he could have an equal dialogue with Douglas.

"Greyback is a blunt instrument. In my hands, he's a scalpel. In yours, he's just a lab rat."

The corners of Douglas' mouth slowly curved up.

That was not a smile, but the pure curiosity and possessiveness in a child's eyes when he discovers a new toy.

"He's not worthy of my research table..."

He spoke slowly, but his eyes were fixed on Valerius, scanning every inch of him, from his pale skin, to the faint blue veins under his cuffs, to his family emblem ring that symbolized his ancient bloodline.

Chapter 414 Animagus: Crane!

"but……"

Douglas's eyes lit up with the enthusiasm of a scholar discovering a new topic.

"You're quite amusing."

Valerius' heart leaped.

He suddenly felt a chill that went straight to his bones. It was not from the cool night breeze, but from Douglas's eyes.

It was not a wizard examining an enemy, but an anatomist examining a perfect specimen, or perhaps a collection.

He even felt that he could read what the other person was thinking from his eyes.

For example, piercing a certain acupuncture point with a silver needle can temporarily sever the connection between the vampire and the blood curse.

Or, is the structure of his heart really the same as described in the legend?

This wizard wants to dissect himself!

Just like how I dealt with my cousin!

Fear, like a pair of cold pliers, gripped Valerius's heart, which had long since stopped beating.

He did not hesitate.

Not a single threat, not a single word of nonsense.

He shook his black robe violently, and his tall body instantly exploded under the cover of the cloak.

"puff--"

There was a slight sound, like a huge beehive being punctured.

His tall body exploded instantly, not into flesh and blood, but into hundreds of black bats.

They let out sharp screams and fled madly into the dense forest in all directions like a ball of spilled ink.

"careful!"

Lupin stepped in front of Douglas, wand raised.

Marco also roared, and all the muscles in his body tensed instantly, preparing for a fierce battle.

But Douglas just flicked his wrist.

His movements were even a little lazy, like he was brushing dust off his sleeves.

"Immortal Binding Rope—Peach Binding!"

"Shh! Shh!"

Two golden ropes of light shot out from the tip of the staff like living creatures, and like living poisonous snakes, they precisely wrapped around the pig-faced burly man and the panicked witch.

Before the two could even utter a syllable, they were tied up tightly and thrown heavily to the ground.

The swarm of bats that Valerius transformed into plunged into the dark forest without hesitation.

There is no trace of nostalgia, no looking back.

"Keep an eye on these two."

Douglas gave a brief order, but his eyes never left the darkness where the bats disappeared, as if they had penetrated through the layers of trees.

The next second, he tapped the ground lightly with his toes, and his whole body slid out silently like a weightless shadow.

His footsteps were light and swift, making no sound on the rough ground.

He rushed to a huge oak tree at the edge of the woods and kicked hard on the thick trunk with his right foot.

The whole person used the force to soar into the sky.

In mid-air, his body began to undergo miraculous changes.

His slender limbs were stretched and folded, and the clothes on his body melted into his skin like melted wax, transforming into pieces of pure white feathers.

His face stretched forward, becoming a long, sharp beak.

"Wow—"

A clear, high-pitched cry pierced the night sky.

The voice penetrated the clouds, carrying an ancient and noble aura.

Douglas's figure stretched, elongated and deformed in the air.

His arms transformed into white wings and his body became slender and elegant.

In a flash, one of the wizards disappeared, and in his place appeared a huge, snow-white crane.

He flapped his wings, stirring up a breeze, and rose effortlessly into the sky, rapidly chasing in the direction where the flock of bats disappeared.