Chapter 210 - 210: The Grave-Robbing Specialist

Words : 1837 Updated : Oct 9th, 2025

"That's right," Edward said, after a moment of thought. "What happened that day was…complicated. The Dumbledore brothers had a falling out with Grindelwald over their sister, and—young and hot-headed as they were—someone drew a wand first. A chaotic duel broke out." "In the scuffle, their sister Ariana was accidentally hit. Her magical powers went out of control, and…she died from the explosion. That incident drove a permanent wedge between Dumbledore and Grindelwald." He paused, then added, "Oh, and Ariana was an Obscurial." "Do you remember what I told you the first time we came to Hogwarts?" Edward asked. "I said that 'magic doesn't require potions and doesn't carry the risk of losing control.' Well, that wasn't entirely accurate. In a sense, an Obscurial is a wizard constantly on the verge of losing control. They can easily hurt others—and themselves." Audrey tensed. "Then you…" "Relax," Edward reassured her. "My current Obscurial state might have been caused by my Animagus transformation interacting with my spirituality—or some other mutation. Aside from some emotional instability, I'm not in danger the way a true Obscurial is." "You're sure?" "Positive!" —At least for now, he added silently. Audrey finally breathed a sigh of relief, then turned her gaze back to the gravestone. "So in the end, that whole incident was nothing but a tragedy. Professor Dumbledore must've been heartbroken." "He was. And even now, neither of the brothers has fully recovered. His brother Aberforth never forgave him." In truth, other than Ariana, none of the three were completely innocent. And yet, that one incident had haunted them for nearly a century. "Edward!" Lilith's ears suddenly perked up. She looked toward the church. "I think I heard something coming from down there!" She raised a little paw and pointed toward the stone wall of the church. The two immediately strained their ears, but couldn't hear anything. Susie's ears twitched, though, and she nodded. "I hear it too. Sounds like…someone digging." Digging? Could it be the same people who left holes near the Potter and Dumbledore homes? The two small creatures led Edward and Audrey back to the church and stopped in front of the stone wall on its side. "Right down here," they said. Edward immediately cast Door Opening, passing effortlessly through the wall. A few seconds later, he reappeared. "There's a hidden door here. Inside is a spiral staircase leading underground." Audrey's eyes lit up. "Could it be where Godric's tomb is hidden?" "No idea. Want to check it out?" "Of course!" "I'm going too!" Lilith was already bouncing with excitement. "Miss Lilith must investigate!" "Alright." Edward cast protective spells and Disillusionment Charms on everyone. Then, he opened the hidden passage again, and they slipped through the stone wall. The space inside was cramped—Audrey had to stick close to Edward just to move. "Let's go." They slowed their pace and crept quietly down the spiral steps. At first, the surroundings were pitch dark, and they could hardly see a thing. But after descending about one story's height, a faint light appeared below—and grew brighter as they continued down. Scrape…scrape…scrape… Edward and Audrey could now hear the sound of shovels digging into earth. At the bottom of the staircase, a stone chamber came into view, roughly the same size as the church above. Torches burned on each of the four walls, casting flickering shadows across the room. At the centre stood a single stone monument, etched with nothing but the image of a lion—Gryffindor's lion. Behind the monument, the grave had already been dug into a wide pit. Mounds of earth flanked either side, and now and then, a shovel would rise from the hole to toss more dirt out. "Hurry up! If someone notices, we're in trouble!" "What's the big deal? A Memory Charm would fix it." "You don't seriously think there aren't any wizards in Godric's Hollow, do you? If they find out we're digging up Gryffindor's grave, they'll go ballistic!" "So what? We already looted Dumbledore's house. What's one more tomb?" "Shut up, both of you!" "…Oh." The voices from the pit abruptly fell silent, and the digging clearly picked up speed. A moment later, one of them grumbled again: "Bloody hell, not even a bone. Let alone any treasure! Did Gryffindor have anything else besides that sword and the stupid hat?" "How would we know if we didn't try? But really, for such a powerful wizard to be buried with nothing? Doesn't add up." "Heh, you think Grindelwald was powerful?" "Of course." "Yet now he doesn't even have a wand." "…That's different! Alright, dig one more meter. If we find nothing, we pull out!" Just as they gripped their shovels, ready to continue— Clink—! Their tools were suddenly yanked from their hands. Before they could react, a chain shot out and wrapped tightly around them. Both men moved quickly—twisting away, drawing their wands, and flinging the chain aside, but— "Expelliarmus!" "Expelliarmus!" Two spells shot out at once, disarming the two intruders by knocking the wands from their hands. Yet without hesitation, they each reached behind their backs and pulled out spare wands. "Don't kill them!" someone shouted in a rush. "Petrificus Totalus!" "Stupefy!" The spells shot from their wands—only to suddenly reverse direction and fly straight back at them. One of the intruders was blasted backwards and collapsed unconscious, while the other instantly turned into a stiff, unmoving statue. "Huh? Weren't there three voices just now?" Audrey asked in surprise. "Where's the third one?" Edward quickly grabbed Audrey's wrist and tossed out a Taunting Doll he hadn't used in ages. Almost simultaneously, a figure appeared as the effects of an Invisibility Charm wore off—just as Lilith and Susie lunged at it. "Flavitus!" The moment the figure hit the ground, a chain wrapped tightly around them, rendering them immobile. "Who are you?" the person hissed, wriggling on the ground like an angry worm, voice sharp and high-pitched. "…A woman? No, wait…an old lady?" Audrey got a clear look and blinked in surprise. Bound in ropes was an elderly witch with a pointed hat and a tattered brown cloak—she looked to be at least seventy or eighty. Her face was lined with deep wrinkles, twisted into an angry expression. In the flickering torchlight, she bore a striking resemblance to the witch from Spirited Away. But Edward was the one who froze in place. "It's you? Uh…what was your name again?" The old witch cackled hoarsely. "Heh, you know me, kid? Back when I was raising hell across Europe under the Dark Lord's banner, your granddad hadn't even hit puberty yet!" "…." Edward was speechless. With a wave of his wand, he undid the ropes binding her. "Take a good look. See if you recognise me." With surprising agility for someone her age, the old witch sprang to her feet, staring intently at Edward. Then her face changed. "Wha—? You…It's you?!" Her tone softened instantly, and her eyes sparkled with delight. "As expected of his successor! It's only been a few months, and you've already become this powerful!" Audrey gave Edward a puzzled look. He shrugged helplessly. "They're some of Mr. Grindelwald's former followers…the ones we ran into last time in Knockturn Alley." "Not former followers," the old witch corrected seriously. "We're still loyal to him! Though, per his orders, we now follow you." "…Huh?" Edward pointed at the large pit in the floor. "So this grave robbing thing—this is your idea of helping?" "Of course!" she nodded. "Didn't you ask us to track down legendary magical relics for you? These past few months, we've travelled all over the world—Greece, Scandinavia, South America, Egypt, China, Japan…Anywhere with wizarding legends or mythological artifacts, we've been there. We've found quite a few items, too." "Then we returned to Britain, visited the tombs of Merlin, King Arthur, the Knights of the Round Table, and now—Gryffindor is the last of the Hogwarts Founders we've come to… visit." Edward's face twitched. "Your 'visits' and 'expeditions' don't sound very legal." Wait—just how many graves have you people dug up all over the world?! And now you're casually dumping the blame on me?! He glanced at Audrey, exhaling deeply. My fault. Totally my fault. I underestimated these elderly ex-dark wizards who still believe in 'changing the world for the greater good'. Let's face it—when you've spent a lifetime dabbling in Dark Arts, being normal is probably off the table. Rubbing his forehead, Edward asked, "Weren't there five of you last time?" "You mean Craft and Karo?" the old witch replied. "They're in New Zealand." "What are they doing there?" "Didn't you say you needed us to help find phoenix feathers? There are only two phoenixes in the world—one is Dumbledore's, Fawkes. Unfortunately, we got caught trying to sneak into Hogwarts last time." Edward: "???" So it was you lot who broke into Hogwarts? Are you insane?! "And the other phoenix lives in New Zealand," she continued. "So they went there to fetch it." "To pluck its feathers?" Lilith's eyes sparkled. Suddenly, she found the old witch quite agreeable—finally, a kindred spirit. A feline soul understood her own. "No!" the old witch shook her head. "We travelled so far—not just for a few feathers. Of course we plan to bring the whole phoenix back!" Merlin's beard. Edward let out a low groan. In that moment, he made a decision: He was going to have a long talk with Grindelwald. These old followers needed to stay as far away from him as humanly possible. If this went on, he might end up a full-blown Dark Lord just by association. "From now on, stop all operations!" he said firmly. "No more artifact hunting, no more phoenix-napping—nothing. I want all of you to lay low and rest." "Why?" she frowned. "I—I'm working on a plan with Mr. Grindelwald," Edward's mind worked fast. "We may need you all in the future. But that will only work if you're in good condition when the time comes. We don't want to be dragged down by a bunch of old-timers who can't even walk straight!" The old witch instantly protested, "We'll never slow down Grindelwald, I swear! Each of us still has the strength to handle any threat!" "Great! Then I'm counting on you." Edward nodded, repeating firmly, "Remember—stop everything immediately. Forget the legendary relics. Forget the phoenix. Understood?" "Understood!" she replied seriously. Then, as if just remembering something, she added, "But what about the things we already collected? Like the Shroud of Turin, the Spear of Longinus, the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, the Zhu Xian Sword…Do you still want those?" ——— [Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.

Chapter 210 - 210: The Grave-Robbing Specialist

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