Chapter 15 - 15: 15: Kestrel and Thunderbird

Snap! Sagres and Nightingale appeared directly in front of the small cabin shown in the crystal ball, where they saw the two Dark Witches who had just appeared in the vision. Both of these Romani Witches were female, wearing necklaces made of finger bones and magical artifacts crafted from skulls, with putrid infant corpses tied around their waists. At that moment, the two of them were pacing back and forth outside the small cabin with their wands, their brazen behavior drawing frequent stares from nearby Muggle villagers. Yes, they hadn't even cast a Muggle-Repelling Charm! The Statute of Secrecy was practically nonexistent for this group of Romani Witches; they roamed freely across various European countries, and because they had no nationality or fixed residence, even the International Confederation of Wizards was reluctant to allocate resources to apprehend them. After all, these Romani Witches would never surrender peacefully when faced with capture. They mastered numerous curses and possessed many Dark magic artifacts, and attacks on Muggles and Wizards alike were common for them. Of course, they couldn't enter this cabin at the moment, as it was a safe house belonging to the Bronze Feather, and forced entry was impossible without an invitation. This time, without waiting for Sagres to act, Nightingale directly raised her wand toward the two. A surge of magical power condensed sharply in the air. Spulch! Spulch! The two Dark Witches had just sensed a spell being cast when a dense cluster of ice spikes burst from the ground, instantly impaling them like hedgehogs. Sagres raised an eyebrow, bypassed the frozen corpses, and walked up to the cabin door. Knock, knock, knock~ Creak~ The dilapidated wooden door was abruptly pulled open, and a small red-haired witch poked her head out from the doorframe. Upon seeing Nightingale and Sagres, she immediately broke into a joyful smile. "Ah~ My Raven! You're finally here! I've been stuck here for almost a month!" The small witch dashed toward Sagres, but was stopped mid-stride by a Barrier Charm. Thud. The red-haired girl—code name Kestrel, who had intended to give him a hug, froze in place and immediately abandoned the idea after seeing Sagres's indifferent expression. "Boo Raven! Mean as always!" She changed course and ran toward Nightingale instead. "My Nightingale! Come give me a hug—What the!!" This time, she was met with a Freezing Charm. "Haha, what mischief has the little troublemaker gotten into again?" A venerable voice came from behind them, accompanied by the explosive sound of Apparition. Without needing to look, they all knew the newcomer was none other than one of the Head of Houses of the American magic school, Ilvermorny. The code name was Thunderbird. "Who are you calling a troublemaker?" "I didn't say your name, now did I?" "Then who did you mean by that, Thunderbird?" "I said—the troublemaker…" "Then you are calling me that!" "Hahah! If you knew that, why did you ask?" "Aaah!~~ You all are sooo mean!!~~" … Sagres and Nightingale were used to this; the old and the young almost always bickered whenever they met—otherwise, it would be truly strange. "So the time has come, huh.." Thunderbird muttered, looking serious this time. Sagres just nodded. The four gathered temporarily in the small cabin; the reason for their appearance here was quite simple. About a year ago, Sagres, who had just joined the Bronze Feather, wanted to find a suitable wand. Kestrel, with a playful attitude, performed a divination on the matter, unexpectedly resulting in a "true prophecy." In the prophecy, Sagres and Nightingale would obtain the materials for four wands from a magical ruin, and Thunderbird would complete the creation of the wands for them. Over the past year, the four had expended considerable effort on this matter, and now that the time for the harvest had come, Sagres had to ensure everything was foolproof. "Before we act, I want everyone to understand the purpose of our journey," he said, glancing at Kestrel and Thunderbird, his tone calm. "You all want to possess a powerful wand, but everyone must have heard the story of the Elder Wand — Antioch Peverell, as its first owner, was eventually murdered for showing off its power. Since then, the Elder Wand has seemed to carry a curse, with the average survival time of its successive owners not exceeding five years." Sagres swept his gaze over the three, speaking gravely and coldly: "Therefore, to prevent us from falling into endless trouble in the future, regardless of whether this operation succeeds or not, everyone must make an Unbreakable Vow to ensure that the secret of each other's wands is never leaked." Kestrel opened her mouth but ultimately dared not speak. Sagres glanced at her, emphasizing, "Even other members of the Bronze Feather are not allowed to know!" She shrank her neck and cautiously asked, "B-But.. What if I accidentally blurt it out?" "Please don't worry about that. The spell will remind you at a crucial moment, but if you're still not at ease, you can choose to entrust the memory to me for safekeeping." Sagres gave her a small smile this time. Kestrel nodded and said no more. "Now.." Seeing that no one had any objections, Sagres directly cut his palm. A tiny crystal vial collected a drop of his blood, and the other three also cut their palms, each adding a drop of blood to the vial. "I, Sagres Greengrass…" The other three also spoke simultaneously: "I, Veiliss Nixia / Balikna Wolf / Iresa Lumina: Stars as witness, bloodline as covenant, Once the secret of each other's wands is touched, the covenantor shall remain silent; Shall not be revealed by word, Shall not be recorded by text, Shall not be hinted at by magic; The betrayer shall die of bloodline exhaustion, the faithless shall perish from magical dissipation; The vow shall forge shackles from this moment, Until the last vow-maker is buried in the grave, it shall end." As the four finished their vows, the blood in the vial immediately turned into golden threads and flew out, finally coiling around each of their index fingers before seeping into their skin and disappearing. The vow had been made, and the Unbreakable Vow began to take effect from this moment.