Karkaroff hesitated before answering. “My younger brother teaches at Durmstrang in Northern Europe. I reached out to him, and he’s agreed to take me in.”

  Alex nodded, retrieving a letter and a piece of part from his pocket. “Durmstrang’s tolerance for dark magic makes it a suitable refuge for you. And it’ll get you out of reach of the Death Eaters for now. But there are tasks I need you to plete once you’re there.”

  He handed Karkaroff the letter. “This is a message for Yaxley’s brother. When you’re settled, find him and keep him under surveilnce. Prioritize your safety, but I expect regur updates on his whereabouts and activities.”

  “Uood, master,” Karkaroff said, taking the letter.

  Alex handed him the part . “This is a list of materials I need. Some of them are hard to acquire in Engnd without smuggling. Gather what you .” Finally, Alex pulled out a leather poud pced it in Karkaroff’s hands. “There are five hundred Galleons in here. Use it for the materials and your journey.”

  Karkaroff bowed his head in gratitude. “Thank you, master.”

  "If you're short on funds while gathering materials, send me a letter. But don't even think about trying to cheat me. I kly how much these things are worth," Alex said, his tone calm but leaving no room fument.

  "Uood, Master. You t on me," Karkaroff replied, his voiusually sweet as he eagerly accepted the money pouch Alex handed him.

  "And this here is a trag talisman," Alex tinued, pulling out a small objescribed with intricate runes. "Keep it on you at all times. I’ll use it to find you when necessary. If you lose it, well, I'll have to track you through the obje your stomach. And if the talisman capsule in there explodes because of instability, that's on you, not me."

  Karkaroff’s expression stiffened. "Yes, Master," he muttered nervously, gingerly taking the talisman and tug it into his pocket. He silently resolved to find a and wear it around his neck for safekeeping.

  "Pack your things and leave as soon as possible. Even though the Dark wizards in this area are lying low for now, they might still be watg you," Alex warned, his gaze sharp as he added, "And don’t fet to plete your task. You’re well aware of my methods. Don’t try anything foolish."

  "Yes, Master. I won’t let you down," Karkaroff said early, fully aware of how much his life depended on his obedience. With that, he quietly stepped into Alex’s firepd disappeared in a fsh of green fmes.

  Once Karkaroff was gone, Alex allowed himself a moment of satisfa. Sending Karkaroff ahead to explore Europe art of his carefully thought-out pn. With that matter settled, he could now focus on his own preparations. Alex made his way to the sed bedroom ohird floor, which he had verted into a study and boratory. His project would be to turn the basement into a secret b—an ideal pce for experiments requiring more dubious materials.

  Closing the door behind him, Alex pulled out his prized possession: the metallic magic book. He flipped straight to the page taining the a lightning rune, his heart rag with anticipation. Today, he would attempt something he had never done before—analyzing an inal rune.

  Under Professor Bones’ guidance, Alex had successfully analyzed many basies in the past. However, inal runes were a differe entirely. These a symbols held secrets that could not be uood by sight aloo decipher one, a wizard had to extend their magic power to i directly with the rune’s structure. Only then could they begin to prehend its intricacies, replicate it using their own magid eventually develop spells or optimize its usage.

  Schors who mao restore runes from aexts or ruins were rare and often revered. Yet, even for them, the process could take decades. Worse, unknown inal runes were ily dangerous. No one could predict what might happeheir magic came into tact with such votile symbols.

  To prepare, Alex had cleared the room of unnecessary items. Only essential furniture and an assortment of potions remained, including freshening draughts, nourishing potions, burn salves, and even Felix Felicis—just in case. He didn’t store them in his spatial bag; he anticipated that prolonged rune analysis might drain his magid stamina, and having potions within arm’s reach was far more practical. He also donned a specially prepared outfit: a full-body pstic suit to protect agairicity. The only exception was his right hand, left uncovered to wield his wand.

  Finally ready, Alex carefully held his wand ae toward the lightning ruhe moment his wand came close, sparks of electricity leapt from the ruoward it, lighting up the room. Alex froze in shock but quickly steadied himself, the phenomenon. There was no pain, no disfort—just an odd tingliion in his wand hand. The rune appeared to be responding to the wand itself, sending currents along its surface that flowed into the wand’s intricate carvings.

  Alex’s wand seemed almost alive, as silver-blue light traced the delicate patterched into its wood. He felt ance or harm in his hand. Though the iion seemed harmless, Alex knew he o push further to firm his theory. Taking a deep breath, he eled his magito the wand, letting it touch the rune directly.

  The moment his magied, a wave of exhiration coursed through him, a fairic current traveled through his wand and up his arm, shooting straight to his brain. The sensation bloomed in his mind like brilliant sparks from firing neurons, leaving him momentarily stuhe feeling was strange—a mix of numbing cold and goosebump-indug electricity. But as the current passed, it left behind a refreshiion, simir to stepping out of a cool shower on a sweltering summer day. It was oddly f.

  Refog, Alex realized that his magic was merging seamlessly with his wand. Uhis influence, his wand underwent subtle yet extraordinary ges. It felt revitalized, as though the lightning rune had i with new life. “This is incredible,” Alex murmured, his brow furrowing in thought. “It feels as if the a Ruself has awakened.”

  The idea fasated him. The ru intrinsically tied to him, his wand, and something far greater. Sihe rune seemed stable, Alex decided to proceed with the analysis. Drawing on his earlier perceptions, he grew bolder and gradually extended his magic further into the rune, letting it flow along the wand’s core. Then, with a sudden boom, the rune burst into dazzling silver light, filling the room with an intense, rhythmic flicker. If someone had ghrough the windows, they might have thought a disco was taking pside.

  Despite the dramatic visual dispy, what Alex felt was the plete opposite. A vivid se unfolded in his mind—a memory embedded in the rune’s essence. He found himself s high above a desote savannah. Sparse yellow grass arees dotted the ground, while rattlesnakes coiled in the shade of weeds. Occasionally, antelopes or hares darted across the dry terrain.