Looks like the old way of doing things would mostly have to be abandoned.
Dumbledore was watching him closely now, practically wishing he'd slip up.
"In that case, no more rash moves…" Grindelwald muttered to himself. "Fine, I'll play by the rules… But what, you think I can't achieve my goals within the rules? You underestimate , Dumbledore…"
As he spoke, Grindelwald picked up a proposed education reform plan in front of him.
In the next second, a ghostly blue fla reduced the docunt to ash.
"Ti to go with a less aggressive plan…"
Muttering to himself, Grindelwald picked up a quill and a fresh roll of parchnt.
…
Somnolen Wizard Tower,
Inside the newly built greenhouse.
"Hungry, are you? Just swear loyalty to , and I'll let you feast on that nutrient solution... That delicious nutrient solution only we know how to make."
Thunk thunk thunk!
"Hmph, fine then—enjoy your plain water!"
Wade turned and walked out of the greenhouse.
Except, the shield in Wade's hand was now densely covered with rows upon rows of venomous fangs.
Yes, Wade was in the middle of taming a plant...
It might sound a bit strange, but it was true.
After being watered with magical creature nutrient solution, that mutated Venomous Geranium had beco increasingly animal-like.
After testing it with Nightmare Magic and Legilincy, Wade discovered that the plant had actually developed consciousness...
And its intelligence didn't seem low, either.
For a forr biologist like Wade, this was downright baffling.
It completely overturned his prior understanding...
Perhaps this mutated Venomous Geranium was no longer a plant—but a creature?
And so, he began the process of taming it.
Possibly due to evolutionary needs, this Venomous Geranium had developed a strong fondness for that magical creature nutrient solution.
So, using Nightmare Magic, Wade conveyed a ssage: if it wanted to keep enjoying that nutrient solution, it would have to submit to him.
At the very least… it needed to stop launching venomous fangs the mont it saw him!
How could he keep rewarding this thing with delicious nutrient solution when it couldn't even tell friend from foe?
But this stubborn thing refused to yield. Wade had to wear it down for a full seven days before it finally showed signs of hesitation.
If Wade had simply stopped watering it altogether and left it to starve, it would never have surrendered.
Instead, over those seven days, he didn't deprive it of water—in fact, he gave it plain, clean water every single day…
But only plain water.
Wade knew very well: this was a plant with consciousness.
And after having tasted that rich nutrient formula, there was no way it could bear going back to flavorless water!
It was like soone used to fine feasts suddenly being made to eat bland gruel every day…
Anyone would find that unbearable!
So after a full week of this treatnt, the results were significant.
At the very least, the venomous fangs it shot out now were much weaker than before.
Of course, there was also the possibility that the reduced strength was simply due to malnutrition…
After tidying up, Wade Apparated away from the Wizard Tower and returned to the safehouse.
...
When Tom saw Wade suddenly walking in from outside the garden, he looked quite puzzled.
Just monts ago, he had been in the garden and clearly hadn't seen Wade anywhere. Where had this guy been hiding?
Also, that strange Venomous Tentacula seed to have disappeared from the greenhouse.
Could it have been destroyed? No way!
Knowing Wade's personality, there was no chance he would get rid of such a valuable test subject.
He must have hidden it sowhere!
But the garden wasn't that big—where could he possibly have hidden it?
Could it be… that he had built a secret base outside?
That seed the most likely explanation.
But then… how had he left the safehouse?
He clearly hadn't seen any sign that the Floo Powder in the fireplace had been used.
Could it be…
Tom suddenly asked, "Did you master Apparition?"
"No," Wade replied casually, then reached out and rubbed the top of Tom's smooth, bald head.
"Don't touch my head!"
"Sorry, couldn't resist... Hey, why not keep this hairstyle? Honestly, the texture feels pretty great!" Wade said cheerfully.
"If you like it so much, go shave your own head. I've already prepared the hair regrowth potion. Once the toxins are fully removed, I'll be growing my hair back," Tom said through gritted teeth.
Since most of the toxins had already been purged, the color of his scalp had returned to normal.
"What a sha. I was really hoping to show your new look to the others," Wade said with mock regret.
"Hmph…"
"But thankfully, I already took a photo. With that as a keepsake, it's not such a loss after all!" Wade produced a photo in his hand.
In the picture, Tom was glaring angrily at the cara, his bald head gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight streaming through the window.
The mont Tom saw the photo, his expression changed drastically. "W-When did you take that?!"
Judging by the angle, it must've been taken from the front, but he had absolutely no mory of being photographed!
"You… did you use a mory Charm on ?!"
"Of course not!" Wade replied with a smile. "You've seen how Grindelwald's public trials work, haven't you? All those witness testimonies rely on mory projections. If mories can be projected, they can certainly be extracted and turned into photos. Otherwise... how do you think the Daily Prophet always manages to get so many perfectly tid images for their articles?"
"It's really just a mory projection?" Tom asked suspiciously.
If it really was just a mory projection, that would be fine.
But...
He distinctly rembered that Wade seed to know so kind of magic that could distort a person's awareness.
If this photo had been taken because Wade silently manipulated his will, making him cooperate for the shot and then erasing all mory afterward...
That would be downright terrifying!
"Yes, it really is just a mory projection. It's a remarkable bit of magic. With it, even the beautiful monts we failed to capture in ti can now be retrieved after the fact..."
Woosh!
Just as Wade was speaking, green flas suddenly flared up in the fireplace.
Dumbledore stepped out from within.
"Hmm?" As he entered the sitting room, his gaze was imdiately drawn to the glaring shine of Tom's bald head.
"Quite the striking look, Tom…"
Tom turned green in the face.
"Why the sudden change in style?" Dumbledore asked cheerfully.
"Because the weather's too hot, so I shaved all my hair off…" Tom replied through gritted teeth.
There was nothing he could do. With that guy watching him from behind, he didn't dare tell the truth.
Besides, that weird Venomous Toothed Geranium had already been moved elsewhere. Even if he wanted to report it, there was absolutely no evidence now…
Dumbledore's gaze shifted to Wade, lingering for a mont as if he'd caught on to sothing.
But he didn't press the matter. Instead, he changed the subject.
"How are your sumr assignnts coming along?" Dumbledore pulled over a chair and sat down.
"Done," Tom said.
He'd finished all the assignnts on the very first day of vacation. For him, the howork had posed no challenge at all.
"And you, Wade?" Dumbledore turned to look at him.
"Uh…" Wade only now rembered the sumr howork.
__________
Read two weeks ahead of WN at-
Patreon: Captain69
User Comments
0 comments from readers