Hogwarts: I Am Such a Model Wizard

Chapter 830: Unreliable Nicolas

Vinda Rosier didn’t even spare Kyle a glance before she began dispelling the Fiendfyre to save Grindelwald. Kyle didn’t hesitate either. The moment she turned away, he mounted his Broomstick and shot off without looking back.

He had considered hitting Rosier from behind while she was distracted, but after thinking it through, he decided it wasn’t worth the risk. He couldn’t be sure he could kill her—even with help from the Basilisk.

If she survived, sheʼd likely deal with him first. Then everything would go back to square one, and his effort in igniting Nurmengard would be rendered meaningless.

Besides, if Grindelwald really were to die in the Fiendfyre, Kyle would end up being hunted endlessly… These people were far more dangerous than Death Eaters. No matter how he looked at it, the trade-off just wasn’t worth it.

Better to end the game here—chalk it up as a win.

As for what came next… as long as he could bring Dumbledore back, he could hand the mess over to him. Kyle only got involved with Rosier and the others to save him—it was Dumbledore’s responsibility to deal with the fallout.

“Stop!” Tinos had originally wanted to stop Kyle, but a stream of Fiendfyre suddenly drifted in another direction, slowly curling toward the wizards still lying on the ground. He had no choice but to grit his teeth and abandon the chase, turning to save the others instead.

With no one pursuing him anymore, Kyle flew to higher ground and pushed his Firebolt to full speed.

About ten minutes later, spellfire lit up behind him again… It looked like the group he had tricked had returned. But at the same time, Kyle sensed that a lingering kind of magical restraint around him had suddenly vanished.

A split second before the spell hit, Kyle smiled slightly—and vanished into thin air.

Apparition.

When he reappeared, the scenery had changed from forest to towering peaks—it seemed he’d landed in a mountain range.

Unfamiliar with Austria and unwilling to return to the forest entrance, Kyle had opted for a random Apparition location. That way, Rosier and her people wouldn’t be able to trace him.

Fortunately, this destination wasn’t bad. It was far from the forest, and there were no Muggles in sight.

Kyle hopped off his Broomstick and sat down on a rock.

He was a bit relieved—his mind had remained clear today. None of that hazy, half-asleep fog that had plagued him before.

After all, he had gone up against twelve battle-hardened wizards. One wrong move, a single bad decision… and he might’ve been captured.

He sat there for a while, planning to drink something to ease the tension from being on high alert for so long.

It was about time to sleep, too—which made him think of the ”raspberry juice” Nicolas had given him.

It might be a potion, but it tasted really good—way better than Pumpkin Fizz.

But when Kyle took the bottle out, he found it empty. The portion he’d drunk in the morning hadn’t refilled like it had before.

“It’s finished already?”

Kyle shook the bottle a few times. After confirming there was no more juice coming out, he put it away and pulled out another potion—a light blue one—which he drank instead.

The cool potion eased his nerves a little. He stopped thinking about Vinda Rosier and began pondering how to return.

He took out the “ticket” Nicolas had given him—the two-way mirror.

“Nicolas? Nicolas… are you there?”

Kyle called out tentatively. He didn’t expect anything, but to his surprise, a few seconds later the mirror lit up and Nicolas’ face appeared.

“Oh… everything’s taken care of?” Nicolas asked. “Took you a bit longer than I expected.”

“If you hadn’t placed the Portkey in that spot, things would’ve gone a lot faster,” Kyle replied irritably. After being chased all night, he had every right to feel frustrated.

If Nicolas hadn’t set the Portkey inside Rosier’s base, none of this would have happened.

“What happened?” Nicolas asked, surprised.

“You don’t know?”

“Should I?” Nicolas blinked. “Honestly, I haven’t been there in sixty years. The Portkey location is the same place I exited after we finished renovating Nurmengard. What, it’s not forest anymore?”

“Oh, it is. Just with a few more people,” Kyle said, then quickly recounted what had happened.

“Twelve people chased me all night. If I’d made one wrong move, forget saving Dumbledore—I’d probably be dead.”

“Vinda Rosier?” Nicolas suddenly understood.

“Huh… all those Aurors couldn’t find her, and she turned out to be hiding right near Nurmengard. Then again, thinking about it, that probably is the safest place. Wizards from that era wouldn’t dare go near Grindelwald, even if he’s locked up.”

“Why? He can’t escape from Nurmengard, can he?”

“Oh, you probably don’t know,” Nicolas explained. “Many of Grindelwald’s followers were actually Aurors who once helped capture him. He was caught a few times in the past, but always escaped—with the help of the guards.”

“The International Confederation of Wizards investigated and found that most of those followers didn’t start supporting him until after he was imprisoned.”

“There’s a rumor that Grindelwald knows a special kind of Imperius Curse—one that corrodes the mind invisibly. Because of that, Aurors are too afraid to go near Nurmengard.”

“A special Imperius Curse?” Kyle raised an eyebrow. “And you still had me go there? Aren’t you worried I’ll let him out?”

“Not really, because that’s just what the Confederation says,” Nicolas replied. “The real reason probably isn’t some Imperius Curse. What it actually is… only Grindelwald and the guards would know.”

“…Fine.” Kyle sighed. “Forget that—how do I get back now?”

“Ah. Well…” Nicolas was briefly at a loss for words.

“What is it?”

“It’s just that…” Nicolas mumbled, “I set a return time on the Portkey I gave you.”

“You could’ve told me that earlier.” Kyle gripped the two-way mirror tightly in his hand.

“When?”

“Twelve o’clock.”

“Noon?” Kyle frowned. “I have to wait that long? Why can’t it be earlier?”

“No, not noon,” Nicolas shook his head. “Midnight. Or rather—early morning.”

Kyle’s heart sank. He tried to stay calm. “Alright… it’s late, but it’s just one day. I can wait…”

“No, I mean early yesterday morning,” Nicolas said. “In other words, you’ve already missed your return window.”

“That’s on me,” he added. “I didn’t expect you to run into Vinda Rosier and get delayed.”

Just as I thought...

Kyle sighed. “So what do I do now?”

“Well… you’ll have to figure something out yourself,” Nicolas said with an awkward smile. “Or, you could explore Austria a bit. It’s a beautiful place—especially the music. Truly unforgettable.”

“And wait around for Rosier to find me?”

“Don’t worry about that,” Nicolas replied. “They’re not likely to leave the forest anytime soon.” He suddenly glanced to his left. “Oh—repairs on the Time-Turner have reached a critical point. I need to supervise. Good luck…”

With that, the two-way mirror went dark.

“Hey, Nicolas, don’t go! It’s over a thousand miles back from here!”

Kyle called out a couple of times, but the mirror didn’t respond. Clearly, Nicolas had already set his aside.

Seriously… over a thousand miles? And he’s supposed to figure it out himself?

Kyle was so furious he nearly hurled the mirror into the lake across from him.

If he were still in Britain, it wouldn’t be a problem—a few Apparitions, or he could make a Portkey himself.

But this was Austria. If he used Apparition or a Portkey here, he risked being intercepted by Aurors from the surrounding countries—and probably getting slapped with an “illegal entry” charge.

Unless he used an unregistered Portkey, like the two-way mirror he arrived with. But he didn’t know how to make one, and being in a completely unfamiliar place meant he had no way to buy one either.

Which left him with just one option: flying back by broom.

Over a thousand miles… Even with a Firebolt, it’d take at least ten hours.

Technically not too far—professional Quidditch players could spend several days in the air for a single match. Ten hours was nothing to them.

But Kyle wasn’t a professional player. Just thinking about flying that long made his legs ache.

Maybe he should just stay here, hang around a bit, and wait for Nicolas to finish the Time-Turner and send it over…

No!

The idea was immediately rejected.

Even if Nicolas said Rosier wouldn’t leave the forest easily, Kyle wasn’t willing to gamble on that. It was still safest to get as far away as possible.

Nicolas really had thrown this whole thing together haphazardly.

“I’ve got to think of something else,” Kyle muttered, pacing back and forth… when suddenly, a flock of birds took off from the mountain across the way.

A flock of birds wasn’t anything unusual—but it sparked an idea.

He quickly pulled out another two-way mirror and tapped it with his wand.

“Kanna, are you there?” Kyle said quietly.

This time, the mirror responded almost immediately. Kanna appeared, rubbing her eyes.

“Kyle?” she mumbled, clearly not fully awake. “What’s going on?”

“Sorry,” Kyle said. “Thing is, I’m in Austria right now. Are you familiar with the area?”

“Huh?” Kanna blinked fully awake. “Why’d you end up there again? Sightseeing?”

“Not this time. It’s official business,” Kyle said. “Do you know anything about the place?”

“No,” Kanna shook her head. “Never been.”

“What about Fleur? She should know something, right? I remember during the Triwizard Tournament, she mentioned the music here and even recommended we visit.”

“She did?” Kanna thought for a second. “Whatever, I’ll go ask her. She’s next door.”

She quickly stood up... The sound of hurried footsteps echoed through the mirror.

It wasn’t long before the image flickered again—this time showing Fleur.

She’d clearly been woken up far too early, and her expression made it very clear she wasn’t pleased to see Kyle.

“What is it? Just say it.”

Kyle didn’t waste time. “Where’s the post office in Austria?”

“Which post office?”

“Austria’s.”

“Why do you need that?”

“Because I’m here,” Kyle said. “And I urgently need to find a post office. Do you know where it is or not?”

“No idea. I was only there for a visit, never mailed anything,” Fleur replied irritably. “But I do know there’s a well-known wizarding village nearby—you could check it out.”

She gave him an address, then abruptly shut the two-way mirror.

Kyle mounted his Broomstick again and headed straight for the place she’d mentioned.

...

It was a bit of a distance, but far closer than a thousand miles.

It only took Kyle half an hour to reach a plaza just south of Vienna.

According to Fleur, there was a massive accordion statue here, with a hollow section in the middle—only visible to wizards.

Kyle quickly found the gap.

Once inside, he entered a village reminiscent of Hogsmeade, though far livelier. The wizards wore a wide range of outfits, and many were clearly tourists from abroad.

The moment he stepped in, Kyle heard music drifting through the air.

Near the entrance, a piano played itself, keys moving without anyone sitting at it.

Farther in, he saw a string quartet. In front of a clothing shop, the owner—dressed in traditional garb—was cheerfully tapping away on a tambourine.

Outside a tavern, a small band performed. They, too, wore Austrian-style costumes. Three were wizards, while the other two resembled Cornish Pixies, complete with transparent wings and jagged tails, sawing away at cellos perfectly sized to their tiny bodies... and surprisingly pleasant to listen to.

Even more incredible was how all the music, despite its variety, blended harmoniously without clashing.

This really was the musical haven it was rumored to be. If not for the urgency, Kyle could see himself staying to explore a while.

Even though he’d been in a rush, the moment he arrived, he couldn’t help slowing down and weaving through the shops.

The village wasn’t large, but it still took him over an hour to browse before he finally—though a bit reluctantly—stepped into the Owl Post Office beside the tavern.

“Hello there, customer.”

The clerk gave Kyle a quick once-over, then spoke in flawless London-accented English. “What can I help you with? Letters, postcards, or gifts?”

“Gifts,” Kyle replied. “But it’s going pretty far.”

“No worries at all. If youʼre sending something to Britain, our messengers are fully capable.”

“You know that?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” the clerk said with a smile. “If I had to guess, I’d say you just graduated from Hogwarts and came here on holiday.

“Though I should mention—because of the current situation in Britain—courier fees are a bit higher than usual. Hope you understand…”

“I only care about speed. Price isn’t an issue.” Kyle placed a heavy pouch of Galleons on the counter.

The clinking of coins made the clerk’s smile even brighter.

“A generous guest indeed! In that case, may I recommend Kabu.” He gave a quick gesture, and a sturdy owl flew over immediately.

It was slightly smaller than Ratton but still impressive—clearly one of the shop’s top messengers.

“So then, where’s the delivery going?”

“England. The Ministry of Magic.”

“In that case, the fee will be ten Galleons,” the clerk said with a polite smile.

Kyle paused as he reached for the money.

“That’s more than ‘a bit’ expensive. From what I know, that kind of distance usually doesn’t cost more than one Galleon.”

“I agree, but there’s not much we can do. Many messengers are unwilling to go to Britain… those cloaked monsters freeze their wings.”

Cloaked monsters… Dementors? Kyle wondered.

But hadn’t those things been wiped out over a year ago? Either this place was out of the loop, or someone was exaggerating.

“Of course,” the clerk continued, “you can also choose a different messenger. It’ll take a bit longer, but it’s cheaper—just five Galleons.”

“No, this one’s fine.”

Kyle didn’t bother arguing. He placed ten gold coins on the table.

“But I might still need to pick up a few things. Can I hold onto it for now? That way I won’t have to make a second trip.”

“Technically, that’s not allowed,” the clerk said. “But a customer as generous as yourself—we’d be remiss to deny such a small request… just don’t take too long.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t make things difficult for you.” Kyle took a few steps, then turned back. “Oh, and I need an envelope.”

“Complimentary.” The clerk placed a standard envelope on the counter.

Kyle said nothing, simply took it and walked out.

Ten Galleons spent—if they’d charged him for the envelope too, that really would’ve been outrageous.

A few minutes later, the messenger owl took off with a thick envelope clutched in its claws, and at the same time, Kyle vanished from the village.