Hogwarts: This professor is too Muggle.

Chapter 218 Second Salem

When he first entered the subway station, he didn't notice anything amiss. After discussing the topic of silence in the subway car, Mr. Grevis's attention returned to the real world. All sorts of strange smells in the car rushed into his nostrils: the damp smell of mold, the sour smell of body sweat, the smell of food scraps, and the smell of sewage from the sewers.

Subway workers tried to mask the stench with stronger air fresheners and perfumes, but they only distorted the smell into a more grotesque and distorted monster, even more pungent than the smell of a morgue. Grevis, who hadn't slept all night, felt like he couldn't breathe and his head was throbbing.

Ten minutes later, Mr. Grevis, whose eyes were already somewhat unfocused, followed Melvin step by step out of the subway station. Occasionally, passersby would bump into his shoulder, but he didn't pay much attention. He was greedily breathing in the fresh air, with an expression of relief as if he had just survived a disaster.

Arriving at the cemetery, which was converted from a medieval church, one is surrounded by gray and white stone carvings and brick walls. The lawns are lush and green, and the cobblestone paths are uneven. Pedestrians stroll among the tombstones and memorial walls, and pigeons perch on the ground and on the walls.

It's more like a park than a cemetery.

“Père Lachaise Cemetery…” Melvin read aloud.

Père Lachaise Cemetery is named after Louis XIV's confessor. It was originally a small chapel, later converted into the priest's luxurious villa, and then into a cemetery in the early 19th century. Now it is a famous tourist attraction.

Many famous figures lie buried underground: Balzac, Wilde, and Chopin, whose body was not intact; his remains are in a cemetery, but his heart was transported back to Poland.

Besides these Muggles, many wizards are also buried here. Two centuries ago, the Lestrange family, who were not yet in decline, built a large mausoleum here.

As a member of the Lestrange family who had registered with Gringotts, Melvin felt it was necessary to visit the place thoroughly after things were over.

"The gangsters chose the scenic area as the meeting place because there are many tourists and pedestrians there, making it easy to escape and hide if something goes wrong. They thought they could just disappear into the crowd and be fine, but who knew they would run into a black wizard..."

Bathed in sunlight and breathing in fresh air, Mr. Grevis regained some of his energy and led the way with brisk steps.

Bypassing the bustling pedestrians, staying away from the famous attractions in the cemetery, and avoiding the main roads while walking along the winding paths, you soon arrive at a secluded corner in the southwest of the cemetery. In the fairly spacious open space, a bench sits quietly, surrounded by dense shrubs, providing excellent concealment.

"What was originally a great place for couples to go on dates has become a place for gang transactions."

Mr. Grevis stared at the smudge of brownish-red remaining on the armrest of the bench and sighed softly; it was a stain left by dried blood.

There was still police tape on the railing nearby, some of which had been broken. Melvin slowly strolled around, observing his surroundings. In the sewer not far away, he saw rotting rats. The photos in the documents still showed their shape, but now only some fur and bones remained of the rats' remains.

Grevis searched for suitable hiding spots for an ambush, moving through the bushes. An ordinary dark wizard might use the Disenchantment Charm to become invisible and launch a sneak attack, but considering the magical level of the Second Salem and the Purifiers, as well as the uncontrollable nature of the Obscurus, they were more inclined to believe that the dark wizard was hiding in the bushes.

Melvin crouched down to examine them. There were no bruises or scars on the rats anymore, and the remaining magic had dissipated. Some ants and maggots lay nearby, but there were no other clues.

Seemingly sensing the scent of a mouse, the emerald on the ring trembled slightly.
Speaking of which, Yulm has been exceptionally well-behaved during his vacation. He stays quietly in the Emerald Garden without making a fuss. He comes out at night, crawls around a couple of times to go to the toilet, and then goes to sleep. He only needs to be fed once every few days. It's rare to find such an easy-going pet.

Thinking this, the frustration of not being able to find any trace of it lessened a bit. Melvin looked around and saw that there was no one else, so he ran his thumb over the emerald.

A young snake emerged, turned its head, and its vertical pupils gleamed with joy. It was July, the summer vacation month, and the Parisian sun shone brightly. The cemetery was lush with greenery, warm but not scorching. Snakes, being cold-blooded animals, preferred basking in the sun more than other creatures.

"hiss……"

Yulm burrowed into the lawn, stretched out its snake body, rubbed its scales against the grass roots and leaves, twisted and turned, having a great time, but for some reason it gave the impression of Yaya rolling around in the grass.

Melvin paused briefly, then continued to sense the remaining traces of magic around him.

“Obscured…unlike ordinary magic…not the magic of magical creatures…unbiased…crude technique.” Melvin recalled the magic remaining on the corpse.

He vaguely sensed something, but it was very indistinct. The power was like the faint scent of dahlias in the air, lingering around his nose, seemingly within reach, but when he focused his attention, there was no trace of it.

"Hiss..." Yulm's breath sounded behind him.

Melvin turned his head and saw that it had caught a mouse at some point and was playing with it in front of its eyes.

The poor mouse was tightly bound by the snake's tail. Before its eyes was the constantly swaying tongue and the snake's fangs that were almost touching its head. With a brain the size of a peanut, it couldn't distinguish between play and hunting. Terrified, it thrashed about, but when it realized it couldn't break free, its eyes rolled back and it twitched on the spot.

Yulmud got bored and loosened his tail to find other playmates.

Melvin watched as the dead rat lay on the ground, and after confirming that Yulm was far away, he flipped over and his short legs disappeared into the grass, his movements so fast that they left afterimages.

"..."

Melvin shook his head, and just as he was about to continue searching for clues, he heard Yulm's voice again.

"Wang..."

The dog barked softly and gently, with a lingering lilt at the end, as if it were being affectionate.

Melvin looked up and saw that this time Yulm had found a sheepdog with beautiful, long, glossy black and white fur. It looked like a big doll and had a collar around its neck. It must have come to the park for a picnic with its owner and wandered here by accident.

Sheepdogs are a highly intelligent breed, and with professional training, they can remain calm in any emergency. However, when faced with a snake that can speak dog language, their canine brains simply can't process it, and they freeze up on the spot.

The sheepdog's face showed a human-like bewilderment.

"Woof?" Yulm barked again.

The sheepdog tilted its head: "Woof!"

"Wang Wang..."

Upon discovering that Yulm could indeed bark, and that it wasn't something it had just learned randomly, the sheepdog jumped for joy and quickly accepted this fellow sheepdog, circling around Yulm and even wanting to lick its scales, but then, afraid of scaring it, it didn't get too close.

The snake and the dog were exchanging words back and forth, seemingly having a very pleasant conversation.

Within minutes, Yulm climbed onto its neck, encircling it like a collar, and then directed the sheepdog to come to Melvin's side.

"Woof woof!" This was the sound of Yulm and the sheepdog barking in unison.

"..."

Melvin looked at the two animals and hesitated for a moment: "Yurm, are you trying to tell me that it can help me find clues?"

"Woof!" Yulm responded, the sheepdog proudly raising its head.

Melvin looked down at the snake and the dog. Both animals were sticking out their tongues, but the sounds were slightly different. One hissed, and the other panted. The rhythm and cadence were inexplicably harmonious.

This is a magical world; what is impossible?
He was silent for a moment, then quickly accepted the absurd reality, reaching out to rub the dog's head: "I'm looking for someone. The rats over there and the bench have that person's...scent. Can you help me find them?"

"Wang!"

The sheepdog twisted its body and darted out, sniffing the bench, then the mice, and swishing its tail as it disappeared into the bushes. After half its body was inside, it turned and barked twice at Melvin, as if urging him to hurry up and follow.

Melvin followed the Snake-Dog duo casually.

On the other side, Mr. Grevis, who had witnessed the whole thing, was a little dumbfounded. He blinked hard, his expression blank. He suspected that he hadn't slept well last night and was too tired, which had caused him to have a mental breakdown and was even hallucinating.

……

This is an even more remote place than the previous one. It seems like no one has been here for a long time, and it's been neglected. The streetlights and trash cans are all abandoned.

As they ventured deeper into the cemetery, the grass grew ever taller, almost waist-high, sweeping across their vision like a tidal wave, engulfing the sheepdog and the young snake.

Melvin could no longer see the snake-dog duo. He could only follow the trails they had left behind. The weeds were tough, and the faint tracks disappeared quickly. Occasionally, a few barks would sound to guide him, making it easier for him to follow far behind.

After walking for about half an hour, Melvin pushed aside the waist-high weeds and a spacious open space appeared in front of him.

The grass was quiet, with some litter scattered on the ground. The plastic bags were faded and looked like they had been there for a long time.

One area was clearly newly cleared, with freshly cut grass stubble and a neatly trimmed surface. It was divided into different zones, some simply covered with newspapers and picnic blankets, while others were more elaborate, with tents set up.

The snake and dog duo sat not far away, wagging their tails at a little girl.

Melvin sensed a faint magical power, frowned slightly, and tiptoed closer to carefully examine the little girl who had suddenly appeared.

The little girl looked to be only six or seven years old. She was wearing an ill-fitting short-sleeved shirt. Despite being a girl, she had messy, frizzy hair, with stubble as fine as grass stubble, probably cut by her parents for convenience.

When it squats on the ground, it looks half the size of a sheepdog. It has a small face, pale eyebrows and lips, and a pair of bright blue eyes with an empty gaze. Its body is thin and pale due to long-term malnutrition. It wears a collar around its neck, revealing its thin bones and prominent collarbones.

Clutching a handful of tender grass leaves, she patiently spoke to the snake and the dog: "This tastes bitter and not good. This is sour, and they think it's not good, but I think it's quite nice. This is sweet, so I'm sharing it with you."

The sheepdog and the young snake had grass leaves stuffed in their mouths, tasting the juice in a daze, without making a sound.

"Are you slaves too?" The little girl noticed the collar around its neck while feeding it grass and patted its head affectionately. "I hope your master won't whip you, and if he does, I hope it won't be a thorny whip."

"Woof?" Yulm called softly.

“I haven’t been whipped in a long time!” the little girl grinned. “But it’s okay to be whipped. My mother said that’s how slaves are. As long as they wear collars, everything a slave has belongs to the master. And the master gives us food and teaches us knowledge, so we should obey their orders. If we don’t do anything wrong, we won’t be whipped.”

Melvin remained silent; he knew he had come to the right place this time.

"But I haven't seen my mother in a long time..." the little girl said sadly, lowering her head.

With emerald green grass juice still clinging to its mouth, and its deep, vertical pupils, Yulm looked at the little girl and barked in confusion.

"No, I can't run away. I'll be found no matter where I go." The little girl tilted her head back to show the collar. It was dark and not made of linen, plastic, or metal. It was impossible to tell what it was made of. "It's made of two-eared grass and two-horned beasts. Once you put it on, it locks you in place. You can't take it off, and it tightens up, making it hard to breathe."

Melvin felt a burning magical power emanating from the collar, not only from the materials that strengthened the connection, but also from the horn of the venomous beast, which could detonate the necklace if necessary.

On the grass in the corner of the cemetery, a young girl sat cross-legged, recounting her situation in a flat tone, revealing her distorted thoughts. Melvin could feel a kind of despair lingering over the little girl like a shadow.

"Huff...huff..." Grevis caught up from behind, slightly out of breath. "Melvin, this place is too remote. If it weren't for the Guiding Charm, I wouldn't have been able to find my way. How did you, with your snake, find your way here?"

The little girl's attention was drawn to him, and when she saw the wand in his hand, her pupils contracted: "You are... a wizard!"

A dim rune lit up on the collar, sending out a warning message. Immediately, a commotion arose from the distant tents, and several figures emerged from the tents and ran toward them, dressed in Muggle clothing and covered in the grime of vagrants.

They watched Melvin and Grevis warily, drew their black Glocks, aimed at the two men's heads and chests, and silently spread out to form an encirclement, the muzzles gleaming coldly.

"Do you really think you can take down two wizards with these lousy weapons?" Mr. Grevis asked coldly. "Tell me the location of the Purifiers, or you'll spend the rest of your lives in prison!"

The cult members surrounding them fired bullets at them, the piercing sound shaking the grass. The fire and smoke briefly blurred their vision, but they resolutely pulled the triggers without stopping.

"Bang bang bang..."

Gunshots rang out in unison, and the smell of gunpowder was pungent.

But not a single bullet produced any blood. Several meters away from the two wizards, the bullets stopped, suspended in mid-air, as if by divine intervention.

Is he your master?

The little girl's expression was urgent, and her voice trembled, "Hurry and let him escape, otherwise when my master comes back, he'll make me bite them...they...they'll die!"

Before the words were even finished, new runes lit up on the collar, and the little girl's face immediately turned to despair. Large tears welled up in her eyes and streamed down her thin face.
"I don't want to hurt anyone anymore."

"Wang?"

Yulm tilted his head, stared at the girl for a while, then twisted his body closer to her neck, revealing his wheat-like fangs, as if to offer a snake kiss.

The young snake caught the collar in its mouth and, with a little force, the collar, like an overbaked donut, lost all its elasticity and cracked easily with a gentle bite.

With a click, the collar slipped to the ground.

(End of this chapter)