A Certain Magical Hogwarts

Chapter 740 The Great Contact Between Two Dark Lords

The Rhine, the third longest river in Europe, is not particularly long, but it flows through six countries.

It originates north of the Swiss Alps, nestled between the Glarus and Lepton Mountains, and flows from southwest to northeast.

It travels along the route through Liechtenstein, Austria, France, and Germany, finally flowing into the vast North Sea east of Rotterdam, a major port in the Netherlands.

Durmstrang's large ship sailed upstream from the Netherlands, heading towards Austria.

It sounds like a great trip, where you can enjoy the customs of different countries along the way and appreciate the beautiful scenery of the Rhine River.

But it wasn't as comfortable as I had imagined.

The Rhine River at this time was not as clear as it would be in later years; in many places, it even smelled like a stinking ditch.

the reason is simple:

As industrialized nations, Germany and France once overused the Rhine River, causing massive pollution of the waterway.

Especially in the 1930s and 40s, the Rhine became a notorious stinking river, jokingly referred to as Europe's open sewer or Europe's most romantic stinking ditch.

The Netherlands, at the very bottom of the Rhine, finally relented.

Good heavens, it did nothing wrong, so why should it have to endure this stench that it shouldn't have to bear?

So the Netherlands began to advocate: green mountains and clear waters are gold and silver mountains.

Led by the Dutch, countries formed a "Rhine River Protection and Pollution Prevention Forum" to discuss how to prevent pollution and reduce emissions.

After decades of effort, only in recent years has the Rhine River shed its reputation as the "Western version of the Dragon's Beard Ditch".

And this label fell on the Mariana Trench, which is even more polluted.

Of course, it's not like there's no scenery at all.

For example, Basel, a city where "a rooster's crow can be heard in three countries," is bordered by Germany to the north and France to the west.

[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name: 202ᴋᴋs.ᴄᴏᴍ]

The Basel team has a deep connection with Barcelona in Spain; Barcelona's red and blue jerseys originated from Basel.

There is also a famous city on the west bank of the Rhine River—Strasbourg, France, which is known as the capital of Europe because the European Parliament is located there.

After several days of stopping and starting, as if on a trip, William and Hermione disembarked near Lake Constance.

The ship will continue upstream, heading towards the Alps.

After the last Wizarding War, the giants of England were driven out and migrated to the depths of the Alps.

No one knows exactly where they are hiding, and Hagrid and Mrs. Maxim need to continue their search.

This process may take a long time.

After disembarking, William casually left Hagrid's incredibly cool motorcycle behind.

Maxim doesn't like motorcycles; she prefers the old-fashioned mode of transportation like horse-drawn carriages.

Besides, given their size, the motorcycle simply couldn't handle it and would have a tire blowout.

Hermione studied the map of Austria for a while and finally determined the route.

William's fingers reached under the motorcycle's front fender and pulled out a small magnetic box. Inside was a key.

He inserted the key and started the motorcycle.

A few seconds later, Hermione also got on the motorcycle and sat behind him.

William pulled out two safety helmets from somewhere and handed one to Hermione.

After Hermione put on her helmet, she hugged William tightly around the waist.

William floored the accelerator, and the motorcycle shot off like an arrow.

The car had more power than William had expected; after traveling several meters, the wheels were almost off the ground.

William floored the accelerator, and the roar of the motorcycle startled the wild ducks on the lake, causing them to take flight.

"Let's go, heading towards Vienna!"

……

……

Braunau town,

Located on the Inn River in Upper Austria, it is approximately 90 kilometers from Linz and 60 kilometers from Salzburg.

This remote town, which should have been unknown, is famous in both the Muggle and wizarding worlds.

Because of two people:

A Muggle,

A wizard.

That Muggle born in Braunau has a series of multiple titles, just like Daenerys Targaryen:

A young painter in Braunau; a vagrant on the streets of Vienna; a corporal in the 16th Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment; a loser of the Beer Hall riot; a world-renowned bestselling author; and the Chancellor of the Third Reich.

And... the eternal happy leader of the parody/meme section.

As for that wizard, it was none other than the infamous first Dark Lord—Grindelwald.

Back then, Grindelwald built Neumontgard Castle not far from the town of Braunau.

This castle was also the prison where he was imprisoned after his defeat by Dumbledore.

At this moment, in a quiet bar in Braunau, sat a wizard wrapped in a long robe—Grey Rozier.

In the past few days, he has traveled all the way to this country and then to this small town.

He is searching for another Dark Lord in order to save the Dark Lord.

After taking a small sip of his second tonic, he began to examine the row of colorful bottles at the back of the bar.

"How about a glass of Grüner Vittelina? It's a specialty of Austria."

The bar owner, a woman in her thirties with a voluptuous figure and a playful smile, stared intently at the distinguished-looking man.

Although the man was dressed strangely, she could tell that he was a wealthy man.

Rozier ignored the female boss's flirtatious glances, shook his head, and said in German, "No, thank you."

He thought to himself that anyone could remain teetotal in the desert, but only a faithful believer could resist the temptation even amidst a pool of alcohol.

He needs to be absolutely sober to carry out his nighttime mission, not to drink and numb himself.

He touched the pocket of his robe; there were several letters inside.

The signature is Vida Rozier—Rozier's great-aunt whom he never met.

This was obviously a fake letter, but only in this way could they successfully contact Grindelwald.

However, there was nothing wrong with the handwriting; it was Rozier's imitation of the handwriting left by Vida in their previous correspondence.

He thought about it for a while longer and concluded that there should be no oversights.

My thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the bar's shrill doorbell.

Rozier suddenly picked up the tonic water and took a big gulp.

"I should go too," he thought, and then stood up from the stool.

He was about to pay the bill, but the bar owner gave him an unexpectedly deep and flirtatious wink and waived the bill.

It seems that if Rozier is willing, he can not only have a free meal tonight, but also try some "Austrian flavor".

Rozier's face remained indifferent; he offered no response and turned to leave.

The bar door was suddenly flung open, and two burly men stumbled in.

They were wearing red and blue football jerseys, their bellies exposed, and they sang the Austrian national anthem off-key.

Obviously, Rapid Vienna won their away game this afternoon, and they are celebrating.

"My God!" one of the men exclaimed, staring at Rozier's exquisite and ornate robes.

"What a strange outfit! Are you from a circus?"

The two men laughed incessantly and staggered toward him, seemingly trying to pull at his robe.

Rozier pulled out his wand and shot out two beams of green light, and the two lay coldly on the ground.

The female boss screamed hysterically, pounding her fists on the bar counter, and shouted in German: "Murder!"

Rozier turned around and pointed his wand at the female shop owner.

She then looked confused and went to the kitchen to get a cleaver.

Just modify the memory... a simple spell, and the Austrian Ministry of Magic won't even notice anything amiss.

Rozier went to the bar, grabbed another bottle of tonic, and put it in his pocket.

And I must say... Muggle drinks are really good.

Stepping out of the bar, Rozier breathed in the fresh air and walked along the alley towards the Dozi River.

Not wanting to attract the attention of Muggles, he hid in the shadows.

We have important business to attend to tonight, so we can't afford to cause any more trouble.

He straightened his robe and then sorted out the task at hand.

Tonight is an invitation of the century—a great encounter between two Dark Lords.

But he... was that unbreakable bridge.

……

……

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(End of this chapter)