Hours ter, back at the underground base, Maverick emerged from the interrogation room, his expression grim. He had spent hours extrag every scrap of information from Ruby, the old witch, digging into her mind until there was nothing more to uncover. Maverick had entered evil before, but what he had just witnessed was a pletely different level—pure, unadulterated darkness.

  The rage that surged within him, fueled by the horrors he had witnessed, almost drove him to lose trol. Yet, he didn't kill the wicked woman. Instead, she now y in a deep a, her spirit shattered and on the verge of colpse. With great effort, he reined in the fury burning inside him before turning to leave.

  Outside the room, Ali and Aisha stepped forward as soon as they saw him emerge, their faces showing at the expression painted on his face.

  "Did you get anything out of her?" Aisha asked, her voice heavy with worry.

  Maverick gave a single, deliberate nod. "I did," he replied, his tone ging. "But it's... troubling."

  Aisha cocked her head, her gaze narrowing. "Troubling in what way?"

  He didn't answer immediately, instead looking at both of them in turn. Finally, he asked, "What do you know about Viorvain?"

  Ali and Aisha exged fused looks, both frowning as they tried to recall.

  "Morvain?" Ali spoke, tapping his . "The old guy... ICW High cil member?"

  Aisha nodded, her expression thoughtful. "He doesn't appear mu public... I heard..." She paused, log eyes with Maverick before tinuing, "For some reason, he's said to have lived for over five turies... much lohan a typical Great-Magus..."

  Maveriodded again. "Anything else?"

  Aisha hesitated. "He's often accused of corruption. Nothing crete... Just rumors. He's careful…" She paused, her tone shifting. "Rumors are rumors, but when they surface too often..." She didn't finish, then added, "I guess he knows how to protect himself."

  Maverick's gaze grew colder as he listened. "Acc to Ruby's... fession... it seems he's the one orchestrating the kidnappings."

  The two stared at him, wide-eyed in shock, until Ali broke the silence, his voice filled with disbelief. "But that's... that's insane. Wait..." He paused suddenly, as a thought struck him. "Isn't he also the ander of the Iional Special Auror Unit (ISAU)?"

  Maveriodded, his expression grim and solemn. "That's why I said troubling…"

  "But kidnapping wizarding children? That's a crime serious enough to warrant execution!" Aisha excimed, the Maverick's eyes, her tone faltering. "Are... you sure, boss? He's... the one?"

  Maveriodded firmly, his voice fident. "Positive."

  He g them both before adding, "And there's very pelling evidence..."

  After a moment, Ali asked, his tone skeptical. "pelling enough t down someone from the High cil?"

  "Don't get us wrong, boss," Aisha said hesitantly. "I mean... that guy has been alive for Merlin knows how long and probably has es everywhere."

  Maveriderstood their s. It was true—and likely the very reason Morvain had evaded capture for so long. But Maverick wasn't worried. He had his own es.

  "First of all," Maverick said, gng at Aisha, "you're right. The old bugger has, in fact, outlived his Great-Magus lifespan." His eyes narrowed, his tone growing colder. "Dark... very dark magical rituals," he added, his mind drifting back to the horrors he'd uncovered in Ruby's memories. "That's why he's taking the hybrid and mutant children."

  "You mean he's using dark magic to extend his life?" Ali asked, quickly catg on.

  Maveriodded, his jaw tightening. "He's been at it for a long time..." He ched his fists, anger fshing across his face. "Every decade or so, he ducts a blood ritual. And guess what the main ingredient is?" His voice hardened as he ground out the answer: "The children..."

  Ali and Aisha spoke at the same time. "The children?"

  Maverick repeated grimly, "Yes. The children. Apparently, hybrid children born of magical parents enhahe ritual's effects. The same goes for mutant children... somehow."

  "Is he killing them, or just taking their blood?" Aisha asked, her voice trembling with anger.

  Mavericed at her, his tone growing colder with each word. "Killed would be an uatement." His magic rippled visibly in the air. "He... uses them... alive... They die in the end, in excruciating pain..." Maverick ched his fist, the echoes of the screams and the terror in the children's eyes haunting him once more as he recalled the witch's memories.

  Aisha gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. Ali's eyes widened in shock.

  "What kind of monster... Have the Id the Speakers been blind this whole time?" Aisha excimed, her voice trembling with e.

  A heavy silence filled the room until Ali finally asked, "How long?" He looked at Maverick, his voice steady but grave.

  "I don't know for sure," Maverick replied, his toter. "Ruby wasn't certain. She's been his pawn for the past sixty years, so it's been at least that long... probably much longer."

  Ali ched his fists, but as the oldest among them and ner to suffering, he quickly regained his posure. "How are we going to go after him?" he asked, looking directly at Maverick.

  Aisha g Maverick too, both of them knowing this wasn't a simple case of ambushing a dark wizard. Even if they could, the sequences—both good and bad—would be immense.

  "I..." Maverick began, his toant before it turned firm. "I'll ask for help." His expression grew solemn as he raised his hand to examihe ring on his finger.

  His gaze hardened as he o himself, then pulsed his magito the ring with a deliberate rhythm.

  Ali and Aisha watched ily. It was clear something signifit was happening, though they didn't uand the nature of it. They stayed silent, not daring to interrupt.

  Moments ter, to their astonishment, a crack appeared in the air before them, slowly widening into a dark pathway.

  "Step back," Maveristructed, his tone calm but firm. Ali and Aisha instinctively obeyed, retreating a few steps.

  Out of the pathway emerged a silhouette, tall and imposing, with thick, long hair casg over broad shoulders.

  Step.

  Step.

  Edward Garling strode out, exuding an aura of power and authority. His pierg gaze nded on Maverick, his pupil who had been absent for over a year without a word.

  He wore a Hawaiian shirt with the top two buttons undone, exposing his bare chest, paired with brown shorts. But the most strikiure was his mane of golden hair, gleaming like a lion's.

  "Little Rick, so you finally remembered your old teacher..." came the booming voice of Edward Garling as he stepped through the space passage.

  The man didn't even g the two others, his focus entirely on Maverick.

  Maverick felt a chill crawl down his spi quickly regained his posure. There would be time for reminisce ter; more pressing matters demanded his attention.

  "Teacher, it's been a while..." he said, his voice steady despite the tension in the air.

  A moment passed as teacher and student locked eyes, the silehick with unspoken words.

  "I don't sense any danger..." Edward said, his gaze drifting around the room before returning to Maverick. This time, his eyes narrowed, as if taking stock of his student after a year apart. He smirked before adding, "Impressive mana suppression... even I 't see through you now..."

  Maverick couldn't help but return the smile. He hadn't mentioned his breakthrough to Great-Magus yet—but that could wait.

  "It's not dangerous for me, teacher," he said, his words trailing off as a sudden idea sparked to life.

  He g Edward again, his eyes thoughtful. "Teacher, it might be easier if I just show you..."

  Maverick waited until Edward gave his approval. After a moment, Edward raised a brow, his voice calm but curious. "Well, go on then."

  Without further dey, Maverick cast the illusion spell agaiending it to include Edward, Aisha, and Ali.

  For Aisha and Ali, he wahem to witness what he had experienced firsthand, even if they already believed him based on his words alone.

  This was a slightly modified version of the illusion spell, adapted for situations like this. Inspired by the cept of a Pensieve, it allowed others to not only see but also hear and feel everything he had experienced, making it as close to the real thing as possible.

  He began from the moment he and Ali first heard about the kidnappings, leading them through their discoveries and enters, and ending with the chilliails he had extracted from the dark witch. The entire dispy sted nearly two hours.

  When it was over, Edward's expression was hard to read, but it was far from pleasant. Maverick could sehe subtle fluctuations of his teacher's magic—a rare occurrence for someone as skilled in trol as the Arch-Magus. Clearly, the darkness of what they had witnessed had uled even him.

  Ali and Aisha were visibly shaken. Ali's face ale, his jaw tight, while Aisha's horrified expressioed into tears. By the end, she enly g, overwhelmed by everything they had seen.

  "The memory vials. Do you have them?" Edward asked after a brief silence filled the room.

  Maveriodded and raised his hand. A wooden box materialized from his ste ring. "She kept these as insurance, I guess... There's even ledgers—names of everyone involved. A clever witch... ironically, it ended up backfiring on her."

  Edward took the box, ope briefly, then closed it and stored it away in his . Meeting Maverick's gaze, he asked, "What's your pn?"

  —————————

  Author's Note:

  Just a quick update — up to Chapter 80 is already avaible on P AT r30n!

  PAT r30n [.] / RyanFic