HP: The Arcane Thief
chapter-227

2 Months later. . .

—Hogwarts—

September was here. And just like usual, the new term had already started.

But in this term, things are different.

Axel Hunt, the most famous person of the time, suddenly disappeared, creating absolute chaos.

And after that, a book was released called "The Life and Lies of Axel Hunt", which quickly became a global best-seller.

The kind of eventful life this person had lived was so shockingly tragic and impressive that it made many people fanatic about Axel.

It has to be noted that the book was created in the latest magical format, meaning it had moving pictures and recorded shorts as proof of information, so that people know for real that what was written was actually true.

And then there was the big reveal, in which Rita Skeeter, (who actually turned out to be the author Miss Gossip), dropped a mass release of a ton of damning information on various famous and important people.

Since then, the Wizarding Britain has been in a state of complete anarchy. Especially with the revelation of the words Minister Black said to Axel Hunt.

Now, the situation at Hogwarts is that, meeting after two months, all the students do is gossip about the various things that have happened.

"So, is that Minister still not showing up?"

"Nope. She's gone completely AWOL. That bitch!"

"Why hasn't she been arrested yet?"

"Well, she technically didn't break any law."

"What?! But, shouldn't she face some kind punishment for what she did? Why don't they sack her?"

"How? More than half the Wizengamot is in her pocket, the rest don't have the guts to oppose that mad bitch."

"Anyways, did you hear about the Mcgowells? ever knew Taylor Mcgowell had three mistresses!"

"And he was abusive too! Poor Julia…"

"Yeah, and to think I've been crushing on him ever since I saw his first movie…"

"I'm glad Julia is filing for divorce and pressing charges! That's what he deserves!"

"Did you hear about the Miss Wizarding World? Apparently she really did use dark magic to achieve those looks, something about sacrificing babies. Who would have thought, right?"

"Yeah, she always used to portray herself as so… innocent. Like she was some saint or something."

"Well, as they say, never judge a book by its cover. 'Some' people's appearances can be highly deceptive."

"Of course. Who knows who can be a dark magician?"

"I know, right? So sickening!"

"Shhh! Not so loud! She can hear you!"

"So what? I'm not scared of her!"

"Yeah, what will she do? Cast Crutiatus on us?"

Daphne had a deadpan hearing the boring conversation on the table. But still, she felt the grip on her hand tighten considerably.

"Calm down, Tory. Don't listen to them." She said to her sister exasperatedly.

"But they are being so mean!" Complained Astoria, fuming. "I never thought Hogwarts would be so bad!"

Daphne sighed. Astoria was now eleven, meaning she could finally go to the place she had been dreaming about for years.

But so far, it has to be said that her experience has been far from her dreams.

Since the deeds of their kind father have been made public, there have been two raids at their house, business has received a backlash, their mother can't go anywhere public, and of course, the sisters are objects of all kinds of rumors and persecution here at Hogwarts.

Naturally, Astoria has not been impressed.

And of course, there is the most important factor.

"When will Axel come back?!"

Axel is not here.

The recent fantasies of Astoria always had her, her sister, and Axel, the three of them having fun at Hogwarts. But Axel has disappeared somewhere and her sister, who is always worried, would not tell her where he is, let alone when he'll be back!

Daphne gritted her teeth. "I told you, Tory. Do NOT talk about him in public."

If the people here found out that Daphne had information about Axel's whereabouts, the two of them would be mobbed.

"I asked—" Astoria began, but then lowered her voice. "I just asked when he'll come back! Everyone is asking that question, Daphi. No one would suspect us. And, you still haven't answered my question!"

Daphne rolled her eyes. Of course she didn't answer the question. What was she supposed to say? "For the last time, Tory. I have no idea!"

"But how can you not know? Wasn't he your boyfriend?! Did you guys break up?"

"He's NOT—" Daphne unconsciously raised her voice. "He's not my b-boyfriend!" She whispered harshly while looking around in caution.

"Oh come on! Did you see the look on his face when you didn't remember him? How are you guys not a couple?! He was like a kicked puppy. And you think about him practically all the time! You have a pillow named Axel for Merlin's sak—"

With her face as red as an apple, Daphne had to silence her over talkative sister with her wand before she spilled any more beans.

"Shut… the fuck up!"

"Let's go. We're clearly not eating anything anyway." She muttered, grabbing her hand and getting up.

"Hey Daphne! Did you really befriend Axel to take revenge?" Someone called out on their way out.

"You did, right? After all, he did kill your daddy!" Another one yelled.

Even under the Silencing spell, Astoria wanted to yell back, but Daphne just dragged her out, taking her to Axel's hideout.

Since there's a lot of anger against them, the dorms are no longer safe. So, like Axel, the sisters have been sleeping at this place in order to guard against any vengeful 'pranks'.

It was now only now did Daphne undo the spell on Astoria.

"Why did you stop me again?!" She burst out as soon as she could speak.

"What would you have done if I hadn't stopped you?"

"Isn't it obvious?! I would have told them the truth! That our father was the one who did bad things! Not us! He even did bad things to mother and me!"

"Okay, so the three of us knew of his crimes but we did not report them. That makes us accessory to those crimes. Do you not know that?!"

"But…But if we had reported it, he would've had us killed!"

Daphne rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right. Good luck explaining that to everyone. And that would only make us victims with weak and cowardly personalities. Tell me, Astoria, are we weak and cowardly?"

"I…" Astoria shut up after that, looking down at the ground. "We're…. We're not. Not anymore…" She said, finally looking up.

"Exactly!" Said Daphne, gripping Asoria's shoulder. "We now control the Greengrass Empire. We're one of the richest and most influential families in Magical Britain. We're no longer the weak and helpless girls we used to be. As for the people bothering us…" Daphne's eyes turned cold. "You'll notice that none of those stupid people have a powerful background. They'll stop when their families go bankrupt."

Astoria was silent for a while, looking at her sister. "You are always so strong…"

"Strong?" Daphne laid down powerlessly on the couch. "I wasn't strong before. I was just prickly, trying to scare everyone away with a false facade. HE taught me what being strong actually means."

If this was the Daphne of the past, she wouldn't have been able to handle the current situation. She would have been panicking everyday for Astoria's safety.

But now, this situation just seems childish to her. Now in her third year, she can already wipe the floor with seventh years. It's just that no one worthy to be the sacrificial lamb has provoked them so far, making her wait for the right opportunity.

"And even now, in terms of one subject, I'm still completely weak and helpless." She said, feeling melancholy.

Unfortunately, her current abilities are still far from enough to solve her real troubles.

2 months and there's been no word! How is she supposed to know anything?! She's been dying of worry. Not to mention how much she misses him.

She would have only missed him if he had gone anywhere else. But this is Atlantis! The most powerful place on Earth, housing the most dangerous people and weapons! That leaves her always worried about his safety.

Most importantly, it's obvious that he went because of her! Because not only is she too weak to help, she's too weak to even protect herself, which is not the case for Akiko and Martina.

If he hadn't gone for the Kraken, they would have come for HIM. And after failing, they would have gone for his weakness, which, after eliminating Martina and Akiko since they're too strong, is her.

So, there's also a healthy amount of guilt and self-loathing too.

In short, it's getting really hard for her to continue.

Just one word. All she needs is just one word from him that he's safe. And he should know that. But, it has been two months and there's been no word.

From what she's heard, the situation there is getting more and more serious and there's been no word about Axel.

"Daphi." said Astoria squeezing her hand. "Don't keep it yourself. I worry too."

Daphne sighed, shaking her head. "You have to stay out of this. The less you know, the better."

"But—"

At this moment, the door opened and Martina walked in, holding a laptop. "I got it! I finally got it!" Her purple hair were disheveled and her eyes had dark circles beneath them.

For convenience, Martina has also been living here since this place is much more convenient than her suitcase for a lab. At least no one can steal this place while she's inside.

Daphne stood up immediately. "Did you?!" She asked excitedly.

Martina has been trying to hack into Atlantis's servers to find out information on Axel. They were so excited when they found videos of Axel's trial and the Biopark incident.

But then, they found that any other information on Axel had been classified into the top-secret category, which was near impossible to break through even for someone like Martina.

"You did?!" Asked another voice as Rose Potter popped her head out of another room.

"Why are YOU here?" Asked Astoria in surprise.

Rose rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on! How am I supposed to live at the dorms when my Aunt is currently the Enemy number one?"

Like the Greengrass sisters, Rose was also facing a similar situation. She was devastated when she found out that Axel had such injuries for the whole first year while she had been a bitch to him. But then to see Aunty Bella blackmailing him even in that condition… well, she can't blame people for being angry.

"Forget about me! Did you really get the top level clearance?!" Asked Rose, turning to Martina. "Didn't you say the water-wall of Atlantis (Network firewall) was impossible to crack?"

"Atlantis? Wait, Axel is in Atlantis?" Asked Astoria, but Daphne shushed her down.

"It was! That's why it took two months for me to crack it! I had to learn everything from the start, not only about their technology and language, but also their history, culture, and system. By now, I know more about Atlantis than Atlantians themselves."

"Well genius, tell us already! What did you find out?"

Martina bit her lips. "I… I haven't looked. I'm nervous."

"Bring it here!" Said Daphne urgently. Daphne put the laptop on her lap and the three girls crowded around her.

Biting her lips, Daphne opened the file and looked through the information.

"Name: Axel Regius Arhunt

Age: 13

Father: Tristan Alaxius Arhunt

Mother: Atlena Regius Ignis

Relics: None

Bloodline: Direct Atlantian Royal, Secondary Ignis"

"They know that he's a Royal!" Said Rose in surprise.

That made things complicated. As far as they were aware, since they didn't know the Royal Family's intentions, Axel was going to keep his identity secret while dealing with the Kraken. But it seems that the plan has failed since his file clearly states his identity.

"Axel… Axel is a Royal?!" On the other hand, Astoria's world was collapsing. "How is he a royal? Oh Merlin! Can he still marry my sister?!"

"Tory, shut up!" Said Daphne, her eyes on the screen as she scrolled further.

Further down, the information was:

Parameters

Strength: S

Agility: SS

Dexterity: SSS+

Intelligence: S+

Physique: SS

Mana: A

Talent: Immeasurable

Power Level: 8 Stars

Skills:

Weapon Arts: Knife Wielding (SSS+)

Affinity Arts: Royal Water Arts: (SSS+), Ignis Lightning Arts: (S), Varnox Wind Arts: (A)

Movement Arts: SS+

.

.

.

"Whut—" Martina's jaw dropped when she saw Axel's information. "How is that possible?"

"What does it mean?" Asked Daphne, having no idea.

Martina, who had already seen hundreds of files by now, knew what those parameters meant. "It's higher! It's much much higher than it was the last time! And he was already the strongest in the outer world then!"

Martina couldn't comprehend how that was possible. She was already surprised by Axel when he fought against Voldemort and the two Kraken overseers. But now, he's suddenly become many times more powerful.

"He was already the strongest?" Asked Rose. "Then how powerful is he now?"

"Well, his power level is 8 stars, which is the highest in Altantis. Someone with that level of power can destroy Hogwarts in a single move." Martina was still having a hard time wrapping her head around it.

!!!

Rose gulped while Astoria looked to be in awe. On the other hand, Daphne quickly scrolled further, still hungry for more information.

"Height: 170

Weight: 66

Hair color: Black

Eye Color: Amber/Blue

Affiliations: Black Ops Division (former), Royal Family

D.O.B.: 1/8/5322

D.O.D: 10/11/5335

Status: Deceased, Blood Crown, Order of Mariner-8 Stars"

The laptop almost dropped her lap when she read the last bit. That's how badly she was shaking.

"De-Deceased?" Rose stuttered, like she couldn't understand the concept.

"That... that can't be right. They already know he has Royal ancestry, so... so maybe they're being safe," said Martina, her voice trembling.

But when Daphne scrolled further, their worst fears came true as they saw in an image of Axel horribly injured. Below it was a short video file, displaying Axel's final moments. Further below… were the images of the funeral.

The laptop dropped to the ground.

Rose put a hand on mouth, completely in shock.

"This… this can't be true!" Martina picked the laptop back up, frantically trying to find out, trying to prove that the information was false.

"Daphi! No! Daphi!" On the other hand, Astoria panicked badly when she saw Daphne's condition. Magical chains were appearing all over her body, which had begun emitting an ominous aura.

"What's happening to her?!" Asked Rose urgently.

"It's the family curse! It's back!" Yelled Astoria, half crying, half panicked.

"What?! What do we do?! How do we stop it?"

"I… I don't know. Last time she stopped it on her own. Daphi! Do something!"

But Daphne was just looking at Martina, who was looking at the screen in abject horror. "Is it… Is it true?" She asked.

Martina tore her eyes away from the screen, pain apparent on her face. She looked like a lost child. "True."

The chains solidified as Daphne lost consciousness.

"She isn't trying to fight it!" Said the Astoria.

"What do we do now?!"

"I… I have no idea! Daphi! Wake Up!"

Rose and Astoria kept panicking while Martina looked blankly into the air.

"I know what to do," said Martina after a while, getting up numbly. You could tell she was using occlumency. "Axel…" her voice trembled when she said his name. "Before going, Axel told me what to do in case something like this happened," she said, levitating Daphne.

"He had already found the cure, but Daphne wouldn't accept it. So he told us what to do in case she contracts it again."

Maybe she didn't want to bear the pain alone, maybe she thought Daphne would want to remember Axel, or maybe she still had a hope that Axel might return. But Martina did as Axel had told her and took her to the room where Axel hadn't allowed any of them in.

Inside was a complex ritual circle with various materials placed at different spots. In the middle, was a wand that was a familiar wand levitating mid-air.

"Isn't that—?"

"Axel wand…" whispered Martina, whose family had customized the wand themselves. "He left it here…"

"He didn't take it to Atlantis?!" Asked Rose in surprise.

A wand is a wizard's most important tool, protective armament and weapon! You are going to the most dangerous place. The last you can do is go there fully armed! Rose thought it was common sense!

"The branch of the World Tree… It's the most important part of the Ritual. The final piece..." said Martina, reading the ritual circle, having figured it out just now herself as she remembered the list he had given her. "He… left it for Daphne."

….

4 months later…

In an unknown location.

Water started gathering in a mass, before it formed into a human body shape.

Axel slowly opened his eyes, finally regaining consciousness.

[Welcome back, Axel]

Axel slowly opened his eyes, one blue, one amber and took in a deep breath. "How much time?" That's all he asked.

"6 months, 4 days, five hours, 23 minutes, 57 seconds."

Feeling the tremendous power surging through him, he looked at the Royal Trident in his hand.

He sighed. "Not worth it at all."

...