When she saw the figure at the door was indeed Severus, Vinda's body instantly stiffened!
From their first meeting, after learning about his relationship with Albus Dumbledore, Vinda had been highly wary of him.
Sure enough, things went wrong later.
Their very first operation encountered problems. This lackey of Dumbledore's, somehow, noticed clues from some detail. That day, when Grimmson and the other intended to blend in disguised as ordinary old men to enter the monastery, rendezvous with Vinda, and prepare for infiltrating the Ministry of Magic later, Severus showed up with Lupin and almost exposed their connection with Vinda on the spot!
Fortunately, Vinda reacted quickly enough at the time, promptly responding to warn Grimmson and the other, successfully averting this accident.
But it was precisely because of this incident that Vinda and the others' situation became even more difficult. The French Aurors, to protect them, set up strict surveillance, forcing the operation originally planned for the night of the day Shafiq was captured to be postponed.
This made Vinda's fresh hatred and old grievances towards Dumbledore intensify even more.
That day, she even began to be overly suspicious, wondering if Dumbledore, who is far away in England, had guessed something and sent his subordinate, that 'Sherlock Holmes', to obstruct them.
Fortunately, things after that went exceptionally smoothly.
The Rat, Patrick Rosier, successfully infiltrated within the Ministry of Magic and released that silver alchemical small snake codenamed [Earthworm]. Subsequently, the flashlight codenamed [Cheese], which concealed part of Rosier's memories, was also successfully delivered to the Rat and served its purpose.
They finally obtained everything they needed, exactly according to the initial plan!
However, just when Vinda, having not spotted him inside the Ministry, had almost forgotten about Severus's existence, she never, ever expected that the other party was already waiting for them at Nurmengard!
And he had even emerged from behind that door which they had been utterly unable to open before.
This sudden change prompted the group of old wizards from the Alliance behind Vinda to react quickly. They swiftly drew their wands.
Grimmson and the other, who knew Severus and had fought him before, even tensed up and shouted, "It's you!"
The situation became tense and confrontational in an instant.
Within those few short seconds, countless thoughts flashed through Vinda's mind.
'Had Snape already figured out our ultimate goal and come to Nurmengard in advance to wait for we?'
'Could it be that the French Aurors falling for our trick, and even the male wizard and child we encountered inside the Ministry who snatched Rosier away, were all just acts to lull us into a false sense of security?'
'What about Dumbledore?'
'Did Dumbledore know about this all along?'
'Would we not only fail to rescue him this time, but also implicate that person in the high tower because of it?''
Just as Vinda felt her body turn cold, her mind, which had just been manipulating the entire French Aurors, now in complete disarray, Severus, who is standing before the prison door, spoke to Vinda, "Long time no see, Sister."
His words pulled Vinda back to her senses. Their eyes met, making Vinda take a deep breath.
"Why are you here!"
Severus merely looked at her.
To be honest, he was somewhat surprised by the true identity of this Sister Aimee.
Because during their first meeting, when discussing the situation of Squibs, especially those from pure-blood families, she had a heated debate with Yuma.
At that time, Severus didn't detect any pretense from her; he could clearly sense that these were indeed her genuine feelings.
As she herself had said, she was speaking out against the injustice faced by those Squibs.
Although he still didn't know the specifics of what happened inside the French Ministry, seeing Vinda here allowed Severus to understand some things.
"It seems no wonder you spoke so sincerely to Yuma that time." Severus said softly.
"You firmly believe the International Statute of Secrecy is an oppression against wizards, and the plight of Squibs is a deformed product of this oppression. So, you truly do not discriminate against Squibs, on the contrary, wanting to treat them well is actually a form of resistance against the Statute."
But Vinda, unlike Grindelwald, wasn't in the mood for casual conversation with Severus. Her gaze remained cold as she sharply questioned him again.
"Did Dumbledore send you here!"
To this, Severus merely smiled.
"It was the one atop the high tower who asked me to come down and receive you."
A stir ran through the group of Grindelwald's loyal acolytes. Even Vinda's face darkened.
"Do you think I would believe you?! Dumbledore... has Dumbledore already moved him away in advance!"
Severus simply turned and walked back inside the door.
"Believe it or not, you can see for yourselves."
The old wizards of the Alliance looked at each other in confusion. Only Nicolas continued leisurely studying the inscription at the entrance, not seeming particularly surprised by the events that had just transpired.
In the end, it was Vinda who took the first step.
She walked towards the door at the prison entrance without the slightest pause or hesitation.
This plan, which was meticulously designed for over eight years, was organized by her. At one point in the middle, she had even considered giving up entirely.
She thought about just living out the rest of her days under the false identity of Sister Aimee, guarding that monastery, using it to care for abandoned Squib orphans.
But the two consecutive prison breaks exposed in Britain not long ago rekindled her hope, making her feel this might be a perfect opportunity.
Finally, despite encountering some difficulties and unexpected events along the way, they ultimately succeeded.
Having come this far, Vinda was absolutely unwilling to stop again.
Behind her, the old Alliance's members followed, moving forward together into the prison that once represented their glory.
Following Severus, they ascended via the spiral stone staircase towards the topmost cell.
"You discovered that room on the top floor of that apartment building very early on, didn't you?" Severus turned his head to look at Vinda.
"That apartment building is very similar in structure to this prison, except for the lack of a tower. So you used Patrick Rosier to rent that apartment in advance. After successfully abducting Nicolas Flamel, you coerced him into performing an alchemical ritual within that room to prepare for breaching this prison?"
"Are you showing off?" Vinda said coldly.
Severus shook his head.
"I'm not that bored, Sister. I identified the problem from that apartment building. After comparing it and considering the French Ministry's reaction, I only truly understood who you were after returning to Hogwarts, and then worked backwards to deduce these details. Asking now is just to verify whether my guesses are correct or not."
At this, he smiled slightly.
"So, you did indeed do it that way."
"That was just their wishful thinking." The one who spoke was the great sage with disheveled silver-gray long hair, an extremely aged appearance, and a relaxed demeanor.
Nicolas Flamel seemed to quite appreciate Severus. While Vinda was unwilling to answer these questions, he was very happy to converse with Severus.
"These people are almost all alchemical idiots. They don't understand the core of alchemy at all. They just thought the shape was similar and the general location was about right and wanted me to try."
His words drew angry glares from some of the old wizards.
"You didn't say that at the time!"
"Ha, who would mind an old man having a little hobby of lying?" Nicolas was indeed worthy of being friends with Dumbledore, as he just winked and said with a smile.
By this time, they had arrived at the cell at the highest floor.
Upon seeing the environment here and the emaciated old man sitting on the bed, neither Vinda nor the other old Alliance's members could hold back any longer.
"Leader!"
"Your Mightiness!"
Unlike the Death Eaters' address for Voldemort, these old wizards clearly had different titles for their leader.
Others called him 'Leader', while Vinda, who could barely contain her emotions and was already in tears, called him 'Your Mightiness'.
Their relationship with Grindelwald wasn't one of master and servant. This once most powerful Dark Wizard preferred to call his close subordinates his 'assistants'.
If Voldemort sought power and immortality, to become the world's dictator,
Then Grindelwald was more of an idealist. Those gathered around him were all 'assistants' willing to fight together for the same ideal.
And now, their leader, who was once charismatic, powerful, and elegant, capable of stirring up half the Wizarding World with a mere gesture, had been reduced to this state.
This sight brought sadness and grief to all the old Alliance's members present.
In contrast, Grindelwald himself, looking at Vinda and the others, showed a nostalgic smile.
"Long time no see, everyone."
His hoarse voice, once it sounded, made even more of the old Alliance's members unable to suppress their emotions. Many fell to their knees on the spot, bowing their heads and weeping loudly.
"Leave this place with us, Leader! We can start over. With you here, we fear nothing! There's still a chance to begin again!"
"You must still remember our former ideal, right? Muggles are understanding the world more and more deeply. They are constantly compressing the wizards' living space. The day they completely discover us is not far off! We need you! We need your leadership!"
"Whenever, wherever, I will do anything according to your will, Your Mightiness!"
Vinda also wiped away her tears, looking at Grindelwald with hopeful expectation.