After staying in France for a few more days, Luc acted as the host and took Lynn to visit the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, and also Notre-Dame de Paris, which hadn't caught fire yet.
After tasting authentic French cuisine and purchasing some magical materials unique to France, Lynn was satisfied and prepared to embark on his journey back to Britain.
However, when he arrived at the Floo Network hub again, he received news that left him speechless.
"I am very sorry, sir," a Ministry of Magic official in a crisp uniform told him with a formulaic smile.
"The main Floo Network line connecting to Britain requires three days of emergency maintenance. During this period, all international long-distance Floo travel will be suspended."
"We apologize for any inconvenience caused and ask for your understanding."
Lynn: "..."
Wait, what?! Everything was fine when I came here; how can I not go back now?!
Of course, it was impossible not to go back.
Helpless, Lynn had to resort to an alternative plan—he immediately rushed to the famous French port city of Saint-Malo, where there were ferries connecting Britain and France.
It was his first time going on a long voyage by ship in his life, and Lynn felt a bit of anticipation, hoping to experience the feeling of "riding the wind and waves."
At night, the massive cruise ship was like a floating city of lights, docked at the pier.
The huge hatch doors slowly opened, and passengers began to board the ship.
Lynn dragged his trunk through the crowd, but his ears caught some unusual snippets of conversation:
"Do you think this bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans will have an earwax-flavored one?"
"...Has You-Know-Who really been resurrected? My cousin said Azkaban..."
"I don't know if Honeydukes' new products are out yet; I have to go check as soon as I get back..."
Lynn was stunned for a moment and subconsciously looked around, finding that at least a dozen people around him were whispering about these incredibly "wizard-like" topics.
Good grief! It seemed that quite a few wizards were forced to choose the sea route to return home because of the Floo Network maintenance!
This was practically a temporary wizard tour group.
As soon as he stepped onto the ship, uniformed crew members at the entrance guided passengers to their respective areas; the process was similar to boarding a plane.
Ding-ding-ding-ding~
After a melodious chime, the broadcast sounded: "Ladies and gentlemen, good evening."
"The voyage from Saint-Malo to Portsmouth is about to depart, with an estimated sailing time of approximately 8 hours."
"The weather... We wish you a pleasant journey..."
Under the guidance of the crew, Lynn found his cabin.
He never mistreated himself while traveling and had booked a pricey luxury cabin.
Stepping into the entryway, there was a spacious living room. Through the large viewing window, he could see the dark sea outside and the lights of the distant port.
The problem was, it was bloody nighttime; he couldn't see the sea view at all.
The living room was equipped with a well-stocked wine cabinet, a TV, and other facilities.
In the bedroom next door, there was a comfortable double bed and an exquisite dressing table.
Well... the dressing table probably wouldn't be used. Lynn glanced at the mirror and felt he wasn't "refined" enough to need it yet.
After putting away his luggage, Lynn went to the ship's dining area for dinner.
The food tasted quite good, at least much better than the dry bread and butter he had been gnawing on at home before.
After dinner, he watched a movie in the ship's cinema and played some arcade games in the game room.
Seeing that it was getting late, Lynn planned to return to his cabin to rest.
As he was walking down the corridor back to his cabin, he caught a glimpse of a small figure flashing past the corner ahead at high speed.
Was that... a pony?
Lynn was stunned for a moment, then realized—no!
That size and color... was it an Abraxan foal?! Why would there be one on the ship?
Before he could think further, [Peters Jolt] sounded an alarm.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Lynn dodged to the side almost purely by instinct. Two spells grazed the hem of his robes and hit the wall behind where he had just been standing, leaving two charred marks.
What a familiar sense of déjà vu.
Lynn turned quickly, his wand instantly in hand, looking warily at the source of the attack.
At the other end of the corridor stood two figures in black wizard robes, their faces mostly hidden by hoods.
One tall and thin, one short and fat... Damn it! How is it these two?!
Lynn's pupils contracted as he immediately recognized these two as the Dark Wizards he had clashed with in the Forbidden Forest and who were later imprisoned in Azkaban!
How did they get out?!
Without time to think, Lynn reacted quickly, pulling a palm-sized metal disc from his robes and activating it.
An invisible barrier quickly expanded with him at the center, covering a section of the corridor.
This was a "Silent Barrier Generator" Lynn had tinkered with himself. Its effect was to create a temporary soundproof space where the noise inside couldn't get out. It was very suitable for... well, settling personal grudges without being disturbed.
Protego! Torrential Impact! Expelliarmus!
Lynn struck like lightning, instantly throwing out a familiar combo. Unlike last time, this time he added the [Immortal Curse] to every offensive spell he cast!
The powerful compressed water roared like a water dragon as it surged toward the two Dark Wizards.
The short, fat wizard seemed to have a vivid memory of this spell and screamed, "It's that familiar water again! It's that brat again! Ah—! What the hell is this?!"
He tried to dodge but was still swept by the edge of the water. The massive impact sent him stumbling back, while a cold, bone-clinging curse began to erode his body, bringing continuous stinging pain and weakness.
Oh? So you've learned from experience?
Unfortunately, you still didn't dodge it? It seems you've learned a lesson only to learn it again, specifically falling into the same pit twice.
The ill-tempered tall, thin wizard was clearly enraged again. He waved his wand recklessly, firing beams of red or green light at Lynn while cursing under his breath.
But with the warning from [Peters Jolt] and the perfect body coordination from [Perfect Bodily Control], Lynn dodged all the spells with ease, moving through the narrow corridor as if he were taking a stroll.
Seeing that his attacks were ineffective, the tall, thin wizard's anger reached a boiling point. A flash of ruthlessness crossed his eyes as he raised his wand, aimed at Lynn, and roared, "Cruci—"
However, before he could finish the incantation, Lynn's wand also pointed at him almost simultaneously. "Crucio!" And he thoughtfully included an [Immortal Curse] as a bonus.
Before the malicious spell could even fire from the tall, thin wizard's wand tip, he suddenly felt a wave of uncontrollable agony, followed by the sensation of countless small needles continuously stabbing him from the curse!
The light from the tall, thin wizard's Crucio went wild and hit the ceiling, while he himself trembled uncontrollably, looking extremely bizarre.
"Argh! Ugh—what the hell is stabbing me—" He fell to the ground, rolling frantically while groaning in pain; the scene was quite chaotic for a moment.
Lynn watched the two of them twisting like pretzels on the floor with composure and said slowly:
"It seems the food in Azkaban is quite good, making you two... well, even more eccentric. What, did you break out just to be my punching bags one more time?"
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