Christmas Eve.
In the distance behind them, the village was brightly lit, filled with the warmth of ordinary people celebrating the holiday and preparing for the New Year.
But ahead, shrouded in a dense thicket of trees, the Ivo Family Manor stood completely dark and silent, as if abandoned.
Yet Kai Adler could sense them—many wizards, hiding within.
At this moment, his figure hovered effortlessly in mid-air, the folds of his black robe billowing in the gentle winter breeze, like the wings of some great bird poised in the night sky.
He drew a gnarled, twisted wand from within his coat. From the cracks in the wood, a faint but sinister Black Magic seeped like mist from a tomb.
The breeze remained cool and light, yet the air around him suddenly surged, as if a pressure front had burst. His robe whipped more violently, disturbed by an invisible vortex of power.
Down below, Ciel, who was gazing up at him, frowned. The figure above was starting to blur.
"What's going on?"
He glanced at Sebastian, whose crimson eyes narrowed with recognition.
"Ordinarily, Black Magic is formless and invisible," the butler said. "But the concentration of power around Mr. Adler right now is so great, it's distorting the very air."
He looked down at his young master with calm concern.
"Young Lord, I believe we would be wise to fall back a little."
Ciel looked up at him. "You mean this could become dangerous?"
"Quite possibly."
But Ciel merely smirked. "Then what would I need you for, Sebastian, if not to keep me safe?"
With a commanding flick of his wrist, he said, "Take me somewhere with a better view. I want to see what this man who owes me a favor is truly capable of."
Sebastian gave a soft, helpless smile.
"Yes, my lord."
Without another word, he bent low and lifted the young Earl effortlessly in his arms. In a blur of black, the two vanished from the ground.
An instant later, they reappeared atop a tree at the edge of the manor's forest. The butler balanced gracefully on the narrow branches, as if weightless, while Ciel sat calmly on his shoulder, unshaken.
Kai turned slightly, his sharp senses registering their presence.
"You've chosen your seats well."
Ciel gave a casual wave. "Don't mind us. I like to know if the favors I grant are truly worth it."
They exchanged a brief look before Kai turned his gaze back toward the manor.
"As you wish."
Raising his wand, he held it delicately in his right hand like a conductor's baton, the tip pointing toward the distant manor. Slowly—achingly slowly—he drew a circle in the air.
It was as though he were dragging his wand through molasses. The space around the tip seemed viscous, resisting every motion.
From above, Ciel could see something unnerving. The silver threading along Kai's robes—once purely ornamental—began to move, glowing faintly, like living veins coursing with molten mercury. Or blood.
Vast waves of Black Magic surged through those threads.
Kai knew it was no illusion. He had discovered long ago that this robe—left behind by the Old Man—had an affinity with Black Magic. When he wore it, his spells came faster, deeper, more destructive.
The Old Man's artifacts were never ordinary…
Up in the trees, Ciel frowned. From his vantage point, he could see the entirety of the Ivo Family Manor, which spanned roughly an acre. But so far, it looked as though Kai was merely putting on a show.
Then he noticed it.
Around the edges of the estate, where the forest pressed in, the air began to twist, shimmer—warping like heat haze.
And the trees—massive oaks and firs—began to crumble.
No sound. No flame. Just silent, terrible decay. A towering tree, thick enough that two men would struggle to encircle it, blackened and collapsed into a heap of ash.
As Kai's wand-tip completed its circle, a blackened trail cut through the trees like a scar. The mark stretched on and on, growing longer, deeper.
Until at last it closed into a perfect circle—encircling the entire estate.
Ciel's mouth fell open.
"Is that… fire?"
Kai exhaled. Even for him, casting on this scale left a dull ache of exhaustion behind his eyes.
He chuckled softly. "Very perceptive, Lord Ciel. This is Fiendfyre—with an Anti-Apparition Charm woven into it. Wouldn't want the rats fleeing before the trap is sprung."
"And," he added with a smug touch, "I layered a Disillusionment Charm on top. No sense alerting them too early."
Sebastian, still watching from the treetop, narrowed his crimson eyes. Though no wizard himself, centuries of experience had made him acutely sensitive to magical prowess.
He had only ever seen two humans in his lifetime capable of wielding such complex and large-scale magic alone.
And one of them had been Merlin.
His gaze flickered.
Humans. Fragile, flawed, and yet… capable of such terrifying power.
Ciel, unaware of the butler's thoughts, focused only on what was to come. Though he did not know what "Fiendfyre" or "Disillusionment Charms" were, he understood the message clearly:
Kai Adler intended to kill every one of them.
He called out, warning: "Mr. Adler, I must remind you… there may still be captured children inside the manor."
A reminder not to let vengeance burn too wide.
Kai smiled and nodded.
"Don't worry. I promised Hermione I wouldn't kill anyone."
"Then how will you deal with them?"
Kai's smile turned sly and elegant.
"Just enjoy the show, Earl."
He turned again toward the manor—still dark, still oblivious.
"These wizards' sense of caution is pitiful."
He dragged his left hand across his throat in a slow, theatrical gesture, then lifted both hands.
The Disillusionment Charm fell away.
The night erupted into color—dancing blue flames rising like towers into the sky, casting flickering light over the manor and forest. Fiendfyre had been unleashed.
And then his voice, magnified by a Sonorus Charm, boomed across the land like thunder.
"Merry Christmas, Ivo Family mice! It's time to repent for your sins!"
In an instant, the manor's silence shattered. Screams, gasps, curses—chaos.
Dozens of dark-robed wizards poured from the building, attempting to Apparate to safety.
But nothing happened.
Apparition failed.
They were trapped.
Panic spread like wildfire.
"Stay calm!"
A commanding voice rang out, cutting through the noise like a blade.
A scarred man in gray robes stepped forward. His face was lined with old burns and gnarled scars—twisted like centipedes.
Jielke Ivo, the patriarch of the Ivo Family.
"Hold your ground, you cowards! What is the motto of our ancestors!?"
Dozens shouted back, fists raised:
"Kill all enemies! Plunder all wealth! Burn everything in sight!"
"Exactly," Jielke snarled. His eyes swept over the crowd like a predator.
"This looks like a Ministry raid. Must be. Damn that Malfoy… he betrayed us!"
Snarls and curses broke out. Lucius Malfoy had long been their only outside contact.
"We'll deal with him soon enough," Jielke growled. "But first—we kill every last one of those Ministry dogs."
A chorus of mad cheers.
"Let them remember the Ivo Family! Let fear return to their hearts!"
"Kill! Loot! Burn!"
Wands were drawn. Madness filled their eyes. They stormed the manor gates, prepared for war.
But when they reached the courtyard, they stopped dead.
Not a single Auror.
Not even a corpse.
"In the sky!"
They looked up—dozens of heads turning as one.
There he was. Floating calmly, still smiling.
Kai Adler.
"It seems," he called down, "the mice have finally crawled from their holes."