When Grandpa Antin announced the end of his story, the little girl, who had been completely captivated, finally noticed that their car had left the main road at some point. They were now driving through streets where the number of houses was steadily increasing.
It was already midnight, and the sky was pitch black. Under the sparse glow of streetlights, the single-story houses exuded a quaint elegance. While the architecture held an indescribable charm, the deserted streets at this hour were undeniably eerie.
"Alright, let's get out of the car. We won't be able to drive any further into the alley ahead," Antin said, pulling the car to a stop and motioning for Glenn and Hermione to step out.
Once all three were out of the car, Antin waved his right hand lightly. Hermione watched in astonishment as the car they had just been riding in vanished in a flash of white light.
At the same time, Glenn noticed a faint glow emanating from the antique ring on Antin's ring finger.
"Grandpa, what kind of magic is this?" Hermione asked, her curiosity piqued. Was the car itself a magical artifact, or was this some kind of Chinese version of the Undetectable Extension Charm?
Glenn furrowed his brow thoughtfully. He had never noticed anything unusual about the ring until his grandfather activated the alchemical device embedded within it. Only then did he see faintly visible magical circuits on the ring, whose structure indeed resembled the Undetectable Extension Charm they were familiar with.
The creator of this ring was no ordinary craftsman. Clearly, their expertise in crafting magical artifacts and spells was exceptional.
At least, Glenn himself was nowhere near that level.
"This ring, gifted to me by your grandmother, contains a spell called 'Mustard Seed Holds Mount Sumeru.' It has a storage space of one thousand cubic meters, enough to store the car. I treasure this ring very much," Antin said with a cheerful smile, showing off the ring. Though his tone was casual, Hermione could still sense his pride.
"One thousand cubic meters?!" Hermione was dumbfounded. Glenn raised an eyebrow. That was no small number. While the spell appeared similar to the Undetectable Extension Charm, Glenn, who had already applied the charm to his wallet and Hermione's protective amulet, knew how difficult it was to maintain a permanent Undetectable Extension Charm. Even achieving one cubic meter was a challenge, let alone a thousand.
After all, space was inherently unstable. A magical space, if not properly maintained, could collapse at any moment.
"Did Grandma make this?" Glenn asked, intrigued.
Antin nodded affirmatively. "Yingqing's craftsmanship is top-notch. She's one of the best artificers in China and the dean of the Artificer Academy at the North China School of Sorcery," he said, his tone filled with pride as he spoke of his wife.
A series of question marks seemed to float above Glenn and Hermione's heads. Antin slapped his forehead, suddenly remembering that these two were new to China and knew nothing about it.
He chuckled and apologized, "I forgot this is your first time in China. I'll let your grandmother explain the details herself. She was overjoyed when she found out her grandson and granddaughter-in-law were both sorcerers."
"W-What granddaughter-in-law?!" The little girl's focus was clearly diverted upon hearing those words.
Glenn, hearing this, finally realized what had been bothering him all along. The sense of dissonance he'd felt earlier now made sense.
As Glenn led the blushing Hermione, who had hidden behind him, through the dim alleyway, he voiced the question that had been nagging at him: "How did Grandma find out we became sorcerers?"
It couldn't have been his parents or Hermione's parents. Despite their unreliability, they still adhered to important rules, such as the Statute of Secrecy.
Glenn was certain that his father and mother were not sorcerers and could not use magic. Before he and Hermione became sorcerers, his parents had no knowledge of the magical world.
Thus, his grandparents must not have revealed the existence of magic to them, likely due to China's equivalent of the Statute of Secrecy or something similar.
So, his parents probably assumed that his grandparents were also Muggles and would therefore comply with the Statute of Secrecy, not revealing anything about him and Hermione.
But his grandparents already knew about them.
Why?
Of course, it was possible that his unreliable parents, Alan and Gwen, had bragged about it.
If so, forget all the above speculation.
Glenn: holding his head in frustration.jpg
Antin, catching the deeper implication of Glenn's question, looked at him with some surprise. He hadn't expected Glenn to pick up on this detail.
Hermione, still flustered, also began to consider the matter.
It... probably... maybe... most likely... wasn't their parents forgetting about the Statute of Secrecy... right?
The little girl felt a bit unsure, knowing her parents' tendencies all too well.
Antin chuckled, clearly amused. "Don't worry, it wasn't Alan or Gwen who told us. It was Yingqing's father who passed on the information, and your headmaster informed him about you."
"I see," Glenn nodded. That connected the dots. But this also indicated that his grandmother held a high position in China, given her connection to Dumbledore.
"Oh! Professor Dumbledore?" The mention of a familiar name immediately brightened the little girl's mood.
Antin shrugged, indicating he wasn't sure. "If that's the name of your headmaster, then yes. Ah, here we are. Let's go in."
Walking through the dimly lit alley illuminated only by moonlight, the three finally stopped in front of a traditional courtyard house. Hermione's eyes lit up as she admired the ancient architecture, which looked particularly enchanting under the moonlight.
"This looks completely different from the buildings back home. It feels wonderful here," she exclaimed, looking around in awe. "But it's so late now, it does feel a bit spooky," she added, sticking out her tongue playfully.
Glenn, however, was unfazed. In his past life, some of his targets had lived in similar courtyards. He was already familiar with the scenery of such places.
Though, back then, the scenes were often a bit bloody. That didn't stop him from remembering the intricate layout of these courtyards.
When they opened the door, they saw several adults and a young girl who looked only a few years older than them sitting at a wooden table in the courtyard. They were preparing ingredients for a late-night snack while chatting. The candlelight on the table illuminated their smiling faces.
Despite the late hour, the adults had decided to enjoy a rare late-night meal because of the two youngsters.
As soon as Antin entered with the two children, the adults immediately abandoned their tasks. The two men wiped their hands on their clothes and rushed over.
"Glenn! Hermione!" The four adults surrounded the two children, hugging them tightly.
It had been a year since they'd last seen each other, and the reunion was filled with joy. The family embraced for a long time.
Antin watched them with a warm smile, not interrupting their reunion. He walked straight to the wooden table in the center of the courtyard, where the young girl, who had also stopped what she was doing, was smiling at them.
"Yingqing, I'm back," Antin said as he sat down beside Lin Yingqing, naturally taking over the preparation of the ingredients that the children and their friends had left behind.
"Alright, then let's get cooking," Lin Yingqing replied with a gentle nod and a warm smile.
...
When the food was ready, the eight of them gathered around the large wooden table in the center of the courtyard to enjoy their meal.
"Are you... Grandma Lin?" Hermione asked in astonishment upon learning that the elegant young girl who looked only slightly older than her was actually Glenn's grandmother. She was so surprised that the piece of meat she'd picked up with her chopsticks fell back onto her plate, and she didn't even notice when Glenn put it back into her bowl.
Lin Yingqing smiled sweetly and nodded at Hermione.
Antin laughed awkwardly. "Yingqing has practiced the Lin Family's Secret Sorcery, so she looks much younger... much, much younger," he explained, rubbing his forehead with a troubled expression. "When she was pregnant with Alan, we went out for a walk, and people gave me strange looks. To avoid being questioned by the authorities, we barely went out until Alan was born. Even when we did, we were extremely cautious, and Alan was born in a Lin family hospital."
Glenn's father, hearing his name mentioned, suddenly spoke up, despite the timing being a bit off. "I just realized something. Dad, you and Mom kept this from me for so long! You even said Mom's physique was special. You really didn't tell me a single thing about sorcery!" He looked at his parents with a mix of resentment and disbelief.
These two were really good at keeping secrets. After all these years, Alan hadn't discovered a single clue.
Lin Yingqing took a sip of tea, her expression calm as she explained, "Our Lin family holds a significant position in China. We also face numerous hidden threats. Since you don't have any sorcery talent, not telling you about these things was for your own good. We moved to England to protect you."
"Moreover, it's not like we didn't care about you. The bracelet I gave you and the wedding rings for you and Gwen both contain protective spells I crafted. You just never noticed."
Alan was stunned, staring at the bracelet he'd worn for years. Gwen did the same with her wedding ring.
Glenn narrowed his eyes. He hadn't noticed this either. There was no trace of magic leaking from the bracelet or ring, further confirming his grandmother's exceptional skill in crafting magical artifacts.
"Really? Mom, I'm so touched," Alan said, his resentful look instantly replaced by a deeply moved expression.
"...If you had even a little talent for sorcery, it wouldn't have been this troublesome," Antin added with a sigh.
"Wife! Dad's bullying me!" Alan, who was built like a bear and a retired soldier, suddenly acted like a wronged child, clinging to Gwen's arm. She patted his head, comforting him as if he were a small animal.
Hermione was so shocked by the absurd scene that she choked on her tea, coughing violently. Glenn gently patted her back to help her recover, while the Granger couple continued eating calmly, unfazed.
Once Hermione regained her composure, she wanted to say something but couldn't find the words. She looked a bit frustrated and finally sighed, "So China has its own version of the Statute of Secrecy too?"
"Not exactly," Lin Yingqing replied, shaking her head slightly. "To be precise, China is a country where sorcerers and ordinary people coexist. However, the general public has limited awareness of sorcery. We don't have a specific law to keep sorcery secret, but we also don't actively promote it. Instead, sorcery is subtly integrated into the daily lives of all Chinese people."
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
New chapter live! Patreon updated to Chapter 177
Join for exclusive content: patreon.com/DarkGolds
Thank you for your support!