The Death Knell

When it comes to traveling to the Alps, no one may think of Austria or Innsbruck.

This is a small city where you can see the Alps at any time. Because it is located at the widest point in the hinterland of the entire mountain range, Innsbruck is also known as the heart of the Alps.

Next to the valley is the North Chain Mountains, whose highest peak is Hafreka Peak at an altitude of 2,256 meters. The bottom of the mountain is granite and the upper part is limestone. At a glance, the top is white snow and the lower half is green forest.

In the city, there are the Habsburg Palace, the residence of Queen Maria, the Ambras Palace, the castle of Ferdinand II, and the golden-roofed Duke's Palace of Maximilian I, the "last knight". Such royal buildings are among the There are a lot of them in this small town.

This is a quiet and peaceful city, with both cultural and environmental beauty. Even Goethe once walked here, climbed the North Chain Mountain, and left words and sentences that attracted countless followers in later generations to walk this great man. the road'.

If you are looking at a Muggle travel brochure, it will definitely describe this city like this, paradise on earth, the pearl of Austria, etc.

However, for the magic world, this place has another meaning. Cross the Nordic Mountains and continue northward into the depths of the Alps. There you will see the Stubai Glacier, a snow-capped mountain with an altitude of 3150 meters, which is the highest in Tyrol. peak.

In the midsummer of Innsbruck, the severe winter icebergs and snow are still in front of you. The beautiful scenery of the glaciers that never melts all year round and the wonders of the long and distant valleys make people feel like they have entered another world.

For Muggles, they never know what is on the highest peak. Many people ski and play from the 2900-meter secondary peak Ice Rock Peak, but they don't know that there are people watching them from higher up.

A fortress protected by Muggle banishing spells and ice.

This is the location of Nurmengard, one of the two well-known prisons in the magical world. It was also the base camp built by the Dark Lord Grindelwald himself. It is a magical fortress that is easy to defend but difficult to attack.

Later, he was defeated by Dumbledore and imprisoned in the highest tower of the castle with the same treatment as the defeated king. The castle was also turned into a prison and was managed by the International Federation of Wizards.

In the past, this place was magnificent, and Grindelwald's saints would come here to worship and spread his ideas around the world.

But now, there are only a handful of followers left, either killed in battle or from old age, and the castle is in ruins.

The guards of the Wizards' Union stole all the valuable items and exchanged them for property, including beautiful European works of art and Grindelwald's gorgeous wardrobe.

The former Dark Lord didn't care about this. He just sat in the cell at the top of the tower and observed the Muggles skiing thousands of meters below through the bars.

No matter how times change, Muggles are still so ridiculous. Even though they have no magic, they still rely on skis to fly as hard as they can in the air. In this case, why not go hang gliding?

He didn't lose to Dumbledore, he just got tired and gave up.

If he wanted to escape from prison, no stone wall or iron fence could stop him. It was more like he was voluntarily placed under house arrest here. This was something he owed to Dumbledore.

As he grew older, he often fell into memories of what he had done in the past. Thinking about it now, maybe those methods were too drastic.

He was a top prophet, even predicting World War II and the explosion of the atomic bomb in 1926.

He knew Muggles or No-Majs, whatever they were called, and he could see their potential, so when he was young, he wanted to get together the Deathly Hallows so that wizards could rule the world and rule ordinary people, at least not to give A chance for them to make war on the wizards.

Dumbledore had similar thoughts when he was young. If Grindelwald hadn't accidentally killed his lover's sister, maybe everything wouldn't be like what it is today.

Unfortunately, he doesn't have a wand or a newspaper now, so he doesn't know very well what's going on outside. Occasionally, Dumbledore will come to see him, and the two of them talk and chat through the iron door. This is his only information channel.

Sometimes Dumbledore would ask him to help analyze what Voldemort was thinking, but Grindelwald just blinked and answered his lover with the same smile as before.

'Voldemort doesn't understand what love is. I'm different from him, so I can't guess what he will do. ’

Then there would be silence between the two, sharing some candies through the iron gate, and then Dumbledore would leave silently.

But today was different. When he heard the footsteps outside the door, he thought it was Dumbledore coming. He quickly sat up from the bed and tidied his hair.

Clear your throat, lift your chin, and look energetic.

However, he immediately saw the jailer's head being pressed hard against the small grated window on the door. It was shattered into pieces in an instant, and blood and brains were sprayed everywhere.

Grindelwald tilted his head. He thought it was funny. What was this? Did someone send a giant to kill him?

Of course not, a golden light flashed, and the cell door fell down like a biscuit, revealing a man wearing yellow and black armor outside the door.

"Gellert Grindelwald, I'm here to negotiate terms with you."

When the other party said this, his voice seemed to have been polished by sandpaper, with a rough feeling, as dark as coming from the abyss.

Grindelwald was well-informed and not afraid of death at all. He sat back on the bed and picked his ears with his little finger: "I don't know you and I don't want to talk to you. If you were sent to kill me, then do it." Yes, but Albus will definitely avenge me."

"I'm not here to kill you, and don't refuse in a hurry, Lord Dark Lord." The visitor removed his mask, revealing a young face. He put away his weapon and sat beside the bed: "Speaking of which, the conditions here are really bad. , they won’t even give you a chair, you deserve to die. Before you refuse, why don’t you listen to the conditions I gave?”

"Could it be a chair?" Grindelwald laughed happily. He understood that this was a prison robbery, but he didn't want to leave.

After the other party removed the mask, his voice became much more normal, but there was still a sense of darkness, as if the abyss was talking next to him: "Do you want to stay and fly together with Dumbledore? Spend your remaining years in peace? I have a plan." ....."

Grindelwald's pupils shrank, and he seemed a little hesitant. No matter what the other party's plan was, this chip was indeed...

"He hates me until now. Although he doesn't say it, I can feel that he has not forgiven me for my past actions." The old devil touched his bald head, and his face was wrinkled by the years.

"That's because you didn't work hard to resolve it. Times have changed, my lord."

The visitor took out cigarettes and black tea from his pocket, handed them to the old man to light, and poured out two cups of tea. The two of them drank morning tea in the small and bloody cell:

"The main conflict between Dumbledore and you is not about justice. It's just because you killed his sister, which prevents you from being together. But what if I have a way to resurrect her?"

"It's not like the 'flesh and bone' thing again, is it?" Grindelwald rolled his eyes. He admitted that he was indeed a little interested, but if it was a magic that required the use of a cauldron, it would only create a monster. : "He will never accept a sister without a nose."

The visitor smiled and pointed at him, as if he was satisfied with the joke, but there was not much smile when he spoke: "If it is only at Voldemort's level, why should I call myself the Supreme Mage?"