Chapter 117 Evan's Fear
Seeing that his companion could not find time to undo Evan's spell, Greyback, who had fallen to the ground, suddenly let out a piercing roar. His voice was so loud that it shook the clouds in the sky. A huge full moon appeared behind them.
In the moonlight, his body began to change.
His sturdy shoulders hunched, and black hair visibly sprouted on his face and hands, while his dirty fingers curved into sharp claws.
Crookshanks cried restlessly, his fur bristling.
Evan and Hermione stopped attacking. They recoiled in horror, unable to believe the transformation the man was undergoing.
No, it was the transformation of a beast.
Greyback's chin elongated. His sharp fangs protruded, and his black hair grew denser, making him resemble a true wolf.
He rose from the ground as if unaffected by a Full Body-Bind Curse.
Greyback's resistance to magic was greater than that of common wizards. Now transformed into a werewolf, his physical functions had reached a new level. With sheer brute strength, he was almost immune to all common low-level spells.
His scent became stronger. Through the dirty gray hair on Greyback's face, Evan saw a pair of yellow, frenzied eyes. The smell of sweat and blood became a hundred times more pronounced.
In the cold wind, steam emanated from Fenrir's throat.
He raised his dark paws and his neck, howling at the full moon in the sky, followed by a burst of hoarse howls.
"Oh God..." Hermione gasped, horror-struck at the werewolf before her.
"Run, Hermione!" Evan shouted. "Run fast, right now!"
Without hesitation, he took Hermione's hand and turned to flee.
If he were alone, Evan might have tried to stay and fight Greyback.
But he couldn't risk endangering Hermione's life. If he left without her, Hermione, being the girl she was, wouldn't have let him go alone.
Against Greyback, now transformed into a werewolf, Evan had no chance of winning.
Furthermore, besides him, there was another dark wizard who was not weak.
In his situation, escape was the most sensible option.
"Enough, you idiot! Be quiet! Do you want to attract all the Aurors and Dementors?" the man with the black mask snapped. "Hurry up and bite those two young wizards who are fleeing. Go!"
Upon hearing his companion's words, Greyback let out another rough and terrifying roar and lunged forward at a terrifying speed.
Evan could hear the sound of his enemy's claws approaching, and he and Hermione struggled to make their way through the snow.
They leaned on each other, gasping heavily, trying to muster all the remaining energy they had. But still, they were slowing down.
"Damn it, damn it!" Evan turned, focusing all the magical energy in his body at the tip of his wand. He waved it and cast a silver light.
This was the most powerful spell he could imagine under such pressure. It was magic he had learned from Tom Riddle during the last semester.
It was a curse similar to Sectumsempra, but much more potent than that.
Like lightning streaking across the dark sky, the spell in the form of a silver arrow flew towards Greyback with a dazzling light. He faced it head-on as he ran. In that state, he had lost all reasoning. Besides the desire to kill, he felt no emotions, not even pain.
Evan's spell passed through his body, going from his chest to his shoulders, drawing a long wound.
Greyback took a step back, and his skin opened as if cut by an invisible sword. Much blood gushed forth.
Evan had a glimmer of joy in his heart, but it was swiftly extinguished.
Greyback was injured, but it was futile. Before he knew it, his wound healed in the blink of an eye, leaving only a red scar. The sharp smell of blood from the wound further irritated Greyback, who increased his pace.
Evan recalled the description of werewolves he read in the book "The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection" by Quentin Trimble. It was known that werewolves possessed a robust constitution: swift, powerful, and explosive. Their striking power far exceeded that of ordinary individuals. However, the most horrific and daunting aspect they possessed was their astonishing vitality. Injuries caused by spells and common weapons typically healed in no more than two seconds when it came to werewolves.
"No, we cannot both leave like this." Evan turned and yelled to Hermione. "I will stop him, run, RUN!"
"I'm not leaving, Evan, I won't!" tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks. "I stay to help you. There must be something we can do! Let me think, I'm sure, it was in Professor Snape's paper 'Identification and Methods of Werewolf Elimination' I know!"
"We don't have time, Hermione!"
Watching Greyback approach, Evan felt a sense of powerlessness and fear unlike any he had experienced before. Whether facing the young Voldemort, the Basilisk, or Dementors, Evan had never panicked as he did now.
It wasn't fear for his own safety. It was induced by Hermione's presence by his side.
Evan felt desolate. He had never felt his weakness so keenly as at that moment. He hated being unable to protect Hermione, unable to shield his beloved.
In the past, he had surpassed the level of all young wizards his age. He had read thousands of books on magic, mastered dozens of dark magic spells, and even had theoretical knowledge of taboo magic. These seemingly powerful things were a joke in the face of true power.
He had thought he had no fear originally. Even when facing the most evil dark wizard, even in front of Voldemort, he could remain calm, but now, seeing the werewolf rushing towards him, feeling Hermione trembling behind, he was scared for the first time.
He feared what would come after his downfall. He couldn't imagine it.
If Hermione were bitten by Greyback, she would become a werewolf herself.
If that happened, her only choice would be to evade society like Professor Lupin, shunning the mainstream, living on the fringes of the magical world, depending on stealing and killing for food, and enduring the blind discrimination of this world. All that, she would have to face alone, wandering the streets by herself.
At the thought of such an image, Evan felt immense pain.
No, he would never allow that to happen, not in any way!
"Evan, let's go to that shop over there!" Hermione's cries disrupted Evan's thoughts. "Help should arrive soon. Let's go to that place. There must be a way to stop him."
Looking to where she pointed, Evan saw a shop with the door wide open at the end of the alley. The place was empty, and the staff inside had fled more than ten seconds ago.
"Yes, Hermione, let's go there!" Evan decided.
He blocked Greyback's path with a Curse Barrier, pulling Hermione forward and running towards the shop's door.
He let Hermione and Crookshanks move ahead, then closed the shop's door and waved his wand to lock it.
He swiftly turned and gazed resolutely at Greyback.
Though not as strong, though much weaker than a werewolf, the thought of Hermione behind him and the responsibility on his shoulders ignited courage in his heart. He was no longer afraid.
"If we must fight, then let us fight!"