"Do you think that's possible?" Grindelwald asked.
"It is." Kasen nodded seriously. "For those pure-blood heirs who own vast resources, they could buy anything with Galleons."
"But they still choose to enroll in my class. I think that's an expression of their own will—they like alchemy. They've found something they truly love, something that touches the heart hidden beneath the expectations of their families."
"There's a moment that stuck with me... This year was my second year at Hogwarts. The professors and students came together to hold a Sorting Ceremony just for me."
"What impressed me most about that ceremony wasn't the Sorting Ceremony that was made just for me—it was the Slytherin table."
"The Slytherin table split in two. One side took off the masks their families forced upon them, and they left the table to join in the celebration."
"Of course, I'm not saying I'm some hugely popular figure and that all the students celebrated my Sorting. Most of them probably just used the event as an excuse to let loose and enjoy a rare moment of carefree freedom."
"But the Slytherin table really did divide into two. One part took off their masks and joined the celebration, while the other part stayed seated, clinging to the masks their families gave them, awkwardly imitating the expressions of a thirty- or forty-year-old family patriarch—all while they were just eleven, twelve, or thirteen."
Kasen's mouth was dry from talking, so he casually reached out to grab a drink from a passing flight attendant's cart—and even handed a cup to Grindelwald as well.
"Let me guess," Grindelwald said. "Most of the ones who joined the celebration were the ones enrolled in your class?"
"Correct."
"You've never thought about making a change? Changing that pure-blood arrogance they have?"
"That's exactly why I put together a whole new lesson plan… Starting next term, I've worked really hard to avoid triggering their rebellious streaks. Honestly, I've never put this much effort into an alchemy syllabus before," Kasen said.
"Oh, come on. Dumbledore told me you've never written a proper syllabus for alchemy," Grindelwald replied.
"…Why does he tell you everything?!"
...
—Late night in Brazil—
"This address, sir."
Kasen handed the address to the taxi driver. After a while, the two finally arrived at the hotel.
Grindelwald casually took a shower and went straight to bed. As for Kasen in the room next door… "Agh.. Can't fucking sleep! Let's just work!"
His sleep schedule was all over the place. He'd been unconscious for nearly ten hours on the flight, and now, no matter how much he wanted to sleep, it just wasn't happening.
Not that there was nothing to do, of course. With the TV playing in the background, he started mapping out the route they'd take into the Amazon Rainforest the next day.
—The next morning—
"Why aren't we just flying there on broomsticks? And don't you fly on your own?" Grindelwald asked.
"I can't read maps—can you?"
Grindelwald shook his head.
"Exactly."
Grindelwald shook his head again, then pulled out his wand.
"Point me the way."
His wand twitched like a compass, steadily pointing in the direction of the Amazon Rainforest.
Grindelwald pulled a broom from his pocket and gave Kasen a look that was… deeply suspicious.
"Don't look at me like that. Let's just go," Kasen said, a little awkwardly scratching his chin. He opened the window, ready to cast an invisibility charm on himself—only to remember he had a teammate this time. Invisibility wasn't exactly practical in co-op mode.
"Does that Confundus Charm of yours work in situations like this?" Kasen asked.
"It can," Grindelwald replied, pulling out his wand and giving it a casual wave.
"That's it? All done?" Kasen asked.
"Mhm."
Soon enough, the two of them shot out the window on their brooms.
Throughout the journey, Grindelwald kept using his wand to recalibrate the direction, while Kasenhis flew closely beside him.
Noon.
"Does the wood you're looking for have any distinctive traits?" Grindelwald asked.
"I don't know the specific features, but I can use the monocle to perceive the essence of each tree—at least I won't have to experiment one by one like last time... But hey, aren't you a seer or something? Why don't you just predict where it is?" Kasenhis asked.
"Nope."
"Huh?"
"Because... It's boring."
"...Right. Must be nice to be talented and capricious, huh?"
As Kasen said this, he waved at Grindelwald to signal that it was time for them to stop and grab some food.
The two of them pulled out various self-heating meals from their pockets and, following the instructions, began heating them up—starting the long wait for lunch.
"Back in Africa, the magical flower was the sacred totem of a wizarding tribe. Do you think this time, the Supreme Tree might also be controlled by some wizard tribe?" Kasenhis asked during the wait.
Grindelwald's hand, mid-summon of water to wash up, paused.
"Can't you just shut that jinxing mouth of yours?"
"What? That time in Africa was a total coincidence! And besides, I was just trying to lighten the mood a bit. I thought I'd share some funny classroom stories—who knew we'd actually run into a cannibal wizard tribe?"
"Try not to say things like that again. Words hold power, especially when spoken by wizards," Grindelwald said in a rare moment of sincere, heartfelt advice.
"Okay okay... this time it absolutely won't—shouldn't—no way, really, don't worry."
As they chatted, their food finally finished heating, and the two grabbed their spoons and started eating.
By dusk—whether it was thanks to Kasenhis' good luck or Grindelwald's seer-like instincts guiding them from the shadows—they soon spotted a massive tree. Even in the vast Amazon rainforest, this one stood out as a true giant among giants.
Kasenhis looked up at the colossal tree that blotted out the sky. Its bark was dark gray, with faint green patterns—or rather, what looked more like fissures than actual designs.
[Lush Supreme Tree]
The monocle helpfully displayed the entry at the perfect moment.
"Look at that! We actually found it! This went way smoother than Africa," Kasenhis said with a sigh of relief.
"It's also a bigger target," Grindelwald commented dryly.
A diamond axe materialized in Kasenhis's hand as he floated into the air, planning to chop off a few branches to use as saplings—but then he stopped mid-air, his expression freezing awkwardly...
Two figures stepped out from the very trunk of the Supreme Tree.
"Haah.. I told you not to jinx it… bloody raven mouth," Grindelwald muttered from the ground as he casually pulled out his wand.
_________
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