Chapter 75. Abros
Lynn returned to his cart.
The town seemed peaceful and serene at night, but in Lynn's eyes, it was like a demon from hell, its gaping maw capable of swallowing a person whole, leaving not even bones behind.
The town wasn't isolated; cars frequently drove in and out of the road.
A pickup truck, heading out of town, stopped in front of Lynn.
A middle-aged woman leaned out of the truck.
"Hi! Child, you look like you need help."
She spoke in English, but her accent was different from what Lynn was familiar with.
Lynn responded calmly.
"Thank you, ma'am, but I'm fine. My father went to the nearby store to buy cigarettes and asked me to watch the luggage and wait for him here."
The woman nodded, unaware that Lynn was making things up.
"That's good. But although the area is relatively safe, it's irresponsible of your father to leave you here alone so late at night."
She muttered, restarting the car as if to leave, but Lynn called her back.
"Excuse me, madam, may I ask you something?"
"What is it?"
Lynn seemed a little embarrassed, his smile somewhat shy.
"My parents are divorced, and they live separately. I live with my father in London, and my mother lives here. I haven't seen my mother for a long time since they separated. My father never tells me where she goes, and only recently did he agree to bring me here to visit her. But he still won't tell me where this place is. Can you tell me what this place is? That way, when I grow up, I can come and find her myself."
The woman's expression was incredibly gentle, and she looked at Lynn with heartache.
"Poor child, you are so unfortunate. Of course, I can tell you. This city is called Abrose. It's located on the North Sea coast of Scotland, and it's a very small city."
"This…" The hesitation on Lynn's face was genuine, "It's a city?"
"Yes, it's quite small compared to big cities like London, isn't it? The permanent population is only a little over 20,000. But the scenery here is quite nice; your mother has good taste in choosing to live here."
Having figured out where he was, Lynn didn't say anything more and bowed to her in gratitude.
"Thank you, Madam. My father will be here soon, so I won't bother you any longer."
The middle-aged woman waved goodbye and drove away. Lynn pushed his cart into the small town called Abrose.
There was good news: he was still in England. Although Scotland was a bit far from London, he could always find a way back if he wanted to.
There was also bad news: this godforsaken place was actually in England.
Lynn was certain that he had stepped into a certain area where his magic had been stolen.
Even if he didn't know how large that area was, something strange capable of stealing wizards' magic, whether it was black magic or black magic artifacts, couldn't possibly be something Kira, that house-elf, could create.
In other words, this town capable of stealing wizards' magic had existed here for who knows how long.
And in such a dangerous place, with Dumbledore at the helm of the British Ministry of Magic, no one had come to investigate or resolve the issue.
He couldn't fathom what this meant.
Was it that no one could solve the problem of this place that could steal wizards' magic, or was he simply the first unlucky wizard to enter this place?
And what Kira had asked him to find?
Needless to say, it was definitely related to his magic disappearance.
The small town seemed rather quiet at night, perhaps because he hadn't ventured into the city center.
Lynn was pondering where he should stay that night.
He had money on him—gallons and pounds—so he wasn't worried about ending up sleeping on the streets.
He was concerned that at his age, going to a hotel alone might attract too much attention and easily lead to unnecessary trouble.
Especially since he couldn't use magic.
Lynn waited quietly for a moment in a dark corner.
He saw a middle-aged man taking out a cigarette from his pocket under a streetlamp not far away. However, his cigarette pack was empty.
The man cursed and threw the empty pack on the side of the road before walking towards a convenience store that was open.
Lynn saw this opportunity. He pushed his cart full of luggage out at the same time and brushed past the middle-aged man, deliberately bumping into him.
"Watch your step, kid."
"Sorry."
Lynn looked up at him and spoke, but his expression didn't show any apology. Instead, he seemed rather happy.
"Strange kid."
The middle-aged man muttered, ignored him, and turned to walk into the convenience store.
Lynn quickly walked to a store across the street, which looked like a hardware store.
A young girl was leaning against the counter, staring blankly at the street. She happened to see Lynn talking to the man.
"Hello, may I leave my and my father's luggage here for a while?" Lynn asked.
The girl hesitated; she was just minding the shop for her parents and didn't want to get involved in anything else.
Lynn sighed, looking annoyed, and pulled some money from his pocket.
"I knew it. My dad gave me some money, saying it was for safekeeping. I was thinking I could keep it if you could help, but it seems that's not possible now. So, could you help me out for the sake of this money?"
"Your father seems to have a bad temper." The girl glanced at the middle-aged man who had already bought cigarettes and was standing at the convenience store entrance, cursing as he unpacked them.
"Yeah, if you don't help me, he'll probably hit me again."
"Alright then, but how long will it take for you to come back for them?" She took the pounds from Lynn.
"Three to five days if it's quick." Lynn pushed his cart to a corner of the hardware store. His things were all packed in boxes, which most people couldn't open, so they wouldn't know what was inside.
"I'll keep an eye on them," the girl said.
"Goodbye then."
"Goodbye."
Lynn left the hardware store, and the man who had just lit his cigarette at the convenience store entrance was also about to leave.
Lynn silently followed behind him with his head down, very close, but the man didn't notice.
In the girl's eyes, Lynn was just like an ordinary child following his father, unhappy because he hadn't gotten what he wanted.
His performance just now was just to add an extra layer of security to his stored luggage.
A child's identity ultimately doesn't have the same intimidating power as an adult; he was just using his position to make sure the girl's family didn't touch his things without permission.
After being tricked by Kira, he was now very cautious.
After settling his luggage, Lynn began to seriously observe the small town.
He gradually walked to the most bustling area of the city, because it was still very lively even at night, with various places unsuitable for children brightly lit.
Now, Lynn was quite certain that this was an ordinary Muggle town; so far, he hadn't found anything special, including anyone who looked like a wizard.
As he pondered where to spend the night, his peripheral vision caught sight of a corner.
Lynn was instantly stunned.
He even doubted if he was seeing things.
Was that disheveled old man lying in the corner the person he knew?
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(End of Chapter)