Volume 4: The Sea and the Ship Heading North Chapter 282 Sled
The wizard that Grindelwald left behind in the Arctic was named Eric.
This is a wizard who looks very young, probably in his twenties at most.
He welcomed Jon and others into the castle made of ice. It was very warm inside. The fireplace dug out from the ice wall was burning with a raging fire, but the high temperature showed no sign of melting the ice.
"The principal told me in advance that you would come, but to be honest, I'm still surprised that you are so young."
Eric seemed to be a very talkative person. He invited Jon to sit anywhere and picked up the teapot to pour him a cup of warm black tea.
Jon thanked him and took the teacup from him.
"I didn't expect Mr. Eric to be so young."
This was not a humble remark from Jon, but he had always thought that Grindelwald's subordinates were a bunch of old men and women, and judging from Eric's current age, he obviously only joined the Witch Party in recent years.
"I just graduated from Durmstrang six years ago. Considering my age , the principal has shown his trust in me by letting me carry out some important work in the Arctic alone."
Jon had a curious look on his face.
"So, what are you working on here?"
Eric smiled.
"I'm sorry, but the principal has specifically told me not to tell you about this for the time being. Because right now, my research is just too ordinary and doesn't seem worth continuing."
Jon had some doubts in his heart about his answer, but he nodded to show his understanding.
"Okay, let's get to the point, Mr. Eric, what information can you give me about the Death Eaters?"
Eric waved the wand in his hand, and a piece of parchment as big as the tabletop flew out from the wooden cabinet next to him and unfolded in front of them.
There was a map drawn on the parchment.
"In the Arctic Ocean, most of the area is occupied by floating ice. The positions of these broken ice blocks floating on the sea surface are not fixed at all times. They will drift continuously with the changes in temperature and seasons, so it is difficult for people to accurately locate here. However, the ice field we are in now is a huge ice layer connected to the area in the center of the pole. Even in August and September when the temperature is the highest, the ice here will not melt. Therefore, I have made a simple map on this ice field and marked the main activity sites of the Death Eaters for you."
Eric pointed the tip of his wand at several prominent red dots on the map.
"These are places I have discovered before. They are places where Death Eaters have stayed for a long time. However, they rarely appear on the ice. Instead, they go deep into the ice hidden underground. They may be guarding or searching for something."
Then he turned the tip of the staff toward the largest red mark.
"This is the place where the largest number of Death Eaters gather. When they first came here, they didn't pay much attention to this place. But just two months ago, more than half of the Death Eaters scattered across the Arctic gathered here, as if they had made some new discoveries here."
Jon listened to his explanation carefully. The map was very clear and there was nothing wrong with what Eric said, but there was a very confusing point on it.
"Besides Mr. Eric, is there anyone else here?"
Eric smiled, he understood what Jon wanted to ask.
"You think it's basically impossible for me alone to monitor and find out the locations and movements of so many Death Eaters at the same time, right? This question is actually easy to answer. Let me keep you in suspense for now, and you will know the answer soon."
Jon shrugged and didn't care.
The Arctic research base here is obviously hiding some secrets about Grindelwald, just like the Norwegian monastery.
Even if Eric refused to answer Jon's question, he wouldn't think anything of it.
Today's lunch was naturally eaten in the Ice Castle. Eric's cooking skills were very good. He was an Italian and the pizza he made was very delicious. Jon was also tactful and did not ask him why he didn't add pineapple on the pizza.
After dinner, Jon rested on the sofa for a while, while Nick took Gabrielle for a stroll in the ice castle. Then they prepared to take the map and leave.
Although Eric seemed to be an easy-going person, Jon was not here to make friends, so Eric did not try to keep him. He just gave Jon some advice.
"If you leave from here and continue forward, you will reach the reconnaissance range of the Death Eaters. There are not many of them, but they have been patrolling the surrounding area. If you continue to ride on a flying broom, it will be very conspicuous and there is a high probability that you will be discovered by them, so you'd better leave the broom with me and try other ways to move around here."
His suggestion was undoubtedly correct. Jon put down the Firebolt in his hand and looked at Eric.
"So you have better transportation?"
Eric smiled mysteriously.
"Come with me."
He brought Jon and the others to the back door of the Ice Castle. After going out, they saw a pure white sled parked in front of the door, but the power behind the sled was not a sled dog.
"Little White No. 2!"
Gabrielle shouted excitedly.
That’s right, the people wearing bridles are two polar bears!
Jon was also amazed when he saw this unique sleigh, but then he spoke hesitantly.
"Polar bears are inconspicuous here, but even if they can be tamed, they are not suitable for pulling sleds due to their endurance, right?"
"So, this is certainly not your average polar bear."
Eric clapped his hands as he spoke. The two polar bears stood up from the ground like soldiers who had received orders, and saluted Eric in a naive manner!
Jon was even more surprised. Seeing this scene, he remembered the question he asked in the morning.
"These bears are your eyes!"
"They are natural scouts in the Arctic. Death Eaters will hardly notice them. Moreover, they run quite fast and are different from ordinary bears. They also have enough endurance, and are not inferior to the most professional sled dogs at all."
Eric stood next to the sled.
"Of course, even if it's pure white, a sleigh will attract attention, so I've prepared a large enough invisibility cloak for you. You can cover the entire sleigh with it when the bears are running. That way, even if Death Eaters see you, they'll probably just think you're two bears playing around."
