The Balance Broke, The Failing Polyjuice Potion

Ivan was excited at the prospect, but he needed to do an early preview to see if it would work.

"Wound Heals!" Ivan tentatively placed his wand against Callie's bloody back and used a Healing Charm to heal her wounds, trying to recreate what he had done that day.

The magic soon kicked in, and the lacerations on Callie's back healed…

Sirius looked at Ivan's odd behaviour in bewilderment. Treating a dead man? Why? What was the point?

Ivan breathed a slow sigh of relief as he healed the wound. It was exactly as he had expected.

The next moment, however, Ivan's pupils contracted and he froze in place.

The dead woman in front of him suddenly reverted to her original appearance, and the effects of the Polyjuice Potion vanished…

"That's impossible. Did she drink too little of the potion?" Ivan asked, frowning as he watched Callie revert to her normal form.

The dead did not drink potions, so Ivan let go of Kallie's body and turned his attention to the other three black-robed wizards.

Fortunately, he had three other test subjects…

It was only after pouring Polyjuice Potion into their mouths and making experimental records in batches that Ivan discovered a problem.

Upon death, the Polyjuice Potion's effects, while still present, became highly unstable, its duration greatly reduced, and it became extremely susceptible.

His use of the Healing Charm undoubtedly broke this balance, and once he had healed the wound, no matter how many doses of Polyjuice Potion the other person had taken before, they would be removed in a very short time…

Ivan's face grew darker and darker as the last of the black-robed wizards fell to the ground, dead.

"What the hell is going on?"

Ivan was completely lost. If healing magic could affect the effects of Polyjuice Potion, then why was the corpse unaffected when he used it to heal "Athia"?

Or did he go back in time and use other methods than Polyjuice Potion?

Yvonne stared at the four bodies for a long moment, lost in thought.

When she was preparing to use the Time-Turner to change the past, Ivan considered every possible solution.

The most reliable of these was the use of Transfiguration or Polyjuice Potion to create a fake corpse.

After all, he had seen Alicia's body with his own eyes and had confirmed her death with Dougett, so this step was necessary.

At first, Ivan attempted to use Transfiguration, but after experimenting with it himself, he abandoned the idea.

A Level 5 Transfiguration Charm could not perfectly replicate a wizard, let alone wound and heal the copy.

This was simply impossible, so Polyjuice Potion became the only possibility.

This was Ivan's belief, which was why he had Dobby purchase a large number of books on potions to confirm the possibility of the plan being implemented.

Who would have thought there would be a problem with the final step…

Ivan's uncertain expression was caught by Sirius.

He had no idea why Ivan would do such a strange thing to these black-robed wizards, but he could see that it was likely to be a test of something, and that the result might be out of Ivan's imagination.

He stopped being silent and changed the subject, lest Ivan get carried away.

"Didn't you say you were going to check out that Borgin and Burkes Magical Store? When do we start?"

"Now, of course!" Ivan said without hesitation, letting out a deep breath.

He has at least confirmed that it was not Alicia who died…

He still had some time to work out how to replace the body…

Ivan turned to ask Dobby to take him to Borgin and Burke's, but was silenced when he noticed Dobby's tired face.

It had not been easy for Dobby to move the six of them to this temporary hideout with his frequent use of Transfiguration, and Ivan did not want to exploit the house-elf too much.

Ivan then instructed Dobby to guard the base and dispose of the bodies, while he transformed into a grey owl and flew out of the window.

Sirius shook his head and transformed into his Animagus form to follow them.

…

Ash-grey owls flapped their wings in the night air as they scanned the streets below.

Perhaps due to the attack a few days ago, many shops were closed and closed early, and there were not many wizards in the alley.

Ivan's temporary hideout was located on the west side of Knockturn Alley, some distance from Borgin and Burkes.

About fifteen minutes later, Ivan stopped near Borgin and Burke's, wondering how to get in.

The shop's doors and windows were locked, and the only good thing about the place was that there were no Aurors and no patrols.

Ivan suspects this may have something to do with Burke not being confirmed dead…

Because of this, Ivan was very careful and cautious. He slowly flew through the chimney above and returned to his human form in the fireplace.

The interior was empty and dark, and one could vaguely see a large number of shelves neatly arranged. It didn't seem any different from the last time they were here.

"Fluorescence!" cried Ivan, waving his wand to cast the Illuminating Charm,

When he got closer, Ivan found that all the shelves were empty, and everything that had been there was gone.

It is unknown whether it was confiscated by the Ministry of Magic as an illegal object or if Burke moved it somewhere else.

And to Ivan's surprise, it didn't look at all like the scene of a fierce battle.

Was it because of the Restoration Charm?

Ivan thought to himself.

Upon closer inspection of the floor and shelves, Ivan found signs of battle, and the Restorative Charm was not an all-purpose spell. Some of the effects of powerful charms were not so easily neutralized.

Bang!

As Ivan pondered this, a loud noise came from the side, and he pointed his wand at the intruder, only to see a black dog jumping through the broken window.

'How's it going, Hulse? Any luck?' Sirius asked, quickly reverting to his normal self.

"Not yet…" Ivan shook his head helplessly.

"Anyway, let's search this place first." Ivan glanced around the Dark Arts shop.

He had a feeling that he might have to fight them here when he returned, so it was important to familiarize himself with the terrain in advance…