Chapter 1527: You've Been Deceived
Chapter 1527: You've Been Deceived
"Perhaps, you've already guessed why I brought you here."
Halfway to the Shrieking Shack, Voldemort suddenly stopped and turned to the man following him.
"After all, you are an intelligent man, Severus."
As Voldemort turned, his full attention fixed on Snape. "You have always been a loyal and devoted servant. I regret what must transpire."
"My Lord!"
Snape seemed to sense something and appeared uneasy.
Voldemort gently caressed the wand in his hand and murmured, "The Elder Wand still does not serve me as it should. Because I am not yet its true master, it refuses to perform miracles for its rightful owner as the legends claim."
"Perhaps that wand is not the Deathstick that you seek, Master." Snape took a step back, still attempting to dissuade Voldemort from his absurd notion.
"That wand cannot possibly be the Deathstick you are searching for." He repeated, "Given Albert Anderson's character, how could he possibly allow you to obtain such a powerful wand that threatens his own life so easily?"
"Don't forget, he is skilled in divination and would surely be aware of the legendary Deathstick. If it were me, I would have taken the wand before you, leaving you with no chance."
"And that wand once belonged to Dumbledore. If he truly possessed the Deathstick, he would have prevented you from obtaining his wand."
"That old fool also tried to stop me from acquiring this wand. They even hid Grindelwald away."
Voldemort's hand paused momentarily as he considered the difficulty of obtaining the Deathstick, unwilling to believe that the wand he held was a fake.
"For this reason, that old fool left an insurance policy."
He stared at Snape, narrowing his eyes slightly. "Rarely can a wizard access the secrets hidden within a wand."
"The Deathstick belongs to the wizard who killed its previous owner. Even if I obtained the Deathstick unknowingly, I would only possess an ordinary wand and might even suspect as much, losing the possibility of truly owning it."
"Because...as long as you live, Severus, the Deathstick can never truly be mine?"
"There must be another way."
Snape tightened his grip on his wand, his face filled with unease.
"I don't want to..."
"There is no other way, Severus." Voldemort raised his wand. "I must conquer this wand, conquer those within Hogwarts Castle, and lead the other Death Eaters to victory tonight."
"No, no! This is all a plot by Albert Anderson! He merely wants to use my death to throw the Death Eaters into chaos!"
"If even I am killed by you, my Lord, how can the others be sure they won't be the next to lose their lives for no reason? How can they be expected to loyally serve you?"
Snape continued his futile attempts to dissuade Voldemort from his madness, but to no avail.
So what if he accidentally kills me?
The Death Eaters were but his servants.
Realizing his efforts were futile, Snape accepted the cruel fate that awaited him. In a gesture of defiance, he raised his wand to show he would not go down without a fight, but Voldemort seemed uninterested and prepared to send Snape on his way.
However, Snape, who had anticipated this, reacted swiftly. He suddenly swung his wand to launch a surprise attack on Voldemort, hoping to create some confusion and buy himself time to escape using Disapparating.
Voldemort, prepared for such an attempt, immediately moved to restrain Snape and prevent him from Disapparating.
The failure of his Disapparating attempt caused Snape to pause momentarily. Before he could recover, a burst of green light filled his vision.
"Avada Kedavra!"
Almost instinctively, Snape cast the Killing Curse.
The two beams of green light collided in mid-air, but Snape's magical power was far inferior to Voldemort's, and he quickly found himself overwhelmed.
Staring at the encroaching green light that signaled his death, a twisted smile formed on Snape's usually expressionless face.
He stopped resisting and allowed the green light to consume him entirely.
Thud! Hit by the Avada Kedavra curse, Snape fell to the ground, lifeless.
"I regret this, but only I can live forever."
Gazing at the body on the ground, Voldemort waved his wand, incinerating Snape's corpse with a fierce fire, leaving no evidence behind.
At least, for tonight, he didn't want the other Death Eaters to discover that he had killed Snape.
Beyond tonight, Voldemort had no concerns.
With a wand that obeyed his every command, there was no one who could stand against him.
Now, it was time to clean up the mess.
...
"I can't hold on much longer."
In front of the main entrance of Hogwarts, Professor Flitwick, who had been watching the fireworks displayed on the protective barrier, suddenly spoke.
"How about another protective barrier?"
Professor Slughorn pulled out a bottle of Felix Felicis from his robe pocket and drank it all in one go.
"No need," said Flitwick. "Voldemort is coming, and I doubt the protective barrier will hold against him."
Albert withdrew his wand and cast the mark of the Order of the Phoenix into the night sky, alerting those within the castle.
The battle had begun.
"We are no match for Voldemort."
"Don't worry," said Albert. "He'll send in the expendables first."
As Albert spoke, the protective barrier above them finally succumbed to the relentless onslaught of the Dark Wizards, gradually crumbling. Countless burning sparks rained down from above.
One after another, Dark spells penetrated the shattered barrier, landing outside Hogwarts Castle and causing a series of explosions that startled everyone.
There was no choice but to face the terrifying bombardment. Those who didn't know better might have thought an earthquake had just occurred.
To be honest, if it weren't for Voldemort's order to attack, most Dark Wizards would probably prefer to continue the long-range bombardment rather than risk their lives assaulting a well-defended castle.
But Voldemort's orders were absolute.
Once the order to attack was conveyed, the Dark Wizards surprisingly did not rush forward en masse. Instead, they adhered to Yaxley's original plan, releasing countless Inferi from various directions to swarm the school grounds. These dark creatures would act as cannon fodder, clearing the way and minimizing the risk of falling into the enemy's traps.
(End of Chapter)
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