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Chapter 465: The Killing Curse
Chapter 465: The Killing Curse
Having already packed their belongings, the group rushed out of the tent upon hearing Mr. Weasley's words.
The celebratory parade had disappeared, replaced by chaos as panicked screams filled the air. The entire campsite was in disarray.
The sky was cloaked in darkness, as if the stars were obscured by a vast blanket of thick, black fog, creating an oppressively eerie atmosphere.
In the distance, a group of people fled towards the woods, while behind them, another group of hooded figures moved forward with calm determination.
Their faces hidden behind masks, their identities were impossible to discern. The only certainty was that they were up to no good.
No good-willed person would go around masked and setting fires in the middle of the night... Anyone or anything that stood in their way was mercilessly destroyed.
"You there, get into the woods!" Mr. Weasley shouted. "Bill, you watch over them, make sure they don't get separated..."
Before he could finish, he turned to see Bill, Charlie, and Percy rushing towards the oncoming parade-goers.
Mr. Weasley hurried after them, calling over his shoulder, "You lot, get into the woods! The Aurors have already searched there, it's safe... Remember, stick together!"
The group nodded and dashed into the forest.
As they made their way through the trees, they glanced back to find that the crowd had grown even larger.
Now, it wasn't just the mysterious hooded witches and wizards; many of those who had come to watch the game had joined the mob as well.
These individuals were foreign witches and wizards who paid no heed to the warnings of the Ministry of Magic staff. They boldly and brazenly unleashed their malice, not even bothering to conceal their faces.
Moreover, their numbers were overwhelming, far surpassing the meager reinforcements the Ministry had sent.
Soon, the once-joyful parade had devolved into a full-blown riot. Many seized the opportunity to slip into empty tents, looting them or even carrying them away.
"We have to help Dad!" Fred and George exclaimed, their eyes fixed on the growing mob. Their hearts raced with anxiety, and they made to move towards the commotion.
"No!" Ginny grabbed onto them, holding them back. "They're all adult witches and wizards. You'll only get in the way and cause more trouble!"
"Who says so?" Fred struggled against her grip. "Even if we're not strong enough, we still have our Decoy Detonators and U-No-Poo."
George tried to pry Ginny's hand away. "Trust us, sometimes these things are way more useful than magic!"
"Oh, there you are!"
As they argued, a figure stumbled towards them from a distance.
In an instant, Cedric and Kyle drew their wands, pointing them at the newcomer.
"It's me, Arthur asked me to look after you all," the man said.
He emerged from the woods, dressed in a coarse tweed suit and a pair of rubber boots.
"You're the Ministry of Magic staff member who was in charge of registration, right?" Cedric frowned. "Your name is Basil, I believe?"
He remembered the suit.
They had seen it when they first arrived through the keyhole.
"Yes, that's me," the man confirmed. "I ran into Arthur, and he told me that those people were after Harry Potter, so he asked me to look after you."
"What? They're after me?" Harry exclaimed in disbelief.
This was absurd. He had merely watched a Quidditch game and hadn't done anything else. Why would someone target him? It made no sense.
"They're all Death Eaters, here to avenge the Dark Lord," the man said, quickly walking over and extending his hand. "The Aurors are looking for you right now. Come with me, I'll take you to Scrimgeour."
At the mention of the Dark Lord, Harry immediately thought back to his first year, recalling the face that had emerged from the back of Quirrell's head. Instinctively, he took a couple of steps forward.
However, the next second...
"Stupefy!"
"Avada..."
A loud bang echoed through the air as the man was struck by a bright light, sending him flying backward and landing several feet away, motionless. The green light that had appeared at the tip of his wand dissipated.
It all happened so fast that everyone was still reeling from the shock.
"What... what just happened?" Harry stammered, backing away in fear.
"It seems someone is after your life," Kyle said, holstering his wand and scanning their surroundings warily.
"But he's a Ministry of Magic staff member, isn't he?"
"How did you know he was up to no good?" Cedric asked as he stepped forward to pick up the fallen wand.
To be honest, before that man cast the Killing Curse, he hadn't noticed anything amiss at all.
"It's simple," Kyle explained. "If those people's target was truly Harry, Mr. Weasley would have come himself instead of entrusting the task to a Ministry staff member whom we've only met once.
He's not even an Auror... It doesn't make sense to assign an ordinary staff member to protect the most dangerous target."
Cedric opened his mouth but didn't speak, and neither did anyone else... Obviously, none of them had thought of that.
"Thank you... You saved my life," Harry said, still shaken.
"Don't mention it," Kyle shook his head. "Our top priority now is to get out of here..."
Before he could finish, a dazzling green light suddenly flashed, illuminating half of the campsite.
They were all too familiar with this green light—it was the Killing Curse that had just narrowly missed Harry...
But this time, the Killing Curse wasn't directed at them; it had appeared from the direction of the campsite.
Everyone immediately turned to look.
The rioting crowd fell silent for a moment... Then, the entire campsite erupted like a lit powder keg.
The wails and screams were several times louder than before, and various spells flew uncontrollably in all directions...
Even in the woods, they could vaguely hear shouts of either rage or terror.
"...Damn the Ministry, how dare you use the Killing Curse!"
The rioting crowd was completely out of control. Some tried to flee, while others lost their sanity and began attacking indiscriminately. Spells of various colors lit up the entire campsite! Fred and George wanted to rush over again, but this time, not only Ginny but also Cedric and Qiu grabbed their arms to stop them.
Kyle watched the colorful campsite, feeling that something was amiss.
First, a Ministry staff member tried to assassinate Harry, and now they were using the Killing Curse on the rioting crowd... This was too strange.
It was unquestionable that the Ministry wouldn't assassinate Harry or willingly use the Killing Curse.
But they had done both, and in quick succession.
"This is intentional, meant to frame the Ministry!" Kyle immediately thought of a possibility.
Obviously, someone wanted to escalate the conflict... Regardless of who that person was, they had succeeded, given the current situation!
"Boom!"
A spell flew from the direction of the campsite and exploded in a pit a short distance from them.
Everyone was splattered with stones and dirt.
"Are the Death Eaters planning to attack the Ministry?" Kyle's heart raced.
If it was just about causing trouble, the Ministry might have let it slide due to the large number of participants. But now that the Killing Curse had been used, even Fudge wouldn't simply let it go.
With the appearance of the Killing Curse among a crowd of ten thousand wizards, the Minister would have to step down if he couldn't provide an explanation.
"Boom!" Another spell exploded.
Without hesitation, Kyle drew his wand and simultaneously pulled the box out of his Bulging Briefcase. He pressed his finger on the lock, opening it.
"All of you, get in!"
"What?" Ron looked at the small opening of the box. "Kyle, are you joking? How can we possibly fit into such a tiny box..."
"Stop wasting time!"
Kyle didn't have the leisure to explain. He grabbed Ron's shoulder and pulled him forcefully...
Ron stumbled and fell forward, landing right on the open box.
"You..."
The next second, Ron disappeared.
Tinkling sounds and Ron's groans came from inside the box, as if he had bumped into something.
"Hurry, next!" Kyle shouted.
Hermione was the first to react.
She remembered that before the holiday, Kyle had pulled out Devil's Snare from this box to trap Professor Lupin, who had turned into a werewolf... He had also mentioned that the space inside the box was slightly bigger than it appeared.
But Hermione never imagined that 'slightly bigger' meant it could even fit a person.
(End of Chapter)
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