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Chapter 676: The Terror of a Legilimency Master
Chapter 676: The Terror of a Legilimency Master
"Professors, how do we leave here now?" Hermione asked anxiously, her gaze fixed on the entrance. The entire corridor had already collapsed, leaving only a deep, dark void.
Ivan closed his eyes and tried to sense if he could Apparate out.
Unfortunately, the answer was no!
This place still belonged to Hogwarts, more like an extended space similar to the Room of Requirement, so Wizards couldn't Apparate here.
The only exception was the Triwizard Cup's arena, which had its spatial restrictions lifted to allow Aurors to enter and exit and transport building materials.
This was why, in the original Time and Space, Barty Crouch Jr., despite having Harry's trust, didn't directly give him the Portkey but waited for him to win the tournament.
Damn, Barty Crouch Jr. must have really intended to go down with us...
Ivan frowned and turned to Dumbledore, who looked unusually calm.
Suddenly, a ethereal song echoed through the enclosed space. Fawkes the Phoenix, with his golden-red feathers, flew in from somewhere, clutching a ragged humanoid figure in his talons, and approached them.
"Great, it's Fawkes!" Hermione exclaimed happily. She knew this unique Phoenix could Apparate within Hogwarts and take them to safety.
Meanwhile, the surrounding space began to crumble more severely. Even the floor beneath their feet showed deep cracks, and Ivan could feel his body being compressed and stretched by the spatial distortion.
"Don't move, get ready!" Dumbledore said sternly, using strength that belied his age to lift Mad-Eye Moody from the ground.
What are we preparing for? Ivan wondered. Then he saw golden-red flames ignite around Fawkes, looking like a blazing fireball hurtling toward them.
With a loud, clear song, the golden-red fireball exploded, filling Ivan's vision with flames that quickly enveloped everyone.
Then came a dizzying spin. When Ivan regained his senses, he found himself in the Headmaster's Office.
It was the middle of the night, and a heavy rain was pouring outside. Cold wind blew in through the open window.
A few candles on the central desk and the roaring fireplace provided the only light.
After bringing them there, Fawkes the Phoenix dropped the charred corpse from his talons and flew to the Olive Branch, leisurely preening his feathers.
The cold wind helped Ivan's tense emotions gradually ease, but the thought of what had just happened still left him uneasy. He turned to Dumbledore and asked,
"Professor Dumbledore, what would have happened if we hadn't escaped in time?"
"We would have been shredded along with that space!" Dumbledore said seriously. "However, at the moment of complete spatial collapse, we would have been ejected from Hogwarts. If the timing was perfect, we could have used Apparition before our bodies were completely torn apart."
"Without Fawkes, that would have been your only chance!"
Dumbledore explained this to Ivan and helped the unconscious Mad-Eye Moody to a chair. Hermione hurried over to assist, worried that Dumbledore's frail body might be overwhelmed by Moody's weight.
Hearing Dumbledore's words, Ivan fell into deep thought. It seemed that Barty Crouch Jr. had deliberately used an ultra-large-scale Blast Spell in the confined space.
Whether this magic could kill him or not, the space would inevitably collapse, and that was the true killing move!
If he had entered alone, in a life-or-death situation, Ivan couldn't be sure he would have been able to seize that sliver of a chance.
Thinking about this, Ivan couldn't help but feel a bit of lingering fear.
Of course, being forced into such a predicament was mainly due to his underestimating Barty Jr.'s resolve. He hadn't expected the other party to choose such a ruthless path, opting for a mutual destruction. As a result, he had held back some of his strength when he acted.
After all, he needed to capture Mad-Eye Moody and Barty Jr. alive as much as possible to interrogate them about Voldemort.
Additionally, he had been eager to test out his newly acquired blood magic. Most of the time, Ivan had only used the power of Dragon Transformation in battle, completely neglecting Serpent's Eye and Boggart Transformation.
While Ivan was lost in thought, Dumbledore pressed the Elder Wand against Mad-Eye Moody's temple, extracting thin wisps of white mist from his brain.
Dumbledore leaned in closer, his eyes behind the half-moon glasses faintly glowing blue. He could clearly see some impurities mixed in the white mist.
"Your suspicions were correct, Hals. Voldemort altered Alastor's memory and subjected him to the Imperius Curse!" A rare trace of anger appeared on Dumbledore's face.
"Will Professor Mad-Eye Moody be alright?" Ivan asked hastily, worried that the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor might suffer brain damage after being under the Imperius Curse for over half a year.
"Fortunately, to ensure Alastor's autonomy as much as possible, Voldemort was very meticulous. There shouldn't be any lingering effects", Dumbledore explained while gently waving his wand, meticulously separating the impurities from the white mist.
It took Dumbledore over ten minutes to return the thin wisps of white mist to Mad-Eye Moody's brain.
Ivan watched this scene with a mix of awe and unease. If Dumbledore had any ill intentions, he could easily add some elements to subtly alter Mad-Eye Moody's memory. This was the terrifying power of a Legilimency Master.
"I have already sorted through his memories from the past year. Alastor should return to normal in a bit... For now, let's let him rest a little." Dumbledore put down his wand, looking somewhat weary.
Restoring those modified memories to their original state was not an easy task. A single mistake could result in Mad-Eye Moody waking up in a state of mental confusion.
After settling Mad-Eye Moody, Dumbledore turned his attention to the charred corpse on the ground.
Ivan followed his gaze. The only way to describe it was as a human-shaped roast. The chest cavity was blown open, a gruesome mess of blood and flesh, and the high temperature had caused it to emit a nauseating steam, making it hard to stomach.
He could only identify Barty Crouch Jr. by the body's size and the hand with two broken fingers.
Why bother...
Ivan sighed and shook his head.
Barty Crouch Jr. had given everything for Voldemort, not only betraying his father but even attempting to take Ivan down with him. Yet, given Voldemort's nature, he would never feel sorrow over Barty Jr.'s death, only anger at his incompetence...
(End of Chapter)
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