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Chapter 685: Who Says I'm the Only One Here?
Chapter 685: Who Says I'm the Only One Here?
Finally, in a room resembling a conference hall, the Death Eaters caught up with Harry and his friends, who were frantically fleeing.
"Stop!" Bellatrix suddenly cast a spell, and Ron, who was at the back, immediately stumbled and fell to the ground. She grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up.
"Got you, you bunch of scurrying rats." Bellatrix glanced at Harry excitedly. "I wonder how long he can last under the Cruciatus Curse.
"I remember the Longbottoms lasted three hours, and their screams were music to my ears..."
Bellatrix looked at Ron in her grasp. "I wonder if you can beat their record? I certainly hope so."
She asked and answered herself, laughing maniacally.
"Never mind me," Ron said, terrified by this madwoman. His legs were trembling, but he still managed to speak bravely. "Don't worry about me, Harry. Don't let them take the prophecy."
Bellatrix raised her wand. "Crucio!"
Ron screamed in agony and curled up into a ball.
"Ron!" Mr. Weasley shouted anxiously.
He wanted to save Ron, but two other Death Eaters were holding him back, preventing his rescue.
Seeing Ron in pain and hearing Mr. Weasley's roar, Harry had no choice but to stiffly raise his hand and pass the prophecy orb over.
"No, Harry," Mr. Weasley roared. "The Death Eaters won't keep their promises. They'll kill Ron as soon as they get the prophecy!"
"No, no, we'll let him go," said a masked Death Eater as he snatched the prophecy orb from Harry's hand.
A cruel smirk appeared on his face, hidden beneath the mask.
"We'll release him and then kill him..."
"Stunning Spell!"
At that moment, a nearby door was flung open, and Lupin, Tonks, and Kingsley burst into the room.
A flash of red light shot from Kingsley's wand, and the Death Eater who had taken the prophecy orb fell backward, crashing to the ground.
"No, damn it!" Bellatrix roared. She threw Ron aside and raised her wand.
"Accio Prophecy!"
But Harry was faster. As the Death Eater fell, Harry dived and grabbed the prophecy orb, clutching it tightly in his hand.
Tonks also took the opportunity to rescue Ron, who had been thrown aside.
"Just in time," Kingsley panted. "Alastor, you really shouldn't have made us split up."
"It was the safest option..." Moody dodged another spell, his magical eye spinning wildly in its socket. Even so, he was hit by a curse that came from the shadows.
The back of Moody's robe was blown apart, and his flesh was torn and bloody.
Although he was once a legendary Auror, he was getting old, and his reactions were slowing down. Fighting two Death Eaters was already his limit, but there were far more than just a couple of enemies present.
Seeing this, Kingsley immediately joined the battle, helping to take some pressure off the injured Moody.
"Don't worry about me," Moody grit his teeth and picked up his fallen magical eye, popping it back into its socket. "Lucky it wasn't the Killing Curse, you filthy scum."
Kingsley only glanced at him before turning his attention to Hermione, who was not far away. He helped her repel a Death Eater who was trying to sneak up on her, and shouted, "Watch your back, miss! Stay close to the walls!"
Hermione, experiencing this kind of scene for the first time, was too shocked to speak and could only nod weakly.
"Well, well, well. Looks like all the fun-spoilers are here."
On the other side, Bellatrix cackled madly as she pointed her wand at the nearest target—Tonks.
"Avada..."
"Reducto!"
As if in defiance, someone interrupted Bellatrix's spell once again.
"Come on, let's see what you've got now!" Sirius challenged.
In response, a blinding flash of red light shot toward him.
As if expecting it, Sirius skillfully transformed into a black dog, dodging the Cruciatus Curse, and then transformed back.
"Is that all you've got?" he scoffed. "How disappointing."
Bellatrix was enraged, and the two of them began firing spells at each other like dazzling fireworks, each trying to outdo the other.
In terms of power, Sirius and Bellatrix seemed evenly matched, neither able to gain the upper hand.
But the same couldn't be said for the others.
The Death Eaters had the advantage in numbers, and it wasn't long before the weakest among Harry's group, Hermione and Ron, were overwhelmed and disarmed.
Soon after, Moody, who was forcing himself to stay in the fight despite his injuries, also fell. He tumbled down a set of stone steps, and a Death Eater without a mask laughed wildly nearby.
Antonin Dolohov pointed his wand at Moody. "Get up and come at me, you muggle-loving scum... Crucio!"
The tide of the battle was turning, and it was turning fast.
Sirius, who had been focusing on his duel with Bellatrix, now had to contend with attackers from the shadows as well, doubling the pressure on him.
On the other hand, Harry himself seemed to have been forgotten.
Whether it was due to a fear of breaking the prophecy orb or some other reason, there was only one Death Eater in front of him, and even that enemy didn't seem too invested in the fight. They only cast casual spells when Harry tried to run.
"Looks like we win..." Bellatrix's triumphant cackle echoed through the room as she toyed with Sirius like a cat playing with a mouse.
Everyone else in the room had noticed it too.
"Kyle?" Mr. Weasley's eyes flickered with disappointment as he initially thought it was Dumbledore. But as he realized who it was, he immediately shouted, "Run! You're not supposed to be here..."
Before he could finish his sentence, he found himself unable to utter another sound.
For standing next to Kyle was a leopard-like creature that had reared its neck back.
Harry, also looking up, didn't recognize the creature. He watched as its neck puffed up like a blowfish, and then, a hazy purple mist began to spread rapidly in all directions.
It was as if time had been paused; the room fell into an eerie silence as everyone, Death Eaters and Mr. Weasley's group alike, stared with widened eyes.
And then...
"Damn it, why is there a Poisonous Gas Leopard in the Ministry of Magic!"
"Run..."
"Do you want to kill us all?!"
"Stop, stop right now!"
"No, Kyle, stop!"
Chaos erupted in the room.
Antonin Dolohov also forgot about Moody and ran towards the other side of the room without looking back.
The other Death Eaters abandoned the helpless Hermione and Ron, scrambling to follow him.
Even the deranged Bellatrix started to back away unconsciously.
"Ron, Hermione..."
Seeing the Death Eaters retreat, Harry wanted to rush forward and grab the unconscious Ron and Hermione, but Mr. Weasley held him back.
"Don't go near, that's the poison of the Gas Leopard, you'll die!"
Harry hesitated for a moment, then struggled even harder.
"But they're still there... I need to save them..."
"It's too late, Harry!" Mr. Weasley said painfully.
The purple mist was spreading quickly, and by the time they finished talking, it had already engulfed Ron and Hermione, who were lying on the ground.
Mr. Weasley bit his lip and dragged Harry away, running towards the back of the room.
He couldn't understand why Kyle would order the Gas Leopard to kill everyone.
Why would he do such a thing?! Mr. Weasley's fingernails dug into his flesh as he desperately hoped that the Kyle before him was an impostor, someone using Polyjuice Potion to disguise themselves, but his remaining rationality told him that was impossible.
Aside from Kyle, Chris, and Newt Scamander, he couldn't think of anyone else capable of controlling a Gas Leopard.
Several Death Eaters immediately cast Bubble-Head Charms on themselves.
"Useless..." Kyle shook his finger, "Even if the Gas Leopard's poison only touches your clothes, it will still enter your body."
For a moment, the Death Eaters ran even faster.
However, among the crowd, Lupin, upon hearing these words, suddenly looked up at Kyle. It seemed as if he had realized something, and he breathed a long sigh of relief.
Instead of running, he stood there and let himself be enveloped by the purple mist.
"Remus..." Sirius shouted, his eyes wide with horror.
Now, Mr. Weasley had to hold onto both Harry and Sirius, who was trying to break free and run towards Remus.
"Remus... Let me go, Remus isn't here yet... I need to save him!"
"Shut up, Padfoot, don't make a scene," Mr. Weasley hissed.
"Remus..." Sirius' voice was filled with relief.
Mr. Weasley's face turned bright red, and he wished he could find a hole to crawl into, feeling equally embarrassed.
"So, that Gas Leopard..."
"Of course, it's fake." Kyle said loudly, "Well, what do you think of my Transfiguration Spell?"
"Amazing." Kingsley said sincerely.
When he had first seen the Gas Leopard, the fear he felt was very real, and it didn't feel like it was the product of a Transfiguration Spell at all.
And because of that, he had instinctively turned and fled... He believed the Death Eaters felt the same.
"How dare you trick us?!" A furious voice rang out.
Suddenly, a flash of green light flew towards them.
But, as if anticipating it, Kyle casually sidestepped to the left, avoiding it.
The Killing Curse whizzed past him and struck the wall.
"Thanks," Kyle said with a smile.
A low growl emanated from the lingering smoke, as if in response to him.
Lupin, closest to Kyle, caught a glimpse of two flickers of bluish-purple light within the haze.
"But what are you going to do now?" Bellatrix stepped forward from the group of Death Eaters, her voice icy. "Do you really think you can take on all of us alone?"
Reminded of their dire situation, Mr. Weasley grabbed Kyle's arm anxiously. "There are too many of them; we need to run..."
"It's too late," Kyle replied.
The Death Eaters spread out, quickly surrounding them.
Bellatrix continued, her voice dripping with malice, "Your little tricks may have saved those worthless fools for now, but it's only a matter of time before we recapture them. And you, I will torture you with the Cruciatus Curse for a day, no, a year."
"Tsk tsk, long time no see, Bella. You still know how to scare people," Kyle greeted her like an old friend.
"But who told you I came alone?"
Kyle waved his hand, and the smoke gradually dissipated, revealing another magical creature resembling a leopard.
This one had six legs and a pair of bright bluish-purple eyes.
"More Transfiguration tricks?" One of the Death Eaters scoffed. "Do you think we'll fall for that again...?"
Before he could finish his sentence, the magical creature moved with unimaginable speed and appeared right in front of him.
Sharp claws extended, and with a piercing scream, the Death Eater was sent flying and landed on the ground, motionless.
Harry, witnessing this scene, couldn't help but shudder as unpleasant memories flashed through his mind.
At the same time, it became evident to everyone that the creature before them was not an illusion but very real.
"Reducto!" Antonin Dolohov shouted, pointing his wand at the creature. "It's just a cat-leopard; what can it do?"
"Who said I only have one?" Kyle replied with a smile.
Without warning, a burst of flames erupted from behind Kyle, and a massive fire dragon appeared out of thin air before their very eyes.
Some of the Death Eaters instinctively reached for their masks to rub their eyes... Could they really be seeing a fire dragon?
Before they could fully process what was happening, the ground began to tremble... A three-headed dog with heads the size of tables and sharp teeth over a dozen inches long emerged.
Some of the Death Eaters began to shake with fear, knowing full well that those fangs could easily pierce their bodies.
"Avada Kedavra!"
"Reducto!"
"Stupefy!"
"Protect them..." Lupin roared, the first to raise his wand.
Several spells flew from all directions, half of which were blocked by Lupin and the others, but the rest landed on Luwei and Norbert, including the Killing Curse.
If it had been cast by Voldemort, it might have pierced their fur and scales, but these Death Eaters were far from skilled enough.
Luwei staggered for a moment but quickly regained his footing. His eyes gleamed with a fierce light as he roared and charged towards the group.
Norbert, on the other hand, took to the air and spat huge bursts of flame at the densest cluster of Death Eaters.
Sirius, forgetting his earlier embarrassment, laughed and joined the fray.
"Come on, don't run away!" he said, stunning a Death Eater with his wand and tying him up before tossing him aside. "You were so cocky just now; keep it up!"
The Death Eaters' formation had completely fallen apart, and the addition of the three-headed dog and the fire dragon had turned the tide of the battle.
While these magical creatures were not typically difficult to deal with, requiring only seven or eight people working together to take one down, the problem was that they weren't the only opponents the Death Eaters had to contend with.
Every time the Death Eaters tried to cast spells simultaneously, Sirius and the others would jump in to disrupt them, even more fiercely than when they were protecting themselves.
As long as they could keep the fire dragon and three-headed dog from taking damage, these creatures could turn the tide of the battle in their favor, and with greater efficiency.
The situation quickly became one-sided.
"This can't continue," Lucius Malfoy hobbled over to Bellatrix, his mask burned to a crisp by dragon fire, his once meticulously groomed hair now half gone.
But Malfoy paid no mind to his appearance at the moment.
"We need to find a way out of here!" he shouted. "At the very least, we need to draw those two beasts away!"
However, Bellatrix seemed not to hear him. She dodged a burst of dragon fire and pointed her wand at Kyle, but after a moment, she slightly adjusted her wrist, aiming the wand at Harry, who held the prophecy orb.
Oblivious to the impending danger, Harry stood frozen. It was only when he was suddenly kicked aside that he avoided a deadly curse.
"Oh, thanks," Harry said with relief to the cat-leopard as he picked himself up. But he failed to notice that, in his fall, the prophecy orb had rolled out of his pocket and shattered on a nearby step.
(End of Chapter)
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