Hogwarts: The Exemplary Wizard I Am Chapter 705: Ambush, Death Eaters and Fire Dragons - Novel Cool

Chapter 705: Ambush, Death Eaters and Fire Dragons

Chapter 705: Ambush, Death Eaters and Fire Dragons

On the last day of July, after a fruitless morning of hunting, Kyle and Cedric decided to temporarily call off their outdoor mission of capturing Dementors. Ever since the Prophet published the bounty, the Dementors roaming the streets had all but disappeared.

Of course, that didn't mean they had all been turned in for Galleons... Despite the tempting reward of a hundred Galleons, there weren't many witches and wizards capable of killing Dementors, and it wouldn't happen that quickly anyway.

Kyle guessed that most of the missing Dementors were probably lying low. After all, even Death Eaters read the newspaper.

Now that the Dementors had gone from feared calamities to lucrative gold mines, Voldemort would naturally not sit idly by and watch his valuable minions be picked off one by one.

But that was fine; at least there was no longer a worry about Muggles getting involved.

And with the Dementors in hiding, it would be easier to round them all up. The only problem now was finding their exact locations.

But that was a problem for Dumbledore to worry about.

Having made their decision, Kyle and Cedric prepared to head back. But first, they had one last address from the booklet to check out.

This address had only appeared a few minutes ago, and it seemed someone had spotted a Dementor and reported it to the Ministry.

They had been busy for several days now, so one more stop wouldn't hurt.

"You don't think someone else will get there before us, do you?" Cedric asked.

"Who knows," Kyle replied. "But this address just came in, so there probably hasn't been time for anyone else to get there yet."

"Finally, it's over..." Cedric rubbed his forehead. "I don't care what happens. You have to give me three days off when we get back."

"Aren't you interested in flying?" Kyle said with a smile. "A week-long Quidditch match is quite common. You won't make it as a professional player with that attitude."

"How can you compare the two?" Cedric said irritably. "We don't have to worry about Dementors on the Quidditch pitch."

"You're right..." Kyle shrugged. "But whether or not you get time off isn't up to me."

"I don't care. I'm not taking a pay cut for this month, that's for sure," Cedric said, a little unruly.

Kyle was a little stunned. It was hard to imagine that these were words that could come out of Cedric's mouth...

"Don't worry about the time off..." Kyle glanced at him. "From now on, it's best to keep your distance from Fred and George, and don't pick up their bad habits of cheating and cutting corners."

"They're not as good as you," Cedric muttered under his breath.

Soon, the pair arrived in Hampshire, but after flying around the area of the address for half an hour, they still couldn't find any trace of the Dementor. However, they did spot three witches and wizards flying above a wooded area.

Two men and one woman, all riding brooms, with a large locked box in tow.

Before they could get close, Kyle heard their excited voices.

"A live Dementor is worth two hundred Galleons. We're so lucky."

"Yeah, I never thought these things would become so valuable..."

"It's a pity there's only one. Otherwise, we'd really strike it rich..."

There was no need to guess what was in the box.

"Looks like someone got here before us," Cedric said quietly. "I didn't think anyone could capture a Dementor alive. They must be pretty good."

Kyle nodded.

Facing the dangerous Dementors, capturing them alive was far more difficult than killing them. Each breath a Dementor took greatly weakened a witch or wizard's combat effectiveness... unless there were multiple Patronuses to surround it.

With three of them, they must have used that method.

Kyle glanced at the cheerful trio and had no intention of greeting them. Instead, he and Cedric turned their brooms to head directly back to the Ministry.

Just then, a Bowtruckle suddenly popped out of Kyle's collar and jabbed its sharp finger into his neck.

Almost instinctively, Kyle turned his broom again, crashing into Cedric beside him.

Caught off guard, Cedric nearly fell off his broom.

"Kyle, what are you—" Cedric's question was cut short as he saw three streaks of spells fly past them, aimed right at where Kyle had been a moment ago.

There was no need for an explanation now.

"Wait!" Cedric subconsciously dropped his Disguise Spell and looked at the three in the distance. "We're just passing by. We mean no harm, and we won't take your Dementor..."

"Get rid of the extra one!"

Before he could finish his sentence, three more spells flew towards them.

Although Cedric tried to dodge, one of the spells hit his broom.

Smoke rose from the tail of the broom, and Cedric wobbled as he fell towards the ground.

Kyle was about to pull him up when he was blocked by another incoming spell and had to turn away.

"I didn't think you'd dodge that..." One of the bearded witches and wizards said, "You really are the champion of the Triwizard Tournament."

"You know me?" Kyle glanced down quickly and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Cedric had already drawn his wand in mid-air.

"Of course," another bearded wizard said, his eyes glinting with greed. "Lord Voldemort has declared that whoever kills you will receive the highest honor and the most generous reward."

"Generous reward?" Kyle asked curiously. "What is it? Ten thousand Galleons?"

"It's simple," Kyle explained. "I'll provide a Polyjuice Potion; you can make the person behind you drink it, kill him, and then go claim the reward. Rest assured, I won't tell anyone, and we can split the reward ninety-ten; you take the lion's share."

As soon as Kyle finished speaking, the person behind the bearded wizard tensed up, and the wand in his hand unconsciously changed direction, now aimed at the wizard in front of him.

"You fool!" The bearded wizard scolded.

Then, turning to Kyle, he said, "Do you really think such a petty trick will cause discord between us? Don't be delusional. No one can deceive the great Dark Lord, and no one dares to try."

"That's right," the wizard continued. "Moreover, the Dark Lord's reward is not something as vulgar as Galleons; it cannot be divided!"

"I don't think Galleons are vulgar," Kyle mumbled. "By the way, were you guys waiting for me here specifically? If so, how did you know I would pass by this place?"

"Stop wasting time and kill him already!" The female witch among the trio glared at Kyle with eyes filled with bone-chilling hatred. "You should've expected this day would come when you killed my brother..."

"Your brother?" Kyle was perplexed. "Who are you talking about?"

"Amicus Carrow!" the witch shrieked.

Carrow? Kyle recalled that name; it belonged to one of the Death Eaters in the Giant Valley.

"No, you've got the wrong person!" Kyle said. "The one who killed your brother was Hagrid; you should go find him. Why take it out on me?

"You must be delusional if you think you can avenge your loss on me just because you can't beat a half-giant."

"You will all die!" The witch shouted hysterically. "You're the first, and soon the others will join you!"

"And you think you can kill me?" Kyle asked.

"Do you think you can escape?" The witch cackled. "Klaus said you were tricky, but you're nothing special in my eyes. Besides, there's no one else here to help you!"

"How about we negotiate?" Kyle stammered. "I'll tell you where Hagrid is, and you can go find him first..."

"Shut up! Don't think I don't know you're just trying to buy time!" The witch interrupted.

"Rest assured, by the time the Aurors arrive, you'll already be dead.

"Fine..." Kyle shrugged helplessly. "But if you know I'm stalling, why bother talking so much?"

"Avada Kedavra!" A flash of green light shot towards Kyle.

However, the next second, a massive figure appeared in front of Kyle, blocking the Killing Curse.

Black scales shimmered with an eerie light, and where the Killing Curse hit, several scales quickly turned a grayish-white.

But for Norberta, the massive Hungarian Horntail, the loss of a few scales was negligible.

"Fire... dragon?!"

The three Death Eaters were stunned, the bearded wizard rubbing his eyes, unable to believe what he was seeing.

How could there be a dragon here?

Before he could make sense of the situation, Norberta, enraged by the Killing Curse, opened her mouth and spewed a scorching jet of dragonfire at the trio.

Instinctively, they tried to flee. But Kyle wasn't about to let them get away.

"Impedimenta!"

"Stupefy!"

To dodge Kyle's spells, they had to forcibly change direction.

But that momentary pause was all it took for one of the Death Eaters to be engulfed in dragonfire, plummeting to the ground.

The other two narrowly escaped, but their luck wouldn't last. The sky was a dragon's domain, and their brooms couldn't make up for that disparity.

Norberta flapped her wings, swiftly closing in on the nearest Death Eater.

The bearded wizard had never felt his broom move so sluggishly. In just moments, he felt himself enveloped by a massive shadow.

He turned and shouted desperately, "I surrender, I, Armour-Pierci..."

"Bang!"

Before he could finish his sentence, a thick, scaly tail slammed into him with tremendous force.

With a thunderous crash, he was sent hurtling towards the ground.

That left only the witch, Carol, still alive.

Events had unfolded so quickly that she couldn't quite process what was happening. A three-on-one situation had suddenly become a one-on-one duel.

Though she desperately wanted to kill Kyle, the fiery dragon looming behind her and the ever-increasing temperature made her dare not look back; she just wanted to escape this place as quickly as possible.

The dragon pursued relentlessly, the distance between them shrinking...

Just as Norberta was about to catch up to Carol, two more hooded Death Eaters appeared nearby.

Two Killing Curses shot towards Norberta simultaneously, forcing her to halt in midair.

Norberta wouldn't stand for such insolence. She dived, sending a torrent of dragonfire toward the location of the two Death Eaters.

But before the fire could reach them, the two figures had already vanished.

Kyle flew over to calm the irate Norberta.

Though he didn't know who the two Death Eaters that had appeared were, while they had occupied Norberta, the witch, Carol, had managed to escape.

Kyle didn't plan to pursue her, either.

If he wanted to, the speed of his Firebolt would surely allow him to catch up, but he wasn't sure if there were more ambushers nearby. For safety's sake, it was better not to take the risk... especially since he wasn't alone anymore.

When Kyle landed back on the ground, he soon found Cedric, leaning against a nearby tree.

"I'm fine," Cedric gritted his teeth, his leg twisted at an odd angle, clearly broken.

"What about you?" he panted. "And who were those three?"

"Death Eaters," Kyle said.

"Figured as much," Cedric handed the booklet to Kyle, "I've already notified the Aurors, they should be here soon."

Kyle glanced at the booklet and noticed a new line of text added to the latest address.

"Dark wizard discovered, urgent situation..."

This was a new addition by Cedric, and as these booklets were also used by the Aurors, any changes or additions made to one would be reflected in the others to prevent wasting time.

This meant the Aurors would be arriving soon.

"Wait here," Kyle stood up and walked towards the woods.

"Where are you going?" Cedric asked anxiously. "It's dangerous, come back."

But Kyle didn't heed his warning and soon found the two Death Eaters who had fallen from the sky earlier.

However, to Kyle's surprise, the bearded wizard who had been struck by Norberta's tail and fallen was still alive, hobbling away in an attempt to escape.

He must have cast a Shield Charm at the last second...

Kyle didn't dwell on it and approached him directly.

"Damn you!" the Death Eater said in a hoarse voice, "The Dark Lord... will not let you get away with this!"

"Don't need you to remind me," Kyle said.

Without further ado, he pointed his wand at the man.

"What are you going to do..." The Death Eater's voice trembled, "You can't... You can't kill me... Dumbledore won't allow it..."

"Legilimens!"

The Death Eater's eyes immediately glazed over.

...

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

A series of crisp explosions rang out in quick succession... the Aurors had arrived.

"Obliviate!"

"Kyle!" Cris flew towards him, his face filled with concern. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine, Dad," Kyle smiled. "He tried to escape, but I caught him."

"Leave him to the Aurors," Cris said. "Come with me, I'll take you both to St. Mungo's."

"I'm really fine," Kyle insisted. "Just send Cedric, but Dad, how did you get here so fast?"

"Amos recognized Cedric's handwriting, so I guessed you'd encountered Death Eaters," Cris asked urgently. "What happened exactly?"

"They were probably here to retrieve the Dementors," Kyle explained. "We just happened to stumble upon them."

That's what he saw in the bearded wizard's memory.

Initially, Kyle thought they had set a trap specifically for him, but it turned out to be a coincidence.

The Death Eaters had come to deliver Voldemort's message to the Dementors and were responsible for leading them away. Just as they were about to leave, Kyle and Cedric arrived on the scene.

The Death Eaters had used the Disguise Spell to hide their identities, and upon noticing the two, they staged a little act, intending to make a grand move before leaving to impress Voldemort.

And that led to the previous confrontation.

However, what surprised Kyle was how valuable he seemed to be. Whether dead or alive, if he was brought back to Voldemort, not only would the captor become a core Death Eater, but Voldemort himself would enhance their power.

This treatment was even better than what Harry received, which explained why those Death Eaters' eyes lit up with greed upon seeing him.

At that moment, Scrimgeour arrived and surveyed the scene, his eyes narrowing as he noticed the area ravaged by dragonfire.

"This doesn't look like ordinary fire."

"They're Death Eaters," Kyle said angrily. "Those madmen, they're despicable."

"I see," Scrimgeour nodded, not paying it much mind.

Death Eaters were known for their diverse and sinister use of Dark Magic, and fire spells were indeed one of their common tools.

Beside them, Cris's lips twitched, and he shot Kyle a glance before remaining silent.

Afterward, Amos Diggory used the Portkey to take Kyle and the injured Cedric away from the scene back to the Ministry.

Once they left, Scrimgeour walked over to a charred tree and ran his hand along its trunk.

"Chris, come take a look at this. This doesn't seem like ordinary fire. Could it be dragon fire?"

"No," Chris also touched the tree trunk and took a deep breath. His expression calm as he said, "Dragonfire would have a stronger sulfur smell and would be more adhesive. What we have here is likely just a special magical flame."

"That's a relief," Scrimgeour breathed a sigh of relief. "If there was a fire dragon among the Death Eaters, we'd be in real trouble."

"Indeed," Chris agreed.

"But your son is truly remarkable," Scrimgeour said with a smile. "Facing two Death Eaters, he drove one away and captured the other alive. He's a natural-born Auror; it would be a waste of talent to keep him cooped up in the Minister's office."

"Ahem..." Chris smiled awkwardly, then quickly regained his composure and coughed lightly. "I must remind you, Rufus, not to mention this at the Ministry."

"Of course not," Scrimgeour said. "But you really should encourage Kyle to become an Auror. He's suited for it."

"I will," Chris smiled. "But ultimately, the decision is up to Kyle."

...

(End of Chapter)

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