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Chapter 924: Snape's Choice, the Unconscious Conna
Chapter 924: Snape's Choice, the Unconscious Conna
Kyle couldn't understand what Snape was up to. Was it necessary for him to personally attack Hogwarts? Was he really considering himself a Death Eater?
Kyle made his way back to the Great Hall from the Astronomy Tower.
Voldemort seemed to have struck again, shattering the largest barrier currently protecting Hogwarts. The stone statues and armor lay scattered on the ground, with no trace of magic remaining.
A large number of Death Eaters poured into the castle, crowding the staircases and entrance hall.
Professor Flitwick was dueling with a blonde Death Eater, sparks flying between them. Nearby, Mr. Weasley was engaged in a battle with a masked Death Eater.
Despite the mask, it was evident from the Death Eater's large build and clumsy movements that it was none other than Gollum, a veteran Death Eater.
Several graduates were assisting, and Oliver Wood successfully stunned Mr. Weasley's opponent with a Stunning Spell.
Gollum's massive body crashed to the ground, shattering the Gryffindor Hourglass beside him and scattering rubies everywhere.
Kyle waved his wand, and the rubies on the ground transformed into dagger shapes floating in midair before surging towards a specific direction.
A gray figure had just jumped down from the stairs when these ruby daggers impaled it, turning it into a porcupine.
Three daggers simultaneously pierced its throat, and the werewolf didn't even struggle, lying motionless on the ground.
At that moment, another werewolf jumped down and, seeing the bloody body lying there, heaved a slight sigh of relief.
He had been about to leave, but upon seeing the red daggers floating again, he hurriedly started howling and waving his arms, seemingly trying to say something.
"Remus Lupin?" Kyle asked softly, observing the werewolf's gesturing arms.
Lupin nodded repeatedly.
"Sorry," Kyle said, "werewolves in their transformed state all look similar, and I can't quite tell them apart."
Werewolf Lupin shook his head, indicating that Kyle shouldn't worry about it.
To be honest, when he saw the daggers flying, he was genuinely terrified, fearing that Kyle might accidentally stab him as well.
Today was the full moon, when werewolves were at their strongest. That werewolf had struggled with him for over ten minutes, but within seconds of encountering Kyle, it was gone.
If Kyle had been a bit faster, he might not have had the chance to explain himself.
Lupin now just wanted to leave the castle as soon as possible.
Outside was better; at least he didn't have to worry about being mistakenly injured by Kyle.
"Wait, Remus," Kyle called out to Lupin, who was about to leave. "Can you find Sirius now?"
It had just occurred to him that Lupin, in his werewolf state, had an incredibly keen sense of smell, making him the best person to find someone.
Indeed, after sniffing around, Lupin pointed towards a location outside the school, seemingly towards the Quidditch pitch.
He howled a couple of times, as if trying to say something, but whether it was because werewolves didn't fall under the category of magical creatures or some other reason, Kyle didn't understand.
However, he didn't mind. He waved and ran outside.
"Thank you."
Kyle passed through the entrance hall, leaving the Panther Cat behind to help deal with the Death Eaters.
The Panther Cat was the most suitable magical creature for such a chaotic battle, as its Legilimency ability allowed it to easily distinguish between friend and foe, preventing any mistakes.
Taking advantage of the situation, Kyle also made his way to the area outside the castle.
Several large spiders were perched on the outer walls, making rustling sounds as they attempted to crawl through a gap into the castle.
"Are there still some left?" Kyle frowned slightly.
Earlier, he had already dealt with the potentially threatening Eight-Eyed Spiders in the Forbidden Forest and had even obtained some of their venom. Otherwise, there might have been more than just a few spiders; it could have been an entire swarm.
As he hesitated between dealing with the spiders first or searching for Snape, a Hungarian Horntail suddenly descended from the sky and, like eating Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans, quickly plucked the spiders off the wall and devoured them.
It even roasted them with dragon flames beforehand.
"I hope Hagrid doesn't see this cruel scene," Kyle muttered as he quickly ran towards the Quidditch pitch, but he had only made it halfway when he was forced to stop again.
A group of over ten Dementors had gathered, and the surrounding air seemed to freeze.
Kyle's expression turned peculiar.
How should he put it? This attack on Hogwarts by the Death Eaters seemed more like a reunion of old friends.
First, the remaining giants, then the remaining werewolves... Was it now the Dementors' turn? But what use were a few of them? Not even enough for a display.
Kyle couldn't understand why the Dementors, after being cleared out twice, couldn't just stay put. Did they really have that much faith in Voldemort? A jellyfish-like creature emitting a silvery glow appeared behind Kyle, and the Dementors tried to escape, but it was too late.
The jellyfish's long tentacles had already wrapped around their necks, dragging them behind it. From a distance, they looked like ugly decorations trailing behind the jellyfish.
Under the influence of the Patronus Charm, the Dementors' bodies began to shrink, crumble, and eventually dissipate completely.
"This should finally be completely taken care of."
Kyle continued forward and soon arrived at the center of the Quidditch pitch.
This area had also suffered devastating damage. The stands had turned into ruins, and all six goalposts were broken, lying haphazardly on the flaming grass.
There was also a person lying nearby...
"Conna!" Kyle's heart raced as he rushed over, but he soon stopped.
He had mistaken the person.
It was a witch he didn't recognize, dressed in a black robe, likely another Death Eater.
Thankfully, thankfully...
Kyle tried to calm himself and carefully observed his surroundings. Finally, on the Slytherin stands, he spotted Sirius Black, who was unsteady and had an unconscious Conna on his back.
Across from him were over a dozen Death Eaters, clad in black robes.
"Sirius Black, what a lucky break for you," one of the Death Eaters sneered. "You've caused us quite a bit of trouble."
"If we kill you, we'll surely receive a reward from the Dark Lord!"
"Stop talking and make your move!" urged a female Death Eater.
"What's the rush? There are twelve of us, and he can't escape with that burden," said another Death Eater casually.
"I don't want to go to Hogwarts and die needlessly. It's better this way. If we can kill him, it'll be a great achievement, and we won't have to fight like those fools," said another Death Eater.
"That's right," another Death Eater nodded in agreement. "And no one will come to his aid now..."
"Pfft!"
The Death Eater's words came to an abrupt halt as if something had slashed across his neck, and then... a gust of wind suddenly blew through the audience.
"Damn it, who's there?"
Before the surrounding Death Eaters could react, two more of them were mysteriously attacked.
A long gash appeared on their chests, as if someone had stabbed them.
"Not good, it's a curse! Kill Sirius Black!"
Some of the Death Eaters realized what was happening, but the once-firm ground suddenly turned into a swamp, trapping them all.
"Godric's Blade!"
With a gust of wind, the Quidditch pitch fell silent.
Sirius looked at the person who had appeared behind the Death Eaters, sitting on the ground and panting heavily.
"You're just in time... Kyle."
"Yeah, I made it just in time," Kyle said, glancing at Sirius's back and then hesitating.
"Don't worry, Conna is fine," Sirius assured him.
However, Kyle noticed Sirius's hesitation as he spoke.
"I don't know how to tell you this," Sirius said as he put Conna down. "Snape knocked her out and entrusted her to me."
"I don't know how to describe this feeling. That Nosey is a Death Eater, yet he entrusted his niece to me, his enemy, to take care of."
Sirius's expression grew stranger as he spoke, as if his entire worldview had crumbled, leaving him in a state of bewilderment.
He had known about the relationship between Conna and Snape for a long time... It wasn't a secret; many people were aware of it.
Moreover, he had complained to Lupin more than once about Snape, wondering how such a talented niece could be related to that Nosey.
What Sirius didn't understand was Snape's attitude towards the Death Eaters. It seemed like he feared them.
In Sirius's eyes, a typical Death Eater family would be like the Malfoys, where the parents were Death Eaters, the children were junior Death Eaters, and the entire family was devoted to Voldemort.
Even if their children didn't share the same beliefs, they would be forced by their parents to side with Voldemort.
In fact, this was the case for most Slytherins. The Death Eaters would go to great lengths to prove their loyalty in every way they could imagine.
But when it came to Snape, things were different... Despite being a senior Death Eater himself, he seemed afraid of Conna coming into contact with Voldemort.
Sirius could sense that Snape didn't want Voldemort to discover Conna's existence. He was even willing to risk his life to entrust Conna to Sirius.
When Snape had stood there, he was completely defenseless, even throwing away his wand. Sirius could have easily killed him if he wanted to.
But he hesitated... and watched helplessly as Snape walked away.
Even now, Sirius regretted his moment of softness, scratching his head in frustration. Snape was the one who had caused the deaths of Lily and James, so why had he shown mercy?
Kyle, paying no attention to Snape's changing expressions, approached Conna to carefully examine her.
Just as Sirius had said, Conna was unharmed, only affected by the Stupefy Charm...
Wait a moment!
Kyle's hand froze in mid-air.
He noticed that the silver bracelet on Conna's right hand was missing.
It was a silvery bracelet shaped like a phoenix with its tail in its beak, its eyes adorned with fragments of a Philosopher's Stone.
The material wasn't important; what mattered was that the bracelet was a gift from Niccolo to Conna, capable of blocking two Killing Curses. Its value couldn't be measured in Galleons.
Conna had always worn it, but now it was gone.
Could it have been used already?
Kyle felt uncertain. He tried to wake Conna but realized that Snape had not only used the Stupefy Charm but had also forced her to drink the Drink of Despair.
Waking her up now would be difficult; he couldn't just go to the classroom to prepare an antidote.
Kyle decided to put Conna inside his trunk.
Sirius watched his actions and asked, "Kyle, you looked troubled earlier. What's wrong with Conna?"
"Nothing, it's just that she drank the Drink of Despair, so she might not wake up for a while," Kyle shook his head, choosing not to explain about the bracelet.
The bracelet's effect was too astonishing, and it was related to Niccolo. The fewer people who knew about it, the better.
This wasn't a matter of trust; the wizarding world had too many unpredictable methods. Sometimes, keeping a secret wasn't as simple as one might think... unless they made an unbreakable vow with Sirius right there.
"Sirius, what exactly happened?" Kyle asked, changing the subject after closing the trunk.
"I'm not sure about the specifics either," Sirius said, his expression turning serious. "Let's deal with the Death Eaters first; we can talk about it later."
"That's easy," Kyle said, waving his wand. A fiery dragon made of Fiendfyre appeared in the air above the pitch and then crashed into the area with the most Death Eaters.
Before, he had neither the time nor the inclination to control the Fiery Flame, but now he had all the time in the world.
The raging flames lit up the night sky, and in that brief moment, the Death Eaters' frenzied assault came to an abrupt halt.
The area where the Fiery Dragon was located seemed like an insurmountable chasm, and no one dared to take a step forward.
Sirius watched the scene before him, unconsciously licking his lips as he thought of the dozen or so Death Eaters Kyle had just killed.
Different magic, but equally decisive and swift, it was no wonder so many people said Kyle was the next Dumbledore. His current strength seemed to be only a little below Dumbledore's.
Or, one could say, far surpassing everyone else in the Order of the Phoenix, including himself.
"Now you can talk," Kyle asked, "I'm quite curious."
"After Snape pulled me down from the tower, I chased after him as he left the castle."
With the Death Eaters' attack halted, Sirius wasn't in such a rush anymore. He briefly recalled the events and said, "I lost track of Snape. He's cunning; he created an illusion, making me think he was heading for the underground classroom. By the time I got there, I realized I'd been fooled."
"Then how did you find this place?" Kyle asked, simultaneously controlling the Fiery Flame to advance, engulfing more people and forcing the remaining Death Eaters outside the school gates.
Ever since killing the two Death Eaters on the Astronomy Tower, he hadn't been concerned about his magic power.
This feeling of freedom was so refreshing. Kyle waved his wand, and from the massive body of the Fiery Dragon, five tiny Fiery Phoenixes emerged, each about the size of a sparrow.
These small phoenixes darted through the school at incredible speed, and upon encountering isolated Death Eaters, they dove in for the kill, offering a fiery embrace.
Unfortunately, Kyle could only control five of them; any more, and there was a risk of friendly fire.
Sirius started licking his lips again, impressed by this meticulous control of magic power... He couldn't shake the feeling that Kyle was showing off, and eventually, he turned his head away, pretending not to see.
"Because of Lucius Malfoy."
Sirius continued, "After losing track of Snape, I was planning to return to the Astronomy Tower, but I happened to see him and Narcissa rushing across the grounds."
"I thought they were up to something, planning against Hogwarts, so I followed them to see what they were up to... I never expected them to come here and bring out a person from the Quidditch changing room, someone who had been missing for a long time."
"Draco Malfoy?" Kyle asked softly.
"Yes, that's right," Sirius nodded, gritting his teeth. "Draco Malfoy, the little Death Eater who killed Dumbledore, has been hiding in the school all this time, concealed in the Quidditch changing room.
"It's the perfect hiding spot, isn't it? Ever since the Quidditch matches were canceled, no one goes there, not even the patrolling Aurors bother to search it."
Sirius waved his wand forcefully, looking for a Death Eater to vent his anger. But the area was already clean, not a Death Eater or even an insect in sight. In the end, he had to settle for blasting a few stones to express his frustration.
"And then?"
"Snape showed up," Sirius said, "He seemed to know that Draco Malfoy was there. I realized then that he had saved that little Death Eater.
"I wanted to rush over, but there were three of them. I didn't know how to capture them all at once, so I hesitated."
"Fortunately, I made that decision," Sirius said with lingering fear. "Because the Dark Lord also arrived. He seemed to want to kill that little bastard, Draco Malfoy.
"Lucius and Narcissa knelt and pleaded with him. They said something, but I was too far away to hear clearly.
"By the time I circled around through another route, the Dark Lord and the Malfoys had disappeared, and I only saw Snape. He seemed to know I was nearby."
"You mean he was waiting for you there?" Kyle raised an eyebrow.
"I just had that feeling," Sirius said, "He led me to a bush, where I found an unconscious Conna.
"Snape asked me to take Conna back to the castle and said that none of his actions had anything to do with Conna... I couldn't believe it; someone like Snape was actually bowing down to me.
"But Snape was too presumptuous, assuming everyone was like him."
"Even if he hadn't said anything, I wouldn't have ignored it. We all know Conna is a good girl, and she has provided almost half of the potions used in this war."
"What potions?" Kyle was taken aback.
"You didn't know?" Sirius looked at Kyle. "Ever since Conna went to France, she's been providing us with various healing potions and antidotes. I thought you knew."
"I... didn't know," Kyle shook his head stiffly.
No wonder, on his two visits to find Conna, her potion shop was closed. Now it made sense; all the potions had been sent back to Britain, so they wouldn't have opened the shop.
Kyle rubbed his forehead... How had he not noticed something was amiss back then?
"You really didn't know?" Sirius asked curiously. "Didn't she tell you?"
"No," Kyle shook his head. "And I doubt Snape knew either."
"Alright," Sirius said, "You know what happened next. I was about to take Conna back to the castle when I ran into those Death Eaters.
"Fortunately, you arrived early. But what magic did you use earlier? It seemed somewhat familiar."
"Cutting Flame," Kyle replied, "It's a curse invented by Snape."
...
(End of Chapter)
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