Chapter 943: Back to Nurmengard
Chapter 943: Back to Nurmengard
Neither the professors nor the students could have anticipated this scene. All that remained was a sea of unquenched flames, and Kyle was nowhere to be seen.
Even Kyle himself didn't expect it. Phoenix had suddenly appeared and brought him to...
Where was this place?
Kyle looked at the towering trees around him, feeling a sense of familiarity.
This should be a forest, but the exact location was unclear. It was definitely not the Forbidden Forest.
Wait, a forest?
Kyle suddenly had a realization.
Phoenix had brought him here during its free time, and it must have been sent by someone. Before that, Phoenix had been in its box and hadn't interacted with anyone.
The only one capable of doing this was Dumbledore... Phoenix could sense Dumbledore's situation and appear when he needed it.
But Dumbledore had left for a matter concerning Voldemort... Oh no, could this be Nurmengard?
Kyle's heart sank.
Nurmengard was also surrounded by a forest, and now, upon closer inspection, the environment and the trees around him... It all matched the memories in his mind of Nurmengard.
He had been chased through these very trees by Rozier and his men for an entire night.
"No way..." Kyle turned his head, wanting to confirm the situation with Phoenix.
But at that moment, Phoenix had disappeared, and Kyle only saw a person falling from the sky, plummeting straight towards him.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" Kyle instinctively waved his wand without a second thought.
The fallen leaves on the ground piled up in an instant, forming a thick, soft cushion that caught the falling person, preventing him from hitting the ground directly.
The person was an elderly wizard, and just a glance at him caused Kyle's lips to twitch uncontrollably.
He was now certain that this was Nurmengard.
He recognized the man before him, and the impression was deep... When he had come to find Grindelwald, this man had been by Rozier's side, and he had participated in the pursuit, only to be taken down by the Venomous Tentacula later, becoming a prop to buy Kyle some time.
Kyle waved his hand, and the pile of leaves exploded, causing the man to fall heavily to the ground with a crisp cracking sound.
Judging by the sound, it seemed like his bones had broken.
But this didn't matter, and Kyle didn't care at all.
This person had chased him for an entire night, and Kyle had never been so disheveled. Not killing him on the spot and seeking revenge was already a show of kindness.
If he had known, when this man fell, he wouldn't have bothered to help.
Kyle stood in place, pondering for a moment before turning around and running away without a backward glance.
After realizing that this place was Nurmengard, Kyle wanted to leave.
Voldemort, Grindelwald, Dumbledore... These names together sounded like a big mess.
Kyle didn't want to get involved. He wanted to return to Hogwarts, but unfortunately, the area around Nurmengard was protected by an Anti-Apparition Barrier.
Phoenix, who had brought him here, was nowhere to be found, so Kyle could only resort to the most primitive method—running away.
He couldn't go forward; attending classes and raising dragons in the castle was much better. Why did he have to get involved in the grudges and feuds between Dumbledore and his two old rivals?
Phoenix could have come alone; why did it have to bring him along? He was just a recent graduate, an ordinary Hufflepuff. Why did he have to get entangled with these big shots?
Moreover, it had been a full day since Voldemort and Dumbledore left Hogwarts.
For such powerful wizards, a day was enough time to accomplish many things... Perhaps they had already met Grindelwald.
The location of Nurmengard was a secret, but since Dumbledore had been so anxious upon learning about this, it meant that the secret wasn't impossible for others to discover.
In other words, Voldemort might have found this place, and it was precisely because of this that Dumbledore felt anxious.
So, what was it... Had Voldemort, in his quest for complete control over the Elder Wand, already killed Grindelwald? Such a possibility couldn't be ruled out.
Grindelwald had been imprisoned for an unknown number of years, without his wand and with a frail body that was no different from an ordinary Muggle elder. He might not have been a match for Voldemort.
Moreover, based on the situation of the person falling earlier, Voldemort might have already taken action.
With these thoughts, Kyle quickened his pace once more. He just wanted to get out of the Anti-Apparition Barrier's range as soon as possible and then head straight back to Hogwarts to gather help.
He was too weak on his own; it would be best to bring all the professors along. When facing Voldemort, he would have more confidence with their support.
Flying in the sky made him an easy target, and he was more likely to be spotted. Otherwise, using a flying broomstick would have been faster.
Kyle's footsteps grew faster, and finally, amidst the monotonous leaves, he seemed to spot a faint blue light.
But why was it a blue light?
Oh, Merlin...
Boom!
Before Kyle could react, a giant dragon composed of blue flames exploded right above his head.
Countless blue flames splattered everywhere, with a significant portion flying straight towards Kyle.
"Damn, it's the Cruciatus Curse..."
There was no time to ponder why the Cruciatus Curse had appeared here. Kyle immediately raised his wand.
"Incendio!"
A burst of fire erupted from the tip of his wand, forming a fiery vortex in mid-air that drew in all the blue Cruciatus Curse.
Everything in front of his wand was destroyed, and Kyle finally saw what was happening.
Two people were facing off in mid-air.
One of them was Dumbledore, who had left Hogwarts yesterday. Standing opposite him was... Kyle had expected it to be Voldemort, but instead, he saw a figure resembling a skeleton.
"Grindelwald?!" Kyle exclaimed involuntarily.
What made Kyle's scalp tingle even more was that Grindelwald was holding a wand in his hand.
This... couldn't be right.
He must be too tired and still dreaming... How could Grindelwald possibly have escaped from Nurmengard?
Kyle pretended to be nonchalant and took two steps back, then turned around...
"Oh, look who's here..." A mocking voice came from behind.
"We meet again. Why the rush to leave? I remember you still owe me something, don't you?"
Kyle's steps faltered, and the next second, he took off running, even drawing his Firebolt Arrow from his box as he ran.
Grindelwald seemed surprised by Kyle's actions. He blinked and looked towards Dumbledore.
"Albus, this is your reinforcement..."
"A coward."
"Kyle's courage is not small," Dumbledore shook his head, "I guess he just doesn't want to get involved in this trouble."
"Trouble?" Grindelwald raised an eyebrow, "Are you referring to... me?"
"Yes, you are the biggest trouble," Dumbledore said solemnly.
"Albus, don't forget it was your people who wanted to release me," Grindelwald said, "I always thought it was your decision."
This time, Dumbledore did not respond but remained silent.
"You also want to release me, don't you?" Grindelwald continued to ask, his voice carrying a hint of pleasure.
"I've never had such thoughts..."
"Liar."
"I'm willing to assure you, in the name of the Hogwarts headmaster, that I've never thought of releasing you."
"..." Grindelwald looked at him, "You're still as hurtful with your words, Albus."
The next second, both of them waved their wands simultaneously.
A golden light flew towards Grindelwald.
Grindelwald seemed to have anticipated it and effortlessly dodged it with a slight turn.
At the same time, a tree seemed to come to life, swirling towards Dumbledore. However, halfway there, it collided with something and turned into a pile of powder.
The battle between the two even affected Kyle, who had already run outside.
The Firebolt Arrow seemed to be interfered with, wobbling and falling from mid-air.
"I must stop him." In a daze, Kyle faintly heard Dumbledore's voice, "Only you can save him now."
Kyle looked up but didn't see Dumbledore nearby. Still, the voice he heard earlier didn't seem fake.
Dumbledore seemed to want him to save someone.
Who could it be...
Kyle quickly thought of Snape.
And those who frequently used this curse often became Death Eaters. Thinking about it, Voldemort seemed to have had little chance of encountering the Killing Curse.
This time, he encountered Rozier, a renowned Dark Witch from sixty years ago. In a sense, when she used the Killing Curse, Voldemort was still playing house with the Muggle children in the orphanage.
Although Voldemort later achieved a remarkable comeback, Rozier's strength was not something an ordinary Death Eater could match. After experiencing a failure and without a suitable wand, Voldemort was momentarily at a loss as to how to deal with her.
Of course, it was also difficult for Rozier to kill Voldemort, especially after he killed Thynos and obtained the wand.
Even with an unsuitable wand, Voldemort could wield it with incredible power. By now, seven people on their side had been killed.
Thinking of this, Rozier's face darkened, and she cast another Killing Curse at Voldemort.
Kyle glanced at Snape, who was lying unconscious on the ground beside him, and then at Voldemort.
Although he didn't know what had happened here before his arrival, the current situation seemed to present a good opportunity.
An opportunity to kill Voldemort.
"Lady Rozier, let's work together," Kyle shouted.
"Get lost! Don't hold me back!" Rozier replied impatiently, not believing that Kyle could be of any help.
If it weren't for Grindelwald's orders, she might have killed this guy who dared to use Fiery Magic on Nurmengard.
Kyle, however, was completely unbothered by Rozier's coldness. If possible, he would love to get revenge for being chased all night.
But now, they shared a common goal.
Kyle didn't even wait for Rozier's response. As he shouted, he had already extended his wand.
This was a forest, and it could be considered his home ground.
The surrounding trees immediately started writhing and surged towards the center of the battlefield.
Rozier turned around in surprise. She didn't expect this Hogwarts student to be able to cast such a large-scale spell.
And its power seemed to be no small matter.
The extending tree branches quickly covered the battlefield, writhing and surging, greatly restricting Voldemort's movements.
Initially, Voldemort didn't want to bother with something he considered a trifle... until a branch entangled his leg.
Voldemort was completely caught off guard by the strength of that thin branch, which nearly crushed his bones. In the intense pain, he almost fell victim to Rozier's Killing Curse.
Even though he dodged at the last moment, he almost twisted his body.
From then on, Voldemort had to divert some of his energy to avoid those annoying tree branches.
During this process, Voldemort had thought of burning them with Fiery Magic more than once, but he restrained himself each time.
After several clashes, Voldemort was well aware that this was Kyle's specialty spell, and he didn't believe Kyle would be unaware of the weaknesses of plant magic.
He felt this must be Kyle's scheme, trying to lure him into using the Cruciatus Curse.
Voldemort subconsciously recalled the time in the Hebrides Islands when Kyle had stolen his Cruciatus Curse.
And at Hogwarts, Kyle had also gradually guided him to kill over a hundred Death Eaters, which was the key to his comeback.
This person was too cunning, unlike Dumbledore, who was straightforward. He couldn't help but think more carefully.
So, Voldemort restrained himself. He would rather spend more time and energy than take the easy way out by burning the plants.
But this decision also made things easier for Rozier.
Originally, she could barely hold her own against Voldemort, and was even at a disadvantage. But after Kyle joined, she started to gain the upper hand in a short time.
As for Kyle, he didn't think much about it. Instead, he cast a few spells at Voldemort while focusing on controlling a vine, attempting to drag Snape, who was at the edge of the battlefield, away.
This wasn't the first time he had done this. Kyle initially thought it would be an easy task.
After all, neither Voldemort nor Rozier would pay attention to an unconscious person during the battle.
But he tried twice, and both attempts failed.
Voldemort seemed to have developed feelings all of a sudden. He was especially concerned about the unconscious Snape. Every time I tried to take him away, a spell would fly over to stop me."
There were several occasions when Voldemort even risked intercepting Rozier's spells to stop Kyle from taking Snape.
This was very unusual.
Kyle frowned. Logically, Voldemort shouldn't care about a Death Eater, even if that person had once been his most trusted ally or had saved his life.
Voldemort had no emotions; this was the price he paid for creating Horcruxes. In his eyes, every Death Eater was just a tool.
He wouldn't risk getting injured to save a tool.
...
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
