Chapter 309: Guardian Light
Just after Hagrid had taken the real Moody away, Fudge was about to speak, but Dumbledore waved his hand to interrupt him.
The displeasure on Fudge's face flashed away, and then he changed into a smile again.
From Harry's perspective, Dumbledore's brows were slightly frowned, and his eyes were fixed on the maze - Harry was confused, what was so good about the maze? It was already empty...
After returning from the cemetery, Harry had been looking forward to talking to Dumbledore, but Dumbledore was not there. Sure enough, what he said about Voldemort's resurrection was obviously the truth, and Bagman clearly didn't believe a word of it. Even McGonagall and Hagrid were at most half-believing and half-doubting, and didn't take it seriously.
Later, Dumbledore came back.
Then Flitwick showed up with the results of the investigation and let Dumbledore successfully rescue the real Professor Moody.
Harry thought that after Dumbledore rescued Moody, it was time for him to come over and ask about his situation. He had a lot to say to Dumbledore, but because everyone was present, Harry could only force himself to wait patiently. Who knew that Dumbledore still didn't show any intention of talking to him.
Voldemort is resurrected! For such a major event, shouldn't Dumbledore immediately find him to confirm the details? Unless... he doesn't believe him either?
Harry didn't believe Dumbledore would be so foolish. He struggled to stand up (he had just taken a piece of rag from Hagrid and used magic to stick it on his wizard robe to cover the hole in his buttocks), and walked towards the position of Dumbledore and others.
Suddenly, a loud cry of a phoenix came from the distant sky.
Fire was faintly reflected in the sky above the center of the maze.
After the Goblet of Fire was touched, several maze patrollers had removed the magic cast inside the maze, such as various levels, illusions, and even the activation spell that made the hedges move. However, those hedges were real magical plants cultivated by Hagrid, not magic, so they did not disappear. They could only wait for Hagrid to be free to clean them up and restore the venue to the grass for Quidditch games.
At this moment, because the maze hedges were still there, everyone could not see what was happening inside the maze, and could only make guesses in their hearts. In the audience, subtle rustling sounds came one after another.
Suddenly, the tortuous maze moved, as if it had come alive again.
Amid the rumbling sounds, the hedge walls retreated to both sides like a greedy snake. Until the maze was completely dispersed, a ten-meter-wide road appeared in the middle, revealing the open space hidden in the center of the maze.
In the dark open space, a figure could be vaguely seen standing upright in the shadows, and he seemed to be holding another person in his arms.
As the figure began to move, a silvery-white halo slowly permeated his body, and his whole body seemed to be shrouded by a faint halo, exuding a fascinating temperament--
It was as if the figure was radiating an indescribable power around him, dispelling the darkness and coldness around him.
Just looking at the figure from a distance, everyone present felt at ease inexplicably.
The audience seats, which were originally filled with all kinds of playfulness and noise, fell into silence strangely.
"Is it Brother Xie Lin?" Astoria said softly.
Daphne, who had followed Xie Lin the longest, recognized the figure she would never forget at a distant glance. She nodded, and her hands, which had been tightly clenched, could finally be loosened.
"That's... the Luminescent Charm? Why do I feel... warm inside... indescribably comfortable and peaceful..." Lucius murmured, and then he and Narcissa looked at each other, both of them with indescribable solemnity in their eyes. They finally understood what height their second son had reached in the field of spells.
"Well..." Daphne explained: "Sherin said that almost all the spells currently circulating in the wizarding world can be derived into higher-level usages. What he is performing now is the highest-level usage of the Luminescent Charm - 'Guardian Light', which can drive away the fear and darkness in the heart, and even make the recipient immune to negative emotions such as 'fear', 'sadness', 'confusion', etc."
As the figure approached, the light around him gradually intensified, and the halo was bright but not dazzling. Miraculously, the outdoor of Hogwarts Castle in the Scottish Highlands began to become warmer.
This was not an illusion of the wizards present. The humid mist in the air was really slowly dissipating at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the temperature was really rising.
At this time, as the shadows dissipated, the outline of the figure was gradually revealed.
Shaylin Malfoy!
He was holding Hermione Granger from Gryffindor in his arms!
What happened? When did Hermione enter the maze?
It was not until then that Ron and the little lions realized that Hermione had disappeared from the audience without a sound at some point.
"Are you all... waiting for me?" The boy's hearty laughter was still the same as before, his platinum hair was neatly combed, and his wizard robe was spotless, as if he had just returned from a relaxing journey, rather than a fierce life-and-death battle.
Dumbledore pointed his wand at his throat and shouted, "Quiet, please keep quiet, professors, keep order."
"Cornelly, Scrimgeour, Bagman, Minerva, Filius, let's go." Dumbledore greeted the five of them and walked quickly towards Sherrin.
"Xelling, what happened? Where have you been? Why is Granger in your hands?" Professor McGonagall and Xelling have always had a good relationship, so if she takes the initiative to speak, she will not appear overbearing.
Scrimgeour coughed softly and said, "Mr. Malfoy, before you showed up, we found out that you had a confrontation with someone disguised as Moody in the maze. Can you explain the whole story - why? Where did you go after the fight? Where is the fake Moody now? I think this incident involves magical crimes and is beyond the scope of Hogwarts' management. You need to give an explanation to the Ministry of Magic."
At first glance, it sounds very much like Scrimgeour's aggressive style, and it is easier to feel that he is actually speaking out for Fudge, who is inconvenient to speak, and wants to snatch the power of investigation and trial from Hogwarts. into the hands of the Ministry of Magic.
But Schelling knew in his heart that this cunning old guy had quietly revealed to himself the results of the discussion before his appearance.
"Hello, professors, ministers and directors of the Ministry of Magic," Schelling greeted them leisurely and then said, "You have too many questions. Let me explain them one by one -"
"You all already know that Moody is an impostor - he is impersonated by Barty Crouch Jr. - yes, that guy is not dead, and he escaped from Azkaban, and he is also It was also his plan to throw Potter's name into the Goblet of Fire and kidnap Potter from the maze."
"By the way," Professor McGonagall was eager for confirmation, and directly told Harry's confession without thinking: "Potter said that he was teleported to a cemetery, where he met you and the mysterious man. Is it real?"
Xie Lin knew that the commotion he had caused in Little Hangleton was too big, and there was no way he could hide the matter, so he simply told the truth: "It's true, please send some people to the Little Hangleton church cemetery. I should be able to find out a lot of things - the Goblet of Fire is a portkey, and Barty Jr. changed the teleportation location there, where I met Potter and the mysterious man..."
"Xie Lin, don't blame uncle for talking..." After all, Xie Lin's prominent family background and identity are there. Even if Fudge is dissatisfied, he dare not directly say that he is a psychopath like the original novel treats Harry. "The mysterious man is really Resurrected? Did you read that right? Could it be someone who slipped through the cracks of Death Eater? You see, since a wizard as powerful as Moody can be replaced by a fake, who says the mysterious man can't? "
Xie Lin smiled. Now is not the time to break up with the Ministry of Magic. He still needs to rely on the Ministry of Magic to check and balance Dumbledore and consume the power of the Order of the Phoenix in the next school year, so he made a decision in his heart in an instant. , "This is not something that a minor wizard like me can see through. Uncle Kang, maybe you are right, but I can't give you a definite and affirmative answer..."
"All I can tell you is -" Xie Lin's eyes turned cold and he said in a deep voice: "That Dark Lord - whether he is real or fake, he is a very powerful dark wizard. I fought with him. After one battle, I almost exhausted all my means to barely escape alive. It’s all thanks to the escape tools that Professor Dumbledore prepared for me in advance. Otherwise, it’s doubtful whether I would be able to stand here safely now!”
The corners of Dumbledore's mouth twitched, and those words were enough to scare others - Schelling's appearance at this moment did not look like he had just experienced a near-death battle, not to mention, if it was true as he said, he He tried his best and finally managed to escape, so how did he bring back the sleeping Hermione safely?
The most ridiculous thing is that Scrimgeour and Fudge actually nodded, seeming to believe this kid's lies.
"So that's it..." Scrimgeour said. He picked up the conch communicator that was emitting various strange pronunciations and said seriously: "I can prove that what Mr. Malfoy said about the Little Hangleton Church Cemetery is true - Auror We have arrived at the scene. A magic battle did take place there. Although most of the traces of the battle have been eliminated by some means, the Muggles living nearby did hear various explosion-like sounds and saw them in the sky. The various colors of fire are obviously flame effects created by magic.”