As Wade's words fell, Caryll's mind instantly replayed the scene of their earlier meeting.
I am certain the one who had spoken to me was indeed Wade—there was a feeling, something a soulless doll simply couldn't fake.
Then when did they switch?
He remembered the moment Wade stepped out of the shadows... the stretch of road where his mind had wandered... and the few seconds outside the cabin when he'd had his back turned to Wade...
Looking back, it seemed like any of those moments could've been the switch—but Caryll no longer wanted to play this guessing game.
He stood frozen, oblivious to Baird's furious and accusing glare. It felt like he was falling into a bottomless pit as his limbs grew cold and stiff.
Just then, the doll smiled, and Gale—startled—shivered all over. He shoved Caryll aside and bolted for the door.
The other vampires had no interest in the conversation either. In a panic, they turned and charged toward the doors and windows, trying to escape.
But just as Gale forced open the door, it suddenly slammed shut with a loud bang. A flash of red light followed, and the vampire behind him crashed into the door as if hitting a steel wall, only to be thrown backward.
Those trying to flee through the windows met the same fate. They collapsed to the ground and stared blankly at the magically sealed exits with expressions that were both hopeless and savage.
"Wizards! This has to be the work of wizards!"
"Are we surrounded already?"
"Baird! What's your plan now? If you have anything left, use it!"
"The roof! Try the roof!"
The vampires scattered in all directions, trying to find another way out—some smashed at the walls, some relentlessly rammed the sealed doors and windows, others dashed up the stairs in hopes of escaping through the attic.
Of course, a few lunged at the doll Wade, perhaps intending to take a hostage. But when one vampire aimed a knife at the doll, it only smiled and, without hesitation, stabbed it straight into its own chest.
The knife pierced what should have been its heart, and the doll said in a relaxed tone:
"Seriously? That's like trying to threaten the master by snapping the broom in your own house. I'm a doll, you idiot. Sure, I can be killed—but as a hostage, I'm utterly worthless."
The scruffy vampire stumbled back in horror, finally realizing how pointless his attempt had been. He stopped wasting time on the "broom" and turned to join the others rushing upstairs.
The doll turned its gaze to Baird, stared at him for a few seconds, and then once again gave that polite, bone-chilling smile.
"Looks like you're out of options… Honestly, after months of hiding in Hogsmeade and gathering so many vampires, Dumbledore's been worried you were planning something big—"
Seeing Baird's confused expression, the doll added:
"You know… like attacking the school, kidnapping students for secret conversion, teaming up with Muggle military forces to concentrate fire on the school—that sort of thing. He's been watching you for a long time."
Baird's face went pale with terror.
That doll, already terrifying in how indistinguishable it was from a real person, was scary enough—but the fact that "Dumbledore has been watching them all along" sent a chill down everyone's spine just thinking about it.
"So it was just a kidnapping, after all... I must say, you have sharp instincts—but you still underestimated your opponent."
As the doll spoke, the group that had rushed up to the attic came clattering back down again, running around the doll and Baird to rejoin the others in trying to bash down the doors and windows.
Caryll had been standing near the door, but the other vampires found him in the way—and resented him for not noticing the switch earlier—so one of them grabbed him and hurled him aside.
Caryll slammed into a cluttered shelf, then crashed to the ground with a heavy thud and lay there for a long moment before he could move.
Baird, unwilling to give up, shouted, "Dumbledore is outside? But the information I got said he had a meeting with the headmistress of Beauxbatons today! An appointment at that level wouldn't be canceled so easily!"
"Oh, Dumbledore can cancel appointments," the doll replied casually. "Of course, doing so would be considered quite disrespectful, so at this very moment… he really isn't here. Probably just a few more minutes before he returns?"
As it spoke, it glanced down at the time. But when it looked up again, Baird had already pulled out his wand and was shouting at the wooden door:
"Reducto! Reducto!"
Sparks of magic flashed against the wood—but it didn't blow apart as expected.
Because on the other side of that door, multiple elite wizards were casting counter-charms. And while Baird did know some magic, his abilities were nowhere near those of properly trained wizards.
Still, under the combined force of repeated slamming and Baird's spells, cracks began to form in the wooden door.
The vampires lit up with hope and shouted, "One more time—three, two, one!"
Boom!
The entire cabin shook, as if it were about to be ripped from the ground by brute force alone.
"Reducto! Reducto!" Baird roared, his wand whistling through the air.
The doll smiled and said, "Fascinating. The whole scene is so intense, like we're the villains in some kind of action movie."
"We?" said Caryll—who was the only one not helping with the door. He had climbed to his feet, wiped the blood from his forehead, and turned to the doll, asking, "Who are you talking to?"
The doll smiled and replied, "I told you before—just because you hear a heartbeat doesn't mean I'm human. And that should've also made you consider: even if you don't smell anything, don't hear anything—"
A figure emerged silently from behind the doll, looking exactly the same.
He held a wand, his grey eyes were devoid of warmth. Unlike the mechanical smile of the doll, his face was expressionless, with only a faint trace of pity—like a distant god gazing down from another world.
"—doesn't mean there isn't a wizard right beside you," the doll finished softly.
Caryll stared in stunned disbelief at the suddenly appearing Wade, as if his vision had doubled—his heart was instantly filled with confusion and a rush of excitement.
Wade actually came? Why would he suddenly show up? Did he really think he could get out unharmed in front of dozens of vampires?
Just as Caryll was about to shout a warning to the vampires who were gathering for one final charge at the door, his light-sensitive eyes caught a faint white glow on Wade's wand—a glow that was growing rapidly brighter.
The doll also stepped lightly to the side, swiftly moving behind the real Wade, almost as if to avoid blocking him.
In a flash, time seemed to stretch—every instant magnified. And in that frozen moment, Caryll suddenly recalled something a senior vampire had told him one afternoon after training:
"Caryll, we're stronger, faster, fiercer than wizards—but never underestimate those skinny guys with wands."
"Wizards have a spell made specifically for vampires—the Sunlight Charm. It's said to be as scorching and terrifying as the sun itself. Even a magically weak child casting it can do massive damage."
"That's why we vampires never get much respect in the organization. We're stuck doing petty jobs like eavesdropping and intel gathering. The higher-ups know that if we ever go head-to-head with real enemies, we'll shatter like ice the moment we touch them."
"Only magic is your true weapon, Caryll. If you're lucky enough to have magical ability—use it well, study hard."
"…Honestly, I don't know what the higher-ups were thinking, letting you become a…"
The sentence had trailed off, and the senior just looked at Caryll with pity and let out a long sigh.
At the time, Caryll hadn't understood the sadness in that sigh. He just felt fast, agile, and cool for being able to turn into a bat. Aside from food not tasting quite right, being a vampire didn't seem so bad.
As for that so-called "Sunlight Charm," Caryll had looked into it and found it was treated more like an urban legend—no one had actually seen it in action. So, over time, he'd brushed it off.
But now— Right now— For reasons he couldn't explain— That phrase came back to him: "As terrifying as the sun."
Caryll shuddered as though an electric current had passed through him. He had never in his life reacted this quickly.
He didn't shout, didn't warn anyone. He simply dove behind the sofa and yanked down a filthy curtain to wrap himself up.
The moment he hit the ground, his ears picked up a voice—not particularly loud, but chillingly clear:
"Solaris Arkaion!"
A single point of white light flared—first swallowing Wade and the doll, then erupting outward like a tidal wave, flooding the entire room.
It streamed through the cracks in the windows and walls, lighting up the outside world with blinding intensity. More and more beams followed, until the entire remote cabin blazed like a miniature sun.
…
Out in the woods just beyond the cabin, Tonks squinted and shielded her eyes, gasping in awe:
"Whoa… it's like there's an actual sun inside the house! I want to learn that spell too!"
As she spoke, her hair and eyes changed to match the same brilliant white.
"But that's a forbidden curse," a brown-haired witch said nervously. "Isn't that kid breaking the rules by using it?"
Tonks curled her lip. "It's fine… take a guess who taught him that spell?"
"Hyssia, when you're facing dozens of vampire enemies, the use of any spell to protect yourself is permitted," Kingsley said firmly. "I'll submit a report to the higher-ups to confirm that Wade Grey's use of the spell was both justified and appropriate."
"Appropriate?" Moody said, disgruntled. "A bunch of Aurors and Order of the Phoenix members hide in the forest while a child walks into danger alone—that's what's really inappropriate. What on earth was Dumbledore thinking?"
"Er… maybe he didn't want to scare off the vampires too early?" Arthur Weasley guessed.
Tonks snapped her fingers. "Wrong. He wanted to uncover the vampires' true plan."
"Whatever the reason, that kid did a hell of a job. That Sunlight Charm was beautifully cast!"
Another wizard added cheerfully, "If it were us, we couldn't have used a forbidden spell so openly. The Ministry bureaucrats and those law-making buffoons are complete garbage!"
"Too right—they're garbage!" Tonks chimed in enthusiastically, nodding vigorously.
"Garbage!" Moody echoed, tapping his staff with a loud thump.
Kingsley, who could barely still count as part of that bureaucracy: "…"
Arthur Weasley, who had helped write a few of those laws: "…"
"Let's go," Kingsley said with a cough, striding out of the woods. "After a Sunlight Charm that powerful, it's probably time for us to wrap things up."
…
Caryll, however, couldn't share the lighthearted joy of the human wizards. Huddled beneath the curtain, he still felt an indescribable terror.
His eyes were shut tight, yet the blinding sea of light still pierced through the fabric's seams, searing his retinas to ash. His skin throbbed with the pain of burning, like his whole body was being melted into the light.
Caryll didn't know if the other vampires were screaming, but he felt like he was screaming hard enough to shred his throat before the terrifying wave of heat finally began to subside.
It was a long while before Caryll dared peel back the curtain and slowly crawl upright.
By now, his ghastly pale skin was severely burned and swollen, his blue eyes were bloodshot and streaming with tears. Blisters the color of pus had risen on the backs of his hands, and even the lightest touch sent searing pain through him.
Breathing hard and ragged, Caryll looked around.
The vampires were clutching their eyes, writhing on the floor and screaming in agony. Their numbers seemed to have dropped by nearly half, but it was unclear who had vanished—because everything Caryll saw now was a blood-red blur.
He lifted his head and looked toward Wade.
Wade stood with the doll on the landing at the stairway's turn. Caryll couldn't make out his expression.
Just a few meters apart, yet it felt like an unbridgeable chasm now separated them.
The vampire boy stood in a daze with a hollow and expressionless face. Then, the cracked wooden door opposite him suddenly blew open, and real sunlight gently spilled inside, followed by a group of tall figures.
"Good morning, fanged beasts," said the leading dark-skinned wizard. "You are under arrest."
The injured vampires were dragged roughly off the ground by Aurors, slapped in magical shackles, and hauled outside amid cries of pain.
A witch stepped in front of Caryll. "Mr. Caryll Johnson, your actions have violated at least seven laws. I regret to inform you that you have been expelled from Hogwarts, and I need to confiscate and destroy your wand."
Caryll made no response, as if he hadn't heard her.
"Mr. Johnson, hand over your wand!" the witch repeated, her tone now firm and commanding. Several Aurors tidying up the scene glanced over.
"He can't hand it over, ma'am," Wade said calmly. "His wand was stolen by the vampire who escaped earlier."
Hearing Wade's voice, Caryll suddenly seemed to snap out of it. He reached into his pocket—
—Only to find his wand, which he'd hidden there when entering, was truly gone.
At the same time, Wade exchanged a glance with Kingsley, and the witch turned to him as well.
They had all seen, back in the forest, a vampire carrying a blond man vanish into the woods from another direction. But at Kingsley's signal, no one had pursued them.
Kingsley gave the witch a slight nod.
"…Very well. The wand destruction will be postponed for now," the witch said sternly.
"However, Mr. Johnson, due to your earlier actions, you are required to appear at the Ministry of Magic for a hearing at 9 a.m. in two days. Until then, you will be detained by the Auror Office. Do you have any questions?"
"I…" Caryll slowly raised his head and rasped, "I want to apologize to Wade. I want to see Dumbledore… And if I'm really expelled, can I… can I go back to get my things?"
It was certainly against protocol—but maybe it was because he was still a child, or because he had been manipulated by others, or maybe just because he looked so pitiful now. The witch's expression softened slightly.
"Please…" Caryll's voice trembled as tears streamed down his face. "My real parents were killed by those vampires. I only have one keepsake left. I… I don't have any other family. No one else can get it for me… Please…"
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⭐Harry Potter: Becoming a Study God (HP:BSG)- +235 Chapters
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