"Bang!"
The wooden door was violently pushed open, and Filch limped in, then looked around the room for a quill and parchment.
Standing at the door, Vid reached out to steady the doorframe, pushing open the door that was about to close, and glanced around Filch's office.
It wasn't his first time in this place; the cramped room was still as dark and crowded as before, but fairly clean. Not even a cobweb could be seen in the corners.
Vid was just casually observing the room, but suddenly, his gaze sharpened.
A drawer that wasn't fully closed had a dirty, scimitar-like red object sticking out. It seemed to have been squeezed with force, with its shell severely deformed.
Vid knew it was a leg from a Cleaning Crab.
As he observed, the wooden door beside him gently closed again, finally making a "click" sound as it shut.
Next to Vid, a pair of faint footprints had appeared.
At this moment, Filch seemed to have finally found what he was looking for. Slapping the parchment onto the table, he gave Vid a malevolent look and said:
"Let me think, what should I punish you with... How about scrubbing the corridors without using magic? Or cleaning the toilets? I'm sure that'll teach you a valuable lesson..."
"What happened to your Cleaning Crab?" Vid abruptly asked.
Filch glanced at the half-open drawer, strode over, yanked it open with a "bang," and then slammed it shut!
The crab leg this time fell completely inside.
Hunched over, Filch grumbled with disdain, "What a scam, the newest model of cleaning poppet! It cost me so many Galleons and can't even deal with Peeves' chewing gum! It broke after just a few days of use!"
He came over, noisily pulled out a chair and sat down, writing out Vid's punishment recommendation while sinisterly saying:
"Oh, the poppet was your invention, wasn't it, Vid? Useless thing! My old methods are still the best... Cleaning agent and a wire brush, plus students sobbing as they scrub toilets, work better than any poppet..."
The veins at Vid's temple throbbed twice, rage boiling in his heart, yet he smiled.
Without wasting words, he abruptly swung his magic wand!
At the same moment, Filch, who was writing, twisted his body, a magic wand appearing from under the table—
"Stupefy!"
"Stupefy!"
Their voices almost overlapped, the spell's light clashing in mid-air, ricocheting and shattering the entire wall of rule violation logs, fragments of parchment swirling like a snowstorm.
The chandelier overhead swayed, with most of the candle flames extinguished. In the flickering shadows, both simultaneously stepped back half a pace, eyes flashing with similar shock.
"Filch" hadn't expected that Vid, as a student, would dare to suddenly assault the caretaker. Vid, in turn, hadn't expected that the person in front of him would be ready to counter-attack at that moment.
"What a surprise." "Filch" pointed his magic wand at Vid, revealing his white teeth as he sneered: "I thought you were a good student!"
Vid, also holding a magic wand, coldly replied, "Since when could Mr. Filch use magic?"
The caretaker before him remained gaunt and hunched, with murky eyes bloodshot, the brown robe stained and soiled, looking no different than usual.
But above his head, the name was "Barty Crouch."
Without a doubt, this was the same Barty Crouch Jr. who had previously used a portkey to escape right in front of Vid.
"Oh? So you know—this poor guy is just a pathetic Dud? Since when did that become an open secret?"
Barty Jr., unaware of the history between them and ignorant that Vid had already uncovered his identity, mocked with a laugh:
"To be publicly humiliated by such a useless guy, who even has the authority to discipline wizards, how ridiculous... right? This is Hogwarts under Dumbledore's management; he always indulges such clowns to the point where they forget what respect means."
While speaking, he slowly moved his feet, trying to catch the moment when the young man opposite him might relax.
Despite what could be seen from the two previous matches, that Vid Gray was not your average bookish alchemist, Barty Jr. only realized the gravitas of the boy in a face-off; he exposed not a single flaw.
He couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy.
He had been quite remarkable in his youth, but compared to Vid Gray, he seemed merely excellent but unremarkable.
Barty Jr. recalled the last time he saw "Harry Potter," and that terrifyingly extreme flame magic of his.
—Did he guess wrong last time? Was that kid not a disguise for some powerful wizard, or was he Harry Potter himself?
Was the legendary "Savior" not merely Dumbledore's people's boast but truly impressive?
Had the new generation of young wizards evolved to such levels? I didn't see it coming! They seemed like ordinary students...
Barty Jr. didn't catch Vid displaying any flaws. Instead, while recalling that river of flames as hot as the sun, he became momentarily distracted.
Vid naturally didn't miss the opportunity, his Magic Wand flicked quickly and silently!
Barty Jr. suddenly startled, rolled on the ground, and the Iron Armor Spell deflected the red light at the critical moment.
The chains on the wall suddenly sprang up, lunging at Vid like snakes, while the cabinet in the corner quickly flew up, shattered by the chains with a loud crash!
Amidst the swirling parchment, Barty Jr. had already stood up, a malicious smile on his face, Magic Wand pointed at Vid, hoarsely saying, "Spirits Out—"
"Bang!"
A red light hit Barty Jr. from the side, sending the "Administrator" flying, crashing heavily into the iron rack by the wall, and clattering to the floor.
"Imperio? You filthy animal, you dare use that!"
Sirius lifted the Disillusionment Charm, angrily kicking the unconscious Barty Jr. twice, then with a wave of his Magic Wand, several ropes flew out, binding Barty Jr. tightly.
Sirius said coldly, "You scumbag, when you wake up, go and embrace the Dementors in Azkaban."
He still couldn't forget the pain brought by the Dementors, but thinking of his enemy going to be imprisoned in Azkaban made Sirius feel quite pleased.
Vid had already picked up Barty Jr.'s Magic Wand, keeping it in his hand, then whispered, "Expecto Patronum!"
A silver-white eagle flew out, circled once, then disappeared.
"Did you notify Dumbledore?" Sirius asked.
"Mm." Vid nodded, saying, "Let's look around then, the real Filch should still be in this room."
Barty Jr. was a genius actor, but to play someone perfectly, he definitely had to frequently reference the sample's information.
He opened the cabinets and drawers one by one, and when he turned over a clutter box in the corner, he finally saw the Motionless Administrator lying inside.
Barty Jr. hadn't expanded the box to a very ample size, Filch was trapped inside, clearly having endured a very difficult period.
When Vid got him out, the old man could hardly straighten his waist, dirty all over as if he had rolled in a cesspool, emitting a foul stench that Vid couldn't completely clean even after using several Scouring Charms.
But even in pain, when Filch saw Vid appearing above the box, he still showed a gap-toothed smile.
"I knew you'd find out for sure."
When the Administrator was laid on the bed, he proudly said, "I intentionally didn't tell him the Cleaning Crab was made specifically for me—about your info, I didn't say a single word!"
Vid looked at the trust in his eyes, suddenly feeling a bit ashamed inside.
Before deducing the murderer was related to Filch, he hadn't noticed any recent changes in the Administrator... In fact, Vid, like most classmates, often overlooked Filch's presence.
But lying inside the box, Filch considered him as his only hope to recognize him.
Suppressing the strange feeling in his heart, he smiled and said, "No wonder... He seems to think the Cleaning Crab is a bulk item purchased. Didn't that guy use Legilimency on you?"
"Of course he tried prying my mind! But having stayed at Hogwarts for so many years, don't I understand? Legilimency, Imperio, these are all resistable!"
The weakened Filch couldn't contain his inner excitement, spitting and talking, "He used Spell on me, and I desperately recalled how I harassed Harry Potter in my mind... Oh, of course, other students too. Anyway, since he didn't ask about you specifically, I could hide that memory."
"Amazing!" Vid sincerely praised, "So many powerful Wizards can't achieve that."
"Haha... Luckily, he didn't value this old man, didn't dig deep..."
Filch modestly said, suddenly recalling something, concernedly asking, "By the way, my Crab..."
"Bang!"
The door was forcefully pushed open again, Dumbledore stood at the doorway, after surveying the room, his icy expression finally softened.
"How are you all?" The headmaster walked into the room, asking, "Vid, Sirius, Argus?"
"We're fine." Sirius grinned, "But this fake Filch might need some time to wake up."
"Mr. Filch is somewhat weakened." Vid said, "I think he probably needs to stay in the infirmary for a while."
Dumbledore nodded, softly saying, "Minerva, please take Mr. Filch to the infirmary."
"Okay." Professor McGonagall came in, made Filch and his bed float up, then looked at Vid: "Gray, I think you might also need to go..."
"He needs to stay, Minerva." Dumbledore said, "I'll send Vid for a check later."
"Alright..." Professor McGonagall looked worriedly at Vid, took Filch, and left.
Afterward, Snape and Moody finally came in.
The Professor of Potions first had a few seconds of death-staring with Sirius, then bent down and carefully examined the fake Filch.
"Strange..." Moody murmured, "This guy... seems somewhat off..."