As dusk settled and the sky darkened, it was as if someone had drawn several strokes across it with a grey paintbrush. In the distance, dark clouds pressed down heavily, creating an inexplicable sense of oppression and gloom.
The atmosphere was eerie and gloomy.
This was the tension before the great war.
A jet-black crow darted swiftly through the gloomy clouds, suddenly swooping down from the sky. It skimmed across the surface of the lake, creating ripples that spread outward across the mirror-like water.
Then it cawed several times, flapped its wings rapidly, and suddenly soared upward, seemingly about to fly straight over the jungle ahead.
"Noisy," Voldemort said coldly.
As though its flight path had already been predicted, the spell struck the crow with perfect accuracy, causing it to spin and plummet straight into the gloomy, dense forest.
The trees blocked out the sunlight, plunging the entire jungle into darkness.
The unfortunate crow died.
Voldemort and his army moved through the woods.
Several werewolves pushed a dilapidated wooden cart, its wheels swaying precariously.
Finally, the Death Eaters stopped and lined up in front of the gates of Hogwarts.
They encountered an obstacle. The magical reinforcements made it difficult for them to break through.
Voldemort simply waved his hand.
The gates of Hogwarts were violently blown apart.
The gates, which the teachers had repeatedly reinforced with countless layers of protective magic, collapsed with a deafening roar.
Whenever there was a place that could not be breached or any magical fortification in his way, Voldemort's appearance seemed enough to make it crumble.
With merely a wave of his sleeve, wherever he went, earth and rocks collapsed, while bricks and tiles turned to dust.
The battlefield was not limited to this place.
Many Aurors, led by the teachers, resisted Voldemort's attack, which was not confined to the castle gates.
Without them, the students would have been completely unable to withstand the onslaught of the horde of undead.
"Sirius, how about we have a competition?"
"What are we comparing?"
"Let's see who eliminates the most!"
Lupin laughed heartily, displaying a rare moment of enjoyment.
With a casual wave of his hand, a chain of fire was hurled out, annihilating another seven or eight Inferi.
Flames surged wildly among the horde of undead.
"What about the stakes?"
"I'll treat the person across from me to three years' worth of beer."
"Then you can't lose, Remus. You're very poor. You need to save money for your wedding."
Sirius laughed several times.
The two quickly moved back-to-back, becoming each other's support.
Outside one of the walls of Hogwarts, Moody leaned on his cane and waved his wand incessantly, firing all sorts of beams of light.
With each spell, a werewolf or vampire fell.
A haggard Lockhart, also dressed in a hospital gown, waved his wand and said with a smile, "This time, my experience is even more memorable than before."
Scenes like this were unfolding in almost every corner of Hogwarts.
The strange creatures with burning tails roared madly, charging forward on their powerful limbs before slowing in the face of the surging waves of corpses.
Those evil creatures moved slowly.
Their sharp, decaying claws tore through flesh, leaving everything covered in blood.
Hagrid wiped away his tears and shouted loudly for his little darlings.
A commotion arose from the school's boundary wall in the distance.
It seemed that hundreds or even thousands of people were scaling the wall beyond their field of vision, shouting as they charged toward the castle.
Amid the thunderous hoofbeats of the advancing centaurs, Firenze and his people arrived to provide support.
The centaurs charged into battle, holding back the overwhelming army of undead.
Fierce battles raged everywhere.
The Weasleys and the twins used a variety of dazzling tactics to block the Death Eaters' advance.
And so on.
The famous and the unknown alike participated in what might be called the final battle.
Many more people were making their contributions behind the scenes.
Pansy protected the younger students, and some of them were arranged to leave through a secret passage.
After ensuring that they had safely departed, she joined the battle.
Fleur was on the front lines, wishing she had more hands with which to treat the wounded.
Meanwhile, Voldemort, who had launched a frontal assault, was strolling leisurely along the wide stone road.
With every step he took, the students and teachers on the opposite side had to take a step back.
Slughorn led the group, and among the professors who still retained their ability to fight, his combat skills were the strongest.
The students and teachers quickly formed a circle.
The buildings in front of them were constantly being destroyed, bricks and stones turning to dust and smoke and leaving behind nothing but ruins.
A hurricane swept everything away, scattering dust and smoke.
The first thing that caught everyone's attention was not Voldemort's figure.
Instead, it was Hermione.
She was covered in wounds and draped in what could only be described as scraps of cloth, suspended from a cross with her head drooping limply to one side.
"This is your good friend?" Voldemort laughed cruelly.
"Potter, where is the friendship you advocate? Where is justice?"
"Nothing is useful in the face of the Dark Lord, in the face of absolute power."
"I discovered this foolish Mudblood when she tried to sneak in…"
"Look. I can torture her right in front of you, tear her to pieces!"
Suddenly, Hermione floated into the air, her legs hanging weakly beneath her.
Her neck was held tightly.
"Crunch in the Heart!"
Harry practically leapt out of the crowd in rage, raising his wand and pointing it at Voldemort.
Ron desperately tried to stop his friend, but he couldn't.
"Look how foolish people become when they are blinded by anger."
Ginny stared in anguish at Harry, who had been knocked to the ground.
"I'll fight you to the death!"
Ron also stepped forward.
A spell flashed past, sending him flying into a stone pillar.
"Sure enough, stupidity is contagious. The weak simply huddle together for warmth."
Voldemort glanced around with disdain.
"Since you're all so cooperative, then I'll give this Saviour classmate one final lesson."
"Ah…"
Just as he was about to recite the Killing Curse and end Harry's life, a ghostly green light flashed past Voldemort's side.
To be precise, it was aimed directly at Voldemort.
If it hadn't been for the curse forcing the Dark Lord to retreat, Harry would already have been a ghost.
"Severus?"
Voldemort's crimson pupils rapidly contracted until they became little more than points.
Reflected within them was a wizard who should have been on his side.
Not long ago, Voldemort had assigned him the task of attacking the other side of the castle.
He had never expected that his subordinate would become his opponent in the blink of an eye.
"You betrayed me?"
Voldemort frowned, his nose wrinkling so tightly that it was difficult to see clearly.
"Why?"
"You broke your promise to me. You said you would spare her life."
Snape gasped for breath, his dark, unfathomable eyes filled with hatred.
Voldemort was astonished.
For a moment, he experienced an utterly absurd feeling.
A capable servant was negotiating terms with him.
He had failed to satisfy that servant.
And the servant had betrayed him?
"Love? Ridiculous."
Voldemort swiftly cast Legilimency on the man.
In fact, there was no need for it at all.
Just by looking at Snape's expression, at his sallow face contorted with rage, one could feel the deep-seated resentment, anger, love, and pain spreading through his very blood.
Snape no longer bothered to conceal his gaze.
He stared directly into Voldemort's bloodshot eyes.
For the first time, Voldemort truly saw Snape's undisguised emotions.
"Professor McGonagall? And Professor Flitwick?"
Suddenly, a cheer from the students caught his attention.
"Flitwick, McGonagall?"
Voldemort sneered.
"Fine. They're all here to die."
It was said that McGonagall had been bedridden, able to rest for only a few minutes each day, while Flitwick had become "mute."
Yet at this moment, both of them stepped forward.
"Is this all part of a show you've put on?"
Voldemort quickly understood what the so-called poisoning had really been about.
"No. They don't know anything about it. It was all a staged performance by me. I simply wanted to use their power to lull you into a false sense of security."
Snape's voice was low and sombre.
Even knowing that she might have been used, Professor McGonagall did not care.
She was only grateful that she had been able to fight.
Although she did not know why Snape had gone to all this trouble, the fact that this man was now standing on their side was truly unsettling.
They shared the same goal.
Defeat the cruel wizard before them.
"Severus, I suppose you've simply lost your mind."
Voldemort stared at him.
"Your mental defences failed just now. I know you. You're excited. I also know your true desire."
"Who am I?"
"I am the Dark Lord!"
"Is it really so difficult for me to bring the dead back to life?"
His voice became seductive.
Snape swayed.
His concealed arm trembled for a moment, and the light in his eyes suddenly disappeared.
Voldemort opened his arms.
"I can give you anything you want. Resurrection is no problem for me!"
"Severus!"
Several teachers behind him tried to stop him.
He stubbornly walked forward, as though he were possessed.
"Yes. I will forgive you. Though my love for you was laughable, you have won my respect…"
Voldemort opened his arms, ready to welcome his subordinate back.
"Avada Kedavra!"
At that moment, the dazed look in Snape's eyes vanished instantly.
He swiftly raised his wand, gathering all his killing intent.
A beam of green light shot from the tip of his wand.
Voldemort awkwardly twisted aside, and the deadly curse narrowly missed his nose.
"You bastard!"
Voldemort retaliated immediately.
Before he could even straighten himself, a random spell struck Snape.
Snape's body was instantly sent flying high into the air.
He crashed to the ground, landing flat on his back and kicking up a cloud of dust.
He struggled to sit up.
"I know more about Potions than you do, Dark Lord."
"The first sentence I ever read in a Potions book was that the dead cannot be brought back to life. That is an ironclad rule."
"Even if you resurrect her using her remains… it won't be the real her. It will only be something like a zombie."
"I will not allow you to insult her."
Snape's eyes were extremely sinister.
"Pretentious."
Voldemort scoffed.
"Twice."
"My life has been threatened twice by the same person."
Voldemort closed his eyes in frustration.
"Carelessness. Yes, carelessness is the mortal enemy of immortality."
"I will remember this lesson."
"Foolish man. What's the point?"
Voldemort turned to the side, covering his pale face with his long, thin hand and leaving only his eyes exposed.
He spoke with a sneer.
This man had just made him look extremely embarrassed.
"Divine Sharpness Without a Trace!"
A spell pierced through Snape's shoulder.
"I heard you used it once. It was pretty good."
Voldemort smiled.
"Do you think adding one or two more people will pose a threat to me?"
"Joke."
Voldemort wielded his wand with fluid grace, feeling the profound submission of the Elder Wand.
The ultimate power.
He felt that the decision he had made not long ago had been absolutely correct and had brought him multiple benefits.
It had been worth enduring pain no less terrible than having his soul torn apart.
Voldemort raised his arms.
Then, a giant stone serpent rose from the ruins, its body coiled with countless electrical snakes.
Pale-blue lightning surged continuously across the serpent's body, causing the entire Hogwarts castle to tremble.
All the human-shaped sculptures at Hogwarts had now come to life, awakened by McGonagall.
The original bronze and iron shields had been replaced by enormous golden round shields that gleamed with a metallic sheen, all thanks to Professor McGonagall.
The thick, powerful tail of the stone serpent swept wildly, and a huge whip-like strike lashed outward, kicking up clouds of dust.
Rows of densely packed armoured soldiers were thrown high into the air before crashing back down, instantly losing their vitality.
Professor McGonagall was also knocked down.
Controlling so many soldiers at once had exhausted her magic, and she inevitably fell into a state of dizziness and lethargy.
"Disarm!"
"Avada Kedavra!"
Voldemort's spells were swift.
While controlling the giant serpent, he continuously clashed with the wizards before him.
The giant earth serpent kept darting around, occasionally bursting apart and splitting into smaller stone snakes.
Flitwick's short stature made him exceptionally agile, as though he had wings on his feet, displaying extraordinary speed.
Soon, however, he was attacked from both sides.
The ground beneath his feet cracked open, and tiny earth snakes emerged from the soil.
He dodged their bites.
Some of the earth snakes were frozen in mid-air before being sent back into the soil.
However, this way of thinking proved deceptive.
Some of the earth snakes really were transformed back into mud, but others were actual snakes.
They twisted their bodies in mid-air, their sharp fangs piercing Flitwick's arm.
Flitwick's body stiffened.
And in that instant…
He could not escape another curse.
The impact of the red Disarming Charm sent him flying.
The real snakes twisted toward him and bit down.
"I need to go help Professor Flitwick."
Harry struggled to get there.
He remembered that he could speak Parseltongue.
However, when a venomous, patterned snake lunged toward him, his mind went completely blank.
He couldn't say a word.
The snakes spotted a more appetizing meal, changed direction, and lunged toward Harry's neck.
Just as they were about to make contact, they were suddenly struck by a huge fireball.
Their flesh and blood were reduced to ash.
"What are you daydreaming about, Harry?"
Someone smacked Harry on the head with a wand.
Harry looked at his palm, somewhat confused.
Meanwhile, on the front lines of the battlefield, only Slughorn remained, struggling to hold on.
In the blink of an eye, several teachers were knocked to the ground.
Voldemort simply did not notice.
He seemed to be drawn deeper and deeper into Hogwarts.
The battle had now moved to the centre of the Quidditch pitch, which had been designated a restricted area after Quidditch was discontinued.
"The game between cat and mouse is over."
Voldemort closed his eyes, gazing at the wand held between his long fingers with an expression of ecstasy.
Then he opened his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the crowd with a ferocious expression.
"Now you can die in peace."
Voldemort spoke calmly, ready to announce their deaths at any moment.
"Yes, the game between cat and mouse is over."
"We just need to discuss who is the cat and who is the mouse."
A somewhat aged voice slowly came from not far away, yet it carried tremendous power and reached the ears of everyone present.