An explosion.
That was truly the only way to describe this eruption of malice.
As if all of Durmstrang had grown heavy, breathing became difficult and the air distorted.
The scenery around Mirabelle warped, and her intimidation alone cracked or shattered the surrounding furnishings.
Mirabelle hadn't done anything yet. Hadn't even moved.
She'd simply released the malice hidden in her heart.
Yet already, everyone present was overwhelmed.
—This was no longer intimidation a living being should emit.
As if shaking off that terror, Sirius and Lupin charged first, blades manifesting on their wands as they slashed.
But Mirabelle caught the blade approaching her between her index and middle fingers, stopping it.
Moreover, she threw Sirius blade and all, slamming him into Lupin who'd been coming from behind.
"Guh!"
"Gah!"
Watching the two blown away, she tilted her wine glass and drank the crimson liquid.
Mad-Eye, Kingsley, and Tonks moved next, trying to exploit that opening.
They pointed their wands and simultaneously fired Stunning Spells.
Refined magic incomparable to average wizards.
Yet it couldn't even reach Mirabelle, blocked by a Shield Charm that appeared before her eyes.
Silent casting was already a given—no wand, and moreover, not even a movement.
Magic was now like breathing to Mirabelle. A natural act executable without moving a finger.
"Yaah!"
Neville swung his sword, but Expelliarmus launched without even preliminary motion sent the sword flying.
Moreover, Mirabelle's magic blew away not just the weapon but Neville himself.
"Mun!"
Dumbledore waved his wand.
With his own wand in his right hand, he levitated surrounding furnishings and rubble toward Mirabelle, while with Grindelwald's wand in his left, he transfigured them.
Hundreds of blade cages surging at Mirabelle.
Every single one was a silver weapon—vampires' weakness.
But when Mirabelle snapped her fingers, all those blades reversed and headed outward.
Yet Dumbledore hadn't aged in vain either.
He immediately moved to the next action, pointing his wand to detonate the blades—and stopped.
"Time Stay."
Magic's pinnacle that dominated even providence—stopping the entire world.
Through this, Dumbledore, the blades, everything else stopped, becoming Mirabelle's world alone.
She then used magic to return all surrounding blades to rubble, slamming them to the ground.
"And time flows again."
The stopped time released, time moving once more.
From Dumbledore's group's perspective, they couldn't even understand what happened.
The surging blades all vanished, and Mirabelle still stood unharmed.
"Now then, this time I'll come at you."
"No good! Everyone, raise Shield Charms!"
Countless light spheres floated around Mirabelle as she sat on her throne.
Each was a different attack spell.
And all were given absurd power that would laugh at senior Aurors.
Fire, ice, lightning, paralysis, Cruciatus, wind, explosions, curses.
Magic fired one after another mercilessly, ravaging Dumbledore's group.
Though everyone deployed maximum output defensive magic, it still wasn't enough.
One after another, surroundings shattered and blew apart, and one person, then another fell to the ground.
When everything ended, not a single person stood—all rolled on the floor.
"Come now, what's wrong? I haven't even moved yet."
Sitting on her throne without releasing even her wine glass, Mirabelle mocked.
This was nothing less than a nightmare.
They wished it were a nightmare.
This monster had grown that overwhelmingly strong.
Without even moving, without taking a single wound, and this thing was immortal and couldn't be killed.
This had to be some kind of joke.
"I-impossible..."
"T-too strong..."
Unable even to stand anymore, Sirius and Lupin voiced despair.
"This is impossible... there's no way we can win..."
Just this much exchange was more than enough to break Tonks' spirit.
Even tears welling up, the veteran Auror voiced weakness.
"Guh... not yet..."
"This... degree..."
Mad-Eye and Kingsley, as befitting their reputation, apparently still had spirit to stand.
But their legs trembled, and their entire bodies were badly wounded.
If the same attack came once more, they surely couldn't stand this time.
"Can't end... at this level..."
Being blown away had been fortunate—Neville's wounds were still shallow.
But shallow or not, wounds were wounds. Accumulate them and eventually one couldn't move.
This was the difference between human and monster.
While Mirabelle could fight eternally unless killed, humans stopped moving just from accumulated wounds.
This disadvantage was unavoidable as long as they were human—an unfairly tearful reality.
But one person had avoided Mirabelle's attack.
Edith, who'd been taught magic by Mirabelle's double.
Having evaded using short-range Apparition, she leaped at Mirabelle from the side.
"Invaderent Patronum!"
She summoned her Pegasus Patronus to charge at Mirabelle, but it was blocked by a silver-haired girl appearing before Mirabelle.
Lettice Groasteist... the pitiful girl once turned into a shell by the Ministry, killed by Mirabelle, and having her soul fixed into a Patronus.
The young Patronus with a melancholy expression, despite that appearance, pushed back the Pegasus.
"So that's your choice, Lainagull... I told you never to show your face again."
Mirabelle created a green glow in her hand, glaring at Edith.
No hesitation.
No wavering.
She'd long since discarded mercy.
If standing as an enemy, she'd trample them and advance forward, no matter who.
Even if the opponent had once been a friend... no exception.
"I can't do that... I won't run from you ever again."
"...I see."
The two's eyes crossed, conveying more eloquently than words that neither would retreat.
Mirabelle lowered her lashes for a moment, but immediately harbored a dangerous gleam in her eyes.
Fine—if you'll stand in my way, I'll speak no more.
If you want to die so badly, I'll grant your wish.
With intent to kill, she finally turned the green light toward Edith... toward her former friend.
"Avada Kedavra!"
Green light struck Edith, making her body reel backward.
This was the end.
No living being could survive being hit by the Killing Curse—certain death on contact.
Even herself as a vampire could only nullify it by using Horcruxes—that was Avada Kedavra, the strongest magic.
That conviction, however, was overturned.
Edith, who'd reeled backward, didn't fall but stood firm.
Before Mirabelle's widened eyes, the green glow condensed, converging before Edith.
"Impossible... this is...!"
And Mirabelle saw.
The figure of her former servant standing protectively before Edith.
The now-deceased, flaxen-haired maid.
"Reflect it baaaack!"
The Killing Curse that should have hit Edith reversed course.
Imbued with love's power through protective magic, it was an attack that could be called Mirabelle's natural enemy now.
The aurora that once destroyed even Voldemort's body.
It struck Mirabelle directly, blowing her body away.
"...!"
The throne shattered, her body pushed backward.
But while scraping the ground, Mirabelle endured and withstood it, pressing down the reflected protection with both hands.
Then though her hands burned, she forcibly deflected it upward, diverting it.
"Protective magic... when did you obtain such a thing?"
An eerily calm voice.
An unexpected situation—yet that conversely eliminated Mirabelle's carelessness.
While regenerating her burned hands, rather than when she'd been dominant, she thought far more calmly at high speed.
"...No, I see... that Ministry battle. Mary, you left something troublesome."
The saying about being bitten by one's own dog fit perfectly.
Recalling her now-deceased servant's image, Mirabelle smiled at that "mischief."
And seeing Edith grow bolder after gaining some purchase by reflecting the Killing Curse, she deepened her smile further.
"Mirabelle, your magic can't kill me. As long as Mary protects me, it won't reach. So—"
"—So you want me to retreat here?"
"Tch!"
How sweet—she almost burst out laughing.
They'd already passed that stage long ago.
Having already taken numerous lives, retreat was impossible now.
Yet she still thought they could join hands.
She thought she could save this Mirabelle... could be saved.
How devoted, and how foolish.
"Kukukuku... you think you can win just from obtaining a toy that couldn't even kill Voldemort? How cute, Lainagull. How cute, Mary. So cute I want to embrace and break you."
As if viewing something endearing, Mirabelle mocked with an almost gentle voice.
Strangely, no anger welled up at her servant's protection or Edith's presumption.
Perhaps it was the same sensation as when one's cheeks relaxed seeing a puppy bark.
Mirabelle pointed her hand at Edith and used Depulso—the opposite spell of Accio that sent objects far away—blowing Edith away.
Seeing her delicate body collide with the wall and grimace in pain, Mirabelle was certain.
Apparently she couldn't prevent magic itself.
Just as she tried using pursuit magic, she sensed tremendously powerful light flying in.
She Apparated to evade.
"Hmph, as expected, it won't go easily."
Dumbledore had fired the magic.
He waved both wands, chanting two spells simultaneously.
Vulnera Sanentur and Episkey Maxima. Both advanced healing spells requiring high technique.
Normally cast on individuals one by one, casting them simultaneously on multiple people showed Dumbledore's isolated skill.
"Edith... can you still fight?"
"Y-yes!"
"Everyone, though it's a hard battle, can you still fight?! Edith and I will attack! Everyone else, don't approach Mirabelle! We need support fire from a distance!"
Only himself and Edith with protective magic could fight that Mirabelle even slightly.
Dumbledore instantly judged this and immediately switched strategy, shifting his thinking to a battle where just the two of them attacked.
Carelessly bringing Tonks close could get her killed just from that.
Fighting that monster, not even the slightest mistake was permitted.
"Edith... you brought that, didn't you?"
"...Yes."
"I'll create an opening. I'll leave all timing for the strike to you."
They had a trump card.
And the one possessing it was Edith.
But to use it on Mirabelle, she had far too few openings.
Then he must create one, Dumbledore resolved.
Even exchanging this life with little time left, that girl alone must be stopped here.
"Hmph, though it's admirable you don't give up even after seeing this power difference... entertain me a little, won't you? If it's too boring, I might accidentally kill you."
Mirabelle was still careless somewhere in her heart, complacent.
Therefore, openings existed to exploit.
Edith manifested her Pegasus Patronus from behind, while Dumbledore created numerous statues from rubble.
And both simultaneously charged to strike down the demon.
"Sectumsempra!"
"Expelliarmus!"
Snape's cutting curse and Harry's Disarming Charm flew simultaneously at Voldemort.
But Voldemort vanished by turning, appearing behind them the next moment.
The Killing Curse released.
Faster than Harry himself could react to that spell with no counterspell, his wand spat golden flames.
Then both spells canceled each other out and vanished.
Independent of Harry's will, the wand was fighting Voldemort on its own.
"What's happening...? This wand isn't mine... so why...?"
Voldemort muttered without hiding his irritation.
It had been like this constantly.
Harry, who shouldn't reach him at all normally, continued clashing equally with him.
At first, Voldemort thought the reason was the wand.
That's precisely why he'd captured wandmaker Ollivander and tortured him to reveal why this happened.
As a result, he'd said, "Because they're twin wands, they resonated."
Then what was this?
What he used now wasn't his own but Bellatrix's.
Why couldn't it kill Harry?
Harry was equally confused.
Since the battle with Voldemort began, he'd been fighting surprisingly well.
But that definitely wasn't his own power. Thanks to the wand.
The wand was fighting Voldemort on its own, pushing him back.
He didn't understand what was happening.
But he could do this. Harry felt strong purchase.
"Stupefy!"
Hermione fired a Stunning Spell.
Considering her age, a more than sufficiently powerful spell, but to the emperor merely weak resistance.
He dispelled it with a light wand wave and returned fire with the Killing Curse.
Hermione avoided it by leaping sideways instantly, and Snape assaulted from behind Voldemort.
"Tch!"
The Sectumsempra curse grazed his cheek, and Harry's spell followed immediately after.
Voldemort turned again, reappearing at a slightly distant position.
"Annoying pests!"
He swept his wand.
Then a pillar of flame rose from behind, transforming into a serpent's form.
Fiendfyre that Mirabelle also favored using.
Among dark magic, this quite high-ranking spell wasn't magic Harry or Hermione could defend against.
Snape immediately understood this and likewise released flames.
A doe constructed of fire charged at the serpent, halting its advance.
But that was the greatest opening!
In that one instant protecting Harry's group, Voldemort had transferred behind Snape!
"—Tch!"
"Too slow!"
He tried defending instantly, but faster than that, Voldemort's wand swept Snape's abdomen.
Then massive blood spurted out, and blood vomited from Snape's mouth.
Without even glancing at the falling Snape, Voldemort continued targeting Hermione.
"Watch out, Hermione!"
Fiendfyre released from the wand.
Had it hit, Hermione's life would have ended there.
But reality didn't turn out that way—the death flames didn't reach her.
Because Harry interposed himself protectively.
"...N-no way..."
Harry slowly collapsing before her eyes looked strangely slow-motion.
Impossible.
This couldn't be happening.
Hermione simply continued watching in a daze.
And just like that, their hope Harry Potter collapsed face-down on the floor.
***
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