"But since you think that way, why not defeat her from the start? Why waste time solving riddles?" Dumbledore asked with interest.
Wade drew in a breath. "That makes sense, Professor. It seems I still have room to improve…" he said, looking at Dumbledore with admiration.
"Ah, perhaps that is something you shouldn't improve. No matter how strong you are, you shouldn't approach things like that," Dumbledore said with a gentle smile.
Grindelwald frowned as he looked at Dumbledore. He was beginning to suspect that Wade had slipped him some strange potion.
This brat had revealed so many flaws, yet you still don't think there's anything wrong with his nature?
While Grindelwald was silently grumbling, Dumbledore suddenly said, "Wade, you should hold on to your kindness and not be led astray by certain people. Some individuals have rather questionable values… you mustn't learn from them."
"Ah… I see…" Grindelwald suddenly came to a realization.
So in Dumbledore's eyes, if this little brat Wade showed any issues in his values, it would all be blamed on me?
In other words, no matter how many flaws Wade revealed in the future, I could always serve as the perfect shield, taking the blame in Dumbledore's place?
Good… very good… just what one would expect from you, Wade.
If that was the case, what more was there for him to say?
Looking at it this way, all his previous attempts at warning Dumbledore had probably been seen as trying to drive a wedge between teacher and student.
Fine… from now on, I would no longer interfere. Dumbledore!
At this moment, in the Two-Way Mirror, Tom, after successfully passing the Sphinx's trial, used fire to drive back a large group of zombies.
However, his steps finally came to a halt at the entrance to the final stage.
In the last challenge, there were ten combat constructs.
Of course, if they had been ordinary constructs, Tom would have already charged in.
But… the equipment of these ten constructs was modeled entirely after Muggle soldiers.
Tom quietly observed the ten constructs ahead and felt his vision darken.
Among them were two machine gunners, three grenadiers, and five riflemen…
And the three grenadiers were also armed with submachine guns.
There was no doubt that if Tom chose to charge directly, he would first be hit by hundreds of specially modified bullets, and then blown into the air by grenades…
Although the bullets and explosives had been adjusted to avoid being fatal, going through something like that would still leave him bedridden in the hospital wing for several days.
After all, he had already seen many older students being carried out earlier, groaning in pain…
Without exception, they had all fallen at this final stage.
Tom had no intention of being carried out like that. It would be far too embarrassing. Wade would laugh himself to death.
Moreover, the potions infused into those bullets caused extremely intense pain. Tom had no desire to experience it.
Frowning, he carefully examined the setup inside, not daring to step in.
Fortunately, at the final stage, as long as one did not enter, the enemies inside would not attack, giving Tom ample time to observe and prepare.
First, if he went in with the Shield Charm, under the barrage of those two machine guns, his protection would be no different from paper.
And those grenadiers threw specially modified grenades with considerable power, not to mention the submachine guns in their hands, whose firing rate was hardly inferior to the machine guns.
By comparison, the riflemen posed less of a threat.
However, the machine gunners and grenadiers were positioned too far apart. He could not attack them all at once.
As Tom hesitated, Grindelwald outside the mirror could not help but shake his head. "They're just Muggle weapons. Is there really any need to fear them so much? A simple Transfiguration would suffice. If I remember correctly, Wade didn't inscribe any magical defensive runes on those weapons, did he?"
For a wizard like Grindelwald, even if a hundred Muggle soldiers surrounded him with machine guns, he could transform all their weapons into noodles in an instant.
"That's you. Tom's magical power isn't strong enough yet," Dumbledore said, frowning.
In truth, although many students had been eliminated at this stage, there were still some who had passed.
In other words, with sufficient magical power and fast enough reactions, it was entirely possible to clear it.
However, Tom was challenging above his level. No matter how talented he was, in terms of magical power, he still could not compare to seventh-years on the verge of graduation.
That meant the methods used by the older students were not suitable for him.
At this moment, Tom had also considered using Transfiguration, but with his current ability, he was not fast enough.
If he tried to force it, his spell would not reach the constructs' weapons before the bullets reached him.
Given his current level of magical power, even conjuring something like a wall of earth to block the bullets would be useless against such overwhelming firepower.
In fact, under that kind of barrage, an earthen wall would be no different from paper. It simply could not provide Tom with enough time to evade.
Tom had also considered using a "flash" spell, but the entrance was too narrow. At the slightest disturbance, the constructs would simply concentrate their fire on the doorway, and he would still be caught in it.
In other words, with his current abilities, it was impossible for Tom to pass without being hit.
After hesitating again and again, Tom finally took out another potion from his pocket and drank it.
"Hmm? Could it be that you're planning…" Wade stared at Tom in shock.
"What kind of potion is that?" Grindelwald asked immediately.
The potions Tom carried were undoubtedly related to Wade, and Grindelwald was quite interested in these new concoctions Wade kept producing.
"It blocks pain… it looks like he's planning to charge through," Wade said, frowning.
"That shouldn't be the case," Grindelwald shook his head. "It's probably just in case he gets hit, so he won't be overwhelmed by the pain…"
However, before he could finish speaking, Tom had already rushed forward…
Rat-tat-tat!
The two machine guns opened fire instantly, followed by grenades…
In just about ten seconds, all ten constructs were taken down by Tom.
The guns in their hands had also been transformed into venomous snakes by Tom.
In the end, Tom appeared at the exit, breathing heavily.
"Tom Riddle, trial cleared!"
Grindelwald looked at Tom's left arm and right leg, twisted at unnatural angles, and could not help asking, "Isn't that boy a bit too ruthless?"
Wade looked at Tom's miserable state and said coldly, "He should be glad this is a trial… not a real battlefield."
Dumbledore sighed. "It couldn't be helped. For someone his age, this final stage is indeed too difficult."
At that moment, the healers from St Mungo's rushed over frantically. Tom's injuries were likely the most severe among all those hurt today…
The weapons used by Wade's constructs, whether bullets or grenades, had all been modified.
Before hitting the human body, they retained the full force of ordinary munitions.
Only at the moment just before impact would the magic on them activate, greatly reducing their lethality so they would not penetrate the body.
Even so, being struck at that speed would still cause significant injury.
On top of that, the potions contained within the bullets would burst upon impact, inflicting intense pain on the target.
In truth, Tom's method had been somewhat of a workaround.
He had drunk a pain-numbing potion, then deliberately endured several hits to gain enough reaction time to eliminate all the constructs.
Grindelwald watched as Tom lay expressionless on the stretcher, allowing the healers to tend to him, and could not help but feel a surge of satisfaction.
Just as I thought, this boy is no ordinary one. That ruthlessness… very much like me.
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