Let us turn back time just a little bit.
Back to the night Ethan blew up Azkaban.
[Ugh... My heart, the useless limb I once discarded... How could this be? It's impossible!! How could that mortal truly harm me?!]
[If he really manages to deal with all of my remains... No! I will never let this happen!!]
[Kill him, I will kill him! Let him suffer eternal torment!!!]
[Hiss... Go, my little darling, my lovely creation... For your master, for me, go and retrieve that treasure...!]
[Hiss, hiss—]
Bang! Harry jerked awake, gasping heavily, a dull ache throbbing at the back of his head.
But no matter how much his head hurt, it was nothing compared to the agony in his scar. Harry pressed his hand hard against the lightning-bolt mark, the pain so sharp it felt as though someone were carving through his nerves with a knife.
It took nearly a minute for the sensation to recede. Only then did he realize his upper body was sprawled out on the floor. From the looks of it, he had tumbled right out of bed.
Gasp... gasp... gasp!
Still badly shaken, Harry panted for air, his throat bobbing as he swallowed a hard gulp of saliva.
The terrifying voice echoed relentlessly in his mind. It was the first time he had ever heard the owner of that voice so enraged. Mixed with the fury were gasps of pain and a sheer sense of disbelief. It was as if something completely unprecedented and far beyond their calculations had just occurred. The sky-piercing murderous intent dripping from those words made even the battle-hardened Harry shudder involuntarily.
"What on earth happened... Did I accidentally do something to ruin [Mr. Lamp's] grand plan?"
Harry sat up, massaging his scar in bewilderment. Because he was so frequently targeted, he naturally assumed the role of the one "to be killed" in this scenario.
What exactly did [Mr. Lamp] want? What kind of game-changing treasure was hidden behind the door at the end of that corridor? And who were his subordinates talking to? Why did that voice... sound so much like Parseltongue?
"...I should write to Sirius first," Harry decided.
He glanced out the window. Dawn was just breaking; it looked to be around four or five o'clock.
His dormmates were still fast asleep, Ron and Neville's snores rising and falling in a rhythmic chorus. Sometimes, Harry truly envied their ability to sleep like the dead.
"I wonder how Ethan is doing in Azkaban... Heh, maybe he's having a deep discussion about his artistic ideals with the inmates."
Right at that moment, a flurry of hurried footsteps echoed from the corridor outside!
The next second—
Bang!
"Have any of you read this morning's Daily Prophet?!" Hermione burst into the room, panting heavily with a newspaper clutched in her hand.
The snoring stopped dead. Harry instinctively crossed his arms over his chest, staring in utter bewilderment at the intruding "brown-haired lioness." For a split second, he thought he had hallucinated.
—Thankfully, it was winter. Everyone was bundled up tightly.
"Hey!" Ron complained loudly, his voice still thick with sleep. "Do you think this is Ethan's dormitory, 'Miss Vincent'?!"
Hermione flushed red, waving the newspaper and widening her eyes. "If you had read this morning's paper, you wouldn't be complaining about me barging in."
"The Daily Prophet?" Ron groaned. "You still subscribe to that rubbish! It's nothing but Ministry propaganda! There's nothing interesting in it. I'd rather subscribe to The Quibbler! Get out, we don't care about the news, we're going back to sleep!"
He grumbled, squeezing his eyes shut again. "I really don't get why boys can't enter the girls' dormitories, but girls can just waltz into the boys' dorms whenever they please..."
Rustle. Instead of leaving, Hermione snapped the newspaper open. Her front teeth, which had shrunk considerably since the Yule Ball last year, parted as she enunciated every single word:
"SHOCKING! The Collapse of the Millennium-Old Sanctuary, Azkaban! The Culprit is None Other Than the New Savior, Ethan Vincent!!"
Ron blinked. "What, it's just Azkaban collapsing, I thought— Wait, WHAT?! What did you say collapsed?!"
Thump! Ron leaped entirely out of bed, his eyes instantly wide awake and blazing!
Total, absolute silence fell over the dormitory.
Everyone present sat with their jaws dropped, staring at Hermione in pure, unadulterated shock! It was as if she had casually mentioned that the Minister for Magic was actually a mole in disguise!
—What did you say blew up? WHO blew it up???
Neville looked left, then right, holding his breath for a long time before he finally squeezed out a single sentence: "A-as expected of Ethan! The places he blows up just get more and more famous!"
Everyone: "..."
This is really not the time to force a compliment!
Suddenly, Harry jolted, struck by a massive epiphany!
Could it be—Ethan blowing up Azkaban was the manifestation of his anger?! What monumental thing had he done to make Ethan so furious?
I am so freaking awesome!!
While Harry was lost in his narcissistic sage-like contemplation, Hermione's stern voice snapped them back to reality:
"There's no time, we need to get ready immediately! With something this massive happening, the Ministry of Magic absolutely won't just sit still... I'm afraid they'll put Ethan on trial today!!"
Their Enlightenment Society absolutely could not let the Ministry convict Ethan! After five years of being around him, they were certain of one thing:
Ethan was a [Savior] who, despite his madness, was genuinely benevolent.
"Wait for me, Ethan!" Hermione murmured, her eyes flashing with determination. "I will definitely save you!"
Just as the group of young wizards rushed off in a flurry to find Dumbledore...
In a location at Hogwarts entirely undetectable by any revealing magic. Within the underground Chamber of Secrets that had long been deemed "collapsed."
Auror Connie Rosier slowly regained consciousness.
"Ugh..."
She furrowed her brow, slowly opening her eyes. The first thing that greeted her sight was a gigantic snake head peering down at her.
"Hiss~?"
The Basilisk blinked its innocent, harmless amber slit-pupils, staring curiously at this human female who froze the very moment she laid eyes on it.
Its master had clearly cast a spell on it so it wouldn't just randomly petrify other creatures anymore, right? Why was this human still completely motionless? The Basilisk lowered its head, its massive snout poking Connie's cheek.
Feeling that cold, slimy touch, Connie went even stiffer, goosebumps erupting violently all over her skin.
"You're awake?" an ethereal voice chimed in.
Connie snapped her head up to see a pale, slender figure.
Luna looked up from her newspaper, wearing her large pink-and-blue circular spectacles, and smiled. "Good morning, ma'am. Did you sleep well?"
Connie: "..."
If she remembered correctly, she had been knocked unconscious.
The memories from right before she blacked out surfaced in her mind one by one. That bizarre magic, that paint-like texture, that voice which, though much more mature, was still strikingly familiar...
As much as she didn't want to admit it, Connie closed her eyes and spoke hoarsely. "Professor Norn is Ethan, isn't he... Heh, or rather, I can't believe I only just realized it. You subdued me this time because I was in the way, right?"
Her expression was thoroughly defeated, as if all the hope had been drained from her life. Slumping onto the floor, she murmured:
"There never was a hero. I was just too stupid to actually believe there was some 'radiant savior'... It was all a disguise!"
Connie's tone suddenly grew agitated. The rims of her eyes reddened. She panted heavily, looking upward, trying desperately not to let her tears fall.
Luna gazed steadily at the agitated Auror. Then, she clapped her fist into her palm with a thump and said, "I understand!"
Connie: "?"
A dreamy, airy, yet incredibly gentle smile spread across the blonde girl's face.
"Then you should go see Ethan's 'true face' with your own eyes!"
"W-what are you talking about?" Connie stammered.
Luna held up the newspaper; the words "Azkaban Collapses" were crystal clear.
"The trial. The Ministry of Magic will hold a second trial for Ethan tonight to make a final ruling. Everyone involved will be present. At that time, you'll be able to witness Ethan's 'true side' firsthand."
Look at all the people Ethan has helped. Look at the president of their Enlightenment Society, her closest friend, and that "true face" which had never once been a disguise.
—As for how exactly Ethan helped people, well, there was no need to sweat such minor details.
That evening.
The Ministry of Magic, Wizengamot Courtroom.
Countless factions converged here—reporters, Ministry employees, public figures, students, professors... packing the massive courtroom completely to the brim.
Bang, bang, bang! The gavel struck heavily. The bustling, tightly packed crowd gradually quieted down.
Minister Scrimgeour surveyed the room, his gaze falling upon the spiked cage used for holding serious offenders right in front of him. Gripping the gavel, he declared in a deep, booming voice:
"Bring out the prisoner!"
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