When Kyle returned to Hogwarts Castle, the battle was still raging.
The numerous professors had joined forces to create massive earth giants through Transfiguration, and they were essentially pummeling the Hydra into the ground.
Meanwhile, the twin brothers were relentlessly pouring firepower onto the Hydra, hitting it so hard that agonized roars constantly erupted from its many maws.
Seeing that the professors had the upper hand in the fight, Kyle instantly felt a wave of relief. This meant he wouldn't have to resort to using the Reaper Death Seal to take this Hydra down with him.
Of course, if things had actually reached that point and he absolutely had to use it...
Well, he didn't actually know how to perform the Reaper Death Seal anyway.
The enormous Hydra was something Tom Riddle had brought to life using a Hydra egg that Salazar Slytherin had sealed within the Chamber of Secrets. It had been forcibly hatched and grown by sacrificing a vast number of creatures from the Forbidden Forest.
Because it hadn't been hatched or raised naturally, its intelligence was extremely low, and it acted almost entirely on violent instinct.
Once it lost Tom Riddle's control, its combat effectiveness plummeted several levels. It was left in a state where the Hogwarts professors could practically rub it against the dirt at will. It was only because the beast was incredibly thick-skinned and durable that it would still take a significant amount of time to actually kill it.
At least, that was the case as long as Dumbledore hadn't returned.
Suddenly, countless thick, golden chains erupted from the ground, binding the Hydra tightly in the blink of an eye.
Adamantine Chains!
A golden radiance abruptly bloomed in the air. A longsword of gold, forged from pure magic, rapidly materialized in the sky. Then, like a bolt of golden lightning, it lunged straight down toward the monster below.
The sound of the blade sinking into flesh was clearly audible.
Seeing magic of such magnificent scale, Kyle knew immediately: Dumbledore was back.
The headless giant serpent, all nine of its heads having been severed, crashed heavily to the ground, kicking up a massive cloud of dust.
A figure with hair and a beard as white as snow slowly stepped out from the swirling dust. It was Albus Dumbledore.
Fawkes, wreathed in golden light, soared beside him, his phoenix talons clutching a half-dead Gilderoy Lockhart.
"Old man, your timing is a bit too slow," Kyle said, hands on his hips, his tone laced with a hint of dissatisfaction.
Dumbledore wore a gentle smile on his face. "Wasn't that because I knew you all were here?"
Only then did Dumbledore look around at the surrounding situation, and his mouth twitched ever so slightly.
Judging by the perfectly intact phalanx of stone knights standing behind Professor McGonagall, it was glaringly obvious that the surrounding scene of devastation had been caused by the Weasley twins.
Dumbledore was well aware that the twins, under Kyle's leadership, had been magically modifying Muggle weapons.
Even though Dumbledore had already estimated that the power of Muggle weapons modified through alchemy would be high, it now seemed he had still underestimated this group of firepower maniacs.
Dumbledore remained silent for a moment. Considering the role the twins had played in this Battle of Hogwarts, he decided not to stop the young lads.
However, a certain level of safety protocol absolutely had to be established. He didn't want to wake up one morning and find that only a crater remained where Hogwarts used to be.
"You all did very well. Based on your performance, I can apply for an Order of Merlin, Third Class, for each of you."
Dumbledore thought for a moment, then corrected himself. "The merit of defending Hogwarts... perhaps I can push for a Second Class medal."
The Order of Merlin has three levels.
The First Class is awarded for "acts of outstanding bravery or distinction" in magic. Its status in the wizarding world is roughly equivalent to the Muggle Nobel Prize.
Logically, honors of this level should be extremely difficult to obtain.
However, just as the Nobel Peace Prize has a certain reputation that everyone is aware of, the Order of Merlin, First Class, suffered from the same issues.
One of the recipients, Arcturus Black, received a First Class medal for "services to the Ministry"—which essentially meant he gave the Ministry a massive pile of gold.
Another recipient was our famous Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge.
Not long after he took office, he awarded himself the medal to commemorate his contributions to wizarding society as the Minister for Magic.
The nature of this was similar to Comrade "Good at Killing" Obama of the Strategic Fooling Bureau winning the Peace Prize.
It was precisely because of this that Kyle didn't care much for the so-called Order of Merlin.
Aside from the First Class, the remaining were the Second and Third Class.
The Second Class is awarded for "achievement or endeavor beyond the ordinary."
The Third Class is given to individuals who have "made a contribution to our store of knowledge or entertainment."
The fact that even a hollow fraud like Lockhart could obtain a Third Class medal showed just how watered down they could be.
Upon hearing Dumbledore's words, the three "Fathers of Trouble" besides Kyle immediately broke out into loud cheers.
"George! We might become the youngest wizards in history to receive the Order of Merlin, Second Class!"
George poured a bucket of cold water on his brother's excitement. "Kyle is younger than us."
Fred was instantly choked up. Because of the maturity Kyle usually displayed, Fred always treated him like a boss who was older than them.
The reality, however, was that Kyle was actually a year and a half younger than him.
The honor of being the "Youngest Recipient of the Order of Merlin, Second Class" vanished in an instant. Fred suddenly felt that the joy of Dumbledore applying for their medals had been cut in half.
Noticing Fred's resentful gaze, Kyle shrugged his shoulders. Is it my fault?
Fred sighed helplessly. He really couldn't blame Kyle for anything; on the contrary, he was immensely grateful to him.
If Kyle hadn't led the two of them down the point-of-no-return path of "firepower deficiency phobia," how could they have participated in a battle like this? And how could Dumbledore have promised to apply for the Order of Merlin for them?
Seeing the beaming "Fathers of Trouble," Dumbledore walked away with a smile. There were still a mountain of messy affairs within Hogwarts that required his attention.
Retrieving his gaze from the back of the old man walking toward the castle, Kyle looked up at the massive corpse of the monster lying before them and began the post-battle "looting" phase.
An ancient magical beast as rare as a Hydra—every organ and piece of tissue was a sought-after magical material.
Whether for alchemy or brewing potions.
"Ced! George! Fred! Get over here and help!"
The four "Fathers of Trouble" assembled once more, launching a grand looting operation.
"Accio suitcase!"
Kyle skillfully used an advanced version of the Severing Charm to dismantle the Hydra's corpse into small pieces. Fred's clay constructs then helped transport them into his Qiumingshan Manor.
George also began operating his Chikamatsu's Ten Puppets to assist in the work.
Meanwhile, Cedric was collecting the Hydra's blood in massive vats and performing temporary on-site processing of the Hydra's internal organs.
The four had a clear division of labor, and their looting speed was lightning-fast.
By the time Professor McGonagall had finished reporting everything that had happened during Dumbledore's absence, the massive corpse of the Hydra was reduced to nothing but a hollow skeleton.
And even the massive bones of that skeleton were disappearing, one by one.
Two minutes later, having finished his discussion with Professor McGonagall, Dumbledore turned to look at the distant lawn, his head full of question marks.
Where did that massive Hydra go?
How did it just disappear?
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