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Lynn sighed inwardly.
This was trouble now. He had intended to do great things in secret, but now it had turned into two Moodys confronting each other in public.
He slowly raised his crutch. The wand slid out from within, and he gripped it firmly in his hand.
The Moody standing on the sarcophagus also raised his wand.
The two "Moodys" faced each other from a distance across the debris of the sarcophagus.
In the Great Hall, hundreds of guests were stunned.
Fudge stood there with his mouth agape, the silver anemone still in his hand. His entire body seemed petrified, the expression on his face a vivid mix of confusion, terror, and bewilderment.
No one knew who screamed first.
Immediately afterward, the entire Great Hall erupted.
Screams, gasps, and the clatter of overturned chairs blended into one.
Guests in the front rows desperately pushed backward, while those in the back tried to rush for the doors.
Lynn had no time to worry about them.
He raised his hand and fired a Corrosion Curse, aiming straight at the Moody standing on the sarcophagus.
That Moody reacted swiftly as well, leaning his upper body to the side. The spell grazed his ear and struck a pillar behind him, producing a grating corrosion sound.
But Moody's counterattack was even more ruthless than Lynn's.
Almost at the same instant, a green light shot from the tip of his wand, heading straight for Lynn's face.
Lynn flicked his wand upward, and the stone floor beneath his feet instantly bulged. A thick earthen wall rose from the ground to block the attack.
Bang!
The Killing Curse slammed into the earthen wall, blasting a shallow crater into it but failing to penetrate.
Lynn pointed his wand again.
The earthen wall began to vibrate violently, growing as high as the Great Hall's ceiling in the blink of an eye, like a massive barrier crushing toward the Moody opposite him!
Boom—!!!
The earthen wall advanced steadily. It wasn't fast, but it was unstoppable.
Everywhere it passed, the floor was plowed with deep furrows, overturned chairs were ground into splinters, and several guests who couldn't dodge in time were knocked over and pushed forward along with the wall.
The Moody on the opposite side waved his wand repeatedly.
Boom, boom, boom!
Explosion Charms struck the earthen wall one after another, sending debris flying and dust filling the air. But those explosions only left a few shallow craters on the wall, unable to halt its relentless advance.
The earthen wall drew closer and closer.
The smile finally vanished from that Moody's face.
Lynn's lips curled slightly.
He had caught a live one.
Just then—
A green light suddenly attacked from behind!
Lynn's Peters Jolt screamed a warning. Without time to think, he instinctively cut off the support for the earthen wall and lunged violently to the side!
Boom!!!
The Killing Curse almost grazed his back as it flew past, striking a row of seats behind him and blowing them to pieces.
Lynn rolled twice across the ground, sprang to his feet, and looked back—
Behind him stood a figure in black robes, holding a wand high and wearing a Death Eater mask.
Not just one.
From every corner of the Great Hall, figures in black robes emerged one after another. They threw off their disguises and tore away their guest robes, revealing the black robes and silver masks beneath.
One, two, three, four...
In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen Death Eaters had appeared among the chaotic crowd.
"Long live the Dark Lord!"
Someone shouted.
Then—
Spells began to fly everywhere.
Green, red, and blue lights intertwined, blasting in all directions. Some were aimed at guests, some at Ministry of Magic officials, and several came straight for Lynn.
Lynn dodged aside and looked back at the earthen wall—
Without his magical support, the massive wall was demolished almost instantly.
Rumble—
The earthen wall collapsed, debris falling like rain. Amid the swirling dust, the Moody on the sarcophagus leaped down.
He stood among the Death Eaters, wand held high, a crazed and twisted smile on his face.
"For the Dark Lord! For Lord Voldemort!"
The Death Eaters shouted in unison, their spells becoming even more relentless.
The scene was completely out of control.
Guests screamed and fled in all directions, pushing and trampling over one another. Some were hit by spells and fell to the ground screaming. Others were struck by falling debris, their heads bleeding. Some tried to Apparate, but the Anti-Apparition Charm had long since been activated, preventing anyone from leaving.
Just then, Auror reinforcements finally arrived.
"That one is Moody! No—which one is Moody?!"
The Aurors rushed into the chaotic crowd, but as they raised their wands, they were dumbfounded.
Two Moodys.
One stood on the left, his face full of scars, magical eye spinning wildly, wand pointed forward. The other stood on the right, also covered in scars, his magical eye spinning just as wildly, his wand also pointed forward.
Both Moodys spoke at the same time.
"That one is a fake!"
And again, simultaneously:
"I am the real one!"
The Aurors looked at each other in bewilderment.
"Which one is real?"
"How should I know?!"
"They look exactly the same!"
"Professor Moody has a magical eye—wait, both of them have magical eyes!"
Just then, the Moody on the left raised his hand and fired a Killing Curse at the one on the right. The Moody on the right dodged and countered with an Explosion Charm aimed at the left.
Boom!
The explosion erupted between them, the shockwave knocking several Aurors to the ground.
The two Moodys instantly engaged in a fierce battle.
Spells flew everywhere, green and red lights intertwining so rapidly that they blurred together. The Moody on the left summoned a jet of water, while the one on the right unleashed Fiendfyre. The Moody on the left used curses, and the one on the right hurled Killing Curses. The two fought from the center of the Great Hall to the head table, and from the head table to the walls, leaving total wreckage in their wake.
The Aurors held their wands, aiming first at one, then at the other, but no one dared to act.
"Which one is real, after all?!"
"I don't know!"
"How about we hit both of them together?"
"What if we hit the real one?!"
"All of you shut up! Catch the masked ones first! Let the Moodys fight it out for now! How many guests have died already? Even if the real Moody dies, it's for a worthy cause!"
The Aurors snapped out of it and immediately rushed to capture the actual Death Eaters.
In the chaos, a familiar figure was desperately pushing his way out.
Lucius Malfoy.
His face was deathly pale, fine beads of sweat covered his forehead, and he could barely keep hold of his snake-headed cane. He shoved through the crowd blocking his way, stumbling toward the exit.
"Move! Out of the way!"
His voice cracked.
Fuck! The Death Eaters are actually taking action today, and no one notified me!
Lucius desperately squeezed through the doorway and bolted out.
He ran faster than a Niffler.
...
In the center of the Great Hall, the battle between the two Moodys continued.
Lynn's wand moved repeatedly; Fiendfyre, venom, and explosions were unleashed in rotation, leaving the "Moody" opposite him with almost no intact skin.
That scarred face was burned beyond recognition. His short gray hair was charred and stuck to his scalp, and his robes were in tatters, revealing deep wounds with bone visible beneath.
The fake magical eye had long since flown off to who knew where, leaving only a bloody socket.
But Lynn still did not stop.
Another Corrosion Curse grazed "Moody's" shoulder, leaving a furrow deep enough to expose the collarbone.
"Moody" staggered backward, gasping for breath.
He could feel that this "Moody" was terrifyingly strong—even stronger than the real Moody.
But for some reason, this person refused to deliver a killing blow. Every spell deliberately avoided his vital points, as though he were being tortured on purpose.
"Avada Kedavra!"
Another green light shot past.
Lynn casually summoned nearby rubble to block it. The stone was blasted to pieces, but he remained unharmed. Then he lightly pointed his wand.
Another Bone-Breaking Curse shot forward.
"Moody's" intact leg instantly lost its support, and he collapsed heavily to the ground. He lay there with his head tilted upward, staring fixedly at Lynn with his remaining eye.
"Avada—"
Swish!
Before the incantation was finished, an invisible blade sliced through the air.
"Moody's" wand hand was severed cleanly at the wrist. The severed hand, still gripping the wand, rolled twice across the floor before coming to a stop.
Blood sprayed from the stump, instantly staining the surrounding floor red.
"Ahhh!!!"
"Moody" let out a piercing scream, curling into a ball and desperately clutching the wound with his remaining hand, but the blood wouldn't stop, welling up between his fingers.
He looked up, his bloodshot eye fixed on Lynn, his voice hoarse from pain and blood loss.
"Who are you really...? You are not Moody!"
Lynn tilted his head slightly, dodging a deflected spell as his gaze fell upon the exhausted "Moody."
"You... don't need to know."
He raised his wand, aiming it at "Moody's" chest.
"Diffindo."
Pfft—
With the death of "Moody," the battle in the Great Hall quickly came to an end.
The Death Eaters, who had been coerced into fighting by Voldemort's threats, had little will to continue. Once they saw that their apparent leader was gone, they immediately began to flee.
The Aurors finally seized the opportunity, spells firing from all directions to knock down the masked figures in black robes one by one.
Some tried to Apparate, but the Anti-Apparition Charm was still in effect. They could only slam fruitlessly into the invisible barrier before being pinned down by the pursuing Aurors.
Some tried to resist but were quickly overwhelmed and disarmed.
Some tried to blend into the crowd and escape, but the guests had already been evacuated to a safe area, leaving them nowhere to hide.
Ten minutes later.
The last standing Death Eater was knocked to the ground.
The Great Hall finally fell silent.
It was a total mess—broken chairs, collapsed stone pillars, scattered debris, and mottled bloodstains. The air was thick with the acrid smell of burning and blood.
More than a dozen Death Eaters lay tied up in a line, groaning on the floor. Their masks had been removed, revealing pale faces beneath.
The Aurors had also suffered heavy losses.
At least five Aurors lay in pools of blood, never to rise again. Another seven or eight were seriously injured and were being carried aside by their colleagues for emergency treatment. Those with minor injuries were even more numerous; nearly everyone had been wounded.
The lead Auror gasped for breath as he looked around.
Then he suddenly remembered something.
"Where is Professor Moody?!"
He shouted.
The other Aurors snapped out of it as well and immediately looked around.
The two Moodys had been fighting just moments ago, but now neither of them was anywhere to be seen.
"Search!"
The Aurors scattered, searching through the ruins.
Soon, someone found the target.
"Over here!"
Several people gathered around.
A corpse lay on the ground.
Its face had been burned beyond recognition, its short gray hair charred black, one eye reduced to a bloody socket, and the severed wrist was gruesome to behold. There wasn't an intact patch of skin left on the body; it was barely recognizable as human.
The Aurors looked at one another.
"Is... is this Professor Moody?"
"I don't know..."
"Where's the other one?"
"Not found."
They knelt down and carefully examined the corpse.
Just then—
The corpse suddenly began to change.
The burned, unrecognizable face twisted and blurred. The short gray hair darkened into deep brown. The scarred skin gradually smoothed over, and the facial features slowly became clear.
A few seconds later.
Lying on the ground was no longer the scarred Moody.
But a middle-aged wizard.
His eyes were sunken, his build tall and thin, his hair deep brown, and his face bore no scars. He looked to be in his thirties. His robes were tattered, and blood was still seeping from his severed wrist, but that face—
It had completely changed into that of a different person.
The Aurors were stunned.
Someone leaned in for a closer look and gasped.
"This is..."
His voice caught in his throat.
"It's Barty Crouch Jr.!" an older Auror exclaimed.
"That Death Eater who's been dead for over a decade?!"
"Wasn't he dead?!"
"He died in Azkaban! Supposedly of illness!"
"Then... then how is he alive again?!"
The Aurors looked at each other, speechless.
After several long seconds, the lead Auror finally spoke with difficulty.
"Then... what about the living Moody from just now?"
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