Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 244, Section 243: The True Hero

Compared to other energies, fel energy itself symbolizes destruction. People who use fel energy for a long time may become corrupted and degenerate at any time. This is why, even though many warlocks resolutely stood up to protect Azeroth, they still could not appear in front of the public.

Therefore, rather than testing human nature, Harry would rather nip this possibility in the bud.

It's worth mentioning that when the last demon that emerged from the portal was turned into a teacup and shattered, the portal was closed, and a corpse that looked like it had been burned to a crisp fell to the ground from where the portal had been.

"This is... Professor Lockhart?" After carefully examining the corpse, Professor Flitwick exclaimed in surprise, "He's actually here!"

It was indeed Lockhart. His body, so thin that it was just skin and bones, was still wrapped in his favorite flamboyant purple robe. This was the only evidence that allowed people to recognize him. His most prized hair had been burned off, and his skin from head to toe was covered with bright green fel energy patterns. Where his eyes should have been, there were only two empty holes, with two burning fel energy flames inside.

Lockhart has been completely drained.

He has lost his own consciousness and cannot speak. He is still alive, but that is all.

“If I’m not mistaken, then Lockhart is the coordinate and sacrifice that allows these demons to come to this world.” After bending down to examine him closely, Harry stood up, shook his head, and said, “Kill him. He’s beyond saving… Killing him would only be a relief for him.”

“I never imagined he would come to this…” Professor McGonagall shook her head sadly, but she was not sad for Lockhart, but for the calamity that Hogwarts had suffered.

“I thought he was just a little vain,” Professor Flitwick said, glancing at Lockhart on the ground with disgust. “It’s because of this kind of person—bah! He doesn’t deserve to be called a professor. When Miss Granger and the others brought me to the underground classroom, this scum was even using those children as sacrifices! Bah!”

Lockhart must have some skill to make such a good-natured old man so angry. Too lazy to say anything more, Professor Flitwick raised his wand to send Lockhart on his way, but before he could make a move, a green light struck Lockhart's body.

"Is there a problem?" Snape raised an eyebrow slightly. "I've been wanting to do this for a long time."

The other professors exchanged glances.

“Of course not,” Harry said. “You only killed a cultist. Lockhart’s soul has already been destroyed by fel energy.”

“Professor Potter?” Scrimgeour suddenly strode over. “The current situation…”

"What?" Harry was a little confused. "The demon commander is dead, and the coordinates that allowed the demons to open the portal to this world have also been destroyed. All we need to do now is clear out the remaining demons and fel remnants in the castle."

“No, that’s not what I meant,” Scrimgeour shook his head and said, “I mean—please say something to them, Professor Potter, as a summary of this battle… this war.”

"Me?" Harry paused, then turned to look around. He saw that not only Scrimgeours, but also the Aurors and strikers were staring at him, their eyes gleaming. He understood immediately and shouted, "Everyone! We've won!!!"

"oh!!!!!!!!"

The tense atmosphere suddenly relaxed, and the Aurors cheered. Many of them even shed tears of joy as they showed expressions of relief.

"We defeated the legendary demon!!"

"I have protected Hogwarts!!"

"Professor Potter! Professor McGonagall! Can we have a special contribution award? I wanted one when I was punished in school for having to clean trophies!"

"..."

The sounds mingled together for a moment, but no one would mind such a celebration.

“Actually, I think each of you deserves a Merlin Medal as a reward, as for the Special Contribution Award…” Harry looked at Professor McGonagall.

“Although I would love to say yes, but—you have already graduated, children, the Special Contribution Award is given to students.” Professor McGonagall’s words caused the Aurors to groan in despair, but then the old professor suddenly laughed and said, “However, as the Vice-Headmaster of Hogwarts, when Headmaster Dumbledore returns, I would like to apply to him to establish an award specifically for you.”

"That's wonderful!" an Auror exclaimed immediately. "I love you, Professor McGonagall!!"

Then the laughter grew louder again, and in this cheerful atmosphere, even Professor McGonagall became more talkative, and she even cracked a joke, which was rare for her.

Laughing, laughing, but some of the laughter slowly turned into crying.

"...If only Jack were still here, we could have won the trophy together and become celebrities at Hogwarts..."

"Jack..."

The laughter grew even quieter with the voice of an Auror; for these Aurors, it had been a long time since they had experienced such devastating casualties.

Demons are demons after all. Although they gradually found ways to deal with these demons after the initial battles, dozens of Aurors still sacrificed themselves.

For a small number of wizards, this was an extremely high number of casualties, especially considering that these were carefully selected and specially trained Aurors and strikers.

If Hogwarts School didn't hold such extraordinary significance for the entire British magical community, the Ministry of Magic would never have been able to send so many people to protect it.

Seeing the atmosphere growing increasingly somber, Harry immediately raised his wand and set off a loud firework, drawing everyone's attention. "I think after the battle just now, you all have a certain understanding of these demons, right?" Harry asked, "Their reproduction rate, their strength, and their magic."

"Demons are like locusts. They quickly pollute the world with an energy called fel energy, turning our home into an environment they love, just like the scenes you saw on your way here. Everywhere there is fel-infused sewage, unbreathable sulfurous air, and countless spider eggs—and we are their food."

This wasn't an exaggeration; even the Aurors who had witnessed the dangers of demons firsthand felt a chill run down their spines just imagining the situation, and Harry continued speaking.

"They may become food, slaves, or even be gradually corrupted by fel energy and turned into new demons, but in any case, humans, whether wizards or Muggles, will cease to exist."

"Thank you," Harry said earnestly, performing an ancient salute. "Thank you for your valiant fight. It is because of your existence that the devil's plot failed. You protected not only Hogwarts, this historic school, but also the safety of this world!"

"And you too! Professor Potter!"

Someone couldn't help but shout.

“Yes, and me too,” Harry laughed. “Stand tall, at least for now, we can proudly proclaim ourselves—heroes!!”

Leaving aside the Aurors who were roused again by Harry's words, Harry looked at Scrimgeour beside him, the stern-faced head of the Auror office who now had a slight smile on his face.

“I didn’t expect you to make me say this,” Harry said to Scrimgeour. “Aren’t you their superior?”

“Yes, I am,” Scrimgeour readily admitted, “but even if I’m reluctant to admit it, the real deciding factor in this war wasn’t me, but you—I think I have to apologize for underestimating you because of your age, Professor Potter. I always thought those were just things Skeeter made up…”

“I understand, Rita used to be like that,” Harry nodded slightly. “But she’s gradually getting better now, isn’t she?”

“…Yes,” Scrimgeour said earnestly, “at least she’s telling the truth now…Thank you for saving my life, Harry, may I call you that?”

"of course can."

“Okay,” Scrimgeour seemed much more relaxed. “I can’t tell you exactly how I feel right now, Harry, but—the devil’s dagger was less than an inch from my neck, and I didn’t even realize I was so close to death.”

“There’s nothing I can do. You’re a spellcaster, and a spellcaster with no experience dealing with thieves,” Harry comforted him. “It’s not your fault.”

“No, that’s my problem. I’m the head of the Auror’s office! I should have done better than everyone else.” Scrimgeour took a deep breath, but he quickly regained his composure. “Anyway, thank you for allowing me to see Alice again. Ah, she is my wife.”

“You’re welcome,” Harry said with a smile. “You’re a brave man, Scrimgeour. Keep it up.”

“Of course,” Scrimgeour nodded and said, “Just call me Rufus.”

Without reinforcements, the demons were being gradually cleared out of the castle and piled up in the open space outside the castle and the Great Totem. Their numbers were so great that they formed a small mountain, not counting those demons that were burned to ashes.

To prevent the land from being contaminated, the demon corpses that had been buried underground by earth elementals in previous battles were also dug up, and the soil stained with demon blood was being continuously purified.

Harry urgently gave his apprentices a small lesson in water elemental magic, providing each with a bottle of Water Elemental Potion. After the apprentices established a connection with the water elemental, they immediately began learning the spells of Healing Water and Purifying Water.

Whether the apprentices prepared purifying and healing water beforehand to splash on the spot or whatever they wanted, the point was to purify all the evil contamination in the castle.

To prevent those audacious and curious students from keeping dangerous demonic artifacts or body parts, the students who were urgently evacuated are still being housed in Hogsmeade. The meadows near this wizarding village are once again filled with tents, except this time it's all students coming and going—to be honest, for many students, it all feels like a picnic, and apart from a moment of tension at the beginning, it doesn't really feel real.

The patrolling professors had caught students trying to sneak back to the castle between Hogsmeade and Hogwarts more than once. These kids who dared to cause trouble at such a special time were all sent to Snape. Professor McGonagall even gave Snape a special instruction, telling him to make sure these students learned their lesson.

Ron gloated and observed three seconds of silence for the poor students. No one knew better than him just how much psychological pressure Snape could put on a person—no one!

Fortunately, the shaman apprentices were on the list of people specially approved to enter Hogwarts. They were required to work with Harry to purify all the places in the castle that had been contaminated by fel energy. As the one with the most professional experience at present, Harry had already cast spells to summon two purification rains that almost covered the entire Hogwarts area.

As for the demonic contamination inside the castle, it could only be cleaned up little by little. Fortunately, the elements would help check during this process. As native life forms of this world, the elements were extremely sensitive to the presence of fel energy and contaminated things. They did indeed help the apprentices find many demons that had died in remote places or in secret passages.

The Daily Prophet has reported on this invasion from another world, and the enemy is none other than the legendary demons. In addition to the information about demons that Harry revealed, the newspaper also included many photos—first-hand photos taken by Rita.

It was truly firsthand, because many of the photos were even actual shots of demons, stone statues, armor, and elementals battling inside Hogwarts. Thanks to the fact that the wizards' photos were animated, everyone who received the newspaper could vividly see what was actually happening at Hogwarts.

To be honest, Harry didn't know where Rita had taken these photos. In these reports, Rita not only lavishly praised Professor Potter's divine intervention and key moments, but also unusually praised the Aurors and strikers of the Ministry of Magic.

In particular, several photos of Aurors bravely fighting against batters stirred the hearts of many viewers.

Even though the Ministry of Magic had played a rare positive role in this unexpected incident, and letters of praise from all over the British magical community had been sent to Oro's office in a rain of owls, Fudge was far from happy.

As the Minister of Magic who deserted during the war, Fudge was severely reprimanded by Rita.

(End of this chapter)