Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Water Margin

Chapter 289 Scarface Tortures to Determine Truth From Falsehood

Picking up where we left off, Scrimgeour led the group of Aurors away from the Shrieking Shack and cautiously made their way along the path to meet Harry and his friends.

It should be noted that most of the Aurors had already been sent to the front lines, and those left behind in Hogsmeade numbered only a few dozen.

Compared to the disciples of the sage, they were like a grain of soil on a high hill; compared to the village full of goblins, they were like a drop of water in a vast ocean.

Knowing that his men were few and outnumbered, Scrimgeour was extremely careful on his journey, hoping not to run into anyone.

As the saying goes, misfortunes never come singly, and a delayed boat is met with a headwind. They had barely made their way out of the screaming shack when they bumped into a group of demons coming to their rescue.

They met face to face and were both stunned for a moment.

The group of demons were initially stunned when they saw Scrimgeour and his men all wrapped in yellow turbans and tied with yellow cloth, thinking that the Boxer Rebellion's divine soldiers had stormed their camp. After a closer look, they recognized them as Scrimgeour.

The lead fairy regained her composure, then said in embarrassment and annoyance, "Sheriff! Do you think this is some kind of costume party?"

"They're dressed exactly like those traitors!"

Tonks' expression changed slightly, his long black hair turning red and purple in an instant, clearly unable to contain himself.

She was trying to find a way to dodge the words and coax these demons away before dealing with them again.

Unexpectedly, Scrimgeour remained outwardly calm, but suddenly drew his wand and shouted, "Avada Kedavra!"

No sooner said than done! The green light flashed for a moment, and the first demon fell straight to the ground, lifeless.

Upon seeing this, the goblins turned and ran, howling at the top of their lungs, "Scrimgeour is a traitor! These Aurors have all sided with Harry Potter!"

One of the nimble fairies pulled a firework tube from her waist and pulled the fuse.

With a loud "whoosh," the firework tube shot straight into the sky, exploding in mid-air and sending out a huge ball of sparks that turned half the sky red.

The Aurors snapped out of their daze, each drawing their wands and chanting vicious incantations. In an instant, magical light crisscrossed, even denser than fireworks filling the sky.

Within three to five breaths, the entire group of demons had fallen victim to the blade.

Tonks, still shaken, wiped the cold sweat from his brow and clicked his tongue, saying, "Boss, you really went all out, showing no mercy at all."

Scrimgeour sighed and patted the yellow cloth on her shoulder. "Don't forget which side we're on."

Having said that, he continued on his way.

They hurried on for a while, walking about a few miles, and all they could hear was the sound of artillery fire and the earth-shaking shouts of battle. They knew they were not far from the war zone.

Just then, several disciples of the sage suddenly appeared crouching trembling in the corner of the wall, shaking like leaves.

One of them was holding a piece of parchment and writing incessantly with a quill pen.

This time, without Scrimgeour's prompting, all the Aurors chanted incantations and fired.

Before the incantation was finished, the parchment in the wizard's hand suddenly flashed with fire and burst into flames, turning to ashes in an instant.

As the Aurors were still in shock and doubt, five wizards dressed in red robes suddenly appeared. The one on the left swept his hand, and all the spells he had shot away vanished.

Scrimgeour stared intently, his pupils suddenly contracting, and he shouted sharply, "Run! It's the Sage!"

He gave him a heads-up and immediately prepared to use his teleportation ability to escape.

The remaining Aurors were also seasoned veterans who had fought their way through countless battles, and they were the most astute. Upon hearing Scrimgeour's shout, they didn't ask any further questions and each used their teleportation abilities to disappear completely.

Among the five sages, the first one was a woman with her hair tied up in a bun. She had a beautiful face, delicate eyebrows, and an air of nobility about her.

Seeing everyone flee, she didn't take out her wand. Instead, she simply clenched her hand forward, and Scrimgeour felt as if the surrounding air had become an impenetrable wall, rendering her unable to use Apparition no matter what.

His body suddenly sank, and he was pulled back by a magical force, falling to the ground again.

Scrimgeour scrambled to his feet and looked around. Not seeing a single Auror, he knew that the five sages were specifically after him.

The noblewoman-like sage sighed softly and said regretfully, "Scrimgeour, you have disappointed us greatly."

"Wiseengamor forgave you, and even helped you cover up the crime of murdering an Auror, yet you turn around and turn against the Ministry of Magic—"

—”

Before the noblewoman could finish speaking, Scrimgeour glared at her and angrily interrupted, "Forgive me? I'm innocent!"

"Where were you when Fudge framed me?"

"Where were you when he was using the lives of frontline Aurors for political propaganda?!"

The noblewoman remained calm and said, "As an Auror, loyalty to the Ministry of Magic should be your duty."

"Scrimgeour, all I see now is a traitor making excuses for his disloyalty."

Upon hearing this, the few wise disciples who had been hiding in the corner all crawled out, stretched their legs straight, puffed out their chests, and shouted "Good!" at each other.

Scrimgeour felt a surge of rage, burning his insides. He sneered, "When I was the head of the Auror office, Fudge ostracized and suppressed me. I've been loyal to the Ministry of Magic ever since."

"When Voldemort was resurrected, Fudge refused to acknowledge it and prevented the news from spreading, and I also became loyal to the Ministry of Magic."

"He framed me, tried to kill me, but I remain loyal to the Ministry of Magic!"

He removed his yellow robe, raised his wand and pointed it at the noblewoman, gritting his teeth as he declared, "Today, I, Scrimgeour, will rebel!"

The noblewoman remained silent for a moment, only staring at him. After a long while, she finally spoke softly, "Then you should just die."

Before she could finish speaking, Scrimgeour suddenly roared, "Avada Kedavra!"

A flash of green light appeared at the tip of the staff, shooting out like a venomous snake spitting its tongue at the face.

The five sages moved in unison, each dodging the deadly curse. They simply pointed a finger and opened their mouths, using the skill of casting spells without a staff, unleashing a torrential downpour of various vicious curses.

Even with his immense abilities, Scrimgeour was no match for the combined attack of the Five Sages.

Just as these spells were about to strike him, a loud "boom" was heard from the horizon, like a thunderclap in mid-air, which shook the earth three times.

Scrimgeour's eardrums nearly ruptured, and even the surrounding sages frowned and exchanged bewildered glances.

Just then, Scrimgeour suddenly felt a tightness around his waist, as if he were being locked by a rope, and with a "whoosh," he was lifted into the air and soared into the sky.

Then look at the five demonic spells colliding together, producing countless points of colorful light, a dazzling and vibrant display.

Hanging in mid-air, Scrimgeour looked up again and saw a strange beast vaguely appearing amidst the swirling clouds. It resembled neither a dragon nor a jiao (a type of Chinese dragon), appearing and disappearing—it was the mirage!

Scrimgeour recognized the man and was both surprised and delighted, exclaiming, "Harry?! It's you!"

Harry landed him on a nearby rooftop, reverted to his original form, and laughed, "Brother, please forgive me for being late."

Scrimgeour was about to ask further when he saw the leading noblewoman, her face clouded with rage, draw her wand and shout sharply, "Hold no mercy! Kill him!"

Upon hearing this, the wise men all shouted in unison, each brandishing their magic wands, ready to attack.

Instead of being angry, Harry laughed and said loudly, "Good timing!"

Having said that, he leaped into the air, transforming into a black whirlwind that hurtled straight toward the noblewoman.

All the wise men knew that Harry was a formidable fighter, so none of them dared to engage him in close combat. They scattered and fled like birds and beasts.

Among them was an old man, over fifty years old, who quickly cast a levitation spell and flew backwards into the air, disappearing hundreds of meters in the blink of an eye.

Unexpectedly, a "crack" was heard in mid-air, and the old man's head was instantly separated from his body. His head rolled down and his body fell to the ground.

Harry drew his sword from his waist and with a single swing, the invisible ring-shaped blade floating in mid-air vanished with a "whoosh." He sneered, "You scoundrels, you thought you could escape? I've been waiting here for a long time!"

After drinking, he brandished his sword and wand, engaging in both ranged and close combat, fighting alongside the sages.

Although this group of sages is numerous, they are revered elders above all others in the magical world, truly remarkable.

But don't forget that the scarred man is also a genius who is proficient in both magic and martial arts. He has a good set of magic, strong martial arts, and all sorts of strange methods.

Even though this group of sages had been on guard, they couldn't withstand his repeated attacks. They saw:

Having just dodged a knife aimed at his heart, he saw snake venom approaching; having just defended against a curse, he was met with fists and kicks; intending to fight to the death, he was suddenly drawn by a mirage; wanting to retreat and exhaust his magic, he saw a rifle covered in yellow talismans, truly unsure whether it was human, ghost, or god.

Fairy!

They fought for twenty rounds. One sage was turned to mush by the snake venom piercing his heart; two others, unable to dodge in time, died from the deadly curse. The rest were terrified, yet unable to escape.

Scrimgeour witnessed it all and was stunned, speechless for a long time.

The leading lady, unable to subdue Harry, became so enraged that her face turned purple and her features contorted. She immediately shouted, "Signal! Get the rest of you over here!"

"The plan has changed. Kill Potter!"

Only the sage remained, about to respond, when Harry burst into laughter and shouted, "You old hag, don't be delusional! If they were coming, they would have been here long ago!"

The sage's heart skipped a beat upon hearing this, and in the blink of an eye, Harry used Apparition to appear before him.

With his right hand, he formed an eagle claw with his five fingers and slashed at the man's throat, tearing a bloody hole with a soft "plop." This perfectly illustrates the saying, "Without practicing eagle claw techniques, all attempts at capture will be in vain."

The sage had two ounces of flesh missing from his throat; he gurgled and bled as blood gushed from his mouth. He struggled for a couple of steps before collapsing to the ground. His eyes rolled a few times before going blank.

The noblewoman was terrified when she saw that all the wise men had died, and she quickly used a teleportation technique to escape.

She twisted her body, a loud explosion rang out, and it seemed she was about to escape. But then, a chanting voice suddenly came from not far away, saying, "All curses end."

As soon as the incantation ended, all the noblewoman's magical power was suppressed, and she fell to the ground with a thud. Immediately afterward, another spell struck her chest, transforming into a rope that bound her tightly.

Unable to struggle, the noblewoman glared at the source of the sound. When she looked away, all was well, but when she did, she gritted her teeth, her eyes seeming to spit fire.

"Dumbledore!"

"You killed them!"

The White Demon King's white robes were stained with dust, his beard and hair were disheveled, and he had several wounds all over his body. Compared to his usual appearance, he was utterly wretched, like a villager in distress.

Dumbledore slowly stepped forward, shook his head, and said, "I don't want to kill my old friend with my own hands, but what you've done over the years is no different from Voldemort's."

He paused, then added, "And you seem to overestimate me. It's quite strenuous for one person to face more than forty sages."

Just then, Hermione came staggering up, panting heavily. Behind her, Ron, leaning on his willow cudgel, looked half-dead.

When Harry saw the two of them approach, he quickly looked them over and, seeing that they were not seriously injured, felt a weight lifted from his heart. He hurriedly asked, "Why are there only my sister and brother here? How are the others?"

Hermione called out to Ron, gestured towards the group of stunned Sage Apprentices huddled in the corner, and said, "Professor Lupin is slightly injured, and Mr. Black and the others are taking care of him."

Ron took a deep breath and grinned, "We didn't give those old fogies from Wizengamo a chance to get together; we caught them completely off guard."

"Thanks to Fred and George's magic bombs—those things were really powerful, killing seven or eight sages in one go."

Having said that, he gripped the Willow Demon Cudgel tightly, chanted a death curse, and a ball of green flame rose from the tip of the cudgel. He strode forward, and with a swift movement, struck down the group of wizards, killing them all.

Seeing that everyone was unharmed, Harry felt relieved and asked Dumbledore, "Professor, have you captured anyone alive? Have you gotten anything out of them?"

Dumbledore sighed and said, "They have a very special forbidden spell inside them, which even I cannot break."

"Unless they are willing to talk, you can't get any information out of them."

Harry laughed and said, "That's quite a coincidence! You all know that I have a silver tongue, and I'm very eloquent and good at reasoning."

Having said that, he dismissed the bystanders, drew his Gryffindor sword, strode over to the noblewoman, sat on her, and said, "You old woman, answer my questions. Do you understand?"

The noblewoman merely sneered and said, "Fine, I dare to say it, do you dare to listen?"

Harry found the words strangely familiar, frowned, and asked again, "What do you want from me if I dare to listen?"

"It's nothing, as long as you're not afraid to die."

The woman's cryptic words seemed strangely familiar to Harry. He felt increasingly uneasy, and a peculiar thought began to form in his mind.

He pondered for a moment, then suddenly opened his emerald eyes wide, sneered three times, and shouted, "You bunch of bastards, if you want to save the world, just say so! Instead, you're playing tricks here. Do you think I don't know what's going on?!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Harry felt the noblewoman beneath him tremble violently, her lips shaking, and she exclaimed, "You...you know?!"

Harry's heart sank, and he cursed inwardly: "Damn it! This is never going to end! How did I run into another scoundrel who claims to be the savior of the world but is actually causing chaos!"

The saying goes: "Harry's fierce battle is clear, the sage's words are profound and mysterious." This sounds familiar, but upon closer examination, it's quite strange. Both are grand and dignified, yet their true intentions are different; the rhetoric of national salvation is the same, but the tricks of cunning are vastly different.

Indeed: it's hard to distinguish between good and evil, truth and falsehood; good and evil are mostly just words. How Harry will discern the truth remains to be seen; we'll have to wait and see in the next installment.

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