windkaze
21 April
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"What do you mean by 'Weapon A'?"
Snape, completely out of the loop, continued his verbal assault. "Mr. Vincent, our esteemed new Headmaster... it seems your security measures aren't quite as airtight as you'd like us to believe."
"This assassination attempt was practically an invitation."
Snape curled his lips in a triumphant smirk as if he had finally scored a point in their ongoing game.
Gemma: "..."
When did her Head of House become so childish?
Before Ethan could respond, Dumbledore shot Snape a look and smiled with a certain pointed nuance. "Ethan's protection is indeed not airtight. After all, he brought back something that was supposed to have been destroyed."
Snape froze. A moment later, a bolt of realization struck him, and his mind raced to catch up. He stared at the old fox Dumbledore in shock, screaming internally:
What did Ethan give you?!What did Ethan bring back that you lost?!It was supposed to be... it was supposed to be me first!
"Ahem."
Professor Snape cleared his throat. He turned his head to look at Ethan, his mouth twitching slightly before he spoke in a low, raspy voice. "Well done. Having you at Hogwarts is truly a blessing for the school. Heh... heh heh..."
As he spoke, Snape forced his lips upward into a smile—a grimace so terrifying it could have sent a first-year Gryffindor into a lifelong state of shock.
"Bloody hell..." Ron murmured, staring like a wooden chicken. "I never thought I'd see the day the old bat and the word 'flattery' would be in the same room together."
Snape's eyes snapped toward him. "For severe disrespect toward a professor, twenty points from Gryffindor."
Ron: "..."
He's back! Everything is bloody back!Your tenderness is reserved only for that 'man'!!
While they were bickering, Dumbledore stepped closer to Ethan and said softly, "Thank you, Mr. Vincent. This... this means a great deal to me."
Ethan laughed. "Haha, you're thanking me too early." He turned his head, a playful smile playing on his lips. "It will come in handy in the near future."
"Is that... from one of your powerful prophecies?" Dumbledore asked curiously.
Ethan shook his head and looked up. In his cobalt-blue eyes, there was a flicker of both justice and chilling resolve. "No. It's because if it proves useless, I will destroy it."
Dumbledore: "..."
Why did I even bother talking to a Dark Lord candidate?
To protect this hard-won treasure, Dumbledore made a silent vow: he would make sure it was put to use.
Although the immediate ambush had been handled, the snake had escaped. Luna leaned toward Ethan and asked softly, "What should we do? Should we go after it?"
Ethan contemplated for a moment before shaking his head.
"No. There is an old saying: 'Don't beat the grass and startle the snake.' We aren't the villains here; our ultimate goal isn't just to kill that girl."
It was to find out her connection to everything else.
"I understand," Luna said, nodding seriously. "So, are we blowing up the school then?"
If there's no place left to hide, she'll have nowhere to go.
Everyone: (Insert shocked Pikachu face)
Ethan, what on earth have you been teaching this innocent child?!
Ethan laughed heartily. "Haha! As expected of my Ravenclaw's once-in-a-century genius! Your thinking is so swift and decisive!"
The others thought: It's a bit too swift. And since when did Ravenclaw become yours?
"Is this even a conversation between humans anymore...?" Ron slapped a hand to his forehead, speaking with a weary, defeated tone. His brain hurt.
"However," Ethan continued, "as the most talented Headmaster in the history of Hogwarts, I shouldn't blow up the school in my very first month. It's a bit premature."
"What we need to do is 'lure the snake out of its hole'!"
Ethan snapped his fingers, meeting a circle of blank, staring faces. He paused, his hand dropping in mock disappointment as he let out a heavy sigh. "You are the most hopeless class I've ever taught... but that's alright."
With a sudden, brilliant smile, Ethan waved his hand.
In a flash, he was gripping a silver-white heavy hammer—a grotesque weapon intricately entangled with pulsing flesh and twitching eyeballs!
"A truly excellent teacher always knows how to stimulate a student's potential~"
Everyone: !!!
Staring into Ethan's "kind" and "gentle" smile, the group began nodding their heads frantically. If they didn't show some "potential" soon, they were worried their skulls might be the next thing he "stimulated."
"That's a great idea!" Luna clapped her hands, skipping slightly. Then, she asked the question on everyone's mind: "But how do we do it?"
A snake could hide anywhere, let alone a "Serpent God" possessed of such strange power.
"Animagus?" Gemma suggested. "If it's a small-framed Animagus, perhaps they could crawl in after it..."
The problem was that their opponent was a magical creature, while an Animagus was merely a mundane animal form. If they clashed, the wizard would likely find themselves in mortal peril.
Hermione raised her hand. "Or, Ethan could create another magical creature! I mean, the school was swallowed by a giant snake before..."
Ethan watched his students' heated discussion with a look of paternal pride. After a long silence, like a game show host about to reveal the grand prize, he made a "click-click" sound as if pressing a red button.
"Alright! Time's up! Such a shame, you were all this close to the right answer!"
Ron: "...Wait, this was a quiz? And where did that button sound come from??"
Ethan held up a single index finger, winking mysteriously. "We are going to use a gentle method to softly wake this lost soul. We shall use—[Moon Magic]."
"Moon Magic?"
Hermione blinked, instinctively turning to look at Luna. Sure enough, she saw a faint blush creeping onto Luna's pale face. Hermione bit her lip, a surge of competitive frustration rising in her chest.
Ugh! Lost again!
Ron said innocently, "Magic like Luna's? Well, that is pretty gentle. Heh, I didn't realize Ethan actually had a 'human' side to him~"
Meanwhile, Professor Snape felt an internal alarm blaring at full volume!
He was willing to bet James's ○○ that the "Moon" Ethan was talking about was absolutely nothing like the Ravenclaw girl's moon.
Several days later.
Naga hid within the cramped, dark pipes. Her triangular serpent head rested comfortably against her coiled body, her tongue flickering with a rhythmic hiss.
This was a corner no one could ever find. Physically, it was impossible to enter.
Her [Master] had given her a new body and new abilities for one purpose: to kill that black-haired brat and set destiny back on its proper track!
...But she had already tried very hard once. She deserved a little rest first.
Naga gave a satisfied yawn, flicking her tail as she slid along the pipe on her belly. She didn't realize that, in that moment, she was developing "personal thoughts"—something a killing machine was never supposed to have.
Just as her head began to droop and she prepared for a second nap, a sudden, violent sense of crisis surged from her spine straight to the top of her skull!
!!
Naga's head snapped up, her pupils constricting into slits. The lethargy in her eyes vanished, replaced by a razor-sharp killer instinct. She arched her back toward the depths of the pipe, black magic beginning to swirl around her body.
[Hiss...]
She stared fixedly toward the source of the danger, refusing to retreat. She, too, was a dangerous predator—an existence at the very top of the food chain.
She didn't know how they had found her, but it didn't matter. Her massive body could crush the spine of any beast; her fangs could end a life in a single bite. Even if those failed, the immense magic granted to her was peerless!
Naga prepared for battle. She was fearless.
Slowly, from the darkness of her vision, a bright, round, yellow "face" began to emerge!
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