Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 330 The Tragedy of Diagon Alley (Part 4)

The existence of the Anti-Apparition Charm meant that Scrimgeour and the Ministry of Magic's reinforcements could only arrive via the Floo Network, which the Ministry of Magic had the ability to forcibly connect to. However, what they hadn't anticipated was that by the time they had gathered their forces and were ready to depart, most of the houses in Diagon Alley had been destroyed, and most of the passable fireplaces were gone.

Scrimgeour instantly realized the gravity of the situation. Diagon Alley had clearly fallen, and this mission could very well lead them directly into the Dark Wizards' encirclement. But there was no way he could give the order not to provide assistance.

Minister of Magic, you absolutely cannot do such a thing!

Use the brute force method and try them one by one! The properties of Floo Powder allow them to make mistakes; if the Floo Net is blocked, sprinkling Floo Powder will not ignite a green flame at all.

And so, using this most primitive yet most effective method, they finally found a few relatively stable passages. Without the slightest hesitation, Scrimgeour immediately ordered his men to cross. After several men had successfully crossed, he himself, disregarding his men's attempts to stop him, also plunged into the raging green flames.

When they reappeared, they were in a dilapidated house deep in Diagon Alley, where five or six Aoro were already on guard.

Scrimgeour led them out of the house. Fortunately, all the still-functioning fireplaces were concentrated in this area. Before long, all the reinforcements arrived, more than a hundred people, nearly a third of whom were Aoro, so their fighting strength was still guaranteed.

"Stand together, don't scatter! We don't know how many enemies there are!" Scrimgeour said coldly, looking at the billowing smoke in the distance. With a wave of his hand, everyone drew their wands and quickly ran towards the smoke.

They hadn't run far when they saw an extremely disheveled man staggering towards them. He was covered in blood, his steps faltering, and two laughing black wizards followed behind him.

Without Scrimgeour even needing to speak, several Aoro rushed out and swiftly rescued the unfortunate fellow from the dark wizard's clutches. Scrimgeour took a long time to recognize him as the owner of the secondhand goods store.

"How are you? How are you?" He directly poured a bottle of potion into the hands of the secondhand shop owner to treat his injuries.

The owner of the secondhand goods store, after being brought back to his senses by the potion, recognized the man in front of him, who looked like an angry lion, as the current Minister of Magic.

"Minister...minister, am I...am I dreaming...?"

"No!" Scrimgeour shouted back, "Now tell me, what's the situation inside?"

Suddenly, the owner of the secondhand goods store burst into tears, screaming hysterically, "Death Eaters! Dark wizards! They...they killed so many people! Everyone...everyone is dead!"

"And...and there's that person whose name I can't...can't say...I...we can't resist, completely...utterly..."

"Alright." Scrimgeour loosened the collar of the secondhand shop owner, his expression extremely serious, and said sternly, "That's enough. The situation is clear..."

"Everyone!" he suddenly raised his voice, "Charge with me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Scrimgeour rushed out. Apart from two office workers who escorted the lucky secondhand shop owner back to the house they had just come from, everyone else followed closely behind Scrimgeour.

They pressed on relentlessly, rescuing a few more lucky survivors. However, their gains were meager; only a handful of those who couldn't dodge in time were knocked down or killed, while most managed to escape.

This is not good news. Those who escaped will surely report their arrival back, and they will likely face not just a few scattered individuals, but Voldemort's entire army of dark wizards.

Scrinker was fully aware of this.

"Watch out!" he shouted, leading the way through the alley and turning into the main road of Diagon Alley.

The moment he peeked out, a green light flew towards him. However, having been an Aoro for so many years and always fighting on the front lines, Scrimgeour was no slouch; with a wave of his wand, he blocked the killing curse. Upon closer inspection, he recognized who had attacked him.

Bellatrix, that crazy woman from Lestrange.

However, compared to the infamous Death Eaters, what alarmed him more was the tall, thin man standing in the very center. His scarlet pupils, snake-like nostrils, and bald head—any one of these features made his identity instantly recognizable…

Dark Lord!

"Hehehe... Rufus Scrimgeour..." Old Voldemort stood still, quietly watching as more and more people gathered behind Scrimgeour, until they were almost evenly matched with his own side, before finally saying, "I've been waiting for you for a long time..."

"Did you see your own death?"

"I see your downfall!" Scrimgeour shouted, then raised his wand high, and a red orb of light rose into the air before suddenly exploding.

Without a word, the two groups collided violently. In a single exchange, more than a dozen people fell. There was no time for rescue; in this chaotic flurry of curses, falling meant death, and even a stumble could result in being struck by a fatal curse.

Colorful spells flashed and crisscrossed, blood splattered, and flames roared. Every second, someone died, whether from the Ministry of Magic or from the dark wizards.

Every scene at this moment vividly demonstrates the fragility of life and the cruelty of war. Yet, neither side backs down; both sides have compelling reasons to win.

Scrimgeour couldn't afford to pay attention to his men's situation. As soon as he clashed with Old Voldemort, he was immediately at a disadvantage. After exchanging two spells, he could only defend and parry.

Having been a wizard for so many years and personally captured so many dark wizards, there had never been one like Voldemort. His magical power was immense, his spellcasting swift and precise, and the connections between various spells seemed natural. Arcane arts, dark magic, and poison curses—except for the Death Curse, he had hardly ever seen two spells that were the same.

A deep sense of powerlessness welled up inside him. Under Voldemort's magic, Scrimgeour was in a terrible state. Because of the Anti-Apparition Charm, he had almost no room to dodge and could only take Voldemort's attacks head-on.

This is very difficult, extremely difficult!

Gradually, wounds appeared on Scrimgeour's body, and blood flowed out, slowly staining his robes red.

He realized that Voldemort was torturing him! He wanted to torture him to death in front of so many people in the Ministry of Magic!

And it was clear that he was about to succeed...

(End of this chapter)