Carefully checking himself, Link finally realized that the injuries on this body were actually far more serious than he had imagined.
First, leaving aside the surface wounds, Link could feel that at least four of his ribs were broken. His limbs, especially his right leg, had multiple fractures and cracks.
His internal organs were in even worse shape. Link, though never having formally studied medical magic, could tell from the constant dull pain in his chest and abdomen, the difficulty breathing, and the intermittent bouts of coughing up blood that his situation was critical.
Injuries like this, if they happened to an ordinary Muggle, even if they didn't die, they'd at least have to stay in the ICU for half a month. Fortunately, Link's current identity was that of a wizard.
Enduring the pain, he first made himself lie flat. Then, from the hidden, seamless extension pouch he kept close, he poured out a whole pile of colorful potions onto the ground.
These were his backup potion reserves, prepared just in case. Even though the battle just now had been so fierce, Link hadn't let a single one of them get damaged.
And now, they would finally be put to use.
Link spread half a bottle of Concentrated Fresh Shrake Extract on his wounds, swallowed two bottles of phoenix tears, and followed it with several more recovery potions. Only then did the pain, so sharp it could drive a person insane, finally ease a little.
Of course, his injuries were still extremely severe. For example, those broken bones, having been dosed with potion without first being reset, ended up knitting back together crookedly.
But those were all minor issues that could be fixed once he returned to Hogwarts. The most important thing now was that Link could finally move again.
He took a deep breath and slowly stood up. The expression in his eyes and brows was complicated.
From a strategic standpoint, this war had already been a failure.
After all, he hadn't managed to stop Voldemort's resurrection. He had only killed some of the minor Death Eaters, without wiping out core members like Lucius. The result was such that he hadn't even been able to delay the progression of the story.
Most importantly, Link hadn't uncovered the true identity of the mysterious force backing Voldemort. On the contrary, the power they had displayed shocked him.
Those elite Death Eaters and the fully armored ones were one thing. What really worried Link were those two skeletal horse riders who only appeared at the very last moment.
By his estimation, since they could so easily snatch up even a furious Voldemort, then each of them individually must at least be on par with Dumbledore.
That was terrifying.
If beings of legendary wizard level like them existed in larger numbers, Link felt he might as well stop fighting altogether.
He'd be better off gathering his whole family, going to the Muggle United Nations, and selling out the wizarding world in exchange for hiding under the umbrella of nuclear protection.
Even so, this battle had not been without its gains.
First was that semi-transparent flame Mike had used.
That "super-condensed Fiendfyre," born from the power of curses, had practically pointed out to Link a grand avenue of research into the nature of curses.
He believed that if he could fully study and master the knowledge within it, combined with his growing magical power and spiritual strength, his abilities would surely surge again, perhaps even approaching Dumbledore's legendary level.
Secondly, there was the transformation after his Occlumency reached Level 6.
Once Occlumency broke through its limits, its drain on his spiritual energy was drastically reduced. As long as he didn't keep it fully active all the time, or use high-level functions like fabricating false memories inside his own mind, then its consumption of spiritual energy became almost negligible.
Now, Link could practically treat Occlumency as a passive skill, always running in the background.
And as the skill leveled up, his spiritual strength increased enormously, in both quality and quantity.
This directly made the walls and cage of his heart much stronger, strong enough to let Mike out for a bit of air, to fight powerful enemies like before.
Of course, the duration would have to be strictly controlled.
Previously, Link had been able to retake control of his body only because Mike's resistance of will wasn't very strong. But if next time Mike were left out long enough to completely seize the territory of the mind, then Link might not be able to take his body back at all.
And what Mike might do after being let out was unpredictable.
The fact that Link was only left injured all over right now could already be considered a very fortunate outcome.
In summary, it was basically a self-destructive trump card, too dangerous to use unless there was no other choice.
After finishing his review of the battle's gains, Link had rested enough. He got up, intending to check on the others' situation.
What he hadn't expected was that the two surviving German old wizards had already gathered all the still-living wounded in front of him. They had even started using the potions Link had tossed onto the ground to treat the injured.
Seeing Link come out of his thoughts, the tall, leading German wizard immediately bowed and said, "Forgive me, young master, I acted on my own."
Link understood that he was referring to using the potions without permission. On the surface, it was framed as an apology, but in truth it was a way of seeking credit. So Link went along with it and waved his hand,
"You did the right thing."
As he spoke, Link also counted the survivors present. Only then did he realize how brutal their casualties had been, so much so that his heart ached.
Of the elite hunters Old Klee had handpicked, apart from those who hadn't made it because they didn't receive the signal, almost all who joined the battle had been wiped out.
Only three gravely wounded ones were left, groaning on the ground as another German wizard fed them potions.
As for the "German old wizards" brought by Mrs. Flamel as reinforcements, there was even less to say.
At the very last moment they had helped buy Link some time, only to be instantly killed. Just two remained.
The only relief for Link was that Arkam, Yoyo, Snape, and Harry were all still alive. Judging from appearances, they were in relatively good condition too, still unconscious, but showing no major visible injuries.
This was obviously thanks to that tall German wizard. Earlier, while Mike was tangling with Voldemort, the man had hidden Arkam, Yoyo, Snape, and Harry away early on. Link had seen it from within the depths of his mind.
Grateful, Link put away the weakened Arkam and Yoyo, then smiled and said, "This time it's thanks to you. I'll suggest to my aunt that you be given an extra reward. And for the comrades who fell, I'll also provide generous compensation to their families."
At these words, the tall old wizard's mouth twitched twice. He replied solemnly, "To serve you, young master, is our honor and duty. We truly wouldn't dare hope for anything more. What concerns me far more now is, are you yourself alright?"
"Don't worry, my injuries aren't too serious."
Link smiled as he spoke.
As for the old wizard's claim that they "wouldn't dare hope for anything more," he just took it as politeness.
After all, who in this world doesn't like Galleons?
Even if they truly didn't want it, he would still force the reward on them, and the amount would surely exceed their imagination.
He didn't want to owe favors to the Germans. Otherwise, Mrs. Flamel would find it even harder to raise her head in front of them.
They continued chatting for a while. Soon, the surviving hunters had also recovered a bit of strength and crowded around to complain to Link about how dangerous the battle had been.
Of course, they didn't dare complain about Link or Old Klee, so their target of blame could only be Dumbledore.
Fortunately, they were much simpler than the German wizards. Link responded with the same promises as before, quickly making smiles return to their blood-streaked faces.
When all this was finished, Link finally looked at the devastated battlefield around him and frowned.
Unlike the hunters, he no longer blamed Dumbledore so much.
Because after the appearance of those two skeletal horse knights, Link had realized that Dumbledore was very likely being tied down by an equally powerful existence.
But what Link didn't know was that Dumbledore's situation was even more brutal than he imagined.
———
[Hogwarts, Forbidden Forest Perimeter]
By now, the Forbidden Forest had already become a sea of fire. Flames raged upward, belching thick smoke into the sky. Driven by the wind, they took the form of giant "beasts" dozens of meters tall, roaring and lashing out, dyeing the entire world a dark red.
The magical creatures who usually lived leisurely in the forest reserve were now fleeing in panic. Unicorns and acromantulas ran side by side; goblins and house-elves worked together…
Every creature, whether hunter or prey in the past, was now running in the same direction, forming a stampeding beast tide.
Even the centaurs, who called themselves the children of stars and forests, charged into the fire together, trying to rescue helpless creatures like bowtruckles.
But their strength was pitifully small.
Chased by the fire, every moment saw more magical creatures consumed by the flames.
The air was filled with a choking mix of roasted meat, burning charcoal, and smoke.
The situation at the Black Lake was no better.
The lake, already vast, had been expanded even further by countless craters along its edges.
Worse, waves of monsters formed entirely from Fiendfyre were charging out of the forest, fearless of death, and hurling themselves toward the lake.
Their bodies, made wholly of cursed fire, couldn't be extinguished by ordinary water. Even with mermaid princess Jenny dispersing many of them with her extraordinary water magic, the lake's water level had still dropped by nearly a quarter.
Countless fish lay gasping on the newly formed riverbank, powerless and pitiful.
But in truth, they were the lucky ones.
Because on the surface of the lake floated countless corpses, fish, grindylows, merfolk, and even the lake's guardian, the giant squid, was now near death, barely paddling with its last two tentacles.
As for the stadium that had held the audience for the Triwizard Tournament, it no longer existed at all.
In its place was a massive crater, at whose bottom dark-red magma bubbled and churned.
High above this chaotic battlefield, two figures floated in confrontation.
On one side was Dumbledore, robed in gray, brows drawn tight, eyes blazing with anger, hair and beard whipping in the wind.
On the other side stood a mysterious wizard cloaked completely in black, his face hidden.
Everything happening here, the devastation, the chaos, was merely the aftermath of their battle.
The black-robed figure had appeared so suddenly that the Hogwarts crowd, still reeling from their pain, hadn't even realized what was happening before disaster struck.
Fortunately, the professors had already been summoned back to the stadium, and Dumbledore had his phoenix. At the last possible moment, they managed to transfer everyone to the castle and raise its protective wards.
Even so, many students had been injured.
Even Hogwarts' protective shield now bore spiderweb cracks, shocking to behold.
Staring at the black-robed wizard, Dumbledore's eyes were filled with anger and worry.
He had received every single one of Link's signals for help. But with Hogwarts and a thousand students behind him, he had no choice but to stay and fight this cloaked enemy.
He could hardly bear to imagine the brutal scene of Link facing Voldemort alone. All he could do was unleash attack after attack, each stronger than the last, in hopes of ending this fight quickly.
Thankfully, although the cloaked man's strength had already reached a legendary level, something most wizards could never hope to touch in a lifetime, he was still slightly weaker.
Now, as the battle dragged on, his opponent was nearly at his limit.
"Who are you, really?" Dumbledore shouted in fury.
It was a huge question buried in his heart.
Since when had the world gained another legendary wizard?
He, Albus Dumbledore, a recipient of the First Class Order of Merlin, a Wizengamot member, a leader in the International Confederation of Wizards, how could he not have known?
Or could it be… the cloaked figure before him was actually Voldemort?
And the one Link faced was just an impostor?
Dumbledore had no way of knowing.
The cloaked man clearly had no intention of answering.
Truthfully, he was in a sorry state. His once splendid robe had been torn into a ragged mess. His exposed flesh bore numerous wounds, oozing blood. Even the mask on his face had been broken off.
But beneath the mask was no human face, only a swirl of black mist.
At Dumbledore's words, the cloaked man's shoulders shook, as if laughing silently, or perhaps trembling uncontrollably from pain.
Seeing this, Dumbledore's face became calm, but the crackling electricity at his wand's tip betrayed his true emotions.
The next moment, he thrust his wand forward. A blast of electromagnetic energy, two meters thick, shot out.
With a deafening hum, it swallowed the raging fire-beasts nearby, obliterated the distant tall mountains, and engulfed the cloaked wizard.
For a long while, the massive energy beam slowly faded into scattered sparks, leaving behind only a half-crystallized scar across the earth.
Dumbledore flicked his wand and turned toward Hogwarts. Yet there was no trace of joy in his eyes, only an even deeper chill.
Because he knew very clearly, his attack hadn't harmed the cloaked man at all.
At the last moment, the enemy had escaped, by some unknown method.
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