Harry's heart nearly leapt into his throat when he saw the face behind the silver mask.
Professor Greengrass!
How could he be here?
Countless questions flooded Harry's mind at once, making him momentarily forget his own predicament.
He was not the only one. Suppressed gasps of shock also rippled through the surrounding Death Eaters.
These followers, who had answered the summons of the Dark Mark, had never expected such a brazen impostor to be hiding among them.
The figures beneath the hoods exchanged glances before raising their wands and assuming attacking stances.
Barty Crouch Jr.'s expression changed abruptly, and he was just about to step forward and seize the uninvited guest when Voldemort raised a hand to stop him.
No emotion showed on his snake-like face, but his scarlet eyes narrowed dangerously as he looked Sagres up and down.
Silence spread through the crowd.
Finally...
"We meet again, Sagres."
Voldemort broke the silence, his voice maintaining a chilling calm.
"Your audacity is greater than I imagined. To dare infiltrate our gathering and stand so brazenly before me."
The icy killing intent in his words seemed to make the surrounding temperature plummet.
"I truly do not know whether to call you arrogant, utterly foolish... or perhaps both."
Sagres casually tossed the exquisite silver mask to the ground, where it landed with a crisp clang.
His expression was just as calm as Voldemort's. His deep eyes slowly swept across the faces hidden beneath the hoods before finally returning to Voldemort.
"Perhaps," Sagres said indifferently. "I was mainly curious... curious how many people, after so many years, would feel your summons again and wisely choose not to come..."
He paused for a moment, a meaningful smile appearing on his lips.
"...and how many would foolishly choose to return."
The words were like an invisible whip lashing at the heart of every Death Eater present, immediately causing a restless stir among them.
Voldemort watched Sagres in silence before suddenly letting out a short, cold laugh.
"Esteemed Professor Greengrass," Voldemort said with feigned respect, though his tone was filled with mockery, "you do not truly believe I am still as weak and powerless as I was when we last met, do you?"
He stepped forward until he stood face to face with Sagres.
"If you truly think so, then you are gravely mistaken, because at this very moment, I have reclaimed my power!"
"Is that so?"
Sagres responded indifferently as he unhurriedly adjusted his sleeve.
"But I see no difference."
Under Voldemort's darkening gaze, Sagres suddenly let out a soft "Ah," as though remembering something.
"Of course... it's not entirely without difference. For example, this monstrous appearance of yours is something I'm seeing for the first time."
Voldemort's expression remained unchanged as he began to pace slowly around Sagres, his robes brushing softly against the grass.
"To accomplish great things, it is only natural to pay a small price."
Sagres chuckled.
"Including the 'great' achievement of tearing your own soul to pieces?"
Voldemort gave a sinister laugh, his voice gradually rising.
"Mortals spend their entire lives trapped within the flesh fate has given them, living insignificant lives! But I, Voldemort, can use supreme wisdom and power to fashion a body for myself!"
He turned in place, displaying his new body to Sagres.
"Behold! This is a privilege possessed only by gods..."
Sagres studied him carefully for a moment before finally shaking his head regretfully.
"I only see a crude, defective product."
Voldemort's patience finally ran out. His pale fingers slowly tightened around his wand, and the killing intent in his scarlet eyes was fully revealed.
"Is that your dying wish, Sagres?"
The temperature seemed to plummet, as though frost had condensed in the air.
The surrounding Death Eaters instinctively retreated, leaving an empty space around the two men.
"Wait a moment."
Sagres raised a hand, his voice as calm as though he were asking a question in class.
Voldemort paused slightly, a mocking curve forming on his lips.
"What is it? Finally feeling afraid, Professor?" His voice was filled with derision. "It is a little too late to beg for mercy now, isn't it?"
Sagres merely shook his head gently.
His gaze slowly swept across the faces hidden beneath the hoods before finally settling on the bound Harry.
"Before we begin, I only want to ask one thing."
His voice echoed clearly through every corner of the graveyard.
"Aside from Harry Potter, is there anyone else who wishes to leave?"
Dead silence followed.
Then Voldemort let out a shrill, cold laugh, the sound echoing eerily among the tombstones.
"Look at them, Sagres! These loyal servants have chosen to return to me. They will never leave again. As for Harry Potter..."
He turned towards Harry, his wand pointing directly at the boy's heart.
"He certainly cannot leave either, because he will die before everyone as a warning to those who still harbour foolish hopes of def..."
He was only halfway through his sentence when Harry's figure suddenly blurred, like a reflection disturbed by a stone falling into water.
Before anyone could react, Harry vanished into thin air, leaving behind only a few black feathers drifting in the breeze.
The triumph on Voldemort's face instantly froze, replaced by uncontrollable fury.
He slowly turned his head, his scarlet eyes locking onto Sagres as his voice dropped to a terrifyingly low growl.
"What trick have you played?"
Without waiting for Sagres to answer, he violently swept his wand through the air and barked an order at the surrounding Death Eaters.
"Find him! Bring that boy back to me!"
The Death Eaters immediately scrambled into action.
"I'm afraid that's no longer possible."
Sagres gently shook his head.
A scorching line of fire suddenly shot out from beneath his feet, slithering across the ground at astonishing speed like an awakened serpent of flame.
Wherever it passed, it left behind a blazing trail, quickly forming a perfect circle around Voldemort and all the Death Eaters.
The flickering flames reflected across Sagres's calm face and illuminated the bewildered expressions of the Death Eaters.
"I already gave all of you a chance."
Sagres's voice remained calm, but his eyes had become impossibly cold.
Pale flames suddenly surged higher, forming a boundary between life and death.
Voldemort stared at the flickering flames surrounding them before suddenly letting out a cold sneer.
"Sagres Greengrass, are you truly arrogant enough to believe that you alone can hold all of us here?"
Flames danced in Sagres's eyes as he raised an eyebrow slightly.
"You got two things wrong, Tom..."
Ignoring Voldemort's suddenly darkened expression, he unhurriedly drew his wand.
"First, this isn't arrogance. Second..."
A terrifying scarlet glow began gathering at the tip of his wand.
"I never intended merely to hold you back."
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