Now, only Grindelwald remained standing before the group.
He glanced back at the crowd with a cold expression. His aged face revealed neither joy nor anger. Then the casual gaze in his slightly cloudy eyes suddenly sharpened, and he raised his hand.
Professor McGonagall didn't hesitate. Even though her mind was still somewhat numb from the sudden turn of events, she immediately stepped in front of the students and raised her wand toward Grindelwald as well—it was simply her instinct as a teacher.
However, Grindelwald had no intention of attacking them.
"I have no interest in a bunch of weaklings like you."
He coldly lowered his eyelids and glanced at the large group before him.
Then he slowly pointed the wand in his hand toward the ceiling.
A blazing dragon, its body completely engulfed in flames, suddenly materialized from the tip of the wand. It violently soared upward, dazzling and blinding as it wreaked havoc among the tall buildings. Stones and bricks came crashing down from above, kicking up clouds of dust.
Grindelwald himself retained his zombie-like expression as his body gradually became transparent.
With that, he Disapparated from the Ministry of Magic.
Gellert Grindelwald's departure seemed to signal the complete end of the battle.
But its terrifying influence had only just begun to unfold.
The outcome of this battle was enough to stir up the already turbulent undercurrents in Britain. The entire wizarding world had been turned upside down.
Then the air fell into deathly silence.
Only the tattered strips of cloth hanging from the bricks and the overturned chairs in the distance continued to burn, the crackling of the flames breaking the silence.
As if proving that they still existed.
In the spacious room, the fluorescent glow emitted by the pale-red flames was extremely dim.
Then, a piercing cry shattered the solemn atmosphere.
Professor Trelawney seemed to realize only now how courageous she had been. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. Tears blurred her vision as she removed her large, old-fashioned glasses and rubbed her eyes.
Only then did everyone seem to regain the strength and awareness to begin grieving.
The rest of the students stared solemnly ahead.
The boys were restrained and serious.
As for the two girls, Hermione in particular had already begun sobbing.
Dumbledore had fallen through the other side of the veil.
He would never return.
The most powerful wizard in the wizarding world today—the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, widely regarded as the greatest wizard of his time; a recipient of the Order of Merlin, First Class; founder and secret leader of the Order of the Phoenix; President of the International Confederation of Wizards; and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot.
A man adorned with countless titles and honours had died just like that, without even leaving behind the remains he should have had.
No remains were found.
Those titles seemed somewhat ridiculous in the face of the boundary between life and death.
Because they were meaningless.
Ron looked dazed. His freckled face was numb, his eyes unfocused as he stared blankly at the chaotic scene before him, seemingly still unable to comprehend what had happened.
Harry reacted in much the same way, though a little faster.
Then he descended into a hysterical state.
He felt guilty. If he had arrived earlier, could he have stopped it?
"No, he's not dead. He'll climb out again. He didn't fall all the way through. Professor Dumbledore might be waiting for us to rescue him!"
Harry spoke hysterically.
He struggled toward the veil, but a powerful force restrained him.
"Harry, calm down!" Sirius quickly hooked an arm around his shoulders.
Harry wanted to rush to the veil and pull Dumbledore back.
"Sirius, Professor Dumbledore just fell in! He'll be fine! I'm going to get him out!"
Harry kicked wildly, striking Sirius as he struggled to break free from his godfather's grip.
Then he felt a sharp pain in the back of his neck.
Everything went black.
He lost consciousness.
Sirius had knocked him unconscious, forcing him to "calm down."
Lupin and Sirius exchanged a glance. Lupin calmly took Harry from Sirius's arms and carried him on his back.
Fawkes, the phoenix who had seemingly deserted Dumbledore at the last moment, had now quietly flown back to the group. Its bright-red tail feathers gently brushed against the hem of Hermione's robes in an almost human-like manner, as though comforting her.
A few sorrowful tears slipped from its eyes.
If a shrewd businessman had been here, he would probably have been heartbroken to see such precious phoenix tears wasted on the ground.
Hermione continued sobbing.
Even now, she couldn't believe this reality. She desperately wished that it were all just a dream.
At that moment, the poignant elegy of the phoenix began to play, and Fawkes's voice echoed throughout the room.
The person who had given them the greatest sense of security had died in a sneak attack by Voldemort, and his body had never been found.
The crowd gazed sadly at the chaotic scene before them in the Department of Mysteries.
"Perhaps he has simply gone to another world."
Luna gazed dreamily at the curtains swaying in the wind, her ethereal voice ringing out.
Perhaps she was thinking of her mother.
Then she closed her eyes, seemingly listening intently to Fawkes's singing, her head swaying slightly to the rhythm.
But soon afterward, the girl suddenly opened her eyes again.
She crouched down and, through her blurred vision, carefully examined the fiery-red phoenix on the floor, as if she had noticed something unusual.
Fawkes seemed to notice someone staring at it with a strange gaze, and the poignant elegy paused almost imperceptibly.
Luna's gaze became even more peculiar.
And no one except Luna noticed this unusual occurrence.
At this moment, even the usually jovial Weasley twins were filled with sadness.
They had little energy left to pay attention to Fawkes's performance.
Professor McGonagall's wrinkled, aged face was filled with sorrow, and her deep-set eyes remained fixed on the veil that had taken Dumbledore's life.
She took a breath, forcing back her grief, and said to the students in a trembling voice, "We should go."
As the Deputy Headmistress, she had to remain calm now.
She mustered her strength. She needed to get her students back to Hogwarts as soon as possible.
Voldemort might make a comeback at any time.
Just as she was about to leave, a series of noises suddenly came from the stone door behind her.
Professor McGonagall immediately tensed. Flitwick and Snape moved closer to her, shielding the students behind them.
It was a false alarm.
Because the person who arrived was none other than the current Minister of Magic—Dolores Umbridge.