The tail that was about to touch Lynn immediately went limp and fell, hitting the ground with a dull thud.
The Basilisk inside the water sphere also went soft, its life force extinguished.
"Pfft..."
Lynn, who had held on until now, finally couldn't take it anymore. She spat out a mouthful of blood, her wand slipping from her hand and clattering to the floor as she fell straight back onto the ground.
Going from sitting to lying down, the water sphere—deprived of Lynn's magical maintenance—burst apart. The compressed water surged out in a violent torrent, washing Lynn into a nearby corner.
The Basilisk's corpse also crashed heavily onto the floor.
The battle was over. The Basilisk was dead, and the body Lynn had been forcibly driving instantly went on strike.
The clarity in her brain instantly turned to chaos, and the splitting pain completely robbed her of her ability to think.
Every bone in her body felt as if it were being crushed one by one; there wasn't a single spot that didn't hurt.
Unable to stop herself from curling up, Lynn struggled to lift two fingers of her right hand. 'Accio wand...' After thinking it silently, her wand automatically returned to her fingers.
Lynn's fingers curled stiffly to 'hold' the wand, and she spent a great deal of effort to point the tip toward herself.
Just completing these actions left her gasping for breath.
"Crucio..."
A faint whisper escaped her; it wouldn't have been audible unless one's ear was pressed to Lynn's lips, but it was enough for her to cast the Cruciatus Curse.
A red beam of magical light hit Lynn. Her expression remained unchanged, but her body trembled even more violently.
Headmaster Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Professor Snape, and Professor Sprout, who had just rushed into the Chamber of Secrets, happened to see the red light shoot from Lynn's wand, hit her, and cause her whole body to shake.
A red magical beam and full-body tremors—the Professors present, who had lived through the period of Lord Voldemort's 'reign', almost immediately guessed what spell it was.
Seeing Lynn's mouth begin to quiver again, Professor McGonagall drew her wand without hesitation. "Expelliarmus!"
Lynn's wand instantly flew from her hand and was caught firmly by Professor McGonagall. Without a wand, she could not cast the Cruciatus Curse, one of the three Unforgivable Curses.
"Severus." Headmaster Dumbledore turned and looked at Professor Snape with a grave expression.
Professor Snape nodded, strode to Lynn's side, and after kneeling down, waved his wand over her to check her condition.
The more he looked, the more his already somber face darkened. "Foolish girl."
Professor Snape reached out and picked her up directly, ignoring social niceties or gender boundaries in the face of the emergency.
He had to preserve this child's soul first.
Professor Snape walked with long strides back to Headmaster Dumbledore, not even glancing at the Basilisk's corpse as he passed.
"This foolish little girl seems to have hit herself with several Cruciatus Curses and used a massive amount of magic. Her soul and magic are both very unstable; she needs to be sent to St Mungos."
"I'll go with you," Professor Flitwick and Professor McGonagall said in unison.
Headmaster Dumbledore nodded decisively in agreement. "Good. You three take her to St Mungos first. Pomona and I will handle things here at the school."
With that, the three Professors wasted no more words. They rushed out of the Chamber of Secrets with Lynn and ascended by grabbing the tail of the flying Fawkes.
The nearest Professor's office to the second-floor girls' washroom with a Floo Network was Lockhart's office.
Arriving outside the door, Professor Flitwick unceremoniously waved his wand to force it open.
Lockhart, who was sleeping like a log, instantly bolted upright in bed, looking dazed at the three colleagues who had 'broken in'.
"What's happened?"
When he saw Lynn in Professor Snape's arms, a flash of surprise and opportunism uncontrollably crossed his eyes.
"Miss Lynn? What is this?"
Professor McGonagall saw the look that had just flashed in his eyes, frowned deeply, and snapped.
"She's injured. I don't believe that concerns you, Lockhart."
With that, she urged Professor Snape to lead the way with Lynn, with Professor Flitwick following close behind, while she herself hit Lockhart with a harsh Stupefy before entering the fireplace.
She would ensure he slept for a full day, only waking once they had finished their business and could keep an eye on him.
Trying to scheme against her student? In his dreams. Green flames flared, and the tall Witch vanished into the fireplace.
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