Chapter 402: Living in confusion until now, the ceremony begins
"Before I get down to business, do you mind if I clear out some pests?" Lord Voldemort asked with interest.
"Ah, this..." Aaron subtly glanced at Cedric and the others. "I personally actually mind quite a bit."
"If you submit to me, I can spare their lives."
Aaron's mouth twitched, and he rolled his eyes in exasperation. "I won't agree to that."
"I thought as much, but I will give you a chance to change your mind.
Do it, Wormtail."
"As you command, my Master." Pettigrew immediately brandished his wand. "Crucio."
"Crucio!"
Aaron simultaneously cast Crucio, and the two identical spells collided in the air.
Red sparks flew continuously, and the aftershocks of the magical collision crushed the grass on the ground.
"Are you just going to watch? If you don't want to die, hurry up and help me."
That single sentence jolted Cedric and the others awake. At this point, no matter how scared they were, they had to act, otherwise their lives would be in peril.
Cedric quickly scrambled to his feet, pointing his wand at Lord Voldemort, who Wormtail was holding.
After a brief tremor, his expression immediately became incredibly resolute.
"Confringo!"
A giant snake, three or four meters long, suddenly blocked Lord Voldemort's path. Cedric's Confringo spell barely caused it any harm.
"Hiss!"
"Leave him alive, Nagini," Lord Voldemort said indifferently.
The giant snake flicked its tongue, rapidly approaching Cedric.
Cedric's face paled, and he cast several different spells in quick succession, but they only made the giant snake coil slightly, an effect that filled him with despair.
Fleur also joined in, fighting Nagini alongside Cedric. Both of them cast spells simultaneously, barely managing to hold their own against Nagini.
"What the f—! What are you doing over there?" Aaron's expression changed drastically, because if both of them were tied up by a snake, then Krum would be unguarded.
What he feared most came true.
Krum's pupils began to turn white, and he approached Harry Potter like a zombie.
"Damn it! That's not fair."
Aaron cursed under his breath, simultaneously kicking Harry hard.
Harry ignored the pain in his forehead, quickly picked up his wand, and aimed it at Krum, "Stupefy..."
"Stupefy."
A spell struck Harry Potter from the side, knocking him unconscious.
The fake Moody limped over from not far away. He carefully took Lord Voldemort, placed him on a soft cushion, and then knelt before him, his expression incredibly devout. "Master."
"Rise!
You have done very well. I will give you a reward beyond your wildest dreams."
"It is my duty, Master," the fake Moody said respectfully, then stood up and looked at Pettigrew, who was still matching magic with Aaron, with interest, but showed no intention of helping.
"Uh... if I may be so bold, who are you?"
"You will know soon. The Polyjuice Potion will wear off shortly."
Aaron pondered, then increased his magical output.
The scarlet light became even more brilliant, instantly overpowering Pettigrew's Crucio and striking him hard.
"Ah!"
Pettigrew's heart felt as if it were being torn apart, and he let out a shrill scream.
"Useless," Lord Voldemort said coldly. "To be defeated even though his magical energy is superior to his."
"There are always differences between people," Aaron said dismissively. "His magical energy is superior to mine, but my combat power is superior to his."
"Master," the fake Moody looked at Lord Voldemort, "I..."
"Go! Be careful."
"Yes!"
The fake Moody sneered, threw away his walking stick, and frantically attacked Aaron.
The two exchanged several rounds, various spells colliding in a dazzling display, neither able to gain an advantage for a while.
Soon after, Pettigrew also joined in. Facing two at least Master-level wizards, Aaron, with only half his magical power, could only fight and retreat.
"Should I recall my thought-form?" Aaron thought to himself, feeling very hesitant.
This was his biggest trump card. If he played this card, Pettigrew and the fake Moody would definitely not be his opponents, but everything would become even more uncontrollable, because Lord Voldemort had not yet personally acted.
Don't let his current frail appearance fool you; since he chose to show himself, it meant he was fully confident in his resurrection.
This confidence stemmed from his strength; as long as he could wield a wand, he was still the all-powerful Dark Lord.
Once he revealed his full strength, he would have no choice but to clash head-on with Lord Voldemort.
Uncertain if Lord Voldemort had other contingencies, a conservative estimate put their chances of victory at fifty-fifty, but taking the others with him was absolutely impossible.
Just then, Cedric's scream suddenly came from not far away. He had been bitten on the shoulder by Nagini, and venom seeped in, causing blood to flow continuously.
Fleur was also entangled by it, and her breathing became incredibly difficult.
"That's enough," Lord Voldemort said.
The fake Moody and Pettigrew tacitly ceased their actions, while Nagini brought Cedric and Fleur over, wrapped around them.
"Gaius, you haven't lost, but they have."
Aaron looked at the injured Cedric and Fleur, then at the unconscious Harry Potter and Viktor Krum, who was controlled by the enemy. All he felt was helplessness and frustration.
"If just one of you three had listened to me earlier, we wouldn't have ended up in this situation."
Cedric and Fleur exchanged glances, then lowered their heads, on the verge of tears.
"Um... can you let the three of them go?"
"Do you think you are in a position to negotiate with me right now?"
"But you definitely want to negotiate with me," Aaron said with certainty.
"Clever," Lord Voldemort's voice was hoarse. "But let's save the negotiations for a bit, as my current appearance is somewhat impolite.
Before that, it would be better if you didn't have any ability to fight back, wouldn't you agree?"
Aaron pursed his lips, then obediently threw his wand on the ground.
"Expelliarmus."
The fake Moody directly cast two spells, disarming Cedricand Fleur.
"This time, you've really gotten us into trouble," Fleur said bitterly. "Competing for a championship even involves mortal danger."
"Hey? I'm not taking the blame for that.
It wasn't me who got you into trouble, it was Harry Potter."
"One could say that," the fake Moody explained triumphantly. "In a sense, Gaius saved your lives.
My main goal was for Harry Potter to get the trophy, in other words, you few were his obstacles, targets I needed to eliminate.
If it weren't for him, you would have been eaten by dragons in the first task.
The second task was difficult for me to intervene, not only because I couldn't go underwater, but also because Krayne had set up the competition projection.
The third task was my last chance. I controlled Krum before the competition and gave him instructions through those projections at all times.
Originally, I planned to have him ambush you, or lead you to places with many magical creatures... You could die by accident, or by murder, as long as it achieved my goal.
But Gaius made me change my mind. All the champions touching the trophy together meant Harry Potter and Aaron Gaius would fall into Master's hands. As for your lives, they were not so important."
"Did you hear that?" Aaron shrugged. "I didn't really screw you over; in fact, I helped you muddle through until now."
"Enough with the chatter. Tie the three of them up."
"As you command, Master," the fake Moody said, conjuring three ropes and binding Cedric, Fleur, and Krum tightly.
Then he made Harry float, restraining him to a sculpture next to a tombstone.
"Why aren't you tying me up?" Aaron asked, puzzled.
"Why tie you up if I can't keep you bound?" Lord Voldemortsaid matter-of-factly. "I know your abilities very well. Unless it's a special prison, you can't be held."
Aaron chuckled. "Aren't you afraid I'll cause trouble?"
"Nagini will watch them. If you dare to move, it will decisively bite off someone's neck.
Even if you don't care about their lives, my servant will keep a close eye on you."
Aaron's mouth twitched slightly, and he gave an awkward laugh: "How thoughtful."
"Wormtail, you have the things I need ready, haven't you?"
"Y-yes, of course, my Master." Pettigrew nodded hastily, pushing a heavy stone cauldron to the front of the grave.
The cauldron was filled with a special solution, and the flames beneath crackled, keeping it boiling.
Harry's scar began to throb faintly again, rousing him from his slumber.
But as soon as he opened his eyes, he regretted it. Lord Voldemort was about to be resurrected; the scene he feared most was about to unfold before him.
"Calm down, what's coming will come," Aaron comforted him.
"Stop him quickly! Don't worry about me, absolutely don't let him resurrect."
"Shut up, you fool who can't even tell what your situation is," the fake Moody yelled. "Crucio..."
"Stop," Lord Voldemort called out. "He is mine. Don't snatch him from me."
"Yes, Master."
"Professor Moody." Harry was incredulous, but quickly realized something. "No, you're not Professor Moody. What have you done to him?"
The fake Moody's magical eye rotated once, and he said with interest: "Perhaps you'll see him after you die."
"He's still alive," Aaron said, rolling his eyes. "This fellow is still using Polyjuice Potion, which means Moody is still alive."
"How disappointing. I wanted to see his expression of despair!
But I'm sure I'll have that opportunity soon."
"Hurry, Wormtail, I can't wait."
"Yes." Pettigrew trembled as he picked up Lord Voldemortand placed him in the cauldron.
With a hiss, Lord Voldemort was engulfed by the solution, which became even thicker and more turbid.
"Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son," Pettigrew said, pointing his wand at Tom Riddle's grave.
A piece of Lord Voldemort's father's bone flew out of the grave and dropped into the cauldron.
The solution instantly turned blue, emitting large amounts of white steam.
The hearts of the champions all sank, wanting to stop it, but feeling powerless.
Then Pettigrew fearfully extended his right hand, holding a knife in his left, and sobbed in terror: "Flesh of the servant, willingly given, you will revive your Master."
Everyone except the fake Moody, who looked excited, turned their faces away.
Accompanied by a scream, Pettigrew's right hand dropped into the cauldron, and the potion turned red, as if brewing a fresh pot of blood.