Chapter 251 - 251: The Tarot Club's Off-the-Books Member

Words : 2222 Updated : Oct 13th, 2025

Wait, what?! The Golden Trio still showed up! How did they manage to sneak past Aberforth and Fawkes? Or…could this be part of Dumbledore's grand plan as well? But if the commotion had been caused by those three, then where was Barty Jr.? At that moment, Ron stared fixedly at the White Queen on the chessboard and said in a low voice, "There's only one way. I have to be taken." Harry and Hermione shouted at the same time, "No!" "This is chess!" Ron barked. "Sacrifices are always necessary! If I move forward, she'll take me. Then you can checkmate the King, Harry!" "But…" "No buts!" Ron shrank his neck a little. "You think this is a multiple-choice question? That invisible man already said he'll kill us if we lose!" Hidden Edward froze for a second: …Wait, was he talking about me? No! His gaze turned sharp instantly. There was another invisible person here—Barty Jr.? Was he seriously just playing house with the kids? And where was Aberforth? Was he hiding invisibly nearby as well? Maybe he hadn't made a move yet because—he was waiting. Waiting for Voldemort to appear? "He's right." A voice chuckled from the shadows, "You don't have a choice. But he's also wrong. I don't intend to kill you—yet. Just that the spell I'll use to destroy the chessboard mechanism might accidentally injure you." …How was that any different?! Ron suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and shouted, "I'm going! The rest is up to you!" He stepped forward. The White Queen instantly pounced and smashed a heavy stone fist into the knight's head, then dragged Ron aside. Harry moved swiftly, delivering the checkmate and defeating the White King. As the white chess pieces bowed and stepped aside to clear the path, Harry and Hermione glanced at Ron and were about to move into the next room. In truth, leaving Ron here was safer—at least he wouldn't be under constant threat from the invisible stalker. But the invisible figure seemed to see right through Harry's thoughts, his languid voice drifting through the room: "Bring him with you. I'd rather not lose one of my bargaining chips." That bastard! Harry's eyes were filled with resentment, but he had no choice. With Hermione's help, he used a Levitation Charm to slowly drag Ron along as they trudged into the next chamber. The moment they stepped in, a putrid stench hit them full force, so intense it brought tears to their eyes. Not far away, a grotesque, hulking creature was staggering around clumsily, wielding a massive club. "A troll!" Hermione's face turned pale. "Are…are we supposed to defeat it to get through this room?" Harry swallowed nervously. "Looks like it…It's seen us!" The troll had spotted them and was now charging with a roar, club raised. The two didn't hesitate—they grabbed Ron and ran. Unfortunately, that only excited the troll further, making it charge faster with larger strides. "We're not gonna outrun it!" Hermione cried, her voice trembling. Harry yelled, "Back to the chess room! Let the pieces handle it!" "Great idea." The hidden man chuckled. "I was just about to help, but seems I don't have to anymore." "..." Harry wanted to slap himself—brilliant thinking, Potter! Too late for regrets now. The two of them, dragging Ron, bolted back to the giant chessboard room. But to their dismay, the pieces had returned to their original positions and now stood motionless, completely ignoring the intruders—as if lifeless. "RRAAAAAARGH!" The troll crashed through a wall and charged into the room, instantly tainting the air with its unbearable stench. "It's attacking the King and Queen!" Harry shouted mid-sprint. The knights, castles, chariots, and pawns immediately turned their heads—but instead of acting, they all looked to the King and Queen for orders. The two monarch pieces exchanged glances, displaying unexpected intelligence: "It's not targeting us. Hold your positions." Harry was stunned. Since when can they talk?! Fuck! What now? Just as he turned to ask Hermione, he saw her raise her wand at the White King. "Hermione, what are you doing—?" "Expulso!" Boom! The White King exploded into countless shards. "Expulso!" Then the Black King followed. "The kings have been assassinated! Lock down the scene and capture the culprits!!" At the Queen's command, the chess pieces began to move—but this time, their targets were Harry, Hermione, and Ron! "Hermione, are you trying to increase the number of enemies we have?!" "This is the only way! Quick, lead them to the troll!" The two made a sharp turn, dragging Ron toward the troll. Over twenty chess pieces stormed after them. "Use the Conjunctivitis Curse!" Hermione shouted and swung her wand again. Harry quickly joined in. Unfortunately, the troll had sky-high magic resistance—the first seven or eight Conjunctivitis Curses barely tickled it. They were closing in. The stench was overwhelming. Finally, just as they were about to collide, the spell took effect. The troll screamed, dropped its club, and clutched its eyes in agony, stumbling blindly. Harry and Hermione took the chance to dart around it, dragging Ron with them as they made for the next room. The pursuing chess pieces also tried to go around the troll—only for the blinded beast to charge straight into them, crushing a Queen and two Rooks under its massive weight. The rest flew into a frenzy, abandoning the trio to gang up on the troll. The troll roared back in anger, swinging its fists furiously. A chaotic battle broke out between the monster and the stone soldiers. "Hahahaha! Oh, this is far too entertaining." The hidden figure clapped gleefully. "But remember—you're on borrowed time. That troll will eventually crush all the pieces…and come after you again." Harry and Hermione, panting heavily on the ground, quickly scrambled to their feet and rushed with Ron into the next room. Whoosh! Just as they crossed the threshold, a wall of fire whooshed up behind them, sealing the entrance. At the same time, a black flame ignited at the doorway ahead, trapping them inside. The room was empty save for a single table, upon which sat seven oddly shaped bottles. Hermione picked up a roll of parchment placed next to the bottles. "Oh, this looks like a logic puzzle. Let me see." Harry glanced at it and immediately felt dizzy. He recognised every word, but together they made zero sense. Hermione, however, quickly deciphered the clues and pointed to the smallest bottle. "This one will let us pass through the black flames." "But…there's only enough for one person." Harry picked up the tiny bottle and glanced around the empty room. "Sir…are you sure you want me to drink this?" From the shadows, a laugh echoed: "Hahahaha…" That voice chuckled and said, "In fact, there's really no need to go through all that trouble." The figure reappeared from invisibility and waved his wand at the black flames. Within seconds, the flames slowly extinguished, revealing a dim doorway beyond them. This time, he did not recast the Disillusionment Charm, so everyone present could now clearly see his appearance: The man was indeed Barty Crouch Jr.! But his entire body was in tatters, the exposed skin riddled with signs of decay. Most horrifying of all was the left side of his face—through the pale, rotting flesh, one could clearly see the bare, gleaming white bone underneath. At this moment, he looked just like a zombie from a horror film! "Ahhh!!" Hermione screamed and ducked behind Harry in fright. "Y-You…what are you?" Harry pointed his wand at him, summoning his courage as he shouted. "Me? I'm someone who died…and then came back to life. It's a pleasure to meet you, The-Boy-Who-Lived...Harry Potter." As Barty spoke, one could see his yellowed teeth opening and closing through the exposed flesh of his cheek—eerie and grotesque. Edward's mind raced. Something's wrong with Barty! Is this the side effect of Voldemort possessing him? But in the original, Voldemort possessed Quirrell, and he didn't look like this! Or is Voldemort in a different state this time—or using a different method to possess someone? Edward silently phased back through the wall to the innermost chamber and flipped his coin again. "Voldemort is currently possessing Barty Crouch Jr." Number side up. No! "Voldemort is here in this room." Head side up! Yes! Edward instinctively looked around. So Voldemort is also here, hidden under a Disillusionment Charm? Which meant…what seemed like "the Trio's Adventure" on the surface was actually being watched by at least four invisible people the whole time? If that's the case—what would happen if I forcefully canceled all magic in this space? Would Voldemort be forced to reveal himself? At that moment, Barty had already led Harry and Hermione into the final chamber. There was nothing inside…except for one object standing in the centre. The Mirror of Erised. "Heh. I finally found you." Barty stared at the mirror with a disturbing smile. "Now then, Harry…can you tell me where the Philosopher's Stone is?" He gently placed his rotten, skeletal hand on Hermione's shoulder, his voice soft. Harry immediately shouted, "How would I know?!" "Why don't you go take a look in the mirror?" Harry hesitated, then stepped in front of the Mirror of Erised. His reflection appeared pale and frightened, but soon, a faint smile spread across his mirrored face. Then, a man and a woman appeared behind him— The man looked very much like Harry, while the woman had striking green eyes. They were gazing at him with gentle, affectionate smiles. A tremor ran through Harry's heart—he instantly recognised who they were. He slowly lifted a hand, wanting to touch the mirror…but just then, their figures began to fade. In the next moment, mirror-Harry reached into his pocket, pulled out a vivid red stone, winked at him, and put the stone back in. At the same time, Harry felt a solid weight drop into his real pocket. The Philosopher's Stone?! "What did you see, Harry Potter?" "I…I saw my mum and dad," Harry said, half-truthfully. "Hahaha, of course. Naturally." Barty burst into laughter. "Of course you'd see your mum and dad. But what else did you see?" "N-Nothing else." "Really?" Barty's hand now rested lightly against Hermione's soft, slender neck. "Are you sure you saw nothing else?" Harry's body trembled. He didn't want Voldemort to get the Stone—but he also couldn't bear to watch Hermione be harmed before his eyes. Slowly, he began to reach toward his pocket. If…if handing over the Philosopher's Stone means Hermione and Ron will survive…Professor Dumbledore would forgive me, right? He would. He definitely would. His fingers touched the hard surface of the Stone— "Stupefy! Petrificus Totalus!" Suddenly, Ron, who had been lying motionless on the ground, sprang up and yelled as he crashed into Barty's back. He had lost his wand long ago—shouting the spell names was just a bluff to distract Barty. With a loud thud, Barty stumbled forward. "Go! Run!" Ron lunged, grabbed the stunned Hermione, and started dragging her back toward the exit. "Harry—move!" Harry snapped out of it. "Expelliarmus!" Seeing Barty regain his balance, Harry whipped out his wand and cast the Disarming Charm he'd just learned. Boom! But Barty had long since cast a Shield Charm. The spell bounced off and knocked Harry's wand out of his hand, sending him flying onto his backside. "Harry!!" Hermione shouted in panic. "Forget me! Go get Professor Dumbledore!" Ron grabbed Hermione's wrist and dragged her away at top speed. Harry gritted his teeth and scrambled back to his feet, flinging himself in front of the door to block it. Barty looked at him calmly, unbothered. "I just let your friends go, didn't I? So…would you kindly hand me the Philosopher's Stone now?" Harry froze—then it dawned on him. That's right! This guy is a Death Eater—why would he let two first-years just run away so easily? Barty extended a hand. "Come now, Harry. Give it to me." "…..." Harry's expression flickered rapidly. He slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out the red stone. Barty's lips curled into a smile. "Interesting…" "Are…are you going to use it to bring Voldemort back?" "You could say that." "Why?! Why would you all serve someone as cruel and evil as him?!" Barty replied in a flat voice, "Harry, this world is far more complicated than simply good and evil. Sometimes, what you think is justice…might be the real evil. Sometimes, even what you see with your own eyes…might be an illusion." "You…You're spouting nonsense!!" Harry yelled in defiance. "And besides—" Barty took another step forward, his smile widening, "—who said I'm giving the Stone to Voldemort? Why can't I use it for myself?" "No matter who it is…I won't let you succeed!!!" Without hesitation, Harry raised the red stone to his mouth— And swallowed it whole. "!!!" It wasn't just Barty. Even Edward was stunned. Holy sh—! Harry, are you actually this reckless?! ——— [Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.

Chapter 251 - 251: The Tarot Club's Off-the-Books Member

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