Chapter 25

Having successfully slain the troll, Mike felt utterly drained. Struggling to rise, he leaned back against the wall, assuming a more comfortable position, and began waiting for the professors to arrive.

The first to arrive at the scene was Professor Flitwick. It was hard to imagine how his short legs managed to get him there ahead of all the other professors. But this was understandable, as Mike was a student he held in high regard. He would have felt guilty for a long time if Mike had died at the hands of a foolish troll.

When he arrived, he didn't see the scene he had imagined of Mike being chased around by the troll. Instead, Mike was sitting in a corner, holding his blackthorn wand and gasping for breath. Not far from him was the troll that had forced them to pause the Halloween feast. But now, the troll could no longer move; its entire upper body had been roasted—especially its head and neck, which were almost burned to charred bones.

The binding curse firmly fixed its hands behind its back, and the troll's body was arched in an extremely twisted posture. Its right thigh was broken, and the exposed bone could be seen clearly. There was a large pool of dark red liquid on the ground, which was the troll's congealed blood.

The air was filled with a pungent stench, with a hint of the smell of roasted meat. This combination of scents ensured that anyone who smelled it would never want to eat roast meat again in their lifetime.

Subsequently, when McGonagall and others arrived, they were stunned by the scene. They had also considered the possibility of Mike, a first-year student, using his intelligence to defeat the troll. However, they had never expected the troll to be killed in such a brutal manner.

As for Hermione and Harry, they had been vomiting uncontrollably.

"Are you hurt?" Professor Flitwick, who cared the most for Mike, was the first to react, while everyone else was shocked by the troll's death. He began to inquire about Mike's condition.

"I'm fine, Professor, just a bit exhausted."

Good to hear! You did a fantastic job! That Incendio was brilliant. I was nowhere near as good as you when I was your age."

It seemed that Flitwick didn't care about the troll's fate at all; he was only concerned about Mike's safety.

But some people didn't feel the same way.

"How dare you! How could you do such a thing!" Professor McGonagall was furious. "Do you know how dangerous that was? The troll could have easily crushed you with just one finger!"

Hearing McGonagall scold Mike like this, Hermione couldn't stand it. She fought back the nausea and said, "It's all my fault! Mike encountered the troll because he was taking me to the Great Hall. And he stayed behind alone to hold off the troll to protect me."

McGonagall was left somewhat embarrassed by Hermione's retort, but luckily, Flitwick stepped in to defuse the situation.

"Alright, everyone is safe, and that's what matters." Flitwick helped Mike up. "Furthermore, to commend Mike's bravery and wit, Ravenclaw gets 20 points."

Mike was quite moved. After being in this world for so long, Professor Flitwick was the first person to genuinely treat him well. He could feel that Flitwick regarded him as a promising junior, a look he hadn't experienced even in two lifetimes.

"Alright, we shouldn't linger here. Let's head back quickly. Mike needs to be examined by Madam Pomfrey," Flitwick said, and then, with the help of Hermione, they assisted Mike away from the foul-smelling bathroom door.

Professor McGonagall felt a mix of emotions. Hermione was a student she was particularly fond of, and her personality resembled her own when she was younger., At this moment, observing Hermione helping Mike, Professor McGonagall felt as though her prized student was being taken advantage of by someone undeserving.

Looking at Mike and Hermione, then turning her head to see Harry and Ron still vomiting, McGonagall grew angrier and dragged the two by their ears towards Gryffindor.

Left alone on the scene was Snape. He hadn't spoken a word just now and even felt miserably inconspicuous, which didn't fit his usual demeanor.

At this moment, he didn't leave like the others. Instead, his gaze swept the area repeatedly, trying to reconstruct the entire process of the recent battle, which was not difficult for him.

Finally, his eyes settled on the troll's hands, still tied behind its back, and its broken right leg, still firmly against its left leg. He remained there, motionless, lost in thought for a long time.

When Hermione and Professor Flitwick brought Mike to the infirmary, Madam Pomfrey was eating pumpkin pie, as the recent feast had been abruptly ended due to the troll incident.

It was already late at night when Madam Pomfrey finished examining Mike. Although Mike was just exhausted, as a precaution, Madam Pomfrey decided he should rest in the infirmary for the night.

After confirming that Mike was fine, Hermione, escorted by Professor Flitwick, left the infirmary, reluctant to part.

Meanwhile, in the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts, Snape was briefing Dumbledore on what he had just witnessed and heard.

"Our dear Mr. Tully is quite a tough character. Not only does he have a surprising talent in combat, but he also possesses a ruthless heart," Snape said in his signature low voice.

Headmaster Dumbledore, seated at his desk and engrossed in writing, remained silent but gestured with the hand holding his pen for Snape to go on.

"He initially employed the Leg-Locker Curse to restrict the troll's mobility, a stroke of brilliance," Snape approached Dumbledore's desk, "Only wizards with extensive experience in hunting magical creatures understand this method of dealing with large creatures."

"Mr. Tully could have made a clean escape after the Leg-Locking Curse took effect, but he didn't. He chose to use the Full Body-Bind Curse to immobilize the troll and finally used the fire spell to kill it." Do you know what this means? It means that Tully, faced with an enemy that had utterly lost the ability to resist, still chose to kill it. This is not a mindset befitting a first-year wizard."

Finally, Dumbledore stopped his work and looked up expressionlessly at Snape, saying, "Thank you for your efforts. You may rest now."

Snape turned and left without the slightest hesitation.

The office became very quiet, with even the crackling sound of the firewood burning in the fireplace clearly audible.

Dumbledore didn't continue his work. He stood up and walked over to the phoenix Fawkes, who was preening its feathers on a perch in the corner.

"It seems we need to find time to have a talk with young Mike," Dumbledore murmured so softly that it was almost inaudible.