The rain in the Forbidden Forest continued to drizzle endlessly, while the wall of fire before Wentworth still burned fiercely. His spell had failed to dispel Quirrell's enchantment.
This scene left Wentworth momentarily stunned, and even Quirrell himself faltered for a brief second before bursting into a fit of triumphant laughter.
"Keh keh keh! Wentworth, surprised, aren't you? In the end, I am still a professor at Hogwarts, while you are nothing more than an ordinary Hogwarts student! This spell is my own creation, crafted using ancient runes. A simple counter-charm will never be enough to break it!"
Upon hearing Quirrell's words, Wentworth suddenly understood. Clearly, this wall of fire was different from the one he had previously conjured using a ring of flames. It was likely more akin to Snape's self-invented Sectumsempra—requiring a specific counter-curse to nullify.
But realizing this only made Wentworth more anxious. He had yet to study ancient runes, making it impossible for him to find the counter-curse in a short time.
To make matters worse, Kirk's spellcasting had begun to slow. A mere glance was enough for Wentworth to tell that Kirk's magical reserves were running low.
Although Kirk was exceptionally talented—after all, he was a Hufflepuff Prefect and among the top students at Hogwarts—compared to Cedric's naturally abundant magical energy and Wentworth's extraordinary soul strength, Kirk's abilities seemed slightly lacking.
Despite his best efforts to hold on, it was clear that Kirk wouldn't last much longer.
Quirrell had also noticed this. Seeing that Wentworth had failed to break his enchantment, he shifted his focus back to Kirk and Cedric—especially Kirk, against whom Quirrell had already begun his counterattack.
In an instant, the previously balanced battle started to tilt. Kirk, now struggling to defend against Quirrell's attacks, could no longer restrain him.
Taking a deep breath, Wentworth was about to turn and join the fray. If he couldn't break through Quirrell's magical blockade to rescue Cassandra, there was only one option left—defeating Quirrell entirely.
Just as he was about to act, Hermione suddenly grabbed him.
Wentworth looked at her impatiently, but before he could speak, Hermione hurriedly said,
"Senior Wentworth, maybe there's another way to get through this firewall!"
Wentworth was taken aback. Before he could even ask what she meant, Hermione raised her wand and pointed it at him.
"Flame-Freezing Charm!"
The moment he heard the incantation, Wentworth's eyes widened in delight.
Meanwhile, Harry couldn't help but ask, "Hermione, what spell did you just use on Wentworth? Is it reliable? Don't mess this up!"
Annoyed, Hermione rolled her eyes at Harry and explained, "The Flame-Freezing Charm, from The Standard Book of Spells, Chapter Three! It protects wizards from being harmed by fire! A long, long time ago, Muggles feared the power of wizards and often captured them, tying them to stakes before setting fire to the pyres beneath their feet."
"To counter this, wizards created this spell as a precaution. If caught by Muggles, they would still have a chance to escape. Though it's not as commonly used today, the spell has been passed down through generations."
While Harry was still absorbing Hermione's explanation, Wentworth was already standing before Quirrell's firewall. Clenching his teeth, he slowly extended his left hand into the flames. His eyes immediately lit up—while he could feel the temperature rising against his skin, it was not enough to cause him any harm.
Seeing this, Wentworth hesitated no longer. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and charged straight through the firewall.
Emerging on the other side, he found Cassandra. Though she appeared slightly disheveled, her bright and unwavering gaze met his.
Wentworth spoke softly, "Sorry I'm late."
Cassandra shook her head repeatedly, indicating that he had nothing to apologize for.
Just as Wentworth was about to find a way to remove the enchantments binding Cassandra, a sudden cry rang out from behind him.
"No, Kirk!"
Wentworth whipped around just in time to see Kirk's body being flung through the air like a broken doll, tracing an arc before crashing to the ground.
Though he didn't know exactly what had happened, Wentworth could tell that Kirk and even Cedric were now in grave danger.
"Harry, get out of here! We have to leave now!" Wentworth shouted.
Harry, still staring at Kirk in concern, hesitated. He was about to shake his head in refusal when Hermione lightly tugged his sleeve.
Once again raising her wand, she pointed it at Harry and called out loudly,
"Flame-Freezing Charm!"
Then, pushing Harry forward, she all but yelled, "Go! You have to leave! Don't worry about them—just get out of here with Wentworth!"
On the other side, Quirrell finally realized that Wentworth had passed through his enchantment. Before he could fully comprehend how Wentworth had escaped his spell without breaking it, he saw Hermione casting the same spell on Harry.
Finally understanding, Quirrell felt a surge of frustration rise within him. He almost wanted to shout at them—
Were you all just pretending to be average students this whole time?!
Wentworth was one thing—after all, he was the leader of the Alliance. Kirk and Cedric were also understandable, given their talent. But even a random first-year girl knew such an obscure spell like the Flame-Freezing Charm?!
But Quirrell knew this was not the time for such thoughts. Before Voldemort could issue another furious command, Quirrell acted first, shouting,
"Where do you think you're going?! Stay here!"
With that, he cast a powerful spell at Cedric. Though Cedric managed to block it, with Kirk incapacitated and no longer restraining Quirrell, Cedric could only barely deflect the attack. Even so, the force of the spell sent him staggering several steps back before he could regain his balance.
Meanwhile, Quirrell was already flying toward Wentworth and Harry's position!
"Senior Wentworth, Quirrell is coming straight for us!" Hermione called out in alarm.
Wentworth, still busy undoing the curses binding Cassandra, barely looked up before shoving her toward Hermione.
"Take her and go! Quickly!"
Knowing there was no time for argument, Hermione grabbed Cassandra and retreated at once.
Now, only Wentworth and Harry remained, standing their ground as Quirrell descended upon them.
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