At the main gate of Hogwarts, professors now stood guard. This was because the flat stretch of land there led directly to the Forbidden Forest. If the Death Eaters managed to break through the protective barrier, they could charge straight into the castle.
Professor McGonagall was a little stirred. She summoned all the stone statues she would never ordinarily call upon. These statues, created with Transfiguration, had stood along the outer wall of Hogwarts' main gate for years. There were hundreds of them, massive and sturdy.
This was McGonagall's proud creation, something she never imagined she would one day need.
Thinking back to the wizard chess she created in Harry's first year, one could see how fond she was of crafting such large-scale constructs.
After teaching at Hogwarts for decades, a person inevitably develops certain hobbies.
The statues leapt down one after another from their positions on the outer wall. Each landing sent a thunderous boom through the ground.
Regulus Black's Demon Domain of the Twelve Zodiac Palaces had already distributed Aries, Taurus, Leo, Sagittarius, Capricorn, and Pisces. Aquarius had been given to [Four] as the submarine's combat power. That left five constellation demons still in his possession.
"Summon the Cancer Demon! Summon the Scorpio Demon!"
When McGonagall had finished unleashing her stone statues, Regulus Black came to the gate and released two of his constellation demons.
The Cancer Demon stood five meters tall. Its crab shell bore a half-human torso, the entire body armored in chitin, with two massive pincers for hands. Its head was also that of a crab, with another pair of pincers in place of a mouth. Together with the lower body of a full crab, it had three pairs of pincers in total—though the pair on the head seemed to serve little purpose.
The Scorpio Demon, also five meters tall, likewise bore a half-human torso at the front of its scorpion body. Instead of hands, however, its arms were two flexible, writhing scorpion tails. Its "hair" was a wriggling mass of scorpion stingers. From the lower scorpion body extended three long tails. This was a demon composed entirely of venomous scorpion tails.
Regulus Black held a key in one hand as he summoned both constellation demons.
Such grotesque demons were certainly not meant to be wielded by young girls.
Outside, the Death Eaters' offensive faltered. What were those things? They had never seen anything like them. Did anyone know what branch of magic these belonged to?
The Cancer and Scorpio Demons lumbered forward, their limbs swaying as they followed the stone statues toward the stone bridge ahead.
The Death Eaters broke through the protective shield. Giants who had bargained with Voldemort, under the sway of Confundus Charms, lurched their huge bodies forward, charging the statue soldiers. Each swing of their tree-trunk clubs smashed dozens of statues at once. Spells from the Death Eaters behind them only chipped away small fragments of stone.
Seeing the comparison, the Death Eaters gladly let the giants lead the way. But Regulus Black had no intention of allowing them through so easily.
The Cancer Demon scrambled onto the heads of the statue soldiers, its eight legs stepping deftly from one stone head to the next as it darted toward the giants. Though smaller than they were, its movements were astonishingly agile.
Anyone who has tried to catch a crab with bare hands knows the difficulty without skill and experience. To the giants, the Cancer Demon was exactly that crab.
Especially since its pincers were sharp and powerful, trying to catch it was pure agony.
The demon severed a giant's ear, tore flesh from his nose, and split open his mouth with its pincers. It targeted the giant's face deliberately, gouging out an eye while always avoiding capture.
"This fighting strength… it's far greater than the statues."
From the rear, Professor McGonagall saw the first giant collapse—not from the Cancer Demon's assaults on its face, but because the Scorpio Demon had felled it with a single venomous sting.
The swelling, blackened blood and festering wound showed everyone just how deadly its poison was.
The Cancer Demon leapt at a second giant, fully displaying a crab's springing agility. The same scene replayed: the face was attacked, the eyes gouged, then the Scorpio Demon struck with its poisonous tail.
Together, the two demons quickly brought the battle at the bridge under control. The Death Eaters recoiled in fear. Such strange creatures they had never seen, and their combat power was terrifying.
Some attempted spells, but the demons dodged when they could, and when they couldn't, the magic seemed to have little effect. Everyone was stunned—could they really be this strong?
"Reducto! Confringo! Bombarda Maxima! Incendio! Avada Kedavra!"
Finally, one Death Eater cast the Killing Curse. The two constellation demons didn't react at all.
Because they were creations of alchemy. Strictly speaking, they weren't living beings, but objects—tools with only the faintest semblance of life.
By then, eight giants had already fallen. Four remained, and they were beginning to think of retreat.
"Reducio!"
One Death Eater, skilled only in basic spells, waved his wand and cast the shrinking charm he knew best.
Before everyone's eyes, the once-unbeatable Cancer Demon shrank into a small crab. Shocked, the Death Eaters turned toward their companion.
The man gave an awkward grin, then quickly cast another shrinking charm, turning the Scorpio Demon into a tiny scorpion.
From afar, Regulus Black saw this and immediately used his key to recall both demons.
The remaining giants were stunned. Just moments ago, their comrades had been brutally attacked by those monsters, and now, in an instant, the creatures were reduced by a simple spell. The sudden reversal was staggering.
Seeing their eight fallen companions, the four surviving giants howled in rage and charged. They smashed the remaining statues to rubble with brutal efficiency, far surpassing those who came before.
"The giants are breaking through!"
Professor McGonagall cried out.
"I can still strike once more. Leave these four to me."
Regulus Black said, switching to two new keys.
"Summon the Gemini Demon! Summon the Libra Demon!"
The Gemini Demon appeared as two figures back-to-back, with triangular heads bearing a single mouth and four arms and legs in total.
It rushed at a giant, wrapping its arms around him. The giant immediately froze, paralyzed.
The second body bent down, hoisted the first—along with the immobilized giant—onto its back as though it weighed nothing.
It then grappled a second giant, leaving both unable to move. Just as some Death Eaters tried to intervene, Regulus recalled the Gemini Demon, pulling both immobilized giants away with it.
The Libra Demon also had four limbs, but its head resembled a fan. It held an iron chain in its hands, with a cage dangling from each end.
With a swing, the cages smashed into the two remaining giants. In an instant, they vanished, reappearing shrunken inside the cages.
Regulus Black recalled the Libra Demon as well.
These two demons bore the powers of imprisonment and capture.
The Death Eaters hung back at a distance, uncertain if they should advance. Who knew what else Regulus might have in reserve?
"Summon the Virgo Demon!"
Regulus smiled faintly and drew his final key.
A holy angelic figure appeared—female in form, with birdlike talons for feet, wings at her back, and a halo above her head. But what emanated from her was not holy light. Instead, white smoke drifted like a gentle mist.
"Heal!"
A field of white vapor spread, covering a radius of a hundred meters and enveloping the entire front gate of Hogwarts.
Want to read the chapters in Advance? Join my Patreon
https://patreon.com/Glimmer09