"?"
"!"
Completely instinctively, Harry crouched down, and the next moment, a deep green spell grazed his scalp and flew past. Looking at the brick wall not far in front of him that exploded after being hit by the spell, the boy blinked a bit in a daze.
What on earth... happened?
"Oh, you little brat, quite a quick reaction."
A hoarse, dry voice reached Harry's ears, and he instinctively turned his head to look behind him, only to find that somehow, a figure cloaked in ragged black robes was now standing in the middle of the passage. A tattered hood hung over the man's head, only revealing a chin covered in a tangled beard.
His right hand was raised straight in front of his chest, and there was still a glow from the spell that had been cast on the beech wand.
The moment he saw the man, Harry's brain began to run at full speed, and he almost instantly got an answer in his heart...
No way, right? Could it really be this coincidental?
Harry's pupils trembled involuntarily. He had just left the castle, and now he ran into the fugitive Sirius directly? And the reason he came to this passage was because of the Weasley Twins, could it be they are... no, impossible, does this mean they were controlled?
Is this bastard's target indeed me, as the Ministry of Magic suspected?
"Scared stupid already? Huh, I thought the famous Savior mentioned by the Ministry of Magic could be a bit more impressive."
The man Harry identified as Sirius suddenly chuckled; he dropped his wand to his side with interest and spoke in a tone of mockery.
"Sirius Black?"
Harry's muddled thoughts were interrupted by this remark. By now, he had already turned around, his palms hanging by his sides and trembling slightly.
When he dodged just now, his wand flew out of his hand, and now it was gleaming as it lay beside him.
But now he didn't dare to openly reach for his wand because he couldn't be sure if the ruthless fugitive opposite him would react violently to his actions. Harry could see that the opponent seemed to have the intention to chat, so he planned to stall for a while to gain time to think of a strategy.
"Not quite stupid."
Sirius nodded, apparently acknowledging this identity, and then continued, "Originally, I thought, after exposing my identity before the portrait, I'd have to find a way to hide for a while longer. Didn't expect you'd deliver yourself up—especially here."
As he spoke, Sirius couldn't help but chuckle, "Really lucky, I was planning to leave this secret passage tomorrow."
"..."
Harry didn't make a sound on the surface, but privately his face had turned into a bitter gourd. Although he felt that Sirius's words were clearly teasing him, he couldn't help but feel annoyed. Why did he have to leave the castle, and what now? What can he do in this situation, who could possibly save him now...
Ron and Hermione? Not possible, they probably still think he's in the common room. The Weasley Twins? No, they might have already headed off to Hogsmeade, and if worse comes to worse, maybe they've actually been controlled by Sirius. Professor Dumbledore or other Professors... they probably don't even know there's a secret passage here, and if they did, this secret passage would likely have already been sealed, right?
Senior? No, that's not possible either...
So... does this mean he really has to...
The boy's face looked somewhat unpleasant, and the twitching speed of his fingers accelerated even more.
"Thinking about who can save you?"
Another mocking laughter, and having his inner thoughts exposed made Harry's face turn as black as a pot bottom in an instant, yet Sirius evidently wasn't finished, continuing as he said, "What a pity, fewer than a handful of people in the castle know about this passage, let alone who would come here to patrol for no reason."
"Alright,"
After speaking, Sirius raised his hand to hold his wand upright in front of himself and said solemnly, "Now I give you the chance to pick up your wand—I will personally, fairly, and honorably end your life and pave the way for the Dark Lord, my master's return."
"Oh, so Voldemort's death made you so lonely you're about to go crazy? Eh? By the way, how did you escape Azkaban? By kissing the feet of those Dementors?"
Though feeling nervous inside, Harry habitually began his sarcastic tirade—he was quite adept at it, and Ron had once suspected his mouth might have been kissed by Snape; otherwise, how could the level of sarcasm between them be so evenly matched? There was once an occasion where Snape was left speechless by Harry.
But it only happened that one time because Gryffindor was deducted fifty points, and Hermione cried for half a day over it.
And during this period of time with William around, Harry's sarcasm attributes, influenced by him, have surpassed his previous standards, improving rapidly, though recently reduced somewhat due to mastering some "Energy Cultivation" magic.
Nevertheless, now, under the threat of death, Harry couldn't contain his sarcasm.
"Good mouth, little bastard, hope your duel skills can match your tongue."
Sirius's face sank slightly, his wand shook in his hand, without a spell, a purplish-red light shot from between the wand and quickly rushed towards Harry.
"Protego!"
Harry immediately shouted the charm without hesitation. While sarcastically bantering, he hadn't stopped his actions; he rolled to the ground, the Holly Wand leapt back into his hands and, before the purplish-red spell struck, a pale golden light shield had already been erected, and the next moment, the spell and the light shield collided, disappearing instantly.