Chapter 71

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Chapter 71: The Last Stand of the Faithful

The green flames of the Floo network swirled in a violent dance as Bellatrix Lestrange stepped through the fireplace into Malfoy Manor. Behind her, Rodolphus, Rabastan, Dolohov, and Barty Crouch Jr. emerged, their wands gripped tightly in their hands, their eyes scanning the room for threats.

The grand study of Malfoy Manor was just as she remembered—ornate, luxurious, filled with pointless displays of wealth. But Bellatrix barely noticed the decor. Her focus was on him.

Harry Potter stood before them, casually leaning against Lucius Malfoy's desk, twirling a wand between his fingers. He looked relaxed—amused, even—as if their arrival was nothing more than an interesting inconvenience.

Bellatrix tensed, her sharp senses picking up the subtle shift in the wards as soon as they stepped inside. The Floo network behind them sealed itself, and the air shimmered with a faint hum—wards locking into place. A trap.

Her fingers twitched toward her wand, but she didn't react outwardly. None of the others seemed to notice—they were too focused on the boy in front of them.

Harry smirked. "Took you long enough."

Barty Crouch Jr.'s eyes burned with obsession as he took a step forward, his grip on his wand tightening. "You have no idea what you've just done, boy."

Harry tilted his head, mock curiosity in his expression. "Oh? Do tell."

"You stand before the Dark Lord's most loyal," Barty hissed. "The ones who never betrayed him, never faltered in their faith. And now, you will pay the price for your insolence."

Harry chuckled. "Insolence? Me?" He pushed himself off the desk and took a slow step forward, eyes gleaming with something dangerous. "I expected better from you lot. The Dark Lord's finest, reduced to running errands like common thugs. And after all these years, this is how you repay his memory? By being sloppy?"

Rodolphus growled. "Watch your tongue, Potter."

But Harry only grinned wider. "Or what? You'll bore me to death with your incompetence?" He gave a theatrical sigh and shook his head. "And here I was, expecting a challenge."

Bellatrix felt the temperature in the room rise—not from heat, but from the sheer rage building in the others.

And then Harry delivered the final push.

"My deepest condolences for your loss, by the way." His smirk widened, his voice dripping with mock sympathy. "Voldemort's death must have been such a tragedy for you."

Something inside Bellatrix snapped.

She screamed, her wand already slashing through the air—

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

The others followed instantly, five wands raised, five deadly curses unleashed.

The killing curses shot toward Harry in streaks of sickly green light—

Only for the entire room to explode in chaos.

A wave of force blasted outward from Harry, flipping the grand table and sending it crashing into Rodolphus and Rabastan, forcing them back. At the same time, a suit of armor on the far wall melted into liquid silver and lunged forward, forming a solid barrier that absorbed Bellatrix's killing curse and shattered into pieces.

Dolohov roared, slashing his wand. A jet of purple fire cut through the air toward Harry—

But Harry was already gone, vanishing with a soft pop of Apparition, reappearing mid-air behind them.

Harry's wand already in motion.

The red spell shot forward with the speed of a lightning bolt—Dolohov barely managed to twist away, but Rabastan was too slow. The spell slammed into him like a hammer, sending him crashing into the bookshelves.

"Keep attacking!" Barty shouted, his face wild with fury. "Kill him!"

Bellatrix spun, her wand flashing. "Crucio!"

The curse arced toward Harry—

But with a flick of his wrist, the marble floor rose up, twisting into a solid column that took the hit.

Transfiguration. He's using the environment itself.

A bolt of lightning erupted from Harry's wand, striking Dolohov directly in the chest. The seasoned duelist let out a strangled cry as electricity tore through him, his body convulsing violently before collapsing to the floor, smoke rising from his unmoving form.

Bellatrix's breath caught. Dolohov—dead.

"Four left," Harry said smoothly, dusting off his robes. "Who's next?"

Rodolphus and Rabastan attacked together, twin jets of green light flying toward him.

Harry vanished again—no sound of Apparition, just pure speed. He reappeared behind them, his wand slashing through the air.

The chandelier above snapped from the ceiling and collapsed, its jagged glass shards turning into deadly projectiles that rained down on the brothers. Rodolphus barely managed to shield himself—Rabastan wasn't so lucky.

A massive shard of crystal pierced through his chest, and he crumpled, eyes wide and lifeless.

"Three." Harry's voice was cold now, his green eyes gleaming like emerald fire.

Bellatrix's heart pounded as she and Rodolphus stood back to back, Barty crouched beside them. This isn't possible. It's just a boy.

Barty shrieked in fury, firing a barrage of curses—every single one countered effortlessly.

Then Harry lifted his hand.

The room darkened. The air crackled. The very walls of Malfoy Manor seemed to shudder as lightning erupted from his palm—pure, white-hot energy that struck Barty Crouch Jr. directly.

Barty's scream was inhuman. The sheer force lifted him off his feet, his body disintegrating in a flash of searing blue light.

Bellatrix's breath caught. Barty… gone.

"Two," Harry murmured.

Rodolphus roared and charged, but Harry didn't even raise his wand.

Instead, the carpet beneath Rodolphus's feet turned to liquid, swallowing him up to his knees.

Before he could react, a piercing bolt of lightning struck his chest. His body convulsed violently—his skin blackening, eyes rolling back—before he collapsed, unmoving.

Bellatrix barely had time to process what happened before she realized—

She was alone.

She raised her wand, but before she could speak, Harry was already there.

His wand pointed at her heart. His eyes—cold, distant, merciless.

Bellatrix's grip trembled. No. No, this can't be happening.

Her lips parted, a final curse ready to leave her mouth—

A bolt of lightning tore through her chest.

Pain. White-hot agony. She collapsed to the floor, her body no longer listening to her.

As darkness crept at the edges of her vision, her last thought was not of herself.

I failed you, my Lord.

And then Bellatrix Lestrange knew no more.