The moment they sensed the terrifying magical fluctuation erupting from the girls' bathroom, everyone immediately realised the situation had gone far beyond their expectations.
Without wasting another second, Dumbledore led the professors towards the disturbance at astonishing speed, followed closely by Harry and Ron.
What exactly was that magic?
Could something that dangerous truly exist inside Hogwarts?
Even Dumbledore's mind was filled with questions.
And at the centre of all those questions was one person.
Logan Anderson.
Dumbledore was already more than ninety-five percent certain that Logan was somehow connected to the Obscurus from before. Yet the purple magical eruption they had just sensed felt completely different from the aura of an Obscurus.
No.
This power had felt far more terrifying.
By the time everyone arrived at the girls' bathroom, they were greeted by a scene nobody could have imagined beforehand.
The bathroom was in ruins.
Water flooded the shattered floor while broken sinks, cracked pipes, and fragments of stone lay scattered everywhere. In the middle of the destruction stood a young wizard and a young witch leaning weakly against one another.
And nearby—
The troll's corpse lay sprawled across the ground.
Its body was riddled with broken wood, shattered stone, and jagged porcelain fragments. Blood dripped steadily into the water beneath it, slowly staining the flooded floor red.
Ignoring the horrifying corpse for a moment, the scene between the two children somehow appeared strangely peaceful.
The professors froze completely.
Even seasoned witches and wizards like them were stunned speechless by what they were seeing.
Professor McGonagall especially looked as though she might faint from shock.
Logan was her favourite student. The boy was talented, intelligent, polite, and unbelievably gifted for his age.
But favourite student or not—
First-years were supposed to hide during emergencies.
Not kill trolls.
For several long seconds, McGonagall genuinely didn't know what to say.
What exactly was she supposed to scold them for?
The troll was already dead.
Hermione quickly noticed the suspicious looks from the professors and immediately realised the seriousness of the situation.
Without hesitation, she stepped forward.
"It was my fault," Hermione admitted firmly. "I hid in the bathroom because I was upset, and Logan came to find me. Then the troll appeared."
She lowered her head slightly before continuing.
"He only stayed because he was trying to protect me."
After hearing her explanation, the professors finally understood what had happened.
This wasn't some reckless adventure.
It was simply terrible luck.
But another question immediately replaced the first.
How had two first-year students managed to kill a fully grown troll?
Even some adult wizards would struggle horribly against a creature like that in such a confined environment. Without preparation or proper combat spells, many would likely end up beaten to death before they could react.
Yet somehow, these two children had survived.
More importantly—
The troll hadn't merely been defeated.
It had been slaughtered.
Everyone present wanted to know how.
Professor McGonagall remained deeply displeased about her students sneaking away and engaging a troll directly, but at the same time, another part of her couldn't help feeling proud.
After all, Logan had just done something most adult wizards couldn't accomplish.
This was an incredible achievement for Gryffindor House.
Of course, she absolutely couldn't say that aloud.
Before she could speak, Snape suddenly stepped forward.
"I don't believe Logan should bear the majority of the blame here," Snape said calmly. "The appearance of this troll inside Hogwarts is highly suspicious to begin with. Their encounter with it was simple misfortune."
He glanced briefly at the troll's corpse before continuing.
"And frankly speaking, if anyone other than Logan had encountered this creature tonight, we likely wouldn't be standing here discussing punishments at all."
McGonagall nearly stared at him in disbelief.
Was Severus Snape actually defending a Gryffindor student?
The same Severus Snape who deducted points from Gryffindor for breathing too loudly?
This was practically a historical event.
Worse still, she could immediately sense where this was going.
First Flitwick kept trying to steal Logan into Ravenclaw, and now Snape was openly praising him too.
Absolutely not.
Logan was her student.
Nobody was taking him away.
McGonagall straightened her expression instantly and resumed her stern professor persona.
"Although your courage was commendable," she announced sharply, "your actions were still reckless and irresponsible. Leaving the designated safe area during an emergency is unacceptable."
She fixed Logan and Hermione with a severe stare.
"Therefore, I am deducting ten points from Gryffindor."
Harry and Ron visibly winced in sympathy.
Then McGonagall continued.
"However…"
Her expression softened slightly.
"For successfully protecting another student and eliminating a dangerous troll threatening Hogwarts, Miss Granger and Mr Anderson will each receive twenty-five points for Gryffindor."
Hermione's eyes widened.
Even Logan looked mildly surprised.
McGonagall immediately raised her voice again before anyone could celebrate.
"But let this serve as a warning. Not everyone possesses the ability to survive an encounter like this one."
As she spoke, her gaze drifted meaningfully towards Harry and Ron.
The two boys instantly lowered their heads guiltily.
Meanwhile, Quirrell stood silently near the back of the group while staring blankly at the troll's corpse.
His entire mind was in chaos.
This wasn't how tonight was supposed to go.
Trolls were supposed to possess absurd magical resistance. According to every magical creature text in existence, they were practically natural predators of ordinary wizards.
So how had a first-year killed one?
Quirrell suddenly developed a strong urge to hunt down whoever wrote Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and demand an explanation.
Now the troll was dead, his carefully planned distraction had completely collapsed, and he needed to somehow salvage the situation before everything spiralled further out of control.
For once, Quirrell genuinely didn't know what to do.
Throughout the entire exchange, Dumbledore remained silent.
His eyes never left Logan.
The old headmaster still couldn't stop thinking about the terrifying magical fluctuation from earlier. He had lived for well over a century and encountered countless forms of magic, yet what he had sensed moments ago felt utterly unfamiliar.
More importantly—
It had frightened even him.
Finally, Dumbledore spoke.
"Logan," he said gently, "could you explain exactly how you managed to defeat this troll?"
His blue eyes watched the boy carefully.
Dumbledore wasn't merely curious.
He was worried.
Truly worried.
He feared Logan might have unknowingly stepped onto a dangerous path in pursuit of power.
At that moment, Logan looked genuinely miserable.
His face was pale, his breathing uneven, and his entire body felt hollowed out. This was the first time he had ever unleashed the grimoire's amplification ability at full strength, and he definitely hadn't expected it to create such an outrageous commotion.
Unfortunately, Dumbledore's attention was now fully focused on him.
The grimoire was his greatest secret.
There was no chance he could reveal it.
So now there was only one option left.
Lie.
Logan forced himself upright and spoke weakly.
"Professor… Headmaster…"
"When the troll attacked us, I used the Levitation Charm to control the debris around the bathroom and tried to strike it with those objects."
He paused briefly, breathing heavily.
"But honestly, even levitating that many objects should have been impossible for me. I was already at my limit."
Logan lowered his eyes slightly.
"Then I realised… if I failed, Hermione would probably die behind me."
Hermione's expression froze.
"In that moment," Logan continued quietly, "something inside me suddenly burst out. I don't really know how to explain it."
He gestured weakly towards the troll's corpse.
"I lost control of my magic for a second and accidentally launched everything at once. That's what caused this."
.....
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