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"My goodness, Dementors! They have gone to the Quidditch pitch!"
"They are going to attack the Quidditch players. I saw it!"
"This is terrible. Those players are in danger!"
"Quick, go report it to the professors!"
"Only a madman would think of stationing Azkaban prison guards at Hogwarts."
The castle itself had also fallen into chaos.
The students in Ravenclaw Tower were the first to notice something unusual about the Dementors.
They immediately reported it to their Head of House, Professor Flitwick.
Realizing the severity of the situation, Flitwick hurriedly informed Dumbledore.
Dumbledore asked Flitwick to gather the other professors, while he went to the Quidditch pitch alone.
If that group of Dementors launched an indiscriminate attack on the Quidditch pitch, Hogwarts would be finished.
He arrived just in time to see silver light drive away the dark clouds and force back the Dementor swarm.
'Good. Dudley is there.'
'A pity his Patronus has not taken shape yet.'
Unfortunately, Dumbledore had barely relaxed when Dudley's second attack came.
This time, what Dudley used was no longer the Patronus Charm.
A moment later, dazzling light illuminated the entire world.
This light was different from ordinary light. The Dementors let out pained wails, and their bodies began decaying under its radiance.
They could no longer focus on Wood and the others. Screaming, they retreated at high speed.
At that moment, countless students saw what looked like a sun appear above the Hogwarts Quidditch pitch.
By the time the students' vision recovered, not a single Dementor could be seen in the sky above the Quidditch pitch.
The Illumination Spell could harm Dementors. Dudley had known that when he studied the Dementor he had caught at the start of term. As for how many of the hundred Dementors would remain after experiencing Dudley's full-power Illumination Spell, that was none of his concern.
In any case, one of the red-and-white balls at his waist was already full.
By the time Dumbledore arrived, the Dementor swarm had disappeared.
"Professor Dumbledore, I have already driven the Dementors away," Dudley said after seeing Dumbledore.
Dumbledore nodded in acknowledgment. Then, with a grave expression, he hurried over to Wood and the others, who had already descended from the air, to examine them.
Wood and the others were in terrible condition. Their faces were pale and bloodless. Although they had not suffered the Dementor's Kiss, such close contact with such a large swarm of Dementors had definitely affected their minds.
At the very least, they would need to rest quietly for a while.
If Dudley had not cast his spell in time, Wood and the others might not have seen tomorrow's sun.
Dementors did not understand the meaning of mercy.
"Professor, this is serious."
Dudley said, "They have begun actively attacking wizards."
"I understand."
Dumbledore answered with only those two words and said nothing more.
But judging from his expression, he was truly angry.
Dudley paid no attention to what happened afterward. Those matters could be left to Dumbledore. He took Hermione and Harry away from that place.
This incident sent Dudley's reputation soaring.
Mr. Dursley had dealt with over a hundred Dementors with a single spell, just like Dumbledore at the start-of-term feast.
'He is as powerful as Dumbledore.'
The Slytherin students grasped the key point.
That night, Minister for Magic Fudge came to the Headmaster's office once again.
By this point, he had come here more times than anyone cared to count.
It was as if he had returned to the time when he had first taken over the Ministry. Whenever anything happened, he would come to consult Dumbledore.
"Albus, I need an explanation. The Dementors say someone attacked them. At least thirty Dementors died because of it."
Fudge arrived in a fury and confronted Dumbledore at once.
Those were thirty Dementors. The Ministry had only so many Dementors to command, and losing thirty at once had sent the Dementors into an uproar. They insisted that the Ministry give them an explanation.
Apparently, even monsters knew how to play the victim first.
Dumbledore was so angry he almost laughed.
"Cornelius, I believe I am the one who should be asking for an explanation."
"Do you know what those Dementors did?"
"They attacked students. At least twenty young witches and wizards were affected by the Dementors. If someone had not stopped them, this would not have ended with lingering effects. There would have been deaths."
"You should go back and consider how to deal with the parents who will come demanding answers."
With every sentence Dumbledore spoke, Fudge's face grew paler.
By the end, Fudge began to sway.
It was as if he had already seen that group of furious parents.
"Howlers will fill my office."
He slumped into a chair, cold sweat soaking his entire back.
"Dementors are extremely difficult creatures to kill. Even if someone kept a Patronus focused on them, it would still take a very long time to destroy them."
Saying that thirty Dementors had been killed sounded like a joke.
If possible, Dumbledore would have preferred every Dementor in that group to die.
"Dementors are not trustworthy. It is possible some of them have already slipped away to other places. For the time being, you had better keep a close eye on any incidents involving Dementors attacking Muggles or wizards."
Dumbledore and Fudge spoke for a few more minutes. Then Fudge could no longer wait to leave.
"Albus, thank you for the information. I think I must hurry back and prepare before that damned Daily Prophet publishes anything."
Fudge hurriedly left the Headmaster's office, just as hurriedly as he had arrived.
'Cornelius, there are many ways to capture Sirius Black. Why did you have to choose Dementors?'
'Having Aurors stationed at Hogwarts would clearly have been a decent option as well.'
Dumbledore sighed helplessly.
More than ten years had passed, yet this Minister for Magic had not changed for the better. If anything, he had become even less willing to listen to advice.
The next day, the scattered Dementors returned to the area around Hogwarts Castle. After being driven back so decisively, they became completely obedient. They no longer dared try to enter the castle, nor did they dare try to attack students. They only kept to their assigned work of searching for Sirius Black around the castle perimeter.
Dementors did not have much of a mind. They did not understand the rules of high-level wizarding politics.
Only strength could make them submit.
The Dementor attack became just another strange episode in school life. Aside from the students who had been attacked and were still recovering, everyone else merely treated it as a topic for casual conversation. Soon, it was time for the third-year students' most anticipated class: Defense Against the Dark Arts.
Today was the day Gryffindor and Hufflepuff had class together.
The students from both Houses arrived in the classroom early, waiting for Professor Lupin.
The bell rang. The classroom door opened.
However, the person who appeared was not Professor Lupin.
It was Mr. Dursley.
Dudley?
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