Chapter 485 I'm Not Leaving!
"Surprising how quickly you started working for him!" Evan said rudely.
In his opinion, even though the vampires were helping Voldemort, they still had their own limits.
It was like the last time in the remnants of the Centaurs. They didn't fully obey Voldemort's orders.
"I don't think I need to mention that this is simply an exchange of interests between allies," Caresius responded.
"An exchange of interests?!" Evan shook his head. "You're heading for a dead end, showing up here in front of wizards from around the world. This goes against your principles. You and your people will be hunted tomorrow."
"To achieve more valuable goals, there is a price to be paid. My people and I are already living on the edge of the magical world," Caresius pointed his wand at Evan, with an unprecedented seriousness on his face. "If that's the case, let them hunt us. We have nothing to lose!"
"But..." Evan wanted to mention Elaine.
But the vampire rudely interrupted, "Greetings, Evan, don't waste time, you know the dueling etiquette!"
This was the first time Evan saw Caresius's face in that light.
At that moment, Evan was no longer a novice like Elaine in his eyes, but a worthy opponent.
To the misfortune of his race, the one mentioned in the ancient prophecy had appeared.
Caresius had speculated that even if the road ahead was challenging, there was no room for failure, and he would never allow it.
Whether for his own sake or for his people, who had always believed in him, he had to succeed.
Caresius chose Voldemort, but he did not give up on Evan either.
He saw Evan as a support, endorsing the relationship between Elaine and Evan and providing them with the utmost care.
Like what happened in the ruins of the fallen Centaurs last time, when Caresius handed the Philosopher's Stone to Evan.
Voldemort was already strong enough, and Caresius did not believe he needed more power. He just needed to regain his strength.
This was in the interest of Caresius and his people, hoping that Evan could quickly grow in strength.
But when Evan stood before him, he didn't mind giving him a tough lesson so that this young wizard would know how wide the gap was between the two sides.
The Ministry of Magic's Aurors wouldn't arrive soon, and Caresius had enough time.
He was going to take Harry Potter and allow Voldemort to complete that magic and regain his strength.
As for the other team dealing with Barty Crouch Jr., they would surely have succeeded by now.
He just had to eliminate Evan and take Harry Potter bound to Voldemort.
Caresius greeted Evan; only a respectable opponent deserved such courtesy.
The next second, a red light triangle flew towards Evan.
Evan dodged to the right and kept running swiftly.
His body moved quickly, and the wand in his hand emitted several red lights.
Caresius did not use teleportation. He chose to face Evan directly.
From the tip of his wand, sparks flew, absorbing all of Evan's magic and counterattacking.
In just a few seconds, both sides had several magical exchanges, and the duel was highly technical.
Caresius's spells were endless, all of which were blood magic unfamiliar to Evan, making him feel a bit overwhelmed and stressed.
In fact, besides these varied spells, the technical aspect had always been Evan's weakness. He had great theoretical knowledge and strength, but had not had enough chances to practice and perfect his dueling techniques.
Theory could be quickly obtained from books, and powerful magic was also obtained from the Slytherin's Locket and the Philosopher's Stone.
Evan's strength had increased too rapidly, but his skills and experience had not advanced at the same pace.
Under Caresius's unrestrained attack, he soon felt an unprecedented pressure.
After repelling another spell, Evan felt in his heart that this was terrible, and he realized that this was not going to work!
If this continued, he feared it wouldn't be long before he was defeated by Caresius.
However, Evan now had the Philosopher's Stone! He couldn't simply give up his advantage to compete where he was weakest against his opponent.
In the blink of an eye, he devised a daring plan.
Evan aimed his wand at the enormous stones falling from the ceiling, and swiftly they transformed into five trolls.
The trolls roared, brandishing their massive clubs, advancing towards Caresius with bared teeth and claws.
Caresius furrowed his brow, deeming these monsters senseless. With a mere flick of his wand, they turned into a black smoke.
Seizing this opportunity, Evan retrieved the Philosopher's Stone from the reliquary on his chest and held it in his hand.
The red fluorescence of the Philosopher's Stone gleamed, potent magic swirling around Evan's body, replenishing all his magic instantly.
"The Philosopher's Stone!" exclaimed a surprised Caresius. "You restored that shattered Philosopher's Stone?"
"Yes," nodded Evan.
Without pause, he incanted spells, pale blue fire emerging from the tip of his wand.
Unlike before, these flames bore no temperature, swiftly swirling around Caresius.
A deep red light shone, and the blue flames roared.
Evan swiftly waved his wand, with a potent surge of magical power, they rapidly shrank in size.
The flames quickly morphed into chains that ensnared Caresius.
Though he resisted, Evan gritted his teeth, relentlessly sending magic, not allowing Caresius to break free from the bindings.
He could feel his body's magic depleting rapidly, the power of the Philosopher's Stone swiftly augmenting it.
These forces differed from the magic Evan was accustomed to, causing some harm to his body.
Persisting further was extremely unfavorable.
It was akin to hurting the enemy by 1,000 but harming oneself by 800. It was uncertain if Evan could truly best Caresius.
Evan had his own plans. He didn't anticipate these chains of pure magic entrapping Caresius. Yet, it was enough to buy him time!
Unrelenting, he used every binding spell he knew on Caresius to date.
If his power fell short, he could draw from the Philosopher's Stone.
That was his advantage, the sole aspect where he was mightier than Caresius.
Soon, the colorful light of countless spells surrounded Caresius.
And Evan, who had also reached his limits, was so exhausted he could barely keep his eyes open.
Due to the magic circuit between him and the stone, he felt his body crumbling.
But now was not the time to fall. Evan strained to turn around, wand in hand, pushing with all his might.
Click, click, click, the chains binding Harry, Ron, Hermione, and the Quidditch players instantly snapped.
"Go, mount your brooms!" Evan shouted. "I can't hold on much longer."
At his command, they all swiftly mounted their brooms, no one daring to hesitate.
Only Hermione hesitated, gazing motionless at Evan, slipping off Krum's broom.
"What are you doing?" Krum frowned.
He reached out and grabbed Hermione. He couldn't fathom why the girl was descending.
Hadn't she heard the boy say that the dark wizard was about to be unleashed?
"Let me go!" Hermione shouted, her voice firm. "I want to stay with Evan!"
During the recent battle, her voice had grown hoarse from Evan, sounding devastated. Her eyes were red, tears uncontrollably streaming down.
Hermione clenched the wand in her hand, wiping her eyes. Her face was filled with determination.
She didn't know where she drew her courage from, but it was the sole thought in her mind at that moment.
She was going to stay with Evan, even if it meant dying by his side!