Return of Salazar Slytherin

99- The Disappearance of the Killing Curse

"Space magic is truly amazing, isn't it?"

Gryffindor, with his red hair and beard, sincerely marveled at the convenience of space magic as the four of them suddenly appeared in a desolate wilderness. 

What would take ordinary people tens of days to walk, they had accomplished in a single morning.

"To ordinary people, we must seem no different from the so-called gods," Hufflepuff remarked with a smile.

"Gods are nothing special either; one sword strike can kill them," Gryffindor scoffed at the notion of "gods," as he always did.

Unlike Godric and Helga's leisurely attitudes, Slytherin and Ravenclaw were engrossed in an academic discussion.

"But using this spell is very uncomfortable; I nearly suffocated midway," Slytherin said. Although he liked snakes more than the others, he did not enjoy crawling through tubes like one.

"That's an inherent issue."

"What if we created a magical item large enough to accommodate several people, and then had someone carry this magical item while using space magic? Would the people inside feel any pressure?"

"Interesting thought." Ravenclaw fell into contemplation.

She found Salazar's idea quite reasonable.

"Shall we try it?"

Slytherin and Ravenclaw were both action-oriented, and the next day, they brought a crystal ball to Gryffindor.

Looking at the seemingly ordinary crystal ball in front of him, Gryffindor frowned. "Can this thing really hold a person?"

Slytherin beamed brightly. "Precisely because your body is strong enough, we dare to let you try."

Gryffindor: "..."

Good news: the crystal ball could indeed hold a person.

Bad news: it held dead people—living people who entered quickly turned into dead ones.

"At least it requires fifty percent of Godric's physical strength to survive in there for a short time."

"How about trying this improved version?"

Seeing the two engrossed in recording experimental data without any personal emotions, Gryffindor felt a bit breathless.

But the experiment had to continue.

After several modifications, Ravenclaw finally transformed the internal space of the crystal ball to be able to sustain life, even growing a small forest inside. After setting up the interior, Ravenclaw used it to verify Slytherin's hypothesis—and indeed, staying inside did not create a feeling of pressure.

"What a marvelous creation," Slytherin couldn't help but marvel at Ravenclaw's magical prowess as he looked at the lush vegetation inside the crystal ball.

"If you're interested, I can sell it to you."

"How much?" Slytherin asked without hesitation. He knew the crystal ball's value was almost beyond monetary measurement.

"I don't take money." Rowena looked at Salazar. Seeing the puzzled expression in his eyes, she smiled slightly. "Let's trade for knowledge—knowledge is priceless, just like this crystal ball. Priceless things should be exchanged for other priceless things."

...

Now the crystal ball had shattered, turning into worthless shards, and the room where Daphne and the others were was instantly filled with dense jungle.

Standing on a tree branch, Daphne felt an ominous premonition. It seemed that the crystal ball was extraordinary.

As far as she knew, the Greengrass family vault didn't have alchemical items of this caliber; they only had some crude gold Galleons.

Containers with Undetectable Extension Charms were common, ranging from handbags to tents, creating much larger spaces inside than their outer appearances suggested. However, the space inside this crystal ball was ridiculously large, requiring extremely advanced spatial magic skills.

'Luckily, the crystal ball was ownerless. Otherwise, I couldn't afford to pay for it even if I sold myself,' Daphne thought.

At that moment, she noticed the skeletal "horse" had come to the tree she was in, seemingly calling to her. She floated down gently and landed beside it, then realized it resembled the legendary nightmare horse found in legends.

"A-Are you a nightmare horse from those stories?" Daphne tentatively called its name.

The nightmare raised its head in agreement.

"Will you help me defeat that monster?"

The nightmare eagerly pawed the ground. Going against Voldemort was something it had longed for; no persuasion was needed.

Daphne was overjoyed. With the nightmare by her side, she no longer had to face the monster alone—as for Harry, Daphne figured that if he survived until the end of the battle, it would be a victory.

Boom!

Voldemort knocked down several trees around him, clearing out a patch of ground.

The surrounding forest and the clearing in the middle reminded him of some unpleasant memories, but he quickly smirked: he was not Quirrell, that useless fool, who couldn't even handle a little girl.

"Come out," his deep voice echoed in the room, "it's time to end this tiresome game."

Soon, Voldemort's words were answered—a nightmare and Daphne charged out from the woods together, launching their attack.

The nightmare darted swiftly around the clearing, occasionally seizing the opportunity to charge at Voldemort with its horn, while Daphne stood at the edge of the forest, continually launching long-range attacks to harass Voldemort, preventing him from focusing solely on the nightmare.

For a moment, the fight was evenly matched.

The nightmare took on most of the offensive role and bore the brunt of Voldemort's attacks. More importantly, the magical flames it carried inflicted significant damage on Voldemort, making him hesitant and restricted in his movements.

Without the nightmare, there was no way Daphne could hold her own against Voldemort.

Both sides were locked in a fierce battle, unaware that the ground beneath them was becoming somewhat soft.

Voldemort grew increasingly agitated: he couldn't believe he was being held off by a first-year witch and a necro horse. Even though he was in a weakened state, relying on Quirrell's body, this was an utter humiliation.

Anger surged through Voldemort, making his attacks more ruthless.

With a loud bang, his curse hit the nightmare, blasting it away. Seeing the situation turn dire, Daphne prepared to retreat into the forest for cover, but a nearby hanging branch suddenly transformed into a python, wrapping around her and immobilizing her.

"Avada Kedavra!"

Voldemort's face twisted into a sinister smile as he cast the Killing Curse at her.

In that moment, time seemed to slow down for Daphne. She watched the deadly green curse fly towards her, and a single thought occupied her mind: if she got hit by that curse, she would probably die.

'Rhys mentioned that wizards go to an in-between place after death—what would that be like?'

Daphne closed her eyes, but death didn't come.

The Killing Curse vanished abruptly just an inch from her nose, evaporating like morning dew in the sunlight.

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