Chapter -78.
"Finished."
"Done for."
At the moment Neville exclaimed this, the five in the group realized they were doomed, appearing as wilted as frostbitten eggplants.
"How dare you bully, harass, and attack your classmates?! How dare you!"
Professor McGonagall's face was flushed with rage, unable to conceal her fury any longer, feeling her blood pressure rising, particularly at the things Neville described. She could hardly believe these were students she had taught.
"Now, you will accompany me to Professor Dumbledore."
"I will inform Professor Dumbledore about this situation, and he will determine what punishment you will face."
As Professor McGonagall spoke, it seemed she was exerting all her strength, her body slightly swaying, appearing as if a gust of wind could knock her over.
At that moment, Professor McGonagall felt extremely fatigued, her heart weary.
In truth, she was a good professor, a responsible one. Unlike Snape, who favored Slytherin, she was fair and just, but unfortunately, her energy was indeed limited.
She couldn't attend to every little wizard nor could she keep track of every little wizard's situation in a timely manner.
Even Dumbledore couldn't escape this.
"As for you, Mr. Dursley, I believe you should also come with me to the Headmaster's office."
Professor McGonagall's gaze swept over Dudley, Harry, Hermione, Neville, and the others, ultimately landing on Dudley.
After all, he was the one accountable for this incident.
Professor McGonagall wasn't blind; the large bumps on those little wizards' foreheads were clearly not caused by spells.
"Alright, Professor McGonagall."
Dudley was acting very obediently at that moment, which caused Snape to stare at his back for a while.
Although the Slytherin incident was suppressed by Carrow's intervention, there are no walls that don't leak; Snape ultimately found out.
"Severus, I think you should come with me as well, after all, this child is from Slytherin."
Snape nodded expressionlessly, but inside he was not as composed as he appeared. As he looked at Dudley's broad back, a rare complex expression flickered in his eyes—nostalgia, regret, and more than anything, envy.
What was unfolding before him felt familiar, just with the roles reversed.
He protected that girl, and I...
If it had happened to me, would I have been able to do the same?
…
Dumbledore was slightly surprised by the sudden arrival of several people into his office; he was currently preparing for the skeleton band at today's Halloween feast.
Although he was the greatest white wizard of the twentieth century, he was not an omniscient, lacking the ability to foresee the future or a crystal ball to constantly spy on the little wizards' lives.
He was just a clever Gryffindor.
Professor McGonagall carefully recounted the events to Dumbledore, who gradually furrowed his brow as he listened, then glanced at the trembling little wizards huddled against the wall.
"Mr. Dursley, what is your opinion on this matter?"
Dumbledore asked, his sapphire-like eyes meeting Dudley's blue ones.
At that moment, Dudley was calmly meeting Dumbledore's gaze.
If you hadn't asked, it would have been fine, but now that you have...
"I think in situations like this, Hermione is neither the first nor the last."
"Once school violence begins, it is absolutely impossible to stop, so such incidents must not be tolerated and must be severely punished."
"I believe the five of them should be expelled."
Although Dudley's tone was very flat, it was firm and powerful, sounding less like a response to Dumbledore and more like he was declaring the outcome.
Professor McGonagall opened her mouth but ultimately said nothing.
Snape's expression darkened slightly, not because he thought the punishment was too severe—he could accept any punishment for Gryffindor—but because Dudley's words reminded him of his time with James and the others. At this moment, it felt just like back then; Gryffindor had not made any progress over the years.
"Have you ever considered... they just did something wrong. Is such a punishment..."
Dumbledore's gaze fixed on Dudley, his deep blue eyes seeming to want to see right through him.
"Professor Dumbledore!"
Dudley's voice suddenly rose, booming like thunder, making people's ears ring, causing Dumbledore's body to tremble slightly.
"One should not do evil just because it's small."
"Perhaps you think this is just a minor issue, but to me, this is merely the beginning of evil."
"Now, if we take it lightly, once we open the floodgates, it will definitely be endless, with countless future troubles."
"It must be crushed in the cradle with a thunderous force; otherwise, everyone will become an abuser, and anyone can become an abuser."
"Today they can bully Hermione."
"Tomorrow they will bully Longbottom."
"The day after tomorrow they will bully Weasley."
"The day after that, it's Harry Potter."
The tone was deafening, making one inevitably fall into deep thought.
In fact, Dudley was not exaggerating; based on the character of these individuals, Neville would definitely be bullied, and they would indeed target Ron if he hadn't befriended Harry, if he didn't have those older brothers. Ron would be just as good a target as Neville.
Because Ron is poor.
Also because their family is poor. He has had no friends growing up except for his brothers.
Poverty is an original sin.
"First, they hide the shoes, then the books. Next, they can already deliberately act in the classroom. Guess what they will do next? Ruin Hermione's clothes!"
At this point, Dudley shifted from his previous calm demeanor, his tone completely altered, as if a raging fire had ignited behind him, the fire transforming into a giant bear, roaring angrily towards the sky.
Did you say it was a joke before?
Not being angry is the real joke; that's a joke among acquaintances.
This is no longer just a matter of jokes; this is evil, pure evil.
What's next? Strip someone and film it? Or directly attack someone (in that way)?
Don't think that bullies won't do it, and don't think that just because they are young they don't understand anything; some people's precocity is beyond your imagination, not just in terms of thought but also in physiological aspects.
"We didn't plan to do that!"
The five were still arguing.
"Hmm?"
Dudley's gaze shifted from Dumbledore to the person speaking, who was the one that had previously used 'The Hanging Bell' on Dudley and was called Hansel by Professor McGonagall. Just one look made the other tremble all over, shaking like a leaf.
Clearly just a pair of ordinary blue eyes, but in the eyes of the five, those were not eyes at all, but a dragon ready to pounce on them in a frenzy.
Even Malfoy had never experienced this.
He had no doubt that if he dared to argue even a bit more, the other party would pounce on them and tear them apart.
***
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