NOVEL WEB Chapter 508: Chapter 508
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Dumbledore approached slowly, crouching down in front of the body. His old but firm hand gripped the edge of the black cloth.
He looked at the group behind him, as if warning them to prepare for what they would see.
He, of course, could have kept all the champions' relatives away, knowing that it was neither ethically correct nor professional to let them see a corpse so simply.
However, he recognized that most of them exerted a great deal of influence in the wizarding world, being able to ignore his orders or requests, something they would probably do.
He also knew that they were very worried and distressed, at the limit of their emotions, to a point where they would be capable of arguing or even starting a fight if he tried to send them away.
And all of this, added to the fact that he had no time to engage in a verbal fight with them, made Headmaster Dumbledore decide to reveal the state of the body there, in front of everyone.
And seeing everyone's fearful yet firm gaze, the Headmaster nodded, before putting his hesitation aside and pulling the black cloth covering the corpse.
The cloth then slid down, revealing the dead man's face.
At the sight of the dead man's mangled and bloody face, many sighed in shock and disgust.
But even though his face was injured and burned, it was still possible to make out some of his features.
And this was a face that many there did not recognize. Others, however, immediately turned pale.
'''How can it be him?!''' was what those who recognized the dead man thought.
Now that all eyes were fixed on the corpse on the ground, a moment of tense and oppressive silence once again fell over the shocked and frightened group.
"Those are Professor Moody's clothes, but that's definitely not him," Dora was the first to break the silence, saying firmly and with certainty.
She looked at the corpse with an uneasy frown, and even though she was confused by the situation and slightly worried about her teacher, she couldn't help but feel somewhat relieved that the dead man in front of her wasn't the paranoid old wizard.
"Uh... If that's not Moody, then who is he?" Remus asked the question that was on practically everyone's mind, looking at the people around him.
His gaze then fell on Headmaster Dumbledore, who was frowning deeply as he looked at the dead man.
"Headmaster, do you know who he is?" the werewolf asked, sensing that the old wizard knew something about this unknown man.
"Yes, I know who he is," Headmaster Dumbledore nodded, seeing no reason to deny it.
Hearing his answer, those who didn't know who the dead man was blinked in surprise, before looking at the powerful wizard with expectant and questioning eyes, an obvious question left unspoken.
Feeling these gazes on him the Headmaster slowly stood up, a deep, serious glint in his eyes behind his half-moon glasses.
"This dead man at our feet is Bartemius Crouch Junior, Mr. Crouch's only son," Headmaster Dumbledore began.
"However, he shouldn't be here… In fact, it would be more accurate to say that it wasn't possible for him to be here."
"Why not?" Joshua asked.
"Because this man is actually someone who died many years ago... Another victim of a dark and painful time in the depths of Azkaban," the Headmaster replied somberly.
"Wait, so this guy was one of the criminals of Azkaban?" Dora asked in surprise, "What crime did he commit to be there?"
"The crime he committed, my dear cousin, was to lick the boots of a stupid Dark Lord and become a despicable and disgusting Death Eater," and the one who answered this time was Sirius, his voice overflowing with contempt and disdain.
"Death Eater?!" Dora exclaimed in shock.
The revelations about the identity of the dead man found in the maze were shocking and even frightening to everyone who didn't know him.
Knowing that he was the son of Crouch Senior, a respected and serious ministry employee, would have already surprised everyone. However, discovering that he was also a criminal previously imprisoned in Azkaban, and a Death Eater servant of Voldemort, made everyone's minds shake.
And that's without considering the fact that he should be dead, according to Headmaster Dumbledore's words.
"Wait a minute, how and why was a supposedly dead Death Eater here at Hogwarts? And why was he wearing Alastor's clothes?" Andy asked with a serious expression.
"These are questions we would all like to have the answers to, Mrs. Tonks," Headmaster Dumbledore sighed.
"Come on, get out of the way!" and it was at that moment that the firm, urgent voice of the Hogwarts matron sounded from behind the group.
Turning around, everyone saw Madam Pomfrey marching towards them with a serious and heavy look, and almost automatically everyone made room silently and respectfully, allowing the nurse to pass.
Ignoring the large group, she walked straight to the body with purposeful steps, but not without the weight of concern on her face. When she stopped beside Headmaster Dumbledore, he stepped back a little, allowing her to take her place in front of the corpse.
Madam Pomfrey stopped in front of the corpse, staring at it for a few seconds, focusing on his injured face with a closed and somber expression.
She then knelt beside the body, placing her hand on the edge of the cloth that covered the rest of him.
The fierce and protective woman from the hospital wing hesitated for a moment, but then with a long, heavy breath she steeled her resolve.
'Let's get this over with' she thought.
And firmly, and without further delay, Madam Pomfrey pulled the black cloth completely away, revealing Barty Junior's entire body... Or at least what was left of it.
The grotesque sight of Barty Junior's mutilated and broken body seen at such close range made everyone uncomfortable, but no one was too shaken to want to leave.
There was something stronger than the disgust in the air: the urgency. The desperate need to understand what was happening.
Even so, some looked away, and others simply hardened their expressions, trying to maintain their composure.
The presence of death, however constant it was in both the Muggle and wizarding worlds, never ceased to be uncomfortable – especially when it was so brutal.
Fortunately, or unfortunately, almost everyone there was already familiar with death.
Some, like the older wizards, had taken part in the wizarding wars, witnessing unspeakable horrors caused by the dark lords Grindelwald and Voldemort.
Others faced death in their professions, like Joshua, a doctor used to dealing with lives hanging by a thread, and Sarah, a lawyer who has worked on homicide and extreme violence cases.
"Hm..." Madam Pomfrey pulled out her wand, waving it lightly over Barty Junior's dead body as she cast inspection and checking spells on him.
"Uh... Madam Pomfrey, do you know how to perform an autopsy?" the colorful-haired girl in the group asked, in a mixture of surprise and doubt.
"Dear, I was a war nurse once," Madam Pomfrey replied with a snort, still not taking her eyes off Barty Junior, "The number of dead people I've seen and examined in my life is more than the number of dark wizards you've ever caught… Not that you've actually caught any."
"Hey!" Dora exclaimed, offended upon hearing the matron's response, even though she knew it was true.
'I just finished my Auror training, so obviously I haven't caught or arrested any dark wizards yet,' she tried to defend herself in her mind, with a pouty and defeated expression on her face.
And no longer paying attention to Dora, Madam Pomfrey returned her full focus to the 'patient' in front of her, frowning or widening her eyes slightly every now and then, as if she had discovered something surprising or disturbing.
End.
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