blueteamnovel Chapter 289 Snape's Attack
Chapter 289 Snape's Attack
Chapter 289 Snape's Attack (5K) (1/2)
As Lynch stepped into the castle’s somewhat gloomy entrance hall and headed toward the passageway leading upstairs, a figure strode down from above—it was Lupin.
His face betrayed his urgency. After glancing around to make sure no one was watching, he immediately lowered his voice: "Lynch, I just saw you and Harry on the grass upstairs—has anything progressed? Should we—"
His words came to an abrupt end.
Because Lynch wasn't looking at him, but instead cast his gaze over his shoulder towards the stairs leading to the underground classroom, his voice clear and steady: "Severus, what are you looking for?"
Lu Ping was startled and quickly composed himself, turning around to hide his overly expressive emotions.
Snape was slowly walking up the stone steps, his black robes billowing slightly behind him like bat wings. His sallow face was expressionless, but his black eyes, like searchlights, sharply swept over Lynch, then lingered on Lupin for a moment, with undisguised scrutiny.
"No." Snape's voice was as smooth and cold as his gliding steps. "I wasn't looking for anything. Just passing by." His gaze swept between the two men. "I hope I haven't disturbed—your private conversation?"
"Of course not." Lin Qi smiled flawlessly. "I just happened to run into Professor Lu Ping and chatted for a bit. Since you're just passing by, we won't keep you any longer."
, 7
As he spoke, he naturally stepped aside, making way for a wider path to the main staircase, his movement as casual as if he were giving way to a lady at a ball.
Snape's lips twisted into an almost mocking arc. He said nothing more, only giving them one last deep look with his unfathomable eyes. Then, his black robes billowed as he silently slid past them and walked down the corridor.
Lin Qi and Lu Ping stood there, silently watching the black figure disappear around the corner in the distance.
Only after Snape had completely disappeared from sight did Lupin take a deep breath, turn to Lynch, and ask in a low, uneasy voice, "How much do you think he heard? What do we need to do?"
The smile on Lin Qi's face had vanished, replaced by an unfathomable calm.
He shook his head slightly, his gaze still fixed on the direction where Snape had disappeared.
"We need to change our plans," he remarked. "Severus-Snape's 'passing by' is never a coincidence. He doesn't overlook anything suspicious."
He withdrew his gaze and looked at Lu Ping, his eyes sharp.
"The bait we laid out earlier needs time to ferment. For the next while, remain still and act as usual. Continue your normal teaching, care for Harry, and even show stronger indignation towards Black—that's in line with your persona after your recent emotional outburst. Just be yourself."
Lupin frowned, but nodded nonetheless. "I understand. How long will it take?"
"Until I inform you," Lynch said.
He didn't say anything more, just glanced at Lupin one last time, then turned and walked down the opposite corridor from Snape, his steps steady and quick.
Lupin stood there, watching Lynch's tall and solitary figure disappear behind the pillars, then subconsciously glanced in the direction Snape had left, his heart filled with a sense of impending doom.
He took a deep breath of the castle's cool air, trying to calm himself down, and started walking towards the faculty lounge.
At another corner of the corridor, Snape, who should have been gone long ago, stood silently in the shadows of the wall like a frozen black silhouette.
He didn't go far.
As Lynch and Lupin's footsteps echoed and faded into the distance in the empty corridor, he slowly emerged halfway out of the shadows.
Those dark eyes first swept over Lu Ping's slightly hurried back, with their usual disgust.
Immediately, his gaze locked onto the direction Lin Qi had left in, even though the figure in the gray suit was long gone. His eyes were sharp as a scalpel, as if trying to pierce through a stone wall and dissect all the secrets hidden beneath the man's calm exterior.
His fingertips unconsciously traced the smooth wooden surface of the wand, lingering there for a good ten seconds before finally looking away, like a true ghost, silently disappearing into the deeper shadows of the castle.
The trouble Snape caused came sooner than expected.
The very next afternoon, as Lynch was organizing data on his students' progress in affinity magic in his office, a silver phoenix guardian spirit gracefully passed through the wall and stopped in front of him. Dumbledore's calm and gentle voice spoke: "Professor Lynch, if it's convenient, please come to my office. The password is Lemon Olaf."
What's meant to come will come.
Lin Qi remained calm, methodically put away the documents, straightened his suit collar, and then walked unhurriedly toward the principal's office on the top floor of the castle's main building.
He stood before the enormous, dripping stone statue and gave the command. The statue spun open, revealing a spiral staircase behind it. He stepped steadily up the stairs, which slowly ascended.
He knocked on the door, and after receiving permission, he pushed the door open and entered.
The principal's office remained the same familiar scene, with silverware humming and spinning. The portraits of past principals on the wall seemed to be dozing, but upon closer inspection, one could see that many eyes were quietly opening a crack, observing the visitors who entered.
Dumbledore sat behind his large desk, his blue eyes behind his half-moon spectacles appearing unusually sharp, lacking his usual gentleness.
On the armchair beside his desk, Professor Snape, like a frozen black shadow, was slumped in the chair, his arms crossed over his chest. His dark eyes, like two bottomless pools of stagnant water, were fixed on Lynch as he walked in, a barely perceptible, cold smile playing on his lips.
The air was so heavy it felt like you could wring water out of it.
"Headmaster Dumbledore, you wanted to see me?" Lynch seemed oblivious to the strange atmosphere, speaking calmly as he met Dumbledore's gaze.
Dumbledore rested his fingertips together under his chin, his blue eyes behind his half-moon spectacles scrutinizing Lynch, but his tone was gentle: "Yes, Professor Lynch. Please sit. I've recently heard some—disturbing rumors—that there seems to be some discordant undercurrent within the castle, involving our current faculty, so we must be cautious."
Lynch's gaze swept over Snape, who sat motionless like a black statue, almost imperceptibly, and a faint smile appeared on his lips.
He then looked at Dumbledore: "Before answering any questions, Headmaster Dumbledore, please allow me to ask one—I suppose you had already spoken with Professor Lupin before I arrived?"
Dumbledore nodded slightly, not denying it: "I did speak with Remus. He seemed to be suffering greatly, going through a fierce internal struggle. I tried to ask, but he ultimately refused to tell me anything. I didn't want to press him. So, Professor Lynch, I can only turn to you again, hoping to get some answers from you."
Lin Qi nodded slowly, a look of appreciation on his face.
"I understand. It seems Remus Lupin truly is a man of his word." His words carried a sincere admiration. "I told him not to tell anyone else about our conversation, and he promised. So, despite his inner turmoil and desperate desire to confide in you—his most trusted headmaster—he chose silence in the face of your inquiry, upholding his promise. This—is a truly noble act."
Dumbledore's eyes flickered slightly. He leaned back in his chair, his voice becoming more soothing: "Loyalty, keeping promises—these are indeed very precious qualities in Remus. Even in the most difficult years, he always strived to adhere to his inner principles. I have never doubted that."
Lynch leaned back in his chair, recalling with a touch of melancholy, "This cherishing of promises, this almost obstinate insistence—reminds me of a similar admirable quality I saw in Sirius Black many years ago. Of course, I'm referring to him—in the period when he was considered a hero."
"Excellent character traits?!"
A cold, silky sound, like a poisoned dagger suddenly drawn from its sheath, shattered the gentle reminiscence in the air.
Snape abruptly stood up from his armchair, his black robes billowing with the force of his movement.
His sallow face was contorted with extreme suppressed rage, and his black eyes were no longer deep pools, but fiery vents, fixed on Lin Qi.
"How dare you—how dare you use 'fine character' to describe that scum?!" His voice was deep and dangerous, each syllable carrying twelve years of pent-up hatred. "Which character are you referring to? 'Keeping a promise to betray your best friend's family'? Or 'the nobility he showed as the guarantor, personally pushing Lily—into Voldemort's clutches'?!"
When he uttered the name "Lily" in a hoarse voice, Lynch and Dumbledore could feel his heartbreak and pain, as if just saying the name was burning his throat.
He took a step forward, ignoring Dumbledore's slightly furrowed brow, his entire body radiating an almost tangible black killing intent.
"That so-called noble character you speak of," Lynch, is built upon Lily's blood! It was this very person you praise, whose "promises" and "persistence" directly led to her death! And here you are, standing here with your detached, nauseating sentimental tone, discussing the "character" of an accomplice to murder?!
Lynch finally turned his gaze to Snape, but there was no fear or even a ripple in his eyes, only a calm and almost cruel scrutiny.
He did not respond to Snape's accusations, nor did he show the slightest sympathy for the heart-wrenching pain in his words.
He simply and calmly shifted his gaze back to Dumbledore's face, as if Snape's passionate and tearful words were merely background noise that needed to be filtered out.
He asked in a purely polite tone, "So, Headmaster Dumbledore, do you agree with Professor Snape's view? Do you also believe that the Sirius Black we once knew possessed no commendable qualities at his core, and that everything he displayed was merely a complete facade for his eventual betrayal?"
This question, like a cold bolt of lightning, cleaved through the fiery atmosphere created by Snape's anguish.
The principal's office fell into dead silence.
The portraits on the wall held their breath, even the noisiest Phineas-Nigellus was unusually silent.
Dumbledore's hand on the table tightened slightly, his knuckles turning white.
His gaze behind his crescent-shaped glasses became incredibly heavy. He avoided Lynch's overly direct gaze, and seemed unable to bear looking at Snape's figure beside him, which was trembling violently due to old traumas.
He remained silent for an even longer time, the only sound in the air being Snape's heavy, suppressed breathing.
Finally, Dumbledore spoke slowly, his voice low and hoarse, carrying an unmasked weariness and deep heartache: "I fully understand the pain Severus endured—and his rage." He continued slowly, "As for Sirius—I was convinced I knew him. I saw his talent, his untamed spirit, and—his burning, even blind, loyalty to James, to Lily, and to everything they represented."
He raised his eyes, his gaze seemingly piercing through the wall and reaching into the distant past.
"Because I once believed so much in his brilliance, his betrayal was not merely a tactical error or a personal depravity." Dumbledore's voice carried an almost unbearable weight. "It was the most utter trampling of trust, and the shock and heartache it brought—have not yet fully subsided. It reminds me that even the brightest flame can ignite an uncontrollable and devastating catastrophe."
As Dumbledore finished speaking, Lynch leaned forward slightly.
His gaze was piercing, fixed firmly on Dumbledore, and he asked clearly and slowly, "So, Headmaster Dumbledore, you believe—you are absolutely certain in your heart—that Sirius Black's betrayal is an indisputable fact?"
This time, Dumbledore did not evade the question.
He met Lin Qi's gaze, his deep blue eyes no longer showing any hesitation.
He nodded slowly and heavily.
"Yes." The word came out of his mouth with tremendous force, landing on the ground as if it could echo. "Based on all the evidence, based on his actions at the time, and on him himself—an undeniable fact—I believe he betrayed James and Lily's trust, leading to their deaths. This is the truth that the wizarding world has acknowledged for twelve years, and it is the cruel reality that I have had to accept."
Upon receiving this definitive answer, Lin Qi not only didn't press further, but seemed to have finally received the answer he had been waiting for.
He relaxed, leaned back gracefully in his chair, and rested his arms lightly on the armrests.
His gaze first swept almost imperceptibly over Snape, whose face was gloomy and who looked like a volcano about to erupt, before settling steadily back on Dumbledore.
The usual, slightly aloof calm on his face disappeared, replaced by a nonchalant expression tinged with subtle provocation.
"Very well." Lynch's voice wasn't loud, but it echoed clearly in the silent office. "So, this is what Remus Lupin and I conspired about. We intend to make amends to you, Albus Dumbledore, for the mistakes you made because of your unwavering faith."
"What?!" Snape practically spat out the word through gritted teeth. He took a sudden step forward, his black robes billowing, the tip of his wand seemingly about to slip from his sleeve. "You arrogant fool!"
But Lynch didn't give him a chance to finish. His speech was steady yet firm, his gaze fixed on Dumbledore's face: "It's precisely because of your heartfelt acceptance of Sirius's betrayal," Headmaster Dumbledore, that for the past twelve years, you've never truly and unbiasedly considered the illogical details of that incident that everyone else overlooked! Therefore, you, the great Albus Dumbledore, allowed the true traitor—the one who revealed the Potters' hideout to Voldemort and cruelly murdered twelve Muggles—to remain at large for a full twelve years!"
The moment the words left his mouth, the office fell into a deathly silence.
Time seemed to stand still.
Dumbledore froze on the spot, his blue eyes behind his half-moon spectacles vibrating clearly for the first time.
His hand, resting on the table, tightened unconsciously, his knuckles turning white.
The portraits of all the past principals stared wide-eyed and gaped open; not a single one dared to utter a sound at this moment.
And Snape—
The anger and hatred on his face seemed to freeze instantly, then shatter, revealing disbelief beneath.
He stared intently at Lin Qi, as if trying to pierce through the man in the gray suit in front of him with his gaze.
Lynch's earth-shattering accusation exploded like a thunderbolt in the principal's office, leaving behind a deathly silence and an almost frozen atmosphere.
After a long pause, Dumbledore finally regained his composure: "Professor Lynch—you—what did you just say? The real traitor—what do you mean by that?"
Snape remained frozen, his face a terrifying mixture of rage, suspicion, and a kind of bewildered shock that seemed to have been forcibly pried open. He stared intently at Lynch, as if trying to tear him apart with his gaze, yet unable to stop the words from slithering into his mind like venomous snakes.
Lin Qi met the two men's gazes, which were completely different but equally intense, and his expression remained calm.
"My meaning couldn't be clearer, Headmaster Dumbledore," he said. "The one who truly betrayed James and Lily, the one who truly knelt before Voldemort and begged for mercy, and then used the Explosive Charm to blow up the entire street and brutally murder twelve Muggles, was not Black."
He paused for a moment, letting each word fall heavily.
"But it is the heroic sacrifice that you all mourn—Peter Pettigrew."