"Retreat!"
Grindelwald and Voldemort issued the same command.
The Saints and Death Eaters exchanged glances, hesitating for a brief moment.
Then, without further delay, several dark wizards among the Death Eaters pulled magical brooms from their space-extended bags and soared into the distance.
It wasn't that they couldn't Disapparate—but the surrounding space had long been sealed by the flames of hell.
Even Voldemort himself couldn't escape through Disapparition. His only option was short-range teleportation through sacrificial magic.
The sight of the first wave of fleeing wizards seemed to trigger an unspoken signal.
A large number of Saints soon followed suit, retrieving their own brooms and fleeing the battlefield.
Even more Death Eaters joined the exodus.
After all, they had just witnessed their comrades have their very souls devoured by this flaming skeleton.
True death.
No afterlife.
No ghostly existence.
No chance of resurrection.
A fate more terrifying than mere death.
With that in mind, none of them needed further convincing. The moment Voldemort and Grindelwald gave the order, the most anxious among them bolted without hesitation.
Yet—
Some Death Eaters remained rooted to the spot.
Motionless.
Waiting.
Most of them were pure-blood nobles, with only a handful of dark wizards among them.
Voldemort's crimson eyes flickered with cold fury at the sight.
How could he not understand what was happening?
These Death Eaters—his so-called loyal followers—had changed allegiances.
Rather than return to him, they now willingly submitted to Lockhart's puppet.
Traitors.
However, Voldemort had no time to punish them.
Because Tom—engulfed in hellfire—was already on the attack.
When Tom heard Grindelwald and Voldemort call for retreat, his response was simple:
He attacked.
He wasn't letting them go so easily.
The two bastards before him had forced him to unleash hellfire's power, further entangling him with Lockhart.
If he didn't vent his fury, there would be no calming the rage boiling within him.
Upon transforming into the Hell Skeleton, an influx of battle experience had naturally surfaced in Tom's mind.
With an effortless motion, he raised his arms high—
The flames of hell churned violently.
A long iron chain, formed purely of infernal fire, materialized in his grasp.
With a swift swing, the chain spun rapidly, whipping through the air.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The swirling chain crackled, scattering embers of hellfire in every direction.
An overwhelming sense of oppression filled the battlefield.
The Hell Skeleton's flaming gaze locked onto Voldemort.
Then—
With a sudden crack, the chain shot forward, lashing toward Voldemort with terrifying speed.
Simultaneously, behind Tom, the thirty-two hellfire wands unleashed a barrage of curses at Grindelwald, aiming to pressure and hinder him.
Voldemort's instincts screamed at him.
The hellfire chain roared toward him, a tangible force of inescapable doom.
Feeling the space around him tighten, locking further, Voldemort didn't hesitate.
His wand flicked through the air.
Even as he retreated, he cast a flurry of Transfiguration Spells.
BOOM!
With an earth-shaking rumble, the snow-covered ground contorted and rose violently.
From the trembling earth, giants of stone—twice the height of a man—began forming.
Their rough, earth-toned bodies charged forward, intercepting the oncoming chain.
BOOM!
One giant swung its massive right arm, attempting to seize the infernal chain—
But with a deafening crash, the chain shattered the giant's arm into rubble.
Undeterred, the chain continued its deadly advance toward Voldemort.
ROAR!
The crippled stone giant let out a deep bellow, lunging forward with its remaining arm to grasp the chain once more.
At the same time, more stone giants along the path did the same—grabbing at the infernal weapon with their heavy arms and bodies.
But—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The moment the chains were caught, the hellfire flared violently—
Engulfing the stone giants in an instant.
Within mere seconds, every single stone giant was reduced to ash.
Though it had only bought a brief moment, Voldemort had used that precious window well.
Layer upon layer of protection, illusionary decoys, and confusion spells now surrounded him.
In the blink of an eye, countless Voldemorts stood upon the battlefield—
All identical.
All radiating identical magical signatures.
It was impossible to distinguish the real one.
At that very moment—
BOOM!
High above—
A massive black eye manifested in the sky, blinking slowly.
From its depths, it emanated a terrifying aura of death, darkness, and destruction.
Then—
A gigantic black beam of energy descended from the heavens, slamming toward the Hell Skeleton.
The Eye of Death.
One of Voldemort's trump cards, a spell perfected through the joint research of Lockhart's students.
It was crafted to be a weapon against future threats.
Now, Voldemort was finally forced to use it.
The Hell Skeleton leaped the moment it saw the beam descend.
But—
The Eye of Death followed.
The black pillar of destruction continued to track his every move, obliterating everything in its path.
Wherever the beam struck, the land turned to corroded ruin.
The once pristine white battlefield became riddled with dark, intricate scars—markings of utter devastation.
But among those scars—
Faint traces of red hellfire began to emerge.
It was subtle.
But unmistakable.
Hellfire was reacting. Preparing.
It would never be extinguished—never falter—never cease its judgment.
Grindelwald observed the unfolding battle with cold, calculating eyes.
He had deflected the barrage of spells Tom had thrown at him—
But then he had simply stopped.
There was no need to interfere.
After all, the flaming skeleton's target was Voldemort—not him.
Why should he intervene?
If Voldemort died here, all the better.
Even though they had temporary cooperation, Grindelwald wasn't about to risk himself for Voldemort's sake.
This was an opportunity.
He would watch.
He would learn.
And when the time was right—
He would plan accordingly.
BOOM!
At some point, the corroded black lines left by the Eye of Death's attack had transformed—
Burning roads of hellfire.
A trap had been set.
The Hell Skeleton stopped dodging.
The thirty-two hellfire wands behind him split once more—becoming sixty-four.
Above Tom's head, a colossal fiery magic array took form, aimed directly at the Eye of Death.
And then—
BOOM!
From the burning lines upon the earth, hellfire chains erupted upward, wrapping around the massive black eye, sealing it in place.
In an instant, the Eye of Death was immobilized.
Then—
BOOM!
A titanic infernal beam exploded skyward.
The heavens trembled.
A mushroom cloud of destruction blossomed.
Grindelwald turned without hesitation, transforming into blue flames as he fled.
Voldemort, his face twisted in rage, did the same—vanishing into a black mist.
Tom, now back in human form, turned his gaze upon the remaining pure-blood wizards and dark sorcerers.
Then, slowly, he stepped forward.
==============================================
Support me at [email protected]/goldengaruda and check out more chapter of this or more early access chapter of my other fanfic translation.
New fanfic : Marvel : The God Of Punishment System
=============================================