Skofot did not return directly to the dungeons.
After moving through the dark corridors for a while, his footsteps slowed of their own accord before finally coming to a stop.
Just leave like this?
Leave the unconscious Savior Trio and a corpse behind, while he alone walked away unscathed?
That seemed... far too inconsistent with the fragile image of being "mentally unstable but now recovered" that he had just established before the professors.
A more "perfect" ending took shape in his mind.
He turned around and silently returned to the room where the Mirror of Erised stood.
He did not look at the illusion in the mirror. Instead, he found a corner some distance from both Quirrell's corpse and the unconscious Harry and the others, yet one that anyone entering the room would notice immediately, and leisurely sat down.
He switched to [Rabbit Rhymer].
He even took out a bottle of Restoration Potion from the system Backpack, put the straw in his mouth, and took small sips as though trying to calm himself after being "frightened."
Not long after, a burst of hurried, chaotic footsteps approached from afar, accompanied by Professor McGonagall's panicked cry of "Harry!" and Snape's low voice, heavy with suppressed fury.
Dumbledore's steady footsteps led the way.
The professors rushed into the room.
The sight before them made them gasp.
—Quirrell's charred, rigid corpse; the unconscious Harry and Ron; the bound Hermione; and...
Skofot Leoqi, sitting in the corner, pale-faced and clutching a strange bottle as he drank from it.
"Merlin..." Professor McGonagall clutched her chest and rushed toward Harry and the others, checking on the three children alongside Professor Flitwick.
Snape swept over to Quirrell's corpse like a black whirlwind, crouching down to inspect it quickly, his expression so dark it seemed ready to drip water.