Before Me, There Was Only Darkness

Merope looked at her, his burning eyes filled with mockery and incomprehension.

However, it's not surprising, as she and Voldemort's true form are no different; both are pathetic creatures who don't understand love.

Even if she were a effeminate version of Voldemort with a brain, the same would still apply.

"You people are really strange," she murmured. "Knowing they're going to die, they still come closer. Knowing they're no match, they still charge in. Knowing there's no hope, they still—"

She suddenly laughed, a laugh filled with sorrow.

"Fine—since you both want to die together, then I'll grant your wish!"

She raised her hands, and the crimson light surged once more. This time, it wasn't just her—the entire mountain responded to her call, and boundless power welled up from the depths of the Ley Lines, pouring into her body!

Boom!

The entire Temple of the Sun trembled! Huge stones fell from the dome, crashing to the ground with a deafening roar.

The Crystal Pillar that had merged into Merope's body reappeared, but this time, it transformed into a huge phantom behind her, like a towering tree with its roots deeply embedded in the earth and its branches reaching towards the sky!

A dark red energy flow spread outwards from her center, melting rocks, Runes, and even causing the air to hiss and burn wherever it passed!

"Potter!" Merope's voice rang out. "Let me tell you, when all this is over, you will beg for my forgiveness, and I—will refuse you! Your agonizing cries will be the best proof of my wild power!"

"Harry!" Cassandra's shout was drowned out by the roar.

But Harry heard it.

He heard her voice, Tonks's curses, Dyg's exclamation, and Silva's shouts.

He heard more.

He heard the rhythmic pulse deep beneath his feet, the breath of the Andes Mountains over thousands of years, and the cries of all living beings on this land—the souls of the Inca Empire, the guardian spirits of the Andes Mountains, and the very Ley Lines forcibly extracted by Voldemort, all groaning in agony.

Their will is being forcibly distorted, and they are unwilling to accept this distortion!

"Did you hear that?" Harry murmured, his eyes suddenly lighting up.

"What?" Cassandra rushed to his side and supported him as he swayed.

"The earth," Harry said, "Is crying. It's being drained of its power by Voldemort, it's in pain. But it's also calling out to me—it doesn't want to be enslaved by Voldemort."

Cassandra paused for a moment, then realized what was happening.

"Can you communicate with it?"

"It's not communication." Harry closed his eyes, pushing his senses to their limits. "It's resonance. I'm not trying to extract its power, but—asking for its help!"

His voice grew softer, but the Platinum Light from his body grew brighter and brighter, gradually turning yellowish-brown—the power of the Andes Mountains themselves.

Immediately afterwards, Cassandra was enveloped by the power of the Ley Lines and escaped from this dangerous area.

Merope sensed something, and she turned sharply to look at Harry, her eyes showing genuine wariness for the first time.

"What are you doing?"

Harry did not answer.

He simply stood there quietly, eyes closed, arms slightly outstretched, as if embracing something.

The platinum and earthy yellow light intertwined and merged on his body, forming an unprecedented radiance.

That was a resonant light, the Andes Mountains responding to him.

At this most critical juncture, he became the guardian of the earth, certified by the mountains!

"Impossible!" Merope screamed, "This land has merged with me! Its power belongs to me!"

"No." Harry opened his eyes, golden light dancing in them. "You're wrong. The land doesn't belong to anyone."

You're just forcibly extracting its power, enslaving it, and exploiting it. And I'm begging it—begging it to help me—to drive you, this parasite, out."

He raised his wand, and a light shone from its tip, a blend of platinum, ochre, dark brown, and even hints of emerald green—the colors of everything in the Andes Mountains, the true nature of this land.

"Voldemort," Harry said, "It's time to end this."

The wand pointed forward, and a burst of light roared forth!

That was the will of the entire Americas, transformed into a torrent of light, rushing towards Merope!

Merope's expression changed drastically, and he frantically channeled his magic, causing the dark red light to collide head-on with the light from the earth!

Rumble-

The entire mountain was trembling! Hundreds of kilometers away in the city, Muggle felt the ground shaking beneath their feet in terror, thinking it was an earthquake. Wizards took to the skies, staring in disbelief at the distant mountain shrouded in light.

Inside the hall, the confrontation between the two forces had reached a fever pitch.

Harry gritted his teeth and poured all his magic into the light. He could feel the power of the Andes Mountains surging in, a power so immense it seemed about to burst his body.

But he cannot retreat, cannot stop, cannot fall.

Because behind him are people he is willing to protect with his life.

Merope was also fighting desperately. Veins bulged on her delicate face, and the fire burning in her eyes almost overflowed from their sockets.

The enormous crystal phantom behind her trembled violently, with countless cracks spreading across it.

"I-will-not-lose!" she roared.

"You've already lost!" Harry replied, enunciating each word clearly.

He suddenly took a step forward!

The platinum-gold light suddenly surged, forcing the dark red light to retreat!

Merope took a step back.

Another step.

Another step.

For the first time, fear appeared on her arrogant face.

"No—impossible—I am— Merope —I am—immortal—"

"You are nothing," Harry said. "You're just a coward who's afraid of death, someone who can't face himself. A pathetic creature, forever alone, forever fearful, forever clueless about love."

He took the final step.

The light completely engulfed Merope.

The enormous crystal phantom shattered with a deafening roar, dissipating into countless points of light.

The dark red light receded like the tide, finally disappearing without a trace.

Merope stood still.

Her long dress was torn, her long hair was disheveled, and her face was as pale as paper.

Those eyes that once burned with flames have now returned to their normal crimson color, becoming normal human eyes.

She looked at Harry with a strange expression, unlike the hatred Harry had imagined; her gaze was extremely calm.

"Harry Potter," she whispered, "You won, once again."

Harry, panting heavily, leaned on his wand and managed to stand.

"You lost," he said.

"Yes." Merope nodded.

She looked down at her hands. Those hands, once stained with blood, were now gradually becoming transparent.

"You know what," she suddenly said, "I've never regretted anything. Everything I've done is the path I chose. But there's one thing—"

She looked up at Harry.

"I regret not understanding what you just said sooner."

Harry paused for a moment.

"The one without weaknesses is the truly weak one," Merope repeated softly. "You're right. I always thought that having no weaknesses meant being strong. So I didn't want friends, family, or love. I thought that way no one could hurt me, but I was wrong."

She smiled.

"Those who have no weaknesses are the most vulnerable. Because they have nothing to protect, they lose the moment they encounter someone they truly want to protect."

She looked at the people behind Harry: Cassandra, Tonks, Silva, and Dyg.

They are all still alive, and they are all watching this place.

"You're lucky, Harry," she said. "You have people willing to die with you, but I never have."

Harry was silent for a moment.

"You could have chosen a different path," he said. "From the moment you first killed innocent Myrtle, you made your choice."

"Yes," Merope nodded, "So this is my end."

Her body had begun to dissipate, starting from her feet, gradually turning into tiny specks of light and vanishing into the air.

"Harry," she said suddenly, "Do you think it's all over?"

"It's over," Harry said with a touch of melancholy. "Nothing lasts forever, Voldemort."

"All I could see was darkness—"

Before Merope could finish speaking, her body completely vanished into the world.

The hall was filled with chaos. The enormous Crystal Pillar had been completely shattered, the Magic Array on the ground had lost its light, and the Runes on the walls were gradually dimming.

The dome stopped trembling, and everything came to a standstill.

Harry stood there, panting heavily.

He leaned against the wall, barely managing to stand, staring at the empty space.

Voldemort —is he really dead?

"Harry!"

Cassandra rushed over and supported him. Her face was pale, and tears glistened in her eyes, but she did not cry.

She held him tightly, as if afraid he would fall.

"I'm fine," Harry said, his voice hoarse. "She—is dead."

Tonks walked over, looked at the empty space, and murmured, "Is he really dead? This time?"

"It should be," Dyg said, his Quartz Probe now calm. "The Magic Fluctuation have completely disappeared; the dark magic throughout the mountain is dissipating."

Silva didn't say anything, but silently put away his dagger, walked to Harry's side, and gently patted him on the shoulder.

Harry leaned against Cassandra, feeling the warmth of her arm.

He was so tired that he could barely stand.

"Let's go home," he said.

Kingsley's urgent voice came through the phone. "Harry! Harry! How are things over there? We sensed a huge Magic Fluctuation! And then it disappeared!"

Harry picked up his phone and, with his last breath, said, "It's over. Voldemort is dead. We're going home."

There was a moment of silence on the communicator, then a cheer erupted.

Kingsley's voice, Lupin's voice, Bill's voice, Phoebe's voice, and the faint voices of Ron and Hermione in the distance.

"Great!" Kingsley exclaimed. "Great! Harry, you wait here, I'll send someone to pick you up right away!"

The communication ended, and the hall fell silent. There was no more roaring of the Magic Array, no more loud clashing of energy, no more Voldemort's voice. Only the occasional sound of falling rubble from the dome and the heavy breathing of the five of them remained.

Tonks was the first to collapse to the ground. She looked up at the Starry Sky Pattern on the dome that were slowly ceasing to rotate, and murmured, "I'm still alive—I'm really still alive—"

"Me too." Dyg plopped down next to her, and the Quartz Probe in his hand finally went completely dark.

He stared at the probe that had been with him for decades, and suddenly smiled.

"Old Pal, you actually pulled off a bomb! You really made me proud this time."

Silva didn't sit; she leaned against the wall, arms crossed, eyes closed.

But her breathing was steady, clearly she was just resting and could throw herself back into Battle Cry at any moment.

This is a habit developed from long-term survival in the wild; one must remain vigilant and never completely let one's guard down.

Cassandra helped Harry to a relatively flat rock and helped him sit down.

She herself did not sit, but stood beside him, with one hand gently resting on his shoulder.

Harry closed his eyes, feeling as if his body was almost completely emptied out.

Just now, Ji Yi had used up almost all his strength in that attack, and now he felt it was difficult to even lift a finger.

But he's still alive, they're all still alive, and that's enough.

"Harry," Cassandra called his name softly.

He opened his eyes and saw her looking at him.

"What's wrong?"

"What, Tian?" Cassandra said, a slight smile playing on her lips, "I just wanted to call your name."

Harry paused for a moment, then smiled.

This is probably the least Cassandra- like thing she's ever said.

"Cass," he said.

"Hmm?" Cassandra looked at him.

"Thank you," Harry said.

"You've already thanked me," Cassandra smiled.

"Thank you again," Harry said. "Thank you for always being there for me."

Cassandra looked at him, remained silent for a moment, and then softly hummed in agreement.

A moment later, a Blue Light shone in the center of the hall.

A middle-aged male wizard in uniform emerged from the light, paused for a moment upon seeing the devastated hall and the five exhausted-looking people.

"Harry Potter?" he asked tentatively.

"It's me." Harry helped Cassandra to her feet.

A hint of respect flashed in the wizard's eyes. He said that he had simply activated a large key porcelain, which looked like an ancient Inca Pottery Jar.

"Please gather around," he said. "She'll be taken directly back to Grimmauld Place; Ms. Grindelwald arranged it herself."

Five people stood in a circle, their hands resting on the pottery jar.

Blue Light suddenly appeared, followed by a familiar sense of distortion.

A sensation of being pulled and spun around in the navel appeared and disappeared. After a dizzying spin, when they opened their eyes again, they were back at Grimmauld Place, Number 13.