Professor Flitwick?!

We've been fighting for almost a minute. Baron should be about ready...

Avada kept defending fiercely against the fake Baker's attacks with the Shield Charm, watching his eyes closely for any signs of what he might do, while silently calculating: I just need to hold out until Baron finishes preparing his Dark Magic, and then we can end this for good. He should be...

Even in the heat of battle, he spared a sliver of his attention to glance at a hiding place somewhere behind the fake Baker: There.

It's been long enough. Baron's Dark Magic must be ready by now, and he's watching me... As long as I keep all of Professor Baker's attention fixed on me and signal Baron, he can ambush him from behind with powerful Dark Magic and win in one decisive move...

Good. Professor Baker and I are locked in a stalemate. He seems to have forgotten about Baron. I can signal him now!

Three, two, one...

Avada's left hand, which had been making supplementary wandless casting gestures, suddenly froze. He seemed to leave an opening, and the Shield Charm's strength abruptly weakened. If Baker increased the pressure now, he might be able to break through the shield in one decisive blow and end the stalemate!

"Heh."

But the fake Baker ignored the opportunity entirely, letting out a derisive laugh instead. The next moment, he abruptly turned his wand toward a spot behind him and fired a fierce spell—the very hiding place where Baron was concealed!

"Impossible!!"

Avada was stunned. "How could you possibly see through my plan?!"

"There's a lot I can see through..."

The fake Baker was about to reply with a sneer when he suddenly noticed something odd about the magical energy from the spell that had just struck the hiding place. It didn't seem as though it had hit anyone or been blocked...

Bam!

A huge cloud of brightly glowing smoke burst out of the hiding place where Baron was supposed to be, expanding in an instant until it engulfed the entire battlefield!

"Ugh!"

The insidious smoke consisted of countless tiny, shimmering particles. Before the fake Baker could react, some had already gotten into his eyes. A sharp pain seized him, and tears streamed uncontrollably down his face. He nearly went blind!

[Since Mr. Shafiq has turned invisible and Mr. K is keeping me occupied, I won't be able to focus on defending against potential threats. So I'll definitely use Legilimency to read K's thoughts and learn what you're planning next. Don't worry, by then I won't have the energy to sustain the Hyper-Senses Charm, so it'll definitely be Legilimency...]

[At that point, Mr. K needs to use Occlumency while deliberately meeting my gaze, so I'll read false information. My mind will already be extremely weak, so I won't be able to see through even the most basic Occlumency. And my thoughts will be muddled after two first-years outsmart me and launch a surprise attack, so it won't occur to me that a first-year could have mastered Occlumency. Of course, Occlumency is very difficult to learn, so you may need to spend a lot more time studying it, Mr. K...]

[What? You already know it? That's wonderful!]

Of course Avada knew Occlumency—he'd spent half a year studying the mental structure of Snape, a master of Occlumency. How could he not know it?

[This will put me at a serious disadvantage, but it'll also make me realize that all my moves have been completely seen through. That should make my actions harder to predict from then on, while my covert actions will still be impossible to interrupt. This will be the stage most likely to bring unexpected developments, and I haven't thought of a completely foolproof solution yet... Mr. K, what did you want to say?]

Every one of my techniques and habits has been seen through... Who is it? Who?!

As he hurriedly healed his eyes, the fake Baker trembled with fear. He'd never encountered anything like this in all his adventures—someone who could see through everything about him and devise a counterstrategy, leaving him in such a sorry state at the hands of two first-years!

Who could possibly know him this well? And how could anyone know him this well?!

I don't know why you know so much about me, but... you've underestimated what I can do!

Found you!!

Shielded by the glowing smoke, he dodged several spells using his instincts and hearing, then spun around and swung his wand. A beam of azure light shot toward a seemingly empty spot...

"No!"

The fake Baker's lips curled slightly. He was pleased to hear his enemy cry out.

The next moment, the azure light struck its target. With a crisp sound like shattering glass, the space inside the Room of Requirement began twisting wildly, like a corkscrew. A moment later, it returned to normal, as if nothing had happened...

But the door to the Room of Requirement, which Professor Baker had hidden, had reappeared in its original place!

Yes, this was what the fake Baker had been secretly working on from the very beginning. Not even the curses and poison afflicting him, or his fierce battle with Avada, had interrupted him: he'd been breaking the Spatial Magic in the room.

The moment he realized the door to the Room of Requirement had been hidden, he'd suspected someone else was secretly using Spatial Magic to trap him. So throughout the battle, while pretending to attack Avada and act as though he was fighting with everything he had, he'd actually been searching for a weakness in the Spatial Magic!

In the end, he'd outmaneuvered them, just as he had in countless battles before.

So the fake Baker pushed his mind to its limits, using the last of his strength to cast several spells that made him move faster. Then he forced himself to keep going and raced toward the door to the Room of Requirement, moving so fast he nearly left an afterimage!

The Spatial Magic was trying to hide the door again. He had to get out before it did!

Once he was back in Hogwarts Castle, in Dumbledore's domain, any schemes or preparations would be meaningless! Besides, Professor Flitwick, a powerful wizard, lived on the Seventh Floor. He could help Baker escape any danger!

At last, his hand touched the smooth wooden door. He shoved it hard, carried forward by his momentum, and tumbled outside—back into the corridor on the Seventh Floor of Hogwarts.

Seeing the familiar tiles and walls, and the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy being clubbed by a troll, the fake Baker wanted to laugh out loud.

But what little reason he had left kept him from giving in to the impulse, and he immediately shouted, "Professor Flitwick, help me! I've been attacked!!"

Bam!

With a loud crash as the wooden door slammed against the wall, Professor Flitwick came hurrying over in a rumpled nightshirt, apparently having just gotten out of bed. The moment he saw the disheveled fake Baker, he gasped in shock.

"Merlin above! Professor Baker, what happened to you?!"

"Someone in that room is trying to attack me. I just escaped! They may come out any moment, so be careful. They're extremely skilled, and they're controlling two first-years..."

The fake Baker pointed at the smooth wooden door, which had yet to disappear. His voice trembled, and he seemed on the verge of fainting.

"Good heavens, how could this have happened... Oh, Albus, you're here too? Thank goodness. Professor Baker, he—Expelliarmus! Incarcerous!"

The next second, to the fake Baker's utter astonishment, Flitwick suddenly turned his wand on him and fired two incredibly fast spells from almost point-blank range!

"You?!"

But soon, he had no time to question "Professor Flitwick." The door to the Room of Requirement had opened again, and Baron Shafiq stood behind it. The wand in his hand glowed with an eerie, deep-blue light that sent a chill through anyone who looked at it...

Dark Magic—the Soul-Freezing Curse!

That was the final thought the fake Baker had before his consciousness froze.