Dumbledore suddenly stepped in beside Shawn, shielding him, then turned to offer a gentle warning to the slightly shaken young man.
"Don't believe a single word anyone from the Double Serpent Society says. Brainwashing people is what they do best."
After warning Shawn, Dumbledore turned back, and the kindness on his face vanished in an instant.
A singular aura of authority rose around him, his white hair and beard stirring as though he were an enraged lion.
This was the White Wizard's true bearing.
"Soya, you've gone too far. You're far too arrogant, too. Did you think a few spies hidden in the crowd would make me afraid to act?
Now that you've come here today, you won't leave without paying a price."
As his words fell, a dazzling sea of spectral blue fire erupted through the hall with a roar.
Like countless slithering snakes, the flames swiftly separated everyone, rising into spectral blue walls that prevented them from reaching one another.
"Ah! It's Fiendfyre!"
Panic swept through those surrounded by the flames. Some were already preparing to plant their wands in the ground and cast Finite Incantatem.
But a moment later, the waves of aurora beneath the dome overhead burst into dazzling light.
Then they showered down like colorful ribbons, rapidly weaving themselves into Purple Cages.
The cages descended over them one by one. Between the Fiendfyre and the leaping electrical arcs, no one dared move another inch.
The entire hall now seemed submerged in an ocean of blue and purple, magnificent and breathtaking, yet terrifying.
Two voices rang out in the hall at the same time, their words almost identical.
"Stay still, and you won't be hurt!" ×2
The Polish Old Man, who was really Grindelwald in disguise, spoke each word distinctly as he slowly walked to the