Chapter 944
Conclusive Evidence
Chapter 944 Conclusive Evidence
"No, no, don't give up!" Hawthorne used all his strength to support Ezra Hughes's sliding body, and said in a trembling voice, "Hold on! I'll take you to the hospital right now!"
But the anti-Apparition spell hadn't been dispelled yet, so he quickly cast a levitation spell, making Hughes float up, and then dragged him staggering back.
Hughes' body trembled uncontrollably, a forced smile tugging at his lips, and gasps for air escaped his throat:
“You’re alright…that’s good…Nicholson, you are…my hope…don’t…give up…”
The last syllable was barely audible, because right before Hawthorne's eyes, in the blink of an eye, Hughes's body suddenly began to degenerate in reverse!
His bones cracked slightly, his body shrank rapidly, and he fell from Hawthorne's arms; his crisp uniform, losing its support, slid down under the pull of gravity.
In just a few breaths, the once tall, imposing, and decisive Auror office director was gone.
Only a baby who looked to be less than two years old remained, sitting amidst a pile of clothes, blankly sucking on his finger.
Hawthorne stared at him, his face blank for a moment, unable to react.
"Haha...heh...haha..."
As the dying Perez witnessed this scene, a greedy glint flashed in his cloudy eyes, and a hoarse laugh escaped his throat.
He saw the "antidote," and with his last bit of strength, he struggled like a worm, crawling toward the gold dust that had clung to Hughes. His withered fingers trembled as he reached out, wanting to regain his youth.
"You scum!"
Hawthorne's roar was like a thunderclap!
Unable to contain the grief and rage surging within him any longer, the tip of his wand emitted a blinding light, and a pure and furious spell shot out, striking Perez's dying body!
"boom!"
Perez didn't even have time to let out a scream before he was thrown away like a piece of rotten wood and crashed heavily to the ground more than ten meters away.
Before he even landed, he had already stopped breathing completely.
Hawthorne didn't look at the filthy corpse. He suppressed the pain that was tearing his heart apart, waved his wand to forcibly gather the scattered golden particles nearby, compressing them into a small ball of golden light, temporarily isolating the threat.
Then he turned to the baby sitting on the ground, looking around in bewilderment.
When his eyes met those deep blue eyes, Hawthorne felt a pang of anguish. He knelt on one knee, carefully reaching out to pick up the child and take him away from this nightmarish place.
At this moment, Hawthorne didn't want to think about the big picture, conspiracies, or the future of the magical world; he just wanted his friend to be back to normal!
However, just as his fingertips were about to touch the child's shoulder—
"Collapse!"
A blinding red spell shot towards Hawthorne's back like an arrow! He instinctively rolled away, dodging the spell but also putting distance between himself and baby Hughes.
Hawthorne turned his head abruptly, only to hear a stern rebuke:
"Don't touch him!"
A burst of red sparks shot into the sky and exploded with a "bang".
In an instant, many figures suddenly appeared around, and a series of explosions rang out, making the quiet tree-lined road unusually lively.
At that moment, Hawthorne saw many familiar faces—
Aurors, parliamentary officials, commissioners from Wizengamot, special envoys from the International Federation of Wizards, professors from Iphamoni…
These twenty or thirty people seemed to be actors who had been waiting for their chance to appear. Some rushed to Hawthorne impatiently, some looked at the scene on the tree-lined road in shock, some quietly avoided Hawthorne's gaze, and some looked at him provocatively and smugly.
“What’s going on, Mr. Hawthorne?” someone asked loudly.
Hawthorne had just turned his gaze when the person who had just cast the spell stepped out from behind the tree, pointed at him, and shouted:
“I saw it with my own eyes—Nickloo Hawthorne launched a sneak attack from behind and ruthlessly murdered his colleague! Director Hughes was unfortunately turned into this state by his time magic, and Chief Perez has already been killed by him; his body is over there!”
The person who stepped forward was Rex Grimm, the deputy director of the Auror's office, Hughes's confidant, and Hawthorne relied heavily on him as well.
His words naturally became irrefutable evidence.
Someone immediately crouched down and, disregarding the filth, turned the old corpse over, then screamed in terror:
“It’s true! This is Chief Perez! I…I recognize his badge and pocket watch!” The surrounding crowd immediately erupted in a wave of righteous indignation.
"too frightening!"
"This is simply an act of evil!"
"The evidence is conclusive! He must be arrested immediately!"
Various voices rushed out, as if afraid of missing their chance to speak their lines.
Reporters who had been hiding somewhere suddenly rushed out and started snapping photos, while someone nearby was writing furiously on parchment with a long, thin quill pen.
Leila Picqueli, standing in the crowd, seemed unable to accept reality until this moment. Her face showed just the right amount of shock and heartache as she said sorrowfully:
"Ladies and gentlemen... please be quiet! Look at what's happening before us... this heartbreaking scene!"
She raised her hand, her fingers trembling as she pointed to Perez's body and the helpless-looking baby, tears welling in her eyes:
"One was our loyal Director of the Floo Network Administration, and the other was our brave and fearless Director of the Auror Office... They both fell here tonight! They fell... at the hands of the Chairman we once trusted!"
Lyra's voice suddenly rose in pitch:
“Chairman Nicklo Hawthorne… no! He no longer deserves to be called chairman!”
"This criminal abused his position to research and practice forbidden time magic, harming his colleagues, and the evidence is right in front of everyone!"
"He has completely betrayed his duties as Speaker of Congress, betrayed the trust of all American wizards, and personally destroyed our bottom line of law and morality!"
She surveyed the pairs of eyes around her, then took a deep breath and announced in a resolute and unquestionable tone:
"Therefore, I, Leila Picqueli, in my capacity as Senior Assistant to the Chairman, hereby declare, based on this undeniable emergency and the heinous crimes before me—"
She paused, letting each word fall heavily:
"I request that all colleagues and witnesses present agree and confirm that Nicklo Hawthorne is immediately removed from all his positions and powers as President of the Magical Congress of the United States!"
"He is no longer one of us, nor is he fit to lead us! His fate should be handed over to Wizengamo for the most severe and just trial. We must make him pay the price for the terrible crimes he committed tonight!"
As soon as the words were spoken, a thunderous roar of agreement erupted from the crowd:
"agree!"
"I support Ms. Piqueli's proposal!"
"Remove him from office immediately! Send him to trial!"
"There's nothing more to say! This kind of villain should be executed immediately!"
The cheers grew louder and louder, and arms of approval were raised one after another, like a forest full of judgment.
Lyra stood at the front of the crowd, her head slightly raised, her gaze sweeping over Hawthorne's ashen face. Finally, a barely perceptible, yet chillingly cold, smile flickered across her lips.
Hawthorne stood alone in the center, his gaze piercing through the crowd, sweeping over those familiar faces, his mind flashing back to how they had been in front of him, whether they were enthusiastic, ingratiating, or nervous.
Finally, he stared intently at a figure behind the crowd who had remained silent throughout—
Gilbert Fontana, headmaster of Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The highly respected principal remained expressionless, but he slowly raised his hand.
He didn't look at Hawthorne, but instead frowned deeply and said heavily:
“I’m so sorry, Nicklo, and I’m so sorry… I’m so sorry I couldn’t stop you sooner… to stop you from doing this heinous thing…”
Fontana's voice was not loud, nor was his attitude intense, but his words carried more weight than all the previous clamor and agreement combined, like a judge striking down his gavel.
Watching this absurd scene, and witnessing everyone's passionate and genuine performance, Hawthorne's anger and despair suddenly vanished like the receding tide.
Instead, there is a detached, cold, and almost absurd clarity.
Suddenly, Hawthorne couldn't help but laugh.
It wasn't a cold laugh, nor a sneer, but a genuine, uncontrollable burst of laughter that surged from the depths of his chest.
"Ha...hahahahaha...!"
(End of this chapter)