"Thorn Entanglement!"
Boom...
Unlike before, this time when Sean cast his fifth-level Thorn Curse, the ground instantly shattered. Massive thorny vines as thick as stone pillars erupted from beneath the earth, unfurling with earth-shaking momentum as they twisted toward Peter Pettigrew.
This was also Sean's first time witnessing a true fifth-level Thorn Curse. It had to be said that any spell reaching the fifth level possessed quite astonishing power.
Peter Pettigrew looked at these enormous thorny vines, his face showing terror. He had long known Sean was very strong, but he absolutely hadn't expected Sean's strength to reach this level. A third-year student with such power could have a place even among the Death Eaters.
Too bad. If you think you can catch me with just this spell, think again!
Peter Pettigrew continued charging forward. Just as a thick, thorny vine had wrapped around his body, Peter Pettigrew's form suddenly shrank rapidly, transforming into a rat. He darted through the gaps between the vines, avoided the tendrils, then resumed human form and continued pouncing toward Sean.
Watching Peter Pettigrew's movements, Sean's eyebrow rose slightly.
Using the free transformation between human and Animagus forms to grant wizards powerful mobility. So the Animagus magic could be used this way!
The thick vines were unable to catch the small-bodied rat.
Sean gently waved his wand, and the thick vines immediately extended numerous smaller tendrils, wrapping toward Peter Pettigrew. However, just as these vines entangled the rat-form Peter Pettigrew, his body enlarged again, snapping the small tendrils. Though his body was scratched by the thorns on the vines, for Peter Pettigrew, these minor wounds weren't too serious a problem.
Dodging and weaving, with Sean deliberately allowing it to observe Animagus techniques, Peter Pettigrew quickly approached Sean. But as he drew closer to Sean, an ominous premonition gradually arose in Peter Pettigrew's heart. He didn't know where this ominous feeling came from, but it truly existed, making Peter Pettigrew increasingly uneasy.
Just then, as Peter Pettigrew was about to reach Sean, those vines that had been chasing and entangling him suddenly withered. Sean looked at Peter Pettigrew with a half-smile: "If I wasn't afraid the vines would crush you to pulp, do you think you could have reached me?"
"Anyone can talk big, you..."
"Frost Domain!"
Sean gently waved his wand forward, and a chill instantly spread. Starting from Sean's feet, the grass on the ground was rapidly covered with layers of frost. This frost continued spreading and, in the blink of an eye, had completely frozen the area in front of Sean, including Peter Pettigrew within it!
The rat's body was frozen in the frost. Feeling the chill that seemed to freeze his blood, Peter Pettigrew immediately returned to human form, bursting through the ice layer around him. In human form, his resistance to cold was also stronger.
Shivering as he looked at Sean, Peter Pettigrew knew he had made a grave error. He had spent so long beside Ron and Harry, so many years at Gryffindor, that he subconsciously assumed third-year students would at most be at Ron and Harry's level, or at best Hermione's strength. No matter how strong Sean was, could he be stronger than those fifth or sixth-years?
Even after witnessing Sean's Thorn Curse just now, he had only thought Sean might have a few signature spells. Moreover, the power displayed by the Thorn Curse earlier seemed ordinary enough. It couldn't catch him at all.
However, facts proved he had indeed underestimated Sean far too much.
"Sh-Sean, I can explain. You've got it all wrong. I'm actually the victim. I'm just afraid of retaliation from Sirius and Lupin. I'm just scared. The real murderer of James and Lily was Sirius, not me!"
"Hmm..."
Sean looked at the shivering Peter Pettigrew, whose eyes kept darting about. In his previous life, he had deeply disliked rats, and this life was no exception. The difference was that in his previous life, he had no magic. Seeing rats made him feel horrified, and he would stay away. But in this life, with magic, facing rats again gave him the power of life and death over them.
Now seeing Peter Pettigrew, this human-shaped rat, Sean truly felt disgusted from the bottom of his heart. He looked at Peter Pettigrew, who kept chattering about his innocence, and said indifferently: "Who killed James Potter and Lily Potter? What does that have to do with me?"
"Wh-what?"
Peter Pettigrew looked at Sean with complete bewilderment, showing disgust. For a moment, he didn't know what to say.
Sean looked at Peter Pettigrew and said: "From the beginning, my target has only been you. Only you, Peter Pettigrew. As for who you killed or who threatened and persecuted you, what does any of that have to do with me?"
"You... aren't you Harry's friend? Why..."
"I am indeed Harry's friend, so there are many things I won't overstep to help Harry resolve. The task of avenging parents and friends belongs to Harry and Lupin and the others. If they invite me to help them, then naturally I'll agree. If they haven't asked, I won't presume to decide anything for them. This isn't hard to understand, right?"
"Then you... why?"
Frowning slightly, Sean said somewhat impatiently: "I already said. I'm only here for you, for Peter Pettigrew, that's all. You don't need to waste time with such chatter either. At least before you fully recover your mobility, I'll have already made my move."
The moment Peter Pettigrew heard Sean's last sentence, his pupils contracted slightly. Then he suddenly roared and transformed into a rat again, pouncing toward Sean.
But what greeted Peter Pettigrew was only Sean's raised wand.
"Pain Absorption!"
"Ahh..."
As Sean cast his magic, all of Peter Pettigrew's happy and joyful memories transformed into transparent, twisted threads that were drawn from his face and flowed into the tip of Sean's wand.
At this moment, Sean actually felt he had instantly gained indescribable happiness and joy. At the same time, his mental state, which had felt slightly fatigued from casting magic, was immediately nourished and quickly recovered!
The Pain Absorption magic obtained from the Dementors actually had a hidden effect!