"Oh, of course. Under certain circumstances, the Imperius Curse can indeed be lifted," Dumbledore replied warmly, looking at Victor. He understood exactly what the younger man was implying.
In truth, based on his understanding of Victor's abilities, breaking the curse wouldn't have been a difficult task for Victor himself.
Yet, he had specifically asked Dumbledore to do it.
Clearly, the Ministry would require the word of a heavyweight figure as a guarantee; otherwise, Shafiq might find himself in significant trouble.
It was notoriously difficult to detect if someone was truly under the Imperius Curse, but if a figure like Dumbledore vouched for him, the claim carried immense weight.
Victor didn't want the boy's future ruined by the curse. Dumbledore found this deeply heartening... he could sense that Victor was gradually developing his own understanding of 'love.'
By now, Ron, Hermione, and Neville had rushed over, whispering questions about Harry's condition. While the other students had been calmed, most still looked at Shafiq with fear and suspicion...
Although the Second Wizarding War had ended over a decade ago, its shadow lingered. These children had grown up hearing stories about the pure evil of the Unforgivable Curses.
Professor McGonagall was urgently checking Harry's condition. "Mr. Potter, how do you feel? I suggest you head to the hospital wing for an examination immediately."
"No, I'm fine," Harry said, shaking his head. He had no desire to spend his very first night at school in the hospital wing.
Looking at Victor standing before him, he felt an inexplicable sense of security.
It was just... why did Professor Wick look a bit older tonight?
Snape shot Harry a glare before turning to look at the slumped Shafiq, a flash of concern crossing his brow.
Once it was confirmed to be the work of the Imperius Curse, Snape's anger toward Shafiq dissipated significantly...
As a former Death Eater, no one understood the power of the Imperius Curse better than he did.
But even if Shafiq was a victim...
Snape's brow furrowed as he considered the boy's future prospects.
Dumbledore was already assessing Shafiq's state. He pulled out a curiously shaped wand, tapped it against Shafiq's head, and began chanting softly.
Dumbledore's mastery of the Dark Arts was truly extraordinary; an Imperius Curse that would stump most wizards seemed to pose no challenge to him at all.
Before long, the glazed, fixated stare Shafiq had been leveling at Harry turned vacant, then slowly regained clarity.
Dumbledore raised his wand, the tip now glowing with a soft, white light.
He lowered the wand, a look of realization passing through his eyes...
Shafiq's soul fluctuations were erratic—clear signs of external manipulation. Victor's assessment had been correct.
Shafiq was now fully conscious. As the realization of what he had just done hit him, his face turned deathly pale.
He looked in terror at the professors standing as if facing a mortal enemy and at the strange, judgmental looks from his peers. His head began to spin...
"Mr. Shafiq, I suggest you visit the hospital wing immediately," Dumbledore said calmly.
Having broken the curse, Dumbledore was certain Shafiq had been under its control. This meant Shafiq was just as much a victim as Harry was.
"Professor... I..." Shafiq's voice trembled so violently he couldn't finish a sentence.
This wasn't a lingering effect of the curse; it was pure dread for his own future...
"Rest assured, Mr. Shafiq. I will speak with the Ministry of Magic to clarify the situation. You will still be able to graduate from Hogwarts as planned," Dumbledore promised.
Victor frowned as he took in the looks the surrounding students were giving the boy.
"Students! It seems I must give you an early lesson in Defense Against the Dark Arts," Victor announced loudly.
The students' attention was instantly captured, every eye fixing on him.
The fear in their eyes hadn't entirely vanished, but it was being rapidly overtaken by a sense of awe and admiration.
None of them could forget the soul-stirring scene they had just witnessed.
Victor had somehow managed to bypass Hogwarts' magical barriers to perform an unconventional teleportation, appearing in front of Harry in an instant.
Even more shocking was how he had stood calmly before a lethal Killing Curse, causing that chilling green light to dissipate and vanish into thin air before him.
Such legendary power was more persuasive than any lecture, instantly shattering the students' preconceived notions about their Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.
Although he had only just started and hadn't even taught his first official class, Victor was undoubtedly the most respected Defense Against the Dark Arts professor the students had seen in years.
Because of this genuine respect, every student in the Great Hall held their breath, hanging on his every word.
"I understand your fear of the Unforgivable Curses. The Imperius Curse is indeed one of the three. Its horror lies not in direct physical harm, but in its ability to silently strip away a person's will, seizing total control over their every word and action... and worse, this control is so subtle that most wizards cannot even detect it."
Victor's voice was steady and powerful, cutting through the residual tension of the Great Hall and reaching every student clearly.
His tone grew serious as his gaze swept across the anxious faces. "One who falls under the Imperius Curse becomes a puppet. Even if commanded to kill their own family, they would do so without hesitation or mercy... But I must remind you: this is never the fault of the victim, nor does it reflect their character. You must remember that the victim is just that—a victim of Dark Magic!"
Victor paused, his eyes traveling around the room as if to etch these words into their hearts.
"What happened to Mr. Shafiq tonight is tragic, but please, try to put yourselves in his shoes... What if the caster's target had been random? What if it wasn't Mr. Shafiq, but any one of you who had been controlled tonight?" He leaned forward slightly, his tone earnest. "Ask yourselves: if you were turned into a puppet of Dark Magic and forced to do something you couldn't resist, would you want everyone to look at you with suspicion and rejection for the rest of your life?"
The Great Hall fell into a profound silence, save for the sound of soft breathing.
The students' expressions began to shift. The instinct to ostracize Shafiq, born out of fear, was now rippling with doubt like a stone cast into a still lake.
Indeed—what if it had been them? Would they want to be shunned for a mistake that wasn't their own?
A few students lowered their heads, twisting the edges of their robes. A flicker of guilt crossed their faces as they recalled their own whispered judgments and thoughts of distancing themselves.
Seeing this, Victor continued, "There are only two ways to break the Imperius Curse. The first is with the help of a wizard whose power far exceeds the caster, or through a specific magical catalyst. The second way, and the most rare, is for the victim to use their own sheer willpower to break free!"
He raised his voice, his tone filled with admiration. "And tonight, Mr. Shafiq's resolve deeply impressed me. You all saw it—the Killing Curse he cast while under control veered upward at the very last second! That was no accident. That was his willpower erupting in a moment of desperation, forcibly reclaiming control of his own body!"
"Mr. Shafiq's willpower deserves our respect! His actions upon waking—struggling to divert the spell and protect his fellow students—are proof enough of his character."
Finally, Victor surveyed the students with a piercing gaze. "So, I ask you: do not look at Mr. Shafiq with prejudice. Do not treat a man who fought against Dark Magic to protect his classmates with anything less than kindness. To do otherwise would be the ultimate insult."
As Victor finished, the Hall was silent for a heartbeat. Then, Dumbledore was the first to break into a beam of pure satisfaction.
He looked warmly at the young professor and began to clap, slowly and deliberately.
The sound of his clapping was steady and strong, like a ray of warmth cutting through the final remnants of tension.
Soon, a wave of thunderous applause swept through the Great Hall as students stood up, clapping with all their might.
The applause grew louder, echoing under the enchanted ceiling, refusing to fade.
Even Snape, usually shrouded in cold gloom, didn't maintain his icy facade.
He silently raised his hands and let his fingertips meet. Though it was a perfunctory gesture, it was surprising nonetheless.
His tightly knit brow relaxed slightly, though he quickly masked that rare moment of softness.
Caught up in the atmosphere, even Quirrell, the true culprit, began to believe that Shafiq really had broken his Imperius Curse through sheer will...
Meanwhile, Shafiq, who had been pale and slumped on the floor, stared blankly at Victor's back, his eyes brimming with tears.
He knew better than anyone that without Victor's powerful words, his future would have been utterly ruined.
Nearly killing Harry Potter, the Savior!
The weight of it hung over him like a heavy shackle, making it hard to breathe.
Being isolated or ostracized by his classmates might have been the least of his worries.
Worse still, even if he graduated, he would have been shunned and cast out by the entire wizarding world.
No one would remember he was a victim of the Imperius Curse; they would only remember that he, Shafiq, had nearly murdered the Boy Who Lived.
Standing in the crowd, Harry looked at Victor's upright back with unconcealed reverence.
He looked down in silence for a moment, as if making a decision, then stepped forward, cutting through the crowd to reach Shafiq.
He leaned down toward the boy sitting on the floor and said sincerely, "Thank you, Shafiq. If you hadn't used your willpower to break that curse, I'd be dead."
Shafiq froze, his expression turning to one of shock. The tears he had been holding back finally spilled over, splashing onto the floor.
He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Only his tears spoke of his immense gratitude and relief.
Victor turned to meet Dumbledore's eyes. Simultaneously, a soft, knowing smile appeared on both their faces.