"You really intend to challenge Malfoy, Harry?!"
Hermione turned to Harry sharply and sternly, "I must remind you, Harry, not to take chances. If Professor Brain knows about this matter, he will definitely kick out all the participants from his class. He always says what he does!”
Hermione raised her voice to ensure that the Malfoy trio across from her could also hear her words, and her warning did indeed have an effect.
The small witch standing behind Draco was of a gentle demeanor, with hair the color of gold and eyes as blue as the sea. She was Astoria Greengrass from the Gryffindor family, and along with her sister Daphne Greengrass, both of whom were students at Slytherin House. In contrast to her sister's aggressive demeanor, Astoria was much softer.
After following Draco into the classroom, Astoria remained silent, watching the situation unfold quietly. But after hearing Hermione say this, she could no longer suppress her hidden worries.
"Isn't it time you reconsider, Draco?"
Dressed in black small leather boots, Astoria tiptoed to reach Draco's ear.
"If you or Potter were seriously injured in a duel, Mrs. Pomfrey would definitely notify Professor Snape or Professor McGonagall. Then it would be impossible to hide this duel even if you tried; the news would certainly reach Professor Brain."
There was hesitation in Draco's gray eyes, but at that moment, he noticed the icy challenge in Potter's eyes. Thus, the indecisive determination was immediately strengthened.
"This has nothing to do with you, Astoria, okay!" Draco lifted his head proudly, speaking haughtily. "As you said, Potter, the duel will be between us two. I swear on the name of Slytherin House that no matter the outcome of this duel, I guarantee that Panci and Astoria will keep it a secret!"
"Malfoy's words are never to be trusted, Harry. Don't be fooled!"
If it were a matter of winning by fists, Ron might have already taken action, but knowing the rules of physical education class for a long time, he certainly did not want to see Harry being expelled from the sport class that many people wanted to enter but had no chance.
"Your family has trampled all over the honor of the pure-bloods, Weasley--"
Draco lowered his face and said,
"But that doesn't mean other people of noble birth don't care either!"
"I swear by the name of Gryffindor House--"
A sudden, inexplicable agitation surged through Harry's blood, and he became more and more eager for what was to come. Harry paid no attention to the muttering of Ron and Hermione in front of him. Instead, he directly pulled out his wand and pointed it towards the ceiling,
"I swear by the name of Gryffindor House that regardless of the outcome of the duel, my brother Ron and Hermione will not reveal what happened in this duel!"
"Oh, don't even dream of it, Harry!" Hermione said fiercely.
However, Harry had already freed himself from her restraint, and walked towards the center of the classroom first, his back and footsteps radiating a sense of determination and decisiveness.
Humph--
Draco hummed softly, turned his head to look at Penelope and Astoria, hesitated for a moment, then said to Astoria,
"Stay outside the door and notify me if anyone approaches this classroom--"
After speaking, he didn't wait for Astoria to speak, but stripped off his robe and threw it into Panci's arms, taking a step forward.
Now that we've reached this point, there's nothing more to say.
Harry and Draco stood in the central position of the classroom, side by side, with about a 60-70 foot gap between them. Their focused gazes locked onto each other.
"Do you think Harry can win, Hermione?"
If it were the first or second year, Ron had a clear idea of what level Harry and Malfoy were individually. However, now, having no knowledge of their abilities after being personally trained by Professor Brain, he was clueless. Also, Harry and Hermione rarely showed off in front of Ron to consider his feelings, and many things were learned by Ron through Fred and George's lips.
"Hard to say, Ron--"
Looking at the two standing opposite each other, Hermione's brow was furrowed as she recalled Draco's performance during their usual practice sessions.
"But Draco is not easy to deal with; his team ranks among the top in terms of endurance under Professor Brain's training—"
The fiery sunset slowly disappeared below the horizon, struggling for its last rays. Sensing the darkness approaching, all the torches on the walls of the classroom suddenly lit up in unison. The flames cast their light onto Harry and Draco's eyes, as if their pupils were also ablaze with fire!
In the air, the presence of intensity and pressure existed simultaneously. Both bent down, their bodies already in position for action, a strange idea suddenly occurred to them both - despite many previous confrontations between them over the past few years, physical fights and wands never failed to play a role. However, this time was different. It felt as if they were standing on the precipice of their first true duel; a sense of destiny loomed large.
Harry and Draco stood still, as immovable as the armor behind them, their eyes firmly locked on each other.
"What's going on? They look like statues, standing motionless!"
Ron had expected a quick battle to break out, but in reality, neither Harry nor Draco made a move. They stood like statues, maintaining their petrified posture. Apart from the sharpness of light in their eyes, they didn't even seem to blink.
"Shh, Ron, the duel has already started—" Hermione whispered quickly, "They are looking for each other's weaknesses, you know. Professor Brain said that people believe in striking first, but often, the one who strikes first is also more likely to be caught off guard--"
Ron pursed his lips, wanting to shout out "I don't know!" but at least he now understood that Harry and Malfoy were engaged in an odd exchange of blows!
When the actual confrontation began, Harry and Draco finally realized the difficulty of the situation. They were both students of Professor Brain, and Professor Brain had imparted the same experiences to them. In this scenario, trying to gain the upper hand was incredibly challenging.
Harry's eyes flickered as he did not want to admit it, but the reality was that he could find no weakness in Malfoy's guarded stance. And he believed that Malfoy had not acted because he was facing the same difficulty as he was.
But could they just stand like this indefinitely?
Click!
And just then, the door to the PE classroom suddenly opened, and everyone else in the room, except Harry and Draco, turned to look at the door.
It was Astoria Greengrass, who had just followed Draco's command to go out and keep watch.
"Rompot is coming; he's walking this way from the other end of the corridor, and I didn't let him see me!"
As soon as Hermione spoke, she smiled with relief. She thought the duel would not be able to take place, but...
The two opponents, who had been in a deadlock, unexpectedly decided to strike at the same time!
Harry was faster; he raised his hand and shot out a thumb-thick streak of scarlet, attached to a lock, that zipped across several dozen feet in an instant, aiming for Draco's arm.
Bang!
Unexpectedly, Draco did not choose to attack; he sidestepped Harry's disarming spell, which took him by surprise. Meanwhile, he raised his wand towards the empty space in front of him. There was a loud explosion, and a thick plume of black mist emerged from the void, filling everyone's line of sight.
In a violent swirl, the black mist rapidly expanded. In the blink of an eye, it not only completely obscured Draco from Harry's view but also began to spread outwards, as if it would not rest until it covered the entire classroom.
The sight before Harry made him pause for a moment. In his usual training, he had never seen Malfoy use such magic. However, in a flash of thought, Harry immediately understood Malfoy's intention - to block his vision!
Staying in one place was the most foolish choice, Harry's figure wavered for a moment, then, like an arrow off the string, he turned sideways and hurriedly moved away from the expanding black mist. While keeping a vigilant eye on the black mist for any unexpected attacks that might emerge, Harry's intuition proved correct.
His feint had indeed lured Malfoy, as a shadow emerged from the slightly thinned black mist, like a cold bolt of lightning, breaking through the mist and rushing straight towards where Harry had been standing just moments ago.
The black serpent, with its momentum too great to change direction mid-air, crashed into the armor at the side wall, its anger evident as it coiled rapidly and sprang back up like a spring compressed to its limit. It charged at Harry once again. Meanwhile, on the other side of the line, another shadow suddenly emerged from the mist.
Two black serpents approached from two directions, one in the sky and one on the ground!
Harry realized instantly that his speed could not match Malfoy's serpents, and he could use the Iron Cloak spell to repel their first wave of attacks. However, soon after, he would be at a disadvantage because the Iron Cloak spell can't kill the two serpents; it can only repel direct attacks. If they tried to wrap around him and fight him hand-to-hand. Also remember, these two serpents can move on their own without Malfoy's control; their movements will be much slower. While Harry is being held back by these serpents, Malfoy will undoubtedly launch another attack!
I am incredibly grateful for everyone's company throughout 2023. Wishing you all good health and happiness every day in the new year!
ps: I will resume updates in January. Please look forward to it!
(End of this chapter)
