Snap!
After the flash of lightning, Draco's wand, which was pointing at Neville's throat, was sucked into the sky by a powerful force. The wand flew high up in the air. And Draco, paralyzed by red light, stood frozen in place. His knees weakened and he half-knelt on the ground, unable to move.
Who struck the blow?
Even if he couldn't turn back, Draco knew the answer to this question.
Students in P.E. class have been working together for more than a year, so they all know exactly who is good at what spell.
Harry Potter's specialty is his disarming charm, which can attack multiple targets and render them paralyzed.
Huh!
The fierce wind followed, and the wizards who were still conscious on the field looked up. When they saw the gradually clear three figures, many people unconsciously exclaimed in surprise!
Neville's eyes were complex as he looked at Draco Malfoy kneeling before him.
In a strict sense, their duel just now was that Draco Malfoy had the upper hand, although it was because he voluntarily removed his sword.
However, Neville quickly threw away this small regret and looked up at the sky with others.
"Goddess of the Grove, oh my."
Looking closely, Neville immediately amazed,
"It's Harry and them, they're flying. Without flying broomsticks!"
Tongtong also stopped her dance, breathing heavily and wiping the sweat from her forehead, looking up with the same confusion on her face.
"Is this some kind of special spell? But, they look like they're riding something. Oh, if it is--"
"It's Niffler."
Victor's face turned pale, and Harry and the others' sitting down along with the grotesque monster made his shoulders shrink slightly.
"A magical creature that can fly, similar to an eagle-headed unicorn with wings, or a pegasus, but only those who have seen death can see it."
seen death
Several people shivered, but Luna happily greeted the Niffler perched at the edge of the clearing, flapping its wings.
"They've always been used to pull wagons for the school!"
"Pulling carriages for Hogwarts?"
Victor muttered something and then, his brow was deeply furrowed.
"Doesn't this count as a foul? Why are you the only ones getting Niffler service?"
"Oh, don't misunderstand me, Krum!"
"You have to know, commanding a flying creature that you can't see isn't something easy."
Ron was swaying back and forth on the Niffler's back, tightly holding onto the creature's mane to keep his balance. Hearing his idol complain, he poked his head over the side to look down, and the amazed and reverent expressions of the crowd below instantly lifted his spirits. With a grin, he shouted.
"These Nifflers aren't the ones that pull wagons for the school! They've always lived in the Forbidden Forest, and it's us who tamed them!"
Wild Nifflers?
Victor pursed his lips, clearly not entirely convinced by the story.
"We can only use wands and things we find in the Forbidden Forest--"
Hermione couldn't see the Niffler either, and she was even more afraid of high places than Ron. She had been closed her eyes for the entire flight.
Hermione hovered for a while, taking deep breaths to overcome her fear of heights, before finally opening her eyes. She looked around the battlefield, observing the people there.
"That's what Professor Brian said before we entered the forest."
That's true. Everyone heard it before their team entered the forest.
"But, how did you tame them?"
Tongtong squinted her eyes hard, trying to catch a glimpse of something in the air, but after much effort she had no success and had to give up. She then asked with great interest.
"There's a big web of legilimency nearby those Nifflers."
Harry had one hand gripping the Niffler's mane and the other holding his own wand as well as Draco's. His face was scorched from smoke, so it was easy to tell how they had driven the Niffler into the legilimency.
"So, you have no doubts now, do you?"
Ron grinned. In his memory, the last time he had done something like this was when he and Harry drove his father's car to Hogwarts, and crashed into the Whomping Willow.
Ron grinned as he looked down at the many people below who were silent.
"Now, please hand in your school badges. This time don't try to trick us with fake badges, Krum!"
Fake badges?
"Then--"
Tongtong immediately shot an unkind glance at Krum, who looked embarrassed upon hearing the words.
"We haven't lost our school badges, have we? You're lying!"
Victor coughed twice in a feigned manner,
"It's just a tactic, used to lure one's enemies."
"Like Lanceson's feigned move!"
Ron said with great joy.
"Ron!"
Hermione spoke in an admonishing tone, "Now's not the time to relax."
"What's the situation now, Neville?"
Compared to Ron and Hermione, Harry handled the Niffler with more ease. He guided the Niffler to descend slightly, and the fierce wind made the people below even more reverent.
"As you can see, Harry--"
Neville was relaxed.
"We're fighting."
Harry's face darkened. Sometimes, he preferred the Neville from before.
"We set a trap, originally to ambush the other House teams, but the Slytherins unexpectedly fell into our trap, so we had to fight back--"
Cedric Diggory explained to Harry.
"Later, Durmstrang and Busby also joined in to help us fight back against Slytherin."
That explanation was much clearer, and Harry nodded.
However, he was very clear that the duel between the four teams would not be so simple and clean, just by looking at these people. In particular, Neville and Malfoy's torn and bloodstained sportswear indicated that the duel would be extremely fierce.
Draco finally got rid of the negative effect of Harry's disarming spell, slowly stood up from the ground, looked up coldly at Harry, and Harry also fixed his gaze on Draco's eyes.
Without needing to say more, both of them were well aware of the situation.
If a few years ago, he could humiliate Malfoy in front of everyone, Harry would never let such an enjoyable and rare opportunity slip away. Just a half hour ago, his mind had already imagined this scene.
But now, looking at Malfoy's bloodstained clothes and face devoid of expression, Harry suddenly didn't want to do it.
Even more so, he felt a strange, respectful admiration for Malfoy.
After all, these Slytherins had a genuine face-to-face duel against three teams, and also sent down many people. Their style of using deception and trickery to harm others was different from before.
Now, all eyes were fixed on Harry and his teammates. They all knew that this Hogwarts team had already taken control of the game.
"This is your wand--"
In a moment of silence, Harry, who was sitting on the Niffler's back, threw down Draco's wand that he had captured. The wand bounced a few times on the ground and landed at Draco's feet.
This scene not only surprised Ron, but also angered the crowd below, including Cedric, Tongtong, and Victor.
Looking at the wand at his feet, Draco did not bend down to pick it up. His face was pale, and his eye twitched.
"You're humiliating me, Potter."
"If you think that way, then that's fine with me, Malfoy."
Harry said coldly, pausing for a moment before continuing.
"Your mission is to ambush the House teams, isn't it?"
I think you've done a good job so far, but with the current situation, Slytherin no longer has a need to continue fighting.
You've suffered heavy casualties and have expended a great deal of stamina and magic. Of course, if you wish to continue, we have no objection. But we will also, along with the other House teams, ensure that you are removed from the competition first."
The members of the two teams on the ground tensed up, watching the remaining Slytherins standing warily.
With Hermione's team joining the House teams, they had already achieved an absolute advantage over Slytherin. However, considering the fighting spirit of Slytherin so far, nobody could guarantee that they would just give up and not continue to fight to the death, eliminating more participants from the competition.
Well done.
Draco's lips moved, and his raised eyebrows indicated his surprise at this moment.
He stared at the half-suspended Potter, gazing into his emerald eyes, and found no sarcasm or mockery in those eyes.
A few seconds later, under everyone's gaze, Draco bent down and picked up the wand, brushing off the dirt before slowly slipping it back into his sleeve.
His eyes wandered, and his gaze scanned the faces of everyone in turn. His voice was hoarse as he spoke, "I'm sorry, I thought I had it," he muttered.
"You've passed the first trial."
