Harry Potter: I started checking in from Diagon Alley

Harry looked curiously at the information displayed on the brooch, including the match venue and the opponent's details.

[Matchup: Draco Malfoy (Slytherin, Third Year), Venue: The Great Hall, Duel Arena 18]

Ron and Hermione also came over to take a look, and they were both taken aback when they saw the name.

This is too coincidental.

Not far from the three of them, Malfoy was also looking down at his brooch, reacting almost exactly the same way they did.

Harry and Malfoy looked up at each other at the same time, both finding it a bit comical, and then overjoyed.

There's always an unspoken understanding between mortal enemies.

The two had wanted to teach each other a lesson for a long time.

They also faced off at last year's Duel Club, which exposed Harry's Parseltongue personality.

Now, this is a rare opportunity!

Chapter 97: Strike first to gain the upper hand

Malfoy grinned maliciously and walked up to Harry. The little boy threatened, "I'll make you regret this, Potter."

Harry said, "Let's go, Malfoy, there's no point in saying more."

Malfoy was taken aback by this reaction. He had often bickered with Harry in the past and usually managed to gain the upper hand. However, he didn't expect Harry to completely ignore him now, making him feel like he had punched a cotton ball.

Based on his usual personality, Harry would definitely talk back, or at least not respond coldly.

But after spending a lot of time with Eric, he was somewhat influenced by Eric.

Being good with words is useless; beating the opponent down is more important than anything else.

Eric has never boasted about how great he is, but no one can underestimate his abilities.

Harry is now practicing the Patronus Charm diligently, and through this charm, he can deeply feel just how vast the gap is between his strength and Eric's.

It can be described as bottomless.

Harry's horizons have broadened, and naturally, he no longer cares much about people like Malfoy.

Malfoy gave Harry a strange look; Potter seemed a bit odd today.

Malfoy thought for a moment, then continued to provoke: "You know that stupid bird named Buckbeak is about to die? It hurt me, so don't expect to get away with it."

Harry clenched his fist, forcibly suppressing his anger, and coldly stared at Malfoy, silently noting down the score, secretly planning to deliver a few curses to Malfoy's face during the duel later.

"Holy shit." Ron couldn't hold back and pounced on Malfoy, punching him squarely in the face. Malfoy couldn't dodge in time and was hit squarely.

A patrolling prefect saw this and came out to stop it, using magic to separate Ron and Malfoy.

Hufflepuff, the prefect who stopped Ron, said, "Injuring a contestant outside the dueling arena disqualifies you. Give me your brooch."

Ron regretted it: "No, I didn't mean to, he bumped my hand with his face."

The prefect shook his head firmly, confiscated Ron's brooch, and then said, "Five points deducted from Gryffindor."

"The points deducted are too few. Deduct another fifteen points, and it's not over yet... Solitary confinement, right after the Christmas holidays, attacking a classmate in the Great Hall, and in public no less. Impressive, Weasley." A sarcastic voice said from the side, it was Snape.

When Hufflepuff saw Snape appear, he was taken aback. He also disliked Slytherin and wanted to protect Ron, but he was just a prefect and had no right to contradict the professor's decision.

Ron was indignant. Snape's appearance meant he had to be extra careful about his actions from now on, lest he be caught doing something wrong.

Snape is the opposite of fairness; it's impossible for him not to favor Slytherins.

Snape glanced at Malfoy, who got up from the ground, chuckled, and leaned closer, saying, "Because of that punch, I'll write to my father and ask him to speed up the trial of that stupid bird."

Ron was furious. He glared at Malfoy and made to step forward again, but Hermione stopped him: "You've already been put in solitary confinement."

Ron had no choice but to stop.

Harry urged, "Let's go, Malfoy, to the dueling arena."

He couldn't wait to use magic to beat Malfoy up.

Harry needs to be fast, Malfoy needs to be slow.

Malfoy looked up at the sky: "Oops, I got punched. I'm a little dizzy. I think I can have my duel as the last one. I need to go to the infirmary first."

“What do you want?” Harry asked.

Malfoy thought for a moment and then laughed, "Didn't you want to start now? Unless Weasley bows down and apologizes to me, I request that the match be postponed."

Harry approached Malfoy and said, "He only touched you lightly, it wasn't that serious. Now fight me. If you win, I'll bow and apologize to you on Ron's behalf. If you lose, you'll have to apologize to us in front of everyone."

Malfoy was stunned; Harry's aura was completely unfamiliar to him.

Resolute, confident, and decisive—is this still the Harry I've been bickering with for three years?

"What, you don't dare?" Hermione added fuel to the fire when she saw Malfoy hesitate.

Malfoy glanced at Snape, whose expression remained blank, revealing neither agreement nor disagreement. Snape gritted his teeth and said, "Alright, let's do it this way and get started now."

After Malfoy finished speaking, he flicked his sleeves and walked with Harry toward Field 18, with Ron and Hermione following behind.

Snape watched them leave with a cold eye.

Upon arriving at court number 18, a senior student who had been temporarily called up was waiting there as a referee.

He carefully examined Harry and Malfoy's brooches, and after confirming that everything was in order, he gestured for the two to enter the dueling arena separated by ribbons.

Harry and Malfoy exchanged a glance, then each stood to one side, facing each other.

The venue was long and narrow, with Harry and Malfoy about fifteen meters apart, a distance that was just right for the younger students.

Except for prodigies like Eric, lower-grade students don't possess overly advanced magic, nor do they have any specific requirements regarding terrain.

First-year students generally only know how to use fireworks to bombard each other, and some can't even cast a levitation spell.

Therefore, this kind of long and narrow space is more suitable for lower grade groups.

"The rules of the duel are simple: no black magic or curses that risk permanent disability are allowed. The duel continues until one side concedes or is knocked out of the arena. Are you ready?" The referee asked both sides, and after receiving an affirmative answer, he stood beside the arena and waved his wand. "The duel begins!"

Malfoy held his wand, wanting to say something harsh: "Potter, it's not too late to admit defeat now. You don't want Buckbeak to get... Holy crap!"

Before Malfoy could finish speaking, a blinding red light shone directly into his face.

Fortunately, he reacted quickly, rolled to the side, and lay on the ground, thus avoiding the curse.

Harry had no intention of wasting words with him. After the referee announced the start, he chanted "Disarm you!" and cast a disarming spell.

Eric's Duel Manual, Rule Number One: Strike first!

Chapter 98 Complete Victory and Revenge

Malfoy, having lost the initiative, quickly scrambled to his feet and tried to retaliate, pointing his wand at Harry and shouting, "Firestorm!"

With a soft "poof," only a wisp of white smoke emerged from the tip of Malfoy's wand; no flame appeared at all.

Malfoy blushed. This spell was new to him and quite powerful, but he wasn't familiar with it at all. In his haste, he failed to cast it.

Before Harry could react, he moved his mouth a few times and cast another spell.

Malfoy was thin but incredibly agile, his movements perfectly synchronized with his body as he sprang up from the ground, barely dodging the attack.

The spell struck the floor beneath Malfoy, shattering the bricks. The shards bounced off Malfoy, causing him considerable pain.

Malfoy, seeing Harry's actions and not hearing his voice, exclaimed in frustration, "Why don't you need to chant spells when you use them?"

Eric's Duel Manual, Rule Number Seven: Use silent spells whenever possible. If you can't, keep your voice down and speak clearly when casting spells. Just make sure you can cast the spell. A sneak attack makes you a hero, a loud attack makes you a fool.

Malfoy couldn't understand it. Harry couldn't possibly have a silent spell, so what was the point of fighting? But why couldn't he hear Harry chanting the spell?

Harry demonstrated to him, his lips moving slightly as he muttered something, which no one else could hear except himself.

A beam of white light struck Malfoy precisely.

Malfoy stood still and started tap dancing. He didn't want to, but his legs started moving involuntarily.

Dance steps incantation, simple and easy to use.

Malfoy hurriedly pointed his wand at his legs and began to break the spell. It took him a while for his legs to stop, but Harry's next spell was already upon him.

In a moment of quick thinking, Malfoy followed the rhythm of the dance and fell backward, narrowly escaping the curse at the last second.

He dodged it, but his hair didn't.

Harry's spell swept across Malfoy's forehead and hairline, burning away most of Malfoy's carefully maintained hairstyle, leaving it in a reverse curl.

Malfoy lay on the ground, still shaken, and cried out, "My legs are weak and my feet are like jelly!"

Harry crouched slightly, dodged, and Malfoy's spell missed.

Eric's Duel Manual, Rule Fourteen: Always be vigilant and always be prepared to dodge. Never stand still during a fight. Spells are useless if they don't hit you. Dodging is the most important basic skill.

Malfoy tried to get up, but this time Harry didn't let him off the hook. A barrage of spells rained down on Malfoy, each one incredibly powerful. Malfoy had no choice but to roll and dodge.

Malfoy could dodge some curses, but some were simply unavoidable, leaving him no choice but to face them head-on.

But he was struck by Harry's spell, and in addition to the pain, the spell's effects also affected his movements.

This is how a vicious cycle is formed.

Sting curse, leg-twisting curse, bump curse...

The spells Harry used were all basic spells he had learned in the last two years. In terms of damage, they were not very powerful and could not kill Malfoy in one move, but they were extremely psychologically damaging.

Malfoy lay on the ground, enduring the relentless itching all over his body while trying to fight back. His legs were constantly tangled together due to the effects of Harry's spell, making it impossible for him to even get up.

The duel has progressed to this point, and the one-sided situation has firmly attracted the attention of those around.

The area around the venue was packed with spectators.

After Eric's training and extra lessons, Harry easily defeated Malfoy!

Everyone commented that this was a really good show, much more exciting than the other fireworks displays.

Eric, bored, came downstairs and found Hermione and Ron. He was startled by Malfoy's posture when he saw this scene.

Malfoy writhed wildly on the ground, his face flushed, his legs crossed. Occasionally, he would be hit by Harry's spells and couldn't help but scream in pain, but he just wouldn't give up.

That expression... it's hard to tell whether it was pain or enjoyment.

Ron, puzzled, asked, "Why won't he admit defeat?"