Sherlock Holmes at Hogwarts.

Chapter 403 Harry: Cho, I'm going to sprint!
Without a doubt, Cho Chang was an excellent pilot.

Even compared to Harry, he is only slightly inferior.

She demonstrated this right from the start of the match – she frequently overtook Harry, constantly interfering with him and forcing him to change direction.

"Harry, I said I would give it my all!"

As they passed each other again, Cho Chang said to Harry, almost provocatively:
"Come, defeat me!"

Harry was slightly taken aback upon hearing this.

He has known Qiu Zhang for almost three years.

Ever since his friend Sherlock successfully solved the case of Cho Chang's stolen eyeshadow, this beautiful, kind, and brave girl has entered his heart.

By now, the two are quite familiar with each other.

But he never expected that in such a formal competition, the usually gentle and considerate Qiu Zhang would become so assertive.

It's as if he's completely changed into a different person.

She was still as beautiful and charming as ever, but now she possessed a unique allure.

Just like her words, it seemed as if she was waiting for Harry to conquer her.

In that brief moment of distraction, Qiu Zhang had already rushed ahead of him.

"Let her see your speed, Harry!"

Just then, Fred shouted at Harry as he flew after a bouncing ball that was aiming at Arya.

Harry immediately came to his senses.

Oops, I was careless!

Qiu Zhang Mingming didn't use her beauty to seduce him, but she still fell for it herself.

This is not possible!

So, as they rounded the Ravenclaw gateposts, Harry urged the Firebolt to go faster.

As a Seeker, Cho Chang is excellent enough. Her already outstanding flying skills and the advantages of being a woman make her very suitable for the Seeker position.

He was much more agile than Cedric and Malfoy.

However, talent is something you can't envy.

Cho Chang pales in comparison to the youngest Seeker in a century.

Not to mention, the difference between the Firebolt and the Comet is even greater than the difference between Harry and Cho Chang.

If Cho Chang is only slightly inferior to Harry, then Comet is several levels below Firebolt.

Therefore, with the acceleration in a straight line, she almost instantly left Harry behind.

Just then, Katie successfully scored the first basket of the game.

The stadium on the Gryffindor side was in an uproar.

At the same time, Harry's eyes sharpened.

He was shocked to discover that the Golden Snitch was flying around near a fence close to the ground.

Without saying a word, Harry swooped down.

Although Cho Chang didn't see the Golden Snitch, she was very clear about Harry's abilities.

So as soon as they saw Harry do that, they immediately chased after him.

Harry glanced back at Cho Chang, his heart pounding with excitement.

Diving was his forte, and he accelerated continuously, instantly reducing the distance between himself and the ground to ten feet.

He was absolutely confident that he could catch the Golden Thief before Qiu Zhang.

At this crucial moment, Ravenclaw batter Duncan Inglebill made the difference.

Upon noticing Harry swooping down toward the ground, and realizing that his Seeker, Cho Chang, couldn't catch him, he immediately decided to strike first.

He changed his original plan and hurled a ball at Harry.

Harry was moving at high speed, and as a mortal, he couldn't possibly collide head-on with the ball, which was moving in the opposite direction of its speed, so he quickly dodged to the side.

Thanks to his excellent reflexes and the excellent braking effect of the fire bolt, he missed the impact by only an inch or two, which was extremely dangerous.

But in those crucial few seconds, the golden thief vanished.

"Oh!"

Gryffindor supporters let out a sigh of disappointment.

Meanwhile, the Ravenclaws were cheering and applauding their batter Duncan Inglebil.

To vent his frustration, George Weasley hit the second wandering ball directly at the batter who had caused the trouble.

In an attempt to dodge, Duncan Inglebil had to awkwardly somersault in mid-air.

"Sherlock, what do you think?"

With Harry not present, the best person to ask Quidditch questions is obviously Sherlock.

“Gryffindor is going to win,” Sherlock said calmly.

"So sure?"

Hermione and Ron had a vague idea of ​​what would happen, but neither of them expected Sherlock to be so certain.

“Gryffindor had the advantage in every aspect.”

Sherlock pointed to the arena. "First of all, the flying brooms. Ravenclaw's flying brooms are all the Sweep series, which is not much different from the other Gryffindor members."

However, Qiu Zhang's flying broom is Comet 260, and the gap between it and the Fire Arrow is not so easy to bridge.

Secondly, there's the issue of personnel. Judging from the current pace of the game, Gryffindor has almost replicated their performance in practice yesterday. Although Ravenclaw's players have good teamwork, there's still a gap compared to them.

Secondly, and most importantly, the Seeker who decides the outcome is Cho Chang, who is no match for Harry.

Finally, there are off-field factors that could influence the outcome of the match. Don't forget, there won't be any Dementors appearing in this match.

Upon hearing Sherlock's words, the nearby friends nodded thoughtfully.

Luna suddenly spoke up, "What if someone pretends to be a Dementor and tries to scare Harry?"

Everyone turned to look at her.

Ron stroked his chin, glanced towards the Slytherin stands, and then looked away.

"Hey, you know what, you really shouldn't say it!"

Gryffindor leads 80-0!

Lee Jordan's voice interrupted Ron, causing everyone to look toward the Quidditch pitch.

Lee Jordan only mentioned the game's progress before abruptly shifting the topic back to the Firebolt itself:

"Look at Potter, no, it's Firebolt's skill!"
Porter is testing its performance right now!
Did you see it turn around? — Qiu Zhang's comet is nowhere near as good as it.

The precise balancing ability of the fire crossbow bolt is especially evident over long periods of time—

"Jordan! Did Firebolt pay you to do advertising? Hurry up and commentate on the game!"

Professor McGonagall roared angrily.

Jordan shrank back and quickly became serious.

Next, Ravenclaw finally showed signs of improvement, and they gradually caught up in the score.

After scoring three goals in a row, Gryffindor took a fifty-point lead.

This is not a safe score.

If Cho Chang catches the Golden Snitch before Harry, Ravenclaw can instantly turn the tide and win the match.

This is something Harry doesn't want to see.

So he lowered his altitude and began scanning the field with even more anxiety than before.

He narrowly missed colliding with one of Ravenclaw's chasers.

Just then, he noticed a golden light and a pair of small wings flapping.

Excellent! The Golden Snitch is circling around the Gryffindor goalposts.

It's mine!

Harry's eyes were fixed on the small golden dot ahead, and he sped up and rushed towards it.

"The Golden Snitch is mine!"

He thought to himself. But in the blink of an eye, Qiu Zhang appeared out of nowhere, blocking his way.

"Don't think about it!"

"Harry, now is not the time to be a gentleman!"

Upon seeing this, Wood roared angrily.

Because Harry turned around sharply at that crucial moment, he avoided a direct collision with Cho Chang.

Wood waved his hand angrily and said, "If it really needs to, knock her off the broom!"

In his first year, Slytherin captain Marcus Flint nearly knocked Harry off his broom.

The referee ruled it a malicious foul—because Flint, as a chaser, was only responsible for throwing the Quaffle into the opponent's goal.

To prevent the opposing Seeker from catching the Golden Snitch, making that kind of collision move would naturally be penalized as a flagrant foul.

Even as a batter, the only way to stop it is by hitting the wandering ball towards the opponent's seeker.

If you hit the opposing player directly with a stick, it will definitely still be a foul.

But it's different for a Seeker.

Once you spot the golden thief and it's blocking your path, you can literally just run right into it.

In a basketball game, this would be considered a legitimate collision.

However, very few seekers would do this.

After all, seekers are usually light and agile.

People as tall and strong as Cedric are always in the minority.

However, if someone of this physique can become a Seeker, it often means that they possess exceptionally strong abilities.

Harry didn't argue with Cho Chang as Wood suggested, mainly because he felt it was completely unnecessary.

Even without using this method, he would definitely be able to catch the Golden Snitch!

Harry turned to look at Cho Chang, only to see her giving him a defiant smile.

Disturbed by her like that, the Golden Snitch disappeared again.

"mean!"

Ginny, watching from the sidelines, couldn't help but exclaim, "They actually took advantage of Harry's kindness! That's outrageous!"

"Ha, is it really that bad?"

Ron blinked. "As a Seeker, isn't it only natural to stop them from catching the Golden Snitch?"

"Hmph, you're just siding with her because she's pretty, aren't you?"
She knew Harry wouldn't knock her off, so she did it on purpose!

Ginny glared at her sixth brother, thinking to herself, "How many times has this happened? This sixth brother always sides with Qiu Zhang and not with me. Does he even consider me his sister?"
She couldn't count on Ron either, so she turned to her friend Luna and started grumbling.

"Sherlock, what do you think?"

Hermione, however, turned to Sherlock with curiosity.

"The right tactics."

As soon as Sherlock spoke, Ginny, who was talking to Luna, and Luna, who was listening to Ginny, both turned their heads at the same time.

"Cho Chang's flying broom is not as good as Harry's. Once Harry gets the first move, there is no chance at all."

On the other hand, Harry was the first to spot the Golden Snitch on both occasions.

This shows that Cho Chang's observational skills are not as good as Harry's.

Cho Chang herself was clearly aware of this, which is why she changed her tactics and focused on Harry.

After all, keeping an eye on one person is far easier than keeping an eye on the Golden Snitch.

"See? Even Sherlock says so!"

Ron proudly puffed out his chest.

Seeing his expression, Ginny turned her head away and refused to look at him anymore.

Hermione nodded, understanding Sherlock's meaning, and then asked again:

"But you just said that Gryffindor is already guaranteed to win, so even if Cho Chang changes his tactics, it won't make a difference, right?"

"Yes, Harry will figure something out soon."

Sherlock's words soon came true.

After losing track of the Golden Snitch once again, Harry first raised the Firebolt, sending it soaring twenty feet into the air above the stadium.

He also discovered that Qiu Zhang had been following him all along.

Almost instantly, he understood Qiu Zhang's plan.

"You're not looking for the thief yourself, but just keeping an eye on me?"

Harry smiled. "Very well, Cho. If you want to follow me, you'll have to bear the consequences."

He began to wander aimlessly around the field.

One moment it was running near the Gryffindor goalposts, and the next it was flying over to the Ravenclaw side.

Facing Cho Chang, Harry would sprint faster one moment and then suddenly slow down the next.

This alternating fast and slow, shallow and deep motion made Qiu Zhang feel extremely uncomfortable.

She glared at Harry, but also seemed somewhat helpless.

This is what happens after this boy takes the initiative.

Just then, Harry suddenly swooped down from the sky again, exactly the same as before.

Cho Chang jumped in surprise, immediately thinking that Harry had spotted the Snitch, and followed closely behind without saying a word.

However, when Harry was still inches from the ground, he suddenly stopped diving.

The fire arrows had such a braking effect, but Qiu Zhang couldn't stop them and they kept falling.

Harry, however, shot upwards like a bullet, accelerating towards the airspace above Ravenclaw's side of the stadium.

At this point, Cho Chang realized he had fallen into a trap and could only accelerate along with Harry at low altitude toward the other side of the field.

Harry's mind was exceptionally clear at that moment.

Qiu Zhang definitely can't catch up with me. Even if he could, he would have to adjust his position and move up.

But the Golden Snitch is currently on his own plane.

He wins for sure!

Harry stared intently ahead, and at the last moment, he reached out his right hand and firmly grasped the struggling Golden Snitch in his hand. Then, just like before, he lifted the Golden Snitch high above his head.

Ms. Hodge's whistle blew.

"Victory! 230:30! This is Potter's victory, Gryffindor's victory, and Firebolt's victory!"

Lee Jordan's voice echoed throughout the arena.

This time, Professor McGonagall did not stop him.

Harry spun around in mid-air and saw six blurry, bright red figures flying toward him.

The team members were all hugging him tightly, almost causing him to fall off the broom.

He heard the commotion of the Gryffindors in the crowd below.

"Well done!"

You really didn't embarrass us!
Harry, you're a great guy!

Wood shouted it over and over again.

Arya, Angelina, and Katie even excitedly kissed Harry.

Amidst the chaos, the team members finally landed on the ground.

Harry then put down his broom and looked up to see a group of Gryffindor supporters running quickly toward the pitch.

Ron and Ginny were running in the lead, followed by Neville, Dean, Seamus, Percy...

Before he could react, he was already surrounded by cheering crowds.

As he was tossed high into the air by the crowd, his eyes were still searching around.

Wait, where are Sherlock and Hermione?
(End of this chapter)