The Return to Hogwarts

On the morning before the match, a fierce wind howled and the rain poured down harder than ever before. The dimly lit corridors were filled with puddles, and the castle keeper, Filch, was extremely busy, running around clearing the waterways.

But the most annoying sprite, Peeves, always seemed to cause trouble at this time. It flew through the corridors with a shrill laugh, scattering water-filled balloons everywhere. Filch was so angry that he cursed loudly but couldn't do anything about it. Finally, he threatened that if Peeves continued to disrupt the school day, he would ask Professor Blaine to deal with it. Only then did Peeves finally calm down.

"It's gotten to this point, Harry!"

For the third time today, Wood cornered Harry in the wind-swept corridor, his roar seemingly drowning out the raging storm outside.

"You must forget about those cowardly and despicable Slytherins and focus on dealing with the Hufflepuffs. Be careful of their new captain, Diggory, Harry. He's incredibly fast; whatever you do, don't—"

Harry, already soaked to the bone, didn't hear what Wood said at the end. He was about to ask again when a figure unexpectedly peeked out from the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom twenty feet away.

"Do you have any particular opinion about Slytherin, Mr. Wood?"

Even amidst the raging winds and torrential rain, Professor Blaine's calm, smiling words still reached Oliver and Harry's ears precisely, leaving them speechless.

"N-nothing, sir. Oh, I meant Professor Blaine!"

Wood stammered,

"I was just praising Slytherin's ingenuity. They clearly anticipated that such bad weather wouldn't be suitable for a match, so they came up with a clever excuse, which is truly commendable!"

Amosta nodded in satisfaction, his gaze fixed on Harry, who was still staring in disbelief.

"Well then, Mr. Potter, the Defense Against the Dark Arts class has been going on for two minutes now. Would you like to come and listen in?"

Harry stumbled into the classroom, and even after sitting down and looking at Professor Blaine who was taking attendance, he still had a bewildered expression.

"very good!"

After confirming that no one was absent, Amosta happily rubbed his hands together, breathed out warm breath, and said to the group of bewildered young wizards,

"Please don't misunderstand, everyone. Professor Lu Ping is feeling a bit unwell and asked me to cover his shift."

An eerie silence fell over the classroom. The young wizards looked at each other, unsure how to assess what had happened. Never before had a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor ever returned alive and well after retiring to teach them again.

"professor--"

Harry, instinctively sensing something amiss with Professor Blaine's smile, shakily raised his hand. His trembling voice caused Malfoy, who was frantically unwrapping bandages on the other side of the classroom, to nearly collapse under his desk laughing.

"Professor Blaine, what do you intend to teach us?"

“Well, I learned from Miss Granger that, according to Professor Lupin’s teaching schedule, you should be learning how to deal with Hinkpunk. Since I am only giving a temporary lecture, I have no plans to disrupt Professor Lupin’s teaching schedule.”

call--

In an instant, a chorus of exhalations filled the classroom, momentarily overpowering the wind and rain outside.

After class, Neville collapsed like a deflated balloon, and Ron, his legs weak, wiped non-existent beads of sweat from his forehead. He twitched his freckled nose and looked at Hermione in the front row with a surprised expression.

"But, Professor—"

Hermione raised her hand high and asked timidly,

"But you came empty-handed, didn't you?"

"what--"

Amosta said with a chuckle,

"Since our classroom isn't here today, everyone, I've arranged for those poor little guys to stay in the faculty lounge. Hmm, I think practical experience will deepen your understanding of Hinkpunk more than just reading from the textbook. Oh, what's wrong, Potter? Look at that pained expression on your face?"

Amosta stared wide-eyed at Harry's gloomy face, bewildered.

"professor--"

Harry said pitifully,

"Can you confirm that we're dealing with Hinkpunk, and not some dark creature with a knife in its heart? No offense, Professor, but I can't miss tomorrow's first Quidditch match of the year."

Harry was still muttering things like "I'm the hope of the whole village" and "Wood will kill me," but Amosta wasn't really listening. Instead, his gaze was fixed on Malfoy, who was laughing so hard he was hiccuping.

"You seem to be recovering quite well, Mr. Malfoy?"

Amosta raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"I'm sure you wouldn't mind showing off your extraordinary skills to everyone later?"

In the Defense Against the Dark Arts class, Slytherin and Gryffindor showed completely opposite attitudes toward Professor Blaine's return to teach. Basically, the young Slytherin wizards were overjoyed. They didn't like Professor Lupin, who always wore a shabby robe and spoke in a soft, melodious voice as if he hadn't had a full meal.

To be honest, the young wizards of Gryffindor were also very happy to see Professor Blaine appear. A very few, like Hermione, were even overjoyed. The reason why most of them were so reserved was actually the same reason Harry had mentioned earlier.

"Don't worry, Harry!"

On the way to the faculty and staff common room, Ron and Seamus discussed it briefly, and then Ron said with a resolute expression, "I've already spoken to them. No matter what happens, don't be reckless, Harry. Leave everything to us. At this crucial moment, we must ensure your safety!"

Ron's words were met with unanimous agreement from the young Gryffindor wizards. Neville, who was already prepared to go to the school hospital, and the several spirited girls in the girls' dormitory, were all ready to protect Harry's safety at all costs.

"Haven't you considered this?"

Hermione suddenly said,

"Based on Professor Blaine's habit, he likes to scatter the people from each house. Harry, your teammates will most likely be Malfoy or Nott."

"Can't you say something nice?"

Ron rolled his eyes and said irritably.

Hermione, who had already rebuilt her mental defenses, was no fragile glass vase. She glared at Ron with a strong gaze until he looked away, then spoke stiffly.

“I just think it’s very likely, Harry, you’d better be prepared.”

Malfoy was whispering with his Slytherin classmates, occasionally glancing at Harry with a mischievous grin. It didn't take much effort for Harry to figure out that Malfoy was instructing them that if anyone was going to team up with Potter, they should do everything they could to sabotage Potter or injure him.

The chatter of the young wizards did not escape Amosta's ears. He pretended not to hear, but sighed inwardly, "Regardless of age or occasion, indeed, wherever there are people, there is a world of its own."

Professor Lu Ping had led them to the faculty lounge once at the beginning of the semester, so they were quite familiar with the place this time. Before long, they were standing at the door of a large office.

"So--"

Amostella stood at the door, turned around, and smiled at Slaterlin, who was determined to cause trouble, and Gryffindor, who were united in their hatred.

"I worked overtime last night and rearranged the layout of this room. Now, I'd like to show you the results of my hard work!"

Chapter 200 The Game (Part 1)

The door to the faculty lounge creaked open, and the previously restless young wizards fell into an eerie silence. They stared intently at the drastically altered room, exchanging uneasy glances.

Just like last time, this was another house whose space had been expanded by Professor Blaine's magic, only this time, he went even further.

Unlike the castle outside, where a fierce storm raged, the lounge, which had become an endless swamp, was only drizzled with fine mist. The sky was a somber, dark yellow, and the gloomy space was filled with clouds that looked like ghosts or skulls.

Same recipe, same taste!

With a creak, the wooden door closed, and apart from the faint, eerie rustling sounds coming from the swamp, the young wizards, who could only hear their own heartbeats and breathing, all had the same thought.

"Professor Blaine—"

The young wizards huddled on the only small patch of solid ground by the door. In the middle of the crowd, Parvati Petil, the most beautiful girl in Gryffindor, an Indian girl with long black hair, tremblingly raised her hand.

"What do we all need to do?"

"first--"

Amosta cleared his throat and smiled pleasantly.

"Can anyone tell me, what kind of magical creature is Hinkpunk?"

"Hinkpunks are one-legged monsters with weak aggression. They like to lure hikers into traps by emitting misleading light in mud or swamps in remote areas!"

As Hermione raised her hand, a string of answers had already come out of her mouth.

"It doesn't sound too dangerous?"

Ron muttered under his breath, while Harry, after careful consideration, nodded hesitantly.

“Excellent as always, Miss Granger, I’ll add five points to Gryffindor!” After a refreshed Hermione withdrew her hand, Amosta pointed with a smile to the swamp in front of them, where no smoke was visible and sparse, charred wood stood.

“Then, what we need to do is quite clear, Miss Petit-”

Amosta waved his wand, and suddenly a row of exquisite oak boats appeared on the embankment in front of them.

"As usual, teams of two from the same college will cross this swamp by boat. This is an inter-college competition. The first team to reach the other side will earn fifty points for their college, while the losing team will selflessly give up their precious rest time to clean up the owl huts for us!"

A competition between colleges where the losing side has to clean up owl droppings?!

Hey!

In an instant, the atmosphere in the room became tense. Without anyone organizing them, the young wizards from Slytherin and Gryffindor clearly separated into two groups, each trying to outdo the other in terms of imposing presence!

"Give my regards to those hairy bastards, Potter!" Malfoy instantly channeled his fighting spirit, baring his teeth and unleashing his taunts. "I bet you're quite adept at these lowlife jobs, aren't you!"

"You're the one who should be worried, Malfoy!" Harry retorted without backing down. "You won't find house-elves to do your laundry at Hogwarts!"

"But!"

Amidst the uproar, Hermione raised her hand again.

"What does this have to do with our course, Professor Blaine?"

“Excellent question, Miss Granger,” Amostall said approvingly, glancing at her before clearing the room of young wizards with a light cough.

"I have set up some whirlpools and mud pits in this swamp. They are obstacles on your way. Each mud pit will be inhabited by a Hinkpunk. Be careful of the alluring glow they emit. Once you fall into a mud pit, it means you will automatically be disqualified from the competition."

"if."