Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 142 When Ike drew his wand

Gradually, more and more people filled the private room.

Mr. Weasley began shaking hands with people who were all very important wizards, rich and powerful.

Even busier than Mr. Weasley was Percy. Fresh out of college, he had successfully joined the Department of International Magical Cooperation at the Ministry of Magic and was now Crouch's personal assistant. In front of these big shots, Percy was just an "unknown" nobody, but he dared not slack off in the slightest and kept standing up, sitting down, standing up, and sitting down.

Before long, Minister Fudge and Minister Obransk of the Bulgarian Ministry of Magic entered. Percy even dropped his glasses on the ground and shattered them because he bowed so low and so quickly.

While he quietly repaired his glasses with magic, Minister Fudge spoke warmly with Harry and introduced him to Minister Oberlandsk, who was standing nearby.

The atmosphere instantly became tense when the elder Malfoy entered with his wife and son. Almost everyone knew of the feud between the Malfoys and the Weasley family; they were sworn enemies.

"Arthur, what did you sell to get a seat in the penthouse? Do you have that much money?" Old Malfoy said softly, his tone full of contempt.

Before Mr. Weasley could retort, Minister Fudge said to him, "Lucius recently donated a large sum of money to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Injuries and Wounds. He is my guest of honor, Arthur."

"That's wonderful." Mr. Weasley's face was grim, and his voice carried a strained, earnest tone.

Old Malfoy, like a proud peacock, scanned the box with his gaze, and when he saw Hermione, his disdain deepened. As for Ike, he was completely ignored.

He had no idea who this person was; in his mind, they were probably someone who had mingled with the lowly Weasley.

After exchanging pleasantries, Ludo Bagman, the Director of Sports and Physical Education at the Ministry of Magic, hurriedly walked in.

"Can we begin, Minister?" Ludo Bagman asked Fudge.

"Anytime is fine, Ludo." Minister Fouché looked extremely amiable.

Ludo nodded respectfully, walked to the fence, looked at the stadium packed with people, drew his wand, pointed to his throat, and said, "Speak loudly!"

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 422nd Quidditch World Cup Final!"

As Ludo finished speaking, the audience erupted in enthusiastic cheers. Then, Ludo began to host the event methodically, following the established procedures.

First, the mascots of the two finalist teams, Bulgaria and Ireland, made their appearance. Bulgaria's mascots were the Veela, whose graceful dance moves had a powerful allure and were extremely attractive to men.

As a result, all sorts of unimaginable grotesque acts were staged, with some even jumping off the high stands and rushing straight at the Veela performers.

Hermione was furious at Ron and Harry's behavior in the box. Seeing Ike, who was just as unmoved as Mr. Weasley and the others, she felt that her two friends were really embarrassing.

One of them went over and pulled them, and the two of them regained some of their senses.

Next came the Irish team's mascot, countless Irish goblins, flying around in the air and scattering gold coins, causing a frenzy among almost everyone.

After a moment of chaos, the players from both sides entered the field. Ludo introduced each player, and each one drew cheers from the audience, which reached its peak when Bulgarian Seeker Krum entered the field.

With the referee, Hassan Mustafa, president of the International Quidditch Federation, kicking open the box containing the match balls, the intense game officially began.

On the field, both teams' players flew incredibly fast, showcasing the powerful performance of the Firebolts to the fullest. Ireland, with their superior overall strength, scored almost continuously, quickly widening the gap.

Then, the Bulgarian players started playing more aggressively, and injuries began to occur. Meanwhile, the Veela began their attack, using their graceful dances to influence the Irish players, which provoked a counterattack from the Irish leprechauns.

For a moment, the players of the two teams were engaged in a fierce battle in the air, while the mascots of both sides below were also fighting. This exciting scene made the cheers in the stadium grow louder and louder, to the point that Ludo, who had used the loudest spell, had to shout to commentate.

Hermione was ecstatic, her face flushed, as she described the events unfolding on the field to Ike. Ike, on the other hand, remained relatively calm, his attention focused on the fierce battle between the goblins and Veela below, secretly hoping to capture a few to study if the opportunity arose.

Suddenly, Lynch and Krum, the Seekers from both teams, swooped down towards the ground at high speed. Amidst the deafening screams of the audience, Lynch crashed heavily to the ground, while Krum, who was right behind him, caught the Golden Snitch.

Unfortunately, they ultimately lost the game by a margin of 10 points.

"The game is over!" Ludo shouted. "Krum caught the Golden Snitch, but Ireland has won the championship!"

Amidst deafening cheers and screams, the players from both teams ascended to the top-floor VIP box. Minister Obransk comforted the Bulgarian team, while the Irish team received the championship trophy from Minister Fudge, and then slowly took to the air, beginning their parade around the stadium.

"What a fantastic match, Ike!" Hermione exclaimed excitedly, patting Ike's arm and whispering, "Oh, Krum, what a pity! They were so close to winning."

"No matter how many times they compete, they won't win," Ike replied in a low voice.

"Huh?" Hermione was a little surprised. She had always thought that Ike didn't know anything about Quidditch.

Ike noticed the doubt in her eyes and replied softly, "I don't like Quidditch, but that doesn't mean I don't understand it. There's a big gap in strength between the two teams. Only Krum is superior on the Bulgarian team, but Lynch on the Irish team is only slightly inferior. To be honest, the gap isn't that big, at least not as big as the gap between the other players on both sides."

"The score gap will widen as the game progresses, and during their dive, Krum only had one option: to get the Golden Snitch before Lynch."

"Given that situation and opportunity, the Golden Snitch would definitely be caught."

"Whether we lose by 10 points or end up with a 310-point deficit..." Ike shrugged. "That's obvious."

"So that's right, it's a real shame about Krum."

Hearing Ike's words, Hermione also figured it out. She glanced thoughtfully at Krum, who was standing dejectedly next to Minister Obransk, and whispered, "Ike, he doesn't seem like that kind of person."

"Hermione, she became a key player on the national team when she was just a teenager, and she's the world's number one Seeker."

"Okay, maybe you're right..." Hermione decided not to dwell on the topic with Ike anymore, and instead left Ike aside to mingle with Ginny.

They decided to get autographs and take photos together while the players were still in the VIP box.

Ike was happy to do so; he needed to calm down a bit.

Before the match, while Hermione was away, he staked all his money on the Irish team. Although the odds were low, he still more than doubled his investment. A quick calculation showed it was over two thousand Galleons.

With the goblins of Gringotts acting as guarantors, this money is very secure.

The audience slowly began to leave, and those in the VIP boxes on the top floor also left the stadium through a special passage.

Outside, the noise and crowds were far more intense than inside the stadium, with people freely expressing their emotions.

Happy, crying, angry, joyful—they sang loudly and screamed meaninglessly. Drinks, clothes, fireworks, all sorts of souvenirs and items were thrown into the air and then fell. Hitting someone didn't matter; no one cared, it only made the noise louder.

Ike held Hermione's hand tightly as they struggled through the crowd back to their tent. Once inside, their clothes were a mess, soaking wet, and it was impossible to tell whether it was from alcohol or some other unknown liquid.

"My God, are these people crazy?" Hermione was still a little shaken. These wizards were even crazier than football fans. "Ginny said she was going to her place tonight. I shouldn't have come back with you."

"Look at you..." Ike pointed to Hermione's clothes, "Ginny doesn't have any for you to change into."

"I can wear hers!" Hermione retorted, then realized her mistake. "Okay, I'll change first, and we'll talk about it when things calm down a bit outside."

"I think so too," Ike chimed in.

The two went back to their rooms to change their dirty clothes and toss them aside. They didn't intend to wear these clothes stained with the unknown liquid anymore; even with a cleansing spell, they were still offensive, so it was better to just destroy them later.

After changing their clothes, the two sat side by side on the sofa in the living room, each holding a cup of Ike's special chocolate milk.

For some unknown reason, Hermione surprisingly took a liking to this unusual way of eating, which made Ike very happy.

Gradually, the noise outside subsided.

"That's about it. I'll take you there," Ike said to Hermione after he went outside to check the surroundings.

"No need, it's not that far." Hermione refused, put on another coat, and opened the tent door. "I'm leaving."

Ike nodded and saw Hermione out the door. As she turned around, he flicked his fingers, and a pentagram mark landed on her.

He wasn't really in favor of Hermione going to Ginny's. While Minister Fudge was busy shaking hands and taking photos with the Irish team members, Ike noticed that the magical fluctuations belonging to Barty Jr. in the box had disappeared.

With Barty Jr. already confirmed to be planning the attack, Ike felt it was better for Hermione to stay by his side.

Of course, it's also good with the Weasleys; a raging Mrs. Weasley is terrifying.

After casting a few protective spells on the tent and spending some more time in the living room, Ike finally went back to his room to sleep.

I don't know how much time passed, but I vaguely felt that someone was attacking my protective magic, and more than once.

"Boom, boom, boom!"

Accompanied by a very rhythmic roar, Ike sat on the bed for a while to recover before putting on his clothes and getting out of bed.

I am quite confident in the protection I have set up, and the constant roaring in my ears is proof of that.

Outside the tent, several masked figures were waving wands, constantly attacking Ike's tent with flames. But each time the flames landed, they would dissipate as if blocked by something.

When Ike lifted the tent flap and came out, they were still diligently casting spells.

"Gentlemen, are you tired?" Ike asked.

"What? Just a kid who hasn't even grown his hair yet?" a masked man said, stumbling and nearly falling.

"Drunkards taking advantage of the chaos to cause trouble," Ike muttered to himself, his gaze passing over the drunkards in front of him and looking toward the eerie green light in the distance.

"boom!"

Another burst of flame flew towards the drunkards, but Ike ignored it, flicking his finger and the flame dissipated. The next second, the drunkards were suddenly pulled into the air by a force, and then fell heavily to the ground.

With a "snap," it finally became a little quieter.

In the distance, more and more people gathered, and the people in the very center wearing white hoods could hardly be seen anymore. All that could be seen were the four people suspended in the air by magic, constantly striking various bizarre poses.

Screams and cries filled the air as countless people fanned the flames, recklessly unleashing their magic upon the surrounding tents and fleeing crowds.

Flames, rocks, even people—you can never guess what will fly towards you next.

It wasn't that no one tried to stop the group's destruction, but it was all in vain; they were often swept away by the crowd before they could even get close.

Ike witnessed two Aoroos dressed in leather and wielding wands rush forward, only to be struck by a spell that seemed to come from nowhere, collapsing to the ground and disappearing into the fleeing crowd.

He walked forward with unwavering determination. With the marks Hermione had secretly left on her clothes when she left, Ike wasn't worried about not being able to find her.

However, although the mark was constantly moving closer to him in Ike's perception, it would always change its position from time to time, making it much more difficult for him to find it.

After repelling countless inexplicable spells, Ike finally spotted Hermione. She was running ahead, pulling Ginny along, while several burly men, their faces flushed and roaring, chased after them, occasionally unleashing spells.

Hermione was having some difficulty blocking them. The people behind her were no longer the same ones who had initially chased her; sometimes there were more, sometimes fewer, and the power of the spells varied. Some were obstacle spells, some were disarming spells, but others were dangerous fire spells and explosion spells, forcing her to remain constantly on edge and not dare to relax for even a moment.

If Ginny hadn't been throwing a shattering spell behind them every now and then, the two of them wouldn't have been able to hold out for so long.

"Ike!" Suddenly, Hermione saw Ike walking towards her and immediately called out, grabbing Ginny's arm and running forward a few steps. Before they even got close, Ike's expression suddenly changed, and he swung his hand sharply, sending a white light flying towards her.

"Snapped!"

A deafening sound rang in their ears, as if they had been shoved by something. Hermione and Ginny were sent flying to the side, rolling several times on the ground before they recovered after a while.

"Ike!" Hermione called out anxiously, searching for Ike's figure. But as soon as she looked up, she saw Ike standing between her and the group of people, the crackling sounds like firecrackers exploding continuously.

"Hermione, is Ike... really that good?" Ginny asked softly, tugging at Hermione's arm.

Hermione didn't answer; her attention was entirely focused on the battle in front of her. In a daze, it seemed she was back in the Shrieking Shack a year ago, when Ike had stood in front of her just like he was now.

Moreover, it seems that Ike is still very relaxed. He didn't even use his wand. He just waved his right hand and completely suppressed those despicable guys.

Before long, all of them were lying on the ground groaning. Ike then turned around, reached out and brushed aside Hermione's disheveled hair, carefully examining her.

"Are you alright?"

"It's nothing." Hermione shook her head.

"Why are there only two of you?" Ike asked, glancing at the disheveled Ginny beside him.

"We've been separated. Harry and Ron should be in the woods," Hermione said. "Let's go find them. Fred and George are there too."

"Alright, but before that, we need to deal with a little trouble." Ike nodded, then put his arms around Hermione and Ginny behind him.

Suddenly, four or five men wearing white hoods blocked the way, and above their heads, a child was spinning wildly.

The child's head seemed unsupported, limp and tilting to one side and then to the other.

"Is that child... still alive?" Hermione asked from behind.

"Perhaps."

As he spoke, he slowly drew his wand...

It should be a two-chapter combination~ Humbly begging for votes

(End of this chapter)