Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 50 Quidditch Clash

When out of necessity, employ tactical infiltration; when in advantage, provide firepower coverage.

In battles between younger wizards, the number of spells they can cast is limited by their total magical power. Often, both sides are constantly moving, waiting for an opportunity to counterattack. However, adult wizards, especially elite Aurora-level wizards, are adept at incorporating silent spells or wandless spells into their spellcasting to keep their opponents constantly on the move for a short period of time.

In a sense, this is a magical version of firepower coverage.

Of course, the above concept does not include green-red wave pairing.

The protagonist's overpowered abilities are not considered conventional.

Ike had made sufficient preparations for the Basilisk, both in advance and in the event of an encounter; he had already mentally prepared his strategy. Although his primary goal at first was to escape should he encounter the Basilisk, after reading "How to Breed Dangerous Fantastic Creatures," Ike suddenly felt an urge to actively seek it out.

Fortunately, Ekko was rational; after all, without a sure chance of winning, it was just wishful thinking.

A week passed quickly.

Starting in the second week, the Quidditch teams of each house began selecting players. This was always the most frustrating time for the Ravenclaw team captains.

The Hawks love watching games, but when it comes to actually participating, most of them will choose to tactically avoid them. Often, Ravenclaw can only guarantee enough players on the field, with at most one or two substitutes.

This year, the situation is even more pronounced.

Roger started mobilizing the young hawks to participate in the Quidditch selection on the night of September 1st, putting in a lot of effort by giving speeches and putting up posters and flyers.

On the day of the selection, the Eagles really gave Roger face. Except for the seventh graders who were busy with graduation and job hunting, almost all the others came to the Quidditch pitch.

However, only Stewart and Anthony actually participated in the selection; the rest were just there for fun.

Roger was well aware of both players' abilities, so the selection process was a mere formality, and he readily approved their applications to join the team. Stewart became a backup pursuer, and Anthony became a backup hitter.

Although they're called substitutes, they'll actually replace the two original starters after participating in a few team practices. Those are two fifth-year students; OWL exams are always more important than Quidditch, at least for Ravenclaw students.

Ike sat on the sidelines, watching Stewart and Anthony fly around on broomsticks for a few symbolic shots before landing, feeling utterly bored.

Fortunately, it ended quickly. In less than twenty minutes, we were ready to pack up and go home, handing the venue over to the Gryffindors who would be using it next.

The Gryffindor team, a perennial title contender, is quite large, with fourteen regular players and two to three substitutes for each position, excluding the Seeker and Goalkeeper. This year, after the departure of their longtime captain Charlie Weasley and several other players, the Gryffindor team's strength has declined somewhat. To defend their title this year and maintain their dominance over their arch-rivals Slytherin, the Gryffindors are actively participating; over ten players are involved in the selection process alone, making it a much more spectacular scene than Ravenclaw's.

The eagle and the lion cubs have a good relationship, much like the badger cubs, and even better than the Hufflepuffs in Quidditch. After all, the Hufflepuffs, thanks to Cedric, are quite strong, far superior to Ravenclaw, who are consistently at the bottom of the rankings.

When Gryffindor captain Wood came over, he gave Roger a warm hug, and the players greeted the Eagles, creating a very harmonious atmosphere.

Perhaps because of Wood's invitation, or perhaps to gather intelligence on their opponents (only Roger thought so), after exchanging pleasantries, the eagles did not choose to leave, but instead retreated to the sidelines and sat down to wait for the lion cubs to perform.

Since everyone else was still there, Ike naturally wouldn't leave either. Besides avoiding a repeat of the isolation he experienced last semester, being with everyone would effectively reduce the chances of being attacked by the basilisk.

Outside the arena, the eaglets chatted enthusiastically with the lion cubs who came to watch the selection, while inside, the selection process was in full swing.

Even though Ike hadn't watched many Quidditch matches, he could still tell whether a player was good or not. Compared to Gryffindor, Ravenclaw's players were slightly inferior in almost every position.

Needless to say, Harry, who helped the team win the game as soon as he appeared and won the championship at the end of the term, is stronger than Cho. The Weasley twins, the beaters, are also more in sync than the Ravenclaw beaters. The gap is even greater in the goalkeepers. Wood is the best goalkeeper in Gryffindor in recent years, a fact that is generally acknowledged by everyone except Slytherin.

After all, the little snakes would never admit that the lion is stronger than the snake.

The Gryffindor selection process takes much longer; half an hour has passed and only half the test has been completed. Following the usual procedure, a short competition follows the selection, extending the time to two hours.

If everything goes well, Ekko could have seen a high-level practice match, but obviously, he won't be able to watch the match.

Slytherins love anything that can cause trouble for Gryffindor, even the Selection process. A dozen or so snakes wielding the latest Nimbus 2001 directly interrupted the Slytherins' selection.

"Marcus, what are you doing here?" Wood called a halt to the selection process, leading his team to confront the Slytherins, and asked with an unfriendly expression.

"The Quidditch selection, we have the professor's approval." Marcus Flint pulled Snape's approval from his robes and waved it at Wood. "From now on, the pitch is ours."

"Damn it!" Wood cursed under his breath. "You're breaking the rules! Selections have always been done one academy at a time!"

"Don't get excited, Wood," Marcus chuckled. "Actually, there's never been a school rule that Quidditch selection has to wait until the previous house finishes before the next one can begin. Besides, the Quidditch pitch is so big, we can easily split it in half..."

Wood was about to say something when Marcus continued, "We're very tolerant of this, even with a professor's approval."

Marcus paused, then brandished the Nimbus 2001 in his hand: "Of course, I advise you to give up the field. See? New brooms! My team needs to familiarize themselves with the new equipment. If anything happens during the familiarization process, I won't be responsible."

"Nimbus 2001! What are you doing...?" As a seasoned Quidditch fan, Wood recognized the latest broomstick at first glance, his face filled with surprise. Marcus was pleased with Wood's reaction, waved to the team behind him, and replied, "I think it's better for our new Seeker to answer that question for you."

"Hey Potter!" Malfoy grinned smugly, standing next to Marcus. "This is a gift from my dad to the team, a present for me becoming the Seeker of Slytherin! Potter, you're doomed to lose this year!"

"Malfoy!" Harry's vicious expression pleased Malfoy. He glanced at Gryffindor's gear with ill intent and said, "Potter, are you getting worked up? Don't get agitated. Even if Nimbus 2001 is far superior to your Nimbus 2000, and far surpasses those mere sweepers that can only be used for sweeping, don't look like you're about to eat someone alive..."

"This is just my father's love for me. If you... oh, sorry, I forgot, your parents are dead!"

"How dare you!" Ron, who had somehow stormed onto the court, was furious upon hearing this. "You bastard! How dare you say such a thing!"

Ron drew his wand, pointed it menacingly at Malfoy, and roared, "Apologize to Harry right now!"

"Who are you trying to scare, Weasley!" Malfoy stepped forward, pointing at Ron's wand wrapped in duct tape, and yelled, "A penniless wretch like you who can't even afford a new wand!"

"At least he won't need his dad to pay to join the team like you do!" Hermione retorted a little later. "Gryffindor teams are all based on their own abilities!"

"You have no right to speak here, you stinking Mudblood!" Malfoy glared at Hermione. "You should be hiding in the library with your Ravenclaw boyfriend, being a bookworm. This is not a place for you."

"What did you say!" The lion cubs were furious. Wood and the twins rushed over immediately. Marcus cursed Malfoy's loose tongue in his heart, but he had no choice but to stand in front of him.

Harry still didn't understand what "Mudblood" meant, but Ron had already swung his wand around Marcus, who was blocking his way: "Get out of the way! He'll pay for this today!"

"You try it, Weasley!" Malfoy, protected by others, stood his ground and shouted loudly.

As soon as he finished speaking, Malfoy felt as if his body was being pulled by something, and he was uncontrollably thrown to the side, knocking down several Slytherin members before crashing heavily to the ground.

Just as he was about to say something, his body floated up again, and Malfoy then realized who the culprit was.

Looking at that icy face, Malfoy felt a chill run down his spine for no apparent reason.

"What...what are you going to do, Ike!"

(End of this chapter)