Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 80 The Man in the Shadows

A romantic Valentine's Day was ruined by a group of ugly little dwarfs.

During the dinner, Lockhart excitedly announced the dwarves' day's achievements to the young wizards, which made those who received Valentine's Day cards blush with embarrassment.

It's purely embarrassing.

Looking at the people with their heads bowed, Stewart breathed a sigh of relief. On his way back to the dormitory, he was also ambushed by the dwarves. His first reaction was to run away, but when the dwarves caught up with him, he didn't give up like the others. Instead, he unleashed a series of punches and kicks, quickly driving the dwarves away.

Of course, Ike wouldn't tell him that he had secretly used a binding spell to immobilize that ugly guy.

Despite the pink Lockhart dress and the pink décor of the auditorium, the dinner was still quite lavish. In addition to the regular dishes, there was unlimited serving of all kinds of chocolates.

Ike was surprised to see a swarm of cockroaches on the dining table, so he immediately grabbed a handful and put them away.

Of course, he did this when Stuart and the others weren't paying attention. Ike wasn't that stupid; if they found out, he would definitely be ruthlessly suppressed.

After the banquet ended, the young wizards left one by one.

Ike was quite full, and he, along with Stuart and Terry, who had also eaten too much, took a walk in the corridor, slowly making their way towards the Ravenclaw Tower.

"What a pity, I should have snatched the greeting card after defeating the dwarves." Stuart let out a burp, hands behind his back, his words tinged with a mix of regret and boastfulness. "I still don't know who sent it to me."

"You can go ask that little dwarf again," Terry replied casually.

"Who knows where they are now, and even if we found them, what could we do? The greeting card would probably have been thrown away long ago."

"If you really want to know, I happen to know where those little dwarves went," Ike said with a smile, his hands in his pockets. "When I left the Great Hall just now, I noticed those little dwarves surrounding Lockhart, saying something to him."

"If we go back now, they might not have left yet."

Ike looked at Stuart and blinked. "So, do you want to go back?"

Stuart was perhaps persuaded; after thinking for a moment, he made up his mind: "Let's go! Back!"

The three immediately turned around and headed towards the auditorium. Fortunately, they hadn't gone far and returned in less than two minutes.

By this time, there were not many people left in the auditorium. Only Lockhart remained on the professors' bench, and a few people were still chatting at the long tables of each college.

As soon as they entered the gate, Ike and his companions saw the group of dwarves still surrounding Lockhart, making a racket and arguing about something. They didn't understand what they were saying until they got closer.

It turns out to be a labor dispute!

"Listen! I don't care if you're a recipient of the Order of Merlin, Third Class, or a bestselling author, you must increase our pay!"

A dwarf stood on a chair that appeared out of nowhere, pointed at Lockhart's nose, and spoke in an extremely rude manner.

"We're injured! It's a workplace injury! Especially Giggs, look at him, look at him! Look at the state he's in!"

Lockhart looked somewhat disheveled, his clothes were wrinkled, perhaps from a previous scuffle. But on this matter, his stance remained firm.

"Impossible! We signed an agreement!" Lockhart slammed his left hand on the table, grabbing a piece of parchment he'd produced from who-knows-where with his right, and shouted, "It's all written here clearly! I'm not responsible for anything that happens during the work period!"

"Besides, I've already given you more than enough!"

"That money isn't even enough for Giggs's medical expenses!" the dwarf persisted, slamming his fist on the table as well.

"Stop kidding, his injuries are so bad he'd probably be healed before he even gets to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Injuries!" Lockhart jumped to his feet. "Don't be greedy, 50 Galleons is enough for an amputation!"

"Come back! Don't run away!"

Lockhart spoke as he walked out, breaking free from several dwarves' attempts to stop him, and then took off running. The twelve dwarves chased after him relentlessly, shouting as they pursued him.

The three of them watched the farce unfold in stunned silence, feeling as if their eyes had been opened.

"My God! 50 Galleons! Lockhart is really rich," Terry exclaimed. Coming from a wizarding family, he knew very well the purchasing power of Galleons. It was no exaggeration to say that if they were careful with their money, that amount of money would be enough for an average wizarding family to live on for two months.

"He's a bestselling author," the hater leader scoffed. "Just think about how much royalty we've brought him this year. This guy is definitely not short of money."

"So, are you still going to ask? They've already run far away." Ike interrupted Stuart's incessant chatter, pointing to the auditorium doors. "If you chase after them now, you can still stop them."

"Forget it, forget it." Stuart waved his hand. "Judging from the looks of it, those dwarves have no way of keeping the unsent greeting cards. It's pointless to look for them."

"No! I think it's better to ask."

Stewart looked at the excited Ike with suspicion, sizing him up several times before asking, "Ike, something's wrong with you!"

"Heh heh..." Terry, who had already seen through it all, immediately chimed in, "Of course he wasn't up to any good. Didn't you notice? That little dwarf named Giggs, he's the one you beat up!"

"Given the temperament of those dwarves, if you really go after them, a conflict is bound to break out."

"Damn it!" Stuart finally realized what was happening and grabbed Ike's neck. "You actually wanted to see me make a fool of myself!"

"Prepare to die, Ike!"

Stuart didn't use any force at all, and Ike conveniently feigned fear, then, taking advantage of a moment when Stuart wasn't looking, he broke free with a little effort and ran away laughing. Stuart, of course, didn't give up and chased after him, laughing as well.

The three of them continued to bicker and play around until they reached the moving stairs, where Ike stopped. Stewart then punched him twice in retaliation, and that was the end of it.

After running quite vigorously, the three of them rested for a while before heading up the stairs to the eighth floor.

There was still some distance to go from the stairs to the Ravenclaw Tower, requiring a long corridor. Ike, with a pile of cockroaches he had taken from the dinner party in his mouth, walked slowly behind.

Stuart and Terry were used to Ike's strange habit, but watching him eat it still made them feel somewhat uncomfortable. Ike, of course, knew this and quietly lagged behind, only holding the food in his mouth without chewing.

When friends get along, if others tolerate your bad habits, you should also consider their feelings.

Otherwise, it's really easy to end up with no friends.

As Ike was strolling leisurely, he suddenly felt a sharp pain on the back of his neck, as if someone had pinched him with fingernails. Just as he was about to pat the restless Jimmy, Ike suddenly realized what was happening, and with a quick movement of his right hand, his wand slid rapidly from his sleeve into his hand.

The moment he got his hands on it, Ike saw a familiar green light coming from the shadows ahead. With a quick movement, he pushed Stuart and Terry aside with his left hand and leaped forward.

"Snapped!"

With a crisp sound, the green light was blocked and dispersed.

Ike felt a cold sweat run down his back, his heart pounding. He couldn't care less about Professor Flitwick's warnings at this moment. With a flick of his wrist, a red light flew in the direction the green light came from. He raised his left hand slightly, and a ball of light appeared, following closely behind the red light.

"Protect yourself!" Ike shouted quickly, his eyes fixed on the shadow in front of him.

Almost in the blink of an eye, the two spells arrived one after the other, and the white light exploded, illuminating the area brightly.

Ike only saw a dark shadow flash by, disappearing instantly in the exploding white light. He ran over quickly and found himself in a corner between two walls, partially blocked by a stone pillar. But apart from that area, the surrounding corridor was empty, with nowhere to hide.

"Who is it?" Ike was examining the area carefully when Stuart and Terry, who had been pushed and stumbled earlier, came over and asked, looking at the empty corner of the corridor.

"I don't know." Ike shook his head, his brow furrowed. "But it's clear we're in trouble."

One more update, more to come!

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(End of this chapter)