I, Hogwarts Second Time Around.

Chapter 275 An Ingenious Combat Method

The longsword brushed past him.

With a loud "boom," it embedded itself into the earth.

Cedric, who barely dodged the sword, knelt on the ground and struggled to raise his head. In his field of vision, the cracked earth was covered with magical golems, each dozens of feet tall, slowly and terrifyingly crawling out of the ground.

Each one was radiant with a metallic sheen and a magical glow.

Its sturdy armor made one wonder if casting a spell on it would even be effective!

At this moment, Cedric is facing the greatest test of his life.

Five ancient puppets the size of small mountains, plus a giant dragon that blots out the sky.

It seemed impossible for him to get the golden egg, but—

"I can't give up!"

"I'm the first one, everyone's watching me. I can't give up, I can't disgrace Hogwarts!"

He was struggling internally.

The more you struggle, the more resolute the answer becomes.

Yes—he must not surrender.

Even if it means dying on the field.

He had dignity, especially since Hufflepuff had won the House Cup for three consecutive years, surpassing the other three Houses. His pride from those three years wouldn't allow him to bow his head.

Finally, he gritted his teeth. His left hand clutched his dislocated right hand. With a sudden upward push, a "crack" sounded, and his right arm was put back in place.

He roared, his resolute expression moving everyone present.

"What a strong young man!" Professor Flitwick praised.

On the podium, the principals all nodded in approval of Cedric's performance.

Few people have such courage.

Most of them, when faced with this situation, would either panic and run away or freeze in place.

"I'm just curious what other treasures Professor Sprout gave him!"

Irving stared curiously at the cloth bag at Cedric's waist.

It's absolutely full of the professor's treasures.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

On the scene, Cedric's condition was not optimistic. His left hand was empty, and the mustard seed in his palm had long since been shaken away by the jolt.

Without the Mustard Seed in His Palm, he would have to overcome the obstacle of the ancient puppets first.

Fortunately, Balk didn't fly over; instead, he stayed to guard the golden egg, which was one of the few pieces of good news.

Otherwise, he really wouldn't know what to do.

"I still have a chance!" Cedric took out a cloth bag from his waist and held it tightly in his hand.

The next moment, the magical puppet wielding a longsword charged towards him.

The greatsword held high, with the imposing presence of a mountain, was both ferocious and terrifying.

"Boom!" The sharp object landed on the ground again.

Cedric dodged, bracing himself with his wand.

Dust and smoke billowed up again at the scene.

It blocked the view of the audience in the stands.

"Where did he go?" In the stands, the little wizard kept covering his mouth. This competition was too thrilling and exciting!

Cedric was practically dancing on a knife's edge.

Every step was a brush with death.

Is this the three-way battle for supremacy?

It's hard to imagine how the young wizards of the past managed to complete the game.

It's no wonder that it was suspended due to the high death toll.

The smoke and dust gradually dissipated from the site.

The only greatsword remaining on the site is this one.

Cedric had long since disappeared from everyone's sight.

Everyone searched for his location.

Just as the audience was speculating about where Cedric would suddenly appear and ambush the magical puppets,

Suddenly, they felt a noticeable tremor beneath their feet.

Yes, even those sitting in the stands, far from the playing field, felt a tremor coming from beneath their feet.

Then they saw that the ground in the competition area was like a swamp, constantly bubbling and writhing.

It was as if something was moving rapidly underground.

Before anyone can guess...

With a loud "bang!", a magical puppet launched the first attack.

It swung its greatsword and slashed fiercely at the ground.

The greatsword, made of some unknown metal, easily tore through the rocky ground, revealing its 'blood vessels' as if unraveling flesh and blood.

Those were hideous, terrifying blood vessels.

Blood vessels that are pulsating.

"It's—the Poisonous Vines!" Many Hufflepuff wizards recognized the magical plant.

Beneath the earth, the intertwined, twitching, and convulsing vines, like thick, black pythons, writhe wantonly in the soil.

Each one is as thick as a wizard's arm.

Its exterior is dark purple, and its rhizome is covered with barbs shaped like teeth.

This year, Professor Sprout introduced this new and magical plant, which originated from African witch doctors' research, in his class.

This thing is similar to Devil's Web, but the difference is that after being grafted and modified, its vines are more resilient.

This is because its vines are full of poisonous sap.

Its vines are covered with various barbs. If a wizard accidentally falls into these vines, the barbs will immediately pierce into the wizard's body, injecting a venom with multiple effects such as petrification, paralysis, and blood clotting.

Then, step by step, they drag the wizard, whose body was out of control, underground or into a dark corner, so that he could become nourishment.

However, it also inherited the same flaw as the Devil's Web: it is extremely afraid of fire and sunlight.

This is why Cedric was delighted that Bakal didn't chase after them; the fire dragon is one of the few natural enemies of this plant.

In short, this is a magical plant with very obvious drawbacks, yet it is extremely dangerous.

Of course, if it were just a few poison vines, no one would be shocked. What truly shocked them was the sheer number of poison vines.

It's too much.

Like a bursting balloon, after the earth cracked, it burst open and revealed a ground covered with deep purple vines.

The viscous liquid clung to its branches and vines, looking quite eerie.

Those barbs, gleaming and sharp, looked like purple monsters that only grow in hell.

The vines spread throughout the entire venue.

For a moment, it felt as if they were in the forecourt of hell.

"Bang!" That was the sound of the stone being crushed by the vines.

Suddenly exposed to sunlight, the phototropic vines went berserk, frantically attacking everything on the ground, trying to drag everything into the endless depths of the earth.

"Clang!" The ancient puppets were all tall and strong, making them the main targets of the vines' attacks.

The vines struck the massive sword, producing a crisp sound.

The puppets, of course, would not sit idly by and wait to die.

They brandished their swords wildly, severing countless vines with each swing.

From the perspective of the young wizards in the stands, the scene was quite shocking, especially the relentless onslaught of vines, while the sword saint, whose body was already stained purple, tirelessly swung his longsword.

This seemed like a battle of gods from ancient times, but now it was unfolding before the young wizards' eyes.

Anyone would only be left with a sound of amazement.

"Look! The puppets are swinging their swords slower now."

"I know!"

A Hufflepuff wizard popped out.

Meanwhile, in the Gryffindor stands, Neville was explaining to Harry and Ron, "While the venom of the Poisonous Vines has no effect on the metal golems, the petrifying effect contained in those sap still does affect them."

Although the effect wasn't very noticeable, the quantity was simply too large.

"It's like a machine jamming," the twins exclaimed excitedly from the side.

"That's right." Neville nodded.

Although you can clearly see from their perspective, the purple sap is forming a thick layer of 'venom armor' on the puppet's body like a scab, and it is still getting thicker.

This is a major reason why the puppet's body becomes increasingly obstructed and slow.

Back in the Hufflepuff stands.

Justin's eyes widened with excitement. "What about Cedric? He's already restrained those puppets, as long as he can distract Bakal."

"Bakal isn't much dumber than a wizard. It won't be lured away." Hannah gripped the armrest of the stands nervously, her eyes filled with worry. Although she hadn't taken care of Bakal for long, she had interacted with the dragon and knew that its intelligence was not much lower than Sirocco's.

It would be extremely difficult to lure it away.

"Wait, look!"

Suddenly, Ernie pointed to some shiny objects that had appeared out of nowhere in the field.

That is?

"Bubble Pod!" Neville shouted from the Gryffindor stands.

"Not only that, there's also Poison Ivy Hand!"

Bubble Pods are magical plants that grow plump, pink pods filled with sparkling beans. These beans will immediately bloom upon contact with a solid object.

Bubble pods can be used to launch or throw beans at living creatures.

The poisonous tentacle is a thorny green plant. Its tendrils are mobile and will attempt to seize nearby live prey. The young branches of the poisonous tentacle secrete venom, and its thorns are also highly poisonous. A bite from the poisonous tentacle is fatal.

In addition, it is covered with several large mouth-like flowers and can spray a strong acid liquid at living things around it.

In an instant, many of these plants sprouted up around the entire inner circle.

The scattered beans and acid formed a barrage of projectiles, which were hurled haphazardly at Bakal.

Of course, whether such an attack could even break through the dragon's scales is another question.

But that's not Cedric's goal.

On the melted pyramid, Bakal slumped his head, his eyelids still closed.

It remembered its master's words perfectly.

I'll stay here and not go anywhere.

No matter what tricks the little wizard tries.

But things didn't go as planned. It wanted peace, but the vines that had already grown over it were provocatively hooking onto its toes.

This infuriated Bakkar.

You're giving a massage, fine, but why are you picking at the soles of their feet?

That's really perverted.

At that moment, the young wizard in the stands finally spotted Cedric.

"My God! How did he do that?"

A young wizard from Beauxbatons screamed.

"He's flying? He drank a flying potion! That's foul!" shouted Durmstrang's young wizard.

In everyone's sight, Cedric hid in the sky, waving his wand continuously.

A bright green potion fell like raindrops, and any vines that came into contact with it suddenly swelled up.

That must be a potent growth promoter.

"fly?"

The young wizards at Hogwarts also looked up.

Cedric was riding a reptile-like creature with no flesh on its body; its black fur clung tightly to its skeleton, and every bone was clearly visible.

Its head resembled a dragon's head, with white, pupil-less eyes that stared unblinkingly. Wings sprouted from the bulge between its shoulder bones—large, black, and sturdy wings that seemed to belong to a giant bat.

"Thestrals?" Of course, the young wizards at Hogwarts knew what those magical creatures were.

They could all see that creature.

Everyone

"Oh! That's a Thestral!" Mr. Bagman's eyes lit up in the stands. "No wonder we didn't notice it came from over there."

"As is well known, Thestrals are a type of flying horse, and their most famous ability is to become invisible to those who have never seen death. In other words, only those who have witnessed death and fully accepted and understood it can see Thestrals—this is what my famous magizoologist, Mr. Newt, said."

Witnessing death? Understanding death?

The young wizards from the other houses in the stands were taken aback.

Then he looked around blankly.

Because they could clearly sense that the young wizards at Hogwarts could see this creature; their raised faces were filled with an unusual gleam, which meant they must have seen something.

They—had all witnessed death?

In an instant, the young wizards who were not from Hogwarts showed expressions of shock.

If it's just one person or a few scattered individuals, they can understand. After all, life is unpredictable; perhaps it's the passing of a family member that has made them witness death.

But if the whole school could see it, it wouldn't just be surprising, it would be terrifying!!!

What exactly did this British magic school go through?

On the scene, countless vines and slick, acidic fruits were rushing towards Bakal.

Finally, the dragon, unable to bear it any longer, flapped its wings and broke free from the vines that were scratching its feet. With a hurricane-like force, it instantly severed a large area of ​​vines.

Then it opened its mouth wide, and the dazzling golden flames, like the golden light of the sun, almost instantly destroyed the magical plants in the inner circle.

Cedric, who was in the air, was forced to return to the outer ring ground.

Because the hurricane caused by Bakal was so terrifying, it severely hindered the Thestral's flight. It was trembling all over and swaying from side to side. Cedric was worried that he would be blown directly off the field and had no choice but to land.

Bakal, who had easily wiped out all of Cedric's plants, tilted his head back and landed back on the ground with a relaxed and carefree air.

Everything seemed to have returned to square one.

On one side is an indestructible ancient dragon, and on the other is a war puppet that is over ten feet tall.

Once back on the outer circle, Cedric was unable to reorganize the operation, let alone deal with the puppets. He could only rely on Thestrals to run around and dodge constantly.

Time passed little by little.

In the stands, the young wizards of Hogwarts gradually grew disheartened.

Because it is obvious that Cedric could not possibly finish the match.

He has exhausted all means!

Five more minutes passed.

Cedric was probably exhausted and momentarily distracted, making a major mistake in his positioning, which led to him being hit by the magical puppet.

Although he immediately raised his wand to defend himself, the powerful physical impact still sent him and his beast flying backward.

"Pfft!" He spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed to the ground.

Fortunately, the Thestral didn't fly out and hit him directly, otherwise he would have really died here.

"Oh no!!!" the young wizards cried out. But this did not stop the magical golem that was chasing straight towards Cedric.

The defeat is a fait accompli.

Although they were all frustrated, they did not want to see any young wizards die, especially those who were still young wizards at their Hogwarts.

"Quick! Save him!" the Hufflepuffs screamed.

Of course, before they could even shout.

There was another figure on the field.

It's Kyrie Irving.

He suddenly appeared on the field, then waved his wand. Ancient magic activated the power switch on the puppets, cutting off their power. In an instant, the puppets stood motionless, as if petrified!

"I hereby declare the match over! Cedric, the champion from Hogwarts, has successfully completed his challenge!!!"

"what?"

I really like what the little wizards say: "Huh?"

"Has Hogwarts become so shameless?"

"Why bother with a competition then! Just declare you the champions!"

"I suggest we just make hundreds of copies of the Champions League trophy, and give one to each of you!"

"Winning the championship in the void, huh!"

In an instant, shouts and curses came from the young wizards of the other three schools.

The young wizards at Hogwarts looked at Owen in confusion, completely bewildered as to why he would declare Cedric the winner.

"Shut up!!!"

With a booming voice, Irving shouted.

The three school wizards were so frightened that they fell silent.

"How can you blame others when you're blind?"

As he finished speaking, all the judges on the panel stood up. Mr. Bagman said enthusiastically, "A brilliant idea, perfect tactics, and the application of magical plants and magical creatures has reached its peak! No wonder you are a student of Hufflepuff!"

I declare Cedric the winner!!!

As he finished speaking, the young wizards finally noticed.

In the arena, Cedric lay half-dead on the ground, with a small, throbbing object in his arms.

That's a Niffler!!!

The little guy, covered in black fur and with a long snout, was waving his little hands to stop Cedric from putting his hands into the pocket on his belly.

However, its struggle did not last long.

Cedric quickly used a diversionary tactic, successfully sticking his finger into its pocket.

With a gentle hook, the golden, gleaming egg fell out.

It's really not easy to catch it.

Cedric smiled.

He held the golden egg high, and although the bloodstains at the corner of his mouth were very conspicuous, they could not hide the excitement on his face.

He certainly didn't get hit by the puppet because of a positioning error.

There's no way to catch this little guy; he's just too hard to handle.

He had only one chance to make the plan, so he had to go all in.

huh~~~

He lay on the ground and gradually relaxed.

Fortunately, he had prepared a second operational plan.

He originally thought that with the mustard seed in his hand, he would be able to win easily, after all, it was just dealing with an ordinary fire dragon.

And now—he was incredibly grateful that he had the foresight to change the two plans.

"Phew!" He took a deep breath.

No matter what, he won, albeit with difficulty!

(End of this chapter)