HP: Azkaban's Outstanding Graduate

"Torn to pieces!"—Bandages and withered limbs were torn to shreds by sharp magic.

She even had the composure to point at a mummy trying to raise a rusty weapon and calmly add, "Avoid your weapon!"

A barrage of spells of different colors and effects poured forth from the tip of her wand like a sudden storm, each strike hitting its target precisely.

In an instant, the roar of explosions, the crackling of flames, and the muffled thuds of bodies falling to the ground filled the air.

Her spellcasting proceeded almost without pause; her powerful magical reserves and astonishing casting speed allowed her to instantly create a terrifying barrage of attacks, forcefully suppressing the mummy's surging offensive.

Ron and Goyle, holding their wands, stared wide-eyed, even forgetting to chant the spell.

Harry and Malfoy had to stop their attacks, dodging the few enemies that managed to break through the line of fire, while glancing incredulously at Hermione, who had completely transformed into a "magical machine gun."

With Hermione's powerful firepower and the help of everyone else, they successfully cleared out the mummy and reached the altar at the deepest part of the temple.

As they stepped into the altar area, a huge sphinx in the center awoke from its slumber.

The boulder rubbed together with a loud rumbling sound, and as it moved its body, it let out a deafening roar that made the ground tremble.

But it did not attack immediately; instead, it stared at them with its huge, jewel-encrusted, human-like eyes.

“It’s the Sphinx! Shall we choose to answer the questions?” Hermione quickly confirmed with the others.

Is there any difference?

"So... if I get all the answers right, I won't have to fight?" Hermione asked tentatively.

"Then we have to answer the questions!" the four boys said in unison, their voices so synchronized it sounded like they had been trained.

"Suit yourself," Hermione said indifferently.

The group cautiously approached the stone statue, whose enormous stone eyes slowly turned and locked onto them.

A deep yet eerie voice came from the mouth of the stone statue:

What creature walks on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening?

The four boys instantly entered "statue mode" and froze.

Harry: "Uh..."

Ron: "Hmm..."

Malfoy: "This..."

Gore: "That..."

Hermione: "It's a person!"

Hermione gave a straightforward answer.

"Correct answer!"

"Wait, why is it a person?" x4

"I don't remember walking on all fours this morning either?" Gore looked down at his legs, quite puzzled.

Hermione rolled her eyes and explained irritably, "It symbolizes different stages of life! 'Morning' represents infancy, crawling on hands and knees; 'noon' represents adulthood, walking upright on two legs; and 'evening' symbolizes old age, needing a cane to walk."

"Oh~" x4

The four of them immediately let out uneven but equally exaggerated sounds of sudden realization, as if they had heard the wisest explanation in the world.

"Next question!" the stone statue's voice rang out again.

"Two sisters, one gave birth to the other, and she, in turn, gave birth to the first. Who are they?"

The four boys fell silent again, as if they had been collectively cast a silent spell.

“Uh…” Harry looked up at the sky.

“Hmm…” Ron looked at the ground.

“This problem…” Malfoy hesitated, arms crossed.

“It’s a bit complicated…” Gore tried to mimic thinking, but he looked more like he was spacing out.

Hermione: "Day and night!"

Her voice was starting to crackle.

"Oh!!!"

"Wonderful!"

"I see!"

Although it seems that no one really "does so".

"Next question!"

"What is something that you want to share when you have it, but once you share it, you no longer have it?"

"oops……"

"uh-huh……"

"Ha ha……"

"Ha ha……"

The quartet played again, this time accompanied by a short skit featuring people scratching their heads, touching their chins, and exchanging confused glances.

"It's a secret!"

Hermione, unable to bear it any longer, interrupted their "thoughts".

"Oh!"

"Makes sense!"

"That's absolutely right!"

"I was just about to say that!"

Hermione was speechless.

"Next question!"

"Though I possess nothing, I am richer than a nation. Though I am empty-handed, everyone else has something. What am I?"

Harry: "Uh, let me think..."

Ron: "Hmm, I'm almost there..."

Gore: "This is a simple question..."

Malfoy: "I know the answer, but you should answer it, Granger..."

Hermione: "..."

Hermione completely snapped.

The veins on her forehead were throbbing merrily.

She knew the answer was "no"!

But looking at the four blank faces around her, a surge of anger welled up inside her—asking them to answer these philosophical questions was like casting pearls before swine!

(Having nothing, yet being richer than a country: possessing the abstract concept of "nothing" means having no debts or worries, which is itself a form of wealth.)

It is empty, yet everyone possesses it: each person has a state of "nothingness," regardless of what that "nothingness" is.

She was furious that no one could answer such a simple question, and everyone was just pretending to know the answer.

"I have no idea!"

She spoke each word slowly and deliberately, her voice seemingly squeezed out from between her teeth, filled with obvious anger, "Get ready to fight!!"

"okay!"

Upon hearing this, the four boys breathed a sigh of relief and simultaneously drew their wands with perfect fluidity and tacit understanding.

Their movements were perfectly synchronized, as if they had been waiting for this command for a long time.

Just as Hermione said she didn't know, the giant Sphinx pounced on them with ferocious power.

"Attack its joints! Limit its movement!" Harry shouted decisively.

"Goyle, left! Porter, right!" Malfoy immediately assigned targets as well.

"Hermione, Ron, disrupt its head!"

The five of them displayed amazing teamwork.

Finally, in the instant the Sphinx missed its attack, Hermione seized the opportunity and delivered a powerful "Freeze" strike precisely to its relatively vulnerable neck joint.

The frost effect spread rapidly, slowing the Sphinx's movements.

"Attack the eyes! Use the petrification spell!" Malfoy shouted.

Several petrification spells then struck the Sphinx's head, slowing its movements until it finally turned back into a stone statue, lying prone on the spot.

A golden light, symbolizing the completion of the challenge, shone, and the group instantly returned to the arena.

“That’s enough for today,” Hermione waved her hand. “I still have a paper on the history of magic to write.”

She left without looking back after saying those words.

Malfoy opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end he didn't speak. He simply turned and left with Goyle.

“Well,” Ron broke the silence, “I have to say, today’s collaboration was… a little bit better than I expected.”

Harry nodded, looking at the points that had increased in his badge: "At this rate, we should be able to exchange them for what we want before the end of this school year."

Chapter 255 Invitation

Harry and Ron dragged their slightly tired but excited bodies back to the Gryffindor common room. Before they could even slump into their soft armchairs, they were stopped by an unexpected person.

Sagres appeared silently near the entrance to the Fat Lady's portrait cave, startling several first-year students who hurriedly ran away.

“Mr. Potter,” he said calmly, his voice not loud but clear enough to reach Harry’s ears.

Harry and Ron immediately stood up straight.