Before Lucien could say anything, Lockhart had already scrambled to his feet, trying to smooth his dishevelled curls.
Lucien glanced at Ron and saw the boy's undisguised disappointment.
While wondering what had gone wrong with Tom's charm, Lockhart picked up his hat from the floor.
"Oh, thank you, Miss Brown."
He took his wand back from the young witch, enduring the pain in his chest and back as he forced out his signature smile.
"Ha, I was simply demonstrating the effects of being hit by an Expelliarmus."
"Of course, Professor Snape's movements were quite easy to read. If I had wanted to dodge or block, it would have been effortless…"
His words came to an abrupt halt as Snape's expression, which had just softened slightly, turned cold again, his gaze sharper than before.
Watching the change in Snape's expression, Lucien had no doubt that if no one else were present, Lockhart might already be dead.
Lockhart cleared his throat.
"The demonstration is over. Professor Snape and I will now divide you into pairs…"
Lucien was paired with Parvati Patil from Gryffindor. He had some impression of her; her twin sister, Padma, was in Ravenclaw with him.
Parvati exchanged a few words with Lucien before they performed the opening duelling etiquette.
Once the duel began, it was less a duel and more Lucien guiding her.
He corrected her wand movements and the rhythm of her incantations, while also deflecting stray spells flying in from around them.
The Great Hall was only so large, and the general standard of the students, especially in Defence Against the Dark Arts, was not high. Most were simply casting spells by instinct.
As a result, misdirected spells occasionally flew toward Lucien and his partner.
"Petrificus Totalus has a relatively slow start and is difficult to aim. It's more suitable within three metres. Relax your wrist. This spell doesn't require too much tension…"
With Lucien's guidance, Parvati nodded repeatedly, her expression brightening with understanding.
"Lucien, you really are a true Ravenclaw. No wonder my sister mentions you so often."
"Sister, weren't you the one who asked me about him first?"
Padma had somehow appeared behind her, speaking in a calm tone. The two sisters looked identical, and at a glance could only be distinguished by their different house robes.
Parvati gave an awkward smile at being exposed by her sister. Just as she was about to explain, Lockhart's urgent shout echoed through the Great Hall.
"Stop! Stop at once!"
"Today, you will only practise Expelliarmus!"
It was no wonder Lockhart was so flustered. Some students had been struck by each other's spells, either dancing uncontrollably or lying stiff on the ground as if asleep. Even more spells had missed entirely and were flying about at random, looking for unfortunate targets.
Lockhart even saw a few students who had abandoned their wands altogether and were resorting to physical combat.
Boom!
Hearing the explosion, Lockhart froze. Someone had actually cast an explosive spell.
He wanted to shout and ask how these students had ever learned Defence Against the Dark Arts. The entire scene looked like complete chaos.
"Finite Incantatem!"
Snape flicked his wand, releasing a cloud of shimmering green smoke that quickly spread across the Great Hall.
All sorts of spells were dispelled, and the commotion gradually died down.
Lockhart hurried to separate the students who were still fighting, wiping the sweat from his face as he shouted,
"This is far too chaotic. Duelling should not be like this. Let's have a pair come up and demonstrate. Is anyone willing?"
No sooner had he spoken than two voices answered at the same time.
"I will!"
Snape frowned slightly when he saw that the two volunteers were Harry and Malfoy, clearly not expecting them to be so eager.
Harry and Malfoy stepped onto the stage and both gave Lucien a quick thumbs-up.
Lockhart looked at them and said seriously,
"Wait until I count to three before you begin. Understood?"
After both nodded, Lockhart began to count.
"One—"
But the moment he spoke, Harry and Malfoy moved.
Almost simultaneously, they cast basic Shield Charms on themselves, preliminary versions of the full Shield Charm.
In the next instant, Harry raised his wand.
"Expelliarmus!"
A red beam shot forward. Malfoy sidestepped cleanly, with no intention of taking it head-on.
In Lucien's lessons, they had practised countless times. Malfoy knew that Potter's signature spell was Expelliarmus. It was fast and powerful. Anyone who tried to block it directly would be a fool.
"Wingardium Leviosa!"
Faced with Malfoy's spell, Harry deflected it, then ducked and rolled to avoid the next attack. At the same time, he pulled several bottles of potion from his pocket.
"Waddiwasi!"
The potion containers shot toward Malfoy at high speed. Although he could not avoid them all, the one or two that struck him were blocked by the basic Shield Charm around him. The fragile bottles shattered, and the potions spilled across the stage.
Snape, standing behind Malfoy, darkened his expression and casually deflected a bottle that had flown toward him.
Knowing that Harry had likely not done it on purpose, Snape still felt irritated and almost deducted points from Gryffindor.
However, his attention soon shifted to the level of magic displayed by Harry and Malfoy. Their casting speed and sense of timing were far beyond their peers.
Snape's gaze moved to Lucien below the stage. He had not expected Lucien to have trained the two of them so well in Defence Against the Dark Arts and duelling.
Meanwhile, Harry and Malfoy continued their intense exchange on the stage. Compared to the chaos earlier, their duel was far more precise and controlled.
"Serpensortia!"
As Malfoy completed the incantation, three black snakes burst from his wand and slithered toward Harry.
Their cold, slick forms made the students on both sides of the stage scream and step back.
Seeing this, Lockhart swallowed nervously and said,
"Let me deal with them…"
But Harry had already reacted calmly.
"Lumos!"
A bright burst of light struck the ground in front of the three snakes. The intense glare dazzled them, stopping them in place.
Harry then quickly cast three simple Levitation Charms in succession, lifting the snakes into the air and preventing them from harming anyone.
The sudden brightness not only stunned the snakes but also disrupted Malfoy's vision, catching him off guard.
"Expelliarmus!"
Harry used his signature spell to knock the wand from Malfoy's hand.
For a brief moment, there was silence.
Then the Great Hall erupted into applause and excited chatter.
"That was incredible!"
"Well done! Gryffindor beat Slytherin again!"
"What are you shouting for? Malfoy just made a small mistake. Want to go again?"
Seeing that the students were about to start fighting again, Lockhart hurried forward and raised his voice.
"What an excellent demonstration! Of course, this is also thanks to my guidance on wrist movements last week…"
Ignoring Lockhart's boasting, Harry had already taken out a silver-white rectangular device from his shrunken storage.
"Are you curious how I did it?"
Lockhart's smile froze as he was interrupted. Harry's opening line sounded oddly familiar.
________
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