Chapter 98: Malfoy's Provocation
Last year, after borrowing 1,000 Galleons from the mutual aid group, Malfoy had built good relationships with the other Slytherin students—especially the Quidditch players. Still, he hadn't expected to make the team so easily. But now, in his second year, things were different.
During the summer, he had gained a lot. Improvements in meditation techniques and spell training had made him steadily stronger, and he was fascinated by this growth in power.
With greater strength came greater influence. His father, Lucius, had been closely observing his progress. Following the traditions of the Malfoy family, he naturally granted him more authority and more resources.
By this year, Malfoy's strength had already far surpassed that of ordinary second-year students. His preparations from the previous year had not been in vain. He got along well with the Slytherin team and became their new Seeker.
To ensure victory over Harry and Gryffindor, he had even asked his father to replace the entire team's brooms with the latest models—making sure nothing could go wrong.
"Oh, looks like someone's here," Flint said, glancing toward the newcomers. He didn't mind being watched. This year, the entire team had upgraded to Nimbus 2001 brooms—their advantage was overwhelming. And with Malfoy as an excellent Seeker, there was no way they would lose to Harry Potter.
Up in the stands, Ron and Hermione saw people gathering around and quickly ran over.
"What's going on?" Ron asked Harry. "Why aren't you training? What are they doing here?" He was confused—why were the Slytherins here? Were both teams training together today?
Malfoy spoke arrogantly, "I'm now the Seeker for the Slytherin team. Everyone in Gryffindor must be jealous of our brand-new brooms."
Ron's eyes widened as he stared at the seven brand-new Nimbus 2001s. These were the best brooms available—and buying seven of them was incredibly expensive.
"Very impressive," Malfoy said with fake sincerity. "I wonder where Gryffindor will get the money for new brooms. Maybe you could sell those old Shooting Stars of yours. I'm sure a museum would be interested."
"Haha!" The Slytherin players burst into laughter.
"At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in," Hermione snapped angrily. "They earned their places through talent."
Malfoy sneered. "I hear the whining of the poor. When you give up, I'll allow you to cry on your brooms."
"Hahahaha!" The Slytherin team laughed even louder.
Malfoy kicked off the ground, mounted his broom, and shot into the air. He spun effortlessly, calling out, "Come on, Potter—show me your courage!"
Flint looked at Wood with a sly grin. "Why don't we settle this today?"
Harry mounted his broom, ready to chase after Malfoy, but Wood grabbed him. "Let's leave first."
Flint shouted mockingly, "Has Gryffindor already surrendered?"
"They're scared!" the Slytherins jeered.
"Oh—oh—Potter's coming!" Malfoy swooped up and down at incredible speed.
"Good thing we haven't had breakfast yet," Wood said loudly, dragging Harry and the others back to the locker room.
"Haha, we haven't had breakfast either!" the Slytherins echoed mockingly.
"You'll have to eat everything in the Great Hall to be faster than a Nimbus 2001!" they laughed.
Harry clenched his fists. He wanted to fly up and defeat Malfoy, but Wood's grip was too tight—he couldn't break free.
Amid Slytherin's laughter, the Gryffindor players returned to their dim common room.
"Why didn't you let me go?" Harry complained. He was confident he wouldn't lose to Malfoy.
"We're not as strong as Slytherin," Wood said, suppressing his anger. "Before you joined last year, we lost for seven years straight."
Fred tried to deny that they were weaker than the Slytherins, but when he looked at his old Shooting Star broom and thought about Slytherin's Nimbus 2001s, he finally sat down angrily.
"Now they've all switched to Nimbus 2001s—their advantage is even greater," Wood said. Though he was obsessed with Quidditch and demanded everything from his team, he wasn't foolish. He clearly understood each team's strengths and weaknesses.
"I won't lose to Malfoy," Harry said confidently. Even if Malfoy's broom was faster, flying wasn't just about the broom.
"But you're not the only issue," Wood said through clenched teeth. As captain, he wasn't sure he could beat Flint himself—and that made him feel like a burden to the team.
"Our overall strength isn't that different," Alicia said thoughtfully. "But with their new brooms, our disadvantage is obvious. Harry is an excellent Seeker—that's our biggest advantage."
"The Shooting Star 5 can't compare to the Nimbus 2001 at all," Fred said gloomily. "I can only play a supporting role now." He wasn't afraid of Slytherin, but he clearly understood the gap between the teams.
"We have to find a way to deal with this. We won't give up," Wood said firmly. He wasn't someone who surrendered easily. Even after seven years without a championship, he had never stopped training or improving tactics. Last year, they had finally won again after Harry joined.
Hardship had never defeated them.
"Yes… we'll win. We won last year too," Angelina said, though without much confidence. At least, she thought, we did win last year.
Before Harry joined, Gryffindor had lost far too many times. Now, facing a stronger opponent and losing their advantage, it was impossible not to worry.
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