"Boom!"
A violent explosion erupted across the wasteland.
Raging flames twisted into a tornado of fire, instantly swallowing the six black-robed wizards along with the massive flock of birds. Thick black smoke surged upward into the dark sky as the battlefield disappeared beneath the inferno.
"Bingo."
Sean stared intently at the smoke cloud ahead, gripping his wand tightly.
Then suddenly—
A streak of purple light pierced through the smoke.
Sean's scalp instantly went numb.
"Protego!"
A defensive barrier flashed into existence just in time.
Bang!
The shield trembled violently as the curse struck it, nearly shattering the protection spell on impact.
Sean didn't hesitate for even a second. The moment the attack was blocked, he turned and sprinted away across the wasteland.
Several curses exploded against the ground behind him one after another, blasting apart dirt and dead stone. Sean didn't dare slow down at all.
"Avis!"
He repeated the same tactic again.
Hundreds of birds burst from his wand and rushed toward the black-robed wizards.
But this time, the enemy gave him no opportunity whatsoever.
Before the birds could properly spread apart, a wave of fire magic swept across the battlefield.
Every single bird was instantly burned to ashes.
Sean's expression changed immediately.
"It's over."
Those two words flashed through his mind.
Sure enough, the next second, one of the black-robed wizards suddenly appeared directly in front of him like a phantom.
"Reducto."
Sean only heard the spell before his entire vision went white.
Then darkness swallowed everything again.
.....
When Sean regained consciousness, he was already lying flat on the floor of the training room.
He stared blankly at the ceiling for a long moment before slowly sitting up.
After calming himself, Sean immediately began reviewing the battle.
"The first time I used Avis, they'd just finished casting their opening attacks, so they didn't have time to immediately clear the flock."
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Once the birds spread out properly, it became difficult to eliminate them all at once. They also blocked vision and disrupted enemy coordination."
Then his face darkened slightly.
"But I got greedy."
Sean clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"I used Incendio too early. That gave them time to recover and prepare a second response."
He sighed heavily.
"The second time they simply didn't allow the birds to scatter at all."
Still, despite the loss, Sean suddenly grinned.
At least this time he had managed to kill two enemies before dying.
Against six coordinated wizards, that was already a massive improvement.
His white teeth looked especially bright against his soot-covered face.
.....
At the same time, inside the Slytherin common room, the atmosphere had become extremely tense.
The two fifth-year students involved in the earlier fight were loudly venting their anger.
"He actually made us apologise!" one of them shouted furiously. "Gryffindor attacked first, and he still forced us to bow our heads!"
"And he made us clean toilets too!" the other added angrily.
Several nearby students frowned immediately.
"No way. Sean doesn't seem like that kind of person."
"Yeah, his strength's pretty terrifying honestly."
"What's the point of strength?" another student snapped. "We were clearly wronged. As prefect, he should've protected us, not humiliated us."
Someone else sneered coldly.
"He was never truly one of us anyway. Did you forget how he looked during the Sorting?"
"Exactly. We should just treat him like he doesn't exist from now on."
Another voice shouted angrily from deeper in the room.
"Throw his luggage out of the dormitory!"
"Yeah!"
"Kick him out!"
Charlie's expression immediately changed.
"Stop!" he shouted hurriedly. "Sean isn't what you think—"
Before he could finish, dozens of furious eyes instantly turned toward him.
Charlie's throat tightened immediately.
At that moment, he realised something very clearly.
If he continued speaking recklessly, this entire group of agitated Slytherins might explode on him too.
So Charlie immediately shut his mouth.
Thankfully, despite their anger, nobody actually moved to throw Sean's belongings outside. The students merely sat around the common room with ugly expressions, venting frustration and resentment.
Even Malfoy remained unusually quiet this time.
The atmosphere inside the room felt like a powder keg waiting for a spark.
Then the common room entrance suddenly opened.
Professor Snape swept inside like a massive black bat, robes billowing dramatically behind him.
The moment the students saw him, they immediately exploded again.
"Professor Snape, Sean should be removed as prefect!"
"He was never officially appointed anyway!"
"You only allowed him to act as prefect temporarily!"
"He doesn't deserve the position!"
The room filled with angry accusations instantly.
Snape frowned slightly, looking genuinely confused for once.
He had already learned about the incident earlier and originally came intending to deal with Sean personally.
But now the Slytherins themselves looked even angrier than he was.
Logically speaking, these students should have been defending Sean.
Snape's suspicious gaze slowly shifted toward Charlie.
Charlie gave a helpless snort.
"They won't listen to me."
Snape stared silently at the furious students for several seconds with his usual dead-eyed expression before finally speaking.
"You would all do well to learn the full story first."
His cold gaze swept across the room.
"Charlie. Tell Sean to come find me once he returns."
With that, Snape immediately turned and strode away without another word.
The common room fell into silence once more.
Then suddenly, one of the two students from the fight hesitantly spoke up.
"Charlie… what happened after we left?"
Hearing someone finally willing to listen, Charlie nearly burst into tears from relief.
He quickly began explaining everything that happened inside Professor McGonagall's office.
Sean arguing with McGonagall.
Sean threatening Gryffindor openly.
Sean taking all responsibility onto himself.
Sean risking expulsion just to protect Slytherin students.
As Charlie continued speaking, the expressions around the common room gradually changed.
The young Slytherins exchanged uneasy looks.
Although many of them enjoyed causing trouble, that didn't mean they couldn't recognise genuine loyalty.
Most students in Hogwarts despised Slytherin.
Most teachers distrusted them.
Most people treated them like future Dark Wizards before they even had the chance to grow up.
So over time, many Slytherins simply embraced the role others forced onto them.
But now…
Someone had actually stood in front of a professor to protect them.
That feeling was unfamiliar.
And strangely warm.
Finally, one of the boys from the earlier fight spoke quietly.
"Then… will Sean get expelled?"
The question instantly struck everyone's nerves.
Dozens of eyes turned toward Charlie at once.
Charlie's face became bitter.
"How would I know?" he muttered. "Judging from Professor Snape's expression… things probably aren't looking good."
The atmosphere instantly became heavy again.
Then—
Click.
The common room door opened.
Sean walked inside casually, looking utterly miserable.
His hair resembled an exploded bird's nest. His robes were torn and scorched in several places, and his arms were covered in bruises and scratches from repeated deaths inside the training room.
Everyone froze.
Charlie's voice trembled.
"Sean… y-you…"
His eyes widened in horror.
"Did the professors punish you already?"
Sean blinked blankly.
"Huh?"
But before he could explain, the two Slytherins involved in the fight suddenly rushed forward and hugged him tightly.
"Sorry, Prefect!"
The entire common room instantly fell silent.
Then, one after another, the surrounding Slytherins lowered their heads.
Several students even had red eyes.
And in the next moment, everyone spoke together.
.....
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