"Geralt, you go up and show them a demonstration!" Snape ordered directly.
The first wizard duel ended with Malfoy victorious. Seeing Harry still lying on the ground, dazed, Snape's eyes gleamed with sarcasm.
"This is your chance, Malfoy. Plenty of ways to handle him," he remarked.
"Ha, Potter, you lost!" Malfoy sneered, walking off to cheers from Slytherin.
He remained a popular figure among his housemates, being from a respected pure-blood family.
"Understood, Professor!"
Upon hearing Snape's command, Luke nodded and turned to the girl beside him.
"It's our turn now."
"So soon?" Hermione exclaimed, clearly caught off guard.
"Don't worry, I won't go hard on you. Let's see what you've learned all these days," Luke chuckled, extending his hand.
"What's there to learn when I'm being bullied by you every night... 13," Hermione muttered under her breath as she placed her hand in his.
"Have you gained weight lately?" Luke whispered in her ear as they stepped onto the stage, noticing Hermione's slightly fuller face.
Hermione's brown eyes narrowed involuntarily. She withdrew her hand from his grip and walked to the other side of the stage.
"I won't hold back," she declared firmly.
Snape observed the exchange with a furrowed brow, silently taking in the scene. Lockhart, meanwhile, appeared acquainted with Luke, having purchased ten rings from him previously.
"It's a shame the Iron Armor Curse failed," Lockhart lamented silently, contemplating whether he should approach Luke after class to purchase one.
"The passive activation of the Iron Armor is truly remarkable, a lifesaving trump card in times of peril."
"Looks like they're still going strong," Lockhart remarked, adjusting his white-trimmed gown and waving his wand to signal the start.
"Begin!"
"Stupefy!"
With Hermione's command, a brilliant light flashed in the classroom.
"Armor Protection!"
Luke casually countered, sweeping his wand upwards.
A blue glow met the incoming spell, forming a shield that rippled and dispersed into the air.
"Iron Spell?" Snape raised an eyebrow, observing the duel between Slytherin and Gryffindor with sharp eyes.
Lockhart had used the spell twice, but Snape knew it was all thanks to the enchanted ring.
The Iron Armor Spell was typically reserved for upper-level exams, not easily learned or mastered.
"If it were that simple, it wouldn't be on the exam," Snape mused quietly.
"Change your tactics!"
Seeing Luke's nonchalance, Hermione hurled several less potent attack spells in succession, all intercepted without fail.
"You're cheating!" Hermione accused in frustration.
"Perhaps you should try Avada Kedavra," Luke suggested casually, eliciting a sharp look from Hermione.
After all, Avada Kedavra was an unforgivable curse, capable of bypassing defenses like the Iron Armor.
Hermione shot him an angry glance in response.
If Hermione didn't have Shenfeng Wuying's counter-curse, she would've had to take a hit from her little boyfriend.
"Thunderbolt—"
"It's completely blocked!"
Seeing Hermione sigh, Luke also gave up on the Iron Armor spell and shifted from defense to offense.
But before his spell could finish, Hermione seized the opportunity and took the lead.
"You purposely didn't dodge!"
In the end, Hermione won the duel, successfully catching Luke off guard with a last-minute petrification.
But she clearly saw that Luke could've dodged.
"You're mistaken, I simply chose not to dodge."
Luke glanced at the wizards still dueling on the stage and took a sip of black tea.
"You liar!"
Hermione rolled her brown eyes at him.
"Except your wand!"
"Armor protection!"
Two voices interrupted, drawing Luke's and Hermione's attention.
It was Pansy and Ron, who had just taken the stage.
However, they didn't say more, leaving a brief silence in the air.
"How can they learn advanced spells just by watching..."
Hermione shook her head, bemused.
"Yeah, it happens."
Luke smiled and ran his hand through his brown curly hair tied in a loose ponytail, prompting Hermione to playfully shove him.
Meanwhile, Harry stood in the corner with a conflicted expression.
He had indeed recognized the familiar hiss earlier, coming from the snake Malfoy had transformed into.
More importantly—he could understand it.
"You said you understood the snake?"
Ron asked loudly, wincing from his injuries. He had barely triumphed over Pansy after a fierce duel, thanks to some tips from senior Tom.
Pansy, too, bore bruises from the Flying Curse and Fuchsia.
"Shh—"
Harry quickly covered Ron's mouth, trying to quiet him down.
"I didn't realize you were a Parselmouth?"
Ron stared, visibly shocked.
"Parselmouth—you mean I can understand snakes?"
Harry looked bewildered, evidently hearing the term for the first time.
"So, if you have the time, you might want to hit the library and read up more."
Hermione offered her advice kindly.
"No, no, no, the Parselmouth thing you're talking about must be common among wizards, right?" Harry ignored Miss Know-It-All for a moment, his words rushed.
"It's common among dark wizards... like Voldemort," Luke added, meeting Harry's anxious gaze.
"Don't scare him," Hermione interjected, squeezing Luke's arm gently.
Hmm... not quite.
Luke thought to himself.
"Don't worry, Harry. Remember, one of the four Hogwarts founders could speak Parseltongue. It's just a skill."
Hermione reassured him after seeing Harry's pale face.
That seemed to calm Harry, but Luke couldn't resist adding,
"Curious who the founder was?"
"Which founder?"
Harry asked involuntarily.
"The founder of Slytherin—Salazar Slytherin."
Hermione covered her mouth, speaking softly.
"S... Slytherin?"
.....
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