Monsters Beneath the Lake

A cheer erupted from the stands, and the Champion immediately began their actions upon hearing the command "Start the game."

Phoebe, Cedric, and Hugo all raised their wands and cast a Bubble-Head Charm on themselves, creating huge, transparent bubbles on their necks.

Hugo turned around, Sean saw his lips through the transparent bubble.

"Contact me if you need anything—" he said, waving his hand.

Sean waved and smiled – apart from Daniels, Champion from Newmontgard were from the Golden Dawn.

They all still bear the mark of the Golden Dawn on their palms. Whether it's a bright light or magical perception, members of the Golden Dawn can more easily locate their teammates.

Phoebe, Cedric, and Hugo all went into the water, leaving only Reinhardt Nott and Sean.

Reinhardt Nott, sporting a buzz cut, was stretching his body; he was very muscular and looked much more robust than Sean.

Sean didn't rush into the water. He habitually observed everyone around him, and he never forgot one thing— Durmstrang and the Returners had an ambiguous relationship, and the other party was related to the Sin [Sloth].

Although Sean didn't know why the Four-School Tournament were still going ahead as planned, everyone at Durmstrang was worth watching, even a big guy like Krum who was originally quite knowledgeable but still a bit clueless.

Not to mention Reinhardt Nott from before—that guy was very hostile to Sean from the start.

Reinhardt Nott finished warming up and gave Sean his usual provocative look—though Sean never knew why this guy was so confident.

He picked up his wand and chanted a spell. Immediately, his upper body began to writhe and he transformed into a half-orc.

Reinhardt's upper body was transformed into a giant fish head, but it didn't quite resemble a fish head, as various features of a lizard were incorporated.

The creature extended a long tongue and licked the water once, then suddenly darted into the water and disappeared in a flash.

Is incomplete Human Transfiguration a distinctive feature of Durmstrang?

Sean shrugged.

At this point, he was the only one who hadn't set off yet, and the others were a little puzzled, but their puzzlement was also filled with anticipation—they always hoped that Sean would pull off something big.

However, this time Sean disappointed them. With a simple Human Transfiguration, his cheeks turned into shark gills. After casting Waterproof Spell, Warming Charm, and Night Vision Spell on himself, Sean also submerged into the dark lake.

Even in this weather, the water in Black Lake is still icy cold, and despite the curse, Sean still felt a bone-chilling cold.

He opened his eyes wide and first observed the situation at the bottom of the water.

The long water plants swayed gently with the current, and after only a short while away from the shore, the water below was already unfathomably deep.

The Black Lake is probably one of the unsolved mysteries of Hogwarts. This body of water seems to be connected to a waterway leading to the ocean. In addition to a large number of strange and Magical Creatures, there are also many creatures that can only be found in the ocean.

"Galo!" The water rushed past with a piercing shout. Sean turned around and saw several menacing creatures rushing towards him.

It was a small monster with horns on its head, its long fingernails already aimed at Sean's ankle.

Grindylow, a horned, pale green water monster, lives in lakes throughout Britain and Ireland. They feed on small fish and attack both Muggle and wizards.

These not-so-cute little creatures possess a certain level of intelligence, which is why they can be tamed by the Merpeople. Clearly, the Grindylow in front of us are sent by the Merpeople to hinder the contestants.

Sean ignored Grindylow's meaning and closed his eyes to sense it.

"Trace Flash."

Sean's figure disappeared directly into the water, while several Grindylow stretched out their long claws, looking at the bubbles in place with puzzled expressions.

Knowing that the second challenge would also take place in Black Lake, Sean had already made preparations in advance.

Currently, there are Shadow Bug that he had placed in various waters of the Black Lake beforehand. Using the Shadow Bug, he can freely Trace Flash within the Black Lake. However, the Shadow Bug cannot stay in the water indefinitely. These magical creations will be carried to other places by the water flow and pressure, and some will be directly crushed by powerful Magical Creatures.

But having enough space to teleport is enough for Sean.

He teleported to a location where the water was much deeper, and the surface was no longer visible above his head. Sean looked ahead and saw a patch of lush green water plants, about two feet deep, like a very dense lawn.

"Gurgle—" A series of bubbles rose from not far away, and a huge tentacle flashed by.

"This Shadow Bug has drifted to this spot..." Sean scratched his head in the water.

That tentacle had only one owner: Giant Squid that liked to sunbathe by the lake.

Rumor has it that this Giant Squid is Godric Gryffindor's Animagus, who took this form to continue guarding Hogwarts, and that it will transform back into human form on the night of the full moon to take a walk on the playground.

However, Sean felt it was unrealistic...

They weren't worried about Sean the Giant Squid. The guy had never shown any aggression; otherwise, given the Weasley brothers' penchant for teasing its tentacles, those two would have been soaking in the Black Lake long ago.

Sean stretched out his hand, and his palm shone with a dazzling light, instantly revealing the marks that Stephanie and Daisy belonged to.

After assessing the location, Sean decided that Stephanie was closer to him, so he would go and meet her first, and then they would go find Daisy together.

Sensing the Shadow Bug closest to Stephanie, Sean raised his wand again, bubbles rose, and his figure vanished once more.

On the other side of the Black Lake, Daisy, with cheeks on her face and webbed hands and feet, was carefully holding up her wand.

When they discussed this competition, they considered the possibility of being separated and had already made contingency plans.

My Golden Dawn marker just heated up, which means Sean has set off and sensed my and Stephanie's location.

According to the plan, she now needs to find a safe place to stay and call for a "thug".

Finding a spot with few obstructions, she stood on a rock and raised her wand as Sean had instructed.

"As long as it's a little long or short, that's fine... Ah, I'm a little nervous..." Daisy swallowed, but all she inhaled was the icy lake water.

"Confringo"

There was no sound, only a large bubble shot out of Daisy's mouth, followed by a jet of scalding water that shot into the distance, and then the water exploded.

The audience on Daisy's side immediately noticed the commotion not far from the shore. Numerous bubbles, mixed with silt, watercolor, and stunned little fish, were rising to the surface of the water, which was churning violently.

"What happened to the water there? Was there an explosion?"

"That's Daisy Potter's spot, isn't it? She's only in fourth grade, she won't be in any danger, will she?"

"I remember she transformed into a Merpeople, which seemed perfect for water. And is there something in the Black River that could cause a huge explosion...?"

As they were talking, the surface of Black Lake suddenly began to boil violently, and through the white bubbles, people could see a huge black shadow.

"That Giant Squid?!"

"Isn't it supposed to be immune to attacking students?!"

Just then, water burst open, and a dark green figure leaped out of the water, letting out a loud hiss.

It was a huge, horse-shaped monster covered in long seaweed, with round, jet-black eyes, and its snow-white front teeth were terrifying given its enormous size.

A gasp rippled through the crowd. "The Grindylow!"

"What the senior students said is true, there really is a huge, ridiculously large Grindylow in Black Lake!"

"Oh no, Daisy, watch out!"

The new students were calling out anxiously.

The person in the know gave them a speechless look and said, "Stop arguing, freshmen."

"That's Grindylow!"

"Take another look?"

"Ah?"

The freshmen looked over in surprise, and then were astonished to find that Daisy was now riding on the back of the Grindylow!

The Grindylow gently wrapped Daisy in the seaweed on its body, let out a joyful neigh, and then plunged back into the lake.

The freshmen were dumbfounded as they stared at the bubbles on the water's surface.

Only the older students slowly said, "Has no one told you? The Grindylow in Black Lake is Sean's pet."

"Sure enough, I'm still a bit slow at swimming..." Sean muttered to himself in the water.

For safety's sake, he had already gone down to the lake and had a good talk with the Grindylow. When Daisy gave the signal, the Grindylow would rush over to guard her side.

In the Black Lake, the Grindylow is at the top of the food chain. With its help, Sean doesn't need to worry about Daisy's safety. If they encounter students from other schools with ill intentions, they should be the ones who are worried.

However, he was no longer able to ride the Grindylow across the waves.

Sensing Stephanie's location again, he swam rapidly in one direction.

This seems to be the very center of the Black Lake, a vast, flat expanse of mud and sand with undulating, tangled black aquatic plants scattered with Winky pebbles.

"Hmm?" Sean narrowed his eyes.

The surrounding temperature suddenly rose a bit.

That doesn't make sense; the temperature should decrease as you go deeper into the water...

"Gurgle—" Not far away, a large string of bubbles suddenly rose up, which seemed to be a ravine at the bottom of the Black Lake.

Sean swam over and glanced at it, his gaze piercing through the gray, eerie lake water, looking at the dark figure in the distance, where the lake water was gloomy and indistinct.

"It seems to be Magical Creatures I've never seen before?" A thought popped into Sean's mind.

In the deep ravine, there was a dark shadow whose shape was indistinct. The shadow resembled a giant octopus curled up in a ball. The lake water was murky, making it impossible to see the creature's face.

Moreover, apart from the occasional small fish swimming by, there seemed to be no other living creatures near that ravine, not even aquatic plants. The entire area was barren, with only piles of rocks at the bottom of the lake.

After thinking for a moment, Sean decided not to provoke the local inhabitants and to postpone the adventure until after the competition.

He turned around, but suddenly a cracking sound came from under his feet.

What did you step on?

Sean looked down and saw a shattered white skull at his feet, its empty eye sockets seeming to be asking Sean a question.

"Hiss—" Sean frowned, and a string of bubbles came out of his mouth.

That guy in the distance doesn't look like someone to mess with.

With that in mind, he quickened his pace, preparing to leave this awful place first.

However, the dark figure suddenly moved!

Sean's eyes widened instantly. He suddenly felt a tremendous pressure coming from behind him, and at the same time, the water temperature was rising rapidly!

He turned his head in surprise and saw a firelight beginning to flicker in the dark lake water, and the dark shadow was unfolding its body!

A huge, terrifying sea monster appeared before Sean.

At the very top is a woman's head. She has a beautiful face, but her skin is pale and greenish, and her eyes are closed.

Below the breasts, which cannot be written, is a bizarre scene.

The sea monster had a ring of howling wolf heads around its waist. The wolf heads opened their blood-red mouths, and flames spewed out from their mouths. The light and high temperature came from these mouths.

The area below the waist was covered with a dense network of thick sea snakes, several of which had particularly thick heads staring outwards, like an octopus.

"What is that?!" Sean's eyes widened; he had never seen such Magical Creatures before.

And, a human face... Could this thing be the product of a failed Transfiguration?

Just as Sean was surprised, the sea monster suddenly moved!

A piercing, eerie scream rang out, and fine ripples spread out like sound waves.

Sean, who had raised his wand, was unable to defend against the sonic attack. He felt as if his temple had been hit hard, and pain and dizziness surged up immediately.

At the same time, he could also feel a strange sensation, as if his soul and body had been separated for a short while!

Sean stared at the sea monster in the distance with fear and uncertainty. Without any hesitation, he immediately raised his wand again.

"Trace Flash!"

His figure vanished from the spot, and after Sean disappeared, the eerie sea monster also stopped moving. The roaring dog head on its waist gradually calmed down, and the snake head tentacles all retracted and curled into a ball again.

The woman slowly opened her eyes, revealing a pupil without a white part, only black. She stared in one direction, a strange smile on her face.

"Damn, what is that thing?!"

Not far away, Sean, in the water, was leaning against a rock, panting heavily.

This was the first time he had encountered something like this; in fact, he had never seen anything like it before.

Moreover, it's undefendable!