Dueling Club

"Dear Grandpa Bates, How have you been lately? I hope you got through last week's Full Moon Night safely...

You really struck it lucky meeting me! Headmaster Dumbledore of Hogwarts is a warmhearted man. With the headmaster's and professors' help, I obtained a magical potion. If you drink it a week in advance, you'll be able to keep your reason when you transform on the Full Moon Night.

...Hehe, the downside is that it's extremely bitter. Even the tiniest bit of sugar will make the potion lose its effect. I hope an old man like you can bear it...

The potion is enclosed with this letter...

Everything is going well for me at school, so don't worry.

Loren"

After returning from Snape's, Loren wrote this letter, intending to have Hānhan deliver it tomorrow.

A week had passed since he last picked stamens in Snape's office. This time, Snape did not have Loren handle any strange potion ingredients. After testing Loren on some potion-making knowledge, he demonstrated the brewing process for a basic potion and told Loren to hand in a foot-long essay next week.

Loren had also received the Wolfsbane Potion he had been hoping for.

It came in a palm-sized bottle, and the stuff truly did not look like much. It was an alluring purple overall and looked highly poisonous. Up close, it even smelled like fermented rotten eggs.

If Loren had to drink it, he would need a great deal of resolve. Hopefully Grandpa Bates's sense of taste had dulled with age; otherwise, drinking the potion would not feel much better than turning into a Werewolf.

With no potion ingredients to process and the Wolfsbane Potion in hand, Loren was in high spirits. As for the essay, did they even know the value of a college student's padded paper? Besides, he did not even need to worry about plagiarism checks.

After putting away the letter, Loren climbed into bed.

He pressed his finger against the Duel Chamber icon, and it appeared within the Magical Book.

The classroom had a high ceiling and no desks, chairs, or stools, making it seem somewhat empty.

"Flamel, I think I can give it a try!" Loren called out. After a week of practice, he could already cast the Shield Charm smoothly.

Flamel drifted down from the air and landed before Loren with a smile. "At your service."

Before his words had faded, Flamel's face blurred, eventually changing into a face Loren knew well—one identical to his own.

"There is no better way to understand yourself than fighting yourself." Flamel, wearing Loren's face, bowed to him.

Loren felt a little awkward. Fighting himself sounded strange no matter how he thought about it.

Flamel coughed twice, and his voice changed to match Loren's as well, clear and still carrying a trace of childishness. "I won't use any spells you cannot use, and my spells will be as powerful as yours."

"Ready!"

Loren focused. After bowing, he held his wand upright before him.

The incantation for the Shield Charm was on the tip of his tongue, ready to be cast at any moment.

"Lumos." Flamel opened with a Lighting Charm.

Without thinking, Loren said, "Protego."

The Lighting Charm was not an offensive spell. It was not cast at Loren and could not trigger the magical barrier.

The glaring white light dazzled Loren, and he instinctively turned away and shut his eyes.

Loren still could not apply the Shield Charm to his body, so only the tip of his wand could provide defense. Irritated by the intense light, Loren dropped his stance and covered his eyes, causing the Shield Charm to dissipate.

Loren was completely defenseless now. The instant he canceled the Shield Charm, he realized it and immediately rolled forward to the right.

Flamel was not surprised in the least. "Three Feet Retreat."

The Repelling Charm was one of the nine spells taught in the first-year curriculum. Loren had already studied it in advance, and even Hermione could cast it. Yet neither of them had taken the spell seriously.

Now Loren understood that, with the right timing, no spell was useless.

Green light struck Loren. It felt as if someone had delivered a flying kick to his chest, sending him stumbling backward before he finally fell to the ground.

Flamel lowered his hand and smiled. "As immature as a child."

Loren covered his chest and took a moment to catch his breath, then rolled his eyes. "I am a child."

How embarrassing. Loren had thought he could use the Shield Charm to defend against one or two spells. Instead, he had not lasted two moves. One Lighting Charm had forced him to cancel the Shield Charm, and one Repelling Charm had taken away his ability to fight.

Flamel began summarizing the battle. "Do not expect to catch spells flying straight at you. Dodge whenever you can, and use a counterspell whenever one is available. Letting a spell hit you should be the last option. Never be a target..."

Loren's idea of a wizard duel had been terribly childish: one person cast a spell, the other defended against it, turn by turn.

In reality, some wizards could control the rhythm of battle, rapidly unleashing an entire sequence of spells that left their enemies scrambling to respond, until the enemy made a mistake and revealed an opening to end the fight.

A skilled wizard could cast two spells, or even more, in the time it took the opponent to cast one.

"Again!"

Loren got to his feet and exhaled, excitement shining in his eyes.

Loren began his Dueling Club, and his record was abysmal. He ended up looking thoroughly battered as well.

After the Lighting Charm broke his Shield Charm at the start, Loren was on guard against it. But the Lighting Charm was not limited to an opening move; it could also be slipped into the gaps between other spells, severely disrupting Loren's vision.

"Again!"

The Fire Charm squeezed Loren's room to move. Then, a Softening Charm was casually cast a few steps behind him, ultimately forcing Loren to step onto that patch of floor tile and lose his balance.

Using only the nine spells from the first-year textbook, Flamel could always devise all kinds of combinations—interfering with Loren, controlling him, leaving him no time to dodge or cast the Shield Charm, before finishing with a plain and simple Three Feet Retreat.

Loren came to realize that even the nine basic spells for First Years could produce extraordinary combat power when mixed and used together.

After every battle, Flamel pointed out Loren's mistakes, but never told him how to counter them.

Loren could only slowly search for a way forward amid being kicked away again and again.

His combat system had been of little use. He was always on the passive side—dodging and defending. Control and interruption spells were completely ineffective.

This kind of practical combat training produced remarkable results.

At first, Loren could only struggle to hold on with the Shield Charm. Later, he occasionally caught Flamel off guard with a hit, slowing Flamel's relentless assault for a moment.

From withstanding a few spells to lasting three minutes.

After who knew how long, Flamel finally stopped. "That's enough for today. Take it step by step, Loren."

Loren was actually a little unwilling to accept it. He held back a breath of frustration, thinking that sooner or later, he would hit the old man with a ten-shot barrage of Repelling Charms.

He touched his chest. It felt as though it had been trampled over and over by a wild horse. Loren let out a breath of relief. Thankfully, this was only a consciousness body; the injuries would not carry over into reality. The next time he entered, he would be good as new.

"Learn to appreciate the importance of rhythm in battle. Only by controlling the rhythm can you seize victory."

Flamel was actually very satisfied. To make such progress on the first try, Loren's combat instincts were excellent.

Most importantly, Loren possessed an unyielding will. Some people grew dispirited after being beaten down again and again, and their dueling style gradually shifted toward playing it safe. But a true warrior could not merely play defense.