World-Class Quidditch Skills

The flying lesson was held on a flat lawn, with the Forbidden Forest beyond it. In the distance, dark trees swayed in the wind.

The Gryffindor students had already arrived, along with more than thirty Flying Broomsticks neatly lined up on the ground. Moriarty heard Percy say loudly, "Charlie is always complaining to me about the school brooms. He says some of them tremble when you fly too high, while others always drift slightly to the left.

And what I'm saying is, the brooms are too old and worn out. They're too slow. When will we get new ones?"

"Even if there were new brooms, you couldn't afford one, Weasley. Stop always talking about your brother. We all know about your family circumstances. Well, how should I put it? They're terrible, aren't they?"

The little snakes of Slytherin had arrived. The moment Keith appeared, he began mocking Percy. He smugly looked around at the other little snakes, as though he believed he had performed like a hero.

Yet only his companion Larpo exchanged a smile with him. Most of the little snakes instead moved closer to Moriarty.

Seeing this, Percy walked toward Keith. "Poverty will not make me ignorant, but your ignorance will lead you into poverty. What's more, you might even lose your life!"

After saying that, he proudly returned to the lions' camp and loudly told his companions, "That guy definitely didn't take my words to heart. I'd bet you anything that he'll have a hard time once he gets on a broom later!"

Keith's face turned livid, while Larpo glared viciously at Percy. "He's lying. You don't mind, do you?"

Moriarty watched the minor quarrel unfold and shook his head. The hostility between Slytherin and Gryffindor was far too severe.

Slytherin took pleasure in looking down on Gryffindor, while Gryffindor took pride in striking back at Slytherin.

Lilith, beside him, did not see things that way. She offered her own assessment of both Percy and Keith.

"Where did Keith get the nerve to mock Weasley? The Weasleys only look plain because there are so many children in their family. You should know that Weasley's father works at the Ministry of Magic too.

Keith's family, on the other hand, declined far too quickly. At pure-blood gatherings, I often see Keith's grandfather humbly forcing a smile to please others.

But Weasley was really bold this time. Isn't he afraid something might actually happen to Keith?"

"I think Weasley meant well," Jericho offered a different opinion. "Although he was showing off a little, he did remind us that the school brooms might not be capable of difficult maneuvers."

"It's fine. I can guarantee our safety," Moriarty said. Seeing Madam Hooch arrive, he led the little snakes to stand opposite the little lions.

Madam Hooch, with her short gray hair, saw the students from both Houses standing obediently in two rows and nodded in satisfaction. "Good. What are you waiting for? Everyone stand beside a Flying Broomstick. Hurry, hurry."

"Now, hold out your right hand over the broom handle," Madam Hooch demonstrated from the front. "Then say, 'Up!'"

"Up!" everyone shouted. Only Moriarty and Jericho succeeded, their brooms obediently jumping into their hands.

"Mine is a Cleansweep Five. It's somewhat old."

"Mine is a Comet 260. Its condition appears acceptable."

Moriarty and Jericho exchanged a look and agreed that the brooms were still tolerable.

After all, they could not expect too much from Flying Broomsticks made in 1988. The Nimbus and Firebolt models had not yet been developed. The national teams currently used Cleansweep Sevens, while the brooms available on the market were Cleansweep Fives.

The school brooms were merely older. Moriarty and Jericho smiled confidently, believing their skill was more than enough to make up for that gap.

"Up!" Lilith shouted again, and this time she succeeded.

Percy successfully got his broom on his third attempt.

Amid one shout after another, most of the students obtained their brooms.

Only Keith seemed to be having trouble. His broom appeared unwilling to jump into his hand and kept rolling around on the ground.

Keith furiously grabbed the broom and swung it around several times, drawing laughter from Percy and the others. The broom seemed to have been frightened, though. When Keith shouted "Up!" for the ninth time, it obediently jumped into his hand.

By then, Madam Hooch was already demonstrating how to mount a broom without sliding off over the front.

She patiently corrected several students' grips before loudly saying, "All right, we'll have our first test flight!

Those of you who think you're ready, kick off with both feet and leave the ground. Remember, push hard. All right?

Rise a few feet, then drop straight back to the ground. Remember?

On my whistle. Three—two—"

However, Keith was afraid of taking off after the whistle—he wanted to be the first into the air and win back the face he had lost earlier. So, before the whistle even touched Madam Hooch's lips, he kicked off hard and shot upward.

"Come back, child!" Madam Hooch shouted, but her face suddenly went pale. "Oh, no!"

Keith rose far too quickly. Like a fountain shooting straight upward, he rocketed into the sky!

"Ah—help me!" Keith screamed in midair. His hands slowly slipped from the broom handle, and he fell from seventy feet in the air!

Wingardium Leviosa! Moriarty raised his Snow Fir Wand and pointed it at Keith. The Levitation Charm slowly lowered Keith to the ground, and Moriarty also rescued the overly excited broom.

The moment Keith landed, Madam Hooch picked him up. Though he had merely fainted, she insisted on taking him to the school hospital.

Before leaving, Madam Hooch warned the students to put their brooms back where they belonged and not fly into the sky without permission.

The moment she was too far away to hear them, Jericho excitedly said, "The opportunity is here, Mr. Moriarty! The opportunity is here! What are we waiting for? Let's take off!"

Moriarty glanced at him, nodded, and stood side by side with Jericho. They mounted their brooms, kicked off hard, and rose to a height of thirty feet.

Jericho flew only slightly lower than Moriarty, a proud smile on his face. "As expected of the man who crossed the Himalayas with Mr. Lockhart, Mr. Moriarty. I'd wager you'll become a great Quidditch player—if you want to!"

The little snakes and little lions on the ground erupted into screams and cheers. Lilith looked eager to try, as though she wanted to fly up as well.

After circling once, Moriarty felt that both he and his broom were in excellent condition. He shouted to Jericho, "Let's begin! First move: Sloth Hugging Tree Roll!"

This was a world-class technique often used to evade Bludgers.

Moriarty hung from the broom, wrapping both hands and feet tightly around its handle like a sloth.

He accelerated, and the broom spun like a top as it rose straight into the air.

Jericho performed the same maneuver and followed close behind.

They did not stop until they had reached fifty feet in the air.

"No pressure at all." Jericho excitedly pumped his fist.

"Then, the second move: Wollongong Zigzag Flight!"

This was another world-class Quidditch skill.

The moment Moriarty finished speaking, he shot forward in a rapid zigzagging flight path.

The wind howled past Moriarty's ears, and he felt wonderfully cool. His white robe fluttered loudly in the wind as Moriarty extended his right hand, savoring the intimate contact between his skin and the breeze.

The feeling was undeniably marvelous. Moriarty's eyes were filled with delight. He had once suspected that the Earth Element was also a type of Elemental Magic, yet he had forgotten about the wind that was everywhere.

"Moriarty! Moriarty!" Lilith screamed from the ground.

Jericho was shouting as well. "Watch where you're going, Mr. Moriarty! You're about to crash!"

Moriarty snapped back to his senses. A tall tower filled his entire field of vision.

Just as he was about to collide with it, Moriarty sharply pulled up on the broom and cast Windlike Flight on it.

The broom became as light and swift as a swallow, carrying Moriarty close along the tower wall and into even higher skies.

A window in the tower was pushed open, revealing Professor McGonagall's astonished face. Professor Snape was also hurrying over from the Potions classroom.

The students on the ground knew nothing of this. Their eyes remained fixed on Moriarty. "Oh my God, he's flying so high!"

"Seventy feet, eighty feet, one hundred feet..." Lilith clasped her hands before her mouth as though praying.

Jericho did not dare fly any higher. He looked up at Moriarty and let out a trembling, "Oh, no!"

Moriarty's heart pounded wildly with excitement, which was rare for him. He raised one hand high, extended a finger, and said, "The final move: Lanski Feint!"

Moriarty took a deep breath, pressed his arms against the broom handle, and dove toward the ground!

The students erupted in explosive shouts, then scattered in all directions, leaving space for Moriarty.

Only Lilith remained where she was, utterly motionless. She watched Moriarty dive toward her, moving so fast that his figure blurred into nothing but a streak of white.

"Just like a shining star..." Lilith watched in fascination, but Moriarty was already nearing the ground.

The students gasped. Just as the two seemed about to collide, Moriarty abruptly pulled up, sweeping past Lilith.

At the same time, he reached out and grabbed Lilith's wrist, using the wind and momentum to pull her onto the broom!

"Oh~ Moriarty!" Lilith sat sideways behind Moriarty, her laughter ringing like silver bells as they flew.

Seeing that disaster had not struck, the students leaped up. At that moment, there was no distinction between Slytherin and Gryffindor. As though they had witnessed a miracle, they high-fived one another and nodded excitedly.

Moriarty slowed down because the system had issued a mission:

Lead the Slytherin Quidditch Team to win the Quidditch Cup for seven consecutive years! Reward: mysterious grand prize! Mission duration: seven years! Mission failure: Host will be erased!

Before Moriarty could think it through, he heard a sharp rebuke. "Slytherin! Peverell! If you still want to remain at this school, get down here immediately!"

Professor Snape strode over with a murderous expression. He pushed aside the students, gripping his Wand tightly in his hand. "Blanche? Must I say the same thing to you again?"

Seventeen feet is 5.18 meters, thirty feet is 9 meters, fifty feet is 15 meters, seventy feet is 21 meters, eighty feet is 24 meters, and one hundred feet is 30 meters.