The Snakes of Seamus Town

In the midst of the standoff, Hermione's scream drew everyone's attention.

Everyone turned to look at Hermione. She had grabbed Charles by the sleeve and said nervously, "You can't go fight! If you kill someone again, you'll be sent to Azkaban here!"

Everyone froze. What the hell was this "again" supposed to mean?

Charles's face darkened. Annoyed that Hermione had brought it up, he shook off her hand and said to her in a Snape-like tone, "You don't need to tell me what to do."

Hermione froze for a moment. After knowing him for so many years, this was the first time she had ever seen Charles get angry.

The others didn't think much of it. They assumed Hermione was just making up an excuse to stop them from fighting, and the two sides resumed their insults.

Charles naturally had no intention of fighting, nor did he want anyone else to fight. He needed to prove to Madam Hooch during this lesson that he could use a broomstick so he could get his own broom as soon as possible. He didn't want anyone else ruining the lesson.

He walked up to Pony Boy. Malfoy seemed less afraid of him, probably because there were so many people around.

The other Slytherin students were the same. None of them took Hermione's words seriously. Several boys challenged Charles with their eyes, while Goyle and Crabbe even waved their fists.

Charles ignored those two losers who had been defeated by Harry and stared into Pony Boy's eyes. He said seriously, "Think carefully. If you start something, what consequences will you have to face? Picking on Ron doesn't matter—he can't beat you. Picking on me doesn't matter either. At most, I'll break your nose."

Then he pointed to the patch of land on the other side of the stream. "But do you know what will happen if you provoke Seamus Finnigan?"

"You saw that patch of scorched grass, right? Finnigan burned it with a single spell. Professor Dumbledore said that spell could even injure a dragon. Do you really think that just because your name is Draco, you're stronger than a dragon?"

Pony Boy seemed about to say something, but Charles gave him no chance. He said solemnly, "If you don't believe me, you can ask Professor Dumbledore. Ask Professor Sprout and the other students who were having class in the greenhouse beside us at the time. See whether I'm lying, and whether there really was a patch of Blue Flames."

After finishing, Charles looked at the other Slytherin students and continued with a cold laugh, "Hmph. Anyone who thinks they can take Finnigan's spell, step forward and start something. I guarantee I'll send a ten-foot wreath to his funeral."

Seamus cooperatively drew his wand and stood beside Charles, looking smugly at the Slytherins opposite them.

Ron also said proudly from the side, "Hmph, you still don't know? Seamus blew up his dormitory on his very first day at Hogwarts."

From the way Ron was gloating, one would think he had done something earth-shattering himself.

The Slytherins, who had initially been preparing to fight, began to lose their nerve.

Almost all of them came from pure-blood wizarding families and had a deeper understanding of spells. They could tell what lay behind Charles and Ron's words.

Good grief, he had caused an explosion at Hogwarts on his very first day, unleashed a devastating spell outside the castle during his second week, and even received Professor Dumbledore's evaluation that he could take down a dragon. More importantly, he hadn't been expelled. Even the Dark Lord hadn't been this impressive back in the day, right?

Thinking of the Dark Lord, some students from older families recalled a piece of history. The Dark Lord Grindelwald had apparently used Blue Flames when unleashing a powerful spell back then.

Several Slytherins began whispering among themselves. After discussing it for a while, they became even more timid.

Quite a few of them thought that if Seamus killed them, he could probably fight his way out through the Dementors even if he ended up in Azkaban.

Seamus suddenly took a step forward and looked at the Slytherins opposite him with a confident smile.

The Slytherin students seemed to sense an invisible pressure and couldn't help taking a step back. Some of them even broke out in a cold sweat.

At that moment, Seamus alone had intimidated every first-year Slytherin.

Madam Hooch soon returned. She was pleased to see that all the students were standing obediently where they were.

However, when she noticed sweat on the foreheads of some Slytherin students, she said, "There's no need to worry. Lumbardon was just an accident. From now on, I'll fly together with all of you."

The rest of the Flying Class went off without incident. Every student safely rose into the air and flew a short distance forward.

Then Madam Hooch taught them how to turn. Everyone formed a large circle and flew in loops above the grass.

Finally, they formed two lines and followed Madam Hooch as they slowly flew around Hogwarts Castle. Their speed gradually increased, and before they knew it, they were flying even higher than the castle.

Charles felt that riding a broomstick was like riding a bicycle. No matter how much theoretical knowledge one studied, it was useless without actually trying it.

Once he learned it, he knew it. Climbing, diving, and turning all came naturally, and it was difficult to forget.

When class ended, he was the last person to return his broom. In front of Madam Hooch, he flew a perfect "S" and "B."

"All right, all right." Madam Hooch forced a smile. "I'll speak to McGonagall. Now hurry up and go eat dinner."

Charles immediately slipped away after seeing her expression. He wondered whether what had happened to Neville today counted as a teaching accident, and whether she might have her pay docked or something.

Today's topic in the dining hall was Seamus.

Charles found an empty seat and sat down. Beside him was Parvati Patil, who had come from India. After the two chatted for a few moments, Parvati's twin sister Padma came running over from the Ravenclaw side.

"Is what happened with Finnigan true?" Padma asked curiously. "Was there really a dragon outside the castle that was about to destroy the greenhouse, only for him to turn it to ash with a single spell?"

Charles blinked from the side. What was going on? Had the rumors already become this exaggerated?

Before he had finished half a steak, a girl came over to find him.

Hannah and Charles had crossed paths several times in the library, so they could be considered acquaintances.

"Smith," Hannah asked him curiously, "I heard there was a dragon outside the castle that was about to eat you that day. Did Finnigan discover it, burn it to death, and save you?"

Charles answered her with a straight face, "That's right. It was incredibly dangerous. The dragon was sprinkling pepper on me at the time. If Seamus had arrived one moment later, I would have been roasted."

Judging by Hannah's reaction, she had actually believed him. She even asked, "Did you sneeze when the dragon sprinkled pepper on you?"

Charles was speechless. He fetched an empty plate and kept piling food onto it.

"Could you do me a favor?" he asked.

Hannah immediately replied, "No problem. What do you need?"

Charles placed a large plate of steak, bread, and vegetables in front of her and said, "My friend Lumbardon was injured during Flying Class today. He's in the Hospital Wing right now. Could you take dinner to him for me?"