Battle, Awesome

"Vera Verto!"

As the incantation was cast, the ground shook violently!

In the corner, under Hermione's terrified gaze, the combined sinks in the center of the bathroom rippled like liquid—transforming—a Stone Giant, equal in size to a Mountain Troll, slammed directly into the troll before it, catching it off guard and blasting it straight out of the bathroom!

"What the hell!"

Amid the splintering wood, Ron's panicked cry rang out.

Through the faint dust and debris, Damon's figure strode forward quickly. Without greeting the two beside him, he immediately cast another spell.

"Expelliarmus!"

A bolt of lightning-like fire shot toward the troll's right hand gripping its club, disarming it instantly.

"Wingardium Leviosa!"

Almost the moment the troll's club left its hand, it flew to Damon's side, ready and waiting.

What followed for the Mountain Troll was a brutally one-sided beating—and Damon's unrestrained laughter.

"Hahahahahaha!"

"Get up! Is that all you've got?"

"Incendio!"

"Immobulus!"

Damon waved his wand, relentlessly attacking the troll pinned down by the Stone Giant.

This was one of the rare moments he'd found truly entertaining since his transmigration.

Wasn't all that grinding on Charms and Transfiguration for two months solo partly for moments like this?

Fight, and feel good!!!

Meanwhile, the trio stood at the entrance of the bathroom, trembling just from watching. They stared at Damon's every move, eyes fixed, as if beholding a god!

"Damon—when did he grow to this level?"

Hermione watched Damon's wand-wielding figure, unable to look away even as the troll's screams continued.

"Merlin's beard, I'd believe he was a graduated adult wizard."

Ron's eyes nearly popped out of his head, his mouth hanging wide open, utterly incredulous.

"I almost thought I was watching a sci-fi movie," Harry murmured, his heart full of shock and envy. "When did Damon get so far ahead of us?"

Only now did the three truly understand how vast the gap between them and Damon was.

Faced with such a powerful monster, Hermione had been frozen in fear, feeling her whole body go limp. Ron's brain had nearly shut down—if no one gave him orders, he probably couldn't do a thing.

Harry asked himself honestly: if he had to step up, he might forget how to even cast a spell.

"Thud!"

The sound was like a drumbeat as the troll's head slammed into the wall, sending chunks of stone flying. The noise was so loud it made you wonder if its tiny skull could take it.

Damon showed no sign of holding back. The already shattered Stone Giant, after a second transformation, became whole and powerful again. Its hand, locally reinforced, grabbed the troll's small head and smashed it—"Bang!" then "Bang!" again—repeatedly against the wall.

The troll's cries shifted from pained and chaotic to weak and fading, until it was barely breathing, then silent.

"Is it—dead?"

Hermione was the first to ask.

Ron and Harry stared at the motionless troll, cautious and silent.

Before they could breathe a sigh of relief, footsteps sounded, approaching fast and urgent.

Professor McGonagall, Snape, and Quirrell entered one after another.

"Oh! Good heavens!" Seeing the scene, wrecked as if scoured by spells, Professor McGonagall forgot for a moment to scold the young wizards for their recklessness.

But when she realized the leader was Damon, her anger flared.

"Damon! What kind of trick are you playing!" Her voice carried a frosty rage, but the other two professors clearly heard the worry beneath her tone, which surprised them.

"I'm so disappointed in you! Why did you do this!"

At that moment, she was like a lioness whose cub was in danger, her fur bristling. Yet at the same time, her face turned deathly pale, almost bloodless, as if she'd endured some great terror.

Damon met Professor McGonagall's eyes and understood her unspoken words—You have a great future ahead; there was no need to take risks, and you shouldn't have!

"Isn't it obvious, Minerva?"

Snape glanced at Harry, his gaze cold, and after confirming he was unharmed, continued:

"Clearly, our Duelling Prince thinks he's invincible. Even a 4X difficulty troll is beneath his notice—no, perhaps he was even looking forward to it, a chance to show off his knowledge and skills."

"Seeing him so ambitious, he has a bit of a shadow of The Dark Lord. Maybe you should hand the boy over to me, let me teach—"

"Thank you, Professor Snape, but that won't be necessary!" McGonagall stared at Snape expressionlessly. Anyone could tell she was even more displeased than before. "Damon is a student in my house. How to teach him is my responsibility."

"I believe it's not for others to tell me how to do my job."

"Cool, Professor McGonagall."

Damon smiled, casually casting Reparo and Scourgify.

Thus, the massive stone giant returned to its original form, once again becoming the central basin of the washroom, while the damaged terrain also restored itself spontaneously under Damon's spell.

Although the three professors had long noticed the enormous Stone Giant, seeing Damon effortlessly reverse its Transfiguration still caused a slight shift in their expressions.

"You've already mastered Transfiguration from inanimate to animate? You told me last week you were still lacking a bit."

"Yes, Professor, just a bit—isn't a week enough time to finish it?"

Damon put away his wand and clapped his hands lightly.

Seeing his nonchalant attitude, even Professor McGonagall was left speechless. "So, after mastering this high-level Transfiguration, you thought you were capable of handling a Troll alone, and came here?"

Just as Damon was about to speak, Hermione, who had snapped out of her daze, spoke up proactively:

"Sorry, Professor McGonagall—they were looking for me. I thought I could handle it alone, you know, because I've read about Trolls in books and know a lot about them."

"Miss Granger, for this, Gryffindor loses five points."

"I'm very disappointed in you. If you're not injured at all, you'd best return to Gryffindor Castle immediately—the students are all enjoying their Halloween feast in their common rooms."

Hermione nodded, and before leaving, she turned to glance at Damon. Seeing him still able to wink at her with a relaxed expression, she quickly departed—what had just happened was too intense for her, and she needed a stable environment to rest.

"Now, let's discuss your punishment, Damon!"

Professor McGonagall looked at Damon and the two little ones behind him, her expression stern.