Some Things Come at a Price

Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott, two first-year Slytherins who were both Pure-bloods, exchanged a glance, then answered Malfoy's call in unison, drawing their wands.

Just as Malfoy had said, they had been fed up with Harry for a long time.

They knew they weren't a match for Harry, though, which was why they had kept pushing Malfoy to the front to draw his fire. They hadn't dared provoke Harry directly.

But today was different.

Today, a war to defend the dignity of their bloodline was about to begin—a declaration of war and a judgment by Slytherin, whose Pure-bloods prided themselves on their heritage, against Harry Granger, the fallen one!

So they were sure to win!

"I'm in!"

"Count me in!"

"Don't underestimate Slytherin and Pure-blood Wizards!"

At that moment, there were clearly plenty of first-year Slytherins who felt the same way as Zabini and Nott. Once all the leading Pure-bloods in Slytherin had taken action, a mass show of support quickly followed.

There was strength in numbers, and the principle that the law didn't punish the many applied all over the world. Besides, Malfoy had said he'd take responsibility if anything happened.

In the end, apart from one or two truly timid boys, nearly every first-year male student in Slytherin House raised his wand at Harry—whether for the so-called honor of their bloodline or simply because they felt pressured by Malfoy and the others.

Even several girls were getting restless!

This was getting out of hand!

The Slytherin students had now completely become venomous snakes on the hunt, flicking their differently colored tongues at Harry with wild abandon!

"Hmph!"

Faced with a barrage of spells, Harry used his agility to roll across the ground, easily dodging the area blanketed by the spells.

"Harry, over here!"

At the same time, Hermione ran toward Harry at once, intending to put the Holly Wand in his hand.

These Slytherins had all gone mad!

Hermione no longer had time to worry about how this whole mess would end. There was only one thing on her mind: Harry absolutely could not get hurt!

"Don't think you're getting past!"

Just as Hermione was about to join Harry, Pansy Parkinson, who was usually on close terms with Malfoy, blocked her path with two other Slytherin girls.

"Hermione?!" Seeing this while dodging spells, Harry immediately gave up on getting the wand from her and backed away from Hermione.

He realized he'd miscalculated. He hadn't expected several Slytherin girls to get involved, dragging Hermione into the mess as well.

But Hermione was capable enough that, with her wand in hand, Pansy and the others wouldn't be any trouble for her!

So the Holly Wand would be better off staying with Hermione so she could protect herself. As for him... the first-years in Slytherin knew very few attack spells, so he could handle them just fine.

And if all else failed, he still had his Obscurus~

"Th-this... How did things get like this? Everyone, hurry and help Harry! We can't let him face so many of them alone!"

Ron, who had been watching from the sidelines, saw nearly ten wands pointed at Harry and panicked, at a loss for what to do.

But even though he frantically called out to everyone around him, none of the Gryffindors showed any interest in getting involved. Many even retreated straight into a corner, making it plain they wanted no part of this.

It was no wonder. The first-years hadn't even been at Hogwarts for a month, and most of the Slytherins had probably known one another through their families before they arrived. Naturally, they seemed more united than the Gryffindors.

As for these Gryffindors, who didn't even know one another very well yet, they hadn't even thought to stand up for Neville, who belonged to their own house. Why would they help Harry and Hermione, who were "sticking their noses where they didn't belong"?

Ron Weasley, however, didn't see it that way.

"You nasty Slytherins! Picking on Harry because he doesn't have a wand—what kind of bravery is that? If you've got the nerve, come after me!"

Ever since that brief encounter on the train, Ron had wanted to find a chance to thank Harry. So he bravely stepped forward, determined to help Harry take on the lot of them, led by Malfoy!

Meanwhile, the tension between Hermione and Pansy Parkinson had already reached a boiling point.

"Get out of my way!" Hermione snapped.

"Oh, you're in a hurry, aren't you?" Pansy sneered sharply. "You care so much about that boy... You two aren't just adoptive siblings, are you?"

"What did you say?!" Hermione's eyes widened, and she gripped her wand tightly without even realizing it!

Pansy Parkinson hadn't just blocked Hermione's way; she had even maliciously speculated about Hermione and Harry's relationship. That had completely enraged Hermione!

"I said I'm not going to let you rush off to help your little sweetheart—"

"Locomotor Wibbly!"

Before Pansy could finish speaking, Hermione swung her wand and locked Pansy's legs together, then threw a punch straight into her jaw!

The Physical Silence Spell—Hermione was gradually turning into Harry~

After kicking Pansy's wand away, Hermione ignored her screams and curses and turned to the other two Slytherin girls blocking the way.

"I'll say it again... get out of my way!"

"Uh..." The two Slytherin girls shuddered in terror and sheepishly stepped aside.

To them, Hermione looked as if every strand of her brown hair had been jolted upright by magic, like a lion ready to fly into a rage at any moment!

How could ordinary people stand up to a lion? Especially one in heat... no, one gone mad~

Once she was clear of Pansy and the others, Hermione started running again, and she was soon about to catch up with Ron!

But just then, the despicable Crabbe suddenly turned his wand in a different direction!

"You Mudblood and disgrace to Pure-blood Wizards! Don't you dare come over and interfere! Incendio!"

The sudden spell carved a long line of fire across the grounds, instantly trapping Hermione on the far side of a wall of flames!

Ron had barely made it through the fire and begun to feel relieved when he realized Crabbe had pointed his wand at his head!

"This is bad..."

But just as Ron anxiously tried to think of a way out, a dull thud suddenly came from behind Crabbe. Then Crabbe, who looked like a gorilla, went cross-eyed and fell to the ground.

"Is that... Harry?!"

Standing behind the fallen Crabbe was Harry, his face icy.

He seemed to have invisible winds coiling around him, blowing his hair this way and that. And in Harry's hand, Ron spotted a bloodied brick!

Some things had a price.

Ron was completely terrified by what he saw.

The wind around Harry seemed like a living thing, almost tangible. The spells Malfoy and the others fired at him couldn't even touch his body; they vanished into nothing in the gusts.

And as for what he was holding... come on, braining someone from behind with a brick? Was that really how a wizard was supposed to fight?!

"Hey, get up~" Harry weighed the brick in his hand, then held out his free hand to Ron, who was sitting on the ground.

He had to admit, his latest weapon was really handy.

In the Great Celestial Empire, people had always said, "A brick beats martial arts." If you didn't have a brick to defend yourself, you couldn't even feel secure in a fight.

As luck would have it, Harry had found this treasure in Filch's storeroom, so naturally he'd claimed it as his own.

Harry had meant to use it against Peeves, but he hadn't expected Crabbe to be the first to get a taste of it.

But Crabbe had brought it on himself. Who told him to cast a spell at Hermione and then dare to insult her?

"Uh... Harry, I... I came to help you!" With Harry's help, Ron got to his feet. As he looked at the Slytherin boys closing in on them, the hand gripping his wand couldn't help trembling.

Ron realized he couldn't handle this kind of pressure. Malfoy and the others hadn't rushed in all at once after Harry's sudden outburst, but even so, Ron's legs were shaking.

He couldn't imagine how Harry had managed to fight them for so long!

"Ron, I really appreciate your help, but please don't get involved in my dispute with Slytherin." Harry smiled kindly at Ron and stopped him from trying to join the fight. "If you really want to help, please lend me your wand for now."

"That's fine by me... as long as you don't mind~" Ron handed over his wand readily, though his expression was a little awkward.

It was an old wand his older brother Charles had discarded, and even the Unicorn Tail Hair in its core was starting to show. Ron didn't mind lending it to Harry, but he was a little worried Harry wouldn't think much of it.

"Thank you very much. This is a really great wand~"

After listening closely to the wand's call, Harry nodded gratefully to Ron, then turned to face the Slytherin students glaring at him!

Once Crabbe had said that unforgivable word to Hermione, the nature of this dispute had completely changed!

With Ron's wand in hand, Harry stopped dodging and strode toward the Slytherin boys.

He looked as if he didn't take Malfoy and the others seriously at all!

"Damn you, Harry..."

"Lumos Solem!"

Goyle, who was closest to Harry and also a friend of Crabbe's, angrily raised his wand. But he was caught off guard when a burst of bright light shot from Harry's wand tip and struck him in the eyes, leaving him unable to see a thing!

Then Harry's brick shot through the air and slammed into Goyle's chest, knocking him flat on the spot!

"Petrificus Totalus!" At the same time, Harry followed up quickly and hit Goyle with a Full Body-Bind Curse at close range.

"You bastard, don't get cocky!" "Let Goyle go!" "Take this!"

Seeing Goyle go down before he could land a blow, three nearby Slytherin boys hurriedly rushed Harry together, waving their wands wildly.

But faced with the three of them, Harry remained calm. He tossed a handful of transparent glass marbles from his pocket, then flicked his wand repeatedly, sending them flying like bullets!

Waddiwasi Spell ×3!

After three sharp cracks, two Slytherin boys were hit in the wrists, and their wands flew from their hands. The remaining boy was struck right in the knee, stumbled, and fell to his knees.

The gap in their abilities was just too great~

Harry had been dealing with his cousin Dudley's gang attacks since he was little. Before he was ten, he had faced an Auror; before starting school, he had received extensive long-distance instruction from Scamander; and lately, he had perfected the spells he knew while dueling Peeves!

Among the Slytherin first-years—or, for that matter, the entire first-year class—there was absolutely no one stronger than Harry!

He was, without question, the first-year dueling champion!

After he got Ron's wand, it took only a few short exchanges for half the Slytherins to be knocked down. It was no wonder the ones still surrounding him began to feel afraid.

Some of the more shrewd ones, like Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott, even chose to turn and run!

But... Harry wasn't going to let them off!

"Waddiwasi! Incendio!"

Two glass marbles struck the fleeing boys behind the knees, and a line of fire completely blocked their escape route. Harry repaid them in kind, using Crabbe's own tactic to stop Zabini and Nott from fleeing!

Harry couldn't let them slip away halfway through. They had taken part in what happened today, so they had to face the consequences!

Besides, when Crabbe had said that unforgivable word to Hermione, Harry had clearly seen the two of them smiling mockingly!

That alone was enough to make sure they couldn't get away!

"Ah!!" ×2

After two screams, the flames in front of Malfoy suddenly parted, revealing Zabini and Nott sprawled on the ground and crying out in pain.

Harry approached him with a wand in one hand and the somewhat cracked brick in the other, his expression cold.

"Harry... I-I'm warning you not to do anything stupid! You... stop! Stop, do you hear me?!"

Malfoy stared at Harry as he drew closer, fear overwhelming him.

He wanted to stop Harry, but his tongue kept tying itself in knots as he spoke. He wanted to turn and run, but his legs felt as if they were filled with lead, and he couldn't move them an inch!

"Locomotor Wibbly." Harry murmured the spell, his gaze on Malfoy full of menace!

"Potter... Harry Potter, you can't do this! My father is... is Lucius, a School Governor at Hogwarts! If you hurt me here... you'll definitely, definitely be expelled!"

Malfoy was terrified. His tongue was so tangled he could barely speak. He could feel Harry's anger and knew that this time Harry wasn't just going to give him a beating!

He kept pleading and threatening, his nose running and tears streaming down his face. He even invoked his father's name, hoping Harry would stop there.

"Waddiwasi!" But Harry shattered that hope with a spell.

The glass marble struck Malfoy's wrist, and his wand fell to the ground. Harry stepped forward and snapped Malfoy's Hawthorn Wand underfoot, then grabbed him by the front of his robes!

"Draco Malfoy, when you made a game of bullying Neville, and when Crabbe shouted that unforgivable word at Hermione, did you ever think... about what price you might have to pay?!"