When Hermione said Glenn was still downstairs, Harry and Ron didn't stop to ask questions. They headed straight down.
They ran into a small complication on the way: Snape.
It was strange. Once the Halloween Feast had begun, all the teachers should have been eating together at the staff table.
But now Snape wasn't with the other teachers. Instead, he was near the Underground Classroom where the Troll had appeared...
But this wasn't the time to dwell on it. Every second they wasted put Glenn in greater danger.
"Why would he be in the Underground Classroom?" Ron panted as they hurried down the stairs.
At that, Hermione quickened her pace.
But she wasn't very athletic, and nearly twisted her ankle on the stairs.
"I don't think that matters. What matters is getting there as fast as we can," Harry said, glancing at Hermione as he took the stairs two at a time.
Ron looked as though he wanted to say something, but in the end, he stayed quiet.
They were still young, but that didn't mean they were stupid.
Considering what had happened that day, how calm Hermione seemed now, and the fact that she'd come up from downstairs, it was easy to figure out what had happened.
Most likely, after Ron had made Hermione cry earlier, she'd gone to find Glenn—or Glenn had happened upon her in tears and comforted her.
After all, apart from Neville, there probably wasn't anyone else who'd want to talk to her. And if she'd gone to Neville for comfort, she'd probably have ended up comforting him instead.
The three of them hurried along and soon reached the Underground Classroom Hermione had mentioned.
But Harry soon frowned and sniffed. A foul stench crept into his nostrils, like a mixture of dirty socks and a public toilet that had never been cleaned.
From inside the classroom, its door ajar, came a low grumble and the sound of enormous feet dragging across the floor.
Forgetting their argument that morning, they looked at one another. Only one thought filled their minds:
This is bad!
The next moment, a roar rang out, followed by a tremendous crash from inside the classroom.
It was like a heavy hammer striking the ground—and their hearts, too. Their hearts pounded wildly, desperate to escape their helpless bodies.
Hermione covered her mouth. Her eyes reddened, and her trembling throat couldn't form a single word.
Ron's face turned deathly pale. For once, he didn't even have the strength to open his mouth and crack a joke.
He'd never faced anything like this before. After hearing that crash, Ron couldn't bring himself to open the half-closed classroom door. Even imagining what was inside took tremendous courage...
At that moment, he finally understood:
If Glenn had been smashed to a pulp, Ron would share the blame—and he would never forgive himself for it.
Breathing hard, Harry said nothing. He set off toward the classroom.
He pushed fear aside, knowing only that if he didn't go forward now, he would regret it forever.
But when the classroom door opened, Harry saw something he would never forget.
A wizard's magical strength depended on more than talent. Their later experiences mattered, too.
The emotions that came with experience, their daily diet, and whether they'd been taught by an excellent teacher...
And among all those factors, age was a very important one.
"A wizard's magical power grows stronger with age" was a rough description found in textbooks.
And it was true.
Magic like Ancient Magic required not only extraordinary talent but also that a wizard be old enough to withstand its power.
At Hogwarts, that meant roughly fifth year.
That was why the two previous Keepers of Ancient Magic, Percival Rackham and Isidora Morganach, as well as Glenn, the three wizards talented enough to wield Ancient Magic, had all been discovered by Hogwarts in their fifth year and invited to join the school as transfer students.
If one considered only the amount of magical power, then of course the longer a wizard lived, the more power they had.
But when it came to combat strength, living longer didn't necessarily make a wizard stronger.
A strong body and a quick mind were also crucial to victory.
The moment the Troll raised its club, something like a red circle appeared just ahead and to Glenn's left. It was his instinctive sense of danger.
Bang!
As the club came down, it smashed a wooden student desk to pieces, sending splinters flying.
Amid the scattered debris, the Troll's small black eyes showed confusion.
It had missed!
As they'd said during the Sorting: Trolls were clumsy.
And as luck would have it, eleven-year-olds were at their liveliest and most agile during adolescence.
The Slytherin robe drifted lightly to the ground. Amid the dust, Glenn had somehow moved to the side of the Troll holding the club.
An oak wand pressed against the Troll's waist.
"Let me think. What did Professor Flitwick teach us?" Glenn pondered.
Lumos, the Levitation Charm...
Glenn moved the oak wand away from the Troll's waist and pointed it at the club in its hand.
"Wingardium Leviosa."
The next moment, the club shot upward, taking the Troll with it as it clung on for dear life. Its head slammed into the ceiling with tremendous force.
The impact sent the dust that had built up on the ceiling raining down.
Though its head throbbed with pain, the Troll's tiny brain seemed unable to understand what had happened. It didn't let go of the club. Instead, it roared at Glenn.
Just then, Harry threw open the half-closed classroom door, looking ready to face death.
He'd prepared himself to fight for his friend, but the scene before him left his brain momentarily frozen.
The classroom desks lay scattered in pieces. A small crater had been smashed into the floor. Glenn stood there, apparently deep in thought, while the Troll clung to the ceiling like a spider, clutching its wooden club...
What on earth was going on?!
Before he could react, he suddenly felt someone bump into him.
When he came to his senses, Hermione had already rushed inside.
Her hand shook as she held her wand, but she'd prepared herself to get hurt—or worse...
But when Hermione saw what was inside the classroom, she stopped short.
She looked at Glenn, then at the Troll still roaring on the ceiling, and had no idea what to do...
"Hey! What's going on in there... Oh, my God!" Ron squeezed past Harry, but only a moment later, he began to doubt what he was seeing.
"Did I come in the wrong way?"
No one answered him. Glenn nodded, as though he'd remembered something.
When Professor Flitwick had taught the Levitation Charm, he'd briefly mentioned a spell that could be combined with it.
He hadn't actually taught the spell, but if he'd mentioned it, that meant it could be used.
The inspiration came from how well Professor Flitwick had taught the lesson, making Glenn eager to learn more.
With that thought, Glenn pointed his wand at the Troll on the ceiling and swept it sharply downward.
"Descendo!"
Before you continue