Conflict

Seeing Green admit so readily that he was no match for Vane, Wentworth didn't know what expression to make.

Green seemed a little embarrassed himself, but still explained quietly:

"Wentworth, although I hate those Slytherins too, I have to admit one thing: most of them come from Pure-blood wizard families, and they really are more talented. Some of them have even learned magic unique to their families. I really am no match for Vane."

After hearing Green's explanation, Wentworth saw Vane once again acting high and mighty, about to escort Cassandra away. Even so, Wentworth stepped forward.

"Stop! You're just going to leave like this?"

Vane had been focused entirely on Green, so Wentworth's sudden appearance startled him. But when Vane saw that the one who had stepped forward was a new student who had only been at Hogwarts for a few days, he laughed scornfully.

"Little boy, what do you want?"

Wentworth walked to the very front of the Hufflepuff group and said without a trace of fear:

"That's what I should be asking you, Senior Vane. You brought people here to block my way. What are you trying to do? Humiliate me? Humiliating me means humiliating Hufflepuff! It means humiliating Hufflepuff's thousand-year legacy!"

Seeing that Wentworth, a first-year student, actually dared to challenge him and make him lose face in front of Cassandra, Vane roared furiously:

"I humiliated Hufflepuff! So what are you going to do about it? You bunch of Mudblood—Half-bloods! I'm a noble Pure-blood wizard!"

Vane's roar echoed through the corridor outside the Hogwarts Great Hall. But he wasn't beyond redemption: in the end, he hadn't actually said "Mudblood." Wentworth couldn't help feeling a little disappointed, but it was enough.

The heavy breathing behind him told Wentworth that Hufflepuff's anger was about to ignite.

Wentworth raised a finger and wagged it at Vane as he said:

"Senior Vane, I think there's something you haven't understood! No matter what kind of families we come from in the outside world, once we enter Hogwarts and pick up our wands, we're all wizards! Slytherin spells and Hufflepuff spells are no different. They both hurt when they hit someone!"

At this, Wentworth's voice suddenly rose:

"We're friendly Hufflepuffs, but we're also Hufflepuffs who aren't afraid of hardship. If we let you leave just like that, we'll never be able to face the statue of Helga Hufflepuff again!"

At Wentworth's words, Green and the others behind him cheered, and the noise began to swell.

Vane still said dismissively:

"So I'm leaving. What can you do about it? You think you can stop me? Have you even had a Charms lesson? Can you cast even a single spell?"

Wentworth spread his hands carelessly, feigning helplessness.

"I really can't stop you, Senior Vane. But like I said, what you've humiliated is all of Hufflepuff!"

Just then, Vane felt someone tugging lightly at his sleeve.

"What?"

Vane snarled impatiently under his breath.

But when he followed the person's pointing finger and looked around, he realized that without him noticing, his group had been surrounded by Hufflepuff students.

Meanwhile, Wentworth quietly said to Green and Cedric:

"If we can't beat them one-on-one, we can always gang up on them! Don't forget, Hufflepuff is the biggest house! Sometimes numbers matter more than quality!"

Cedric seemed a little embarrassed. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but held back. Green, on the other hand, listened with great interest, even taking out paper and a quill to jot down a few lines now and then.

Just then, seeing that things had gone beyond her plans, Cassandra couldn't help stepping forward.

"Wentworth, are you declaring war on Slytherin on behalf of Hufflepuff?!"

Cassandra was undeniably much smarter than Vane. With one sentence, she shifted the blame for starting the conflict onto Wentworth!

If Wentworth said yes, then when the school investigated later, Hufflepuff would be the one who had gone looking for trouble with Slytherin. If he said no, all his efforts up to that point would have been for nothing.

But Wentworth didn't answer Cassandra directly. Instead, he pretended to be surprised.

"Cassandra, what do you mean? How has this turned into Hufflepuff declaring war on Slytherin? Vane just called all the Gryffindors idiots, and the Gryffindors haven't declared war on you!"

The moment Wentworth finished speaking, the scene fell silent. The Gryffindors had been happily watching from the sidelines, but they hadn't expected the trouble to land on them.

"You're lying! I didn't!"

Vane hurriedly denied it. He had already offended Hufflepuff today. If he added Gryffindor to the list, he might really never make it out of there.

"You say you didn't? Then dare to swear on Merlin's name? Or Slytherin's name, if you prefer! Think carefully. You don't just represent yourself—you represent Slytherin's reputation too!"

Wentworth spoke leisurely from the side.

When Vane didn't dare swear, the Gryffindors finally believed that he really had said it.

Now the Gryffindors were furious too. After all, they had much shorter tempers than the Hufflepuffs.

Led by the Weasley twins, a group of Gryffindors rushed forward. Meanwhile, at Wentworth's signal, the Hufflepuffs surrounding Vane once again showed off their friendly house spirit and made way for the Gryffindors.

Everyone was still fairly restrained and didn't use magic, but there was plenty of shoving. Surrounded by students from both Gryffindor and Hufflepuff, Vane and the others felt as though they were caught in a storm.

Vane had never suffered such humiliation before. Through a gap in the crowd, he saw Wentworth outside, watching him with an amused expression, and could no longer bear it.

Driven by rage, Vane suddenly shoved aside the people in front of him. He hurried a few steps toward Wentworth, raising his wand and pointing it at him!

By the time Wentworth reacted, Vane was already right in front of him. Cedric and Coke were also stunned by the sudden turn of events, and for a moment, neither of them reacted.

At that moment, an angry shout rang out nearby:

"Stop! Avada—Expelliarmus!"

A spell flew over and struck Vane squarely. His wand shot out of his hand! But Vane himself didn't stop; he barreled straight into Wentworth's arms, and the two of them ended up embracing.