"A wizard duel, is it? Let me go first!"
Ron pulled out his wand, looked up at Draco angrily, and roared, his face turning as red as his hair.
"Me too! If you want to challenge Silan, you'll have to defeat me first!" Harry retorted, raising his wand as well.
Snape gave them a dark look.
He couldn't be bothered with those two anymore; he just found Malfoy a bit of a nuisance. "How exactly does Lucius discipline his son?!"
"Ignore him, Silan." Hermione tugged at Silan's sleeve, while she herself held her wand and stared intently at Draco.
Silan felt somewhat helpless.
Draco calmed himself, released the Eagle Owl, and carefully folded and put the letter away.
His movement immediately drew the attention of the crowd.
It's about to begin!
Draco slowly walked down the slope and raised his hand.
"Malfoy is about to make his move!" The crowd fell silent, and all eyes turned to him.
Draco simply raised both hands, rubbed his face, and then put them down, revealing a big smile.
Ron found that smile disgusting, "Malfoy, what tricks are you playing? If you're going to fight, then fight! Stop dawdling!"
"Look, you're in such a hurry again."
Draco smiled and said, "Who told you I was going to duel with Prewett? Rumors, utter rumors!"
"My Malfoy family and the Prewett family have been related for hundreds of years!"
Goyle and Crabbe exchanged a glance, thinking to themselves, "That's not what you told us!"
Isn't the goal to use Prewett as a stepping stone?
Wasn't the goal to defeat him and use it as a topic of conversation at the Tower Meeting to establish their authority?
What are you doing right now?
The onlookers were stunned and stood there dumbfounded.
Didn't we agree to a duel?
How did this turn into a family feud?
Draco looked at Silan and said loudly with a sincere expression, "Prewett is my dearest friend, my brother!"
Goyle and Crabbe were greatly shocked.
Is that correct?
The crowd fell silent for a moment, then erupted in loud boos.
Someone pointed at Goyle and Crabbe and shouted, "It was those two who said it! They deliberately brought everyone together under the pretense of a duel. Aren't you two in cahoots?"
"I don't know them." Draco glanced at Goyle and Crabbe, pretending not to recognize them, and quickly distanced himself from them.
Goyle and Crabbe opened their mouths in astonishment, and when they saw Malfoy seemingly winking at them, their intelligence suddenly burst forth.
"Ah... we must have misheard."
"Yes, yes, it's all a misunderstanding."
The two men chuckled, pulled up their hoods, disappeared into the crowd, and slunk away.
Ron, however, wasn't buying Draco at all. He kept pointing his wand at Draco and shouted, "Stop rambling! Didn't you just say you had something to say to Silan? What is it? Tell me now!"
After Ron's reminder, the students behind Draco realized what was happening and started shouting.
"Yes, say it!"
"Give him a few harsh words!"
Draco, looking up at the sky at a 45-degree angle with a melancholy expression, said earnestly, "You've all misunderstood. I wanted to tell Prewett that we're half-brothers!"
Draco took two steps down the gentle slope and looked at Silan with a sincere expression, as if he were looking at his long-lost brother.
He squinted his eyes and said emotionally, "Brother~"
After saying that, Draco opened his arms and walked towards Silan with tears in his eyes.
The entire room fell silent.
Everyone was completely astonished.
Draco Malfoy, the heir to the Malfoy family, actually publicly acknowledged his relatives in front of everyone?!
Or are they half-brothers?
Is there anything more absurd than this?!
The students behind Draco felt like they had a bunch of messy black lines wrapped around their heads; everyone was speechless.
The adult wizards at the Hog's Head were even more astonished, their mouths agape.
The young wizard asked blankly, "Is this what concerns the fate of the Malfoy family?"
Even the well-informed old wizard was clearly bewildered. He opened his mouth, speechless, and stammered, "This... this... isn't this ridiculous?!"
The Malfoy family heir publicly acknowledged his kinship.
What the hell is this?!
So many people gathered just for this trivial matter?
This is utterly ridiculous!
The old wizard, who had been full of anticipation, suddenly felt short of breath, his chest tight as if a huge rock was pressing down on it. He hurriedly took out a bottle of Potions and drank it down.
If I were to fall ill and die here because of this kind of trivial matter, I would truly die with regrets.
Snape, who had drawn his wand and was ready to strike at any moment, looked at the emotional Draco, but remained expressionless, though the corner of his mouth twitched violently twice.
Lucius really needs to reflect on his parenting style!
"Brother!" Draco called out emotionally again, opening his arms as he walked toward Silan.
"Stop right there! Who's your brother?!" Ron, unable to contain his anger any longer, roared, "He's my brother!"
I only have one older brother, and you're trying to take him from me!
Ron simply couldn't tolerate it.
Hermione rolled her eyes angrily, thinking, "One more! You guys are never going to stop! I haven't even hugged Silan yet!"
Ron and Harry stood in front, blocking Draco.
Draco, however, was completely unfazed. He raised his hands and loudly proclaimed, "Malfoy and Prewett are like brothers! From now on, anyone who dares to oppose Prewett, I, Draco Malfoy, will be the first to punish them!"
A chorus of boos erupted from the crowd on the gentle slope.
Draco didn't care; personal honor and disgrace meant nothing compared to the interests of the family.
"My dear brother, is there anything I can do for you?" Draco said to Silan, his smile radiant and his expression sincere.
Silan was somewhat speechless.
What is all this nonsense?!
"It's nothing, you should go back to Hogwarts soon," Silan said helplessly.
"Okay, brother." Draco nodded obediently and walked towards Hogwarts without hesitation.
After the excitement subsided, the surrounding crowd gradually dispersed.
However, some people still huddled together in twos and threes, whispering about what had just happened.
Malfoy's public recognition of his family has certainly become a popular topic of conversation.
"What on earth is Malfoy up to?" Hermione asked, bewildered.
"Who knows?" Silan was also helpless, feeling as if Draco was outsmarting thin air.
Draco walked along the road, reviewing and reflecting on the whole incident, growing increasingly alarmed with each passing thought.
It must have been my brother who made the move!
Did he really orchestrate such a massive scheme to deal with me? He even won over my father!
Just specifically to target me?!
"It seems my brother still values me quite a bit. He's gone to such lengths to deal with me."
Draco shook his head helplessly, stood with his hands behind his back, and sighed deeply, "I lost by a narrow margin this time."
After the little incident at Hogsmeade, Silan and Hermione strolled around for a while before returning to Hogwarts.
The two brewed several Potions in the Room of Requirement and discussed some issues until almost curfew before Silan took Hermione back to the common room.
When they arrived at the Gryffindor common room, Hermione dawdled and refused to go in, waiting until the flowers the Fat Lady was holding had all withered.
"What's wrong, Hermione? Is there something else?" Silan asked.
"You still owe me something..." Hermione said, blushing.
... Divider Line...
I'm exhausted by the fourth watch today.