A Scheme That Harmed Three Worthies

During this time, Slytherin's efforts proved that these young wizards' sweat had not been in vain. Their progress was plain for all to see. With the badges Su Yu had given them, casting spells had become far more natural for them. The upper-year students had also perfected Silent Casting and wandless casting. The fastest progress had come from Malfoy, Theodore, Blaise, Pansy, and the others. They had already learned Silent Casting. It was truly excellent.

But the conflict between Slytherin and Gryffindor had grown increasingly fierce. When the other two Houses saw Slytherin becoming more and more arrogant, they usually pretended not to see it and kept their distance. But Gryffindor's little lions did not have such mild tempers. They clashed with Slytherin every day.

The most famous incident happened on the day of the Quidditch match, when Ron brought Neville to provoke Malfoy. That was right, you had not heard wrong. Malfoy had not gone looking for trouble; Ron had brought Neville to provoke Malfoy.

Malfoy no longer bullied the weak, but his arrogance had not changed. That arrogant look in his eyes made Ron even angrier.

Ron could not stand it, because every time Malfoy looked at him, he felt as if Malfoy were looking at a beggar...

So when the day of the Quidditch match arrived, the atmosphere around the pitch was already tense. Slytherin's players warmed up on the field, their green uniforms especially striking beneath the sunlight. Gryffindor's players were warming up as well, their red uniforms like clusters of flame. The stands on both sides were packed, and flags snapped loudly in the wind.

Ron dragged Neville over and blocked Malfoy near the entrance to the stands.

"Malfoy," Ron said in a low voice, every word burning with anger, "what exactly do you mean?"

Malfoy stopped and glanced at him, ignoring Ron.

"What do you mean?" Ron raised his voice slightly. "What kind of look do you keep giving me?"

The corner of Malfoy's mouth moved slightly. It was not quite a smile. "Are you worthy of catching my eye?"

Ron exploded.

His face instantly turned red, from the base of his neck all the way to his forehead. His fists clenched. Neville stood beside him, his lips moving before he finally gathered the courage to speak. "Malfoy, you shouldn't talk like that—"

Malfoy shifted his gaze to Neville and paused for a second.

"Neville," Malfoy said unhurriedly, "if brains were gold, you'd be poorer than Weasley. Do you understand what I mean?"

Neville's face turned red as well. Neville's attack power was zero.

At that moment, Harry happened to make a beautiful dive in the sky, drawing cheers from the crowd. Hermione stood up with both hands over her mouth. Then Harry shot toward the ground like a bullet.

Malfoy glanced at Harry. "You're really lucky, Weasley. It looks like Harry found some gold that fell onto the ground."

Ron could not endure it any longer.

He and Neville charged forward together. Ron lunged at Malfoy while Neville came at him from the other side. Their fists swung out at the same time—

Malfoy's wand was already in his hand.

Silent Casting. Leg-Locker Curse.

An invisible force shot from Malfoy's wand tip and struck Ron and Neville's legs. Their feet suddenly stuck together. They lost their balance, collided with each other, then fell to the ground tangled together.

"Let us go!" Ron roared, struggling on the ground, but his legs seemed welded together. No matter what he did, he could not pull them apart.

Malfoy put away his wand and looked down at the two twisting on the ground. Crabbe and Goyle stepped out from behind him. Crabbe kicked Ron in the backside, while Goyle crouched down and punched Neville in the back. The three began beating Ron and Neville mercilessly, making them howl in pain.

In the end, Hermione heard the commotion from the stands and looked back. She hurried down, pulled them apart, and rescued Ron and Neville. When she helped them up, she saw that their faces were swollen like pigs' heads, while their feet were still locked together. Malfoy stood nearby, and Crabbe and Goyle were still laughing.

"Malfoy! Get lost!" Hermione was like a mother lioness then, shielding Ron and Neville as she quickly cast the counterspell to release them.

Of course, Malfoy could not be bothered to argue with Hermione. Not only was she always fooling around with the prefect, but he also knew Su Yu's temper. Besides, could Malfoy possibly lay a hand on a girl? Absolutely not. He gestured to Crabbe and Goyle.

"Let's go," Malfoy said.

Crabbe and Goyle followed behind him as the three passed through the crowd and disappeared into the stands.

Hermione crouched down and examined Ron and Neville. Their faces were covered in bruises, their eyes swollen to narrow slits, and their lips split open, blood smeared across their chins.

"Can't you two just behave for one day?" Hermione's voice was both angry and anxious.

Ron climbed up from the ground, rubbed the swollen corner of his mouth, and mumbled something incoherent. Hermione did not catch it, but she did not want to hear it anyway.

Slytherin still lost that Quidditch match.

It was not because they were weak. Slytherin's players had trained harder than anyone over the past few months, and Sister Ka's commands from the sidelines had been flawless. They had suppressed Gryffindor the entire time, and by the second half, the score was already 150 to 10. Slytherin had been certain to win. Montague scored seven goals, Pucey scored five, and although Flint did not catch the Golden Snitch, his defense kept Gryffindor's Chasers from breaking through at all.

But Harry Potter truly was the chosen child of the era.

The Golden Snitch flew into Harry's hand by itself. Could anyone believe that? It circled twice above the pitch, evaded Flint's outstretched hand three times, dodged the Bludger Derrick sent flying at it, and then—landed steadily in Harry's palm. Even Harry was stunned. He looked down at the Snitch in his hand, then looked around.

Su Yu thought it was obviously rigged. Dumbledore was the biggest mastermind behind it. He knew the old man wanted to boost Harry Potter's confidence, but did he really have to go to such extreme lengths?

He stared at Harry in the middle of the pitch, then at Dumbledore in the teachers' seats. Dumbledore was clapping with a beaming smile, his silver beard glittering in the sunlight. Su Yu clenched his fists. The more he endured, the angrier he became; the more he backed down, the more cheated he felt.

Golden chakra appeared across his body as the Tailed Beast Cloak draped over him. He nearly summoned Susanoo on the spot and smashed that old fossil with one punch.

A hand pressed against his arm.

It was Sister Ka's hand. Her fingers were slender and strong, and her palm was warmer than usual—probably because she had gotten too excited while shouting instructions from the sidelines.

"Don't." Sister Ka's voice was so low that only Su Yu could hear it. "It isn't worth it."

Su Yu lowered his head to look at her. Sister Ka's green eyes shone especially brightly in the sunlight, his reflection visible in her pupils. Her lips were lightly pursed, her chin raised slightly, and her entire bearing radiated an aura that seemed to say, Trust me.

"I will definitely rely on my own command abilities," Sister Ka said word by word, "to lead Slytherin back to glory."

Su Yu looked at her.

"Sister Ka is awesome."

Then he lowered his head and kissed her in front of everyone.

Sister Ka's body stiffened. Her eyes widened for an instant before slowly closing.

The Slytherin students around them began cheering. Whistles, applause, and laughter blended together, making more noise than the Quidditch match itself. Sister Fa leaned against the railing with her arms crossed, a faint smile curling her lips as no one knew what she was thinking. Daphne stood nearby, smiling as she watched the two of them.

Malfoy was so excited in the crowd that he hugged Pansy beside him.

Pansy's brain crashed for a moment—her eyes went round, and she froze as though someone had pressed pause. Then she came to her senses, excitedly hugged Malfoy back, rose onto her toes, and kissed him.

The Slytherins laughed even louder. Malfoy's face reddened at a visible speed, from the base of his neck to the tips of his ears. He wanted to push Pansy away, but felt that pushing her away would be wrong, while not doing so would be wrong too. His hands hovered awkwardly in midair. After Pansy finished kissing him, she realized everyone was watching. Her face turned red too. She released Malfoy and took a step back, nearly stepping on Crabbe's foot.

Only then was Malfoy's awkward scene complete. The Slytherin students laughed so hard they bent over, even forgetting that they had lost the match.

After the Quidditch match, it was soon time for the final exams.

Hermione had prepared a revision schedule early and begun studying. Her timetable was extraordinarily detailed—wake up at six every morning, review Potions from six to seven, eat breakfast from seven to eight while reviewing Transfiguration theory, eight to ten... Every minute was packed full, and even bathroom breaks were marked with "can review spell pronunciation."

She also dragged Su Yu and Daphne into studying with her.

Su Yu had been feeling better and better lately. The conversion between chakra and magical power had become smoother, and his Transfiguration and Potions had improved considerably as well—he could not be called exceptional, but passing and advancing to second year would not be a problem.

But rather than studying, it was more like Hermione and Daphne studied while Su Yu slept soundly.

Today he slept with his head on Hermione's lap; tomorrow he slept with his head on Daphne's lap.

Only Kurama was unhappy. Daphne had long legs, so she wanted to sleep on Daphne's lap too.

Some time later, Su Yu and the others heard Hermione mention that Hagrid was raising a dragon.

A newly hatched Norwegian Ridgeback. When Hermione said this, her expression lay somewhere between excitement and worry—excited because it was a dragon, and worried because it was a dragon. That dragon was growing far too quickly. Hermione also said Hagrid fed it brandy and chicken. Kurama was rather interested upon hearing that and asked, "Does dragon meat taste good?" Su Yu said he did not know either.

However, someone else knew about the dragon too—Malfoy.

That night, because Malfoy had something to do, the Slytherin students had already gathered in the Forbidden Forest for training. Malfoy was the only one heading there alone later. He walked along the path at the edge of the Forbidden Forest when he saw three furtive figures slipping out from the direction of the castle and heading toward Hagrid's Hut.

Malfoy followed them.

He hid beside the wooden hut and saw the hatched dragon through the window. The little thing was covered in black scales, its wing membranes dark red. Sparks flew from its mouth, and it looked fierce. Malfoy watched for a while, found it boring, and turned to leave. It was only a dragon; it was not as if he had never seen one. He did not take it seriously at all.

But Harry and the others noticed someone peeking through the glass. When they came out to search for the culprit, they checked in the direction of Hogwarts. But Malfoy had already entered the Forbidden Forest.

Thus, Malfoy spent this period giving Harry and the other two meaningful looks. Whenever he saw them in the corridors, he would stop, curl his lips slightly, stare at them for a few seconds, then turn and leave.

Harry and the others felt uncomfortable all over, growing more anxious by the day. Whenever Malfoy looked their way, the three would lower their heads in unspoken agreement, fall silent, and pretend to be busy with something else. Malfoy felt he could hold this secret over Harry and Ron for the rest of their lives!

But in a dramatic twist, Malfoy's pressure led to Hermione being bitten by the dragon.

That night, Malfoy had originally planned to visit Hermione in the Hospital Wing and apologize. After all, Hermione being bitten was not the result he wanted. But when he reached the Hospital Wing's entrance, he happened to find Madam Pomfrey questioning Ron.

"Where was she bitten?" Madam Pomfrey asked. "What bit her?"

Ron stammered, unable to speak. His face reddened, his mouth opening and closing, then closing and opening again like a fish thrown ashore.

Malfoy stood at the door, a smile curling onto his lips.

He walked in and stopped before Ron. "Oh, poor Hermione, Weasley," Malfoy said in a tone as casual as conversation. "Madam Pomfrey asked you a question. Are you mute?"

"No, I'm not. I think... I think it was a dog bite, right?"

"Weasley, did you really take Neville's brain home with you?" Malfoy teased. "Or are you hiding something? That doesn't look like a dog bite to me."

"Oh, no! It was a dog bite! You have to believe me!" Ron was nearly in tears from panic.

At that moment, Madam Pomfrey spoke. "Malfoy, what are you here for?"

Malfoy looked around, noticed the book in Ron's arms, and casually said, "Madam Pomfrey, I came to borrow a book from Ron."

Ron instinctively handed him the book. Malfoy took it and left. However, when he returned to his dormitory and tossed the book onto the table, a letter unexpectedly fell out. It was Charlie's letter to Ron, marked with the time and place for someone to come collect the dragon.

At first, Malfoy thought it was a trap, that Harry and the others had deliberately set him up. He sat in front of the fireplace and thought about it for a long time. Then, after observing them for the next two days, Malfoy made his decision—he would follow the plan. He was going to take Harry and Ron down with him!!

Hermione was in the Hospital Wing and could not go, so it was the perfect chance to properly deal with Harry and Ron. He had calculated it well. If he stayed out all night alone, he would lose twenty points. But Harry and Ron were two people, so they would lose forty! This self-destructive method of attack guaranteed Slytherin a profit!

But what he did not expect was that Gryffindor lost 150 points that night.

Neville had been caught by Professor McGonagall while trying to warn Harry and Ron that "Malfoy is going to tell on you." Three Gryffindors—Harry, Ron, and Neville—plus one Malfoy. Professor McGonagall was furious.

Gryffindor lost 150 points.

Slytherin lost only twenty points—Malfoy alone had stayed out all night.

Malfoy later described Professor McGonagall at the time as "just like that dragon, except she couldn't breathe fire."

In this battle, Slytherin achieved a great victory. One scheme had harmed three worthies, and Malfoy became famous in a single stroke.

One had to know that a House only had around four hundred points by the end of term. This time, Gryffindor had lost 150 points in one blow.

Malfoy would even suddenly laugh out loud in his sleep, waking Crabbe, who would then wake Goyle. The two stared at each other in the darkness, having no idea what had happened.

The result was that Malfoy became Slytherin's great hero.

Harry became Gryffindor's great villain. All the Gryffindor students talked about him and mocked him. In the corridors, the Great Hall, and classrooms, people everywhere said, "He's the one who cost us 150 points." Gryffindor gave Harry a new nickname—Seeker. It was not praise for being good at finding the Snitch; it was sarcasm that he only knew how to find trouble. Everywhere, people excluded him. Those who used to greet him now walked around him. Wherever Harry went, the place fell silent. Only after he passed did the whispers begin again.

It also showed Harry the warmth and coldness of human relationships. But he had lived in such an environment since childhood, so he could accept it. He simply felt even more guilty. Ron handled it better than he did. If someone cursed at him, he cursed back. If someone hit him, he hit back. Though he lost more fights than he won, he was never afraid.

Meanwhile, on Slytherin's side, Su Yu stopped them from mocking the others.

That night, Slytherin's students loudly discussed Gryffindor losing points in the common room, laughter and cheers rising one after another. Malfoy stood in the middle of the crowd as several people patted his shoulder, while Pansy smiled so widely she could barely close her mouth.

Su Yu stood up from the sofa.

The common room gradually quieted. Everyone's attention focused on him. Su Yu stopped those who were mocking Gryffindor, just as he had stopped them from mocking Slytherin's Quidditch team.

"Don't kick people while they're down," Su Yu said.

No one spoke.

"You are a group of nobles." Su Yu's gaze swept across every face. "Respect your opponents. When they fail, be even more careful instead of getting carried away, until you have defeated them completely."

"When dealing with your companions, learn patience. They did their best, and that is enough. Look forward to their efforts next time."

The common room remained quiet for a long time. Then someone nodded, while others lowered their heads. Malfoy stood amid the crowd, the smile gradually fading from his face and turning into a different kind of contemplation.

The Slytherin students followed Su Yu's advice. When they encountered Harry and Ron in the corridors the next day, they did not laugh or sneer. Those who needed to walk kept walking, and those who needed to attend class went to class, as though nothing had happened.

That only made Gryffindor seem especially inhuman.