Flight Class Plagued by Incidents
Xiwen's words made Elshiona waver a little, but ultimately failed to convince her to go home and rest immediately.
Elshiona told Xiwen that her condition was currently good and she could wait until the symptoms of the Blood Curse worsened before returning home to recuperate.
After saying goodbye to Xiwen, she hurriedly left the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom.
"Hey, you two, what are you whispering about right after class?" Abraxas, looking at Xiwen and Elshiona. "What are you talking about? Want to share with us?"
"We didn't say anything. But what are you doing?" Xiwen immediately changed the subject.
He turned to look at Abu, only to see Mobley being pulled by the hood of his school uniform, looking utterly dejected. Gomez stood beside them, looking at Mobley with pity.
"Xiwen, help me! This guy Abraxas is trying to drag me to the Quidditch Pitch!" Mobley shouted as he saw Xiwen turn around, as if he had seen a savior.
Hearing his call, Xiwen realized that there was only one class this afternoon, and the rest of the time was free to use.
Xiwen glanced at the lifeless Mobley and asked, "What's wrong? Abu has tried to get you to go Quidditch more than once or twice, why the big reaction this time?"
"The two of them made a bet before class, betting whether you'd get called on by the professor, and the loser had to grant the other a request," Gomez explained quietly from the side.
Upon hearing the whole story, Xiwen looked at Mobley with sympathy, patted him heavily on the shoulder, and said, "Keep it up, Mobley. You made the bet, so you have to keep it even if you have to crawl on your knees!"
Mobley's expression became even more utterly hopeless.
Abu smugly tugged at Mobley's hat, then looked at Xiwen and asked, "So, do you want to come along, Xiwen?"
Xiwen glanced out the window; it was a pleasant day with clear skies and crisp air, just before autumn.
"Going out for some exercise is a good idea!" Xiwen nodded with a smile.
The sky was clear and bright. The cool breeze of late summer and early autumn dispelled the summer heat without feeling cold, making it exceptionally refreshing and rustling the grass on the ground.
Walking on the grass north of the castle, Abraxas held his Comet 180 and proudly showed it off to Xiwen and the other two, talking animatedly about the Slytherin Quidditch Team's recruitment.
"Slytherin's Quidditch team will be recruiting new members this weekend, and I've been waiting for this day for so long!" he exclaimed excitedly.
"Then I wish you the best of luck in being selected!" Xiwen said with a smile.
Suddenly, Mobley pointed to an open space and exclaimed in surprise, "Look over there, isn't that Professor Prenton?"
Professor Prenton's ardent fan, Abu, rushed over immediately, only to discover that it was a first-year student taking Flight Class.
A group of young wizards stood on the lawn, chanting "Get up!" to the brooms in front of them in a rhythmic, dramatic voice.
"A year has passed in the blink of an eye, and I feel a strange sense of nostalgia!" Xiwen sighed, looking at the young faces. "That incident where Mobley almost fell to his death because he couldn't control his broom is truly unforgettable."
Mobley's face immediately darkened as he said, "I think you could have simply not said that last sentence!"
At that moment, Professor Prenton seemed to see Abu holding the flying broom and waved to him.
"That's Mr. Malfoy over there, right? Are you heading to the Quidditch Pitch?" Professor Prenton asked Abu with a handsome smile.
When Abu saw the famous Professor Prenton speak to him, he was so excited he almost screamed, and quickly nodded in response.
"That's perfect. You can demonstrate the basics of flying to these new little wizards," Professor Prenton said to the four of them, seemingly on a Xiwen.
Abu readily agreed without any hesitation. He gracefully mounted his Comet 180 and flew above the first-year wizards.
"Excellent, beautiful movement!" Professor Prenton clapped his hands, then looked at the freshmen standing beside him and said, "Did you see that? This is how flying should be."
Then, the professor looked at the three people Xiwen, who were still standing on the ground, and said, "Can any of you perform the entire takeoff maneuver, starting from summoning the flying broom?"
Of the remaining three, Professor Prenton glanced at Mobley, immediately thinking of last year's flight accident, and shook his head with a grave expression.
He then looked at Gomez, realizing he didn't recognize the young wizard. Finally, his gaze settled on Xiwen's face.
"This student, why don't you give everyone a demonstration?" The professor clearly didn't remember Xiwen's name and could only refer to him as "student."
Xiwen shrugged, took out his flying broom— Silver Arrow— from his Pocket Watch Space, and gently placed it on the ground.
In fact, Xiwen had forgotten that second-year students could bring flying brooms to Hogwarts. But after learning about it from Abu, he secretly opened Dimensional Gate and took the broom from his room at home. He then kept the Silver Arrow in his Pocket Watch Space.
Amidst the expectant gazes of the new students, Xiwen looked at the flying broom that gleamed silver in the sunlight and softly murmured:
"Rise."
The Silver Arrow flew nimbly into Xiwen's hand.
Xiwen placed the broom loosely in front of him, straddled it, and then pushed off the ground with both feet, flying away from the lawn.
Finally, he hovered beside Abu.
"Very standard movements!" Professor Prenton led the freshmen in applause again.
"Now that you've seen the demonstrations from the two senior students, it's your turn."
"Remember, you can only fly within my designated area and at a height of no more than ten feet. Anyone who violates this rule will be punished," the professor said, giving instructions that were very similar to what Xiwen had heard last year.
As the professor finished speaking, Xiwen saw Riddle ride on his broomstick and easily fly into the air.
"Look everyone, the first student to successfully take off has appeared!" Professor Prenton said with satisfaction. "Slytherin, plus three points!"
"You're flying pretty well, Riddle!" Xiwen waved to Riddle from the air and said with a smile.
Riddle smiled and nodded at Xiwen.
This was his first time flying, and he was quite excited. In this state, he no longer displayed the deliberate elegance he had shown before; instead, he exuded a carefree and unrestrained arrogance.
However, an unexpected accident occurred with Riddle's broom—
The flying broom he was riding on suddenly began to tremble violently!