Draw Your Wand, Just You and Me

"Come on, Professor. Aren't you Americans the most opposed to exam-oriented education?"

The moment he heard they had to do a test, Roy immediately let out a wail.

Seeing Roy's unwilling expression, Elias smiled and began explaining.

"That's why stereotypes can kill you. Back then, your professor Elias here ranked first in the history of the American Ministry of Magic's Auror recruitment exam in both the written and practical sections. Did you really think I didn't value theoretical foundations?"

No one had expected Elias to have such a brilliant record. Most people only knew that he was a top-tier Auror; they had never imagined he was this impressive.

People in the common room had compared Elias with Mad-Eye Moody, arguing over who was stronger. Mad-Eye Moody was a legendary Auror from the British Ministry of Magic. It was said that half the Dark wizards in Azkaban had been caught by Moody.

Talking about it online was one thing, but in real life, who could resist getting red in the face and debating combat strength with their classmates? Even Roy was quite curious about which of the two was stronger.

"Professor, who's stronger, you or Mad-Eye Moody?"

Roy could not help asking.

Elias had not expected Roy to ask him such a question to his face. After thinking for a moment, he smiled and gave his answer.

"In actual combat, I should have the edge. Moody's getting on in years, after all. But he was truly formidable when he was young. If it were young Moody, the two of us would probably be evenly matched."

Elias stated his opinion fairly. Roy nodded, then asked another question.

"Then, Professor, can you beat Dumbledore? That old man is over a hundred years old."

Elias pointed at himself, looking utterly incredulous.

"Me? Fight Dumbledore?"

Elias smiled helplessly.

"Don't joke around. Dumbledore is the greatest wizard of the past several centuries. Even the American Ministry of Magic has to respect Dumbledore's opinion."

At that, Elias smiled and patted Roy on the shoulder.

"But you still have a chance to become a wizard as great as Dumbledore. I know your talent far surpasses mine."

"Really? (▰˘◡˘▰)?"

Faced with such praise, Roy scratched his head shyly.

"Of course. I trust my judgment. But becoming the next Dumbledore requires solid foundational knowledge, so please, Mr. Little Dumbledore, complete this test I personally prepared."

Elias smiled as he pushed the test paper in front of Roy, then patted him on the shoulder.

"You don't say that to every student, do you?"

"Hehe..."

Roy sat down across from the desk, and Elias handed him an exquisitely crafted gold-inlaid fountain pen.

"What a fine pen."

Roy kept turning the pen over in his hand and praised it. Wizards in Britain preferred quills, but honestly, Roy had always found it inconvenient to keep dipping them in ink while writing.

"Don't drop my pen. That one cost nearly a hundred Galleons."

Hearing the pen's price, Roy jumped in fright and nearly flung away the pen he had been spinning in his hand.

"Professor, you really are... extravagant..."

"Alright, alright, hurry up and write..."

Elias waved a hand, urging Roy to get started.

Swish—swish—

The office was quite quiet. Only the sound of the fountain pen scratching across paper rang out from time to time. Elias said nothing, sitting across the desk and silently watching Roy write furiously.

The test grew progressively more difficult from beginning to end and included questions from every field. Even children who had never attended school could answer the simplest questions, while ordinary adult wizards might not have even heard of the most complex material.

The more Roy answered, the harder he found it, but fortunately, he could answer at least something for most of the questions.

"Alright, I've finished everything I could."

Roy capped the pen and carefully set the expensive fountain pen down on the desk.

Elias took Roy's test paper, checked the time, then began reading Roy's answers in detail.

"Not bad. Looks like you do plenty of reading normally. Some of these questions were ones I set for the American Auror selection written exam two years ago, and many candidates couldn't answer them."

Elias only needed to glance over Roy's test paper to grasp his level completely. It could be said that Elias was very satisfied with the result.

"Next—" Elias stood up, stretched a little, and took off the wool vest he wore over his shirt. "We'll conduct an equally important practical assessment."

Elias drew his wand and gave it a light wave. Every piece of furniture and object in the office vanished. The originally cramped office suddenly seemed much more spacious.

"A larger space is better for dueling. Come on, Roy. Draw your wand and attack me with everything you've got."

Elias raised his wand and assumed a fighting stance before Roy, signaling for Roy to attack.

Roy had long been itching for a fight. Hearing Elias's request, he flicked his robe behind him, revealing the green shirt and trousers beneath.

Seeing Roy also take up a decent opening stance, Elias casually reminded him, "In real combat, you need the determination to defeat your opponent if you want to win. Use whatever spells you know. Don't worry, I can protect myself."

"Then excuse me, Professor. Take this."

"Expelliarmus!!!!!!!!!!"

"Protego."

Roy immediately went all out, pouring the magic within him out without restraint.

A red bolt as thick as a bowl shot straight at Elias like a cannonball, but Elias blocked it with ease.

"Not bad. Your magical strength is greater than that of many adult wizards."

Feeling the power of the spell, Elias gave it high praise.

"In real combat, enemies won't just stand there and take it. I'm going to counterattack."

As soon as he finished speaking, he flicked his wrist, and a thin, swift spell shot directly at Roy.

The spell looked unremarkable, but its power was not lacking in the slightest.

Roy took the blow head-on and was jolted two steps backward.

"As expected of a professor. Even a casual spell is this fierce."

Roy praised him, but his hands did not pause at all. Before his words had even faded, a second spell was already flying toward Elias.

"You're not bad either. Your natural combat instincts are excellent."

The two exchanged polite compliments, but every spell they cast was sharp and fierce.

The duel was fast and intense. The two nimble fighters darted and weaved around the room as spells streaked through the air, yet neither truly struck the other. On the surface, they seemed evenly matched, but Elias had already begun to gain the upper hand.

Seeing himself gradually being suppressed, Roy deliberately made a feint as if he intended to block the attack head-on. In reality, he sidestepped and dodged, then simultaneously fired off a rapid Knockback Jinx.

The tactic was nearly perfect, yet it still failed. Although Elias had been fooled by the feint, his Auror-trained physical ability was there for all to see. He managed to sidestep in time, narrowly avoiding the strike.

Roy stopped attacking and panted heavily, his chest heaving violently.

Elias had also broken out in a cold sweat just now, but he was in far better shape than Roy, only breathing slightly harder.

"What? Ready to admit defeat?"

Roy shook his head as he panted. After catching his breath for a few seconds, he slowly said, "I'm going to use the ultimate move I just learned recently."

"Oh? What is it? Don't tell me it's Dark magic?"

Elias remained completely relaxed, clearly not taking Roy's words seriously.

"No. It's magic from the old era."

After speaking, Roy put away his wand and slammed both hands onto the ground.

A strange surge of magic abruptly erupted, and patches of purple hexagonal patterns appeared across the floor one after another.

The hexagons continued rising, quickly forming an enclosed space that wrapped both of them within.

"A Duel Cage?"

Within the empty cage, Roy's voice echoed softly.

"Draw your wand, just you and me."