They took off running, no longer caring whether Filch was in the corridor.
Fortunately, luck was on their side. Filch had gone elsewhere to search, and they ran all the way back to the entrance of the Gryffindor Common Room.
The Fat Lady in the portrait on the door asked in surprise, "Where have you all been?"
"Don't ask. Just open the door!"
Drenched in sweat from running, they glanced back in lingering fear, terrified that the huge monster might chase them out.
Harry gave the password, "Pig snout," and was about to go inside when the door opened.
"Wait, John. Aren't you in Slytherin?"
Just as he was about to enter, Harry remembered that John was a Slytherin.
Only then did John remember that he wasn't a Gryffindor student. He could only watch the others enter the Gryffindor Common Room.
After the door closed, he ignored the Fat Lady's astonishment at Gryffindors mingling with a Slytherin.
He headed back alone.
On his way back, he spotted Malfoy.
Perhaps Malfoy had come to see whether his scheme had worked. He hadn't expected to run into John either.
When he turned to leave, John lunged forward and cut him off. With the overwhelming advantage of being a head taller, John pinned Malfoy against the wall with a Wall Slam.
His expression darkened as he said, "Little Malfoy, you wouldn't want your Head of House finding out you've been wandering around at night, would you?"
Malfoy instinctively glanced around. They were the only two people in the entire corridor.
His lackeys Crabbe and Goyle were nowhere to be found, either. They were still sound asleep in their warm beds.
"Y-you, what are you going to do? You're the one sneaking around at night." John's intimidating presence frightened Malfoy.
John sneered. "I don't usually hold grudges. I settle them on the spot. What do you think I'm going to do?"
Before Malfoy could react, John's right hand had already covered his mouth, muffling the shout he was about to let out.
With a flick of his left hand, a wand slid out of the sleeve Mrs. Wick had so skillfully altered.
"Did you know? Aside from casting spells, a wand is also made of very hard material."
He waved the wand before Malfoy's eyes. It was narrow at the tip and broad at the base, with a tip that looked like a chopstick.
Every so often, the wand paused near Malfoy's eyeballs, as though it might stab into them at any moment.
Malfoy's body began trembling uncontrollably.
"Shh-keep it down. Don't let Filch hear you. You know, he keeps quite a few instruments of torture in his office for punishing people."
The voice echoing in his ears like a devil's made Malfoy regret everything. Why had he provoked this lunatic?
After waving the wand around for a while, John swiftly clenched his fist and drove a punch into Malfoy's stomach.
The punch nearly made Malfoy vomit. He curled up in the corridor, clutching his stomach.
"Remember this. Don't ever try to scheme against me again."
John looked down at him, then turned and walked a few steps away before glancing back at Malfoy, who was still clutching his stomach, unable to move.
In the end, he softened. If Filch caught Malfoy, Slytherin would lose points again.
He certainly didn't want Slytherin finishing last among the Four Houses every year.
He went back and helped Malfoy up, telling him earnestly, "We're in the same House. There's no need for us to be at each other's throats."
Malfoy's face was deathly pale from the pain, his lips trembling. How could a weakling like him withstand a punch from John?
John kept talking. "Honestly, we're both Slytherins. Why can't we get along? As long as you don't mess with me, I won't mess with you. We might even become friends."
John's impression of Malfoy was that he was a spoiled child.
Malfoy had been raised to believe in pure-blood supremacy. John didn't blame him for that.
Or rather, if Malfoy hadn't been foolish enough to provoke him, John wouldn't have laid a hand on him.
"Pure-bred."
Standing before a damp stone wall, John spoke the password.
The door to the Slytherin Common Room opened, and he settled Malfoy on a sofa inside.
Who on earth had designed this common room?
It was cramped, with a low ceiling. Bones and bronze served as decorations, and the overall dark style made it look even dimmer and colder, without a trace of warmth.
The Black Lake shimmered, and a Giant Squid swam past the window.
John said quietly to Malfoy, "Remember what I told you. We might not be friends, but we shouldn't be enemies."
Clutching his stomach, Malfoy stared at John. There was no telling how much of what John had said had sunk in.
John waved a hand without saying anything more, then turned and returned to his room.
After finishing his daily training, his magic progress reached 65. It wouldn't be long before he leveled up.
He washed up and went to bed. Lying there, he tried to remember what that enormous three-headed dog was called. He had spotted a trapdoor beneath it.
It seemed to have something to do with the trio.
He remembered it having a weakness. Something like music, perhaps.
As he pondered it, he drifted off to sleep.
The next day, Malfoy strutted past John as though nothing had happened.
Still, he didn't provoke John again. Apparently, John's words had worked.
Malfoy could hardly believe it when he saw Harry and Ron still at Hogwarts.
Harry and Ron were discussing what might be hidden beneath the trapdoor under the huge dog.
Harry remembered the report about the break-in at Gringotts, then brought up the little package he had seen when he went there with Hagrid. The two boys brainstormed conspiracy theories.
Meanwhile, Hermione had argued with Harry and Ron after returning the previous night and now wanted nothing to do with either of them.
Hermione came over to John and sat down in a huff, complaining, "Those two arrogant idiots! We nearly got bitten to death by that huge dog, and they actually thought it was great fun."
"Honestly, how can anyone be so stupid? And I have to be in the same class as them."
John had grown used to Hermione grumbling in his ear.
At times like this, all he needed to do was listen.
Neville came over too. Being near John gave him a strong sense of security.
If John hadn't been there yesterday, he probably would have ended up as a fresh pile of dog droppings that morning.
Two Gryffindors hanging around with a Slytherin-it was a rare sight indeed.
After breakfast, John didn't forget to go and get some exercise.
He had no intention of wasting such a fine morning.
John's daily routine went as follows:
After breakfast, he ran a lap around the Black Lake.
At noon, he did push-ups and frog jumps.
After dinner, he went to the Trophy Room, then returned to his room for push-ups and sit-ups while studying.
His days were packed full. Occasionally, he relaxed by taking Tom and Basil for a stroll near the Forbidden Forest.
On one unlucky occasion, however, Hagrid caught John red-handed.
Since he hadn't entered the Forbidden Forest, Hagrid only gave him a verbal warning.
John didn't take it to heart. Instead, after a few encounters, he became quite friendly with that big dog, Fang.
Fang shamelessly succumbed to the lure of Tom's dog food.
[Ding! Magic leveled up successfully. Current magic: level 2]
Jogging beside the Black Lake, John took out a towel and wiped the sweat from his face, breaking into a radiant smile.
"Finally, I've leveled up. Now I can start practicing spells."
His magic had reached level 2, but he currently knew only one spell.
Practicing the Unlocking Charm didn't seem particularly useful, though. He needed to learn some new spells.
With the Top Student enhancement, John's learning ability was astonishing.
Before their Charms lessons began, he learned the Levitation Charm.
Wand in hand, he cast the spell on a leaf that had fallen in front of him.
"Wingardium Leviosa!"
He felt some of the magic inside him drain away, and the leaf before him floated into the air under the spell's influence.
[Magic: level 2 (10/500)] [Spells: Alohomora (level 3), Levitation Charm (level 1)] [Skills: Short Weapon Mastery (level 7), Polearm Mastery (level 6), Heavy Weapon Mastery (level 3), Firearm Mastery (level 1)] [Enhancements: Strengthen the Body, Rapid Attack, Precision, Top Student, Pilot, Long-distance Running]
It was still only level 1, so all he could manage was levitating lightweight objects such as leaves.
Even so, it brought a smile to John's face. He also began setting his sights on the Restricted Section.
Compared with the Levitation Charm, he much preferred welding-no... trading blasts.
If he wanted to visit the Restricted Section, he could give it a try within the next two months.
Once he completed the nighttime wandering quest and received his reward, he could go there.
Since I'm being punished, it would be perfectly reasonable for me to clean the Restricted Section, wouldn't it?
Before you continue