The three-headed dog paused for a moment, then all six eyes turned to Herman, their expression shifting from annoyance to genuine rage.
It suddenly shook its head, sending the short sword flying. It struck the wall with a sharp crack, and then its three large mouths opened simultaneously, pressing down on Herman.
Under the continuous impact, the light shield began to shrink, the golden light thinning in concentric rings, like a bubble being crushed. Herman could feel the shield and magic power being rapidly depleted.
He gritted his teeth and held on, with only one thought left in his mind, "Hold on."
Just then, the small bag at his waist suddenly began to shake violently. The bag popped open automatically, and the deck of cards he had bought from Borgin and Burkes seemed to be drawn by an invisible force, flying out one by one, spreading out in the air, and hovering densely around Herman.
He felt his magic flowing simultaneously to every card, and the Transfiguration laws he had learned in class began to operate automatically deep within his consciousness.
The playing cards begin to Transfiguration; the paper fibers shrink, stretch, harden, and thin, the edges become sharp, and a metallic sheen emerges on the surface.
The fifty-four playing cards transformed into fifty-four miniature flying swords, each about the length of a finger. Although still small in size, Herman felt they were hard and sharp.
Without hesitation, Herman unleashed fifty-four miniature flying swords at the Cerberus.
A series of clanging and banging sounds rang out, like a small metal storm.
However, the results were only so-so. Most of the flying swords could only leave a shallow white mark on the thick fur, and some couldn't even cut through the fur, only making a gap between the hairs.
Herman soon discovered that although his Transfiguration could turn playing cards into metal swords, they were far from sharp enough. The tips were not sharp enough, the blades were not thin enough, and they were more like blunt metal sheets.
Furthermore, after the magic power is distributed among the fifty-four swords, each sword receives a limited amount of power, and the combined effect is not as good as the short sword made by the little Goblin.
After a barrage of blows, the three-headed dog's fur was shaved in patches, revealing its grayish-brown skin underneath, but the actual damage was almost nonexistent.
However, the good news is that the insults have become even more intense!
The three-headed dog looked down at the patchy fur on its body, then looked up at Herman. Its expression had completely turned into rage. Its originally low intelligence was now completely overwhelmed by anger. Even the three heads that usually disagreed with each other were now surprisingly united in their goal: to kill him!
The three mouths simultaneously let out a deafening roar, causing dust to fall from the walls. Then, without further probing, all three heads rammed into Herman's position.
Herman sensed the golden light on the shield's surface rapidly shrinking. The first layer of the light shield had been shattered, and the second layer was also covered in cracks, like a glass wall about to collapse.
He gripped his shield tightly, countless plans swirling in his mind, but none of them would be immediately effective.
Just before the light shield was about to shatter completely, Harry's voice came from behind, neither loud nor soft, with a calm tone. "Alright, let's hurry up and leave. You really want to defeat it?"
Herman turned around and saw that Harry had reopened the door at some point, surrounded by several large black dogs, each almost as big as the one that had licked him on the train. They were quietly squatting at her feet, their amber eyes fixed on the three-headed dog in front of them, emitting low, echoing whimpers from their throats.
Before Herman could say anything, the light on the shield shattered completely.
The three-headed dog's claws slammed down on him with a whooshing sound. Herman instinctively used Levitation Charm to move his body backward, but he was still a beat too slow.
Just as the shadow of the paw loomed over his head, two black shadows darted out from the side, biting the three-headed dog's two front paws, one on the left and one on the right.
Although it didn't cause any damage, it successfully deflected the attack by half an inch, the claw grazing Herman's shoulder as it landed on the ground, sending shards of rock flying.
More black dogs rushed out from around Harry, some grabbing Herman's sleeve and pulling it back, others pouncing on the three-headed dog and scratching its face. Although they would turn into a cloud of black smoke and disappear after being hit, each one successfully bought Herman precious time.
Herman was dragged out the door by the hem of his clothes by one of the black dogs, and Harry closed the wooden door behind him.
A muffled thud came from behind the door, as if a three-headed dog had rammed into it, and a few more splinters of wood fell from the door frame.
Herman leaned against the wall outside the door, panting, the spot on his shoulder that had been rubbed burned with pain.
He glanced down at his shield; the golden patterns on it had faded, like a lamp about to go out.
Harry stood beside him, brushed off non-existent dust from her hands, and said calmly, "Alright, I saved you this time, so we're even."
Herman looked up at her. "You're the one who pushed me in, aren't you?"
Harry shrugged. "Anyway, I saved you."
"So you're just here to accumulate merit points, huh?" Herman muttered helplessly.
Harry didn't object, but added, "Besides, it turns out my dog can't communicate with the Cerberus."
Herman paused for a moment, then realized what she meant. "So, to prove this, you're pushing me into this personal test?"
Harry neither denied nor admitted it; she simply turned her head to glance at him, the slight curve of her lips not so much an apology as the smug satisfaction of a successful prank.
Herman took a deep breath and decided not to get entangled with her any further. Judging from the way she summoned the black dog, she probably knew what she was doing.
The sounds of the black dog and the three-headed dog fighting inside the gate were still continuing, but they were rapidly decreasing.
Through the crack in the door, Herman saw the figures of black dogs turn into wisps of black smoke and dissipate.
The number of black dogs decreased rapidly. After all, the house was too small, and there was nowhere to hide. They couldn't fight a war of attrition like hyenas hunt lions.
Harry watched for a while, then raised her hand and waved her wand. Instantly, all the black dogs turned into black smoke and disappeared.
Having lost its target, the Cerberus seemed to know that Herman and the others were outside the door. With three angry roars, the door was slammed hard again.
Herman noticed a thin crack on the door panel, extending from near the hinge to the middle of the panel.
"I reckon this door won't last much longer," Herman said.
Harry glanced at him. "Don't worry, you don't need to pay for this."
After saying that, she took the withered human hand and the oil lamp back from Draco's hands, and then simply said, "Let's go, we made a bit too much noise."
Draco nodded quickly, and Herman didn't object. The three of them put their arms around each other's shoulders again and started walking back. The dim blue light of the oil lamps shone again, illuminating the path they had come from.