Chapter 128: Such a Big Show
Dylan was unaware of Malfoy's plight.
—In fact, he didn't realize that the curse recorded in that forbidden book would be so potent and long-lasting.
After a brief conversation with Professor McGonagall, Dylan still reached a consensus with her—to slightly slow down the frequency of after-class tutoring.
And after confirming this, the smile on Professor McGonagall's face visibly brightened.
"I will discuss a plan for your assessment with Severus and Filius as soon as possible."
"Thank you for your trouble."
Saying goodbye to Professor McGonagall, the office door closed gently behind Dylan. He walked down the corridor and soon saw several Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw students hurrying past him, pinching their noses.
—Their movements almost amounted to a hasty retreat.
Dylan also saw several Slytherins arguing with someone, their faces livid.
Dylan couldn't help but stop. The next moment, a shrill voice rang out.
"Fresh and hot Slytherin specials—!"
Dylan finally saw who the person arguing with the Slytherin students was—Peeves.
The poltergeist's voice was quite loud. Combined with the suspicious smells wafting through the corridor, Dylan roughly understood what was happening here.
But he ignored it and was about to turn and leave when Peeves suddenly yelled at the top of his lungs, singing a modified school song: "Draco Toilet Malfoy, the jet fighter is in action—please give me back my toilet!"
The corner of Dylan's mouth twitched.
"Alright, everyone, disperse quickly!"
Filch's hoarse voice came from the lavatory.
Dylan blinked. "I've already finished eating and talked to Professor McGonagall. Are they still in the lavatory?"
Dylan headed towards the Gryffindor common room.
In his mind, he was re-evaluating the value of the forbidden books.
"Perhaps some spells aren't as bland as their surface descriptions."
After arriving at the dormitory, Dylan had just pushed open the door when he saw Ron slumped by his bedside, his head drooping, his iconic red hair looking somewhat wilted.
Harry was sitting beside him, his brow also slightly furrowed, his eyes glazed over as he stared at the floor.
"What's wrong with you guys?" Dylan blinked.
Seeing Dylan return, Ron raised his head and sighed heavily. "Oh no, we're going to get detention! Getting detention on the first day of school, now we're just like Malfoy."
"You both got detention?" Dylan asked.
"Yeah! Last semester only he got detention, now we're getting detention too! It's so embarrassing!" Ron said, puffing out his cheeks.
Dylan saw that he didn't seem to be in as much discomfort now and shrugged slightly. "Detention is something you get used to after a while. Maybe you'll be getting detention often in the future?"
"That's impossible!" Ron exclaimed, widening his eyes.
"But Hagrid said he'll be with us," Harry said with a slight sigh.
After speaking, he looked up at Dylan and said, "Also, Dylan, Hagrid asked me to tell you that he hopes you can visit him when you have time. He has something he wants to talk to you about—he misses you a lot."
Harry's words were euphemistic, but Dylan still understood their meaning.
Clearly, Hagrid wanted to talk to him about Norbert—in other words, Hagrid missed his little dragon.
Dylan nodded gently. "I understand. I'll go visit when I have time, but I'm busy now—I've been busy lately."
Harry blinked slightly, then nodded. "I'll pass your words on to Hagrid."
Then the two of them went to eat. Dylan had already eaten, so there was no need for him to go.
Summoning Coal, Dylan hugged him while organizing his notes.
At the same time, he pondered what the three professors' dueling assessment would be like and how he should respond.
Should he show as many of the spells he knew as possible, or should he hide some of his strength?
—Of course, even if he showed them, it would be the normal spells or hexes, black magic was out of the question.
What if one black magic spell went off and directly got rid of a professor?
It was seven o'clock in the evening.
Harry and Ron hadn't returned since they went to eat.
Dylan didn't wait for Neville and Seamus either, but instead received a message from Professor McGonagall.
"We have discussed the content of your assessment during dinner. See you in the Great Hall at ten o'clock tonight."
Dylan raised an eyebrow.
Ten o'clock at night?
Wasn't that after curfew?
Asking him to go to the Great Hall...
Could this already be the start of the assessment?
Was he supposed to evade Filch's pursuit first?
"However, after Filch cleaned up that lavatory today, his patrol tonight might not be very thorough."
Dylan pursed his lips and packed his things.
It was around nine fifty.
Neville and Seamus had already returned to sleep.
Dylan then put Coal back into his pet space, transformed into a shadow, passed through the wall, and left without making a sound.
He hurried all the way to the Great Hall, not encountering anyone on the way.
Before approaching the Great Hall, he dispersed Coal's power and walked to the door.
The side door of the Great Hall was half-open. Dylan gently pushed it open and saw that the entire hall had been rearranged.
The magical star chart hanging from the ceiling of the Great Hall was simulating the midnight sky.
The long tables where the students usually ate had disappeared, and the entire spacious area had been transformed into a huge platform, similar to a boxing ring.
Around the platform stood imposing stone statues, each holding weapons, guarding the surroundings.
Dylan's gaze moved upwards, and he saw Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, and Professor Snape standing on the platform. Seeing his head peek out from the door crack, their gazes all turned towards him.
"Dylan, you're just in time. I just finished setting up these stone guardians." Professor McGonagall looked at Dylan and quickly waved at him.
Stone guardians?
"..."
Dylan swallowed.
Watching Professor McGonagall's excitement, Dylan looked at the platform, pondered for a moment, then pushed the door open completely, walked in, and approached the platform.
"Professor, is my dueling assessment going to be the three of you attacking me together?—Plus these statues?"
Dylan looked around.
Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Head of Gryffindor House—Professor McGonagall.
Head of Ravenclaw House, former Dueling Club champion—Professor Flitwick.
The youngest Head of Slytherin House in history—Professor Snape.
And—the guardian stone statues of Hogwarts.
What was the plan?
Voldemort wasn't even here!
With such a big setup, anyone who didn't know better would think they were beating up Dylan as if he were Voldemort!
Dylan had originally thought that the professors' assessment would just be like before, checking his mastery of spells.
Unexpectedly, judging by this setup, it seemed they really intended for the three professors to duel him?
Him against three—no, and those guardian stone statues of Hogwarts.
Him against so many old guys, wasn't that a bit too much?
He wasn't Voldemort!
Professor McGonagall's smile deepened the wrinkles on her face. "The assessment will still be one person at a time. After all, it wouldn't be right for the three of us professors to attack one student simultaneously. But if you'd like, we can change the assessment method."
"No, no need to change it. Let's just follow your arrangements, Professor." Dylan flatly rejected Professor McGonagall's suggestion.
The latter nodded.
"It's already quite late, let's not waste any more time—who wants to start first?" Professor Snape's voice held a hint of impatience.
But to Dylan, it sounded like it also contained a bit of... eagerness?
"Good heavens!"
Dylan took a deep breath and walked up the stairs to the platform.
He had to admit that the three professors must have put some thought into arranging the venue—the platform looked quite sturdy and was very large.
"Since Dylan is my student, I shall be the first to examine his progress," Professor McGonagall said with a smile.
Professor Flitwick and Professor Snape both had no objections.
The former stepped lightly and was the first to descend from the platform, raising his hand to tidy the robes he had specially worn for this occasion, his movements carrying a touch of scholarly elegance.
The latter was still in his usual cold-faced black robes, like the night in motion, following Professor Flitwick unhurriedly.
Dylan looked in the direction they had gone down and noticed a small rest area set up on the other side of the platform.
Several comfortable recliners were placed there, and three tables were arranged in a row beside them, filled with a dazzling array of delicacies.
"I told you it would be better to have a resting place," Professor Flitwick said in a light tone.
"Showy," Professor Snape said coldly.
The two walked over and slowly sat down.
Professor Flitwick first picked a small cake from the pile of pastries, took a bite, and a satisfied expression appeared on his face. Then he picked up a wine glass and took a small sip.
Professor Snape simply took a glass of ruby-red wine, leaned back in his chair, and looked at the platform.
—Dylan clearly saw a hint of mockery in Professor Snape's eyes.
"That restrained yet slightly cunning stubbornness, truly worthy of you, Professor Snape."
The corner of Dylan's mouth twitched.
"Don't tell me you get this distracted during a real duel."
The moment Professor McGonagall's voice rang out, a wave of scorching heat rushed towards Dylan.
Dylan immediately turned back, his wand moving steadily. "Hydra Emerge!"
The trajectory of the young wizard's wand was like the surging waves of the Black Lake, the phantoms of nine water snakes appearing and disappearing in the steam.
Dylan reshaped the Aqua Eructo spell, transforming the water flow into flamboyant and ferocious water snakes, colliding with the fiery lion summoned by Professor McGonagall.
Snape suddenly scoffed from the recliner, "Do lions also summon giant snakes?"
His long fingers were stroking a crystal goblet, the glass reflecting the comical scene of Flitwick using a fork to conduct dancing cutlery.
"Magic knows no species," Professor Flitwick chuckled.
Professor McGonagall on the platform narrowed her eyes, raised her wand, and with a roar, the fiery lion charged straight forward.
The moment water and fire collided, a deafening roar erupted.
Professor McGonagall's fiery lion shattered the water snakes, the bursting steam condensing into rain clouds on the ceiling. The water vapor quickly spread, blurring the view on the platform, and Dylan's robes were lifted by the heatwave.
He waved his wand again. "Thalassa Wrath!"
The water Dylan summoned dissipated by more than half, but the remaining clear water instantly condensed into surging waves, attacking Professor McGonagall with the force of thunder, the crests of the waves flashing with cold light, carrying an overwhelming momentum.
"Impressive technique. Your mastery of Transfiguration seems to exceed even my initial expectations."
Dylan stood at the source of the waves, looking at Professor McGonagall, who, facing the oncoming raging tide, still had the composure to praise him.
Then, in the blink of an eye, Professor McGonagall transformed into a tabby cat, leaping and dodging swiftly at the edge of the platform. The huge waves crashed down, but struck empty air.
The moment she landed, light flashed again, and Professor McGonagall instantly returned to human form, her wand raised high without hesitation, her voice ringing out.
"Piertotum Locomotor!"
In an instant, the light at the tip of her wand surged and burst forth.
Professor McGonagall's spell triggered a chain reaction among the stone statues below the platform. The once still guardian statues moved as if injected with life, creaking and groaning, with bits of plaster falling from their bodies.
"Thump!"
A unified step sounded, and all the guardian statues stomped down fiercely, and with a low rumble, the heavy statues flew onto the platform like arrows shot from a bow, protecting Professor McGonagall behind them.
The corner of Dylan's mouth twitched. "Professor, you haven't even gained an advantage over me yet, surely you don't need to use your ultimate move right from the start?"
"Ultimate moves are best used early," Professor McGonagall chuckled, waving her wand to control the movements of the guardian statues.
"I think we shouldn't reduce the lessons after all. You haven't taught me this move yet," Dylan's figure quickly shifted sideways.
"If you can become a professor at Hogwarts, I believe Albus would agree to let me teach you this spell," Professor McGonagall pointed her wand.
"Boom boom boom!"
The statues swarmed towards Dylan.
Moss seeped from the chainmail gaps of the knight statues, and the stone hooves of the warhorse statues almost shattered the moonstone bricks at the edge of the platform.
When the leading statue swung its greatsword, Dylan smelled the sulfurous scent carried by the blade—clearly Professor McGonagall had mixed a small amount of volcanic ash when summoning them.
"Avis!"
Dylan flicked his arm lightly, his movements without the slightest hesitation, and then a flock of birds appeared out of thin air, circling and flying above Dylan's head.
Without stopping, Dylan waved his wand again.
"Oppugno!"
Swish swish swish!
The birds spread their wings and flew swiftly towards the guardian statues attacking Dylan, weaving between them.
Sharp claws and beaks constantly attacked the statues, each contact even sparking, causing stone chips to fly off the statues' bodies.
"Your summoning spell is perfectly integrated with Transfiguration. Even the body structure of these birds, including their claws, has been transformed by you into another form?"
Professor McGonagall's slightly surprised voice rang out, "Your understanding of this spell is so profound, it completely exceeds my expectations!"
"That's all thanks to your excellent teaching, Professor McGonagall."
In the chaotic battle, Dylan strolled among a flock of birds.
—The number of those birds seemed endless, surrounding Dylan, even enveloping his figure, making him vaguely invisible.
Dylan advanced unhurriedly, any stone statue that approached him would be directly repelled by him.
The statues further away were blocked by the birds he had summoned.
"If we're just talking about this one spell, you're outstanding, but—the power of Transfiguration is not limited to this!"
As Professor McGonagall's voice rang out, the wand in her hand quickly drew an arc in the air, and the surrounding air seemed to be stirred by some force.
In an instant, a flame sprang up out of nowhere, the vast magical power surging violently, making the flame burn even more fiercely.
This flame quickly transformed into a lion even larger than the first one.
Every strand of the fiery lion's mane flickered with flames. It roared to the sky, the sound shaking the surrounding air.
Then, it pushed off with its hind legs, leaping high, bringing with it a wave of heat, and charged into the flock of birds.
"Whoosh!"
The intense flames erupting from the fiery lion scorched the birds, causing them to screech and fall to the ground.
The originally dense flock of birds rapidly decreased in number.
As the number of birds sharply declined, Dylan's figure was about to be exposed.
However, he had also silently moved to the other side of Professor McGonagall, his wand pointed directly at her.
"Bat-Bogey Hex!"
The hex shot out swiftly.
Professor McGonagall felt the approach of magic amidst the flock of birds and flames. Her body rapidly shrank, transforming into a tabby cat, narrowly dodging the attack. After landing, she returned to human form, a hint of annoyance flashing across her face.
"Bat-Bogey Hex? Dylan, you actually used such a hex on me."
"Sorry, Professor, but in a duel, one must use every means possible."
"Well said!"
Professor McGonagall raised her wand, and the power of the fiery lion intensified even more terrifyingly.
The dazzling light illuminated the entire Great Hall.
Dylan's eyes widened. "But then again, Professor, you don't need to go all out, do you?"
Professor McGonagall smiled. "Sorry, Dylan, one must always give it their all in a duel."
"..."
Dylan's face darkened, then his gaze became firm.
"(｀^) Okay, Professor, I won't be afraid of you either!"
He quickly waved his wand.
"Incendio!"
A burst of flames instantly condensed in front of him, the heat radiating outwards, pushing back the statues that were lunging at him.
"Flamilionus!"
The spreading heatwave quickly solidified, reassembling as Dylan waved his wand, then twisting and reshaping until it also transformed into a fiery lion.
The two lions met, both lifelike, and then engaged in a fierce battle against each other.
They tore and collided, each clash sparking dazzling flames, and even the surrounding air was distorted by the high temperature.
Until finally, with a loud roar, the two fiery lions were tightly entangled, simultaneously erupting with intense light, and then completely消弭.
Only a patch of scorching residual heat remained on the platform, filled with the lingering smoke of battle.
Dylan slowly lowered his wand, his chest rising and falling slightly, his eyes filled with admiration and respect.
He hadn't considered other spells just now, simply using all his strength in Transfiguration, truly confronting Professor McGonagall head-on—tit for tat!
This also made him feel the profound foundation of the other party in the art of Transfiguration!
Even though his Transfiguration was almost at max level, the gap of those one or two levels still seemed to create a chasm between him and Professor McGonagall!
"Professor, you were still going easy on me. I had many new insights from the Transfiguration you just performed."
Dylan stepped forward, bowed slightly, and respectfully bowed to Professor McGonagall, his back curving into a humble arc.
(End of chapter)
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