Harry Potter: Westeros's Plant Life

While the intense magical combat continued on the dueling platform above, Harry was caught up in the excitement that had spread through the crowd of watching students.

"Did you see that?" He exclaimed as he reached over to pat Ron's back with perhaps a bit more force than necessary. "Professor Westeros is completely dominating Snape! Look at how he's controlling the entire fight!"

Ron, who had been watching the duel with the engrossed attention barely registered his friend's enthusiastic thumping. His face was turned toward the platform, his eyes turned wide with wonder.

"I know—anyone with eyes can see that," Ron replied absently.

The duel between Adrian and Snape had completely captured Ron's imagination in a way that few things ever had. The fluid, clean, graceful spellcasting was pleasing to anyone's eye.

Ron suddenly developed a strong interest in dueling, thinking how impressive it would be if he were standing in Adrian's position.

Meanwhile, on the dueling platform, sweat beads had already formed on Snape's forehead. He had been forced to retreat until he occupied only about one-fifth of the available platform space. A few more steps back and he would find himself pressed against the stone wall with nowhere left to maneuver.

The hem of his black robes had just been torn by a passing Cutting Curse, revealing the dark gray lining beneath.

'Damn it,' Snape thought, his mind racing as he parried another spell. 'How is this possible? How could he have become this powerful in such a short time?'

Snape found it hard to believe.

He had fought with Adrian last year, and at that time he could even suppress Adrian.

But now this... this was like facing an entirely different wizard. Whether measured by the raw speed of his spellcasting, the power behind each magical attack, or the tactical cleverness of his combinations and timing, Adrian's abilities had undergone a transformation in such a short time that it couldn't be rationally explained.

This completely caught him off guard. That's why, Under Adrian's swift offensive, he could barely defend, let alone counterattack.

The most frustrating aspect of the entire situation was that Adrian still appeared to be holding back. This wasn't even his full strength.

Snape knew that if he didn't use his most destructive spells and other skilled Dark Magic—like Sectumsempra—he would have no chance of winning.

Such spells would certainly even the odds, might even give him the advantage he needed to turn the tide of battle. But as the thought crossed his mind, he dismissed it.

But even if he did, so what?

He didn't believe Adrian had no trump cards just like those plant magics of his. Those weren't to be trifled with.

Just as Snape was struggling with whether to use Dark Magic...

Adrian's attack speed gradually slowed and finally stopped.

"The demonstration is over, Professor Snape," Adrian twirled his wand and gently tucked it into his sleeve, smiling slightly. "I believe the students have gained sufficient understanding of proper dueling techniques and procedures."

The words were tactful enough. Adrian was offering Snape a face-saving way to end the confrontation.

Snape's expression was uncertain. He straightened his spell-torn robes and said hoarsely in his usual soft tone, "We haven't determined a winner yet, Professor Westeros. Are you perhaps... afraid to continue?"

He wouldn't acknowledge Adrian's victory—after all, he hadn't used his most powerful spells yet. So, who would win was still uncertain.

However, Adrian shook his head and said easily: "That's enough, Professor Snape. If we were to continue our demonstration much further, I'm afraid some of our students might be injured by the magical spillover effects."

To emphasize his point, he gestured toward the dueling platform beneath their feet. The wooden surface now had the cracks due to their duel, some wide enough that the support structure beneath was clearly visible.

Even the transparent protective barriers that Adrian had conjured earlier showed signs of crack.

Snape's gaze swept across the thoroughly damaged platform, taking in the destruction that surrounded them. They had indeed come dangerously close to creating genuinely dangerous conditions for the watching students.

So, he could only nod reluctantly.

"Very well,"

He naturally knew Adrian made sense, but the unwillingness in his heart made it impossible for him to give up.

"If you want to continue determining a winner, we might need a more spacious place," Adrian touched his chin and suggested.

Hearing Adrian's words, Snape slowly withdrew his wand and said with a stern face: "Another day then. I'll be waiting."

After speaking, Snape slowly walked down from the dueling platform.

The duel between Adrian and Snape had come to an imperfect end. Though somewhat anticlimactic, it was overall a high-quality, exciting duel.

Immediately, the students began thunderous applause.

Some students even began chanting Adrian's name.

Harry excitedly clapped, trying to squeeze to the front of the crowd, but accidentally bumped into someone's shoulder.

"Sorry about that—" He began automatically.

However, when he saw that person's face, his expression turned cold.

Wasn't this Malfoy?

Malfoy looked terrible, clearly having noticed his House Head was falling behind in the duel.

"Watch where you're going, Potter," Malfoy snarled, his voice carrying all of its usual venom. "Why aren't you staying with your mud... your lowlife friends where you belong?"

Harry noticed that Malfoy had started to say "Mudblood" but had caught himself at the last moment. A quick glance revealed the reason: Snape was still within hearing range, and Malfoy had enough sense to avoid using language that might result in punishment.

"Who I stay with isn't your business to manage," Harry thought for a moment, then changed tack with a smile: "That was a nice duel, wasn't it? Though Professor Snape... lost."

Harry deliberately raised his voice so the Slytherin students around Malfoy could hear.

"Shut your mouth, Potter!" Malfoy's face instantly flushed red. "Are you blind? Professor Snape didn't lose anything! The duel was stopped before anyone could win!"

"You're absolutely right," Harry said with exaggerated reasonableness, his tone carrying just enough false sympathy to make it clear he was belittling his opponent. "Professor Snape certainly didn't lose. My mistake."

With that, he shrugged and turned away, dismissing Malfoy.

Mission accomplished.

Meanwhile, Professor Lockhart had somehow managed to return to the dueling platform. His appearance was somewhat improved from his earlier humiliation.

"Thank you! Thank you, Professor Westeros and Professor Snape, for this wonderful dueling demonstration," Lockhart tidied his messy hair and flashed a brilliant smile: "But honestly speaking, if I had gone up... using my real strength, I could have ended the battle in three minutes! After all, I described similar scenes in 'Dancing with Werewolves'..."

A small chorus of boos erupted from various points in the crowd, cutting off his bragging monologue mid-sentence.

Down in the crowd, Ron leaned over to whisper in Hermione's ear. "Well, now you can see Lockhart's true level of ability, can't you? After watching a real duel, his whole act just looks pathetic."

"I saw through his pretenses long ago," Hermione replied calmly.

However, Lockhart had enough social awareness to recognize that his audience was no longer interested to his usual promotional tactics. Rather than acknowledging the negative response, he pretended not to hear the commotion below and maintained his brilliant smile.

"Now then!" he announced, clapping his hands together. "I believe it's time for our young students to gain some practical experience of their own! Everyone will pair up in groups of two for hands-on dueling exercises!"

His smile somehow managed to become even more brilliant as he gestured toward his fellow professors. "Professor Westeros, Professor Snape—your assistance in organizing these practice sessions would be most appreciated!"

Adrian nodded his acceptance of the assignment and moved into the crowd to begin the process of arranging appropriate groups.

Snape and Lockhart followed suit, though their approaches to the task differed significantly in both method and enthusiasm.

When Adrian reached the section of the crowd where Harry was standing, he found himself facing an unexpected dilemma.

'Who should I arrange as Harry's partner?'

From a purely practical standpoint, most of the second-year students would be entirely unsuitable opponents for Harry. The intensive training they had conducted over the summer holidays had raised Harry's magical abilities beyond those of his peers. Combined with his natural talent, Harry could likely hold his own against students several years his senior.

Most second-year students, while not completely lacking combat ability, had a significant gap compared to Harry.

As Adrian pondered this problem, Lockhart noticed the hesitation and approached with his usual confidence.

"Ah, Potter!" Lockhart said brightly. "You and Miss Granger—"

"I'll do it!"

Malfoy suddenly emerged from the crowd, quickly walking between Harry and Lockhart. His voice was louder than usual, seeming particularly abrupt.

Harry narrowed his eyes, about to say something, but Lockhart spoke first.

"Excellent!" He exclaimed, clapping his hands together with obvious delight. "This is precisely what we need—two volunteers willing to demonstrate proper dueling technique for their fellow students! Mr. Potter, Mr. Malfoy, please join me on the platform!"

Malfoy immediately began making his way toward the dueling stage.

Seeing the situation, Adrian quietly drew his wand and began casting a series of subtle Repairing Charms on the damaged dueling platform.

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