77: Chicken Farmer and Harry Parseltongue

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In the Great Hall.

The long tables had all disappeared, replaced by a gilded stage.

The ceiling of the hall had turned into a velvet-like black, with hundreds of candles illuminating the stage.

A Duel Club.

Such a novel concept was something Hogwarts students wouldn't miss.

Nearly the entire school had come. Though the fear of the Chamber of Secrets had been dispelled by John, the students were still very interested in his last duel on stage.

When they arrived and saw the extravagantly dressed Lockhart, most of the students, except for Harry and his friends, weren't too disappointed.

This was thanks to the lesson plans John had created for him, which prevented Lockhart from completely falling apart.

At least in the eyes of the public, he was a wizard who preferred theory over practical work.

Since he was teaching the knowledge from his autobiographies, the students were more convinced that Lockhart was quite capable.

Only Harry, who had seen him struggle with even a simple household spell and another time where he had nearly removed Harry's bones, was resistant.

"Ahem, quiet, everyone quiet."

Lockhart, in yet another flamboyant wizard's robe, signaled for silence as all eyes focused on him.

He flashed the smile that had won him the "Witch Weekly's" Most Charming Smile Award five times.

"It's like this: Professor Dumbledore has allowed me to start this little Duelling Club to properly train you all, just in case you ever need to defend yourselves. I have used these techniques countless times to protect myself, and John Wick here should be well aware of that, as he has been trained under my guidance..."

Lockhart began to ramble on, to the point where the students were growing impatient.

Fortunately, Lockhart had some self-awareness and, after his lengthy speech, introduced his assistant.

When Snape walked onto the stage, Harry and Ron both gulped and exchanged worried glances, wondering if Lockhart had lost his mind.

"Don't worry, I'll return your Potions Master to you in one piece," Lockhart said with a wink, completely oblivious to the dark aura practically emanating from Snape.

He exaggeratedly gestured with his hands, "Now, let's hear a few words from Professor Snape."

Professor Snape coldly remarked, "Some of you idiots have been keeping roosters in your dormitories. I hope that once you've learned to duel, you'll remember that you're wizards."

The students below felt a wave of guilt.

Some had discovered that the monster in the Chamber of Secrets was a Basilisk, and knowing that Basilisks fear the crowing of roosters, it had become a trend among students to keep chickens.

Now, no one needed an alarm clock in the morning—the rooster crows were loud enough to give everyone a headache.

With those few simple words, Professor Snape had already turned to face Lockhart.

Harry could tell that Snape's upper lip had curled—a sure sign of danger.

If Snape looked at him like that, Harry would probably have already bolted, his legs giving way beneath him.

Lockhart, however, managed to turn even a bow into a display of various flourishes, which only made Snape shake his head in exasperation.

After each raised their wands in a salute, they moved to opposite ends of the stage.

"As you can see, we are holding our wands in the standard dueling position," Lockhart continued to ramble, while the impatience in Snape's eyes grew more and more evident.

Lockhart began counting.

The moment he reached three, both raised their wands above their shoulders, and Snape immediately took the initiative.

"Expelliarmus!"

A bright red light shot across the stage and struck Lockhart. However, Lockhart didn't fly backward as Harry had imagined.

Instead, the light was absorbed by what seemed to be a protective charm, like armor, blocking the attack. Lockhart seemed momentarily unaware of what had just happened.

Professor Snape's eyes showed a hint of surprise and curiosity.

"Did you see that? A brilliant display of attack and defense," Lockhart quickly recovered, trying to appear nonchalant.

He then activated the enchanted ring, sending a red beam of light flying toward Snape.

Professor Snape reacted swiftly, deftly deflecting the red light and counterattacking in return.

The two wizards exchanged spells, with Lockhart somehow managing to block each of Snape's curses.

The students gasped in amazement, and the girls' eyes sparkled with admiration for Lockhart.

As the duel continued, Professor Snape began to take things more seriously.

"Levicorpus!"

Once again, the Shield Charm appeared, blocking the spell, and Lockhart, feeling overly confident, didn't realize that his protective charm had been used up a lot by now.

He countered with a Petrificus Totalus, which Snape deflected before channeling power into a Disarming Charm that sent Lockhart flying.

Lockhart's wand flew out of his hand, and only then did he notice that his protective charm had been exhausted.

He quickly stopped Snape from continuing, stood up, and laughed, "Did you see that? That's a Disarming Charm—I lost my wand. I thought you should see it."

Lockhart pretended that he had been disarmed on purpose.

Harry and Ron exchanged glances, feeling that Lockhart's words were somewhat hollow.

"Of course, I could have easily prevented it, but I wanted you to learn something... ehm*" Lockhart added, though noticing Snape's darkening expression, he quickly concluded, "The demonstration is over. Now I'll come down and join you. Pair up for duels!"

The students, already excited by the impressive display they had just witnessed, eagerly prepared to start dueling themselves.

Snape quickly thwarted Harry's plan to train with Ron, circling the room to find an opponent for Harry.

His gaze passed over John, as he was too dangerous an option. Finally, Snape settled on Malfoy, beckoning him over to have a more "in-depth" exchange with the Boy Who Lived.

John was also looking for a duel partner, but everyone instinctively avoided him. The memory of him single-handedly taking on the entire Slytherin house was still fresh, and no one wanted to face such a challenge.

"May I duel with you?"

A handsome older boy approached, and John, seeing that he wasn't avoiding him, gladly agreed.

"I'm Cedric Diggory, fourth-year Hufflepuff."

Cedric's eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. He respectfully greeted John, mimicking Snape and Lockhart's earlier gestures.

"May I call you John?"

"Of course, Cedric."

This impressive Hufflepuff student caught John's interest. John lightly touched his badge, bowed slightly, and smiled, "Let's begin."

Cedric's smile faded as he focused, launching a skilled Disarming Charm. John's eyebrow twitched as he deftly deflected the red light with his wand and countered.

He quickly realized that Cedric was quite strong, certainly stronger than some of the Slytherins of Cedric's year he had faced before.

With a flick of his wand, John effortlessly deflected all of Cedric's attacks.

Seizing an opportunity, John unleashed a quick three-spell combo:

"Langlock!"

"Fermio!"

"Expulso!"

Just as Cedric was about to cast a spell, his tongue glued itself to the roof of his mouth, rendering him speechless.

"!!"

His robes suddenly tightened, constricting his movements, and then a burst of sparks hit him, sending him flying backward.

"OMhp!"

He landed on the ground with a wry smile.

"Mmm mmm mmm..."

Unable to speak, he pointed to his mouth.

John walked over, dispelled the jinx, and helped him up.

"You're incredible, John. You're hardly like a student at all."

Cedric, accepting his defeat graciously, looked at John with admiration and curiously asked, "Are you planning to become an Auror?"

John shrugged casually and replied, "Heh~ Maybe, but being an Auror might not be the best fit for me."

As they finished their duel and looked around, they noticed that the rest of the Great Hall had descended into chaos, with no one else engaging in proper dueling.

Hermione and a chubby Slytherin girl were in a full-on brawl, having thrown their wands aside and completely forgotten they were witches.

Lockhart realized things were getting out of control and shouted for everyone to stop.

But it was Professor Snape who ultimately put an end to the chaos.

However, there were still some injuries, and in the end, Lockhart decided to have two students come up and demonstrate proper dueling.

He considered calling Neville, but then remembered how Neville had been chasing people around with a sword earlier, so he held back.

Snape seized the opportunity to have Malfoy and Harry go up instead.

This was perfect—two of the most heated opponents were now facing off!!

As soon as they were on stage, the animosity was palpable. Malfoy clenched his teeth, determined to get back at Harry for the Levicorpus spell earlier.

When Lockhart finished counting down, Malfoy immediately cast one of his favorite curses.

"Serpensortia!"

The tip of his wand exploded, and a long, black snake shot out from the cloud of smoke, landing on the floor between them.

Gasp!

"..A.. A.."

"A Snake!"

The sight of it sent the crowd into a frenzy of screams. Snape, amused by the spectacle, drawled lazily, "Tsk* Don't move, Potter. I'll take care of it."

However, Lockhart, thinking he could handle the situation, rushed forward and waved his wand. The snake flew up a yard into the air before crashing back down, even angrier.

Nearby, Justin Finch-Fletchley stood frozen in place as the snake slithered menacingly towards him.

Harry only wanted to stop the snake. He opened his mouth to speak to it, but the sound that came out was chilling.

"$Leave him alone$"

He intended to stop the snake but was completely unaware that he was speaking in Parseltongue.

Everyone else, however, thought Harry was commanding the snake to attack Justin Finch-Fletchley.

At that moment, another voice rang out.

"Stop."

The snake, which had just started to relax, suddenly felt a pressure bearing down on it.

It looked up and saw a pair of dark pupils that held the might of a strong being that made it go limp.

When Justin saw the figure, he immediately felt a surge of security. "J-John! Thanks a lot, Mate!"

He angrily shouted at Harry, "What kind of trick do you think you're playing? We have John Wick!"

Harry was confused, not understanding what was happening.

John drew his wand and turned the snake into black smoke. He then looked up at Harry, his eyes so deep that they filled Harry with a sense of dread.

"The dueling club is over for today. Disperse," John said, giving Lockhart a signal. Lockhart quickly caught on and announced the end.

But this event would lead to even greater turmoil in the days to come.

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