So-called rumors, of course, always spread in the direction the masses want to hear. If people felt a story didn't make sense, the first thing they'd do would be to question it. Only when it sounds highly plausible to them will they happily pass the rumor along, embellishing it all the way.
So, after all the afternoon's chaos, the conclusion spread everywhere was simple: Allen's knee had taken an arrow—yes, absolutely, something was definitely going on!
Some enthusiastic witnesses even swore in their honor that after watching a high-quality duel, they personally saw the two of them leaving hand in hand, supporting each other. Under the crimson glow of the setting sun, their silhouettes looked astonishingly harmonious—so much so that they could practically pass for a textbook example of lovers.
It was said with such conviction that even Allen himself almost believed it. Just how bored do these people have to be?
Of course they were bored. This was the exchange period, after all. Aside from second-year students—whose workload not only failed to decrease but actually increased—everyone else was taking exchange classes. Homework had practically vanished. Even Professor McGonagall, who was famously fond of assigning homework, clearly wasn't about to dump a mountain of exercises on students at a time like this. As a result, everyone had been thoroughly liberated.¹
In reality, when it came to homework, young witches and wizards weren't all that different from Muggles. Hermione's assignments had been borrowed by Harry countless times, and even if others couldn't get theirs from Hermione, they could always get someone else's. Among wizards, that kind of "reference" couldn't possibly be called plagiarism, right?
In short, once freed from homework, people had to find something else to do. The recent riot had led to strict limits on celebratory activities, and Allen just happened to fall right into their hands. So naturally, rumors of every conceivable version began flying around.
Although early romance wasn't uncommon across various countries, for young witches and wizards, love still carried a certain air of mystery. You could see it clearly during school balls—just how desperate everyone was to find a partner. In fact, it wasn't just the boys who were anxious. The girls were anxious too, glaring at those cowardly boys!
And so, at this moment, the bold Kaoru stepped forward—and Allen, who already had a fair bit of fame among the students, also happened to be involved. Together, they conveniently became the protagonists of everyone's imagined sweet romance. After all, the storytellers had already inserted the two of them into the tale—and while they were at it, inserted themselves as well. Under those circumstances, how could sparks not fly?
Hearing all these different versions of the rumors left Allen genuinely shocked. He even started questioning reality itself. *Have I really done something like that? Could it be that my future self used a Time-Turner or something and came back to pull an S/L stunt?*
Naturally, that was impossible. After the twins personally vouched for Allen, even the roommates who had never fully trusted the rumors began worrying along with him.
Why were they worried?
It was simple. Counting today's incident, the people in their dorm had practically stabbed that poor girl in the heart several times over.
The one whose emotions fluctuated the most was Marshall. Unfortunately, despite usually being fearless, he completely chickened out this time. He had no choice but to—he still had plenty of messes of his own to clean up.
The real problem now was this: how were they supposed to compensate the girl? They couldn't exactly just hand Marshall over to her—and whether she'd even want him was another question entirely.
But the issue was that, aside from a still-dazed Marshall himself, nearly everyone present was single. As for Marshall's own suggestions? No one trusted them. If this guy were actually reliable, he wouldn't have caused this many problems in the first place.
What kind of brilliant plan could a bunch of clueless single guys possibly come up with?
Of course—none at all. Fortunately, salvation arrived quickly.
When you hear that a friend has suddenly succeeded in romance, it's only natural for mischievous friends to offer a round of "blessings," followed by a round of messing with them. That was nothing unusual.
However, the people who showed up weren't actually looking for Allen. Instead, they came for the twins—Harry and the others.
Earlier that day in class, their professor had introduced a rather advanced piece of magic to broaden their horizons. On one hand, it was meant to show just how powerful the later lessons would become; on the other, it served as a deterrent, keeping the troublemakers in line. Professor McGonagall had used this exact tactic in Transfiguration class before—old-fashioned, perhaps, but undeniably effective.
The advanced magic in question was something akin to spatial folding. Right in front of the students' astonished gazes, the professor stuffed the lectern into a tiny handbag, triggering a chorus of gasps from the young witches and wizards.
Harry and the others also thought it was amazing—but it felt oddly familiar. It wasn't until they discussed it during the class's exchange period that they realized why. They had seen something similar before. Allen seemed to have a bag that could never be emptied.
Combined with how Allen always appeared to know a bit of everything, Harry and Hermione quickly reached a consensus: Allen must be carrying an item enchanted with similar magic. They planned to have him explain this mysterious spell that the professor had deliberately glossed over.
However, the moment they entered the camp, they heard the rumors about today's incident. And it wasn't just them—pretty much everyone who knew Allen was planning to offer congratulations… along with a healthy dose of gossip.
Failing to find Allen left the trio rather disappointed. But at that moment, Ron stepped forward. He had suddenly remembered that his family's car seemed to have undergone a similar modification.
While it certainly didn't look as outrageous as stuffing a desk into a tiny bag, the underlying magical principles were clearly similar. That made things simple—he decided to seek help from his brothers.
Although the twins didn't always appear particularly friendly toward Ron, there was no way they'd refuse a small request from their younger brother. As a result, the group quickly made their way to the tent.
Had they arrived a little earlier, they might have been fooled by the magic. Unfortunately—or perhaps fortunately—the original experiment had been temporary. On top of that, everyone inside was busy thinking through solutions, so the magic hadn't been maintained. After greeting them, the three heard voices inside and stepped in.
What they saw immediately startled them. The not-so-spacious tent was packed with people, all of whom looked deeply troubled, as though something was weighing heavily on them.
At that moment, the trio assumed these guys were pondering some profound magical problem. After all, everyone knew that during the recent large-scale modifications of Hogwarts' tents, it was entirely possible they'd gotten stuck on some collective transformation plan.
The three didn't even dare breathe too loudly, afraid of interrupting their train of thought—until the story suddenly took an interesting turn.
Under their slightly awed gazes, Marshall's head was sharply flicked by someone else's finger.
"You tell me—this is all your fault. Having fun now?"
Only then did the troubled group notice the newcomers.
"Oh, hey. What brings you here? Finished today's classes? Homework no longer a problem?"
That was right. Unlike the upperclassmen who were drowning in free time, second-year students laying their foundations had nearly two-thirds more classes, along with a corresponding spike in homework. That was why everyone always joked like this when they met.
After responding to the fourth-years' teasing with a round of eye-rolls, the three explained their purpose. But Shane stopped them.
"That's a small matter. Since you're here anyway, help us think this through—what's the best way to handle the current situation?"