Chapter 159: Ariana vs. Ginny
"Ariana, what powerful magic did Aberforth teach you?"
Hode asked curiously, as he was very curious whether Aberforth, like Gellert, would rest assured teaching Arianaall kinds of powerful magic that were dangerous yet effective for self-protection.
"Hmm... Let me think."
Ariana touched her bald chin, making a pensive gesture.
"I thought of it! Brother taught me Fiendfyre, the Blasting Curse, the Reductor Curse, Firestorm..."
"Alright! Stop! Say no more!"
Hode immediately interrupted Ariana. He had already confirmed that, aside from the Three Unforgivable Curses, Aberforth had probably taught her every single offensive magic he knew.
Aberforth: "I am doing this to protect Ariana from being bullied!" (Proud face)
Hode helplessly facepalmed, then reminded Ariana.
"You don't need to hold back when you duel others later; I will be watching! But still, try not to kill anyone."
Ariana obediently nodded, looking like she would definitely take those words to heart.
"Rest assured! Brother also said that to me!"
But these words instead made Hode feel that something was a bit off.
However, Hode didn't think too much about it. After teaching the students some combat skills, Hode had them start pairing up in twos to conduct one-on-one duels.
Fortunately, the stage built by Hode covered a very large area, enough for everyone to fully showcase their skills.
Hermione and Flitwick shuttled back and forth on the stage, guiding the crowd.
As for Hode, he flew into the air. Even wearing an eyepatch, he could still clearly see every single action of everyone below, and even a grain of sand lifted by the wind could be perceived by him.
Hode watched the scene below very casually. Whenever he noticed someone unable to withstand the opponent's magic or about to get hurt, Hode would cast a shield on them to protect them.
Below, Ariana enthusiastically began looking for an opponent.
But whenever she challenged others, they would righteously refuse, which distressed her greatly.
The reason why those people refused Ariana was mainly because Dumbledore's reputation was simply too terrifying!
Losing to Ariana was fine, but if they accidentally hurt her... the consequences were something they didn't dare to imagine.
Ariana didn't know their thoughts; she only thought she was unpopular, which was why she faced rejections.
Then Ariana found several more people, all the way until she reached the Weasley Twins.
Hearing that Ariana wanted to duel one of them, the Weasley Twins shook their heads in unison.
Fred: "Oh, my little princess! The two of us have elderly parents above and young children below! We really dare not compare ourselves to you! If we accidentally hurt you, the two of us probably won't live to graduation day!"
George took over the conversation: "That's right! Please be magnanimous and let the two of us go, we will surely be at your beck and call! We really don't want to die at Hogwarts! Maybe we'll become Hogwarts ghosts... that actually doesn't sound bad either!"
Fred was likewise attracted by George's words.
"That's right! After we become ghosts, what Myrtle, what Peeves! None of them will be a match for our pair of brothers in a single blow!"
Ariana looked at the two excitedly discussing, only feeling that her IQ was being contaminated, so she immediately stayed away from them.
Just as Ariana was preparing to continue searching, she suddenly discovered Luna, who was all alone!
"Ginny! Let's duel!"
Hearing someone call her name, Ginny turned her head and saw Ariana running towards her.
"Ariana, you want to duel with me?"
Ginny pointed at herself, looking at Ariana in some surprise.
"That's right! Can we?"
"...Um... Can... we?"
Ginny tilted her head; she hadn't expected her opponent to be Ariana.
Mainly because Ariana was coming to study at Hogwartsfor the first time. Even if Grandpa Aberforth had taught her, Ariana started too late and couldn't possibly know much magic.
Therefore, even though Ariana was one year older than her, she didn't think Ariana could bring her any pressure.
Ariana looked at Ginny strangely, imitating Ginny's tone just now.
"Can... we? What does that mean? Are you unwilling?"
"No, no!"
Ginny hurriedly shook her head, then immediately took out her Wand and said to Ariana,
"Then let's begin!"
Upon getting Ginny's consent, Ariana likewise excitedly took out her Wand.
The two simultaneously stepped back ten steps, clearing about ten meters of space between them.
"Are you ready?"
Ginny asked very politely, and Ariana nodded after pinning up her long hair.
Then the two said in unison:
"DUEL!" × 2
As the voices fell, Ginny didn't rush to attack, instead choosing to first cast a Shield Charm on herself for protection.
Ariana didn't do that, and instead launched an attack first.
"Incendio!"
Scorching flames surged out from Ariana's Wand, engulfing Ginny in just an instant.
Seeing that it was the Fire-Making Spell, Ginnyimmediately used Aguamenti, summoning a massive amount of clear water to extinguish the flames.
After Ariana's this move, Ginny finally began to take it seriously.
She hadn't expected that right as she cast the Shield Charm, Ariana used the Fire-Making Spell! You must know that against all-around flames, the Shield Charm couldn't effectively block it!
From this, it could be seen that Ariana's combat awareness was extremely formidable! She didn't look like a first-year student at all.
"Oppugno!"
Ginny no longer held back, immediately transforming the surrounding small pebbles into flocks of canaries, and then controlled them to attack Ariana.
"Muda muda muda!!!"
Ariana shouted loudly, then flicked her Wand—
A cold current suddenly shot from the tip of her Wand, freezing all the flying canaries into ice sculptures!
Moreover, the airflow showed no signs of dissipating at all; instead, Ariana increased her output, and the powerful cold wind instantly froze Ginny in place.
"Now is the time! Expelliarmus!"
Ariana laughed maniacally, her Wand hesitating not at all as she immediately shot a streak of red lightning that struck Ginny's wrist, knocking her Wand flying away.
"I... lost!"
Ginny looked incredulously at the Wand that had fallen to the ground; she hadn't expected Ariana's Freezing Charmto be so powerful!
It had frozen her entire person stiff!
Seeing the match end, the ferocious smile on Ariana's face slowly recovered, and she then immediately picked up Ginny's Wand and returned it to her.
"Sorry, Ginny... I don't know why... every time I fight, I can't control my emotions!"
Ginny took the Wand, then shook her head with a forced smile.
"It... it doesn't matter! I don't take it to heart at all!"
The Weasley Twins had long been attracted by Ginny and the other's battle, and then stopped their Wands to watch the end of their match.
When they saw Ginny saying this with teary eyes, the two finally couldn't help bursting into laughter.
Fred: "Hahaha! My good little sister! Crying from being beaten by someone yet saying it's fine!"
George: "Quickly come over to Big Brother's side, let me see if you're hurt, hahaha!"
Ginny looked angrily and indignantly at the two slapping their thighs and laughing wildly.
Her tears had long since vanished, replaced by a surging fury!
"You two! I'm going to blow you into powder!"
Ginny immediately raised her Wand, and the red light emerging from the Wand tip made the Weasley Twinsinstantly understand that Ginny had snapped.
Thus, the two didn't communicate at all, fleeing in two different directions simultaneously.
"Stop right there! Fred! George!"
Ginny immediately chased after Fred.
Fred: "Damn! Why are you chasing me? Why not chase George?"
Ginny: "None of your business!!!"
Seeing Ginny choose to chase Fred, George immediately stopped his steps, then put his hands to his mouth, making a megaphone gesture.
"Well done! Ginny! Make Fred understand what it means to bring trouble upon oneself by what one says!"
Hearing George's punchable words, Fred collapsed even more.
"I was wrong! Ginny, can we reconcile?"
"At a time like this? Do you think that's possible?!"
The two of them thus ran with him fleeing and her chasing, running all the way into the castle and disappearing.
Ariana awkwardly scratched her head; this matter seemed to have been caused by her...
Hode in the sky took all of this in; no wonder Aberforthtold Ariana not to use powerful magic.
This girl fights like she's completely crazy! It's a total personality flip!
Just as Hode thought, Ariana still felt somewhat unsatisfied, and thus began searching for a target once more.
Soon, she set her sights on Luna, who had easily defeated her opponent.
"Luna! How about we have a match?"
Luna quietly turned her head to look at Ariana, her eyes always half-opened and half-closed, as if she didn't care about anything.
"Sure."
Luna's signature ethereal voice rang out, sounding very pleasant.
"Do you want to rest for a bit?"
Ariana asked with concern, while Luna merely shook her head, indicating she had no problem at all.
Thus——
"DUEL!" × 2
In this match, unlike Ginny who first cast a shield on herself, Luna instead released a silent Expelliarmus at an extremely fast speed.
"Protego!"
Ariana reacted quickly, blocking this attack with a Shield Charm.
Ariana said with some surprise: "A silent Expelliarmus! Luna! I didn't expect you to be so formidable!"
"I've just practiced a lot."
Luna's ethereal voice rang out once more, but the Wand in her hand didn't pause in the slightest; various common offensive magics were cast silently by Luna.
Ariana said with incomparable astonishment: "That's just from practicing a lot?"
Ariana timely used Protego Totalum to ensure her own safety.
She hadn't expected that even though both were fourth-years, Ginny's and Luna's strengths would differ by so much!
What Ariana didn't know was that Luna often practiced magic and actual combat with Harry and the others inside Hode's suitcase.
Moreover, Hode would also tell everyone how to circulate magic power for various magic to reduce consumption and enhance power.
Coupled with Jax, a very versatile training partner, the improvement in Luna's strength was naturally extremely prominent; she was now acknowledged as the strongest of her grade!
However, she still couldn't beat Harry and the others.
Mainly because Harry, Ron, Neville, and Draco were all dab hands at dueling! And their talents were equally not bad either! Their training time was also much more than hers!
Especially Harry, whose strength was the strongest among them all! Completely worthy of The Savior's title.
And Hermione was even much stronger than Harry!
Because of Hode's personal guidance, plus various magiche developed, Hermione could easily defeat Harry long ago.
As for Hode...
The title of the modern strongest was still warm!
In fact, calling him the modern strongest wasn't accurate anymore; it should be said he was the strongest in history!
Even as strong as the Four Founders of Hogwarts, and Merlin! One had never heard of them being able to elbow-strike Death.
Chapter 160: Ariana vs Luna
Facing Luna's relentless attacks, Ariana maintained her Protection Charm to protect herself.
At this rate, as long as she waited for Luna's Magic to run out, Ariana could launch a counterattack!
But—this was the mindset of trash!
The corners of Ariana's mouth curled up wildly!
Ariana wanted to defeat Luna precisely when she was firing on all cylinders!
"Finite Incantatem!"
Ariana thrust her Wand fiercely into the ground, and accompanying her loud cry, a white light barrier blocked and neutralized all of Luna's magic.
Luna looked at Ariana in surprise; she hadn't expected Ariana to be able to use this kind of magic!
"Hahaha! Isn't this very effective!"
Ariana laughed maniacally, and the Wand in her hand didn't stop either.
"Incendio!"
This time, the flames released by Ariana were even larger and hotter than the ones used in her battle against Ginny, forcing Luna to choose to extinguish the fire first.
"Aguamenti!"
"You've exposed an opening, Luna!"
Just as Luna summoned the water, Ariana didn't let such a great opportunity slip and immediately cast Expelliarmus.
"Expelliarmus!"
"Protego Totalum!"
Just as Ariana's magic was about to hit, Luna quickly stopped her Aguamenti and switched to a Protection Charm.
"Your spell-casting speed is really fast!"
Ariana couldn't help exclaiming. Luna's speed in changing spells had almost no hesitation, just like she had practiced it countless times.
Of course, this didn't make Ariana feel pressured; instead, it made her even more excited!
"That's more like it!"
Ariana licked her lips, her eyes locked tightly onto Luna.
Then, with a twist of her Wand, Ariana used Transfiguration to turn the surrounding grass into huge vines!
Luna hadn't expected Ariana's Transfiguration to be so powerful! Even she couldn't achieve such a level.
The vines seemed to have gained intelligence as they whipped wildly toward Luna.
However, Luna's physical fitness was also quite good, dodging several attacks in succession.
But in the end, she still chose to use a Protection Charm to block; after all, she couldn't dodge vines while constantly staying alert to Ariana.
Feeling the Magic inside her body, having used the Protection Charm and Finite Incantatem a few times, her Magic was running low!
Then she looked at the still fired-up Ariana. Luna's usually calm face finally revealed a trace of discomfort, and she retorted—
"Monster!"
Without a moment's pause, Ariana immediately transformed even more and larger vines to attack Luna.
Several vines nearly a meter thick wrapped around Luna's barrier, squeezing them with crazy force.
Luna knew her magic couldn't hold out much longer. With no other choice, Luna decided to use that move—
"Frigid Storm!"
Most of the students were attracted by the battle between Luna and Ariana, and they had been watching from the side early on.
Everyone, wrapped by the vines and unable to see Luna's condition, began to worry.
Ginny: "Luna isn't going to lose, is she..."
A bruised and battered Fred: "I don't know, but I don't think she's lost yet, otherwise Hode would definitely step in to save Luna."
A similarly bruised and battered George: "Spot on! Fredmakes total sense!"
Sure enough, everyone soon saw blue light beginning to emerge from the gaps in the vines!
In just an instant, all the vines suddenly froze like statues, a thick layer of frost condensing on their surfaces!
"This kind of magic! No way!"
Ariana watched in disbelief as Luna walked out from the frost-covered vines, looking just like an Ice Queen!
"Sorry! I don't want to lose yet! So this next move will be my final magic!"
As soon as Luna finished speaking, the surrounding chill began to spread, making the observing students feel incomparably cold.
"Then come on!"
Ariana laughed loudly, pointing her Wand at Luna.
Luna did the same, the two of them standing quietly in a standoff—
"Frigid Storm!"
"Fiendfyre!"
Ariana had completely lost her head in the fight, entirely forgetting that she had once promised Hode not to use such powerful magic.
Ariana transformed the Fiendfyre into a Phoenix, which fiercely flew toward Luna.
Meanwhile, Luna turned the cold air into an ice bird, which collided with Ariana's fire Phoenix!
"Bang—"
Ice and fire intertwined in mid-air, and a massive amount of steam instantly gushed out.
"Ah—"
Ariana shouted, pushing her Wand with all her might as her internal Magic depleted rapidly.
Then Ariana's fire Phoenix began to grow larger, gradually suppressing Luna's Magic.
Feeling the nearly exhausted Magic inside her, Lunaimmediately looked at Hode, and then deactivated her magic.
The moment the ice bird vanished, the fire Phoenix rushed toward Luna at extreme speed, but Hode appeared in time and instantly eliminated Ariana's fire Phoenix.
"The winner—Ariana Dumbledore!"
Accompanied by Hode shouting Ariana's name, the surrounding students began to applaud.
They hadn't expected a newly enrolled first-year studentto be so formidable! Even with the Dumbledore surname, it was still astonishing.
Listening to the applause and cheers of the people around her, Ariana's excited mood slowly returned to normal.
"I... I won!"
Ariana said in a daze, then ran to Luna's side.
"Sorry, Luna! I couldn't control myself again! You're not hurt, are you..."
Luna looked at Ariana, who wore an expression of apology and worry, and quietly shook her head.
"I'm fine. With Hode around, it's impossible for me to get hurt."
"That's right! That's right!"
Hode raised his head proudly on the side, looking like he was second to none in the universe.
Then Hode extended a finger to instruct Ariana:
"Ariana, remember this! Whenever you win a match, you have to deliver a victory declaration!"
Ariana tilted her head in confusion.
"What victory declaration?"
Hearing this, Hode coughed, cleared his throat, and continued.
"I'll demonstrate it once, watch closely—that really felt exhilarating, Luna! I suppose I'll never forget you for the rest of my life!"
Luna showed an extremely rare expression of speechlessness. Hode always knew how to make people around him break their composure.
Ariana nodded very seriously, "I've got it!"
Afterwards, Ariana began to imitate it facing Luna.
"That really felt exhilarating, Luna! I suppose I'll never forget you for the rest of my life!"
Then Ariana turned back to look at Hode, her face full of: How was my impersonation?
Hode nods.
"Not bad, not bad! You learned it very well! Remember this line, and don't forget to say it every time you win a match from now on!"
"Mm! I know!"
Three hours passed quickly. After Hode announced the end, the students walked toward the castle while discussing.
Flitwick looked at the students' backs with great satisfaction. He could already imagine that in the next Triwizard Tournament, Hogwarts would definitely win the match once again!
Hermione hooked her arm through Hode's, "Ariana's strength is really strong!"
Hode nods.
"I can only say she's truly Old Dumbledore's sister. Her talent goes without saying, especially her talent for Transfiguration, which is truly formidable."
Meanwhile, in the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor's office.
Harry and the others slumped their heads onto the desk in tears, using the test papers they had written as pillows underneath.
James looked at them with satisfaction; he hadn't expected Harry and the others to have mastered most of the Seventh Year knowledge so fluently.
Then James clapped his hands, trying to perk them up.
"Alright, let's go get some food! You don't have to come tomorrow, just come once every Saturday from now on."
Although James said that, Harry and the others were completely untouched, feeling only pain for the future.
Harry: "I want to graduate right now."
Ron: "I think I can already see my great-great-grandmother!"
Neville: "I'm genuinely scared!"
Looking at the limp trio, James hauled them up in one motion.
"Alright, young people should be full of youthful vitality!"
The hoisted Harry and the others helplessly walked toward the Great Hall.
"Little Ronnie, Harry, and Neville, where did you go? How come we didn't see you participating in the Dueling Club?"
The Weasley Twins happened to run into Harry and the others, and then George began to ask.
Ron sighed: "Don't bring it up, it's all tears!"
Then the three of them slowly walked toward the Great Hall under the strange gazes of the Weasley Twins.
Fred and George exchanged a glance.
Fred: "What's wrong with Little Ronnie and the others?"
George: "Heaven knows, leave them alone! We'd better hurry over to Madam Pomfrey's place, I feel like my face still hurts a lot!"
Fred nodded in agreement, "Ginny really has reached her rebellious phase, beating up even her great brother!"
Ginny: "Serves you right!!!"
Great Hall—
Harry and the others ate while listening to Ginny and Ariana next to them recount what happened in the afternoon.
"Ariana, I didn't expect you to be so amazing!"
Ron looked at Ariana in disbelief; they were well aware of Ginny and Luna's strength!
Although they couldn't compare to them, they couldn't compare only to them! And now Ariana had actually managed to defeat Luna under conditions where many powerful spells were restricted, which made them look at her in a new light.
Chapter 161: Ariana VS Ron, Still Following the Formula
"Of course!"
Ariana haughtily raised her head, showing not the slightest trace of modesty.
This piqued Ron's interest.
"Ariana, how about we find some time to have a match?"
"Alright!"
Hearing that she could fight again, Ariana nodded quickly, as if afraid that Ron would go back on his word.
This made Harry, standing to the side, sweat slightly in embarrassment.
Harry: Ariana couldn't possibly be a battle maniac, could she...
"Then how about we have our match tomorrow!"
Ron widened his eyes and said in some surprise: "So rushed? Don't you need to rest properly for a few days?"
"No need, no need! I'm completely fine!"
Harry: Now it can be confirmed that Ariana really is a battle maniac.
———— The next day.
The time came to one o'clock in the afternoon. Because they had made plans yesterday and had also told Hode.
Therefore, Ron and Ariana were warming up on the lawn inside Hode's briefcase.
Those who came to watch were acquaintances of both sides:
Hode, Hermione, Harry, Neville, Ginny, Luna, Draco.
They were all peers, and undoubtedly the backbone of the future British wizarding world!
At this moment, Hode conjured a gambling pool out of thin air and began to speak:
"Wanna place a bet?"
Draco instantly became interested and quickly asked: "What are the odds?"
Hode thought for a moment, then said: "No odds. The winners will get the losers' money proportional to their winnings."
Draco nodded, and without hesitation, bet on Ron to win.
Although the two always bickered and quarreled, and fought from time to time.
But their friendship was naturally not as discordant on the surface as it seemed. On the contrary, Draco deeply trusted Ron and his strength.
Therefore, Draco did not hesitate and immediately placed 50 Galleons on Ron to win.
Meanwhile, Harry likewise bet ten Galleons on Ron to win.
Ginny hesitated slightly. She didn't know whether to bet on her own brother or her newly made best friend to win.
Unlike Ginny, Luna did not hesitate; she naturally placed three Galleons on Ariana to win.
"Luna, you're actually betting on Ariana!"
Harry was somewhat surprised. Luna should have known Ron's strength, yet she still bet on Ariana to win, which surprised Harry and the others.
"Mhm, Ariana is very strong!"
Luna did not explain anything, or rather, even if Lunaexplained, she would do so using strange metaphors.
And apart from Hode, no one else could match brainwaves with Luna.
Seeing her good friend choose to bet on Ariana to win, Ginny no longer hesitated, and immediately took out her saved 1 Galleon to bet on Ariana to win!
Neville hesitated for a moment, then placed five Galleons on Ron's side.
"I'm also betting on Ron to win."
At this point, everyone discovered an interesting situation.
The girls all bet on Ariana to win, while the boys all bet on Ron to win.
Ron and Ariana, having finished warming up, also noticed everyone's bets, and then came over to the group to place their own bets.
Ron waved his hand grandly:
One Galleon, three Sickles, and ten Knuts were pulled out of Ron's trouser pockets; this was his entire fortune!
"I bet on myself to win!"
Ron pointed at himself with his thumb, striking an arrogant pose.
But the scattered coins made Ron's aura instantly drop by a large margin.
Ariana was not scared either, and immediately took out 10 Galleons from her Undetectable Extension Pouch.
"I bet on myself to win!"
Everyone tallied it up; the bet amount on Ron's side was: 66 Galleons, 3 Sickles, 10 Knuts.
On Ariana's side, it was: 14 Galleons.
It was completely a one-sided situation, but if Ariana won, even Ginny, who bet the least, would get at least 4 Galleons!
Then everyone turned to look at Hode and Hermione; currently, only the two of them hadn't placed bets.
Harry suddenly thought of something and immediately said to Hode: "Hode! You're not allowed to use the power of Prophecy to cheat!"
Hearing Harry's words, the others also reacted.
Right! Hode could use Prophecy! Doesn't that mean wherever Hode bets, that side would be the winner!
Hode rolled his eyes, then extended his index finger and shook it.
"Oh please, I wouldn't rely on cheating to place bets, that would be boring!"
Then Hode took out one Galleon and threw it onto Ariana's side.
"I bet on Ariana to win!"
Everyone looked at Hode with strange expressions.
Ron: "One Galleon? Hode, isn't this way too little? You bet even less than I did!"
Hode didn't explain anything, but instead said to Ariana:
"Ariana, later on you don't need to hold back, cast your magic to your heart's content!"
Hearing this, Ariana nodded excitedly.
It was Hermione's turn. Just like Hode, she placed a Galleon into Ariana's bet pile.
"Since everyone has placed their bets, will the two of you please get ready!"
Hode said, after which Ron and Ariana prepared to walk to the center of the lawn.
There, a circle as large as half a football field had been drawn; that was their dueling stage.
"Wait! The pre-battle ritual cannot be forgotten!"
Harry stretched out his right hand and looked at Ron.
Hearing Harry's words, Ron was stunned for a moment, then immediately understood Harry's meaning, laughing as he took off his robes.
"Hahahaha, bring it on!"
Ron turned his back to the crowd, extending his right thumb to point at his own back.
Harry similarly laughed and patted Ron on the shoulder!
Then the other boys supporting Ron began to offer their blessings.
Neville: "Go! Go prove that you're stronger than Ariana!"
Draco: "If you feel like you can't make it, let me take your place!"
And the response of that man entrusted with everyone's hopes to all the cheering was a confident—
"Alright!"
On the other side, Ariana earnestly watched Ron and the others' ritual, and then looked toward Hode.
"Do I need to do that too?"
Hode smiled and nodded, saying in a relaxed yet solemn tone: "This is our tradition after all!"
Finishing his words, Hode laughed and patted Ariana on the shoulder.
The other girls also began to offer their respective blessings.
Ginny: "Go get him! Show that stinky Ron what you're made of!"
Luna: "Come on! Go prove that you don't rely on your looks to make a living!"
Hermione: "Will you win?"
And the response of that woman entrusted with everyone's hopes to all the cheering was a confident—
"I will win!"
Immediately afterwards, the two began to walk into the circle.
"Ariana, when you lose later, don't cry and go running to Dumbledore to complain!"
Ron arrogantly spewed trash talk. It wasn't that he looked down on Ariana, but rather that whether facing Draco, Harry, or Neville, they always had a pre-match trash-talking session.
Ariana wasn't as angry as Ron had imagined, and instead responded in kind:
"I hope you won't be beaten to tears by me later, little ~ Ron ~ nie ~"
Ron's eye twitched; he hadn't expected this girl to have such a sharp tongue.
Seeing that both were fully prepared, Hode raised his right hand—
"Then, the match—begins!"
Accompanied by Hode chopping down his right hand, Ronand Ariana simultaneously cast Spells non-verbally!
Their Blasting Curses collided with each other, immediately triggering a fierce shockwave.
Hode snapped his fingers, and a protective barrier centered on the circle enveloped the two of them.
And the shockwave naturally did not affect the crowd watching the match.
"Not bad! You can even cast Blasting Curses non-verbally!"
Ron was somewhat surprised. He began to realize that he seemed to have somewhat underestimated Ariana's magiclevel.
But this didn't affect Ron's confidence!
Ron looked at Ariana seriously and solemnly.
"Ariana, I'm going to get serious now! But don't worry, if you get hurt, Hode will definitely heal you!"
Hearing Ron's seemingly caring yet actually arrogant words, Ariana began to grow somewhat angry.
"I return those exact words to you! Reducto!"
Ariana cast a Reductor Curse extremely quickly, but Ronmerely twisted his upper body and dodged the attack.
"Still not fast enough! And it's too predictable!"
Ron offered a piece of instruction, and then calmly uttered a single word————"Dispel!"
With a gentle slash from Ron, Ariana, having already watched Hode's battle with her brother Albus, recognized this magic of Hode's.
She understood that this move must absolutely not be taken head-on. But just as she prepared to defend, she found that a wound deep to the bone had been instantly slashed across her left arm!
"Ariana!"
Ginny screamed anxiously, not expecting that in less than half a minute, Ariana would suffer such a severe injury!
Luna patted Ginny on the shoulder, and Ginny turned to look at Luna's calm expression.
Luna: "Trust Ariana, she's not that fragile!"
Hode also answered approvingly: "That's right, don't underestimate my ability to judge people! Ariana is extremely talented!"
And just as Hode said, Ariana did not cry or surrender in the slightest because of the pain.
On the contrary! Ariana actually began to grin widely and laugh!
"That really is amazing! I didn't react at all!"
Looking at the laughing Ariana, Ron suddenly grew somewhat scared.
Ron: Nonsense! Someone suffering such a serious injury and still laughing so terrifyingly! Who wouldn't be scared of that?
Ariana gripped her Wand, then swept it across her left arm—
Everyone was amazed to find that Ariana's wound was actually beginning to heal slowly!
"What magic is this?" Ron couldn't help but be curious.
"My brother taught it to me. It's not a complete cure, just a temporary recovery. The injury sustained will still reappear before long!"
Everyone instantly understood. This magic of Ariana's only temporarily removed the wound, but it didn't truly disappear; it would surface again very soon, and she still needed to find a way to properly heal the injury.
"Impressive! But you should know that this move of mine can't be used just once!"
Ron reminded her, and then once again slashed the Wandin his hand!
Several invisible slashes flew rapidly toward Ariana!
But Ariana was well prepared, first using a Protection Charm to protect herself, and then immediately unleashing Fiendfyre!
Relying on the lush grassland, the Fiendfyre began to rapidly increase in size! Then Ariana shouted loudly—
"Firestorm!"
Chapter 162 Ariana: "This really makes one feel so delighted! Ron!"
As Ariana's voice echoed across the lawn, Fiendfyre began to condense!
In just a split second, an eight-meter-tall fire Phoenixappeared before Ariana.
Everyone was shocked by this trick of Ariana's, especially Harry!
He understood all too well how powerful and difficult the Firestorm move was; even he had practiced for a long time under Jax's hellish training before barely learning it.
Yet Ariana had only been resurrected for two years, and not only had she learned so many spells, but she had even mastered magic like Firestorm!
Ron wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand, then looked at Ariana with a smile.
"Are you actually a Wizard of this level! That's quite terrifying!"
Although he said that, there was not the slightest trace of being frightened on Ron's face.
"Just be defeated by this move!"
With a wave of Ariana's hand, the fire Phoenix spread its wings and dive-bombed toward Ron.
"Wanting to defeat me is not that easy! Water Release: Daba Shui Xiuha!"
Ron was glad that he had once learned this water-type magic from Hode.
A massive amount of seawater surged out from Ron's Wand like a volcanic eruption, and then wrapped around the surroundings under the control of Transfiguration.
Soon, the Fiendfyre and seawater began to merge.
A large amount of steam instantly blocked everyone's line of sight.
Looking at the snow-white steam all around, Ariana began to grow vigilant.
You must know that the match between James and Snapethe day before yesterday was still vivid in her mind; she certainly wouldn't be foolish enough to think Ron wouldn't seize this opportunity.
Sure enough, a slash cut through the steam, flying rapidly toward Ariana!
Fortunately, Ariana was well-prepared and immediately protected herself with a Shield Charm.
Ariana understood that going on like this wouldn't work. She didn't have powerful and fast magic like Ron's, and most of her spells couldn't match 'Release'.
Therefore, Ariana immediately waved her Wand, and a fierce gale instantly blew away all the surrounding steam.
"What do you plan to do?"
Ron stood about ten meters to Ariana's right without attacking, curiously wanting to know how Ariana planned to deal with him.
Ariana didn't talk nonsense, instead laughing maniacally.
"Shinra Bansho!"
As soon as Ariana's words fell, the grass under Ron's feet instantly grew into massive vines.
"Using this move? You should know this is meaningless!"
Ron quickly jumped away, then began nimbly dodging the vines' attacks.
Ariana continued to increase her Magic output, and more vines appeared to surround Ron.
Yet Ron showed not a shred of tension, instead laughing and saying:
"Dragon Scales!"
"Repulsion!"
"Twin Meteors!"
Within the five seconds before Release was activated, Ron's chant resounded from the suitcase once again!
Ariana understood that she no longer had any chance to stop the birth of Release!
Unlimited slashes cut all the vines apart like a violent gale. Ariana, exerting her Protection Charm to the fullest, struggled to fend off Ron's continuous slashes.
However, under Ron's fierce offensive, cracks quickly began to appear on Ariana's barrier.
Seeing this scene, Ginny, Luna, and Hermione all began to worry, while Ron laughed heartily.
"It seems the completion is not bad at all!"
Both Ron and Harry's group already felt victory was secure; it was impossible for Ariana to launch a counterattack under such dense attacks!
Neville stared blankly at this scene.
"In other words..."
Harry nodded.
"That's right! Ron has won!"
Just as Harry finished saying these words—
"Pfft—!"
Ron stopped his attack with an incredulous look on his face, then touched his abdomen.
Fresh blood began to seep through his clothes, dyeing Ron's palm red!
"Thud!"
Then Ron's upper body slowly slid down and fell to the ground!
Everyone was stunned for a moment, and then Harryimmediately ran toward Ron, shouting loudly.
"Ron!"
The others also snapped back to reality and ran toward Ron's corpse!
Ariana dismissed the blue round shield in front of her. If Harry paid attention, he would notice this was the magicJames had used when battling Snape!
"Hode! Quick, save Ron! He's dead!"
Hode picked his ear and said unhurriedly, "What are you panicking for? It's not like he can't be resurrected."
These words made everyone react, and they finally breathed a sigh of relief. That's right! Hode could save him anyway, why worry so much?
Then Harry no longer paid attention to Ron's corpse, instead looking at Ariana in astonishment.
"Ariana, how did you do it?"
Ron: How can you all be so selfish? Bah!
Ariana looked at Ron and then said, "Let's wait until Ron is resurrected before I explain."
Then Hode walked over to Ron's side and snapped his fingers—""Snap!"
Ron's upper and lower body began to merge back together just like James's had, and the blood all flowed back into his body.
Soon, Ron blinked his eyes and was completely resurrected.
"Hahaha! Weasley, you actually couldn't beat Ariana! How truly embarrassing!"
Neville looked at the laughing Draco and reminded him from the side, "Draco, you even placed a bet of fifty Galleons on Ron winning, you've taken a huge loss this time!"
Draco didn't care in the least, instead continuing to laugh loudly.
"It's fine, mere fifty Galleons. Being able to watch Ron lose to Ariana is worth it! Hahahaha!"
As soon as Ron came to his senses and heard Dracomocking him there, he instantly became unconvinced.
"Damn it! That was just me being careless! No flash! What the hell are you laughing at? If you have the guts, let's duel one-on-one!"
"Sorry, I don't fight with noobs!"
Draco's words directly ignited Ron, who immediately rushed toward Draco!
Fortunately, Harry and Neville stopped Ron, preventing the two from getting close.
Luna: "Ron, don't you want to know how Ariana beat you?"
Luna's words aroused Ron's curiosity, and he immediately asked Ariana.
"That's right! Ariana, how did you suddenly cut me in half?"
Ariana also calmed down, no longer as maniacal, and then covered her mouth and smiled.
"Yesterday, I specially sought out Professor James and asked him to teach me that reflection magic of his."
"What?!" × N
They didn't expect Ariana to actually go to Harry's dad to learn that magic; they had actually forgotten about this detail!
Ariana nodded and then continued:
"Then I pretended to use a Protection Charm with my Wand, but I was actually casting Wandless Magic. Afterward, I used my Wand to cast the reflection spell, and finally released the Protection Charm so that Ron's slash would hit the shield and then bounce back—that's how it was."
After listening to Ariana explain the preceding events clearly, everyone couldn't help but admire Ariana.
"So amazing! Ariana!"
Ginny excitedly hugged Ariana, rubbing back and forth in her arms vigorously.
Luna also applauded for Ariana. She hadn't dared to be certain that Ariana could win, but in the end, Ariana really lived up to expectations and successfully defeated Ron.
Ariana, being rubbed against by Ginny, suddenly realized something and looked at Hode.
Seeing Hode nods, Ariana immediately turned her head to look at Ron.
Ron, making eye contact with Ariana, also seemed to realize it, and then frantically shook his head in plea.
"No! Don't say it out!"
But his plea didn't stop Ariana. Under Ron's despairing gaze and everyone's expectant eyes, Ariana uttered that victory declaration!
"This really makes one feel so delighted! Ron! I suppose I won't forget you for the rest of my life!"
Hode immediately chimed in: "The strongest battle record, engraved in the suitcase!"
Ron helplessly knelt on the ground, pounding the lawn in resentment.
"Damn it! Truly nothing has changed at all! Hahaha!"
Watching Ron's Eren-style speech, Hode retorted:
"Hey! You've crossed over shows! Your speech is way too free!"
Everyone ignored Hode's strange speech, and Ginny and the others began collecting the fruits of victory.
Looking at the four Galleons in her hand along with some scattered Sickles and Knuts, Ginny couldn't help shedding tears of happiness.
"Ariana, thank you so much! It directly quadrupled!"
Ginny hugged Ariana once again; at this moment, she could no longer use words to express her joy.
Luna put away the Galleons she had won, then curiously asked Hode: "Did you know long ago that Ariana would win?"
Hode shook his head. "No, I really just went by feel! It seems my judgment isn't bad, is it?"
Luna didn't reply, instead staring curiously at Hode.
"What's wrong? Are you captivated by my roguish looks?"
"No." Luna returned to her usual state, speaking with her ever-tranquil expression.
"The Wrackspurts on you have disappeared again!"
Hearing this, Hode laughed and nods.
"Yeah, recently I developed a new magic... or rather, a passive! It allows me not to need constant observation; as long as the aura of the Grim Reaper appears in the mortal world, my magic will naturally remind me."
Luna knowingly nodded, and then she and Ginny began discussing how to spend this money when going to Hogsmeade.
As for Harry and Neville, they were comforting Ron on the side, while Draco... naturally continued mocking him!
————
In the days that followed, due to Hode's influence, the students didn't need to face Umbridge that pink toad, but instead could study the Defense Against the Dark Arts class with James, who possessed excellent teaching abilities.
Nor did they need to experience various bizarre school rules.
Peaceful yet lively, this was the current Hogwarts, and everything was beginning to develop in a good direction.
Every day after finishing classes, students could go to the Library and do their homework.
They could also return to the Common Room to have a tense and exciting yu-gi-oh card duel with others!
Or use mobile phones to watch some videos, browse the school forum, and see what gossip or news there was today.
Students in third year and above could also head to Hogsmeade every month to have a good time!
Recently, Snape was no longer targeting students outside of Slytherin like before; everyone was surprised to hear that Snape had started awarding points to other houses, not even sparing Gryffindor!
Chapter 163: An Absurd Christmas
Autumn goes and winter comes—
Time quickly arrived at December 24th. This day was also the decisive battle between Gojo Satoru and Sukuna... Sorry, wrong channel!
This day was Christmas Eve. Hode and Hermione were sitting on the sofa in the Granger family's living room, alongside Mr. Granger and... Gellert.
Hode listened to the laughter of Mrs. Granger and Rosiercoming from the kitchen, and then looked at Gellert and Mr. Granger drinking with each other.
Hode sighed helplessly.
"Ai—! How could this happen..."
Going back a few days ago, after Hode sent Hermione back home, he returned to Nurmengard.
Then he saw Gellert actually wearing a suit and looking in the mirror, which undoubtedly surprised Hode.
"Holy shit! Old Gellert, what's wrong with you? Planning a date with Old Dumbledore?"
"Get lost! This year we are going to Hermione's home to spend Christmas together!"
Hode: "Nani!?"
Then Hode hurriedly asked why, and Gellert began to explain.
"Little Hermione wrote to us before, saying that her parents wanted to invite us to spend Christmas with them there, that's all."
Hode asked with a look of surprise: "You agreed?"
"I agreed."
"No way! Hermione didn't tell me about this!"
Hode hugged the back of his head with both hands, completely entering a state of utter bewilderment.
Gellert straightened his tie and then said: "I guess that girl wanted to give you a surprise."
"I feel like it's a fright..."
Back to the present, Hode nervously held Hermione's hand. He never expected that Mr. and Mrs. Granger invited them actually to discuss matters of marriage!
Mr. Granger gulped down a mouthful of beer, then put his arm around Gellert's shoulder.
"Mr. Gellert! My wife and I have discussed it. After they graduate, they can get married at any time! She and I have already saved up the money for the wedding, totaling 500,000 pounds! We will definitely give them a grand and sensational wedding!"
Gellert also took a gulp and then waved his hand.
"My brother, it's not that I'm complaining! This kind of thing doesn't require you to prepare so much. We must trust the young people. Their wedding should be handled by themselves, and even if money is needed, it should be provided by us! How can we let you spend your money?!"
Mr. Granger: "No! Hode and Hermione grew up under my watch! We have to pay this money!"
Gellert: "No! We'll pay!"
Watching the two of them getting more and more drunk and talking nonsense, Hode and Hermione both saw helpless looks in each other's eyes.
Hode sighed and then scratched his head.
"What kind of nonsense is this!"
Hode didn't understand. Even if Mr. Granger didn't know, Gellert should understand how terrifying his financial resources were.
Not to mention anything else, just the moment he announced that he was going to hold a wedding, those Pure-blood families and Ministry of Magic officials would eagerly run over to deliver money.
Moreover, even he himself didn't know how much wealth he currently possessed, but it definitely far exceeded anyone else's.
Not long after, Mrs. Granger and Rosier brought out various delicacies and placed them on the dining table.
While enjoying dinner, a drunk Mr. Granger asked Hode:
"Hode, when do you plan to marry Hermione?"
These words made Hermione, who was sitting next to Hode, flush red, but she didn't say anything, quietly waiting for Hode's words.
"Um... I want to get married as soon as we graduate!"
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was slightly stunned.
Then Mrs. Granger immediately started applauding. She could hardly wait to see the day when Hermione and Hodegot married.
Mr. Granger originally thought he was mentally prepared, but in the end, he still burst into tears of sorrow. Moreover, while crying, he mumbled vaguely about cabbages, pigs, and the like.
Hode: "How presumptuous of you! No matter what, I should at least be a dragon, right!"
Then Hode noticed that Hermione's face became even Rosier, looking as if she was about to be cooked through.
So Hode leaned close to Hermione and softly cared for her: "Are you okay, Hermione."
"N... No problem! Just... well..."
Hode looked perplexedly at the stuttering Hermione. This was not like her personality at all! Hermione had always been decisive, bold, and daring.
"Y... You said you'll marry me after graduation, is that true..."
So it was this!
Hode thought to himself inwardly, then nodded firmly.
"Yeah! I originally planned to say it when we reached our sixth year, but now that Mr. Granger asked, I said it in advance. Hermione, are you willing?"
"Of course!"
Hermione shouted loudly, waking up Mr. Granger who had just fallen into a deep sleep.
Hermione also realized that her emotions were a bit too excited, and immediately took Hode's hand to get down from the chair.
"We're full! We're leaving first!"
After speaking, she dragged Hode and ran upstairs to her bedroom on the second floor.
Mr. Granger scratched his head, looking at the remaining food on the table. Usually, Hode never left leftovers.
"Is Hode really full?"
Mrs. Granger gave Mr. Granger a chop with her hand to knock him unconscious, and then said with a smile: "Sorry, my Hermione is always so impatient."
Gellert smiled and shook his head.
"No, I think little Hermione's personality is very good, much better than Hode's." (Truth be told!)
Second floor, Hermione's room—
"What's wrong? Did you become too speechless with excitement when you heard I was going to marry you~"
Hode put his hand on Hermione's shoulder and looked at her with a mischievous smile.
Hermione did not refute, instead pulling Hode to sit on the bed.
"Hode... how do you want to hold our... wedding?"
Hearing this, Hode looked at Hermione in some surprise. He saw that Hermione was lowering her head, blushing, and somewhat not daring to look at Hode.
"However you like it, that's how we'll do it."
Hode replied with a smile, then fell back onto the bed and began to think.
"Hermione, do you want to hold the grandest wedding in the world, or the kind where we only invite family and friends to attend?"
Hermione also lay down, pressing closely against Hode.
"I don't mind, as long as you are here, anything is fine with me!"
Hode nodded, then thought seriously for a moment, and finally said:
"Although I don't like dealing with others, I feel I should give you the grandest wedding in the world! I want everyone to know that you are my wife!"
"Hode..."
Listening to Hode's words, Hermione only felt incomparable happiness in her heart!
The two looked into each other's eyes and could see the gaze full of affection in each other's eyes.
Then their lips slowly met—
————The next day, Christmas.
Hermione slowly opened her eyes; her biological clock woke her up.
Then Hermione discovered that she was lying on top of Hode, and her drool had even wet his chest!
Hermione hurriedly wiped Hode's pectoral muscles with her sleeve, and then looking at his sleeping appearance, she couldn't help but smile softly.
Then Hermione lightly kissed Hode's lips and whispered softly:
"Time to get up~"
Hode opened his eyes, then hugged Hermione with both hands.
"Merry Christmas, Hermione!"
"Merry Christmas, Hode!"
Then the two began to exchange Christmas gifts.
What Hermione gave Hode was a bracelet!
The bracelet was in a black and gold intertwined color, woven by Hermione's own hands, and Hode also saw magic circuits inside it.
"This is..."
Before Hode could speak out, Hermione explained.
"Inside is a magic of my own research that can sense each other's presence at any time! But it's just a small magic not worth mentioning on grand occasions."
Hearing this, Hode shook his head and negated Hermione's words.
"No! Being able to create new magic on your own is already very impressive! In my heart, this is the best magic!"
Hermione smiled, comforted by Hode, and then took out another bracelet.
"We have a couple's set, oh! You are not allowed to take it off!"
"Of course!"
Hode responded and put the bracelet on his right hand.
It was Hode's turn to give Hermione her gift.
Hermione opened the box given by Hode, and then saw an exquisitely crafted ring!
This was refined by Hode using mithril, and right at the top of the ring was set a diamond shining with starlight!
That was compressed by Hode using ninety percent of his own divine power!
With this ring, Hermione could use any magic she pleased using the divine power inside!
The divine power inside the ring would automatically operate according to Hermione's thoughts. For example, if Hermione wanted to protect everyone in Hogwarts, the ring would start mobilizing its divine power to cast a shield capable of resisting everything on everyone!
Hearing Hode's introduction, Hermione couldn't help shedding tears of emotion.
"Hode, thank you! This is really too precious!"
Hermione hugged Hode tightly with emotion, her tears dampening his shoulder.
Hode gently patted Hermione's back, smiling and comforting her:
"This is the engagement ring I'm giving you! Of course it has to be made the best!"
Hermione let go of Hode, and then placed the ring onto Hode's hand.
"Help me put it on!"
"Okay!"
Hode picked up the ring and carefully put it on the ringfinger of Hermione's right hand.
After Hermione put it on, she turned her hand over in front of Hode.
"How is it? Does it look good?"
"Of course it looks good! No matter what, my Hermionealways looks the best!"
Hearing Hode's words, Hermione giggled and kissed Hodeon the side of his face.
"Hehe! Good answer! You passed!"
Then the two came out of the room and walked to the first floor.
By this time, whether it was Mr. and Mrs. Granger or Gellert and Rosier, everyone was already awake and began enjoying breakfast.
After the two finished breakfast, they began to process the Christmas gifts sent by others.
Especially Hode; his gifts were so numerous that they even piled up into a small mountain at the doorstep of the Granger family's house!
Hode quickly scanned with his eyes, then kept the gifts sent by people he was familiar with, and threw all the rest into the suitcase for Jinx, Jumang, and the creatures in the Forbidden Forest to play with.
The two began the annual gift-unwrapping session.
Harry, along with his family and Sirius, sent Magic Books from the Potter family and the House of Black.
The gifts sent by Ron's family were still sweaters, and Neville's family sent a pair of couple pendants.
The Malfoy family sent expensive suits and dresses, which looked very... eye-catching. One can only say this is the style of the Malfoy family.
Then there was the gift sent together by Ariana and Aberforth—tea leaves from an Eastern country.
This was the best gift Hode felt he had received so far.
Then came the Professors of various subjects, who sent some of their own written notes and some books.
What Dumbledore gave was a big pile of candies, as well as a pair of couple gloves.
Gellert and Rosier sent couple-style woolen socks and scarves.
Hode and Hermione put all these things away properly, and they didn't give special treatment to any gift just because it was precious.
To be honest, the current Hode didn't care about these things at all.
You must know that just the weapons he snatched or borrowed from Death, how many people would spend astronomical prices just to take a glance at them.
If Hode were to take them out and sell them, probably everyone would be willing to pay their entire net worth to buy them.
However, this was impossible. Leaving aside whether their money was worth Hode selling them, even if they were sold, they wouldn't be able to keep them. They would surely be snatched away by Death, along with their lives being taken away as well.
Chapter 164 Spacetime Rift
In the evening, Hode did not expect that Dumbledorewould actually come here as well!
"Old Dumbledore, why are you here?"
Facing Hode's question, Dumbledore smiled and explained: "I think as your nominal guardian, naturally I should spend Christmas with the in-laws, shouldn't I?"
"You just want to spend Christmas with Gellert!"
"Headmaster Dumbledore is here! Quick, quick, please sit down!"
Upon seeing Dumbledore, Mr. and Mrs. Grangerimmediately began to host him.
Hermione looked at the few people at the dining table: one had once ruled half of Europe and the Americas, another was the greatest Wizard of the 20th century, and the last was Hode, hailed as the strongest in history.
And they were actually drinking with Mr. Granger!
Hermione sighed: "Dad, you really need to be more mindful!"
Just as everyone was eating happily, Hode suddenly sensed something and immediately stood up.
"What is it, Hode?"
Seeming to sense Hode's solemn expression, Hermioneasked with worry, while Gellert and Dumbledore on the side also noticed Hode's seriousness.
"Thanatos! It's in the Time Room of the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic right now!"
"The Time Room?! That's not a good place."
Dumbledore said with a frown, and Gellert similarly nodded.
"There's no help for it, I know it's definitely fishing for me to go over, but don't worry! No matter what, it can't defeat me!"
Hode said, then looked at the worried Hermione beside him.
"I'll come back safe and sound! Wait for me!"
Although Hermione frantically wanted to stop Hode from going in her heart, she knew she couldn't, so Hermionenodded, then looked at Hode with reluctance.
"You must come back!"
"Alright!"
After speaking, Hode instantly teleported to the Time Room of the Department of Mysteries!
As soon as he arrived here, Hode saw the Grim Reaper holding a Time-Turner, facing an entire pool filled with sand, as well as several Wizards dead thoroughly beneath its feet!
"What? Do you want to rely on the Time-Turner to defeat me? Do you want to trap me in time, or banish me to the past and future?"
"You really are clever enough, Nidhogg!"
The Grim Reaper let out a cunning laugh, shook the Time-Turner in its hand, and then walked over to the pool filled with sand.
"You know what? These foolish mortals actually delusionally attempt to study time! It's simply making me laugh my teeth off!"
The Grim Reaper laughed maniacally, and then crushed the Time-Turner in its hand! The sand inside quickly fell down.
"Come on, let me see what you plan to do?"
Hode didn't have the slightest tension or worry; he now had absolute confidence in his own strength!
"Hehehehe! Then you shall see it! Nidhogg! Since I can't obtain you! Then today you will completely disappear from this world!"
The Grim Reaper let out a loud laugh, and then all the divine power that had managed to recover a bit within its body poured out once more, causing the time grains of sand at its feet to begin flashing with green light.
"This is..."
Hode sensed that the surrounding time was beginning to become extremely unstable, and without hesitation, Hodeused divine power to protect himself.
He didn't directly slay the Grim Reaper, but instead waited for its methods.
Soon, the entire space began to distort, and the time grains of sand began to fly about, surrounding Hode and the Grim Reaper.
Soon, the grains of sand began to spin at an extremely fast speed, finally transforming directly into a tunnel-like shape, and then Hode and Thanatos shuttled through the spacetime tunnel in weightlessness as if they were in outer space!
"So you plan to drop me at a certain moment? But you should know that no matter what time it is, I can kill you!"
Hode floated in the air, adopting a side-lying posture to look at the Grim Reaper, completely showing no trace of tension or fear of the unknown in Hode.
"Of course I know! But if you are banished outside of time——"
As the Grim Reaper's voice fell, its right hand fiercely slashed toward the spacetime tunnel, and immediately a rift abruptly appeared!
"Just stay in this chaos for all eternity!"
The rift slashed open by the Grim Reaper instantly produced a strong suction force, and Hode was immediately sucked over.
However, the Grim Reaper directly transformed into a spiritual body, ignoring the suction force, and then laughed loudly: "Hehehehe! I think I will never forget you, right? Nidhogg!"
Having said that, it completely disappeared into the spacetime tunnel.
Hode scratched his head, allowing himself to be sucked out of the tunnel.
"That guy didn't forget that I can do spatial teleportation, did he?"
After arriving in the chaos, the spacetime tunnel quickly self-repaired and finally disappeared before Hode's eyes.
Hode looked at the empty world around him: silence, noise, coldness, scorching heat...
Various sensations that shouldn't have appeared at the same time were perfectly fused together in the chaos.
At this time, Hode discovered that he seemed unable to sense the space he was in, nor could he sense the aura of Hermione and the others!
This meant he couldn't escape this chaos through teleportation!
"Aiyah! It seems a bit possible that... I've overplayed it!"
Hode lay in the air, allowing himself to float weightlessly.
But his face still maintained a relaxed expression.
If he used an attack exceeding the limit that this chaos could bear, could he break the barrier and escape?
Hode thought about it seriously, and feeling it was feasible, Hode did as soon as he thought of it!
He was seen first stretching lazily, and then extending his right hand.
"Let's try one shot to test the waters first!"
"Nine-Strand!"
"Polarized Light!"
"Crow and Declaration!"
"Between Surface and Core!"
"Hollow Technique: Purple!"
Hode used one thousand percent of the divine power required for Purple, in order to trade for a five-hundred-percent increase in the power of this strike!
That was a five-fold powered Purple condensing in front of Hode!
The purple light dyed the surrounding space purple, and the powerful suction and repulsion forces blended with each other!
Then, Hode's index finger and thumb pressed against each other, and finally his index finger flicked out——
The immensely powerful Purple instantly flew a distance of a li and then——————exploded!
With a "Boom" sound, the powerful impact blew Hode's clothes backward.
Hode looked closely, and nothing had happened; that move just now hadn't shattered the space here.
But this was all within Hode's expectations.
"It seems I have to pull out some heavy-duty stuff!"
Hode twisted his neck, and then the divine power within his body began to circulate——then Hode's body began to expand!
That's right! Hode directly transformed into Nidhogg, descending into this chaos!
This time, Hode no longer suppressed his size, instead allowing his volume to grow to a height of hundreds of thousands of meters!
"Hmm... I didn't expect that I could actually grow this big!"
Hode looked at his own body; he also didn't expect that his volume could actually grow to this extent!
"Then——let me release it to my heart's content!"
Hode roared loudly, and the dragon's roar resounded through the entire heaven and earth!
"Super Invincible Confringo Thunder Huge Tailed Beast Ball!"
Hode directly condensed a huge energy cannon compressed from divine power in the air, coupled with a randomly made-up name.
Then Hode spat out the Tailed Beast Ball!
"Boom——————!"
This explosion was even more terrifying! The range could almost cover the area of the entire Pacific Ocean!
And the generated impact airflow was even enough to trigger the highest-level typhoon!
Just at this moment, Hode's dragon eyes saw a rift dozens of meters large amidst the explosion!
"It seems this move turned out pretty well!"
After speaking, Hode instantly transformed back into human form and flew rapidly toward the rift.
As soon as Hode entered the rift, the scene before his eyes instantly shifted.
After Hode recovered his senses, he found that he was already standing on a patch of grass.
"Here is..."
Hode first sensed the auras of everyone in the entire world, but didn't find any aura he was familiar with!
Then Hode hurriedly used his perverted vision to observe this world, and then found that it was still a normal Blue Star.
"What the heck! Where are the people? Where is my wife? And where did Hogwarts go?"
That's right, Hode didn't find Hogwarts! Because he was standing right at the geographical location of Hogwarts at this moment!
Hode began to pace back and forth; he was thinking right now.
He observed that the technology of the people in this world was in the ancient period, and their clothing and architecture were old to death.
But Magic existed in this world! And there were Wizards! Moreover, there were four Wizards with powerful Magicwalking in his direction.
So Hode guessed that he should have returned to the world of Harry Potter!
But he had returned to the world of a thousand years ago!
At this time, the Four Founders of Hogwarts: Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff.
Finally also sat in small wooden boats through the dense tunnel, seeing the cliff that made them feel at a glance that it was suitable for building Hogwarts!
Then they discovered a figure standing on the cliff.
Godric asked curiously: "Who is that?"
Salazar said with extreme disdain: "I didn't find any magicinside his body; he's just a Muggle. Later, just cast a magicon him to make him scram!"
Helga: "Salazar! We shouldn't use magic on Muggles casually! You can't make arbitrary decisions about the weak just because you have power!"
Rowena: "Forget it, Helga, Salazar's personality is impossible to change, there's no need to waste time on him."
Thus, the strongest in history and the Four Founders of Hogwarts were about to meet!
Chapter 165: the Four Founders of Hogwarts
Hode stood on the cliff, crossing his arms as he watched the Four Founders arrive on the shore and slowly walk toward him.
"the Four Founders… They really look just like their portraits!"
Hode couldn't help but nod; the real people actually looked like their portraits.
Soon, the Four Founders reached the top of the hill. Godrictook the lead and curiously asked Hode.
"Young man, what brings you to a place like this?"
You must know that this place is extremely remote, and you couldn't see a single person for miles around!
"Er… My situation is a bit complicated. Right, let me introduce myself first. My name is Hode Dumbledore Grindelwald!"
Godric also responded, "My name is Godric Gryffindor!"
Then Helga said very enthusiastically, "Hello, young child, my name is Helga Hufflepuff. You can also call me Helgadirectly."
Rowena said in a calm tone, "Rowena Ravenclaw."
Salazar didn't speak, or rather, he didn't want to chat with a Muggle. However, the moment Salazar used Legilimencyon Hode, he was instantly stunned!
Godric also noticed that Salazar had used the Legilimencyspell on Hode, and immediately rebuked him.
"Salazar! Stop this at once! Muggles are not objects for you to casually cast magic on!"
Facing Godric's words, Salazar didn't care in the least, but instead looked at Hode with a serious expression.
"You are not a Muggle! A Muggle could never resist my Legilimency! How did you hide your magic?"
"Not a Muggle?!"
Godric looked at Salazar in surprise, and then looked back at Hode.
Helga and Rowena were also extremely surprised.
You must know that no Wizard could completely hide their own Magic, and they were very confident in their own strength; they could sense even the slightest trace of Magic.
Rowena observed Hode carefully, and then asked with a curious expression:
"How did you do that?"
"Hmm… It's a long story, let me tell it slowly!"
Then, under the curious listening of the four, Hode detailed his battle and scheme against Death, as well as how he emerged from the chaos.
Salazar looked at Hode with a constipated expression, "You mean you're only sixteen years old now, and you can already defeat Death! And you're already the strongest Wizard in the world!"
"That's right! Exactly like that! But I am a very low-key person and never talk about it outside!"
The few of them opened their mouths, not knowing what to say. In the end, Salazar couldn't help but speak up:
"Six hundred sixty-six! Regarding this bragging ability of yours, I, Salazar, would like to call you the strongest! Are you treating us like fools for amusement?"
Hearing Salazar's completely untrusting words, Hode felt somewhat helpless.
"What I'm saying is all true!"
"Then how about the two of us have a duel!"
Godric immediately spoke up, his battle addiction acting up again.
Salazar looked at Godric unconvinced, "Why? No matter what, it should be me fighting him!"
It wasn't that Salazar's hands were itching unbearably, but rather that he wanted to see just how much exaggeration there was to this self-proclaimed strongest person who bragged about coming from the future.
But Godric wasn't willing to give in. With a reluctant expression, he said, "No way! First come, first served, so I'm the one who gets to fight Hode!"
Salazar: "No! It's always been you before, so this time it has to be me!"
Helga and Rowena exchanged a glance, and then complained.
"Sigh—, these two guys…"
Just as the two were arguing endlessly, Hode smiled very relaxed.
"No need to argue, you two can come at me together!"
As soon as these words came out, the four of them looked at Hode in unison.
Godric: "Hode, are you serious?"
Salazar: "Kid, you need to understand that the price of bragging is quite heavy!"
But Hode just waved his hand casually, and then looked at the two with a smile.
"It's fine, it's fine. Because you guys—are very weak!"
Very weak!
Weak!
Ah!
Hode's words echoed in their ears, and both Godric and Salazar were stunned.
But soon, both of them came to their senses. Salazarimmediately burst forth with the Magic inside his body, and a powerful coercion heavily pressed toward Hode.
"Kid! It seems your brain really has some issues! I'll make you understand what true strength is right now!"
After speaking, Salazar immediately pulled out his Wandand aimed it at Hode, and then a beam of light shot toward Hode.
Because of Salazar's sudden movement, the other three didn't react in time, and could only watch as the beam of light struck Hode at extreme speed.
Just when everyone thought Hode would be hit, they saw Salazar's magic suddenly stop at a distance of three centimeters from Hode, and it was completely unable to advance any further!
"How is this possible! What kind of magic is this?"
Salazar looked at this scene in surprise. He swore that he really intended to let Hode be hit by the Petrificus Totalus! But this situation couldn't help but make him feel eerie; this was the first time he had ever seen such a peculiar magic.
"How did you do it?"
Godric also looked on in amazement, while Helga and Rowena were likewise observing Hode's magic. But they couldn't sense anything at all, as if the Petrificus Totaluswas supposed to stay right in front of Hode in the first place.
Facing the questions from Salazar and Godric, Hode began to explain the principle of Infinity.
After listening to Hode's words, Rowena said incredulously, "How is this possible! There is simply no such magic!"
Hode: "You're just scared."
Godric: "Who wouldn't be scared of this?"
Hode no longer paid attention to the four people's astonishment, but instead looked at Salazar and asked, "Are you still coming or not?"
Salazar was stunned for a moment, and finally said, "Since you say you come from the future, then use a magic from your era to attack me!"
Hode glanced at Salazar, "Since you've said so, then—Release!"
Hode stretched out his right hand and made a sweeping gesture in the void. Salazar suddenly felt a wave of intense sharp pain coming from his right arm!
His eyes looked toward his right arm, only to find that his arm had long since fallen to the ground! Blood was gushing out like it was throwing its life away.
"Salazar!"
The three of them cried out in surprise, and then looked at Hode vigilantly.
They never expected that Hode would merely utter a single word, and Salazar's arm would be severed as if by a sword!
"Ah!"
Salazar also reacted, immediately picking up the fallen Wand to stop his own bleeding.
"You guy!"
Salazar cursed angrily, his eyes staring fixedly at Hode's hand. As long as Hode made the slightest movement, he would promptly protect himself and the other three.
"Don't be so tense, I can help you reattach it."
After Hode finished speaking, the right arm on the ground began to fly toward Salazar.
"This!"
Salazar could feel his right arm slowly regaining sensation, and finally even the scars completely disappeared. The entire right arm was as if it had never been broken at all.
"This! What kind of magic is this?"
The four of them asked Hode in surprise. A magic that could instantly heal a severed arm could be called a miracle in their era!
If the Wizards of today could master this kind of magic, more casualties could be reduced.
"This shouldn't be considered magic; this is me using divine power to heal your injuries, something that magic cannot achieve."
"Divine power?"
The four of them said in unison, somewhat not understanding Hode's words.
Afterwards, Hode briefly recounted how he obtained divine power, along with some other matters.
Because of Hode's display just now, the four of them began to accept the premise that Hode really came from a thousand years in the future.
"So we really built the best magic school in history here!"
Godric asked happily.
Hode: I don't seem to have ever said it was the best magicschool…
However, Hode did not refute it, but instead nodded.
Upon receiving the affirmation, Godric couldn't sit still anymore and urged the other three.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's build the magicacademy right away!"
Godric couldn't wait to see the school they were going to build.
However, Salazar and Ilona immediately poured cold water on Godric.
Ilona: "First, we must figure out the floor area, blueprints, and building materials! Second, we can start construction! Finally—we need to resolve the faculty and student resources! And these are just the surface issues; there are many details we need to think about."
Salazar nodded in agreement, "Ilona is right! This isn't something you can just build immediately just because you say so!"
At this time, Godric seemed to remember something and immediately asked Hode.
"Hode, aren't you a student of Hogwarts?! Wouldn't it be great if you helped us design the blueprints!"
The other three also suddenly came to a realization.
That's right! Have Hode draw out the blueprints of the Hogwarts school, and they could just build it accordingly! This wave belongs to me plagiarizing myself!
But Hode shook his head, "I think you guys should figure it out yourselves; this is the school established by you after all!"
Hode's words had no flaws. After all, this was the highest achievement made by the Four Founders, and he couldn't meddle in such matters.
"Alright, then how are you going to get back?"
Facing Godric's question, Hode thought about it.
He hadn't expected that he would actually time-travel to a thousand years ago! The time span was a bit far.
If it were only a dozen or several decades, Hode could still rely on divine power to forcibly rewrite the rules and return to his original timeline.
But a span of a thousand years made it impossible for him to return directly to the future through divine power.
However, this didn't mean Hode had no way out!
Hode: "If it's returning to a thousand years later, it will be a bit tricky."
Godric: "Can't go back?"
Hode: "I will go back!"
Godric: "How come I always feel like this sentence has a bit of… a plagiarized vibe?"
Hode waved his hand casually, "Don't mind such details! Anyway, I'm not in a hurry. When I return to the timeline when I left, it will be equivalent to me never leaving at all."
Hearing Hode's words, Ilona couldn't help being stunned.
"So time can be like this?"
Hode knew what Ilona wanted to express, nodded and said:
"That's right, although when I return to the original timeline, the time I experienced won't disappear because of it. If I stay here for a few years, I will become an adult after going back, and in their eyes, I would have inexplicably consumed more of my own time… or rather, lifespan. Though I don't think I have the possibility of dying of old age."
Ilona said with envy, "Immortality? That really makes people envious! If I had such an ability, I could learn even more knowledge."
Hearing these words, Hode wiped the cold sweat from his face.
Hode: Why does this sentence sound so much like what Hermione would say?
Chapter 166: The Successful Creation of Hogwarts
"That's right! The ceiling of the Great Hall must be breathtaking!"
Ilona was in the center of the Great Hall, casting a peculiar magic on the ceiling so that it could reflect the outside sky.
Once the spell was complete, Ilona looked at her masterpiece with satisfaction.
Godric and the others were arranging the long tables and decorating the walls of the Great Hall.
Hode sat down on the bench Godric had just arranged and said to him,
"Look at Ilona's artistic flair! Now look at yours! Do you know that the decoration of the Gryffindor Common Roomis far worse than Ravenclaw's!"
"Hahaha! Hode is right! Godric, you have no taste at all!"
Salazar also chimed in with mocking laughter, which made Godric furious with embarrassment.
"Shut up, Salazar! How can you have the nerve to criticize me with your shabby sewer-style decor? If the students live in your place, I guarantee they'll get rheumatism!"
"Oh? Say that again! Gryffindor! I'll show you!"
Godric wasn't scared at all. Instead, he continued to taunt, "So what if I say it? You inherently evil Slytherin! I'll personally—"
Hode interrupted, shouting, "Hey, remember to pay copyright fees!"
Hode had already been here for three months and had long since become close with the four of them.
Now that Hogwarts was about to be completed, everyone couldn't wait to start recruiting students and teachers.
"Hey, Hode. Have you really figured out a way to go back?"
Ilona was very curious about how Hode would cross this thousand-year span of time to return to his original timeline.
"After you finish building Hogwarts, I plan to go back."
"What? So soon! Not staying a bit longer?"
Godric immediately objected!
Ever since finding out that Hode was a Gryffindor student, Godric had unilaterally taken Hode as his own student.
Over the past three months, Godric had frequently bragged about Hode in front of the other three, even asking why none of their students had traveled through time to visit them.
This remark caused the others to team up and beat Godricup several times! Even Helga, who had the mildest temper, couldn't help but throw hands.
But Godric never tired of bragging. Hearing now that Hodewas going to leave, he immediately started feeling reluctant.
Seeing Godric looking like he had lost his most precious possession, Ilona rolled her eyes.
"Godric, Hode doesn't belong to our timeline in the first place, so it's only natural for him to return."
"But staying a bit longer wouldn't hurt!"
Godric immediately retorted, and Ilona didn't say anything further.
"No, just in case, I still want to go back sooner. However, I think I can establish a connection between our two sides."
Hode's words made the four of them perk up their ears to listen.
Ilona: "What does that mean?"
Salazar: "You have a way to connect two sides separated by a thousand years?"
Hode nodded, then shook his head.
"I can store a portion of your Magic and a tiny fraction of your Soul into a photograph, and then use divine power to activate and protect the photographs. The photographs will then act as another version of you. Once I take them back, you'll be able to communicate with the other side through them."
The four of them exchanged glances, and then Godricscratched his head and asked, "What is a photograph?"
Hode:... He had forgotten that this era had no concept of photographs at all, knowing at most only portraits.
So Hode pulled a smartphone out of his space storage, opened the camera function, and took a picture of the four of them.
"There, it's this."
Hode showed the photograph he had taken to the four of them.
"This is way more lifelike than a portrait! It perfectly captures my handsome posture! But it's still not enough! Hode, later when I put on my armor, take another cooler one for me!"
Godric said shamelessly, eager for Hode to take a cool photo of him so future students could witness his heroic posture!
"Hmph! Who'd care to look at someone like you? Hode, take one of me that's even more handsome than Godric's! I want my Slytherin students to see the divine face of their forefather!"
Salazar said just as shamelessly, and Godric immediately cursed back.
"Bah! Divine face my foot! You inherently evil Slytherin, don't embarrass the three of us!"
Then the two of them started fighting again...
"Ah—, men." Ilona and Helga complained once more.
Ilona rested her hand on Hode's shoulder and whispered softly,
"Little brother Hode, you must make us look pretty!"
Hode: You have the nerve to say that about them?
"Of course. But you'd better wear your most important attire for the photos so that future students can get a good look at you."
Ilona nodded. "That goes without saying!"
Time soon arrived at the day Hogwarts was completed, and the four of them had already found several like-minded Wizards to serve as Professors.
Through their reputation, the school also successively invited over a dozen students! Although their ages varied, ranging from 11 to 17 years old, this did not dampen everyone's excitement.
"The Quill of Acceptance and the Book of Admittance are both completed! From now on, we can bring over and teach all the children in England who can become Wizards!"
Helga said happily, seemingly unable to wait to see Hogwarts filled with the joyful laughter of children.
Hode: Or it could be filled with bitter complaints.
The Quill of Acceptance was a slender magical feather, and the Book of Admittance was a blank Magic Book.
They didn't need anyone's involvement to constantly monitor the entirety of England. Whenever a child with magical talent was born, they would record it down.
As long as the quill detected the slightest trace of magic, it would record it; but if the student's magical traces were not obvious enough, the book would sometimes slam shut with force, denying the quill the chance to record until it had gathered enough magical traces.
The four of them placed them in a locked turret at the very top of Hogwarts, which housed a wooden table and chair. The Quill of Acceptance and the Book of Admittance were placed on the wooden table, letting them work quietly—and even a thousand years later, they never stopped.
Hode suddenly thought: When he became Headmaster in the future, taking some time to stay in that room, watching the Quill of Acceptance write in the Book of Admittance, listening to the laughter of the students below, and drinking tea brewed by Hermione... that seemed pretty nice!
"How is it, Hode? Isn't it identical to Hogwarts a thousand years later?"
Godric interrupted Hode's daydream and said proudly,
while Ilona retorted from the side.
"How could it be identical! You have to remember that's a thousand years later! Hogwarts will definitely have undergone many changes."
Hode nodded in agreement. "Indeed, don't underestimate a thousand years of development!"
Present-day Hogwarts naturally had major differences from a thousand years later.
Take photographs, the bathroom, and Quidditch alone! These were all things created in the future.
However, Hogwarts's overall exterior didn't change much, mainly because the Four Founders built it large and sturdy enough that later generations wouldn't need to make extensions or renovations.
"Then let's take some pictures!"
Hode said, conjuring a huge camera out of thin air—the kind that could print photos directly.
"Now? Then let's go change our clothes first!"
Hode's words made them immediately run back to their respective rooms to change their attire.
The first to come out was Godric! He wore silver armor, with a gold-and-red cloak draped over his back, and held the Sword of Gryffindor, which Hode was very familiar with. Then Godric spun around in place and asked Hode:
"How's this outfit of mine? Isn't it super cool?!"
Hode: "Why are you even more narcissistic than me? Since you came out first, you'll be the first to take a photo."
After finishing, Hode pulled Godric to the exact center of the Great Hall and aimed the camera at him.
"Strike a pose you think is the coolest."
Godric immediately placed the sword in front of him, with the blade pointing downward to touch the ground and both hands on the end of the hilt. Then Godric held his head high and puffed out his chest with an imposing expression, looking like a proud lion!
"Very good! Hold it! Three... Two... One..."
"Click—!"
Hode successfully captured a full-body shot of Godric and quickly printed out a photo 2 meters long and 1.2 meters wide.
"Let me see!"
Godric immediately snatched the photo and began admiring it with satisfaction.
"Not bad! Not bad! Hahahaha! I, Godric Gryffindor, am just so handsome!"
Hode ignored the giggling Godric, because Salazar had also come out of his room.
Salazar wore green and silver robes made of clean, silky fabric that looked expensive at a glance. The robes were also covered with various gemstone accessories and his locket.
His hair was also meticulously groomed, and with a stern expression, he looked just like a carbon copy of Snape.
Then Hode took a full-body photo of Salazar and printed it out.
Salazar looked at his photo and smiled with satisfaction, but he wasn't as narcissistic as Godric.
Godric looked at Salazar's photo and said disdainfully, "Your photo is nowhere near as handsome and mighty as mine! But Salazar, don't take it to heart—after all, I am the handsomest Godric in the world!"
...Then the two of them started fighting again...
Then Helga also slowly walked out.
Helga wore an orange-yellow long dress with her hair tied into a ponytail, solemnly holding Hufflepuff's Cup in her hand, and wearing the orange-yellow high heels gifted by Hode on her feet, looking like a kind princess.
"Hode, how is this outfit of mine?"
"Great! It completely matches your gentle and refined image!"
Hode printed out Helga's photo and let her examine it carefully.
Finally, Ilona slowly stepped out in blue crystal high heels.
She wore Ravenclaw's Diadem on her head, her silver-white hair flowing freely, and a blue-and-white princess dress that perfectly accentuated her proud figure.
Ilona held an ancient Magic Book and her Wand in her hands, then showed off her attire. "How is it?"
Hode nodded. "Very beautiful."
Godric: "Like a princess stepping out of a fairy tale!"
Godric, bruised and battered, praised Ilona from the side, while Salazar, also bruised and battered, looked at Godricwith disdain.
"You guy, are you love-struck?"
...The two of them started fighting again...
After Hode finished taking Ilona's photo, the photographs of the Four Founders were successfully created!