Lewis's daring maneuver truly frightened quite a few people.
Hermione was especially terrified, gripping Ginny and Luna's hands tightly.
Luna even wore a pained expression—but not because she was worried about Lewis.
She was worried about Hermione squeezing her hand so hard.
Lewis's fall allowed him to narrowly evade Angelina's interception.
At the same time, his psychic abilities activated, controlling the Firebolt and altering its flight path.
The Firebolt suddenly made a huge turn in midair.
Just as Lewis was about to hit the ground, it caught up with him at the very last moment.
At the commentary booth…
Lee Jordan's mouth fell open.
For a moment, he completely forgot to speak.
What kind of godly maneuver was that?!
That was absolutely insane!
It wasn't until Professor McGonagall jabbed him with her wand for the third time that Jordan finally recovered.
He immediately shouted excitedly:
"By Merlin's saggy grandmother's beard! What an incredible dodge! I've been commentating Quidditch matches for decades, and that's the first time I've ever seen anything like that!"
"I think the Quidditch Committee is going to name that move after him!"
Jordan was incredibly excited.
Lewis's maneuver had completely won him over.
His commentary had become incoherent with excitement.
He had completely forgotten that he was a Gryffindor.
Even Professor McGonagall was desperately waving her hands behind him, signaling him to calm down.
Lewis, having regained control of his Firebolt, instantly accelerated.
He broke through the encirclement and charged straight toward the goalposts.
Harry attempted to intercept him again.
But Cho Chang caught up and blocked Harry.
Harry, Angelina, George, and Fred had all tried to stop him.
Yet Lewis had already blown past all four Gryffindors!
He was now approaching the Gryffindor goalposts.
Wood's expression became fierce.
Watching Lewis break through one defender after another, he simply abandoned the goal and accelerated directly toward Lewis.
He intended to ram him head-on.
At the very least, he wanted to force Lewis to change direction.
But Lewis merely tilted the tip of his broom upward.
His body rose slightly.
With a graceful change of direction, he narrowly slipped past Wood.
He rushed beneath the goalposts and performed a beautiful pull-up maneuver.
"GOAL!"
Lee Jordan had completely transformed into Lewis's number-one fan.
He waved his fist and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Lewis is the best Chaser at Hogwarts!"
The Gryffindor stands fell completely silent.
When Gryffindor Chaser Alicia Spinnet launched another attack and attempted to pass the Quaffle to Angelina in the front…
Her pass went awry.
Lewis immediately seized the opening.
The opposing team had just watched him use an outrageous maneuver to blow past four players and score.
It was devastating to their morale.
Especially Wood.
He slapped his thigh in frustration, trying to snap himself back to reality.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Shirley completed a steal.
With Roger setting a screen for her, she launched another fast break and scored.
"Oh! Disaster!"
Jordan shouted.
"Lewis has stolen the ball again!"
The ease with which Lewis completed the interception surprised even him.
But he reacted quickly.
He immediately accelerated, preparing to launch another fast break.
Angelina had been flying a Cleansweep 1700.
She failed to receive Alicia's pass.
After being momentarily stunned, she immediately turned around and began retreating on defense.
Aside from Lewis and Cho, Angelina was undoubtedly one of the best Chasers at Hogwarts.
Her awareness was exceptional.
Her technique was excellent.
At the same time, Harry, who had been keeping a close eye on Lewis, moved to block his path.
The crowd erupted in astonishment.
Many students stood up, staring intently into the sky, unwilling to miss the thrilling scene.
Lewis had no intention of passing the ball forward.
The steal had been too sudden.
Even his own teammates hadn't reacted in time.
And the person furthest forward happened to be Lewis himself.
Seeing that she couldn't stop his breakthrough…
Angelina immediately used the same tactic as before.
She deliberately committed a foul, trying to use her broom to block Lewis's path.
Once again, Lewis and Angelina's brooms became entangled.
The two high-speed brooms raced side by side, scraping against each other and throwing off sparks.
But a Saint Seiya warrior wouldn't be defeated by the same move twice.
Lewis simply raised the front of his Firebolt and forced it over the Cleansweep 1700.
Then he pushed the Firebolt to full power.
It looked as though he intended to force his way through using sheer acceleration.
The two brooms scraped against each other for more than a dozen meters.
Finally, Angelina couldn't withstand the pressure any longer.
She jerked her broom aside.
Thanks to Angelina and Harry's suicidal defensive efforts, Gryffindor had bought enough time for the rest of the team to fall back.
Fred and George were already in position.
The two twins raised their bats.
Once again, they used the same technique.
THUD! THUD!
The Bludger shot away like a cannonball.
This time, their positioning was even more precise.
They were determined to make their specialized tactic count after all the training they had invested in it.
The instant the Bludger was launched…
Lewis didn't turn around.
Instead, he subtly adjusted the position of his broom.
His hands gripped the handle tightly.
Then his entire body rotated 180 degrees in midair.
He ended up completely upside down.
The Bludger tore through the space where his head had been a moment earlier.
"Beautiful!"
Jordan jumped excitedly from his seat.
"That's an incredible Tree-Climbing Bear technique! What a beautiful maneuver!"
Then he immediately realized something was wrong.
"Wait!"
"Angelina, watch out!"
Jordan shouted a warning.
But it was already too late.
Every ball in Quidditch possessed a certain degree of autonomous flight.
Lewis had exploited that property.
Before the Bludger struck him, he had influenced its trajectory.
Then, at the very last moment, he dodged.
Bludgers were especially sensitive to their targets.
When a Beater struck one and changed its direction, it would simultaneously make a slight adjustment based on the direction of the target it was pursuing.
Lewis successfully dodged.
The Bludger continued along its predetermined trajectory…
Straight toward Angelina, who was still entangled with Lewis and had no time to escape.
A dull impact echoed through the sky.
Lewis watched helplessly as the Bludger smashed directly into Angelina's head.
Judging from the sound alone…
That had definitely been a solid hit.
This is what happens when you target me.
Lewis thought coldly.
But he had never actually intended to seriously injure her.
The female Chaser was thrown from her Cleansweep 1700 and began plummeting toward the ground.
Everyone stood up.
Every eye locked onto the falling Angelina.
At this critical moment…
Lewis moved like a hunting hawk.
He sharply angled his broom downward and dived after her.
In the blink of an eye, he reached Angelina's side and grabbed her robes.
To prevent the sudden force from tearing her clothes apart, Lewis didn't immediately pull upward.
Instead, he followed the momentum downward, gradually turning their vertical descent into a curved trajectory.
Just before they struck the ground…
The curve reached its lowest point.
Lewis wrapped an arm around Angelina's waist and pulled the broom upward, preventing her head from hitting the ground.
"The first accident of the match has happened before we've even reached ten minutes!"
"Angelina was struck by George's Bludger!"
"Fortunately, Lewis saved her!"
"He's the one who was being targeted by that Bludger in the first place, yet his selflessness is truly admirable!"
"I can see Madam Pomfrey already coming onto the field!"
"Thank Merlin!"
Lee Jordan had unknowingly given Lewis another glowing endorsement.
"Match suspended!"
Madam Hooch's voice rang across the pitch.
Only a handful of people in the stands had noticed what had really happened.
Beside Professor Dumbledore, a middle-aged wizard muttered thoughtfully:
"This Lewis Green…"
"He's playing his opponents like puppets."
Lewis landed and carefully lowered Angelina onto the ground, allowing her to lie flat.
Madam Pomfrey hurried over with an unhappy expression.
"Such a dangerous sport shouldn't even be allowed!"
"Quidditch should have been abolished long ago!"
Lewis was speechless when he heard her muttering.
Fortunately…
Madam Pomfrey had no authority to make that decision.
She carefully examined Angelina for signs of a concussion before taking out a potion and pouring it down her throat.
Meanwhile…
The Weasley twins were on the verge of fighting each other.
George desperately tried to explain that everything had been an accident.
But Fred didn't believe him.
He thought George had discovered that he was dating someone and had deliberately retaliated against him.
"What… what date?"
"You've been on a date?!"
George looked completely bewildered.
Then he immediately realized what Fred had just said.
"Explain yourself!"
"Who were you dating?"
"Was it Angelina?!"
Fred realized he'd let the secret slip.
He immediately mounted his broom and flew away.
About three minutes later…
Angelina finally regained consciousness.
She stood up despite Madam Pomfrey's objections, climbed back onto her Cleansweep 1700, kicked off the ground, and flew back into the sky.
The Gryffindor students immediately erupted into cheers.
Her return seemed to restore some confidence to the team.
But she had clearly been affected by the injury.
Every time Lewis flew past her, she looked dazed, as though she couldn't quite remember what she was supposed to be doing.
Without Angelina's experienced defensive coordination…
Harry alone couldn't contain both Lewis and Shirley.
Ravenclaw's run-and-gun strategy was therefore unleashed in full.
Pass.
Move.
Pass again.
Move again.
The relentless movement and rapid passing tore Gryffindor's defense apart.
Lewis once again found himself facing Wood.
Wood shouted angrily.
But this time, he cautiously stayed close to the goalposts.
His eyes remained fixed on Lewis.
Both hands were raised, carefully anticipating his next move.
Lewis released both hands from the broomstick.
He controlled his flight speed using only his legs, maintaining perfect balance.
Then he turned sideways and flicked the Quaffle toward the goal.
"Lewis shoots from an outrageous angle!"
"Beautiful!"
"Wood manages to knock it away!"
Jordan roared.
But Lewis immediately turned his broom and reclaimed the Quaffle.
Another pull-up maneuver.
Another shot from an impossible angle!
"Hey!"
"Wood is incredible today!"
"He made another fingertip save!"
"Another brilliant stop!"
The Quaffle was caught by Alicia.
She immediately attempted to launch another attack.
But Shirley swiftly intercepted it and passed the ball directly to Lewis.
George came charging from behind.
Lewis didn't even turn his head.
He simply shifted sideways and avoided him.
Fred swung his Beater's bat.
The Bludger came roaring toward Lewis like a stone fired from a cannon.
Lewis pressed himself tightly against his Firebolt and once again shook off the Bludger.
Then he charged toward Wood for the third time.
This time…
Wood guessed the wrong direction.
Lewis faked a shot to the left.
Wood committed to the wrong side.
An opening appeared.
Lewis shot.
GOAL!
"GOAAAAAAAAAL!"
Jordan's roar shook the entire Quidditch stadium.
"Wood can stop Lewis once!"
"He can stop him twice!"
"But he can't stop him from shooting forever!"
From that point onward…
Ravenclaw fully unleashed the terror of their run-and-gun strategy.
They raced around the pitch on their brooms.
The pace kept accelerating.
Faster attacks.
Faster passes.
Faster shots.
Even if it meant making more mistakes…
They refused to slow down.
Gryffindor's players chased after them desperately.
They were almost being dragged to exhaustion.
Their collapse came much faster than expected.
And worse…
Angelina was still suffering from the effects of her earlier fall.
She seemed to have suffered at least a mild concussion.
Although she had remembered that she was in the middle of a match…
Her reactions were always half a beat too slow.
Against Ravenclaw's relentless run-and-gun offense…
Even Roger could get past her.
Yet Gryffindor had no choice but to keep her on the field.
One of the rules of Quidditch was that injured players could not be replaced during a match.
The team had to continue playing after an injured player left the field.
Substitutes could only be used for pre-match rotation or during exceptionally long matches lasting several days, allowing players to rest and sleep.
In other words…
Angelina had only two options.
Leave the match and leave Gryffindor with only two Chasers…
Or continue playing while injured.
And if she left…
Gryffindor would have only two Chasers.
A three-Chaser Gryffindor team was already struggling against a Ravenclaw side centered around Lewis and Shirley.
With only two players…
They would have no chance at all.
Therefore…
No matter how poor Angelina's condition became…
She had to keep fighting.
At the very least…
She could struggle on for a little longer and hold out until Harry caught the Golden Snitch.
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