Christmas was over, and the school was back to normal.
Malfoy continued to live his seemingly peaceful school life. Cafeteria, library, dormitory, classroom, all four points, with few exceptions.
As for Harry, he was miserable. Their Quidditch captain, Wood, had stricter requirements for his team members than ever before. Even after the heavy snow and continuous rain, his drive did not cool down at all. The Weasley brothers kept complaining, but still persevered. As for Harry, it was needless to say.
Because if they won the competition. They could very well end Slythrin's School Championship Competition that had been won for seven years.
When the goal was out of reach, people would usually give up. When the goal was within reach, most people would grit their teeth and persevere. This was the true portrayal of the Gryffindor team.
On the training ground, the Weasley brothers started to play tricks again. They kept dive-bombing each other and pretended to fall from their flying brooms.
In the end, they were scolded by Wood, followed by a piece of bad news. "Snape will be the referee for this competition."
In a split second, almost all the team members' faces darkened. It was obvious that the goal that could be achieved with a little effort had become an impossible task.
Everyone's morale was low, and their enthusiasm for training was also much lower. It was obvious that this was a fatal blow.
After the training ended, the Gryffindor team members were still discussing and chatting softly. They were probably guessing how Snape would make things difficult for them. However, Harry was not in the mood to listen to them. He went straight to the Gryffindor lounge. He wanted Hermione and Ron to give him some ideas. He suspected that Snape would do something to him again.
"Don't participate in the competition," Hermione said immediately.
"Just say that you're sick," Ron said.
"Pretend to break your leg," Hermione suggested.
"Really break your leg," Ron said.
Harry held his forehead in pain and said, "I'm the only ball seeker in the team. If I'm absent, the team won't be able to participate."
Ron and Hermione immediately stopped talking. They both knew that Harry was a boy with a strong sense of responsibility. He would not drag the whole team down for his own safety.
Of course, this once again reflected the irrationality of the game and the mistake of the Gryffindor team in nurturing talents. How could they not have a substitute in such a big competition?
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"Damn it." Malfoy took a big bite of the bread and butter, his spirit somewhat dispirited.
"My lady, this isn't a competition of our academy. How can we not be concerned? Do you know what time I went to bed last night? "Malfoy wailed exaggeratedly.
"I must see Gryffindor lose." It was obvious that Pan Xi was still brooding over the previous failure of the team. He clenched his fists as he spoke.
"I hate female football fans," Malfoy complained. "But I should be able to finish it quickly today. I should hurry up and go back to sleep." Thinking of this, he seemed to be in a better mood.
"Gryffindor will definitely be at a disadvantage this time," Pansy said softly, but Malfoy could feel the excitement in her voice.
Malfoy could not help but facepalm, "Is it really okay to be so happy over an unfair judge?"
Soon, they arrived at the stadium. The enthusiasm of the audience was unprecedentedly high. Cheers and cheers resounded throughout the stadium even before the competition started. Gryffindor was especially excited. This competition was too crucial for them. But when they found out that Snape was the judge, the audience booed.
"Ron, look, Professor Dumbledore is here." Hermione tugged at Ron's sleeve and said from the spectator stand.
Dumbledore dragged his long robe and walked into the stadium slowly.
"Thank God." Ron heaved a sigh of relief. "Then we can rest assured. Snape will definitely not dare to play any tricks in front of him."
"That's not right." Hermione frowned. "Professor Dumbledore seemed to be on the spectator stand the previous time too," she said.
"Then why didn't he help Harry the previous time?" Ron obviously did not believe her.
"I don't know." She paused for a moment and gripped the wand in her hand tightly. "So we still can't let our guard down."
"Remember, don't forget, it's' Death by Paralysis'," Hermione reminded Ron.
"I know." Ron was a little impatient. "I still don't believe that he would dare to play any tricks in front of everyone," he said again.
Hermione felt that she was too slow to stop him the previous time, so she chose to use a new spell to deal with Snape today.
On the field, the players from both sides came to the center of the field. Just like the previous match, Madam Huo said something about a fair competition and the competition started.
"Hufflepuff's free throw!" Snape said in a gloomy tone.
The competition had only started for a few minutes, and Snape had already awarded Hufflepuff a free throw. The reason was that George had hit the ball at him and interfered with the judge.
Harry was still circling the field like an eagle. He wanted to find the Snitch as soon as possible so that Snape would have less time to side with Hufflepuff.
"Hufflepuff's free throw!" He said again. This time, there was no reason for it.
The Gryffindor students below the field were in an uproar. Ear-piercing whistles could be heard from all the years. Even Hufflepuff's students did not look too good. It was obvious that with their loyal characters, even if Snape was siding with them, they could not accept it.
"Well done." Pan Xi raised her hands and cheered.
"Why aren't you cheering? Our academy has scored again." Pan Xi used her arm to poke Malfoy.
"Oh, yeah!" Malfoy raised his hand stiffly and waved. "Well done!" He said in a dry tone.
Just as he finished his sentence, thunderous applause could be heard from all around the stands. Other than their academy's seats, there was an eerie silence.
When Pan Xi reminded Malfoy, it seemed like the outcome had already been decided. She had missed that crucial moment.
The commentator's excited voice could be heard. "Oh my god, what did I just see? There must have been many spectators who did not react in time. Even I almost missed this historic moment! Harry Potter from the Gryffindor team suddenly made a beautiful dive. His speed was so fast that I thought he was going to hit the ground. The same goes for the judge. "He took a deep breath and continued. "Mr. Snape had already mounted his broom and was about to rescue him. But Harry did not fall. He was just a few inches away from the judge. He successfully caught the Golden Snitch. Now, he has lifted the Golden Snitch up high to announce his victory! Spectators, let us cheer. For this historic moment, we are fortunate enough to witness the fastest ending in Quidditch history! "
The loud cheers almost overturned the entire stadium.
But Ron still complained softly. "He's obviously looking for an opportunity to hit someone when they're down." Ron, who did not believe Snape earlier, was shocked when he saw Snape riding on a broomstick. Hence, he easily changed his stance now.
"Yeah." Hermione agreed. "But Harry did not give him a chance!" She smiled happily.
"Well done." A kind voice came from behind Harry. He turned around and saw Dumbledore's smiling face. "I'm glad to see that you're not thinking about that magic mirror all day. You're living a fulfilling life. That's great." The Professor's voice was so soft that only he could hear it.
Harry looked further back and saw Snape spitting on the ground. He felt that this was probably the happiest moment of his life. He was happier than ever. He had finally done something that he was truly proud of. No one would say that he only had a famous name in the future. The night air had never been so sweet. He walked across the wet grass. The scene from the past hour replayed in his mind. It was a blurry and happy memory: the Gryffindor students running over to put him on their shoulders; Ron and Hermione jumping up and down in the distance, Ron cheering as he bled from his nose.
Harry had already arrived at the broom shed. He leaned against the wooden door and looked up at Hogwarts. The windows were glowing red under the setting sun. The Gryffindor team had taken the lead. He had succeeded.
Some people were overjoyed, some people were sad.
A sharp pain suddenly came from someone's foot. He had been stepped on. He turned around and saw Pan Xi's red face. Malfoy saw that her whole body was trembling and her eyes were red.
"I told you not to come, but you insisted on coming to take the hit." Malfoy obviously didn't say those words out loud. It was obviously adding fuel to the fire. The most important thing now was to cool it down. However, he couldn't find any comforting words at that moment.
"Who am I? I'm a rich second-generation heir! "He suddenly smacked his head. He slowly said to Pan Xi, "Gryffindor and the others had an unfair advantage. Harry Potter's broom is the latest Nimbus 2000. Professor Mag may seem fair, but he is actually biased towards them." Pan Xi nodded vigorously. She obviously agreed with this reason. "But this problem won't continue next year. I will ask my father to sponsor the Slytherin team. Next year's Nimbus 2001 will definitely be better than theirs."
"Really? That's not a small sum, right? "Pan Xi couldn't believe it.
"For the sake of the academy's honor, gold coins are nothing," Malfoy said seriously.
Pan Xi stared at him in a daze. Suddenly, she burst out laughing. She said, "Come on. You are the one with the least sense of honor in the academy. I had to pull you over for both competitions before you came."
"Uh …" Malfoy didn't know how to continue.
"But I know you did it for me." Pan Xi's voice became softer. It was different from the flush caused by anger earlier. Now, she was blushing shyly, which made her look cute.
"Thank you," she said softly. She said softly, then kissed him on the cheek like a dragonfly skimming the surface of the water, then got up and ran away.
"Evil capitalism." Malfoy touched the spot where he was kissed, and couldn't help but sigh. "But I like it," he added in his heart.