The Right Way to Find the Ball

Chapter 65 The Right Way to Find the Ball

To be honest, Avada was quite grateful that Dumbledore hadn't pried too deeply into his affairs, otherwise there would have been a whole host of questions he couldn't have kept hidden—why could a second-year student get Voldemort, who was so difficult to lure out even with the Philosopher's Stone, to show himself? Why did Voldemort trust him so easily? And why didn't he impose any restrictions on him?

Moreover, from beginning to end, Dumbledore never used even the most superficial Legilimency on him.

Therefore, even just to live up to this kindness and trust, he had to do his best to complete the spell that restricted the wandering soul, and then give Dumbledore a gift from heaven.

And so, Avada Kedavra gloriously took up Snape's mantle, maintaining a stable connection with Voldemort for the next week or so. And because he was marked with the Dark Mark, Voldemort didn't need anyone to relay messages—he could simply go to the Defense Against the Dark Arts office for his lesson whenever he felt the mark heating up.

As previously stated, after Avada unleashed the trolls and formally pledged his allegiance, Voldemort began imparting to Avada more profound and secretive knowledge of mental magic, diligently resolving Avada's difficulties in deciphering *Psychodynamics*. This combination significantly accelerated Avada's progress in analyzing Voldemort's mental power, bringing him to the brink of complete understanding…

The Dark Mark also brought him unexpected joy: he successfully cracked the principle of the Dark Mark's instant synchronization regardless of distance, which greatly improved his understanding of space and mind, and gradually gave him inspiration for combining Apparition and the Unseen Stretch Charm.

So he had to speed things up—if he kept going like this, he'd almost be too embarrassed to lay a hand on Voldemort.

It was mid-November, and the troll attack should have been forgotten long ago. However, due to the addition of rumors that "the savior defeated a troll in his first year," it was still being talked about—making people even more convinced that Harry Potter was born with unparalleled power, and that his previous mediocre performance was merely a self-imposed barrier to enjoy a peaceful life; and that once he faced a crisis and broke free of that barrier, he could sweep away everything...

In short, all sorts of ridiculous rumors were flying around, making Avada even suspect that someone from the School of Magic had secretly infiltrated Hogwarts.

However, the troll and savior story was overshadowed by another event—the arrival of this year's Quidditch match.

Although thanks to Wood's strict secrecy, almost no one had ever seen Harry play, the whole school knew that "Harry Potter joined the team in his first year and became the youngest Seeker," which made the discussion surrounding this year's game unprecedentedly heated.

To avoid letting his friends suffer, Avada naturally informed Baron, Cedric, and Cho in advance, with Harry's consent, that Harry possessed a Nimbus 2000. Baron, however, believed that since they were older than Harry and had trained for longer, a Nimbus 2000 could somewhat compensate for that difference. Therefore, he didn't plan to bring out the Nimbus 2000 from his house—which relieved Cedric and Cho.

However, next year, he will ruthlessly use his financial power.

And so, amidst the anticipation of the crowd, the Quidditch match finally began. Avada was finally freed from that tangled mess of symbols and could watch the players' scramble to commit fouls without a care in the world—thankfully, Voldemort hadn't assigned him any tasks like tampering with Harry's broom.

As is tradition, the first match will naturally be a showcase of the most exciting and intense competition between the old rivals, Gryffindor and Slytherin.

Fourteen contestants stood in two rows, glaring at each other fiercely. In the middle stood the referee, Mrs. Hooch, reading the rules of the game, but few seemed to be listening. Seated in the commentary booth was Lee Jordan, a third-year Gryffindor student, and Professor McGonagall, who was watching him closely to ensure he was impartial and providing thorough commentary.

"Please hop on your flying brooms."

Harry mounted his Nimbus 2000 and looked at Baron across from him, who was riding a Sweeping Star. The two exchanged a glance and nodded slightly.

Ms. Hodge blew her silver whistle with all her might. Fifteen flying brooms soared into the sky—the competition had begun.

Harry, riding his Nimbus 2000, immediately soared into the air, far above the combat zone, circling the arena at low speed, squinting as he searched for any possible trace of the Golden Snitch.

Baron, however, adopted a completely different tactic: he patrolled directly within the combat zone, focusing intently on searching for the Snitch's trail, completely ignoring the interference from the Blink Dagger and Gryffindor, which his companions handled. This significantly increased the risk of being shot down, but it also allowed him to approach the Snitch much faster and use various feints to confuse Harry's judgment.

High risk naturally brings high reward – while Gryffindor and Slytherin scored several goals in succession, Baron was the first to discover the thief's trail.

Without hesitation, he unleashed his broom at full power and charged straight at the Snitch. Harry, momentarily stunned by the earlier feints, only swooped down after confirming the Snitch's trail. The other players on both sides also began trying to distract the opposing Seeker, leading to an even more intense contest.

"Whoosh!"

The Nimbus 2000's performance clearly far surpassed that of the Seven Stars Sweep. Harry quickly overtook Baron, who had already reached full speed, and was slowly approaching the Snitch...

"Be careful!"

"hiss……"

Harry gripped the broom and desperately lifted it, narrowly avoiding a Slytherin ball, but this allowed Baron to overtake him again...

"Sorry, I didn't block it properly!"

Fred swept past him, stick in hand, loudly apologizing as he went. Then, with a feint, he fooled Slytherin's Chaser, before seizing an opening and hurling the Runner at Baron: "But I can still even!"

"Dream on!"

Captain Marcus, who had been firmly positioned around Baron, brilliantly intercepted Fred's bouncy ball and redirected it towards Angelina, the Chaser, who was attempting a steal, causing the Quaffle to miss the Slytherin goal. Baron was now getting closer and closer to the Snitch, seemingly about to make contact...

call!

Another ball streaked through the air from below Baron, grazing the tail of his broom. Baron immediately lost his balance, spinning several times in mid-air before regaining his footing, while the thief vanished without a trace.

"It's George!"

On the commentary stand, Jordan excitedly exclaimed, "He just dodged all obstacles with an incredibly dangerous low-fly, and then precisely intercepted Slytherin's Seeker with a Quake! Baron's broomstick is off balance! Will he be knocked down... Oh, he's steady now, too bad."

"Jordan".

Professor McGonagall gave him a threatening look, which startled him so much that he quickly coughed and continued his explanation with a stern face.

"Winning won't be that easy, hehe."

George smugly walked past Baron, then turned and gave Fred a high five.

"cut."

Baron rolled his eyes at him, and after confirming that there was nothing wrong with the broom, he continued to move through the combat zone, carefully searching for traces of the thief.

(End of this chapter)