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Chapter 487: The End of the Maze Castle
Chapter 487: The End of the Maze Castle
Harry grinned, about to say something, when he suddenly heard Ron's scream of pain. He turned around to see Ron clutching his face as he burst out of the bushes, followed by two furry, spiky balls—cloak squirrels. They only exposed their feet and noses, leaping high and landing on Ron's back, causing another scream of pain.
"Petrifying Spell!"
"Stupefy!"
Harry and Hermione cast their spells simultaneously, hitting the two cloak squirrels.
"What happened to him?" Cedric asked, looking confused at Ron, who was groaning in pain.
"He got slapped by the cloak squirrels' tails", Hermione explained, reaching into her pocket and rummaging for a while before pulling out a vial of potion.
"You have some small spines on you... I need to remove them first. I don't know if it will hurt—" Hermione pulled a small spine from Ron's neck.
Ron let out a loud cry.
"Just bear with it—" Hermione's hands trembled as she pulled out another spine, causing Ron to scream even louder. She looked helplessly at Harry, who walked over.
"I'll help too", Cedric said, picking up his wand and standing up.
"The Cup", Ron mumbled.
"What?" Harry asked, bewildered.
"I think he means the trophy", Cedric chuckled. "Trophy, come here!" He pointed at the distant trophy, which immediately flew into his hand. He looked at it with mixed feelings, then reluctantly handed it to Harry.
Harry hesitated for a moment.
"Take it. You deserve it", Cedric said.
Harry took it and thought for a couple of seconds before saying, "You're a great opponent."
Cedric smiled happily. "So are you, Harry."
Hermione, who had been frantically busy, now said impatiently, "Can you two help out? We're still in the competition, and it's been so long—why aren't the others here yet?"
Cedric rubbed his nose awkwardly.
"Um, I guess they got stuck in the Pom Pom Grass..."
"How so?" Ron slurred.
Cedric explained, "Roger and I met on the fourth floor, and then we found Collins on the fifth floor. We decided to work together. That floor had all sorts of strange terrain—" Harry nodded; they had encountered several of those as well.
"Near the entrance to the next level, we accidentally entered the territory of the Pom Pom Grass. These magical creatures have no blood or bones and look like a big clump of fluff at first glance. They can split at will... but that's a misconception. They like to live in groups and often roll together in large clusters. They move like plants, rolling wherever the wind blows, and they catch prey by waiting for it to come to them. Once another creature gets close, their fur grows and expands, wrapping you in a mass of fluff, the more you struggle, the tighter they wrap you..."
"So Collins and Roger got stuck?" Harry asked quickly, noticing Cedric's tendency to ramble.
"Only Roger", Cedric replied. "At first, we didn't take it seriously. The fluff of the Pom Pom Grass is extremely resilient, but as long as you don't struggle or make noise, the fluff won't continue to contract, similar to Devil's Snare..."
"Something must have gone wrong", Harry said confidently.
"Yeah", Cedric sighed. "If we had taken the time to smooth the fluff, it would have calmed down. But the other two from Wagadu came over, one turned into an elephant, and the other sat on top, stomping the floor loudly... Collins tried to persuade them to stop, but they wouldn't listen. There was a narrow path through, and they thought we were deliberately blocking them..."
"……Their suspicions were justified; the Cup's song made everyone anxious and desperate..."
Harry could already picture the scene.
"They were naturally trapped, and because they struggled so much, some of the Pom Pom Grass was blown everywhere, filling the nearby corridors and blocking all the necessary paths. Collins and I had to separate; Collins was on the other side calming the Pom Pom Grass, while I made my way to the sixth floor..."
So, now all the other Champions, except them, were calming the Pom Pom Grass? Harry imagined the scene and found it incredibly bizarre.
After a while, the thorns on Ron's body were removed, and Hermione applied a potion to his face, which quickly healed the wounds. During this time, the Cup sang twice more, completely ignoring everyone. Harry had to set it aside temporarily.
...
"Then... see you in a bit." Cedric sat on the ground, leaning against a statue, with Nona Lebert and Krum sleeping nearby. Ron and Hermione stood on either side of the Cup, and as soon as Harry placed his hand on it, the Portkey would activate.
Harry paused and extended an invitation to Cedric, "Why don't we go together? The rules only state that a team must be complete to activate the Portkey, not that others can't join."
Cedric smiled and shook his head, "I'm waiting for my teammates."
"Alright then." Harry turned to look at the dirt-covered Ron and Hermione. He guessed he must look just as disheveled, but their faces were filled with excitement. "Are you ready? The Portkey experience isn't the most pleasant."
"Is this the final bit of suffering before the award?" Ron asked with a grin.
Harry grinned back, placed his hand on the Cup, and felt a hook in his navel pull him. The seventh floor of the Maze Castle disappeared from his sight, and the last thing he saw was Cedric smiling and waving at them.
The competition ended successfully, and they had won the championship. Harry now just wanted to sleep deeply, hoping to wake up to the start of summer break.
...
"Finally..." Felix sighed, clutching his hat. His figure suddenly vanished. When he reappeared, he was standing on a broken path in a remote village. Not far away, a small church loomed in the darkness, its outline barely visible.
Shadows loomed in the distance.
"Is that the graveyard?"
"Yes, Professor", Hermione, hidden in the hat, replied. Felix placed his hand on the hat, bent down, and tilted it, allowing Hermione to carefully jump out, still hanging onto an enlarged golden chain. The Time-Turner was now almost as tall as she was.
Under the Size-Altering Charm, Hermione gradually returned to her original size.
"Here is your beaded bag", Felix said, pulling a small bag from his pocket and handing it to Hermione. "The Size-Altering Charm affects magical items like this, including the Time-Turner... and, oh yes, the ring." He removed the ring from his finger and handed it to Hermione.
"Keep it with you for now."
"Professor, do you really think the Ministry of Magic will act against you? How dare they?"
"Just being cautious", Felix shrugged. "We need to part ways. You'll have to estimate the time and use the Disillusionment Charm and other Concealment Magic to hide yourself. When the time is right, go over... you can do it, Hermione Granger."
"Understood!"
Felix smiled, turned, and walked toward the graveyard.
(End of Chapter)
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