Chapter 683: The Ape and the Lizard
An invisible, transparent barrier stood between Natalia and the incoming Giant. As the impact thundered through the air, the girl spun around in shock, her eyes widening in astonishment.
Thankfully, she didn’t freeze for long—she sprinted away the instant she recovered, because in the next heartbeat, the armor shattered, and the attacker crashed to the ground with a heavy thud, mouth opening wide in a furious roar.
“ROAR!”
The shockwave sent strands of her hair flying backward. Still reeling, Natalia scrambled several more steps back, heart pounding.
The attacker was a massive, hulking gorilla. Its shoulders bulged with thick, corded muscles, and its thick forearms nearly brushed the ground. Its broad nostrils flared with each deep, guttural breath, emitting a low, rumbling growl.
The glow that had illuminated their path moments earlier had long since faded. Sparse sunlight filtered through the cracks in the leaves above, offering only faint, dim visibility. In the gloom, the gorilla stood out only by its two yellow eyes—its body a dark silhouette, immense and intimidating.
“Thunder Explosion!” Natalia’s wand flashed a blinding red light—but the giant ape dodged with a sudden, acrobatic sideways flip, moving with an agility that mirrored their own earlier movements.
Her pupils contracted sharply.
—How could a wild animal know how to dodge a wizard’s spell?
But there was no time to think. The gorilla’s fist, wrapped in a violent wind, came hurtling toward her face.
“Obstacle Course!” Harry shouted.
The beast’s movements slowed abruptly. Natalia seized the chance, leaping sideways. Her heel gouged two deep grooves into the earth.
But the moment of respite vanished in an instant. The gorilla charged forward with terrifying speed, slamming one massive hand down with a thunderous thud!
Natalia rolled desperately on the ground, narrowly avoiding the blow.
“Bind Fast! Tarantallegra! Inverted Bell! Come on, you big idiot!” Harry shouted as he dashed toward her, wand raised.
Yet the creature was impossibly quick. It dodged every spell with eerie precision—and somehow, it seemed to fixate on Natalia, roaring as it pursued her relentlessly.
“Roar—”
The deep, thunderous bellow echoed through the forest like war drums. The beast charged forward on all fours, surging forward like a tank.
“Boom!”
Natalia had no time to react. She was knocked into the air, her wand flying from her grasp. Dazed, she gritted her teeth and drew the dagger strapped to her thigh, twisting it forcefully into the gorilla’s chest.
The blade sank deep.
But Natalia froze—her eyes wide with shock.
The next instant, she was flung backward, crashing hard into a nearby tree.
“Natalia!” Harry yelled, firing a Stun Spell at the beast. “Stupefy!”
The spell hit—yet again, it did nothing.
“ROAR!” The gorilla roared in fury, slamming both fists down toward the girl beneath the tree.
“Fire!” Natalia gasped, blood trickling from her lips. She forced herself up, screaming at Harry: “Use a Fire Spell!”
Without hesitation, Harry raised his wand. “Blazing Flame Spell!”
Flames roared to life, engulfing the creature in a violent blaze. The gorilla shrieked, scrambling back, frantically slapping at the fire.
The dancing flames finally illuminated the creature’s true form.
Harry stared, stunned.
Natalia’s eyes flickered with sudden understanding.
It wasn’t a black gorilla at all—its body was a deep, mossy green, woven from vines and twisted branches. Tendrils coiled around its limbs like living ropes, and fresh green sprouts burst from its joints. A small yellow flower bloomed atop its head.
Natalia took a shuddering breath, pain flaring in her chest as her ribs pressed against her lungs. “It’s… a Magic Puppet…”
Harry’s eyes widened. “This… this thing… is Wade’s work? He made it in the Forbidden Forest?”
He remembered the scorpion from the first tournament—those creatures had been terrifying not because of strength, but because of their numbers and stealth. No one had seen anything like them before, so they’d seemed unstoppable. But in truth, defeating one or two hadn’t been difficult.
Yet this gorilla had nearly overwhelmed them both.
Had it heard the name “Master”? The creature suddenly turned toward Harry. Its yellow eyes seemed to flicker, as if something in its core had registered.
Harry tensed, preparing to defend—when the Magic Puppet swung around, crashing into the underbrush and scrambling up a tree with surprising speed, vanishing into the canopy.
Their muscles relaxed, just slightly.
Natalia slumped against the tree, sliding down to the ground. She gave a bitter laugh, twisting open a potion bottle and gulping it down.
“That puppet… sent just one of them… and almost took me out.”
The fiery potion burned down her throat, healing her wounds—but the pain it brought was sharp enough to make her wince and grimace.
Harry kept his wand raised, scanning the forest. He kept glancing up at the treetops, wary of another attack.
Hearing her voice, he turned back, concerned. “You okay?”
His tone carried genuine worry—but also a subtle edge of caution. He hadn’t forgotten. They were rivals in this tournament.
“Fine,” Natalia said, wiping blood from her lip. “Be careful. It could come back at any moment.”
Harry nodded, eyes sharp, every rustle of leaves making him tense. The wind whispering through the canopy sent a shiver down his spine.
Natalia watched his back, her expression unreadable. In her mind, she silently challenged the absent figure:
Why didn’t it attack Harry? Because you’re from the same school? But this is the final tournament—everyone inside is a competitor…
After a long silence, Natalia took several deep breaths. The stabbing pain in her chest had faded. She pushed herself up, retrieved her wand, and straightened her stance.
Harry turned back, arm muscles tensing. “Keep going?”
“Why did you save me?” Natalia asked, holding her wand, kicking aside a charred twig. “If you hadn’t stepped in, I’d already be out.”
“Huh?” Harry blinked, surprised. “I… I didn’t think much of it…”
Now that he was thinking clearly, a wave of disappointment washed over him. He felt foolish. Of course—rivals. And Dumbledore wouldn’t allow a contestant to die. There was probably an invisible Auror standing by, ready to intervene. He hadn’t needed to play hero.
If he’d been defeated by her because of that moment, he could already hear the taunts: “Potter the fool! The Light-brained idiot who thinks he can be a savior!”
“Thanks,” Natalia said.
Harry froze. “Huh?”
She exhaled, her gaze steady now. The hostility in her eyes had vanished completely. She pushed her tangled hair behind her ear and said, “Even if you helped me this time, next time we meet—I won’t hold back. I’ll give it everything for Kodostoriz. Now it’s each for themselves. Let’s see who makes it to the end.”
Harry nodded. “Fair enough. Each for themselves.”
“Goodbye.” Natalia turned and chose a random fork in the path, disappearing into the trees.
Harry waited a moment, then headed down another trail.
They were both Champions. Their goal was the same—only one would win. And despite the threat of the Magic Puppet, neither chose to ally with the other.
Farther into the forest, on the opposite side, Clementine and Hope sat back-to-back, gasping for breath.
They’d just survived a brutal fight—seven or eight Dwarf Pig Beasts had leapt from the bushes, fangs dripping with saliva, intent on making them dinner.
After repelling the beasts and deciphering a Magic Trap, they were utterly drained. They collapsed, too exhausted to move.
“Don’t know how the others are doing…” Clementine pulled out a sandwich and offered one to Hope.
Hope shook her head. She unscrewed her water canteen and took a long drink. Fresh water trickled down her dusty chin.
“Better not run into anyone,” she muttered. “In our state, neither of us could survive a real fight.”
“Ha! Others are alone. Maybe they’re even worse off,” Clementine said cheerfully.
Ten meters away, on a thick tree trunk, a lizard crept silently upward. Its throat pulsed faintly, and delicate spores drifted from its nostrils into the air.
(End of Chapter)
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