Chapter 786: Brawl
Chapter 786: Brawl
Many Slytherin students were still bitter about being carried out and dumped in the corridor during the last gathering. They immediately reported the incident to Snape, expecting punishment for their assailants. However, to their surprise, it was they who ended up in detention the next day while their attackers went unscathed.
This turn of events infuriated a significant number of Slytherin students.
Naturally, several Slytherins wanted to seek trouble with Albert, but they soon realized that they couldn't outwit or overpower him in magic or physical combat. Moreover, he was more adept at scheming than they were. After cooling down, no one dared to provoke Albert anymore; it would only bring trouble upon themselves.
As a result, the number of people looking for a confrontation with Albert decreased, and most Slytherin students chose to redirect their anger elsewhere, especially since it wasn't Albert who had physically overpowered and dumped them in the corridor.
Coincidentally, the upcoming Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Slytherin for the Championship Cup provided them with a convenient excuse to vent their anger. This only served to worsen the relationship between the two houses, turning it into a powder keg ready to explode at the slightest provocation.
Ever since that incident, minor scuffles frequently occurred in the corridors, and their frequency increased over time. The mutual resentment and hostility between the two factions intensified, eventually leading to a serious incident. The tension between the two houses had reached a critical point, and everyone was on edge.
And the powder keg finally exploded, though the exact cause was unclear. Yet again, a minor skirmish had escalated into a full-blown malicious event.
Three Gryffindor students, two Slytherins, and an innocent Hufflepuff girl now found themselves long-term residents of the hospital wing.
Symptoms like hair turning into scallions, beansprouts growing from noses, and ears elongating into spring onions were considered mild. The unfortunate Hufflepuff girl, caught in the crossfire of a transfiguration spell, now sported a pig's nose, ears, and tail. She remained under Madam Pomfrey's care in the school hospital.
When Professors McGonagall and Snape learned of this, they flew into a rage and severely punished the students involved. Nonetheless, the chaos continued to spread, unabated.
Not long after, the famous Harry Potter found himself cornered in a castle corridor by Draco Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, who proceeded to give him a beating. If it hadn't been for a few Gryffindors passing by, Harry might have ended up in the hospital wing for observation.
That afternoon, Malfoy, Goyle, and Crabbe were ambushed by unknown assailants and dragged into a bathroom, where they received a sound thrashing. One didn't need to be a genius to guess who was behind this retaliation.
This turn of events made life particularly difficult for Harry.
Whenever he walked down the corridors, Slytherins would stick out their legs to trip him or deliberately bump into him, hoping to provoke a minor confrontation.
Harry's situation was precarious whenever he found himself alone.
Wood had no choice but to assign someone to accompany Harry at all times to prevent the Slytherins from sending him to the hospital wing.
As expected, this only escalated the tension between the two groups, with conflicts becoming more frequent and intense, as if they were gearing up for a full-blown fight before the Quidditch match.
"Oh my, Harry, have you been fighting again?" Hermione, who had been studying for the Ordinary Wizarding Levels exam with Albert, was startled by Harry's disheveled appearance.
His nose was crooked, his eyes were black and blue as if he'd been punched, and his panda-like eyes were surrounded by dark circles. There was a cut on the corner of his mouth that was bleeding.
It wasn't just Harry; Ron was also in a bad state. He had scratch marks on his face and his clothes were torn, indicating he'd been in a scuffle. Fred and George didn't look as bad as Harry, but they were far from unscathed.
"Malfoy and his cronies ambushed us again," Ron said, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth and cursing angrily. "That coward always needs his lackeys to pick on me. Next time, I'm going to shove his head in the toilet."
Lately, wherever Harry went, Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle would appear out of thin air. As soon as they spotted Harry alone, they would rush over and beat him up.
Fred was applying ointment to his wounds; he claimed it was a byproduct of their experiments with beauty potions, said to be effective in treating wounds and reducing bruising.
"I said we shouldn't have shown mercy last time. We should've beaten him senseless," Ron grumbled as he inspected his facial injuries.
Neither side had used magic; it was a straightforward fistfight, as neither group wanted to risk detention.
"Albert, do you have more of that ointment?" Fred asked.
"There should be some left in the wooden box in the drawer of my bedside table," Albert replied. "It should be enough for one more use."
"I'll go get it," George said, heading towards the stairs.
"How come no one bothers you?" Fred muttered.
"Because they can't beat me," Albert shrugged, noticing Hermione's gaze. "I've practiced some self-defense techniques, so it's normal that they can't take me on."
"That's because you scared them off in the first and second years," George recalled. He remembered how several students had picked on Albert back then, only to be beaten up themselves. They couldn't win against him in a physical or magical fight, so naturally, no one dared to mess with Albert after that.
"What's this?"
Hermione watched as Fred took out a small plastic bottle and carefully opened the lid. Inside was a viscous, greenish ointment that emitted a faint, refreshing fragrance.
"You'll have to ask Albert about that," George said as he began carefully applying the ointment to Fred's face.
"It's an effective anti-inflammatory ointment that can quickly reduce bruising and swelling. It's usually used to treat facial acne," Albert explained. "You could think of it as a beauty product."
Well, it's actually an improved version of the bruise removal ointment. It's a byproduct of the girls' experiments with beauty potions, and after further refinement, it became what it is now."
"A beauty potion?"
Hermione was amazed at the ointment's effectiveness. The redness on Fred's face was fading, and the dark circles around Harry's eyes had diminished slightly after application.
"I bet the girls would love this stuff. Acne is a big concern for many of them," Hermione remarked.
Just then, Lee Jordan rushed into the common room with some exciting news: Slytherin was opening a gambling pool, taking bets on which house, Gryffindor or Slytherin, would win the Championship Cup.
"I can't believe those idiots dare to open a gambling pool again," George said, his expression strange. He remembered how those guys had lost big time the last time they tried something similar.
"Who are you betting on to win?" Ron asked excitedly.
"Of course, I'm betting on Gryffindor to win the match and the Championship Cup," Albert replied. "But I have my doubts about Slytherin's ability to pay up. Remember, they still owe us money from last time, and they tried to weasel their way out of paying. Those guys are untrustworthy; they might be colluding to scam people out of their money." Albert expressed his skepticism about Slytherin's integrity.
(End of Chapter)
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