Staring blankly at the massive silhouette looming in the thunderstorm, Fleur's mind went completely blank for a moment.
Though she had prepared extensively before the match and had thoroughly researched dangerous creatures like the Thunderbird, the instant it appeared before her—when that wild, frenzied killing intent bore down on her—Fleur realized she couldn't summon even a trace of courage in front of such a terrifying creature.
Without even noticing it herself, she had instinctively taken shelter behind Draco's back.
Completely forgotten was who had been furious with Draco moments ago, and who had been treating him as her greatest rival...
"Hey, what do we do now?"
"Hmm..."
Draco first shot a strange glance at Fleur Delacour, who was pinching his robes between two fingers, then lifted his gaze toward the Thunderbird in the sky, letting out a low hum of thought.
Truthfully, this situation was one Draco had never anticipated.
Was this an accident, or deliberate?
"Wait— is it trying to escape!?"
"Escape? You're underestimating this barrier. If I'm right, Dumbledore definitely made preparations. The wizard maintaining the barrier might even be my godfather."
"The barrier..."
Before Fleur could finish her sentence, the violent struggle between the Thunderbird and the magical barrier suddenly ceased.
As the lightning faded, the enraged Thunderbird didn't continue trying to break through. Instead, it fixed its attention on the humans below. Realizing it couldn't breach the barrier, it decided to take revenge on the people who had captured it...
And its targets, naturally, were the four Champions trapped within the same barrier.
"Hide, quickly!!"
"Huh?"
"Keep your voice down! Do you want it to notice us?"
"You were the one shouting..."
Draco tore his gaze away from the Thunderbird, annoyed by Fleur's nervous urgency.
Though his lack of resistance was one factor, he truly hadn't expected this seemingly delicate Veela to have such surprising strength.
Still pulling Draco along, Fleur hurriedly voiced her concern.
"What now? The match should be suspended, right?"
"Look over there. That doesn't look like they're planning to suspend anything."
"But... but..."
Even if Fleur stubbornly refused to show weakness in front of Draco, her tense little face perfectly concealing her emotions, the slight tremble running through her body betrayed the anxiety deep inside.
Yet Draco had no intention of comforting her. Instead, he said something that made Fleur freeze on the spot.
"Hiding won't help."
"What... do you mean?"
"You think this is just a normal thunderstorm?" Draco looked toward the rainstorm the Thunderbird had summoned, slowly drawing his wand from his staff.
His solemn, battle-ready expression made Fleur shrink back in alarm...
Draco flexed his wrist. "I may not like that madman, but I'll admit this much—when it comes to combat, he's a professional."
"Madman?"
"Ah... a lunatic who claims to write books, but actually fights for fun."
"....."
"You should be able to feel it, if you really have that bloodline."
"Bloodline... How did you...?"
Fleur nearly jumped at his words, a flicker of discomfort flashing through her eyes. She hadn't expected him to know about her Veela heritage.
But seeing Draco's calm expression, she slowly settled down and instinctively reached out with her senses to feel what he meant...
"What else could it be but an ordinary thunderstorm...?!"
As she spoke, Fleur suddenly froze, staring at Draco in disbelief.
"Why? This rain... it's filled with magic!"
Sssshhh—
The torrential downpour crashed down as if someone were dumping buckets of water from the sky.
More importantly, this was no ordinary storm.
This was a veil of rain carrying magical fluctuations...
If you thought the Thunderbird created this environment merely to hide itself, then you had only grasped the surface.
Draco knew the truth because of the book Snape had given him earlier...
"Lockhart's Guide to Weathering the Storm? What kind of ridiculous book is this?" Fleur's expression twisted oddly as she looked at the book in Draco's hand.
Whether because Draco suddenly produced such a volume, or because its absurd title caught her off guard, Fleur felt the whole thing was utterly nonsensical.
"This book records a madman's battle against a Thunderbird. It mentions something important—"
He handed the book to Fleur. She took it blankly.
"Thunderbirds actually have poor eyesight."
Draco narrowed his eyes at the Thunderbird that seemed to be looking their way.
"So they rely on other methods to locate their enemies."
"Hey! Did it find us?!"
"This magical downpour covering the entire area... it's essentially the Thunderbird's eyes and ears."
At that moment, Fleur could no longer process anything Draco was saying.
Because—
Lightning flashed.
Rain evaporated from sheer heat.
The Thunderbird dove toward them. Its massive shadow swallowed them whole, turning Fleur's face ghost-pale.
"Screech!!!"
The movement made every wizard who noticed leap to their feet.
"That's Draco and the others!"
"They've been spotted!"
"Run! Professors—are you seriously not stepping in?!"
"Damn it! I'm filing a complaint against Dumbledore!"
Below, Draco Malfoy and Fleur Delacour stood beneath the Thunderbird's enormous frame. In its shadow, they looked like helpless little rabbits, while the attacking Thunderbird was the apex predator swooping down on them.
Not a single wizard watching believed Draco and the others could possibly dodge that attack.
Even Pansy and Hermione—who trusted Draco completely—were moments away from fainting...
...
If Pansy and Hermione were frightened to the point of collapse, Fleur Delacour was so overwhelmed her mind went blank and her body went rigid, unable even to faint.
Had Draco not been beside her, she might have fallen to the ground in the very next second.
Yet just as every wizard watched in horror, Draco did something completely unexpected. He stepped forward. Despite the Thunderbird's crushing presence, he remained steady. Instead of running, he raised his wand and advanced directly toward the beast.
"You... what are you trying to do!?"
"Maybe I should thank that madman. Thanks to him, I learned something... Thunderbirds have weaknesses too."
The surge of terrifying magic erupting from Draco, paired with his utterly calm tone, made Fleur's wide eyes tremble.
That radiant magic—blinding like the sun—was something no wizard his age should possess. And that composure in the face of danger was even more impossible.
His body was incomparable to the Thunderbird's enormous form. From the outside, it looked like he was trying to stop a charging boulder with bare hands.
Yet to Fleur, Draco's back now seemed like a towering mountain.
Solid.
Steady.
Reassuring...
...
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