Harry turned to look at Cedric, and he apparently heard the same remark.
"Wood's not wrong..." Cedric gave a smile, "Bring it on."
For a moment, Harry thought Wood must have been driven mad with anger.
The other teams' Seekers were relatively smaller and more agile, with Hufflepuff being the exception.
Cedric was tall and sturdy, and if a collision occurred, it was uncertain who would fall off their broom.
Harry turned his Firebolt upward, quickly soaring to the higher regions of the pitch.
The match had reached an intense phase at this moment...
"Hufflepuff leads 90 to 10... Potter seems to be in some trouble... Oh, the Firebolt is soaring, watch its turn... Digory's Nimbus 1700 is simply no match for it, with the Firebolt's precision balance especially evident over the long haul..."
"Jordan! Did the Firebolt pay you for an advertisement? Start commentating on the match!"
"Surely, Professor..."
But no one seemed to pay attention to what was happening in the stands.
As Kael tossed the Quaffle into the goal again, George frowned slightly, said something to Fred, and tentatively hit a Bludger towards Cedric.
Meanwhile, Fred also targeted another Chaser.
However, Hufflepuff's Beaters merely glanced up, showing no inclination to assist, even with both Bludgers flying elsewhere, they still closely followed Kael around.
Cedric spun in mid-air, dodging the Bludger, while another Chaser wasn't so lucky, hit on the arm, grimacing in pain, yet fortunately not falling off.
"No point targeting Kael, it's useless!" Fred shouted loudly, "He's shielded like a tank, there's no chance!"
"Then target the others!" George said, "Once he's the only one left, we can claw back the score!"
They sent Bludgers towards Grace, but she nimbly dodged them.
They had undergone a month of Bludger-dodging training for just this moment.
With Fred and George's reminder, Gryffindor realized Hufflepuff's tactic... A four-player defense, except for the Seeker and Keeper, everyone was clearing obstacles for Kael.
The three Chasers charged over together, attempting to block Kael.
But before they could even get close, they found their path blocked by Hufflepuff players.
Not enough Chasers? No problem, Beaters could fill the gap... The message was clear, go ahead, collide all you like, worst comes to worst, both sides exit the game...
"This strategy is so rogue, whose idea was this!" Angelina's face was red with rage.
Of course, she couldn't exit the game along with Hufflepuff's players; without their interference, Kael would score even more smoothly.
In just that brief moment of hesitation, Kael had flown past her and used a feint to deceive Wood, tossing the Quaffle into the goal.
"100 to 10!"
Jordan shouted loudly, his attention shifted from the Firebolt for the first time.
"Hufflepuff has paved a road for Kael, no one can stop him from scoring, no one!
The speed of the Nimbus 2000 is being fully utilized, snatching the Quaffle swiftly, agile flying skills... he's like a Fire Dragon trespassing into a pen of sheep, a scoring machine!
The score gap is widening... can the Firebolt turn the tide... Time is running out for Potter."
Listening to the commentary from the stands, Harry grew increasingly anxious.
But he couldn't shake off Cedric.
Harry tried various methods, but the opponent seemed to treat him like the Golden Snitch, always closely following.
With no choice, to rid himself of Cedric's interference, Harry could only keep accelerating, flying while glancing around for the golden glint.
Though this made it difficult to fully focus on searching for the Snitch, it was better than constantly having his view blocked.
An outcry came from the stands once more...
"Did they score again?" Harry wondered, instinctively looking up.
Wait... that's not right!
He saw the Quaffle still in Katie's hands, and Cedric, who had been behind him, suddenly began diving towards the ground.
"Did he spot the Golden Snitch?!"
Harry didn't have time to think further, immediately swiveling his broom to chase after Cedric. Cedric abruptly halted his dive, but Harry couldn't stop himself and continued descending.
Stopping just less than a foot from the ground, Harry's face was flushed red.
He had been fooled by the Wronski Feint, even though he had used the same move just minutes before.
"What a pity..."
Cedric sighed, as this was his limit, any further and he probably wouldn't have been able to halt.
But at least he had bought some time.
He had indeed seen the Golden Snitch earlier, but in the opposite direction, above Harry's head... He just hadn't noticed, flying too fast.
With a few seconds, the embarrassed Harry once again shot upward like a bullet.
At this point, two Bludgers flew towards Cedric from either side, passing between him and Harry.
Fred and George had always believed that with the Firebolt, Harry could easily outmaneuver Cedric, but now it seemed that wasn't the case.
Wood was dreaming of scoring before the match, yeah right!
If Cedric continued stalling, they might really lose.
But with their help, Harry was completely liberated.
Cedric preoccupied, Harry could finally concentrate fully, searching for the whereabouts of the Golden Snitch.
And then he saw it... Near the Slytherin stands, that shimmering Golden Snitch.
Harry began to accelerate, this time no one could thwart him... he was going to win, the Snitch was almost within reach... Then...
"Oh!" George shouted, pointing below.
Harry got distracted, looking down.
Three hooded "Dementors" were standing there, gazing up at him...
Strange, why would Dementors appear on the stands...
Harry had no time to ponder, shoving a hand into his robe, he pulled out the wand tucked inside, and shouted, "Expecto Patronum!"
A silver-white substance erupted from the tip of the wand, darting straight towards the Dementors, but Harry didn't pause to observe, his eyes still fixed ahead... Almost there, he extended the hand that still held the wand, gripping the struggling Snitch.
Ms. Hooch's whistle blew...
At the same time, the Quaffle brushed past Wood's fingertips, just managing to fall into the goalpost.
Both scoreboards flickered simultaneously.
160:160
The cheers were deafening, as if about to collapse the pitch, the crowd clapping enthusiastically, hands reddening from applause.
"Unbelievable... Hufflepuff did it, I can hardly believe it, they beat the Firebolt!" Lee Jordan shouted hoarsely.
Professor McGonagall stood behind him, clapping in excitement, not even correcting his mistake.
Since Harry ultimately caught the Golden Snitch, by rules, the victory should belong to Gryffindor.
But none of that mattered anymore.
In the minds of most, Hufflepuff was the real winner.
Cedric, with an old Nimbus 1700, had managed to hold off Harry with the Firebolt.
And with the help of his teammates, Kael scored a solo 150 points...
For many, it was the best Quidditch match of recent years.
Kael spun in the air, seeing six yellowish blurs flying towards him.
Each of them bore injuries, with Grace and another Chaser's arms hanging limp... Mikel had a distinct Bludger mark on his face and had lost several teeth.
Yet everyone looked ecstatic, hugging Kael tightly, nearly squeezing him off his broom.
...