"Of course, as long as you can... what year are you in?"
Yamamoto Senren paused, looking at Neville—because of his round face, it was hard to tell how old Neville really was.
"Fourth year."
Neville put his hand into his pocket, seemingly searching for something.
"Very well, you're a year ahead of that last tor... kid."
Yamamoto spoke sarcastically, but for some reason, his intentional slip didn't draw any boos. The boy instinctively glanced at the surrounding little wizards and, for some reason, saw a hint of... pity in their eyes?
What does this mean?
Yamamoto steadied himself again but still didn't see anything special about Neville opposite him. So he put his mind at ease and held up two fingers, "In that case, I'll give you two chances to break through my defense magic—now, take out your magic wand."
"I don't need a magic wand."
"What? Are you looking down on—"
Yamamoto shouted loudly, but before he could finish, he saw the chubby boy across from him pull a vase out of his pocket, then a blue light flashed—and in the next moment, Yamamoto Senren felt as if he'd been hit head-on by a full-speed semi-truck, and just half a second later, everything went black—
"You should come down now." Neville said slowly to Yamamoto Senren, who was embedded in the wall.
"..."
Seeing the familiar green vine appear on stage, Krum's eyelid twitched wildly.
Good news, he can now confirm that Harry Potter probably used some kind of item.
Bad news... he's probably not going to get his hands on that item. Looking at Neville, who seemed quiet but dangerous, Krum hesitated for a moment—the other side even put the vine back into the vase. Compared to Harry, who only knew how to release and not retract it, the other side was clearly the creator of the vine tool.
If in the upcoming challenges, Potter could pull out that thing again—Krum took a deep breath, deciding to talk to Karkaroff properly. If Potter pulled out such stuff again, they'd have to find a way to prove he was cheating! At the same time, they needed to unite with the other heads—it's simple, without banning that thing, no one can play!
Next, Neville stepped down, after using the Chomping Cabbage to take away his second opponent—he was supposed to go on after Yamamoto Senren, it just meant he had an extra match.
Something done in passing.
So, after Neville jumped off the platform, Hermione also jumped onto the dueling platform, looking at the burly man warming up on the other side. She reached out and tied up her slightly fluffy hair.
"You might know me, but I'll introduce myself anyway, Alexander Vladimir."
The man took off his brown coat, revealing a tight black vest underneath. The massive muscles and bulging veins made Hermione frown—she really wondered if he might suddenly die from a burst blood vessel, followed by tragic news from the bodybuilding scene...
"Hermione Granger."
Hermione turned her head, looking at William on the sidelines, who nodded, indicating she could start.
"Miss Granger, I must let you know—you've probably seen my battle with the Fire Dragon. My combat style might be a bit different from ordinary wizards, so you have to be careful, I really wouldn't want such a lovely lady..." Every word the man said was with a rolling accent.
"You talk too much." Hermione sighed.
"...What?"
"I said, if you're going to fight, just fight. Why so much nonsense—Is the weather too cold, and it's frozen your brain?"
"Good! I like that—"
"Who cares if you like it?"
Hermione retorted irritably. She could sense the inexplicable possessiveness in this man's eyes, it felt like he was the kind of idiot who would see a girl on the street and fantasize about her being his girlfriend, and then start feeling disdain for the girl's boyfriend...
Hermione gave a perfunctory bow, considering the procedure complete, then slammed her magic wand onto the ground. A substantial blue charm spread like a seismic wave, pushing back the man who had already pounced more than halfway while she was bowing, then red spells shot out, sealing off all directions the opponent could move.
"Clang, clang, clang—"
The spells clanged against the semi-transparent Iron Armor Spell. Alexander spun his magic wand, then pointed out a charm—Koldovstoretz was actually no different from Durmstrang, they even shared similar latitudes, so he certainly wasn't purely a "warrior" relying on muscle for close combat.
After all, this is the world of wizards—
In fact, most of Koldovstoretz's students were not much different from Hogwarts' little wizards. This group of muscle-bound bros he brought were all personally trained by Alexander. Even when it came to casting votes into the Goblet of Fire, Alexander was the only one who put his name in. Koldovstoretz's champion had been predetermined for a long time.
So, actually, while Alexander was capable of physically defeating a black bear head-on, he was also a powerful wizard—
However, most of his wizarding talent seemed invested in defense and personal enhancement, like the Iron Armor Spell, making his muscles larger without affecting his movements, and even making his muscles glow... though the last one wasn't very practical, aside from looking a bit flashy.
Therefore, Alexander didn't rely on the Disarming Spell he cast and instead lunged forward again, his bones cracking audibly, his already robust muscles appearing much larger—and actually glowing.
He intended to use the moment when Hermione was hindered by the Disarming Spell to rush to her front, but surprisingly, Hermione merely swayed slightly, not even bothering to raise an Iron Armor Spell, and dodged the attack effortlessly. Then, under the man's shocked gaze, the girl's wand elegantly pointed, and a fiery phoenix flapped its wings in the air, the solidifying blue flames causing the man's expression to change slightly. Feeling he shouldn't take the hit head-on, he rolled aside, supporting himself on the edge of the duel platform—
The wizard's dueling platform was rectangular, ensuring both parties kept their eyes on each other.
And the inventor of the dueling platform certainly didn't foresee the unconventional battle style of such wizards...
William snapped his fingers at the edge of the field, and the dueling platform started expanding, quickly transforming into a square arena—William nodded approvingly, now the spiky-haired Russian would have enough space to maneuver, and Hermione could unleash her full abilities... eh, why is that Russian giving me a thumbs up?
He should be thanking us?
"Miss Granger, the restriction on the field has been lifted—"
The man leaning at the edge of the platform stood up, lightly rubbing his hands, with another round of cracking sounds, revealing a ferocious smile he thought was friendly.
"Yes, it's lifted."
Hermione smirked, "Are you ready?"
"Of course."
"Then—"
Hermione pointed her wand lightly, and though there were no visual effects, a pack of wolves jumped down from the surrounding walls. Leaping past the little wizards gathered at the platform's edge, they jumped onto the dueling platform, guarding Hermione behind them—
"Exquisite Transfiguration Spell, but if that's all, you're likely to lose, Miss Granger."
"You talk too much."
"Haha, I like your personality, miss, maybe once this lesson is over, we can—"
"Roar—"
The howls of the wolves interrupted the man's invitation, and three brown wolves charged toward him, but the man seemed unfazed. His hand formed a chop, and a semi-transparent film enveloped him—the Iron Armor Spell, compressed to fit his humanoid shape.
"Bang—"
The Iron Armor-enveloped hand struck the head of the attacking wolf, causing wood shards to fly as it transformed into two long snakes climbing up the man's arm, opening their mouths wide, aiming their sharp poison fangs at his neck—
Unable to penetrate, the man grabbed the snake's head at his neck with a firm grip and crushed it.
But in the next moment, the pieces of snake on the ground twisted back together, and with a roar, a golden lion rose, striking hard towards the man's head but was halted by the man's arms—
"Boom—"
As they collided, they produced a dull gong-like sound. The lion shifted forms again, with the brown bear roaring, its palms closing in—a Twin Peaks attack!
Seeing this, the smile on the man's face finally disappeared, shifting his stance; he held the bear paws with his forearms, planning to take advantage of the bear's new strength to mount a counterattack—but nearly forgot it was a Transfiguration.
"Roar—"
Two wolves burst forth from the bear's belly, their bodies twisting like clay to wrap around the man. Even as he forcibly tore apart another wolf on him, three more pounced—
Soon, after Hermione had emptied half the wall's bricks, Alexander finally couldn't endure it anymore, half-kneeling on the ground—
"Haha, well done—you are strong, but I haven't used my full strength—"
The man's face was flushed red, veins bulging anew, as if he were holding back some ultimate move. But then he saw Hermione coming towards him, feeling slightly gleeful at the "self-delivery," as the girl raised a fist shining with blue runes—
"Bang—"
After the low sound, his facial muscles distorted instantly, causing him to spin out of the arena, crashing onto Yamamoto Senren who was leaning against the wall unconscious, the latter groaned before blacking out further.
Hermione sighed, rubbing her seemingly innocuous fist as the surrounding little wizards' faces changed dramatically.