Chapter 503: What's Going On?!
"No, no, no, Darren. On the contrary, I admire this quality of yours."
Moody shook his head vigorously.
"If an Auror doesn't dare to question things boldly, then how can he be worthy of being an Auror?"
"I advised you from the very beginning to become an Auror. I was even worried that if you encountered an acquaintance, you might hesitate to check their things."
"But I didn't expect you to be exactly the opposite."
"Darren, you are a born Auror. In the future, you will become the strongest Auror there is!"
Moody praised loudly.
This made Darren look embarrassed.
Then Moody's expression turned serious again.
"Darren, Harry, the two of you must be extremely careful. I believe this is a conspiracy aimed at both of you."
"In the future, be cautious in both words and actions."
"Take this incident as an example—if Darren hadn't drunk that pumpkin juice, you might really have caught those people."
"No one can defeat Darren head-on—except Dumbledore and Voldemort, of course."
"Yes, children, don't look at me like that. As an Auror, I can say his name out loud. That is my honor!"
Moody's words made Darren look at him with reverence.
Moody seemed even more pleased.
He told Hermione and Ron to follow Harry and Darren closely and help them get through the competition.
He praised Hermione for her intelligence, which made her smile for the first time since the previous night.
Naturally, he didn't forget Ron either.
He even mentioned how Ron had helped Harry in their first year with the life-sized wizard chess game.
Only after all the students had entered the classroom did Moody finally tell Darren and Harry to take their seats.
After all, this was his Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson.
---
By the time they came out of Defense Against the Dark Arts class, it was already afternoon.
They began seriously thinking about how to get through the third task.
Especially Harry.
Darren taught him several spells he had developed himself.
They were difficult to use, but extremely effective.
Unfortunately, Harry simply couldn't master them.
This left Hermione speechless.
But once Hermione tried them herself and grasped the trick, both she and Harry realized just how much of a genius Darren was.
---
The next morning, an owl arrived with Sirius Black's reply.
Along with it came the Daily Prophet that Hermione had subscribed to.
Hermione flipped through the newspaper and said,
"Rita Skeeter doesn't seem to know what happened last night. Looks like we'll have to wait for the next issue."
She then urged Harry to open Black's letter.
However, the contents of the letter were not meant to answer Harry's questions at all.
Instead, it was a stern lecture.
> I never thought you would go to such a remote place with Krum without thinking about your own safety.
And Darren—drinking whatever someone hands him? Didn't Moody tell you to be careful with what you eat and drink?
Do you have to prepare your own food before you can trust it? Do you know how terrified I was when I heard about this?
If a Killing Curse had been used instead, Darren might not be here anymore—only his corpse would remain.
Harry, this recklessness of yours is part of the problem. If you hadn't talked to Krum in such a place, you wouldn't have run into something like this.
From now on, focus on preparing for the third task. Leave these matters alone.
You are not allowed to investigate the Crouch incident anymore. Since that person didn't kill Darren, it suggests his soul hasn't completely fallen.
But if you force him, he may end up like Peter Pettigrew.
In short, this matter is beyond what you can handle.
Promise me that you will stay out of it and survive safely.
Black's words made Harry furious.
"Why is he saying this about me and Darren?" Harry snapped.
"What did he do back when he was in school, acting like he has the moral high ground?"
"But… he really is doing this for our own good," Darren said guiltily.
It was obvious he felt Black was right.
"I know it's for our good," Harry said angrily,
"but does he have to say it like that? Don't we get any privacy at all?"
Despite his resentment, Harry still wrote a letter of promise to Black.
He assured him that he would stop investigating the matter and would not wander around recklessly anymore.
Even though he was extremely unwilling.
---
The following week, Darren and Harry were effectively confined to the castle.
This didn't bother Darren much.
He was never an especially active person to begin with—he preferred reading in the library.
Harry, however, was miserable.
He desperately missed being able to roam freely outside the castle.
Every day felt like being locked in prison.
But Darren and Hermione forced him to practice the Stunning Spell relentlessly.
Ron was pushed forward as the practice target.
After being knocked to the ground several times, Ron was close to tears.
"Can't we kidnap Mrs. Norris or ask Dobby to help Harry practice?" Ron complained bitterly.
"My back hurts, and I've got a huge bump on my head now!"
Hermione showed no sympathy at all.
She removed the cushioning charm on the floor and said irritably,
"Can't you just fall onto the mat? Why are you missing it every single time?"
"I'm unconscious!" Ron protested.
"How am I supposed to know where I'm falling?!"
Hermione ignored him completely and forced him to continue.
In the end, Darren couldn't bear it anymore and offered himself as the practice target.
Hermione firmly refused.
Instead of continuing to torture Ron, she finally agreed to his suggestion of using an animal as practice instead.
---
On Monday afternoon, they went to Professor Trelawney's Divination class.
The classroom was especially stifling.
Trelawney never extinguished the fire, and the air was thick with burning incense and spices.
This lesson focused on astronomical divination.
Trelawney turned off the lights and projected a map of the night sky, then had the students lie on the floor and observe it.
It was the perfect environment for falling asleep.
Almost the moment Darren lay down, he drifted off.
In his haze, he heard Harry shouting something.
He wanted to get up, but he was too lazy to move—and simply went back to sleep.
When he woke up again, he was completely confused.
Because he was in the school infirmary.
What's going on?
If he remembered correctly, he should have been in Divination class.
But when he looked outside, it was already evening.
Dinner time had clearly passed.
Could it be that he hadn't woken up after class—and someone had sent him here instead?