The walls were crawling with countless bats, and more circled along the ceiling. The flames in the jack-o'-lanterns flickered on and off, casting eerie shadows. Suddenly, all sorts of food appeared on the plates.
"I don't like this. What if one of those bats above my head suddenly poops?" Ron complained about the bat that kept hovering over him.
"Even if I don't like it either, you really shouldn't have said that word," Harry said, clearly affected by Ron's remark.
"You're really disappointing," Hermione said, putting down her fork and sipping her juice.
Suddenly, someone burst into the Great Hall. It was Professor Quirrell, pale-faced, collapsing in front of Professor Dumbledore. "There's a giant monster in the basement," he said, then fainted.
"What kind of monster?" Harry asked.
"A very stupid but incredibly powerful one. It's not difficult to fight, and people even use its name as an insult," Hermione commented.
"Professor Quirrell was scared out of his mind?" Ron felt a thrill at the thought.
"This is unusual. I think if you're careful, you'll be able to deal with online trolls next year," George suddenly thought aloud.
"It seems you can't become a great wizard just by attending classes," George said, moved, watching the panic-stricken and chaotic students in the hall. "Many of them would be enough to defeat a troll."
Harry and the others nodded in agreement.
Dumbledore waved his wand, sending out bursts of fireworks that drew everyone's attention and calmed the crowd.
"Prefects, lead your housemates to the dormitories!" he ordered quietly.
Percy organized the students' orderly exit. "Keep calm, follow me, don't stray. First-years follow my lead. Let the younger ones go first."
"Why did a troll break into the school?" Harry asked.
"It was supposed to be secured," George answered. "Something seems to have changed at this school recently."
Everyone fell silent after hearing George's words.
"Has anyone seen Neville?" Harry suddenly asked, scanning the room.
"I saw him earlier; he went looking for his toad," Ron replied, looking tense as he remembered something.
"Is it in that direction?" Harry asked, pointing toward the basement.
"Yes," Ron nodded, biting his lip.
"I'm going to save him," Harry said firmly.
"What should I do?" Hermione asked, looking at George, while Harry and Ron turned to wait for his instructions.
"The troll isn't hard to defeat as long as it doesn't touch you. It's twelve feet tall, weighs a ton, and if it hits you, you're dead," George explained, making sure everyone understood the danger.
"I have to go," Harry said, still determined.
"Alright, I'll take you to Neville. Hermione and Ron, follow the others," George said after thinking for a moment.
Hermione and Ron had intended to come too, but they feared they wouldn't be of much help. Before leaving with the others, they stamped their feet in frustration.
George led Harry away from the crowd and toward the basement.
"Someone's here," George said, pulling Harry behind a stone statue. "It's Snape."
"What's he doing?" Harry asked, clearly displeased. Like Harry, Snape didn't like him either. "He isn't with the other professors—what's he up to?"
"Forget that, we need to find Neville first," George said, continuing toward the basement once Snape had moved on.
As they walked down the corridor, a stench of sweaty socks mixed with the smell of toilets hit their noses. Harry instinctively covered his nose. George frowned. "It's the troll."
The foul smell was accompanied by low growls and the heavy thud of massive feet on the floor.
"This twelve-foot-tall monster has extremely tough, dirt-covered skin, high defense, and strong resistance to physical attacks and impacts," George explained.
Under these circumstances, casting spells directly wouldn't easily harm it. Its legs were flat, powerful, and its massive weight gave it excellent balance. Any spell intended to make it lose balance would fail. A massive wooden club, once swung, could break human bones.
George watched the troll's every move, staying alert while explaining his observations and countermeasures to Harry.
Listening to George's calm voice, Harry followed his guidance, comparing each detail and gradually finding the monster less frightening.
"Although our goal is to find Neville, our enemy is the troll. When you have the ability to defeat your enemy, the most important thing is to first defeat the enemy safely and ensure your own protection," George continued, teaching Harry some practical "lessons from experience."
"Armor Spell," George said, casting a protective iron-plate enchantment on both himself and Harry. "Don't expect it to be perfect, but always use it the first time regardless."
"Trolls are stupid, and they're highly susceptible to mind-control and confounding spells," George paused, then added, "but you haven't learned those yet."
"When you don't have better spells, use what you have wisely. Right now, you can only use the spells you've already learned," George said, swinging his wand and shouting, "Evigadum Leviosa!"
The monster took a step forward, suddenly losing its balance and crashing heavily to the ground.
"Evigadum Leviosa!" Another spell sent the wooden club flying from the troll's hands into the air. Before it could recover, the club swung back and struck its head with a loud "BANG!" The troll collapsed silently once more.
"Using levitation on the troll while it moves allows certain otherwise ineffective spells to take effect," George explained.
This monster had incredibly strong vitality. The club could only stun it, and most spells could barely harm it. But this didn't mean it wasn't a threat. One small mistake, and it could awaken and tear you apart. You must ensure it is incapacitated, George said, casting again. "Airless Bubble!" A massive bubble formed over the troll's head.
"Though it takes a few minutes for suffocation to work, the advantage is that there's no blood splatter."
"The spells taught at school are few but practical. Most importantly, they're basic. The school won't teach you anything too dangerous," George reminded Harry. "Don't expect to become a powerful wizard by following the curriculum alone."
"Everyone, be sure to give this story a Powerstone! Also, 30 advanced chapters of this story are uploaded on my Patreon—you can go there and read them.
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