Chapter 73: The Dueling Club
In the Harry Potter world, as George passed through the castle's Great Hall in the morning, he noticed a group of young wizards gathered around the notice board, eagerly discussing something.
As he got closer, he saw a new piece of parchment pinned to the board.
The parchment announced that the Dueling Club would be restarted that evening at eight o'clock in the Great Hall, aiming to teach all the young wizards how to better use magic in combat.
The Dueling Club had once been very popular at Hogwarts. It was said that Professor Flitwick, the current head of Ravenclaw, had been an undefeated champion of the club during his school days.
Even older students couldn't defeat Flitwick in one-on-one duels.
However, due to frequent injuries among the young wizards during duels, the school infirmary became overwhelmed, and the club was eventually discontinued.
Now, it seemed that the opening of the Chamber of Secrets and the attacks on students had prompted some teachers to propose restarting the Dueling Club to train the young wizards in combat skills, giving them more ability to protect themselves in dangerous situations.
"This is a great opportunity to observe and learn."
George naturally had a positive attitude toward the restart of the Dueling Club.
His magical skills were largely self-taught and often unorthodox.
In combat, he mostly relied on his psychic abilities, with magic playing a secondary role.
However, in the future, he would need to rely more on magic for combat. Therefore, observing and learning more about magical combat techniques was crucial.
At eight o'clock that evening, when George and the first-year Slytherin students arrived at the Great Hall, it had been transformed.
The four long dining tables had been pushed together to form a grand, gilded stage, illuminated by hundreds of floating candles.
The ceiling of the Great Hall had turned a velvety black, and nearly every young wizard in the school had gathered, each holding their wand, their faces filled with excitement.
As everyone speculated about which professor would guide them in magical dueling techniques, Gilderoy Lockhart, dressed in bright purple robes, and Severus Snape, clad in black and looking stern, stepped forward.
The flamboyant Lockhart began by boasting about his dueling skills, then referred to Snape as his assistant, further elevating himself and making Snape's expression even colder.
George guessed that if there was one teacher at Hogwarts who despised Lockhart the most, it would undoubtedly be Snape.
If they weren't at school, and if Snape hadn't turned over a new leaf, George suspected Snape wouldn't hesitate to use the three Unforgivable Curses on Lockhart.
The problem was that Lockhart seemed completely oblivious. He even suggested that he and Snape demonstrate a duel for the students.
Lockhart and Snape stood on opposite sides of the stage. After a count of three, they both raised their wands above their shoulders.
"Expelliarmus!"
Before Lockhart could even finish his incantation or complete his wand movement, Snape's Disarming Charm had already been cast.
A red beam of magic struck Lockhart, sending his wand flying and knocking him off the stage, where he slid down the wall.
"So fast!"
George, watching from below, couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
The Disarming Charm was a second-year spell and a challenging one at that. It was one of the most commonly used spells in wizard duels, capable of forcibly disarming an opponent while also knocking them back.
George had been teaching himself this spell recently and had just managed to cast it successfully a couple of days ago.
However, his Disarming Charm was far inferior to Snape's.
Not only in terms of power but, more importantly, Snape's wand movements were incredibly streamlined, and his incantation was lightning-fast. The entire process seemed to take less than a second, executed flawlessly.
This was why, even though both were casting the Disarming Charm, Lockhart was sent flying before he could even begin.
George also noticed that Snape didn't stop after casting the Disarming Charm. His wand moved slightly, clearly preparing a second spell.
However, Lockhart was so inept that he couldn't even block the first spell, making a second one unnecessary.
"That was a Disarming Charm. As you can see, I've lost my wand.
However, Professor Snape, don't take this the wrong way, but your intent was quite obvious.
If I had wanted to stop you, it would have been effortless. But I thought it would be beneficial for the students to see the consequences of being hit by a Disarming Charm."
Lockhart struggled to his feet, quickly straightened his appearance, and then climbed back onto the stage, shamelessly explaining himself.
Hearing Lockhart's excuses, Snape raised his wand, clearly tempted to cast the Killing Curse on the man.
Perhaps sensing Snape's murderous intent, Lockhart quickly changed the subject:
"Alright, now pair up and come onto the stage for practice. Professor Snape and I will correct any mistakes you make during your duels."
Hearing Lockhart's words, most of the young wizards didn't question him and eagerly raised their hands to step onto the stage, including George.
He didn't believe Lockhart's nonsense and didn't expect any useful guidance from him. Instead, he hoped to spar with older students and receive some tips from Snape on magical combat techniques.
Lockhart and Snape moved among the students on the stage, pairing them up.
George was also paired, though his opponent was a rather short first-year Ravenclaw student.
"George, my name is Matthew Flitwick. I admire your learning ability and Quidditch skills, and I know I'm far behind you in those areas.
But for this duel, I might have to apologize in advance."
The young wizard was confident. Even facing the so-called "Star of Slytherin," he didn't think he would lose in a duel.
As a member of the Flitwick family, he had inherited the family's natural talent for combat and had received numerous tips from his great-uncle on wand combat techniques.
While most first-year students were still practicing the Levitation Charm, he was already proficient in using the Full Body-Bind Curse in combat.
"Well, good luck to you."
George smiled and didn't say much.
It was a joke. Even without using magic, his enhanced physical abilities and cat-like reflexes would allow him to easily dodge most magical attacks.
Coupled with the number of spells he knew and his regular practice, he wouldn't necessarily lose even to a seventh-year student nearing graduation.
This time, he was here to refine his skills, not because his magical combat abilities were lacking.
(End of Chapter)