Only one match remained in the 1993-1994 Hogwarts Quidditch Cup.
The situation was now clear—there was no need to consult Sherlock and Hermione, or even Cho Chang, to calculate the points.
Both Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, each with one win and two losses, were definitively out of contention for the trophy.
The championship would be decided between Slytherin, who currently had two wins, and Gryffindor, who had one win and one loss.
If Gryffindor lost to Slytherin in the final match, there would be nothing more to say.
Slytherin would win all three matches and claim the Quidditch Cup with a perfect record.
The other three houses, all with one win and two losses, would compete based on points for the remaining rankings.
But with only four houses total, competing for second, third, and fourth place hardly seemed worth the effort.
If Gryffindor could defeat Slytherin, both teams would end with two wins and one loss, requiring a points tiebreaker to determine the final champion.
So, for Gryffindor, they not only had to beat Slytherin—they had to win by more than two hundred points.
As captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Oliver Wood had been harping on this constantly since the Slytherin versus Hufflepuff match.
Just as Harry and Ron were discussing matters concerning Sherlock and Hermione, Wood appeared out of nowhere yet again.
He said to Harry with grave seriousness.
"Harry, I really don't want to pressure you.
But you can only catch the Golden Snitch when we're ahead by more than fifty points.
Only when we're ahead by more than fifty points, Harry.
Otherwise, even if we win the match, we'll lose the cup.
Do you understand?
You must catch the Snitch, but only when we're—"
"I know, Oliver!" Harry couldn't help but interrupt him.
It wasn't that he didn't respect his captain—Wood had simply repeated this speech far too many times.
In reality, even without Wood's constant emphasis, Harry was under no small amount of pressure.
The fact that Slytherin led by a full two hundred points in the league meant that most of the pressure to win fell straight on Harry's shoulders.
After all, catching the Golden Snitch not only ended the match but also awarded a whopping one hundred fifty points.
Oliver Wood's constant reminders left Harry feeling dizzy and disoriented, but that wasn't even the worst of it.
Just like before the Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw match, the Weasley twins had set up a countdown display in the Gryffindor common room.
And this time, the entire Gryffindor house had focused their attention on this approaching match.
They desperately needed this trophy.
Since the team's founding, their record had never been particularly impressive.
This was even documented in Hogwarts. A History.
In 1692, Gryffindor suffered a devastating defeat.
It wasn't until three hundred years later, in 1992, when Harry was ill and unable to compete and Gryffindor played one person short, that they finally broke the record for that crushing defeat.
This showed just how painful that loss three centuries ago had been.
In the 1950s, the excellent Quidditch player Minerva McGonagall joined Gryffindor, giving the team hope of finally claiming the trophy.
Unfortunately, fate loves to play tricks on people.
In 1953, Gryffindor finally made it to the finals against Slytherin.
But the team's core player, seventh-year Minerva McGonagall, suffered a concussion and several broken ribs due to the opposition's foul play, and Gryffindor lost the match.
Although Minerva McGonagall's name remained in Hogwarts' trophy display room, it could never fill the regret in her heart.
Since then, seeing Slytherin lose to Gryffindor in the finals became her greatest wish.
In the 1970s, Gryffindor finally entered their golden age for the first time—the father of the wizarding world's savior, James Potter, burst onto the scene.
Combined with his talented classmates shining brilliantly in matches, Gryffindor finally won the Quidditch Cup.
Professor McGonagall also finally realized her long-held dream watching Slytherin lose to Gryffindor in the finals.
Unfortunately, after that generation left school, Gryffindor returned to mediocrity.
That is, until the legendary Charlie Weasley joined the Gryffindor Quidditch team as Seeker.
After a brief period of adjustment, Gryffindor won the Quidditch Cup once again.
Sadly, after Charlie Weasley's era, Gryffindor declined once more, right up to the present day.
Of course, in the view of Wood and the other Gryffindor Quidditch players, they should have claimed the Quidditch Cup the very year Harry, that prodigy, joined the Gryffindor team despite being underage.
Unfortunately, they'd missed the trophy due to accidents in the previous two years.
Until this year.
Without doubt, this would be their closest opportunity yet to claim the Quidditch Cup.
Everyone in the house, including Head of House Professor Minerva McGonagall, placed tremendous importance on this match.
Meanwhile, their opponents, Slytherin, were no less determined.
From their perspective, it was precisely because Gryffindor had broken the three-hundred-year record for devastating defeat in the final match two years ago that Ravenclaw had reaped the benefits.
In other words, Gryffindor had practically handed the trophy to Ravenclaw on a silver platter, naturally making Slytherin grind their teeth at Gryffindor.
Then, a year ago, the Quidditch Cup was canceled due to the Chamber of Secrets incident.
Although this seemingly had little to do with Gryffindor, let's not forget that it was the Gryffindor Lion King and his savior sidekick who ultimately found the Chamber.
If they had that ability, why couldn't they have found the Chamber earlier?
Then the remaining matches wouldn't have been canceled.
Sometimes, hatred arises in such inexplicable ways that no amount of head-scratching can make sense of it.
For all these reasons, Slytherin was equally determined to win this match.
"Two hundred points—we're leading by a full two hundred points!"
Marcus Flint, often mistaken for having troll blood, emphasized this point repeatedly when briefing the Slytherin Quidditch team, just like his rival Oliver Wood.
He first addressed his fellow Chasers, Graham Montague and Cassius Warrington.
"Graham, Cassius, you need to coordinate well with me!
Most importantly, score more goals before Draco catches the Golden Snitch—we absolutely cannot lose to those three Gryffindor girls!"
"Angelina doesn't smell bad—she actually smells quite nice—"
Flint raised his voice. "Graham, what did you say?"
"I said brilliant insight, Captain!"
Flint snorted heavily and turned to the two Beaters.
"Lucian, Peregrine, you know what to do—I don't need to tell you again, do I?"
"Of course, I won't let the Bludger leave Potter."
"Don't worry, Marcus. If necessary, I'll take emergency measures."
Flint nodded with satisfaction and turned his gaze to Keeper Miles Bletchley.
"Miles, your task is simplest—just don't let those three girls score."
"Don't worry, Marcus, I can definitely hold the line."
"Good!"
Having received the Keeper's assurance, Flint turned his attention to Malfoy.
"Draco, you did well in the last match, successfully preventing Diggory from catching the Golden Snitch more than once.
But in this match, I need you to do even better—ideally, catch the Golden Snitch right at the start!
Listen, all of us will fully support you and won't let Gryffindor expand their lead to more than fifty points—"
"But what if they do take the lead?"
The Chaser who'd said Angelina smelled nice raised his hand to ask.
Flint glared fiercely at Graham. "If they do take the lead, Draco, you must desperately hold off Potter and not let him catch the Golden Snitch!
If necessary, foul him to stop him—understand?"
Malfoy nodded without speaking.
He knew full well this match would be a severe test for him.
Although he prided himself on his flying skills, Malfoy knew deep down he was actually inferior to Potter in this regard.
After watching the Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw match, he knew even more clearly that the Nimbus 2001 couldn't match the Firebolt either.
Fortunately, Slytherin's large point lead still gave him confidence.
However, he'd need to temporarily separate from Pansy for a while.
As the match date drew near, both Gryffindor and Slytherin prepared intensively for this final, and tensions between them grew increasingly heated.
This tense atmosphere was initially limited to the two Quidditch teams.
But it quickly expanded to encompass both houses.
The reason was verbal disputes—which, humorously enough, went something like.
"What are you looking at?"
"Looking at you—so what!"
"Try looking at me one more time!"
"Fine, I'll try it!"
Because neither side would back down, verbal arguments escalated into physical confrontations.
Small skirmishes began breaking out in the corridors of Hogwarts Castle.
Soon, a fourth-year Gryffindor student and a sixth-year Slytherin student both ended up in the hospital wing with grass growing out of their ears.
But this was only the beginning.
More and more incidents like this erupted.
In Hogwarts' point counters, the red representing Gryffindor and the green representing Slytherin began rapidly declining.
Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff started catching up from behind.
Originally this was just between Gryffindor and Slytherin, but when a Slytherin accidentally injured his Ravenclaw girlfriend while targeting a Gryffindor, the conflict expanded.
What followed was retaliation—crazy retaliation.
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