"Expelliarmus!"
"Stupefy!"
Spells flashed and crisscrossed, striking the wall and sending debris flying, but neither hit their target.
The two newcomers were Lucas from Beauxbatons, still bearing traces of fire on his body, and Seraphina from Ilvermorny, who, though unharmed, was covered in dirt and looked utterly disheveled.
The air was thick with dampness, creating a sense of oppression as the two warily watched each other, slowly moving.
"Two people have already entered ahead of us; they could attack at any moment," Lucas suddenly said.
"You're right," Seraphina said, looking tired.
Lucas: "Before we find the Golden Egg, I think we should team up for now, don't you agree?"
"I think that makes a lot of sense," Seraphina agreed.
"So… on the count of three, we both put down our Wands?" Lucas asked cautiously.
"Okay," Seraphina readily agreed, her Wand still firmly pointed at him, each step taken with extreme caution.
Lucas: "…"
His smile stiffened slightly, then he took a deep breath: "One… two… three!"
A gust of wind, from who knows where, swept through the dead leaves, but neither of their Wands moved.
Wade quietly zoomed in on his Streaming Mirror, watching with great interest.
"You didn't put down your Wand."
"Neither did you."
"How about this…" Lucas suggested with a smile, offering a new proposal: "Since we can't trust each other, why don't we each choose a different path to explore?"
"Fine, you go first," Seraphina was still very direct.
Lucas: "…"
How could he expose his back to someone else?
"Together," he said. "We'll go at the same time."
Both wary of each other, they slowly retreated toward the entrance of the passage, shuffling sideways like two crabs.
Suddenly, Lucas's gaze was drawn to a faint reflection coming from just behind Seraphina. The girl, focused on watching Lucas, hadn't noticed it.
The corner of his mouth quickly curved upwards, then, worried his gaze would alert her, he quickly looked away.
This subtle expression was fleeting, but Seraphina had been intently watching Lucas. Although she hadn't clearly seen the change in his expression, her intuition told her something was amiss.
Seraphina immediately frowned slightly, then decisively brandished her Wand: "Stupefy!"
Lucas had been watching Seraphina about to enter the passage, eagerly anticipating something to happen! In a moment of distraction, the red beam had already flown towards his chest.
The young man lunged to the side, but Seraphina swiftly pursued: "Stupefy! Stupefy! Stupefy!"
The Stunning Spell was her most practiced spell; she could cast it without a second thought.
The last spell hit Lucas, and he instantly lost consciousness, falling straight to the ground.
Seraphina let out a sigh of relief, then added a Binding Spell before frowning and looking back at the passage she had been about to enter.
Lucas's reaction just now proved he must have seen something.
However, as she turned, Wade had already quickly put away his Streaming Mirror.
Several detection spells illuminated the area near the passage entrance, causing hidden traps on the ground to glow faintly.
Having found the problem, Seraphina's tightly knit brows relaxed. Then, after a moment of thought, her expression darkened again.
She had needed a detection spell to confirm the location of the traps, yet Lucas had spotted them directly with his naked eyes from such a distance. This starkly demonstrated the vast difference in their abilities.
If he hadn't suddenly let his guard down, she would undoubtedly have been the one to lose.
Thinking about this, Seraphina's mood grew heavy. The immense sense of accomplishment she had felt from successfully overcoming the Dragon's obstruction instantly vanished.
She was already exceptional at Ilvermorny, but only after leaving school did she realize—that in the wider world, there were countless people far more skilled than herself.
Seraphina was disheartened for a moment, then continued forward, her desire to win growing even stronger.
She still chose the same passage.
There was an ambush here; wouldn't the other passage have one too? Since she had already discovered the traps in this spot, relatively speaking, this path was actually safer.
…
Seraphina couldn't hear the tense gasps that now rippled through the spectators, but her headmaster, Egbert, sighed softly.
As the headmaster of Ilvermorny, he knew exactly what Seraphina was thinking; after all, he had watched her grow up. He also knew that Seraphina's choice wasn't wrong, but unfortunately…
The wizard's fingers tapped restlessly against his thigh, his gaze fixed solemnly on the girl in the Streaming Mirror.
Karkaroff glanced at Egbert, a hint of schadenfreude on his face. He said in a cloyingly sweet tone:
"The little girl's spells are good, but luck is also part of strength, isn't it, Egbert?"
Egbert scoffed, leaning back in his seat and casting a disdainful glance at Karkaroff.
"Karkaroff, as far as I know... your reputation at Durmstrang isn't exactly stellar. Viktor Krum is excellent, yes, but did you teach him everything he knows?"
He looked Karkaroff up and down, sneering. Though he didn't say it aloud, his eyes clearly conveyed: You? You think you're worthy?
Karkaroff was instantly livid.
...
"Expelliarmus!"
Seraphina had barely registered the sound of Wade's incantation when she was hit by the beam. Her Wand flew from her grasp, and she stumbled back several steps until she hit the wall.
She looked up in astonishment, finally seeing Wade emerge from the shadows.
"Wade Grey?" Seraphina forced a smile, her lips twitching. "I thought we were on friendly terms? Didn't you go look for the Golden Egg?"
As she spoke, her eyes darted around, searching for any opportunity to turn the tables.
However, Wade didn't waste any time with her. He quickly flicked his Wand. "Stupefy!"
The moment he opened his mouth, Seraphina decisively lunged at Wade, trying to snatch the Wand from his hand, or at least deflect the spell.
But as he cast the spell, Wade actually stepped back. Seraphina took a large stride forward, and halfway through her charge, she suddenly tripped, as if she'd stepped on her own shoelaces.
She pitched forward, her face etched with terror, and was immediately struck by the Stunning Spell. Her body went limp, and she instantly collapsed.
A beetle Magic Golem crawled out from beside Seraphina's feet. Wade waved his hand, and seven or eight Magic Golems worked together, lifting Seraphina like ants moving their home, then carried her deep into the passage and threw her directly into a pit.
A giant spider slowly crawled over, "watching" its prey, which had fallen into its own web, for a moment before slowly wrapping her in its translucent silk, layer by layer.
Wade glanced in that direction, then returned to the corner and sat down quietly to wait.
The challengers for the Dragon weren't sent in in batches. Instead, the next contestant would immediately enter once the previous one had failed or moved to the next stage.
So, it wouldn't be long before a new prey dropped from the compass.
...
By the spiderweb, two invisible Aurors were discussing in voices only they could hear:
"Should we send Serafina Picquery and Lucas Barrow out?"
"Have they sustained fatal injuries?"
"Of course not."
"Then there's no need. The 'remains' of a pioneer's crushing defeat are also part of the arena's charm."
"But if this continues, won't Wade Grey end up taking half the Golden Eggs by himself? I see that Scorpion Golem is about to get the fourth one."
"...This is a result of his personal strength. We shouldn't interfere."
"Really? But I don't think the higher-ups will want to see this outcome."
"...I'll ask for instructions."
...
Wade opened his eyes and took the fourth Golden Egg from the Magic Golem, a faint smile playing on his lips.
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