Great Hall.
Lunchtime.
Malfoy and Lucien sat at the corner of the long table.
"Then Flint flew up at that moment. You know, Weasley's air gun is quite interesting. Of course, it's because you taught him well, Lucien, that he could make something like that. It seems Muggles have something similar. What's it called… a metal wand?"
Lucien picked up a piece of crispy roast duck and muttered, "What metal wand? It's called a gun."
After hearing Malfoy's account, Lucien understood the general course of the conflict on the pitch.
"So you all ended up in a chaotic free-for-all?"
"A fight? Oh, Lucien, you mean fists? Well, some people used fists and feet, and some used wands."
Malfoy scooped up a spoonful of Mapo Tofu and continued,
"It was complete chaos! Some people even used brooms to fight, almost breaking another Nimbus 2001. It really was glorious.. ehm.. awefull…"
Lucien reflected that this change was quite significant.
Tracing it back, his reinforced flying car had prevented Ron's wand from breaking, so there was no spell backfire and no comedic interruption of the conflict with slug-vomiting. The two sides had truly ended up fighting.
And under his guidance, Ron had made an air gun and was becoming more proficient with it. The first thing a wizard did in a fight was no longer to draw a wand, but to pull out a gun… well, Alchemy tools were still magic, so it was fine. The style hadn't strayed too far.
Another point was Malfoy. Because of the special flight training, he had been so sleepy that he hadn't said the word "Mudblood" as he did in the original story. However, someone else had still said it. Flint.
"Draco, since everyone was fighting, what were you doing? Which side were you helping?"
Lucien suddenly thought of this interesting blind spot and asked with a smile.
Hearing this, Malfoy couldn't help but grin, looking rather smug.
"I'm a Slytherin, so I definitely couldn't just stay neutral and watch. And I couldn't help Potter and his friends just because we've had tutoring together. Otherwise, how would I get by in the team and the House? But it wouldn't be right to directly fight the troubling trio either. After all, with our friendship…"
Malfoy pointed to himself, then to Lucien, and continued,
"You're also friends with Potter and the others. If I really made a move, it would put you in a difficult position. How could a Malfoy make things difficult for a friend?"
"So I thought, during our tutoring sessions, didn't we practise one-against-many combat? At that moment, I signalled Potter and Granger, and along with Weasley, the four of us pulled out our wands and started blasting away."
"Then, while fighting, we moved away from the older students. Those people don't know their own strength when they attack. This way, I managed to keep things balanced on both sides, right?"
Listening to Malfoy's explanation, Lucien set down his chopsticks for a moment.
This kid really had talent.
The Malfoy bloodline was indeed impressive. With ability like this, it was no wonder it had endured for so long.
Genuinely amused, Lucien gave him a thumbs-up.
"You're the best."
Seeing this, Malfoy became even more animated.
"I think during the fight, Weasley told Granger what that word meant. She took advantage of an opening and cast several Charms at the crowd. I'm guessing they hit Flint."
Lucien nodded. The girl had taken her revenge on the spot, which was good.
"That word really is disgusting."
"Mudblood" was an insult aimed at wizards from Muggle families, as vicious as telling an orphan they were unwanted, or using the N-word.
Hearing Lucien say this, Malfoy seemed to recall something and gave an awkward smile.
"It's all Flint's fault, that idiot, with his filthy mouth."
To be honest, Malfoy had a very poor impression of Flint. He thought him crude and foolish, someone who relied only on brute force and lacked any real insight or foresight.
"Anyway, we were all lectured by our respective Heads of House. I'm not sure about Gryffindor's side, but Professor Snape gave Flint detention, a very severe one. Speaking of which…"
Malfoy lowered his voice and whispered,
"The Head of House looked terrifying then. We've never seen him that angry."
Yes, how could he not be angry?
Snape probably hated that word more than anyone, and hated himself most of all for having said it to Lily all those years ago.
"Sigh, I've only just joined the team and haven't even had proper training yet, and now the captain's gone."
Malfoy couldn't help feeling frustrated.
Lucien said, "Don't you have a vice-captain?"
Malfoy shook his head. "No. Flint's too arrogant and brutal. He won't allow anyone else to interfere with his authority."
Lucien then said casually, "Then you can organise the others to practise first. From the special training sessions before, I could tell you're very familiar with Quidditch."
Malfoy had been interested in Quidditch since childhood, and his family's circumstances had fully supported him in developing this passion.
In fact, Lucien reckoned that with Malfoy's flying skills and Quidditch technique, he could have made the House team on his own merit.
However, perhaps he had been too eager for quick success, or simply wanted to compete with Harry, so he had insisted on taking the Seeker position and exchanged "sponsorship" for the opportunity.
Hearing Lucien's suggestion, Malfoy pointed at himself in disbelief.
"Me?"
Lucien chuckled softly.
"You've got good judgement, you understand technique, and you've donated such excellent brooms to the team. The others will give you some respect. Besides, it's only daily practice. You're all idle anyway."
"Besides, if the old don't step aside, how can the young rise?"
At these words, Malfoy's thoughts began to stir. Ambition was a defining trait of Slytherin; they were born to pursue power and glory.
This seemed like an opportunity. Of course, becoming captain outright was impossible. Flint was only in detention, not dead.
But temporarily leading the Quidditch team's training? Even Potter couldn't do that.
Malfoy made up his mind. If he managed to pull this off, he would definitely go and show off in front of Gryffindor during their training.
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