"Leave?" Vid laughed upon hearing this: "If I wanted to leave, I could have done so long ago."
He took out a bag, opened it, and tilted it downwards, letting a string of Golden Eggs clatter to the ground, gleaming brightly in the dim light.
Amina's eyes widened as she looked at the Golden Eggs they had been desperately searching for, now piled on the ground like a bountiful harvest of apples.
"You... you... you... despicable..."
She worked her less-than-agile facial muscles, trying to make Vid feel a stronger sense of shame with her angry gaze.
"How do you figure that?" Vid asked in surprise: "I didn't snatch these Golden Eggs from your hands."
Amina: "..."
Was it my fault that I fell too quickly? Isn't that because you suddenly appeared and ambushed me?
— But being defeated by a kid three years younger than myself, it seems there's scarcely any room to protest.
Amina was so angry that she was nearly in tears; she closed her eyes in fury, refusing to look at the annoying face across from her.
— Unicorn Wand, you chose the wrong person!
"Alright, let's be mature." Vid leaned closer to her: "If the next person coming in is your companion, you still have a chance to let them help you cure the paralysis toxin, but if you want to get the Golden Eggs, I suggest you head to the other direction."
Amina had no choice but to open her eyes, glaring roundly at Vid, though she said nothing, but everything she wanted to express was conveyed through her gaze.
Vid nodded: "That's exactly what you're thinking... the few remaining Golden Eggs on this path will also fall into my hands."
Amina said with difficulty: "Rules... don't... allow..."
"I heard them," Vid replied: "They only forbid me from leaving the arena with more than one Golden Egg, but don't prohibit me from picking them up and throwing them in another place, right?"
"Why..." Amina asked in confusion.
"Hmm?" Vid countered: "When conditions allow, isn't it conventional to minimize one's opponents as much as possible? Of course, the main reason is—"
He paused for a moment, and Amina tried hard to tilt her head upward a bit, and saw Vid smiling as he said:
"I can do it, and it's not hard, so why not?"
That confidence and ease, bright as the sun, almost like a bullet, instantly pierced through the girl's heart, causing her heart to stop, and her breath to pause.
She watched as this boy, younger yet almost as tall as herself, walked towards the depths of the passage, her heart pounding wildly, leaving her speechless for a while.
She should have been angry, but almost instinctively, she began to hope that he would always prevail, always remain proud, and would not have his edges dulled by setbacks.
A sound came from the chamber, new Champions had entered the Chamber of Secret, and Amina heard voices not far away:
"Hold on, don't attack." Ryan Smith [Ilvermorny] raised his hand, saying: "I'm willing to put down my wand first, can you listen to me for a moment?"
"Sure!" Asada Chinatsu also lowered her wand: "I guess you have the same thought as I do."
Ryan nodded: "The recent announcement shows that someone who entered before us has already acquired more than two Golden Eggs."
Asada Chinatsu: "Moreover, they can ambush, set traps, and attack us from the shadows—I think this place is very convenient for an ambush."
Ryan: "So fighting amongst ourselves is useless now, it will only make those who entered earlier laugh."
"Although that's also my thought, but earlier, didn't Ilvermorny's Stella also come in?"
Asada Chinatsu said: "I was the first into the second round from Magic Institute, if you two team up, won't I be in danger?"
Meanwhile, a sound of pain came from near the compass; another person had arrived.
This time, it was Diego Costa from Castelobruxo, he rose from the ground biting his lip, taking a step back cautiously, and pulled out his magic wand upon seeing the two people before him.
The two in front once again urged him to stay calm, and reiterated the previous idea.
"We are not in a mutually exclusive competitive relationship." Ryan said sincerely: "There are sixteen Golden Eggs in total, even if all five schools team up, there are still enough Golden Eggs, we can help each other through this stage."
Asada Chinatsu nodded in agreement.
"Makes sense, but the first Golden Egg I find is mine," Diego said with a bad expression: "Castelobruxo only has me left."
The other two exchanged a glance, feeling a bit sorry for this Brazilian school, so they did not refute him.
This project has a fifty percent elimination rate, which seemed terrifying at first, but as the competition began, it seems the opportunity to get Golden Eggs is quite substantial.
"But those who came before may have also teamed up and entered earlier; to close the gap, it's best for us to wait for two more people," Diego continued.
Ryan and Asada Chinatsu had no objections, they immediately nodded, started observing the surroundings, and waited patiently.
Before long, two more people appeared out of nowhere, namely Cedric Diggory and Fleur Delacour.
Naturally, they did not reject the proposal to team up; the five discussed and chose a passage to enter.
With mutual cooperation and vigilance, even if someone accidentally steps into a trap, the help from others can get them through it. All five were top students of their respective schools, none dragging behind the rest.
Soon, they saw Amina entangled in thorns.
Their gazes met, and Amina excitedly opened her mouth to ask for help, but with her muscles paralyzed, swallowing normally was difficult, so a bright stream of drool trickled from her mouth.
Amina: "..."
...
"Ahhhh... I want to kill him! I must kill him!"
Having been rescued by the group, Amina, not yet fully in control of her limbs, leaned against Fleur, and roared in rage like a furious tiger.
"Alright, alright, but who are you talking about?" Fleur asked her sympathetically.
"Who else could it be? Vid Gray!" Amina spat angrily: "Don't bother looking for Golden Eggs on the way, he took all of them from this passage!"
"What?"
Everyone was shocked; Diego, who stood next to Cedric, immediately distanced himself, while Asada Chinatsu, who was behind them, already had her magic wand pointed at Cedric's back.
"What?"
Cedric was also surprised, quickly asking: "Why would Vid do this? Is there some misunderstanding?"
"How would I know? I can't read minds! I saw him take a bag full of Golden Eggs with my own eyes!"
Amina roared again like a tiger: "I want to kill him!"