"..."
Even though it was inappropriate, "Percy" still opened his mouth, instinctively wanting to ask why it was a Niffler.
However, the boy opposite him obviously didn't want to give him the chance to speak, "Expelliarmus!" The Disarming Spell shot through the mist that permeated the hedges like a crimson lightning bolt, but the instantaneous ripple of the spell gently rippled, and Percy, expressionless, deflected Cedric's spell...
"Avada Kedavra!"
The green light, like a venomous snake, bypassed the red spell and aimed at Cedric. The boy instinctively ducked and rolled to avoid it, all the while swinging his magic wand continuously; Percy's footing on the ground became as slick as a mirror, and he began to lose control and slip—
Thus, he raised his hand and stuck Fleur into the ground as a walking stick.
"?"
Seeing the girl, who seemed to be "straightened out" for life, Cedric's pupils instinctively shrank.
Dead? Dead?
Or... Petrification Curse?
"Haha, seems like you two are pretty close, huh?"
At this moment, "Percy's" voice had dropped its disguise, and his mouth twisted into a nearly inhuman arc.
"Who... exactly are you?"
Cedric fiddled with the magic wand in his hand, forcing his gaze away from Fleur. At this moment, getting distracted meant courting death, "Protego!"
"Imperio!"
The heavy Iron Armor encased Cedric, and seeing his sneak attack spell fail, "Percy" wasn't annoyed. "Who I am isn't important, Mr. Diggory." His grin grew broader, almost splitting the face that belonged to a Weasley family boy. "What's important is that your part should end now—"
Before the words dropped, his arm suddenly exerted force, and Fleur's rigid body crashed towards Cedric like a post. Cedric could only forcibly dispel the attacking spell brewing on his wand and switched to catching the life-or-death unknown girl with a Levitating Spell.
But this was clearly "Percy's" plan. As Fleur was caught by the Levitating Spell, his wand swiftly pointed like lightning, and three soundless Diffindo spells in the shape of a "Mozambique" charged towards every space Cedric could possibly dodge, with insidious and vicious angles—
Cedric's inner alarm bells rang, but his demeanor showed no sign of panic. The boy placed one hand on the ground, transforming the dirt into a slippery surface, sidestepped and squatted, slid through the gap formed by the crisscrossing spells and Fleur, even taking time to alter Fleur's trajectory to avoid her head diving into the nearby brambles.
The next moment, his free left hand abruptly slapped the dense hedge behind him, and countless Poisonous Tentacles seemed to receive a command, extending its vines and thrashing towards "Percy's" location with a twist.
"!"
"Percy" didn't expect the counterattack to be so swift; he hadn't even finished the final wand motion for the Diffindo spell when the first Poisonous Tentacle lashed at his head. The man, unprepared, could only awkwardly duck and retreat, casting an Iron Armor Spell—but the successive hits shattered his defenses almost instantly.
"...Get out!!"
"Percy" was slightly angered, and with his roar, crimson flames darkened to black rose up, scorching the Poisonous Tentacles to a slight curl before disappearing. Without hesitation, he pointed his wand again, "Expulso!"
With a booming sound, the oncoming hedge and vines were blasted to pieces, "Percy" hoping that Cedric would also be blown to pieces and vanish with them—
His wish was half fulfilled.
Cedric indeed disappeared, but what replaced him in the original spot was a figure clad in heavy armor, carrying a broadsword almost as large as a door plate on his shoulder. Under "Percy's" watchful eye, the armor moved, emanating the sound of clashing metal.
"..."
"Percy" clearly remembered having seen this thing before; Cedric had summoned this armor using the Summoning Charm during the first task.
He also remembered seeing Cedric, wearing this armor while chasing a Swedish Short-Snout dragon across nearly half the field.
"Click—"
Cedric fastened the mask covering his face, and in the next moment, deep blue Magic Patterns enveloped the armor in the blink of an eye. He shook his head slightly, seemingly warming up, and thus, the once promising, innocent Hufflepuff student transformed into a beast carrying a hint of menace—
"Are you ready to dance?"
"..."
Without waiting for "Percy" to respond, the armor vanished from where it was, causing the man's pupils to quake violently as if an earthquake had started. He almost instinctively raised his head, only to see the glowing blue "door plate" plummeting towards him—if it hit, wouldn't he be bruised purple... smashed east and west?
"Levicorpus!"
"Percy's" wand jerked upwards forcefully, and after a flash of spell, the armor was unchanged except for the blue light becoming brighter. But the man wouldn't pin his hopes on solving this Dragon Flame-resistant armor with a single Evil Curse; his form burst backward as he cast the spell—
"Boom—"
The heavy Giant Sword struck the ground, sending up clumps of flying dirt.
"Ha—"
The man heard a muffled laugh from within the armor. Then, without the slightest pause, the armor, which had hit the ground, wielded the Giant Sword and charged forward again, its brisk steps swiftly closing the distance, the exaggerated Giant Sword still slung over its shoulder, light as a feather.