Chapter 43: You’ve Lowered the Intelligence of the Entire Academy

Just as Sherlock had anticipated before the start of the term, the name Harry Potter meant that he would always find himself at the vortex of events.

Even if he did nothing at all, trouble would seek him out on its own.

In the nearly two months since the term began, he had already encountered numerous incidents:

Including, but not limited to, being intensely stared at by students whose enthusiasm had not yet faded; Peeves taking the initiative to appear and harass him; wandering by mistake into the forbidden dark room strictly prohibited by Dumbledore and being caught by Filch; the moving staircases inexplicably starting to shift of their own accord... and Malfoy taking the initiative to come over and provoke him, among other behaviors.

The previous situations were manageable enough; as long as Sherlock was around, they could all be smoothly resolved.

However, Sherlock could not be with Harry every single moment.

The consequence was that whenever Sherlock was absent, Harry had to face these problems alone. As for Ron... his presence or absence made no real difference.

As for the last item, it purely belonged to trouble knocking on the door.

After being disciplined by Sherlock on the train, Malfoy had indeed quieted down for a while.

But life among the Slytherin collective evidently gave him a sense of confidence.

One month into the term, he began provoking Harry once again.

However, out of wariness toward Sherlock—knowing that Crabbe and Goyle combined were no match for Sherlock—Malfoy naturally neither wanted nor dared to enter into a direct conflict with Harry.

Therefore, he cleverly chose to change his tactics and fight an indirect battle.

One morning, Malfoy approached Harry and challenged him to a duel.

If it were merely an invitation to a duel, there would be no need to fear that Sherlock might intervene.

Indeed, Sherlock did not intervene.

Not only did he not intervene, but he also developed a considerable interest in this so-called duel.

Because this touched upon a blind spot in his knowledge.

A wizard's duel?

It sounded like a rather interesting affair.

At this crucial moment, Ron jumped out.

He declared that he would act as Harry's second for this duel.

Not only that, but right in front of a bewildered Harry, he finalized with Malfoy to meet at midnight in the trophy room.

By the time Malfoy left, Harry had not yet recovered his wits.

Shortly after, Sherlock learned the rules of wizarding duels through Ron's long-winded description.

He quickly arrived at a conclusion.

"The so-called wizard's duel is nothing more than a formal contest imbued with a sense of ritual, formed by wizarding culture over a long period."

Ron thought about it for a moment, then said with some surprise, "It really seems to be like that... I can't believe you summarized it so quickly!"

"Merely tradition, mimicking that old set of medieval knightly duels, with the only limitation being that both parties are restricted to using magic."

Sherlock waved a hand. "It's a pity that true contemporary chivalry has almost ceased to exist—putting that aside, are you serious about wanting to be Harry's second?

After all, according to the rules of a duel, if one of the duelists dies, the second must step in."

"Ron..."

Hearing this, Harry was startled and was just about to speak when Ron, noticing his pale complexion, hurriedly added:

"That is indeed the rule... but you and Malfoy know so little magic that you won't actually hurt each other at all; at best, you'll only manage to shoot sparks at one another."

Only then did Harry let out a sigh of relief, though he then looked at Sherlock with some distress: "But what if I wave my wand and absolutely nothing happens?"

"Then throw the wand away and punch him right in the nose."

Before Sherlock could speak, Ron had already chimed in.

"..."

Harry blinked in a daze, then turned his gaze back to Sherlock, seeking help.

"Not a bad suggestion."

Sherlock said earnestly, "In order to achieve one's goal, one should indeed not be overly constrained by formalities at times."

Receiving Sherlock's support for the first time, Ron instantly gained confidence and became righteous.

"However, if I were you, I wouldn't go tonight."

"Why?"

Ron, whose backbone had just stiffened, asked in surprise, "Refusing a duel is the act of a coward!"

That was simply too un-Gryffindor!

"Bravery is merely the best substitute for stupidity."

Sherlock said indifferently, "Because Malfoy has no intention of going there at all. My dear Harry, I'll bet you a Galleon that if you go there, what's waiting for you in all probability will be Filch."

Upon hearing these words, the color in Harry's face, which had just returned to normal, turned pale once again.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

Ron immediately retorted, "Although Malfoy is indeed a jerk, he is, after all, one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight..."

"Shut up, Ron, you're dragging down the collective intelligence of the entire house."

Ron: (°ー°〃)

"Just now, when you mentioned seconds, Malfoy only picked one from Crabbe and Goyle on the spot.

If a duel were truly being prepared, it wouldn't be so hasty as to make a decision only after you brought it up.

This is clearly just prevarication and stalling, designed to trick you into going to a location he has long since designated.

Although he is trying his best to conceal it, if you are observant enough, you can still notice a slight limp in his right leg; he must have been injured during flying practice.

I wager you didn't notice that during yesterday's flying lesson, he didn't linger on his broomstick for extended periods as he used to."

Harry and Ron looked at each other in dismay; they indeed had not noticed.

Damn it, was this the difference between merely looking and actually observing?

"Also, his reaction to Harry choosing Ron as his second was far too calm.

If I were Malfoy, upon seeing that Harry chose Ron instead of Sherlock as his second, even if I weren't overjoyed, I would certainly have felt a sense of immense relief."

Ron: _〆(´Д｀)

"Yet he didn't."

Once again ignoring Ron's aggrieved face, Sherlock delivered his conclusion directly, "He doesn't care who goes with Harry, because he never intended to duel in the first place.

As for the so-called sacred Twenty-Eight families... they are merely a self-amusing joke."

Sherlock wore a look of utter disdain.

What era was this, and people were still obsessing over bloodline theories?

One had to admit that in certain aspects, the magical world was truly hopelessly backward.

Sherlock still held a great deal of influence over Harry.

He was ultimately successfully persuaded and did not attend the duel.

Subsequent events proved that Sherlock had been entirely right.

Because the very next day, Malfoy did not mention the duel at all.

On the contrary, he looked exceedingly surprised upon seeing Harry and Ron safe and sound.

Seeing this, Ron could not help but feel grateful that Harry had listened to Sherlock—just last night, he had still been egging Harry on to take action, though the latter had refused.

Naturally, he would not speak of such a thing.

Seizing the opportunity, he showed no mercy in mocking Malfoy mercilessly.

With the help of the twin brothers' promotional efforts, the entire school soon learned that Malfoy had taken the initiative to challenge Harry to a duel but failed to show up.

This caused Malfoy to be unable to raise his head in pride for a very long time.

It also deepened the little lions' appreciation of Sherlock by yet another level.

Gradually, people began consulting him about difficult problems they encountered in daily life.

Sherlock basically turned no one away, and through these matters, he could further his understanding of the magical world.

Among them, the most frequent visitor was Neville, who shared a dormitory with him.

His pet toad, Trevor, kept wandering off and going missing.

Malfoy naturally refused to accept such humiliation lying down.

As the saying goes, when one plot fails, another is hatched.

He kept a constant eye on Harry, hoping to turn the tables and regain his pride.

The opportunity soon arrived.