When Chen Yu emerged from the Forbidden Forest, the sun was already setting in the west.
Returning to the Hogwarts castle, he passed through the Great Hall and saw Hermione reading and Harry and Ron playing Wizard's Chess.
After the midnight duel incident where they encountered Fluffy, the relationship between Harry, Hermione, and Ron began to deteriorate rapidly.
Before, the three of them would sit quite casually in the Great Hall, not far from each other.
Now, one could only say one was at the far east end and the other at the far west end, looking as if they were sworn enemies.
Chen Yu shook his head helplessly; how could the ship of friendship capsize so easily?
Scanning the Great Hall, he noticed Malfoy was also there, but with a grim expression, looking as if he had 'PMS'.
He was currently arguing with other Slytherin members.
It seemed the rumor Chen Yu had Ron spread was effective.
The Slytherin house traditions were ambition, cunning, valuing honor, knowing when to act, self-preservation, and victory above all.
Perhaps Malfoy's tricking Harry and Ron into coming to the trophy room for a wizard's duel and then not showing up himself represented cunning and self-preservation.
However, he overlooked another Slytherin tradition: honor above all.
If no one knew about it and Ron and Harry hadn't made a big fuss, the matter would have been over.
But Chen Yu cleverly spread the outcome of the wizard's duel between Harry and Malfoy through 'rumors'.
For the honor-conscious Slytherin, Malfoy's actions were undoubtedly a stain on Slytherin's reputation.
The Slytherin students naturally wouldn't give Malfoy any good looks.
But Chen Yu knew that his single 'rumor' couldn't shake the House of Malfoy's position in Slytherin.
At most, it would make Draco feel as uncomfortable as if he had swallowed a 'fly'.
With Malfoy's father, Draco was still a member of a noble 'pure-blood' family.
Chen Yu also didn't want to oppose the House of Malfoy; he just wanted to 'educate' Draco, help Harry get even, and let him know that ditching someone comes with a price.
Glancing at Malfoy again, Chen Yu silently left the Great Hall and prepared to head towards the Library on the second floor.
As he reached the turn of the staircase, he found two students blocking his way.
One was short and stout, the other tall, and their arms looked long, like gorillas'.
They were Malfoy's two cronies—Crabbe and Goyle.
Chen Yu looked at the two cronies blocking his way upstairs, a little surprised.
He didn't expect them to block him.
Could it be that his spreading of rumors had been exposed?
Chen Yu hadn't intended to keep it a secret, but the speed of exposure was too fast.
Otherwise, Chen Yu couldn't figure out why these two would be blocking him from going upstairs.
They looked like delinquents from school, ready to bully a 'frail' student in their class.
Chen Yu took two steps to the left, and these two guys took two steps to the left.
Chen Yu took two steps to the right, and these two simpletons took two steps to the right.
The purpose of these two was clear: to block Chen Yu's path.
"Chen Yu, I've had my father investigate your identity! You're just a Mudblood born in an orphanage!"
Malfoy's voice rang out from behind.
Chen Yu turned around to see Malfoy following him, his hair a bit disheveled, and a look of excited revenge on his pale face.
His hair was slightly messy, and his clothes were wrinkled; it seemed he had struggled quite a bit to break free from the other Slytherin students.
"You're dead! You Mudblood! How dare you spread such vicious rumors!"
Chen Yu quietly watched Malfoy flail about like an excited spider.
There was no ripple in his heart, and he even felt a little like laughing.
You, a Draco, could you be more dangerous than the Acromantula in the Forbidden Forest?
Malfoy puffed out his chest, lifted his chin, and said arrogantly, "Pick up your wand! I'll show you what true nobility is! And you will pay the price for what you've done!"
Chen Yu looked at Malfoy suspiciously: "You want to have a wizard's duel with me?"
Malfoy nodded heavily: "That's right!"
"Here?"
"Yes!"
"Not interested..."
Chen Yu was starting to doubt Malfoy's intelligence. Having a wizard's duel in a stairwell corner? That was clearly setting themselves up for professors to arrive quickly and for both him and Malfoy to be punished.
Who taught him this mutually destructive fighting style?
Had he been at odds with Harry and Ron for so long that his intelligence had become like Harry and Ron's?
Chen Yu wanted to continue upstairs, but Malfoy's two cronies kept blocking him.
Chen Yu glared at Crabbe and Goyle, annoyed, thinking, 'You're really taking advantage, aren't you?'
Do you want me to let you taste the flavor of Avada Kedavra?
Chen Yu gave the two cronies a fierce glare, then turned to Malfoy and said, "Time, place, where do you plan to have the duel..."
He hadn't finished speaking when he shook his head again: "Forget it, let's not make it so troublesome. Let's just go to an abandoned room on the second floor and settle it directly."
Dealing with Malfoy would be a quick affair, so he might as well get it over with.
He was still planning to go to the Library to look for spells that could isolate sound, block scent, and allow him to move quickly; he didn't have much time to mess around with Malfoy.
Returning from the Forbidden Forest, Chen Yu realized his own shortcomings.
Firstly, he couldn't achieve complete invisibility, and secondly, he needed spells that could buff him before combat.
The Avada Kedavra spell was powerful, but it wasn't omnipotent.
When Avada Kedavra attacked giant creatures, the target was large and easy to aim at, hitting every time.
But if Avada Kedavra was used to attack more agile or smaller creatures, like goblins, for example.
With their nimble movements and Apparition-like magic, it would be easy for Avada Kedavra to miss.
If he knew 'Eagle Eye' or 'Precision' type spells that gave him accuracy buffs, he could hit even agile enemies more easily.
If he learned control spells like 'Impedimenta' or 'Swamp Curse', he could also restrict the enemy's movement speed, making himself more composed.
If he had speed buffs, whether increasing movement speed or accelerating spell casting time, they would also be very practical.
If he couldn't find anything else, he would have to try learning the Apparition spell first.
He remembered that the Room of Requirement was not restricted by Hogwarts' anti-Apparition charms, making it a good place to practice Apparition.
However, for safety when practicing, it would be best to have a friend help watch; if he really splinched, having someone nearby would allow him to be rescued.
The main thing was to be cautious (prudent).
"Hey, Malfoy! What are you doing to Chen Yu?"
Behind Malfoy, Hermione suddenly appeared around the corner.
While reading, she had inadvertently seen Malfoy suddenly break free from the Slytherin students' questioning, looking furious as if he was going for revenge.
But Harry and Ron, who had a feud with Malfoy, were both sitting in the Gryffindor area, so who was he so eager to take revenge on?
Hermione suddenly thought of Chen Yu. The poem-like rumor Chen Yu had concocted last night had infuriated Malfoy today, and he was being questioned by older students from his own house.
Hermione also noticed that Malfoy's two inseparable cronies were nowhere to be seen today, probably off looking for Chen Yu.
Malfoy's hurried departure just now might mean his cronies had found Chen Yu.
The thought of Chen Yu facing a one-against-three situation made Hermione's heart flutter.
Seeing Malfoy leave the Great Hall, Hermione closed her book and followed Malfoy to a turn in a staircase.
Seeing Chen Yu blocked by Malfoy and his two cronies, Hermione quickly jumped out to prevent what was about to happen.
Hermione held her wand, cautiously pointing it at Malfoy: "Malfoy, you'd better leave now, or I'll tell the professors what you're doing today!"
Malfoy looked at Hermione, disdain in his eyes: "Another meddling Mudblood? Haha, it won't matter if you tell the professors, my father is a school governor! Besides, Chen Yu has already agreed to a wizard's duel with me. You've come at a good time; you can be his assistant so no one can say our wizard's duel was unfair."
After speaking, he cast a sidelong glance at Chen Yu: "You're not chickening out, are you, Chen Yu?"