Chapter 157. Rematch
Harry never imagined that the two who would end up on the duelling platform would be Adrian Wesson and Severus Snape.
When the two of them faced each other on the stage, Harry watched them, nerves taut.
He felt that Snape's eyes were even more frightening than when he had faced Lockhart.
It was no longer the contempt he showed Lockhart, but the gaze of a hunter fixing on its prey.
Wesson, on the other hand, remained as unruffled as ever, as if he hadn't felt Snape's oppressive presence at all.
Even so, Harry noticed that although Wesson's expression was relaxed, his eyes never left the wand in Snape's hand.
Wesson tilted his head slightly and said to Lockhart at the side, "Professor Lockhart, could I trouble you to act as referee?"
Lockhart had been off in his own world; hearing Wesson's words finally brought him back. He smiled awkwardly. "Oh, yes, of course, I'd be delighted, Professor Wesson."
Wesson gave a slight nod, his gaze still fixed on Snape.
There was no expression whatsoever on Snape's face; his eyes were cold and severe.
Clearly, he was serious.
Standing in the crowd, Harry clenched his fists, tense.
Naturally he hoped Professor Wesson would win, but Snape was obviously no pushover either.
Even so, he couldn't shake the feeling that Wesson would handle this duel with ease.
When Lockhart stepped forward to serve as referee, Harry couldn't help shouting, "Go, Professor Wesson!"
Hearing this, Wesson inclined his head lightly in Harry's direction.
Harry's confidence returned at once.
His own teacher's abilities were unfathomable; he didn't think his teacher would lose to Snape.
At Lockhart's command, Wesson and Snape moved at the same time.
"Expelliarmus!"
Snape still opened with the Disarming Charm.
This was within Wesson's expectations; after all, this was a demonstration before the students—Snape couldn't use any Dark magic.
In private, Snape would likely open with at least Sectumsempra.
As Snape's wand rose, a blinding red beam shot towards Wesson.
It was much thicker than the one he had used on Lockhart earlier; clearly Snape had been holding back before.
Against Wesson, he had no need to hold back.
He knew that for Wesson, this spell wasn't difficult to deal with.
It was merely a probe.
Sure enough, Wesson lifted his wand and held it suspended in mid-air; a transparent barrier appeared before him and caught the red beam squarely.
Only a few ripples spread across the barrier, like raindrops falling into a lake—no other effect at all.
The students burst into applause. Wesson's effortless poise stood in stark contrast to Lockhart's earlier fluster.
At that moment, Snape's pupils tightened slightly.
Wesson hadn't even spoken an incantation.
In other words, he had cast silently.
To produce a Shield Charm of that strength with silent casting was no simple matter.
Snape had crossed wands with Wesson last year.
Back then, Wesson did not have this level of skill.
At that time, even when Wesson used his wand and spoke the incantation, his Shield Charm had only just managed to deflect Snape's spells.
But this time, the Shield Charm seemed to have absorbed his Disarming Charm outright.
In a single year, this young man's progress was astonishing.
"Good force, Professor Snape," Wesson smiled faintly, lifting his wand to point at Snape. "However,
that alone won't be enough."
Over the past year, his progress had been tremendous—worlds apart from what he had been a year ago.
He had not only gained the Tree of Wisdom's "power amplification" ability, but had also undergone specialised duelling training and even entered duelling competitions.
He had even sought out a wizard from Africa specifically to learn the knack of casting silently and wandlessly.
As the champion of a duelling tournament, he had found the other competitors only too happy to exchange insights with him.
After all, it is through exchange that one improves.
Back to the duel: after Wesson took Snape's spell, Snape did not continue his attack; instead, he stretched out a hand slightly.
The meaning was obvious: Wesson's turn.
Give and take makes a duel more interesting.
Seeing this, Wesson no longer held back. He gave his wand an almost casual flick, and a spell darted out.
This spell did not fly straight; instead, it traced a strange arc to strike Snape from the side.
Because Wesson spoke no incantation and his wand-work was subtle, Snape couldn't immediately judge what magic he had used.
He could only frown and sweep his wand quickly. "Protego!"
Boom!
The spell exploded against the silvery barrier, the violent impact setting Snape's black robes billowing.
It was a Blasting Curse of considerable force.
When the force of the blast had spent itself, those present were startled to find several cracks in the stage beneath Snape's feet.
Clearly, they had been caused by that Blasting Curse just now.
Snape patted the dust from his robes and said in a low voice, "Interesting."
"Kind of you to say so." Wesson smiled faintly.
Their probing thus ended; what followed would be a proper duel.
Wesson suddenly stepped forward, his wand snapping out. "Stupefy!"
This time, he spoke the incantation. But to everyone's surprise, no light flared from the tip of his wand.
Just as the crowd wondered, Snape abruptly dodged to his right. A yellow streak skimmed past his left shoulder and burst against the wall behind him, leaving a shallow crater.
"Pointless trickery," Snape narrowed his eyes. "All show."
Wesson merely smiled.
In truth, this was a new attacking habit Wesson had recently picked up: by delaying the moment a spell took effect, he made it much harder for the opponent to predict.
In other words—the fast–slow blade, a delayed-timing tactic.
Wesson had no intention of giving Snape time to recover.
In a duel, whoever seizes the initiative holds the advantage.
In the instant Snape hesitated, Wesson moved again.
His wand flashed three times; three spells of different colours flew at Snape in quick succession.
Still, all cast silently.
Snape evaded one; the remaining two he had to block with the Shield Charm.
Protego could fend off most spells, but the force behind Wesson's magic drove him back several steps.
His shoes scraped sharply across the boards; his black robes spread behind him like a bat's wings as he retreated.
Wesson had no intention of letting the opportunity slip; his assault rolled on like a relentless tide.
Each spell sealed off a line of escape with precision, forcing Snape to keep withdrawing.
Snape tried a few counter-curses, but Wesson flicked them aside with ease.
From such a scene, anyone could see that Wesson held an undisputed advantage.
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