"During the summer vacation, I thought a lot."
Ethan paced slowly before the gate. Above him, the shadows of the portcullis spikes shifted across his pale face, lending him a dangerous, ominous air.
The crowd fell quiet without being told. Students swallowed nervously, watching Ethan with a mix of tension, unease, and that flicker of excitement that comes right before disaster.
"Although many of the castle's settings were modified under the professors' supervision last term," Ethan said calmly, "I kept asking myself: should I really use an incomplete, defective painting for everyone? Would a simple assessment truly satisfy you?"
Everyone: "..."
No.
A simple assessment would be perfect.
"Ethan definitely has some kind of obsessive-compulsive disorder," Ron muttered.
Hermione shot him a glare, then gazed at Ethan with reverence. She swore silently: For this assessment, I memorised at least a dozen magic books. At the very least, I must be better than Luna Lovegood, who is always with Ethan.
Small flames of resolve ignited in her eyes.
On the steps, Ethan stopped. He turned sharply and declared, "No. Of course not. I cannot allow myself to fall so low. So, after a week of work, I made a few small changes to Sen Castle."
He smiled. Under the spiked shadows, that smile stretched like ink.
"I have changed the castle adventure to unlimited chase and escape mode."
Everyone: "???"
Unlimited. Chase. Escape.
Any one of those words alone was a bad omen. Together? Horrific!
We agreed on an adventure game. What is this unlimited escape?
Gobstone Club president Wallace went cold. Where are the professors? Is no one going to stop this?
He looked at Professor Lockhart standing off to the side. Lockhart was as quiet as a mouse, as if trying to melt into the shadows.
Wallace: "..."
A professor afraid of a student. Backwards. Completely backwards.
No, the plan has changed. If I stay here, I might actually die.
He tried to slip away. No one noticed. He breathed a soft sigh of relief, turned, and bumped into a fluffy wall.
So... hot.
He jumped back and looked up, right into six enormous orange-yellow eyes like lanterns.
Black mist spread, blotting out the stars. Within it, a three-headed giant dog stepped forward, a living thunderhead. The mist arched over the group and led all the way down into Ethan's hand.
"Oh, the starting point is here. You're going the wrong way," Ethan said gently to the fallen Wallace. "This is the monster that will be chasing everyone from behind. My Hell Cerberus."
Silence. Ethan added, a little shyly, "I have always believed that only in desperate situations can you unleash hidden potential. So I will do my best to make it immersive and let you experience that feeling."
He snapped his fingers. "First group, forward."
After several heartbeats, under the Cerberus's looming presence, the first group shuffled forward like mourners. Cedric and Hermione were among them. Cedric was doing warm-up squats and stretches, hot steam rising from his clothes, the heat alone forcing others to give him space.
The Cerberus waited, restless. Ethan lifted his hand. "First group, begin."
"ROAR!"
With a thunderous bellow, the Cerberus blitzed the gate like a storm. The first group fired off like arrows from a bowstring.
One exception. Cedric Diggory.
Instead of running, he turned to face the monster.
Everyone froze. What was he doing?
He locked eyes with the oncoming beast and shouted, "Is this the monster you used to eliminate the others in last year's challenge, Ethan? Come on! Let me slay it myself and clear my shame. Ethan, please witness!"
His wand flashed into a gleaming greatsword.
"Oh," Ethan murmured, eyes brightening. A melee mage. That was familiar.
"Hyah!" Cedric yelled, charging with his sword raised high.
For one breath, he was a dragon-slaying hero.
The next instant, he slid directly into the middle head's mouth.
Cerberus: "Gag."
Everyone: "..."
So lame. Over in an instant.
Justin cried out, "Senior, what a tragic death!"
Everyone else thought, He is not dead.
At Ethan's command, the Cerberus reluctantly spat Cedric out. He collapsed on the stone, surrounded by panicking underclassmen, then raised a shaking finger to scratch wobbly letters on the ground.
"I... am... not... satisfied..."
His head lolled to the side. Completely unconscious.
Justin: "No!"
Ethan flattened his expression. Who would have thought this honest-looking boy would be such a drama king? Still... a melee mage, huh? With training, he might be full of surprises.
Thanks to Cedric's valiant sacrifice, the group gained almost two minutes.
"It... it does not seem that hard!" Ron said between breaths, grinning.
"Watch out," Harry shouted.
A huge pendulum swung from the side. Bang. It smashed Ron off his feet and flung him into the abyss beyond the walkway.
Harry: "No!"
There was no time to mourn. A line of pendulums began sweeping the corridor, and Harry barely ducked the next one. Ethan evidently judged anyone lasting two minutes as "strong" because the traps escalated sharply. The corridor's turns and drops now came paired with the castle's original hazards.
Whoosh, whoosh!
Archers appeared in the wall slits and fired. The tips were blunt, but the suction cups were laced with Petrification. Anyone struck hit the floor with a heavy thud.
"Ah!" Harry twisted hard and dodged an arrow by a hair. A Ravenclaw beside him took one square in the chest and crumpled.
That was close. Good thing I perfected dodging on Dudley, he thought grimly.
Then the arrow storm came. There was nowhere to hide.
"Rep... Repulso!" Harry blurted, slashing his wand.
He immediately regretted it. He had never successfully cast this one. Either nothing happened, or it nudged things an inch.
He squeezed his eyes shut as the arrows closed in.
A windstorm punched the hall. It shoved the arrows back, rattling the walls like a giant's slap.
It worked.
Harry stared at his wand, a grin breaking through the sweat. Ethan's training method really was effective. Of course it was. No other professor would push them like this. Only Ethan, without mercy.
Before he could savour it, a roar rattled the stone behind him.
"Diffindo!" Hermione snapped, turning on instinct. With a glance and a flick, she blew apart a statue and dropped it across the corridor. The rubble crashed into a blockade that stalled the Cerberus.
Until today, Hermione had never known she could hit that cleanly.
"Ten seconds left. Hold on!" she panted to Harry.
Only the two of them remained. The stamina potions along the way had saved them. Without them, she would have fallen miles back.
The longer she ran, the more she realized how brilliant Ethan's design was. Even outside the wizarding world, in Muggle gaming, this would be a hit. Able to shine anywhere... truly worthy of Ethan.
Hermione's admiration burned hotter. She wanted to study and improve with him. Even if she couldn't stand at his level, she would pursue him with everything she had.
Ten seconds. Nine. She threw obstacles behind her without looking.
So what if I'm Muggle-born? I'm still better than all the pure-bloods.
Eight. Seven. Six.
"I have to pass this assessment and join Ethan's club!"
Five. Four.
Hermione fixed her eyes ahead and kept casting, her voice hoarse. "I must work with Ethan to build Hogwarts' great talent training programme!"
Then…
BOOM!
A violent surge hit from behind. It wiped Hermione off her feet and slammed her into the stone.