"First, the team formation method—"
Watching the gradually calming first-years, Ares said pleasantly.
"Given that this is an 'Open Class' and it's your first time playing this game, we need an 'Exhibition Match'. So, we won't form teams by house; you can team up freely.
There will be two teams competing, with 8 people per team. You can decide among yourselves who will be the captain."
With first-years from all four houses gathered here, there were certainly more than 16 people, which meant many didn't have to participate—this relieved some of the timid children.
"Next are the rules of confrontation—"
Professor Delfino cleared his throat and continued:
"Rule 1: Once the match is announced to begin, the two competing teams will appear at the two farthest diagonal corners of this generally rectangular Mist Valley, which I call 'Respawn Points'.
As you can see, there are three paths connecting the two Respawn Points, which I call 'Top Lane', 'Middle Lane', and 'Bottom Lane'. All members of both teams can freely choose any of the three paths to approach the opponent and perform 'Kills'. Each successful kill of an opposing member scores 1 point. Killing the opposing captain scores 20 points and ends the match immediately.
After the match ends, the team with the higher score wins.
Each match has a time limit of 15 minutes. If time runs out and both captains are still alive, and the number of kills is equal, the match is a draw.
In future formal classes, if a team wins, they can earn 20 points for their house, while the loser will have 10 points deducted."
20 points?!
Many young wizards' eyes sparkled with temptation!
They were just first-year wizards; there weren't many opportunities to earn 20 points for their house in one go! Moreover, deducting 10 points from the opponent created a 30-point difference in one swing!
The point difference from one match could almost sway the destination of the House Cup!
However, what the young wizards were more concerned about was—
"Kill?!"
Neville cried out in a trembling voice.
"It's just a term, Mr. Longbottom. I'm certainly not asking you to kill each other—"
Professor Delfino smiled.
"Listen to me... Rule 2: At any location in Mist Valley, members who are 'killed' will be automatically transported back to their respective 'Respawn Points' and forcibly petrified for 30 seconds, during which they cannot rejoin the competition.
Hmm, attacks on petrified young wizards are forbidden... attacks have no effect on petrified wizards."
Harry licked his dry lips, staring at the eloquent Professor Delfino with burning eyes, his breathing gradually quickening.
It sounded... indeed like a very interesting game!
But he still had two doubts waiting to be explained... and they were!
"Rule 3—"
Professor Delfino raised his voice, suppressing the restless young wizards.
"Considering everyone's limited physical strength and other circumstances, during the match, you will be granted three 'Items'. The first is: Flying Broomsticks!"
Snap!
Professor Delfino snapped his fingers, and 16 tattered flying broomsticks appeared above the young wizards' heads!
"Shooting Stars!"
Harry heard Ron say beside him, clicking his tongue in dissatisfaction.
"I have one at home too... at full speed, it's probably a bit faster than a butterfly!"
"For safety reasons, the flight altitude of these broomsticks will not exceed thirty feet."
Professor Delfino added.
"The second item is: Luminous Cloaks!"
Then, sixteen cloaks appeared... Harry thought these cloaks looked quite cool. Half emitted a faint crimson glow, and the other half glowed blue... extremely conspicuous in the misty valley.
"—The cloaks serve two purposes. First, in poor visibility conditions, the cloak allows you to confirm where your teammates and opponents are... Oh, the captains of the two teams also need to wear red and blue crowns respectively.
So... oh, the second function of the cloak is to calculate damage... you'll understand this in a moment. Let me continue—"
Two crowns appeared above the cloaks. They looked like tall hats. Harry thought that once worn, they would definitely be recognizable from a long distance.
"The third item is a special wand."
Professor Delfino spoke faster.
A strange-looking wand appeared.
It had a handle like a medieval knight's sword, and at a convenient position, four small round buttons were set: red, yellow, blue, and silver-green.
Many young wizards guessed that these corresponded to the colors of the four house crests.
"Red can fire red beams, representing damage... Oh, it's just symbolic; getting hit won't actually have any effect.
During the match, the red button can be used infinitely, but with a one-second interval. If a team member is hit by the red beam 5 times, it means death, and the cloak will petrify them and transport them to the 'Respawn Point'. If a captain is hit 10 times, it also means death, and the match ends."
"Then what about the other three buttons, Professor Delfino!"
Judging by the sharp tone of Ernie Macmillan from Hufflepuff, one could see how interested he was in this game. Even Neville, Harry noticed, had a flushed face.
After all, this wasn't real combat, and it was extremely fun!
"The other three buttons represent 'Status Buffs', with different effects.
Yellow Button: Fires yellow light that can form a yellow field. Opponents caught in this circle will have their movement speed slowed by 50%. The field lasts for 10 seconds.
Silver-Green Button: This button represents speed. When pressed, it increases the user's broomstick speed by 100%. The status lasts for 10 seconds.
Blue Button: Fires blue light that can petrify opponents. The petrification lasts for 10 seconds.
These three buttons might be given different effects in subsequent matches. They can only be used twice per life, and the usage count resets after death.
And initially, they are all 'Inactive'."
"What do you mean inactive, Professor Delfino?"
Ron couldn't help but shout out.
"After the match starts, on the three paths, at locations close to both sides' Respawn Points, I will place a Nogtail on each path... marked by yellow, blue, and green glowing flags—"
Professor Delfino said with a beaming smile.
"If you want to activate the buttons' effects, you need to use your own wands and the spells you mastered in the first half of the class to defeat the Nogtail. Then, you can activate the corresponding color button.
Furthermore, as long as one person defeats a Nogtail, the corresponding button will be activated for the whole team, and that Nogtail will disappear!"
Needless to say, the effects of these three buttons were crucial for winning the match. Moreover, judging from the rules, it was almost impossible for one team to activate all three buttons... at most, probably two!
Harry's last doubt was resolved—the game content was linked to the teaching!
"The rules of the 'Protect the Captain' game are just like this—"
Watching the young wizards' faces light up with great interest and excitement, Ares said smilingly.
"Team up, everyone... Oh, a friendly reminder: for students who have never used a flying broomstick, I suggest you wait and see first."