Rove's face changed instantly. In his System vision, the pixies transformed into a swarm of miniature demons with dark skin, sharp fangs, and bat wings! They clutched daggers and satchel charges, frantically ramming against the cage bars.
"Damn it!" Rove shot to his feet, his knee knocking the desk with a jolt. "Lockhart actually brought these things into a classroom! This is like letting Orcs into Helm's Deep! All units, prepare for close-quarters combat!"
"Right then, let's see what you make of them!" Lockhart, completely oblivious to the danger, simply opened the cage door.
Chaos erupted instantly.
These pixies shot out like rockets. They split into groups; two grabbed Neville by the ears and hoisted him into the air, hanging him from the iron chandelier on the ceiling. Others began tearing up books, smashing ink bottles, and even trying to dismantle the classroom window frames.
"Round them up, round them up!" Lockhart shouted, rolling up his sleeves. "Peskipiksi Pesternomi!"
Absolutely useless. The spell was like tickling the pixies. One pixie seized the opportunity to snatch his wand and toss it out the window. Lockhart gasped, and in this critical moment, he did something that stunned everyone—he dove under his desk, then took advantage of the confusion to slip back into his office, slamming the door shut with a bang.
"He ran! The coward!" Ron shouted, a pixie biting his ear. "Is this his 'adventuring experience'? That's not how he wrote it in his books!"
"Don't panic! Let me try!" Hermione raised her wand, trying to control the situation with a spell. "Immobu—ouch!" A pixie smashed hard onto her wrist, sending her wand flying.
"Forget the useless stick! No need for fancy tricks now!"
A roar drowned out all the noise.
Rove leaped onto his desk, raising his copy of Voyages with Vampires high. The hardcover book was a solid three inches thick.
[Equipment Switch: Knowledge Keeper's Heavy Warhammer (Rare)]
[Attack Mode: Fly Swatter / Paladin's Retribution]
A pixie screamed as it dove toward Rove, brandishing an ink bottle.
"Get down, demon!"
WHAM!
Rove swung the thick book like a fly swatter, smashing the pixie against the wall. The pixie slid down, seeing stars, flattened into a sticker.
Immediately after, Rove performed a tactical roll on the table, dodging a pincer attack from two pixies. He backhanded the one on the left with the book, sending it flying, then smashed the spine heavily onto the head of the one on the right.
His movements were fluid, relying only on pure strength and speed.
"Harry! Protect Hermione! Ron, use your book! Don't wave your hands like a girl!" Rove roared, directing the battlefield. "Fight them like they're gnomes!"
He saw Neville still swinging from the chandelier, with three "Goblin Sappers" sawing at the chain, seemingly intent on causing an aviation disaster.
"Hold on, Warrior Longbottom! The cavalry is here!"
Rove casually grabbed the leg of a pixie flying past him.
[Skill Activated: Meteor Hammer Whirlwind]
He used the screeching pixie as a flail, swinging it with a whoosh of wind, and hurled it forcefully at the chandelier.
Smack! Smack!
The weaponized pixie collided with its three accomplices on the chandelier, and all four pixies fell down in a heap. Neville then wobbled and fell back onto a desk; although it was a hard fall, it was mostly superficial injuries.
"This is Gondorian tactics!" Rove stood on the high ground of the desk, surrounded by a circle of dizzy pixies. He raised the now slightly deformed Voyages with Vampires, his robes flapping.
"Go back to your abyss! This is not Moria! Hogwarts does not welcome you!"
The remaining pixies seemed terrified by this primitive violence. They had seen all kinds of spells in the wizarding world, but never someone using a book as a brick to smack people, and with such accuracy and ruthlessness. It was more savage than a troll!
Rove took the opportunity to jump off the table, waving the big book like herding sheep, driving the remaining pixies one by one back into the cage. Anyone who dared to resist received an immediate "Heavy Blow of Knowledge."
Three minutes later.
Click.
Rove locked the cage door, placed a heavy oak chair on top of it, and dusted off his hands.
Deathly silence filled the classroom.
The whole class poked their heads out from under their desks, staring dumbfounded at Rove. Neville was still rubbing his ears, Hermione's wand was still on the floor, Ron's mouth was wide open, and even the Slytherin students forgot to mock, staring in shock at this Hufflepuff "barbarian."
A few pixies lay twitching on the floor, while the others huddled shivering in the cage, not daring to make that annoying screaming noise anymore.
"That..." Hermione stammered, picking up her wand. "That was certainly... effective. Though not very magical."
"Against creatures with no honor, magic is unnecessary." Rove coldly picked up his book, stroking the dent on its cracked cover with heartache. "A firm will and a handy weapon are enough. Sometimes, the laws of physics are more reliable than magic."
He turned to look at the closed office door behind the podium, a trace of contempt flashing in his eyes.
"As for that Wormtongue... looks like we don't need to harbor any illusions about him. He can't even handle a group of scouts, and we expect him to fight the Dark Lord?"
[Mission Settlement: First Battle of Defense Against the Dark Arts]
[Defeated Targets: Moria Goblin Sappers x 20]
[Evaluation: You demonstrated the Ranger's art of melee combat, showing wizards the heavy weight of physical laws. Although you acted like a berserker, it was super effective.]
[Reward: Agility +1, Strength +0.5]
[Achievement Unlocked: [Pixie Slayer] (Deterrence against creatures smaller than 1 foot +10%)]
Rove felt a warm current flow through his body (the sensation of increased Agility) and nodded with satisfaction. Although he hadn't learned any defensive spells, this class at least provided a good practical drill and confirmed Lockhart's true skill level.
He glanced at the Slytherin students again, deliberately raising his voice.
"Also, if anyone thinks about telling Snape what happened today, I don't mind giving him a lesson in 'Physical Defense' too."
Draco Malfoy shrank his neck, not daring to speak.
Rove strode out of the classroom, leaving everyone with a dashing view of his back.