Chapter 160 Despicable tactics, this is called shrewdness
On Saturday, the first Quidditch match of the season arrived as scheduled.
Before eleven o'clock, all the teachers and students had successively rushed to the Quidditch Pitch and gathered on the stands.
Inside the Slytherin changing room, Marcus, with six team members, changed into their green robes, ready for action.
"This is our first time using a brand-new tactic, but I have enough confidence, and everyone has witnessed the effectiveness of these two months of training," Marcus said seriously, looking at the team members lined up. "Look at the Nimbus 2001s in your hands, the latest model, with an absolute speed advantage.
We must win this match, no matter what, because none of us can afford the consequences of losing."
"Next, please welcome the best Seeker in Slytherin history to speak."
As his voice fell, everyone looked towards the door, and Aaron, with a dark expression, pushed aside the green curtain and walked in.
"You had the Prefect call me over just for this?"
"Boosting morale is necessary," Marcus said earnestly. "I'm sure Wood is doing the same thing right now."
"The problem is I still have something to do, something very important, extremely important."
A few days ago, when Aaron was checking that book, he discovered that it recorded the Basilisk's weakness: the crow of a rooster.
This discovery made him ecstatic, feeling like a light at the end of the tunnel.
But he didn't dare to show it, only wanting to stealthily steal—no, borrow—one or two roosters Hagrid raised for protection.
After all, the enemy is hidden while he is exposed. If he accidentally revealed himself, the Heir of Slytherin would know he had discovered the monster's identity, which would not be a good thing.
However, he usually found it difficult to find an opportunity to act. Hagrid, the Keeper of Keys and Grounds, was unusually diligent.
He finally waited until the day of the Quidditch match. Most of the students and teachers were not in the Castle, and Hagrid had also left his hut to watch the match live.
This was a rare opportunity; everything was essentially undefended.
Grab two roosters, lock them in the dormitory, and no one would be the wiser.
As for whether Hagrid would suspect anything? There were plenty of creatures in the Forbidden Forest; it was normal for one or two hungry ones to occasionally run out.
But just as he was about to act, Prefect Neller personally came and invited him here to cheer on the Slytherin team.
Such a great opportunity was missed, and he had nowhere to complain, so his mood was naturally not good.
"Today's Quidditch match is Slytherin's top priority.
I swallowed my pride and asked Neller to invite you; you surely wouldn't refuse a Prefect's request."
Aaron gave a forced smile and a thumbs-up to Marcus, "You're clever."
"Thank you for the compliment," Marcus said, clearly pleased.
Aaron's gaze swept over the Slytherin team members. "I won't say much about encouragement; I'm sure you've heard plenty.
I prefer to be practical. As long as you all win this match, I will personally contribute one hundred Galleons as a reward."
As his voice fell, the Slytherin team, including Marcus, was excited, even Draco, who was not short on money, was the same.
To be honest, they had drunk a lot of spiritual chicken soup these days and were long immune to it.
They all didn't want to lose this match, but besides honor, having some tangible benefits was also a huge motivation.
"Are you serious?" asked the Chaser.
"You know me, senior; I keep my word," Aaron said meaningfully. "However, I certainly can't produce it now. After we win, I will give it to Draco, and he will distribute it to you."
"You all heard that. Now we have one more reason not to lose," Marcus said. "Prepare to go on the field."
Watching the seven team members stand at the entrance of the Quidditch Pitch, Aaron hesitated for a moment and called out to Draco, "Originally, I didn't want to come, but since I'm here, I have to remind you."
"Tell me."
"I know you don't like Harry Potter, but this is a team match, so... don't let your personal emotions get involved."
Draco nodded, "Don't worry, I'm well prepared mentally; I won't mess up."
"That's good.
Also, don't be too nervous. Protecting yourself is also an important job for a Seeker." Aaron said, glancing at the crowded Quidditch Pitch and noticing the particularly conspicuous Giant Hagrid among them, his mind stirred.
The plan should proceed as usual! This match is a war of attrition, so there should still be plenty of time.
The large doors slowly opened, sunlight shone on everyone's faces, followed by deafening cheers.
The fourteen players from Gryffindor and Slytherinsimultaneously mounted their brooms and flew into the sky above the Quidditch Pitch.
The two captains' gazes collided, as if sparks exploded in mid-air, and the atmosphere suddenly became much more serious.
The other team members also glared at each other, no one willing to concede.
With a whistle, the bludgers, quaffle, and Golden Snitch all shot out of their boxes.
The twelve players moved swiftly, searching for the quafflethat could score.
Harry and Draco did not participate, but instead flew to a higher position, searching for the Golden Snitch, which was appearing and disappearing in the Quidditch Pitch.
Harry cautiously looked around, but within two minutes, he noticed something was wrong.
Draco opposite him had no intention of looking for the Golden Snitch, but instead stared at him with a wary expression, making him feel a chill down his spine.
"What are you looking at me for?"
"Nothing. I'm just looking for the Golden Snitch."
"Do you think I believe that?"
Draco shrugged, "Whether you believe it or not, it has nothing to do with me."
Ding-dong!
The sound of a gong rang out.
Just as the two were confronting each other, Slytherin scored a goal, earning ten points.
"That fast?" Harry looked at the referee's stand, somewhat incredulous.
"Tsk tsk tsk!" Draco clicked his tongue. "This is the advantage of equipment. Gryffindor simply can't keep up with Slytherin's speed.
Our original plan was to score a goal every three minutes. Now it seems it's barely satisfactory."
"You..." Harry was about to say something when a swift gust of wind brushed past his ear.
He instinctively ducked, and a bludger flew past his head.
"Be careful, Potter. Winning too easily isn't fun."
Harry glared at him fiercely and simply stopped looking for the target in his original spot, immediately controlling his broom to fly in the opposite direction.
But soon, Draco appeared beside him.
"Do you want me to let you win?"
"It's not that easy for a Nimbus 2001 to keep up with a Nimbus 2000; I still have to control my speed reduction."
Harry gritted his teeth, not replying, just constantly accelerating.
But no matter how he flew, there was always a green shadow beside him.
Even after flying several laps around the Quidditch Pitch, Draco remained like a persistent leech, impossible to shake off.
"That's enough," Harry suppressed the anger in his mindand stopped in mid-air. "Why are you following me instead of looking for the Golden Snitch?"
Draco raised an eyebrow, "Who said I wasn't looking for the Golden Snitch? But by sheer coincidence, we're looking in the same direction."
Harry directly chose to ignore this shameless explanation and continued to search for the Golden Snitch in the Quidditch Pitch on his own.
As for Draco, as long as he didn't attack him, he could follow him!
Hard work pays off. Harry discovered the Golden Snitchbehind Draco in the Quidditch Pitch and immediately changed direction and rushed towards it.
At the same time, Draco also heard the sound of high-speed vibrating wings behind him and immediately understood the location of the Golden Snitch.
But remembering the Slytherin team's tactics, he still suppressed the urge to catch it and didn't even turn his head. A second before Harry flew past, he moved sideways and successfully blocked him.
After the black broom head disappeared from Harry's sight, the Golden Snitch also vanished.
At this moment, the sound of the gong rang again, and Marcus threw the quaffle into Gryffindor's goal.
"Slytherin scores again, seventy to ten, Gryffindor is falling behind," commentator Jordan pressed the scoreboard joyfully.
Hearing this, Harry couldn't help but look back at the referee's stand. The score hit his chest like a hammer.
It didn't hurt much, but his mind felt particularly heavy.
Only twenty-odd minutes had passed, and there was already a sixty-point difference, which usually only happened when they were short of players.
Now the pressure on him, the Seeker, was even greater. If he couldn't catch the Golden Snitch before the score difference reached one hundred and fifty points, then Gryffindorwould definitely lose this match.
Suddenly, a flash of light crossed Harry's mind, and looking at the smiling Draco, a surge of anger rose within him.
"Is this your tactic?"
"Did you figure it out?" Draco was a little surprised. "But it doesn't matter; even if you know our tactic, it's meaningless."
"What a despicable tactic."
"Saying that is somewhat insulting," Draco said thick-skinned. "I'd even accept it if you called it cunning, but personally, I think it's clever."
Harry didn't want to argue with him and no longer paid attention to the Golden Snitch, simply changing direction and flying towards Wood.
Draco smiled slightly and chased after him.
However, just in case, he called Flint midway; he didn't think he could take on two people alone.
"What are you doing here? The Golden Snitch is your task," Wood said angrily. Just now, Slytherin had scored another goal.
"Wood, I've made a major discovery. Slytherin's tactic is..." Harry was halfway through his sentence when a bludgercrashed towards him, and he had to dodge sideways.
"Their tactic is to have Malfoy drag me, the Seeker, while the others use their speed advantage to win by the final score."