Chapter 28: The Monster in the Black Lake

So we are following in the footsteps of those great sages?

Wow, my god, that’s so cool!

Excited young wizards chattered incessantly, dispelling the fear brought by the darkness.

Hermione tilted her head proudly and winked at Chu Yang, subtly showing off herself.

To quiet her down, Chu Yang was about to compliment her, when an untimely voice suddenly rang out.

Look! That mudblood from a filthy Muggle family is lecturing real wizards about Hogwarts’ history?!

How utterly ridiculous!

A small boat drifted over from the side, carrying three boys; the two on the sides were tall, much bulkier than Neville.

Between them sat a blond boy, quite handsome, but with a sinister gaze that clearly meant trouble.

The blond boy spoke in a low voice: “Itachi mudbloods, born of lowly Muggle families, have no right to speak of those four great wizards, especially the great Salazar Slytherin.”

“Mind your own business!” Hermione trembled with rage; since entering the wizarding world, nothing angered her more than being told her parents were Muggles.

“How can Itachi say such vile words?”

Quiet and timid Neville, unusually, angrily accused the blond boy.

“What does ‘mudblood’ mean?” Hermione paused, instinctively sensing it was a hateful term.

Neville hesitated, then whispered a few words into Hermione’s ear; instantly, her face turned pale, her eyes reddening.

Chu Yang narrowed his eyes, coldly staring at the blond boy. In this group of newcomers, only one person could speak such cruel words—Draco Malfoy!

Ordinary young wizards might not know the details of Hogwarts’ new students, but Draco Malfoy was different.

His family was one of the most renowned in Hogwarts’ history, and his father, Lucius Malfoy, was one of the school’s governors; obtaining the new student list in advance and cultivating connections with influential wizarding families was standard practice for the Malfoys.

When Lucius Malfoy saw two Muggle-born newcomers on the list, he flew into a furious rage in front of Draco Malfoy.

Every member of the Malfoy family had graduated from Slytherin House, and they revered Salazar Slytherin’s pure-blood ideology above all else.

They believed only pure-blood wizards deserved to learn and use magic.

Chu Yang found this absurd.

According to their logic, the very first wizard to discover and use magic had no right to use magic at all.

Because his parents were Muggles…

Without the first Muggle-born wizards to pioneer magic, exchange knowledge, and blend traditions, where would wizarding families have come from?

This is not the same as the chicken-or-egg paradox.

Muggle-born wizards and pure-blood families—the former came first, without question.

Rebuffed fiercely by Hermione, Malfoy could no longer contain his rage, hurling one vile insult after another.

“Is this the etiquette of pure-blood wizards? Insulting others with foul language at the slightest disagreement?” Chu Yang sneered. “I’ve only heard such behavior from London street thugs—your upbringing is deplorable.”

Draco Malfoy’s face flushed crimson; he leapt to his feet, roaring: “I only show courtesy to wizards—Itachi filthy—”

Before he could finish, the boat lurched violently; he nearly tumbled overboard, saved only when Goyle grabbed him in time.

At that moment, gnarled tree roots were erupting from the lakebed.

Under the moonlight, branches rising from the water slowly coiled around Malfoy’s boat, slowing it down until it came to a complete stop, then began shaking violently.

“Damn it! What the hell is going on? Wasn’t this lake supposed to be completely safe?!” Malfoy clung desperately to the boat’s edge, screaming hysterically, terrified out of his wits.

The vines wrapped tighter and wider; in an instant, the three boys lost all footing.

Hagrid, at the front, finally noticed the commotion behind him, eyes wide: “My god, what the hell is that?!”

The black lake surface appeared hazy under the moonlight.

To Hagrid, the vines and branches on the boat looked more like the tentacles of some monstrous creature, shaking the boat violently, trying to drag Malfoy and the others into the water.

“Damn it! What do I do? I didn’t bring my wand!” Hagrid panicked—he hadn’t brought his “umbrella” wand today, since he was only ferrying students, and it seemed unnecessary.

But now, facing an emergency right before him, he had no solution.

Just as Hagrid regretted not bringing his wand, Malfoy and the other two finally lost their grip and tumbled into the water like dumplings.

Glug~ Glug~ Glug~

Malfoy desperately tried to grab the boat, but his feet were snared by underwater vines and yanked down hard.

Glurp~ Glurp~ Glurp~

Malfoy bobbed up and down like tripe in a hot pot; every time he tried to scream for help, water flooded his mouth.

Compared to Malfoy, his two companions, Goyle and Crabbe, fared much better—though they also fell in, they quickly scrambled back onto the boat.

Strangely, once Malfoy went under, the boat stopped shaking.

Aside from being soaked, they suffered no injuries.

Goyle and Crabbe simultaneously realized—the lake’s “monster” was targeting Malfoy alone!

Thinking this, Goyle and Crabbe instinctively turned to look at Chu Yang and Hermione, who had just clashed with Malfoy.

They met Chu Yang’s icy gaze head-on.

Both shuddered, immediately lowering their heads, afraid to look a second time.

Terrified of being eaten by the “monster,” Malfoy burst into tears: “Help me! Someone, please help me! I don’t want to be eaten! Anyone, please!”

“Goyle! Crabbe!”

Desperate, Malfoy screamed for his companions.

Goyle instinctively moved toward Malfoy, bending over the boat’s edge, ready to pull him up.

The boat lurched violently again; Goyle cried out and fell back into the water!

Crabbe, terrified, scrambled away from Malfoy, feigning indifference—and narrowly escaped.

He was certain now: the “monster” was targeting Malfoy alone.

After Goyle climbed back onto the boat for the second time, having learned his lesson, he too began imitating Crabbe, pretending not to hear Malfoy’s cries for help.

Poor Malfoy had swallowed so much water he was nearly full…

At first, Hermione felt immense satisfaction seeing Malfoy fall in; it felt like all her anger had been purged.

But gradually, she began to worry he might be in real danger—after all, she was only an eleven-year-old girl, innocent and kind-hearted.

Hermione anxiously asked: “Why aren’t his friends saving him? They’re both so strong—either one could easily pull him aboard.”

Chu Yang glanced at her in surprise. “He just insulted Itachi so viciously, and Itachi’re worried about him? Has your anger faded so quickly?”

“Of course I’m angry!” Hermione said matter-of-factly. “But I won’t hate a dead man. As long as he’s alive, I’ll have a chance to get revenge.”

Chu Yang wiped sweat from his brow. The old saying was true: the prettier the girl, the more vengeful—never provoke one lightly.

(End of Chapter)