[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-wizard-war-at-hogwarts":3,"chapter-wizard-war-at-hogwarts-wizard-war-at-hogwarts-chapter-124":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Wizard War at Hogwarts",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2358097,4612,"Chapter 124: Beyond the Match","wizard-war-at-hogwarts-chapter-124",124,"\u003Cp>Amid the roaring applause, players took their positions; Harry noticed that Ravenclaw’s new Seeker was a girl, looking vaguely familiar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s Marietta, the new Seeker,” Fred reminded him. “Handle her, Harry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I understand.” Harry gripped the handle of his Firebolt tightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wood shook hands with their captain, Dave, and Harry kicked off, soaring into the sky; the Firebolt’s exceptional acceleration shot him to a high altitude instantly. He focused intently on searching for the Golden Snitch, occasionally shifting his attention to survey the field.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, Marietta followed suit, hesitant to approach Harry but unwilling to let him dominate, staying about twenty feet behind him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many rookie Seekers make this mistake—thinking they can control the game by avoiding direct confrontation. Harry decided to teach her a lesson.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Harry dove sharply downward; Marietta had no choice but to follow. He flew nearly full speed toward the ground, and though Marietta seemed to hesitate, her altitude slowly decreased—she intended to stay close without falling too far behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Using the Firebolt’s upgraded braking system, Harry barely began to pull up as his feet nearly touched the ground, dragging Marietta to an extreme position—so low that the Firebolt’s sweeping Qixing  performance nearly sent him crashing into the earth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Marietta frantically pulled up, but at that moment Harry surged sideways toward her, nearly knocking her off her broom. As she panicked, trying to turn, Harry shot past her head—the sudden acceleration of the Firebolt sent a gust of wind that nearly blew her off again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I spotted the Snitch!” Harry taunted as he passed her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even after being outmaneuvered, Marietta gritted her teeth and kept chasing—she didn’t want to look like a fool.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Beater from Ravenclaw sent a Bludger to support her, but Harry effortlessly dodged it; instead, Marietta nearly panicked, jerking sharply to avoid it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Harry so effortlessly suppress the opposing Seeker, Fred and George could focus more on offense; soon, Gryffindor tore through Ravenclaw’s defense, scoring nearly eighty points.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By this point in the match, Marietta was mentally broken—she now dared not approach Harry at all, content merely to watch from afar and interfere when he searched for the Snitch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Harry had no rush to catch the Snitch; Gryffindor held a commanding lead, and if they could extend their advantage on the field, it would be decisive for the final. If they scored a three-hundred-point lead, Slytherin’s chances in the final would approach zero.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Harry leisurely tracked the Snitch, occasionally pressuring Marietta’s position. Victory was already within reach—now they only needed to maximize their strategic point advantage beyond the match itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he suddenly felt the air grow colder. Harry noticed over a dozen Dementors approaching the pitch; one had even reached the stands. That meant Black had entered the school. Harry thought—Professor Lupin and Professor Dobby could easily capture him: one a trained Auror, the other a wizard who knew Black intimately, aided by the Marauder’s Map. Black was trapped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Harry confidently reached into his robe to cast the Patronus Charm and drive away the intruding Dementors, someone acted before him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Expecto Patronum!” Neville raised his wand with one hand resting on his waist; thick white mist erupted from its tip, and a silver-white lion began sprinting around the pitch, driving the unwelcome intruders from the field.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No wonder Neville told me not to worry that day,” Harry thought, touched—he knew Neville had always been uninterested in Quidditch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...We can see Ravenclaw stabilizing their position, trying to claw back points—they’ve just scored a goal...” Lee Jordan’s voice reached Harry’s ears, pulling his focus back to the match.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the Beaters no longer had to babysit the Seeker, Ravenclaw’s offense wasn’t weak—at least not so feeble that Gryffindor could easily score eighty points as they had at the start.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Harry continued tracking the Snitch while diverting some attention to Lee’s commentary for updates on the field.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...Alright, both teams have Lakai  distance again; Gryffindor is preparing their next offensive push. Speaking of Gryffindor, we must mention the Firebolt Harry rides—according to the latest reports, the English national team for the Quidditch World Cup is also planning to use the Firebolt as their official broom...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Harry had intended to listen to the match updates, but Jordan spent a full five minutes—no game coverage at all—just relentless Firebolt advertising.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Snitch!” Wood shouted. “Snitch!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Harry understood—he gave a light burst of speed and seized the Snitch he’d been watching closely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With Madam Hooch’s whistle, the match ended: final score 230 to 30. Wood said the team’s composure had slipped—they could no longer expand their lead on the field.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good thing you caught the Snitch in time,” he said, clapping Harry on the shoulder. “We nearly got overturned.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah, I feel like those first eighty points came too easily,” Fred scratched his head. “We got a little cocky.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I almost forgot how to play proper defense,” Alicia said, embarrassed. “I was practically sleepwalking.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“True—if Harry hadn’t caught the Snitch, I was considering calling a timeout,” Wood said. “We can always count on Harry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Regardless, we won. Let’s celebrate,” George said cheerfully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We’ve got to invite Neville—he chased off the Dementors. That mattered too.” As Harry spoke, “Look—he’s coming.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Harry,” Neville’s expression was grim—not at all like someone who’d just won a match. “I think Zhang Qiu might be in trouble.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Remember that Dementor in the stands?” Neville whispered close to Harry’s ear. “It was her in disguise.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You all go ahead and start the party. I’ll talk to Neville for a bit and join you,” Harry said, not wanting to dampen the team’s spirits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under Wood’s lead, the Quidditch players filed off the pitch one by one. Harry scanned the field—Zhang Qiu was nowhere to be seen. He and Neville sat down nearby on the stands, and Harry whispered, “Are you sure? Zhang Qiu disguised herself as a Dementor on the stands?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes. Honestly, I think she might...” Neville hesitated. “Her thoughts are a bit strange.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“By the way, you’ve been acting strange this term too,” Harry said. “Do you know something?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Neville opened his mouth, Lee Jordan approached and interrupted: “Oh, Harry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll explain later,” Neville blinked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, Jordan,” Harry smiled. “Your commentary was brilliant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Come on—who’d want to listen to five minutes of Firebolt ads?” He shook his head. “That’s exactly what I wanted to tell you—Zhang Qiu is your friend, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What do you mean?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“She broke into the broadcast booth and pointed her wand at me,” Jordan complained. “She ordered me to advertise the Firebolt until Professor McGonagall told me to stop.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But Professor McGonagall didn’t come to the match today,” Harry said, puzzled—he knew she’d joined the hunt for Black.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah, it took me five minutes to make her realize that,” Jordan groaned. “I’m starting to wonder if you two had a falling out.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Actually, there’s something I didn’t tell you,” Neville whispered after Jordan left. “That night, Zhang Qiu asked me to pull a prank.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What kind of prank?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“She told me to hide Scabbers and make it look like he was eaten by a cat,” Neville whispered. “You know—Hermione owns a cat.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s she after?” Harry was utterly confused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I didn’t go that far—I just used some dye to scare Ron,” Neville said lightly. “I didn’t want Ron and Hermione to fight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“She really is strange. It’s been like this since the start of term—you know what she’s been doing to Lupin, right?” Harry lowered his voice further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, and I feel like she started panicking as the term neared its end,” Neville asked. “Do you know what she’s panicking about?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“She says it’s to save our lives,” Harry shook his head. “I can’t understand it at all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Maybe it’s just nonsense divination. Last year she was obsessed with it and kept clashing with Donald Fontroy,” Neville chuckled bitterly. “You really should’ve taken Divination—you’d see how ridiculous it is.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Anyway, thanks for telling me this,” Harry said, spotting Lupin standing at the pitch exit. “I need to speak with Professor Lupin.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Neville nodded and left. Harry walked alone to Lupin’s side and asked urgently, “Did you catch Black?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m sorry—he got away,” Lupin looked guilty. “He slipped into the Forbidden Forest and vanished in an instant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But you had the Marauder’s Map,” Harry asked. “Wasn’t that enough to track him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lupin said nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>",1390,"2026-06-21T04:54:27.874Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","b31adebf2f700ba43530469ffa4540910937193f9e089c23e27512339b19dfb4","wizard-war-at-hogwarts-chapter-125","wizard-war-at-hogwarts-chapter-123",528,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fwizard-war-at-hogwarts-cover.jpg"]