chsdbacks Chapter 52 Do you like my rampage? Hmm? Speak!
Chapter 52 Do you like my rampage? Hmm? Speak!
Giant purple toad cave.
The uneven ground was filled with lake water, and a salty, fishy smell filled the nostrils.
Large swathes of water vapor condensed on the walls, making them incredibly slippery.
Clusters of stalactites point upwards from the dark cave, emitting a faint purple phosphorescence that vaguely reveals the intricate passageways within.
"The Slytherin prefects are already inside," Penelope said. "Let's hurry—ah!"
She suddenly screamed, startling Sean in front of her.
"Are you trying to wake up all the monsters?"
Sean roared, but then he saw Penelope with her mouth agape and her eyes wide open.
They stared intently behind him as if they had witnessed some indescribable horror.
Sean's heart skipped a beat.
The hairs on my body stood on end.
He trembled and slowly turned his head to look at his back—
There was nothing there.
"Are you... are you crazy?!"
Sean immediately breathed a sigh of relief, but became even more furious.
"..."
Penelope paused for two seconds, bit her lip, and said:
"...Sorry, I misread it."
Just now, she thought she saw an eyeball on Sean's back.
An eyeball that seemed to be alive, still rolling around.
But in the blink of an eye, it disappeared.
Penelope shuddered at the mere thought of that horrific sight.
She must have just misread it.
Penelope shook her head, suppressing the fleeting sense of dread, and continued forward.
In the darkness where no one could see, a round eyeball appeared once again from behind Sean.
Slowly opened her eyes.
......
Deep inside the cave.
Professor Snape stood in the cold, foul-smelling lair, his face so dark it blended into the surroundings.
Damn it.
Why would he leave his perfectly good bed to sleep in and come here to "stand as punishment" in the middle of the night...?
Behind him were large clumps of treasure covered in toad slime.
Behind the treasure, a massive, dimly lit outline that almost filled the entire passageway was rhythmically rising and falling.
That was the sleeping toad king.
He drank the sleeping potion specially prepared by Snape.
It will not wake up unless it is directly attacked, even if the students' footsteps sound like monstrous ones.
of course.
Snape believed.
No student would be foolish enough to want to provoke an entire community.
Miss Gemma Farley, the excellent prefect of Slytherin, should be the first to arrive.
And Ethan Vincent.
It is undeniable.
Professor Snape took on the final and most crucial part of the entire selection process.
I just wanted to see which number Ethan was in.
Thinking of this, Snape subconsciously touched his chest.
Inside his heart, there lies the portrait that Ethan once painted for him.
Humph.
Although that kid is a bit strange, this selection competition shouldn't be too difficult for him.
Unlike other professors, he didn't think that grade level represented everything.
When he first enrolled, he already possessed more dark magic than most seventh-graders.
This is a matter of talent.
Snape mentally rehearsed how he would slyly mock Ethan when he appeared covered in slime and filth.
Just thinking about it made Snape's lips curl into a smile.
However, the wisp of cold air that followed made Snape shiver. He wrapped his robe tighter around himself with a grim expression and cast a warming spell again.
Tick tock.
Water droplets kept falling from the stalactites.
After waiting for an unknown amount of time, finally, the sound of footsteps could be heard from not far away.
A tall, slender figure suddenly appeared.
She had dark blonde curly hair, which was tied high at the back of her head.
The movements were swaying and graceful, yet efficient and crisp.
Streaks of dirt ran across his fair face, and his emerald eyes shone with a calm and resolute light.
It was Gemma Farley, the prefect of Slytherin.
"Professor Snape."
Upon seeing the dean of her own academy, Gemma was not surprised and greeted him softly.
"Hmm, not bad."
Professor Snape nodded slightly in satisfaction, then stepped aside to let her and her teammates challenge the prize.
Ethan is next, right?
Although they didn't manage to get first place, it's understandable.
After all, his opponent was his excellent Slytherin prefect.
However, Snape was wrong.
Shortly after Gemma Farley and the others left, a burly figure burst in with a series of thumping footsteps.
? !
Snape raised one eyebrow and silently took a half step back.
Oliver Wood, captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, stood up like a bear, his eyes wide open, scanning his surroundings warily.
When he saw Professor Snape, his expression was like that of a Slytherin who had won the Golden Snitch.
Snape opened his mouth, intending to say something sarcastic.
But upon seeing the bulging muscles beneath Wood's wizard robes, he paused, then shut his mouth.
Forget it, I won't stoop to the level of a troll.
but......
Strange, why is Ethan ranked after this giant?
Snape watched as Wood and his men clattered and turned over their spoils, and his brow twitched involuntarily.
If he hadn't given the toad king the drug beforehand, the entire nest would have been in chaos by now!
Did they just get lucky and stumble upon this place by accident...?
Tsk, luck is also a part of skill.
Ethan can only blame his bad luck.
Although he lost to the muscle monster, Ethan wouldn't just hand over third place again, would he?
A few more moments passed.
Finally, the third set of footsteps sounded.
—Here it comes!
Snape perked up, lifted his eyelids, and looked towards the end of the passageway.
It's Ethan, right? It must be Ethan!
That brat had caused him so much trouble and pulled so many stunts before, he was practically turning Hogwarts upside down.
Now, we can't afford to miss out on even third place, can we?
however.
Reality shocked Snape once again.
It wasn't Ethan who came, but two of Ravenclaw's top students and two students from their own house.
They were all filthy, as if they had been rolling around in a mud pit.
Upon seeing the treasure, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
"...Did you see Mr. Ethan Vincent on your way here?" Snape couldn't help but ask.
did not expect.
The students exchanged glances, and one of the Ravenclaw youths said with a mixture of disdain and caution:
"It seems he's still at the starting line, Professor."
"Perhaps they gave up because they felt there was no hope of advancing."
"..."
Professor Snape raised his eyebrows.
Still at the starting point?
How is this possible?!
That kid is definitely not the type to sit idly by and wait for his doom.
Snape narrowed his eyes as he looked at the Ravenclaw youth who was sticking out his backside and smugly searching for his loot.
Ethan, though he appears peaceful on the surface—peaceful my foot!
As long as others have nothing better to do than bother him or cause him trouble.
Ethan will definitely pay back double.
Just look at Draco, who's been behaving like a little lamb lately, and you'll know.
Snape had been associated with the Malfoys for so many years, and he had never seen the little golden retriever so obedient.
He's been keeping quiet; he must be brewing something big.
A deep unease gradually spread through Snape's heart like a tide.
He gripped the wand tightly, his palms damp with sweat.
What is Ethan going to do? What exactly is this naturally evil brat up to?!
Snape felt his breathing become heavy.
The damp air covered his nasal cavity like a net, making it difficult for him to breathe.
He kept looking around.
Ethan's figure seemed to be hidden in the darkness.
She smiled, her cobalt blue eyes crinkling as she looked at him and at these clueless students.
Where? Where?!
but.
This continued until the team had finished selecting their spoils.
Nothing happened.
"..."
Ha, I guess I was just overthinking it.
Snape slowly relaxed, finding his earlier nervousness somewhat amusing.
Just then.
Snape glanced casually and caught sight of a large, round, blood-red eye on the Ravenclaw youth who was facing away from him.
In an instant.
Snape's heart stopped for a moment.
The impact was so great that his body stiffened and he was unable to move for a moment.
next second.
A pitch-black door tore through the void and slowly opened before him.
On the other side of the door, a small, thin figure slowly came into view.
—That was the "disappeared" Ethan Vincent!
Just as the Ravenclaw youth described, Ethan was not in the cave, but behind him was an open cliff.
But unlike others, Ethan did not "sit idly by and wait for his doom".
Instead, he held a paintbrush.
It was surrounded by golden birds, pure and beautiful.
Like a creation of angels, it showers the world with beautiful songs of joy.
!!!
Snape's eyes widened suddenly, his gaze sharpening, and he blurted out:
"No--"
However, it was too late.
In an instant.
The holy and beautiful golden birds all pointed behind Snape.
Transformed into an arrow, it pierced through the door!
Like dazzling and incredibly sharp shooting stars, they tore through the dark cave.
It shot straight at the sleeping Toad King!
"Pfft!"
Fresh blood spurted out.
The toad king's skin is as supple as rubber; it's just a superficial injury.
But that was enough to wake it from its slumber.
"—Quack!!!"
The earth shook violently—it was a real, earth-shaking event!
The sound waves, like a tsunami, shook the entire cave. Dust rained down, and the hanging stalactites snapped with a crack, crashing to the ground like arrows.
"W-What happened?!"
Sean and the others, holding their spoils, turned around in confusion and horror, only to witness this horrific scene.
It was as if the peaceful school selection process had suddenly turned into an apocalyptic disaster movie where people died every three seconds.
Snape – responsible for the security of the final checkpoint – Professor Severus.
His eyes were dead.
In my mind, only two words stood out:
Finished!