That night, the Hogwarts students were in high spirits after temporarily taking the lead in the standings.
However, in order to spare the feelings of the Ilvermorny team, the school decided not to hold a celebratory banquet in the Great Hall.
Instead, the students held their own parties in their respective common rooms.
The Hufflepuff and Gryffindor common rooms were especially lively.
"Zach! Zach! Zach!"
Hufflepuff students chanted his name.
Zach stood among them with a foolish grin, basking in the honor.
In Gryffindor Tower, the Weasley twins were the most energetic of all, bouncing around wildly while celebrating their third brother Percy.
"Well done, Percy. Now it's up to Sean and me," Charlie said cheerfully.
"Though I hate to admit it, he should be fine," Percy added. "The victory in the third match will still belong to Hogwarts."
"Anyone who runs into him is just unlucky," Fred said gleefully, his tone full of sympathy—mock sympathy—for Ilvermorny's future opponents.
"He's practically from another world compared to us," Angelina commented.
Unlike the Weasley twins, this time it wasn't George speaking but Angelina, who was in the same year as Sean.
Slytherin's celebration was much quieter.
Although Hogwarts was currently leading, none of the Slytherins had participated in the second event.
Most students simply ate a little, then gathered in small groups to chat.
"Ilvermorny's doomed," Cassius said with a grin. "Next time they face Sean. Right, Chris?"
"I believe in Sean," Chris replied calmly. "His magic is already at the level of a fifth- or sixth-year. Whoever faces him will definitely be caught off guard."
As expected of one of the top three students in their year, Chris had far better judgment than Cassius.
Her estimate of Sean's strength was surprisingly accurate.
"However, they do have that Daywalker," Chris continued. "There's very little information about them, so you should still be careful."
"Cassius, learn something from Chris," Sean said with a sigh. "Try sounding intelligent once in a while instead of shouting nonsense all day."
Sean didn't argue with Chris.
If anything, she had slightly underestimated him.
Sean's magical power had already reached the level of a mid-tier seventh-year.
And that was entirely the result of his own training.
Since the last time he absorbed the Wizard's Heart and expanded his "container," he hadn't been able to increase his magic reserves again.
"There are many rumors about Daywalkers," Sean said. "Professor McGonagall looked into some records, but it's hard to tell what's true. Either way, I'll be careful."
At that moment, Kellyn Lindsay was leaving her team's dormitory.
Ilvermorny had just lost a round, and she had spent the evening helping her students adjust their mindset.
Exhausted, she was heading back to her room for a shower and some sleep.
Then someone called out to her.
"Professor Lindsay, sorry to bother you."
She turned.
It was Morisse, the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor from Hogwarts.
"Professor Morisse. What is it?"
"Your school just lost a round," he began.
But before he could finish, Kellyn interrupted him.
Her expression cooled slightly.
"It was only the second match. The competition isn't over."
Morisse immediately realized she had misunderstood.
"No, no, you've got the wrong idea," he said quickly. "I'm not here to gloat."
He took a breath and continued awkwardly.
"I just meant… after losing a match, I wondered how you were feeling. Would you like to have a drink?"
Kellyn looked at the blond man in front of her.
For several seconds she said nothing.
During those few seconds, Morisse clenched his fists nervously.
Only when Kellyn spoke again did he relax.
"Alright."
Morisse visibly sighed with relief.
Afraid the conversation might become awkward, he hurriedly tried to find something to talk about.
"A few years ago, when I traveled around the world, I spent half a year living in the United States."
"Really?" Kellyn asked. "Which city?"
"New York…"
The two walked and talked together.
At that moment, they looked less like professors from rival schools and more like colleagues from the same one.
At nine o'clock the next morning, despite the chilly mid-December temperature of only five or six degrees, the students were just as enthusiastic about watching the competition.
"I wonder if we'll get to see Uagadou's wandless magic," Penelope said.
"I doubt it," Sean replied. "This event doesn't give them much opportunity to use it."
As they spoke, the contestants from Uagadou and Castelobruxo stepped onto the Quidditch pitch amid loud applause.
"Merlin's beard—they're using the same strategy!" Zach exclaimed.
The two people entering the field were the team captains.
In other words, both schools had sent their strongest competitor for the first round, determined to secure an opening victory.
Neither had expected the other side to do the same.
The situation instantly became exciting.
The crowd erupted with anticipation.
Zach silently thanked his luck that Ilvermorny hadn't used the same strategy earlier.
Otherwise, he might have suffered a humiliating defeat.
The two captains wasted no time with formalities.
They started fighting immediately.
Compared to the previous day's matches, the duel between two elite seventh-years was on a completely different level.
Their casting speed, variety of spells, and the power behind them were far beyond anything seen before.
"Look at those movements," Sean muttered in amazement.
"That dodging… are they circus acrobats or something?"
What impressed him most wasn't their magic.
It was their speed, agility, and the incredible positions they used to cast spells.
"Did he really just do that?" Zach shouted.
The Castelobruxo captain had just flipped through the air and cast a spell upside down while mid-somersault.
"No wonder they're called the Amazon Magic Warriors," Charlie said admiringly. "I've really learned something today."
"Amazon Magic Warriors?" Sean repeated.
"Castelobruxo is located deep in the Amazon rainforest," Charlie explained.
"Shortly after the school was founded, they were attacked by wizard tribes from the jungle. The battle ended in a stalemate."
"The tribal wizards were incredibly skilled at casting spells while performing all kinds of complex physical movements."
"Eventually the school negotiated peace by allowing tribal wizards to enroll and even participate in school management."
"After that, they introduced a new class called Flexible Spellcasting."
Sean couldn't help thinking:
Are these warriors or wizards? Give them swords and they might use them even better.
Then he suddenly remembered his duel with Carol during Defense Against the Dark Arts.
Maybe the reason Carol had performed so poorly was because the dueling platform had been too small for his style.
Meanwhile, the Uagadou competitor relied on the natural physical gifts of African wizards—speed and agility.
Although his movements weren't as flashy as Castelobruxo's, his raw physical ability allowed him to dodge most spells.
Sean couldn't help recalling an old saying:
As long as you run fast enough, even the Killing Curse can't hit you.
In the end, Castelobruxo won the first round.
The spectators applauded thunderously, cheering for both fighters.
But the excitement didn't end there.
For the second round, Uagadou sent out their half-giant—
Omar Karada.
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