Chapter 32: Confronting the Troll
Hearing there was a monster in the underground chambers' chaos erupted in the Great Hall. Dumbledore had to use his wand to create several loud explosions above his head to silence everyone.
"Head students," the headmaster's voice was low. "Lead your students from your houses to the dormitories."
On the Ravenclaw side, the female head student, Penelope Clearwater, stood up and announced, "Ravenclaw students, follow me."
Steve quickly grabbed a piece of pumpkin pie and obediently followed. As the queue was about to start moving, he suddenly remembered that Kevin had gone to the restroom. He scanned around and noticed that Kevin hadn't returned. He immediately found Penelope Clearwater and said, "Oh no! Miss Clearwater, Kevin just went to the restroom, and he probably didn't hear the warning about the troll!"
Penelope turned pale and quickly sent someone to look for the professors. In the meantime, Kevin had already entered the underground chambers. He had just turned a corner from the corridor when a foul smell reached his nostrils—a mixture of dirty socks and the odour of an unsanitary public restroom.
Following the unpleasant smell, he heard low grumbling and the sound of massive feet dragging on the ground. Kevin looked up and saw a giant creature slowly approaching. This troll was twelve feet tall, with dark, lifeless skin that resembled grey granite. Its massive, clumsy body was like a heap of large rocks, topped with a tiny, bean-sized head. Its short legs were as thick as tree trunks, ending in flat, calloused feet. The stench it emitted was nauseating, and it held a large wooden club in its hand, which dragged on the ground due to its long arms.
At this moment, the giant was standing by a door, peering inside. Kevin could see the sign on the door: "Girls' Lavatory." Hermione was likely inside.
Without hesitation, Kevin took a big step and entered the restroom without bothering to hide from the troll. The troll hadn't detected the young wizard under his invisibility, only emitting a perplexed grunt as Kevin passed by.
Inside the restroom, Kevin immediately spotted Miss Granger huddled in a corner. Her current state could be understood; she was just an 11-year-old girl, far from the powerful witch who would face Death Eaters with two "useless men" by her side in the future.
Kevin walked over and covered her mouth, whispering in her ear, "It's me."
Startled, Hermione relaxed slightly and spoke in a trembling voice, "Is it you, Kevin? Have you come to rescue me?"
"Yes, it's me," Kevin reassured her, holding her hand. "How are you now? Can you stand?"
"I can, but my legs are a bit wobbly," Hermione replied, grabbing Kevin's arm for support.
"Can you still perform magic?" Kevin continued. "You learned the 'Invisibility Charm' last week; now is the time to put it into practise. Give it a try."
Hermione nodded and, with trembling hands, pulled her wand from her pocket. She pointed it at herself and incanted, "Invisibility Charm."
Her body was engulfed in magic, turning completely invisible in Kevin's eyes. However, the invisibility started to fade. First, her feet became visible, followed by her body. In less than a second, Hermione reappeared in front of Kevin.
"Sorry," she said with a shaky voice. "I'm too nervous; I can't maintain the magic."
"You haven't practised enough; remember to work on it." Kevin sighed. He then pointed his wand at her and cast the spell, turning her invisible once more, and this time the invisibility held. Kevin himself returned to a visible state.
The second level [Invisibility Charm] had a drawback; during its duration, the caster couldn't cast other spells or make vigorous movements, or the invisibility would be cancelled. This limitation won't seem to be overcome until he improves upon the spell, perhaps an [Advanced Invisibility Charm].
Inside the lavatory, the giant had detected the continuous incantations and was now aware that there were people hiding inside.
It lowered its head, attempting to enter. Seeing the situation turning urgent, Hermione said nervously, "You've cast the 'Invisibility Charm' on me, so you can't cast spells now; what will you do?"
"Don't worry," Kevin said calmly. "I have magic to protect myself. That giant can't harm me. You stay hidden in the corner. When I distract the giant, use the opportunity to escape."
Kevin's intention was to keep Hermione out of harm's way, but in Hermione's eyes, it seemed like Kevin was sacrificing himself to divert the troll's attention, allowing her to flee. Even the confident tone in Kevin's voice sounded heroic to her.
"No, I won't leave you alone," Hermione said with a quiver in her voice, pulling out her wand again.
"What are you doing? Don't waste my spells," Kevin said, somewhat exasperated. "Your magic won't harm it."
With that, Kevin demonstrated by casting a spell himself, "Disarm!"
A red light shot from his wand tip and struck the giant's shoulder accurately. However, nothing happened. The giant blinked its eyes foolishly and turned its ugly, large nose towards Kevin. Ordinary wizard spells couldn't harm this giant at all.
Originally, Kevin wanted to demonstrate this to Hermione. However, she had her own interpretation from the start, and now she believes that even if the magic doesn't harm the troll, it is crucial to stay and divert its attention.
"Sorry, your magic can't hurt it; it's all my fault," Hermione said with a trembling voice. "I'm too nervous to maintain the invisibility charm."
"You haven't practised enough. Remember to practise more," Kevin sighed, pointing his wand at her.
"Invisibility Charm."
Hermione turned invisible again, and this time, the invisibility held. Kevin returned to a visible state.
The giant, after some confusion, finally understood that the small figure in front of it had just launched an attack. It raised the wooden club in its hand, let out a roar, and approached Kevin.
"Ice Armour!"
Kevin didn't attack immediately; instead, he cast a defensive spell on himself.
A/U: I've noticed a number of inconsistencies regarding Kevin's Golden Finger and its proclaimed 'exceptional insight.' Therefore, I've taken it upon myself to attempt an explanation of his power, or perhaps lack thereof. First and foremost, it appears that this gift doesn't enhance Kevin's intelligence in any direct manner. Instead, it seems to operate as a spell or charm creator, generating magical spells, charms, or potion recipes based on the knowledge Kevin possesses. Furthermore, it appears to only manifest new creations (such as spells, charms, or potion recipes) when Kevin acquires sufficient knowledge to support these developments. This explains why his spells often appear as enhancements of existing ones. However, it doesn't seem to enable Kevin to extrapolate additional information based on his existing knowledge. For example, after acquiring basic knowledge, such as first-grade math, Kevin won't automatically advance to higher-level math; instead, he'll only improve upon his existing skills in the first-grade math domain.
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