Chapter 18: Lottery Time
...
The fourth-year perfect Scarman, his actions left Dyroth speechless.
Brother, you are the perfect! Can you act with a bit more dignity?
Don't make yourself look like a fool!
"Brother, let's talk this over and give it some thought. There are so many people watching—let me lose more gracefully."
"If you agree, I'll give you a special gift later—something I've treasured for years!"
Scarman whispered so only the two of them could hear.
Dyroth hesitated before nodding.
It's a win for me anyway, so what's the harm in making it look a little better for him?
Why not get a little extra benefit out of this?
"Both sides, ready!"
"The duel begins!"
The two saluted each other, then moved to their positions on the battlefield.
"Petrificus Totalus!"
"Protego!"
"Stupefy!"
"Protego totalum!"
Spells flew wildly, with dazzling beams of light making the young wizards gasp in awe.
It was like a scene from a fantasy—a mysterious magic play!
Most of the younger students were amazed, but Snape and the prefects saw through it immediately: it was just an elaborate act. None of it was real.
"Scarman, where's your backbone as a Perfect?" Carlo, the prefect, cursed, feeling a sense of shame. If he's doing this with a freshman, will I be his next challenge?
The fifth-year perfect had gone home, leaving no one else to take on Dyroth. If Carlo was next, it would be a disaster.
No, I can't let that happen! Carlo thought. Losing to a new student would make me the laughingstock of Hogwarts!
After several minutes of flashy but harmless exchanges, Scarman was disarmed, his wand flying from his hand. He graciously admitted defeat with a bow.
Dyroth calmly stowed away his wand and looked toward the perfect camp. Carlo broke into a cold sweat.
He's coming...
Just as Carlo was scrambling for an excuse to avoid fighting, Snape spoke up.
"Mr. Grindelwald! If you don't want your classmates to wake up feeling like slugs tomorrow, you'd better pay attention to the time."
Dyroth glanced at the clock and realized it was nearing midnight. Many of the first-years were already yawning.
As much as I'd like to continue, Snape has a point. If I push this too far, people will think I'm only out to show off, Dyroth thought.
This could damage his reputation—something that would hurt him in the long run.
"Sorry, Professor Snape."
"My apologies, everyone, for keeping you here so long."
Dyroth gave a deep bow in apology.
"It's okay, it's okay. The Perfect duels are like this every year," Carlo said hurriedly, seizing the opportunity to announce, "Today's battles are over! Everyone, back to your dorms!"
Carlo let out a long breath of relief. Looks like I'm safe for now. Thank goodness for Snape!
He knew that dueling a first-year would make him look foolish, no matter the outcome.
As the crowd dispersed, people were still buzzing about Dyroth's battle. His strength and elegance had made him a hero in the eyes of many young wizards. Some of the older students even boldly sent flirtatious glances his way.
But despite the attention, Dyroth remained cautious. It wasn't that the older girls weren't beautiful, but...
...I've got many things in school to plan—don't want to end up dead over a silly crush.
"Dyroth, come with me," Carlo said, easing Dyroth's discomfort. "I'll take you to the first-year perfect's dorm."
The independent room was a nice thing for Dyroth.
"This will be your private space from now on. You'll handle the matters for your grade here," Carlo said. "I'd recommend placing some protective spells on the door to prevent unwanted interruptions while you're studying."
"I understand. Thank you, Senior Carlo."
Carlo gave a few more instructions before leaving Dyroth alone in the spacious room.
Finally! Time to see how many achievement points I've accumulated!
Opening the system, he found that defeating the fourth-year Perfect had earned him another 400 achievement points, bringing his total to 1,500.
"System, begin the lottery!"
A selection of card packs appeared in midair, and Dyroth clicked on a few that caught his eye.
A burst of light filled the room, but there was only a single purple glow among the cards.
Of course, the good stuff is rare, Dyroth thought with a sigh.
[Congratulations! You have obtained: Reducto (Level 2), Lumos (Level 1), Lightning spell (Level 2), Ossio Dispersimus (Level 3), Trip Jinx (Level 2), Shield Charm (Level 3), Obliviate (Level 2), Episkey (Level 3), and Sandstorm Charm (Level 3).]
[Congratulations! You have obtained: Expelliarmus (Level 5).]
[Current remaining achievement points: 500.]
[Detected: Host has learned new spells. Would you like to initiate fusion?]
"Yes, fuse!"
A wave of knowledge washed over Dyroth, and the system chimed again.
[Host has exceptional talent with a super-magical level of understanding.]
[Reducto (Level 3), Trip Jinx (Level 3), Shield Charm (Level 4), Expelliarmus (Level 6).]
"My Shield Charm leveled up, and Expelliarmus is nearly at its highest tier—excellent!"
Dyroth decided to continue his lucky streak and drew five more card packs.
The usual sky-blue light appeared, but one of the packs glowed with a rare green light.
[Congratulations! You have obtained: Avada Kedavra (Level 3).]
[Current remaining achievement points: 0.]
[Detected: Host has learned new spells. Would you like to initiate fusion?]
"Yes, fuse!"
The fusion improved some lower-level spells, but Dyroth didn't mind. It's better than nothing.
"The Killing Curse.... not bad," Dyroth mused. "At least it's only at level three. A higher level would be risky."
Thanks to his knowledge from Vinda and Grindelwald, Dyroth was aware of how dangerous Dark Magic could be. The trick was maintaining clarity and checking in with himself often.
"It's getting late. Time for bed—early class tomorrow," Dyroth muttered, changing into his pajamas.
Just as he was about to drift off, he heard a light knock at the door.
"Dyroth? Are you awake?"
"Scarman?"
Dyroth remembered that Scarman had promised him a special gift. Opening the door, Scarman handed him a thin book with a sly grin.
"Brother, this has been my treasure for years."
Dyroth suspiciously opened the book and nearly choked when he saw what was inside.
"This... this is—"
"Shh! Keep it down!" Scarman whispered. "What do you think? My friend begged me for this and I wouldn't give it to him! We're even now, okay?"
"I hope you can still get out of bed tomorrow," Scarman added with a wink.
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Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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