53: Difficult Mode and Changes to the Training Ground

53: Difficult Mode and Changes to the Training Ground

One of the five dummies lunged forward, wielding a wooden sword and aiming a strike directly at John.

John raised his sword to block, then sidestepped to deflect the force, drawing his sword back to slice through the dummy's waist.

"Faster and more powerful," he observed, turning to the now bisected dummy. He reflected on the boon he had acquired at the end of the previous school year.

[Knight: Significantly enhances power when wielding a sword with both hands; power is further amplified when used in conjunction with a mount.]

With the enhancement described using "significantly" twice, John silently acknowledged the worth of the boon he had risked his life to obtain.

Last term, he could barely keep from being overwhelmed by the dummies. The wooden swords they wielded were extraordinarily sturdy and heavy, capable of creating craters with each swing.

"Today, I'm clearing the difficult mode," John declared confidently.

The second dummy stepped forward, moving swiftly towards him.

John remained calm, then cast the spell...

"Reducto!"

A flash of white light struck the dummy, shattering it into pieces.

John, holding his wand in his left hand, observed the result with a nod of satisfaction.

"As my magical experience grows, the power of my spells has also increased."

Testing his spell's strength unethically seemed to have angered the remaining dummies.

In the next moment, three dummies charged at him simultaneously.

One possessed immense strength, another had incredible speed, and the third was agile and frequently shot spells at him.

John's expression changed dramatically as he tried to fend off their attacks with his sword while also guarding against surprise assaults.

Under such fatigue, he quickly showed signs of defeat.

A red light spell from the wizard dummy hit him, sending him flying out of the training area.

The three attacking dummies halted, and John felt a wave of nausea and retched.

"Ugh—"

He vomited, and a slimy nosebleed slug slid out of his mouth.

"Ugh, gross!"

The visual impact was intense, and John couldn't help but vomit again.

This time, more slugs appeared, and he quickly grabbed his wand to break the curse.

Because of the training, he had removed his amulet and thus did not trigger the Shield Charm.

He didn't expect the dummy to use a minor jinx, which was low on damage but high on insult.

At least John felt disgusted enough to want to tear the three dummies apart.

"One mage, one assassin, one warrior."

After breaking the curse, John cleaned up all the slugs on the ground.

His expression turned serious. These three roles were seamlessly coordinated.

One handled the frontal assault, another disrupted from the sides, and the last one delivered the main attacks.

This combination made John feel like a wild boss being ganged up on by a party.

He tried a few more times, and after the third time of dispelling the spell that caused his teeth to grow uncontrollably, John had no choice.

Finally, he had cleared the stage.

John felt a wave of relief wash over him as he released a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.

John sat down, feeling refreshed and invigorated.

"It took a level 5 to get through that. What level would I need for the master level?"

John was increasingly curious about the master level. If the difficulty was already this high for the hard level, did the master level involve battling Voldemort?

That seemed unlikely.

As John sat on the ground, the wooden sword he had placed in the corner began to change. The large, roughly shaped wooden sword gradually shrank, with excess parts falling away like skin to form a humanoid shape.

Meanwhile, in the headmaster's office.

Dumbledore returned after finishing his tasks. As he entered, he noticed the Sword of Gryffindor trembling slightly.

Seeing this, Dumbledore walked towards the sword, a look of astonishment on his face.

"Albus."

The Sorting Hat, sitting nearby, suddenly spoke. Dumbledore turned to look at it, a realization dawning on him.

"Has he returned?"

"It's not him; it's his chamber that has been opened."

When it came to knowledge of Hogwarts, the Sorting Hat undoubtedly knew the most.

Dumbledore quickened his steps to the Sorting Hat's side and asked, "Who?"

"I don't know. You know the founders—always secretive."

This statement made Dumbledore ponder deeply.

He knew that each of the four founders had left their own legacy at Hogwarts. Just as the Chamber of Secrets was Slytherin's, the other three also had their own legacies.

And the "he" the Sorting Hat referred to was Gryffindor.

"Gryffindor's chamber... Is it you, Harry?"

Dumbledore's first thought was of Harry. In his view, the chamber would only open to a recognized successor.

And Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, was the most likely candidate.

The Sword of Gryffindor ceased its trembling, and Dumbledore fell into deep thought.

"Could it be that you also sense the looming danger?"

....

John had rested enough and was ready to go back.

After getting up, John turned around and picked up the sword he had inserted into the puppet.

The flame had gone out, and the red light on the spell dimmed.

He turned around and took a step and then stopped.

In front of him, the young man wearing a wizard hat was staring at him.

At that moment, John felt like he was being stared at by a lion.

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