A red light flashed past, and Soldaya's wand was disarmed, flying out of his hand!
The Disarm Charm had been successfully cast!
Jericho's lips curled slightly.
"The wand is flying."
The wand, having soared into the air, landed neatly in Jericho's hand. He gave it a quick examination and said with exaggerated amusement, "Wow, twelve inches long, ebony wood, and the heart of a fire dragon. Ideal for casting powerful, offensive magic and transfiguration spells."
Jericho spun Soldaya's wand like a pen between his fingers, scrutinizing the young wizard from top to bottom: "You look like a powerful wizard, but why is your wand now in my hand?"
"You're quite skilled."
Soldaya's voice carried a note of respect as he looked at Jericho. Jericho had cast the Disarm Charm without a wand! Despite being only a year older, he could cast spells without relying on a wand. Was this typical for people around Moriarty?
"Truly impressive staffless spellcasting!" Moriarty praised. Jericho's wandless magic was far superior to when he had used it last year on Keith. His talent in wandless magic was remarkable, possibly a trait passed down from the Blanche family.
"Well, I've just learned a few basic spells," Jericho scratched his head and smiled, adopting a shy expression, as if the flashy display earlier had been nothing at all.
He set Soldaya's wand down on the table casually, and with a quiet tone, added, "If you want to stay close to Mr. Moriarty, I'd suggest learning to be more discreet first."
"Discreet…" Soldaya muttered hoarsely. He had thought his use of the Unforgivable Curse would have impressed Moriarty, but it seemed he had misjudged the situation. He had underestimated the caliber of Moriarty's associates.
"Sit down, Soldaya," Moriarty said sternly, looking at the young wizard who was still processing the situation. "I expected something more impressive from you, but instead, you came here with arrogance. You made quite an impression at the pureblood party, and it seems you might have let that go to your head. You've left me with a poor impression, one of reckless arrogance. Your self-indulgence has not impressed me."
Soldaya's gaze flickered with shame. Through the small window on the door, he saw the familiar, elegant figures of students in black robes adorned with green trim at the collar, cuffs, and hoods.
It was the unmistakable Slytherin house uniform. Soldaya recognized it at once—the Slytherin family had been in Slytherin for generations. He had longed to be sorted into Slytherin himself.
And now, here he was, making a poor first impression on the Slytherin head.
Soldaya lowered his head in remorse, realizing his mistake.
"Think about what you've done," Moriarty said, tapping the table lightly. "I made you the representative of your pureblood family. If you get sorted into Gryffindor because of your recklessness, don't bother showing your face to me again."
Just then, Marcus opened the door to the box. Moriarty stepped out and approached the gathered group, curious to know what had happened.
Leon, his face alight with excitement, responded eagerly: "Sir, we found Nicole Lemay's luggage and a large number of alchemy props in the last boxes. I swear, each rune on those props glows with wisdom and magic!"
Moriarty's eyes widened in excitement: "Take me to see it."
Soon, Moriarty found himself standing in front of a box overflowing with suitcases and scattered metal instruments.
"Ding Dong~ Detected that the host has discovered twenty-seven alchemy items from the renowned alchemy master Nicole Lemay, rewarding three exploration draws."
"Don't rush, let's save them for later." Moriarty marveled at the quality of the alchemy props, now understanding why the Slytherin students were so neatly attired and why they had abandoned Diana.
"They say Slytherin is great at calculating and assessing situations," Moriarty remarked, "but we also have our own hidden side—we have a deep respect for knowledge and magic!"
He gestured grandly to the alchemy props in the box. "I'm thrilled to see everyone so passionate about alchemy. Once we're at school, I'll work with the faculty to launch a large project on alchemy, and I hope you all will participate enthusiastically."
The Slytherin students applauded energetically. Working with Moriarty on such a project was an exciting opportunity!
"Clap clap clap—"
Loud applause rang out from the back of the crowd. Two red-haired boys, looking nearly identical, clapped their hands enthusiastically, grinning as the Slytherins stopped clapping and turned to watch.
The two boys exchanged looks. One of them broke the silence: "He speaks so well, doesn't he? So eloquent."
The other chimed in, "Well, of course, he's Slytherin."
The first one then said, "We're Slytherin heirs too! You should go say hello to him, I'm sure he won't mind."
"Clap clap clap—" The applause stopped abruptly.
One of the red-haired boys stepped forward and approached Moriarty, while Leon and the others gave him a skeptical look.
"Oh," the red-haired boy raised his hands in a gesture of innocence and blinked his eyes playfully. "I have no ill intentions. My name is George, I'm just here to say hello to Mr. Moriarty."
The other immediately corrected him, "Shut up, Fred, I'm George!"
George gave a small wave to Moriarty. "Sir, we've been thinking about a better title for you—how about 'Prince Slytherin!'"
Fred immediately added, "You were amazing! You single-handedly defeated all the other houses to win the House Cup!"
"You beat Charlie and Tonks alone!"
"You broke into the secret chamber and chased away the basilisk!"
"The worthy Slytherin Prince!"
The twins took turns speaking, causing the little snakes to blink in confusion. They didn't quite understand all the references, but they did know that Moriarty was someone they admired. Leon would have chased the twins away by now if it weren't for that.
"Haha," Jericho laughed suddenly. "Sir, these must be Percy's younger brothers. Just look at those identical red hairs and freckles. Let them come over."
The twins' faces lit up at this remark, and George eagerly spoke up, "You must be Jericho Blanche! Percy talks all summer about how he defeated a loser with short blonde hair!"
"What? What did you say?" Jericho widened his eyes. "Percy lost to me at the Duel Club! He told you he won?"
George and Fred exchanged mischievous grins. Moriarty recognized the gleam of mischief in their eyes, and realized that Jericho had been tricked.
With the crowd watching, Fred began recounting Percy's smug behavior over the summer. According to the twins, Percy had been happier to beat Jericho than to become a prefect.
"I'm going to find him!" Jericho declared as he stormed out of the crowd, muttering, "What a dishonest little brat!"
"Yes, Percy's our mother's favorite," George grinned. "He'll never grow up."
Jericho turned suspiciously toward Fred. "You're not lying to me, are you? Jonathan?"
Fred quickly protested, "No, no, he didn't lie to you. I didn't either! If you don't believe us, you can ask anytime. His name is Jonathan, and I'm George."
"No way! There's no Jonathan!" Jericho shot back. "You're George, and he's Fred!"
"Hahaha!" The little snakes laughed in unison.
Moriarty couldn't help but watch as the twins played their tricks. They had a knack for 'social bullying,' quickly breaking down barriers and creating bonds with others by joking around with their names. Jericho, on the other hand, seemed to have fallen for it.
Jericho's face grew red as he realized he had been duped. "I can't believe I let myself be taken in by a couple of first-year kids!"
The twins had left a lasting impression on Jericho.
"Your name is George? Your name is Fred? Very well, I'll remember you two," Jericho warned, trying to save face. "You like to prank people, huh? I hope you're still laughing when you get to school!"
But the twins weren't intimidated in the least.
Fred clapped George on the back. "You spoke too soon, you gave us away."
"I didn't! It's all your fault!" George retorted. "You should have just kept the topic on Moriarty!"
Fred waved his hand dismissively. "Let's just go back to our box, there's someone waiting for us there."
As they walked away, the twins' voices carried, "That's right, we're going to have some fun with Mr. Moriarty after we salute him! You should have shown respect before joking around—now you've messed it up and left a bad impression!"
"They've certainly left an impression on me," Jericho muttered as he watched them go. "I take back what I said earlier, sir. They're stubborn, and we can't let them get too close to you."
"It's fine," Moriarty chuckled, his eyes twinkling. "They're amusing. This year's new students are full of energy, and we older students can't afford to fall behind."
He turned to Marcus and gave a new order, "Instruct the older students to change into their uniforms early. I want the new professors to see the spirit of Hogwarts in action."
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