Chapter 53.3- Doom Days

A white line burned itself into the water, forming a circle around them— about double the size of the previous stage. Other platforms rose from the water around them as well. They had mobility, but it was clear that their choices were between jumping from platform to platform or swimming the way there. I noticed there was nothing that said they couldn’t get in the water itself. It wouldn’t be a completely bad strategy. Submerge and wait for your opponent to let down their guard before striking.

Of course, if any dared try that against me, I would smite the arena with lightning and we’d see how resistant they could be.

“The white line marks the boundary of your duel. Crossing it will eliminate you. Good luck” Russo said, and then the duel began.

“Going to answer me now?” The person that had spoken before said again. I turned to look at them. Black hair, black squinted eyes, high cheekbones, pale skin. They looked Chinese. I guessed they were Chinese. They’d probably pass as Cho Chang’s cousin back in Hogwarts or something. Both women looked little alike in truth, but to people who didn’t see Chinese people regularly, they’d be near identical. It was an interesting quirk of the brain.

“What do you want?” I asked, taking note of her appearance and returning to look at the duel.

Both of the competitors, to their credit, had taken stock of the new environment and decided to fight like it didn’t matter. They exchanged spells at blistering speeds. Deflecting, shielding and counter cursing where they could not dodge. The smaller size of the platform made dodging a near impossibility.

And then almost like the organizers were not finding their duel interesting enough, the waters began to bubble.

“Did I forget to mention that the water environment comes with a few surprises? Be careful about stepping in there gentlemen. Those things bite” Russo’s voice sounded again. Still, they kept exchanging spells like they hadn’t even heard him.

“My brother told me how you beat him” She said. I looked over at her again. Yeah, she did share a fleeting resemblance to the boy I’d beat in qualifying. The one with the legilimency. He had been talented, but nothing special in truth. Not when I’d fought off the Dark Lord’s legilimency even under torture. Still, I kept my shields up, just now noticing the presence that was poking at them. It was assessing, probing, not trying to get in, it seemed. But that did not lull me into a false sense of security. There was no guarantee that if I gave her the barest chance, she wouldn’t find her way in.

“I don’t know how you do things back where you come from, but here in Europe, that’s very rude” I said, referencing the probe.

“Apologies, Harry Potter. I just had to check”