The spell meant for Alex struck Wilkes instead, smming into him oer another. His body went rigid, his face twisted with pain as teeth began growing grotesquely from his mouth—a side effect of one of the stray spells. He colpsed to the ground, motionless and unresponsive.

  Alex turo the remaining group, his wand raised. For the first time, he spoke an intation aloud. “Obscurifumus.” Thick fog billowed forth, spreading rapidly and enveloping the area in a dense white shroud. Visibility plummeted, leaving the ambushers disoriented and panicked.

  “Where is he?!” someone shouted.“Just fire in his dire!” another yelled.

  Curses flew wildly through the fog, their aim hopelessly inaccurate. Spells ricocheted off the crumbling walls or struinteargets. Cries of pain and e erupted as friendly fire took its toll.

  “Damn it! Who hit me?!”“That mudblood cursed me from the other side!”“Watch where you’re aiming, you idiot!”

  Amidst the chaos, Alex moved like a ghost, his silhouette briefly visible before vanishing again. With each appearance, another wizard fell, taken out with ruthless efficy. Some were knocked unscious with well-pced blows; others fell victim to their own side’s misguided spells. The air filled with the sounds of grunts, gasps, and bodies hitting the ground. Ihan a minute, several members of the ambush y defeated. Those still standing grew increasingly frantic, their nerves frayed by the uhreat.

  “Stop panig!” Yaxley’s voice cut through the turmoil. “Hold your fire, all of you! You’re only making it worse!”

  As the others hesitated, Yaxley raised his wand high, eling his magic. “Depulso.”

  A powerful gust of wind surged outward, tearing through the fog with explosive force, scattering the thick mist and revealing the battlefield once more. Of the 17 wizards who had ambushed Alex, only 11 were still standing. Their faces were tense as a shadowy figure appeared behind one of them. Alex’s hand cmped down on the wizard’s shoulder, his ressed firmly against the man’s neck. With a whispered Petrificus Totalus, the wizard stiffened and dropped, pletely immobilized.

  The Disillusio Charm cloaking Alex began to flicker, its effects fading. He casually supported the paralyzed wizard’s limp body with one hand, his other hand raising his wand to point at the remaining attackers.

  “With this level of skill, you think you’re fit to pn an ambush?” Alex’s tone was mog, his eyes cold as they swept over the group. “No teamwork, no coordination, slow reas... I almost feel bad for expeg you to be a challenge.”

  The surviving wizards bristled at Alex’s taunts, their frustration boiling over. Without hesitation, they fired a barrage of curses at him. Alex moved fluidly, flig his wand. The unscious bodies of fallen wizards lifted into the air, ag as shields to intercept the ining spells. The curses smmed into the floating bodies, elig gasps of shock from the attackers.

  One of the wizards watched in horror as his own curse deflected off a shielded figure and barreled toward him. Panig, he quickly cast a Levitation Charm to redirect the flying body. As a skilled fifth-year, he executed the maneuver silently and effitly. Just as he began to exhale in relief, a Stunner flew out from behind the floating figure. It struck him squarely in the chest, sending him sprawling. The wizard realized too te that Alex had used the levitated body as a visual distra, cealing his curse behind it. With that, awo wizards were knocked out of the fight.

  “Everyone, regroup! Don’t let him pick us off one by one!” Yaxley barked, his voice sharp and anding. Despite his waning arrogance, he mao keep a level head.

  Alex watched as the remaini wizards quickly formed two defensive clusters. He nodded approvingly, almost impressed. “Not bad,” he muttered under his breath. “Grouping up improves your efficy... but against me? It’s just suicide.”

  A sly grin spread across his face as he reached up aached a small metal button from his chest—a brooch shaped like a serpent with gleaming eyes. With a flick of his wrist, he tossed it into the rger group. The eyes of the snake glowed faintly, activating the spell imbued within.

  BZZZZT!!!!

  A wave of soundless energy erupted from the brooch, rippling through the group with devastating force. Four wizards were instantly disorieheir heads spinning as they stumbled backward. The impaocked two of them into their teammates, sending the entire cluster sprawling. They nded hard, unscious before they hit the ground.Even the smaller group led by Yaxley and Travers, positioned a few meters away, wasn’t spared. Although the infrasonic spell hit them with less iy, it left their heads pounding and their coordination in shambles.

  But Yaxley wasn’t the top of his css for nothing. Gritting his teeth, he summohe strength to cast a protective Protego just as Alex’s repelling spells flew toward him. The shimmering shield absorbed the attacks, buying him enough time to recover from the lingering effects of the infrasonic spell.

  Behind him, the other three wizards slowly regaiheir senses. One of them—a seventh-year—pulled out a small vial of Invigoratiht. He took a gulp before passing it to his teammates, the potion dulling the throbbing pain in their heads.

  Alex stood a short distance away, his posture rexed as he tapped the snake brooch to deactivate its sonitment. He observed his oppos calmly, the fai smirk tugging at his lips. The earlier skirmish had been tactical and precise, relying on clever tricks and equipment. But now, he was ready to shatter their spirits through sheer dominance.

  Yaxley drained his own Invigoratiht and forced himself to his feet. His gaze swept over the scattered bodies of his fallen allies, bitterness evident on his face. He had uimated Alex, and now they were paying the price.

  “You’re finally ba your feet,” Alex remarked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Good. I was starting to get bored. Let’s move on to round two, shall we?” He raised his wand and gave a mog bow, mimig the formal gesture of a duel. “Show me ure-blood superiority’ looks like.”

  Travers ched his fists, his face twisting in frustration. “If it weren’t for your sneaky tricks and those damned alchemy tools, do you really think you’d still be standing?”

  Alex’s smirk widened. “The loser eats dust, Travers. Haven’t you learhat yet? Or are you still stuck spoutiy words like always?”

  ‘Four oppos. Two seventh-years are the real threats. Yaxley is the maihe other one’s not bad either. A fifth-year, det rea speed earlier, but manageable. Then there’s Travers, a third-year... total trash. He’s practically a walking distra. Alright, I’ve got this.’ Alex’s sharp eyes sed his oppos like a predator sizing up prey. His lips curled into a chilling sneer, exuding the aura of a bloodthirsty vilin.

  The seventh-year wizard standio Yaxley swallowed nervously and whispered, "What do we do now?"

  Yaxley didn’t break eye tact with Alex, his expression te resolute. "What else? It’s fainst one. If we ’t win this, we might as well quit magic altogether. Stick to the pn and don’t lose your nerve," he said, though the hint of doubt in his voice betrayed his fidence.