The duel began with both casting different opening spells. Charles opted for Sileng Charm, aiming to cut off Higgs’s ability to cast spells vocally. The spell’s quick trajectory erfect for a surprise attad could disrupt Higgs’s rhythm if successful.Higgs, meanwhile, tered with Impediment Jinx, choosing a broader area-of-effect spell to force Charles into defensive movement.

  The two darted into motion the moment their spells were cast, weaving and dodging with impressive agility. Their training under Alex had clearly paid off—they cast while on the move with growing fluidity, aher spell hit its mark.

  What followed id exge of spells, each spell flying faster tha. Shield Charms, Disarming Spells, and Stunners crackled through the air as they pushed each other to the limit.

  Alex stood on the sidelines, arms crossed, critically. Though they were evenly matched in pace, Charles gged behind in accuracy. “Higgs’s spellwork is sharper,” Alex o himself. “He’s using sudden stops as to throw Charles off, avoiding spells instead of blog them. That costs more stamina, but it’s giving him the edge.”

  Charles, oher hand, relied on agility to avoid attacks, but Higgs’s precise aim often forced him to block or deflect at the st moment. This defetern made it harder for Charles to mount a sistent offense, leaving him in a stalemate.

  Nearby, Vivian, Bill, and David watched the a while mung on dy, their expressions a mix of awe and uanding. For the first time, they saw the value of Alex’s rigorous training regimens—drills like side-to-side jumps and rapid spellcasting noerfect sense.

  “I get it now,” Bill whispered, wide-eyed. “All those reflex drills? They’re why these two keep up like this.”

  In the arena, both duelists began showing signs of fatigue. Higgs’s stant movement and abrupt halts drained his stamina, while Charles, two years younger, was struggling to keep up with the older wizard’s rger mana reserves. Realizing he was at a disadvantage, Charles switched tactics. He stopped attag and focused on defending, biding his time. Then, in a momentary lull, he aimed his wand at Higgs’s feet and cast a Transfiguration spell.

  Higgs, assuming Charles had simply run out of steam, paused to catch his breath. That brief moment of stillness gave Charles the opening he he grouh Higgs shifted, and hands made of hardened cy emerged, log tightly around his legs.

  “Yes!” Charles grinned, quickly firing off a flurry of spells: Stupefy, Rictusempra, Expelliarmus. He inteo end the duel decisively while Higgs was immobilized.Panic fshed across Higgs’s face, but he forced himself to stay calm. Instead of hastily tering, he took a breath and aimed at the ground near Charles.

  “Ventus!” A swirling gust of wind kicked up dirt and debris, blinding Charles temporarily. The distra worked, f Charles to shift position to escape the dust stiving Higgs precious seds.

  With his legs still bound, Higgs pointed his wand downward and cast Reducio on the cy hands. The transfigured restraints shrank and crumbled, freeing him just in time to deflect Charles’ oning spells with a hastily cast Shield Charm.

  Higgs, finally free from the Transfiguration spell, was drenched in cold sweat. For a moment, he’d thought he was done for. But there was no time to rex. As he regained his footing, Charles, who had already moved beyond the range of the flying sand, anized his offensive.

  A spell shot toward Higgs, cutting through the air like a streak of light. On its surface, it seemed like a single spell—an easy enough target. But Higgs’s sharp instincts kicked in.“Hidden Curse. No way I’m falling for that,” Higgs muttered, narrowing his eyes.He reized the trick immediately. With Charles’ attack speed, there was no way he’d cast just one spell. A hidden curse teique had to be at py. It was one of the advarategies Alex had taught them during their training—yering spells to cat oppo off guard.

  Rather than waste time tering blindly, Higgs sprang into a, darting sideways to avoid the ining spell. He knew he couldn’t afford to stay stationary. His grasp of Transfiguration wasn’t nearly as solid as Charles’, and he wasn’t going to let himself get caught again.

  The string of curses tio pursue him relentlessly, guided by Charles’ line of sight. It was another advanced spellcasting teique Alex had taught them—trag spells. But maintaining such trol came at a cost, steadily draining Charles’ mana reserves.

  After weaving and dodging for what felt like ay, Higgs realized he wasn’t going to outrun the spells. He needed a rategy. “Avis!” With a quick flourish of his wand, Higgs summoned a floagical birds. Though not as profit at trolling them as Alex, he mao direct the sparrows toward the ining curses. The birds swarmed the lead spell in an attempt to disrupt its trajectory.

  The first spell, a small Thunderbolt Jinx, detonated with a sharp BOOM, scattering the flod sending a shockwave through the clearing. The explosioed enough turbuleo knock the remaining birds off course, leaving only a few unscathed.

  But the rest of the curses remained intact, hurtling toward Higgs with undiminished force.The bst disoriented Higgs for a moment, and the flying debris stung his face. Blinking through the dust, he realized he was out of time.

  “Fragmentum!” Higgs rolled sideways, barely keeping his bance, and fired a rapid double burst of Thousand Bullets. This spell allowed him to unleash magic like a shotgun bst, scattering multiple projectiles in a wide area. It wasn’t the most precise ter, but at cle, it could still hit his target.

  The first volley struck the lead curse mid-air, causing it to explode with a loud POP. A sed curse was caught in the following barrage, bursting apart in a dazzling fsh of light. Higgs exhaled sharply, but before relief could wash over him, he saw yet another spell emerge from behind the dissipating glow.

  “Quadruple Curse?” he muttered, his voice tinged with disbelief. “Charles, you’re really going all out, aren’t you?” Exhaustion weighed heavily on Higgs. His movements slowed, and his mana reserves were nearly spent. Still, he knew Charles had to be just as drairag multiple curses was no small feat.

  “This is it,” Higgs thought. “If I block this st one, I’ll have a ce to turables.” With grim determination, he cast one final Protego. The shimmering shield flickered faintly, a clear sign of his dwindling strength.

  The ining curse—a Stunning Spell—smmed into the shield with a loud G! The barrier held, though barely. Higgs allowed himself a flicker of hope. But then the final hidden curse revealed itself—a Banishing Charm that struck his weakened shield with brute force.

  CRASH!

  The shield shattered in an instant, the spell’s impact throwing Higgs off his feet. He tumbled through the air before crashing unceremoniously onto the ground, dazed and winded. “Five secutive curses?” Higgs groaned, his mind reeling as he y on his back. “Really?”

  On the sidelines, Vivian, Bill, and David gasped in shock. They watched as Higgs was flung across the field, clearly incapacitated. “We should help him,” Bill said, stepping forward.

  “Wait,” Alex interjected, holding out an arm to stop them. “It’s not over yet.”