#196 - Snape's Wager

Actually, the most confused were those Aurors, including Vanessa. Weren't they just arguing? How did it suddenly escalate into a fight?

"Anduin, why are you being so impulsive? They're provoking you, trying to get you to issue a dueling challenge. How could you be so foolish as to fall for it, especially against ten people!" Arthur said anxiously from the side.

"That's right, Anduin, you're too impulsive. It's all my fault. I should have stepped in to stop you when the conflict started," Vanessa said, sounding dejected.

"Let's go get the Minister and Dumbledore now. I don't know what's keeping them; they're taking so long to appear," one of the Aurors suggested.

"Thank you for your concern, but I initiated this challenge. I don't want to let these guys off so easily," Anduin said calmly, shaking his head.

"Vanessa, please help maintain order. Although this banquet hall is quite spacious, stray spells could still injure bystanders," Anduin instructed, ignoring their advice.

"Are you serious? You really want to fight them here?" Vanessa asked, looking at Anduin with surprise.

"Indeed. Isn't Minister Bagnold trying to put pressure on them? I'll add fuel to the fire in advance," Anduin said with a sneer.

"Anduin, I don't know if you're arrogantly ignorant or confidently dismissive."

Suddenly, Anduin heard a deep, gloomy, yet familiar voice beside him.

"Professor Snape, I didn't expect to see you here," Anduin said softly without turning around. "I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I'm neither arrogant nor confident, just a bit of a clean freak. I can't help but want to clean up dirty things when I see them."

"Professor Snape, are you here too?" Vivian, who was nearby, was startled by Snape's voice. Why did this professor always like to sneak up behind people?

"I've been watching this farce for quite a while. The plot of your performance is utterly terrible," Snape said with a disdainful sneer.

"Then you should blame those two over there. It's not my fault the actors are ugly," Anduin retorted with a smile.

Seeing Anduin and Snape chatting leisurely, Arthur was frantic. "Anduin, I don't think you should participate in this duel. There are so many reporters watching. If you lose, you'll immediately become the laughingstock of the entire wizarding world."

Anduin still shook his head with a smile, his mind made up. "Don't worry, I won't fight a battle I'm not sure of winning."

"Yes, you always handle things with ease. Arthur should be worried about those guys over there," Snape surprisingly chimed in.

Anduin understood Snape's hidden meaning and smiled without replying.

"This..." Arthur was speechless after hearing the two of them and could only sigh helplessly.

"Are you that confident?" Snape glanced at Anduin, then at the others. "The likes of Yaxley can't compare to these people."

"Headmaster, I rarely hear you say so much," Anduin said with a smile. Snape snorted coldly. "How about we make a bet, Professor Snape?"

"What kind of bet? What are we betting on?" Snape asked in a low voice.

"Let's bet on whether I can beat them. If I win, you have to tell me a secret," Anduin said with a smile.

"What secret?" Snape asked, suddenly on guard.

"A simple secret, like, say, the counter-curse for 'Sectumsempra'?" Anduin suggested, narrowing his eyes.

"Oh?" Snape raised an eyebrow in surprise. He hadn't expected this kid to know that spell. After a moment of thought, he nodded. "Alright, if I win, you have to promise me something, or rather, do something for me."

"Okay, no problem," Anduin replied with a grin.

"In that case, I bet you can win, and win decisively!" Snape said, his voice even lower, enunciating each word.

This? Anduin was stunned, then smiled wryly. He hadn't expected Snape to outmaneuver him. Was the Headmaster that confident in him? Now he was the one feeling awkward.

"Avery is best at the Knockback Jinx and the Petrification Charm. Lucius is irrelevant; he's just a waste of space. The rest are about as strong as Yaxley. Surely, with your strength, dealing with them won't be difficult," Snape whispered into Anduin's ear.

Hearing Snape actually giving him pointers, Anduin could only shake his head helplessly. "Thank you for your concern, Headmaster. It seems gambling really is a dangerous abyss. I was rash."

Hearing Anduin say that, Snape couldn't help but want to smile triumphantly, but he restrained himself to maintain his dignity and walked leisurely to the side.

Seeing that Anduin wouldn't listen to their advice and was determined to go his own way, Vanessa and the other Aurors had no choice but to scatter and maintain order.

At this time, Avery and Lucius were also ready, pulling their eight duped companions into two rows, facing Anduin coldly.

Anduin also dispersed the crowd around him, looking calmly at the group in front of him.

"Anduin, don't blame us for your self-inflicted suffering. It's not too late to admit your mistake. As long as you admit that you were motivated by vanity and deceived the Ministry of Magic and Minister Bagnold, we can let you off," Lucius said condescendingly, holding his chin high.

"Stop playing the good guy, Lucius. How could our combat hero admit defeat? Instead of that, we should be thinking about how Minister Bagnold will blame us for injuring her little hero," Avery said with a sneer.

"This duel will continue until one side is unable to fight or surrenders. Let all the wizards around us be the witnesses," Anduin said, ignoring them.

Seeing Anduin so arrogant, Avery and Lucius replied coldly, "Alright!"

"Okay," Anduin nodded, then gave an elegant dueling bow before turning his head to look to the side.

"Viren, Charles, Vivian, Ib, Bill, you all need to see clearly how to handle a one-versus-many wizarding battle. I'll only demonstrate this once!" Anduin shouted loudly to the spectators.

"Ah? Oh!" Charles and the others were stunned. They hadn't expected Anduin to be in the mood to give tactical guidance at this time, and could only respond.