[104] Echoes in the Underground

Hall's footsteps caught the man's attention. He turned around.

"Hall Weasley," the man greeted with a slight nod.

"Viktor Krum." Hall frowned. He knew someone would be sharing this room for the next few months, but Krum's presence still made him uneasy. This man had clearly come with ulterior motives. A sense of foreboding washed over Hall.

Krum smiled kindly, even somewhat naively. "I hope we get along." He took a palm-sized wooden carving from his bag and handed it to Hall. "A local specialty from back home. For you."

Hall smiled and accepted it, placing it on his desk. "If you have any questions, you can ask Draco. He'll be happy to help you."

"Can I talk to you?" Krum seemed not to understand Hall's meaning.

"I love learning. Except for my breaks, I'm always studying hard." Hall sat behind his desk. His rejection was obvious, almost impolite. He draped a towel around his neck and opened a book. "I'm going to study now. If you're bored, you can go to the common room."

But Krum seemed completely oblivious. He got up and walked behind Hall, examining the books on his desk. The Slytherin dormitory was simply furnished — two beds, two desks opposite them, and their respective wardrobes. There was an empty seat next to Hall's desk. Krum sat down without ceremony.

Hall didn't look at him, but he could still sense his presence. Krum took many things out of his trunk and placed them on the desk. Unable to suppress his curiosity, Hall glanced at them quickly and was immediately drawn in.

There were more than a dozen books on the desk with various titles, including The Book of the Black Hen. But what caught Hall's attention most was a thin volume — The Secrets of Advanced Dark Magic. This was no friendly book. Although Hall knew Durmstrang's attitude toward dark magic was different from Hogwarts', the fact that such a book was displayed so openly spoke volumes.

Hall subtly looked away, but Krum still caught his gaze. He curled his lips into a short, ambiguous chuckle. "Interested?"

Krum casually picked up the booklet and handed it to Hall. The chair, propped on one leg, spun on the floor with a creak. Hall instinctively reached out, but the book was snatched away the instant he touched it.

"I'm so sorry, Hall. I forgot dark magic is forbidden at Hogwarts. Karkaroff repeatedly warned us before we came." Krum's fingers gripping the booklet were strikingly white, causing Hall to frown slightly.

"Mr. Krum —" Hall tried to correct him.

But Krum had clearly sensed it beforehand. "I don't think you mind me calling you Hall. We'll be spending a lot of time alone together from now on..."

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His excessive enthusiasm made Hall uncomfortable. Hall interrupted him abruptly. "I hope Mr. Krum will respect my personal habits. Thank you."

"Of course, you're right." Krum casually tossed the book back into the box, raising his hands in surrender. "Do you like Quidditch?" he asked, as if trying to find common ground. "I can play with you."

Hall forced a polite, insincere smile. "Thank you, but no thanks."

"I've already put my name in the Goblet. Looking forward to it, actually — bringing honour to the school, you know."

Krum asked curiously, "Don't you want to participate, Hall?" He didn't seem interested in the answer. He took out his change of clothes, stood up, and said, "I forgot you're not seventeen yet. That's a damn shame. But it's alright. If you want to give it a try, maybe I can help you..."

Before entering the bathroom, he winked at Hall, the implication unmistakable.

Hall silently turned his gaze back to his book, but his mind was racing. What did Krum mean? Was he encouraging him to participate? That didn't make sense.

Hall knew Harry would participate, and he knew it was all Voldemort's plan. But what did this have to do with him? What had he missed?

Hall felt he should ask someone about this. The Head of House who assigned Krum to his dorm, for instance. And even though there was one more person in the room, he still had to attend the evening's extra training session. He wanted to hear Grindelwald's answer as well.

Late at night, he heard Krum's breathing become long and even. He cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself, then quietly got out of bed. With practiced ease, he arranged his blankets to look like he was still sleeping, then left the dormitory.

He walked to the edge of the Forbidden Forest and took out his key.

Grindelwald had been waiting for him in Nurmengard's study for some time. The moment Hall appeared, a jet of blue light shot toward his head. He reflexively rolled to avoid it, crashing into a nearby cabinet.

"Ouch!"

"Little guy, that reaction won't do!"

Ignoring Grindelwald's taunt, Hall got up from the ground and slowly drew his wand. "You didn't exactly fight fair either, teacher."

He was still thinking, but not now. With a perfectly executed stance, in less than five minutes, Hall was back on the ground.

"What? Trying to slack off before learning the new spell? At your age, you should be able to stay up!"

"Oh, shut up, teacher!" Hall rolled his eyes from where he lay on the ground. "You wait! I'll beat you one day!"

"Oh, didn't you want to become the richest man in the wizarding world?" Grindelwald leaned back with his arms crossed, teasing.

"Beat you first, then get rich."

Hall stubbornly waved his wand at himself. "Rennervate." It took him a while to get up. He pulled out a bottle of essence of dittany and poured it onto his wounds. He poured three drops, then couldn't help but hiss. Green smoke rose from the wounds, and when it dissipated, the bleeding stopped. New flesh gradually grew.

Grindelwald was truly ruthless. He treated Hall as an equal opponent. This was exactly what Hall needed — only this way could he recognise his shortcomings.

Grindelwald scoffed. "You young folks are so delicate these days. A tiny wound, and you're already rushing to heal it."

"I'm still growing —"

Hall interrupted, raising his wand to attack Grindelwald, who was leaning against the wall. Grindelwald dodged immediately and retaliated decisively. Half an hour later, he called for a break, and Hall finally plopped down on the ground, pulling out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his face.

After catching his breath, he asked, "Teacher, do you think I can participate in the Triwizard Tournament?"

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