Chapter 419: The Match in Progress

In the end, Hermione gave in as a matter of course.

Amid the agreement of the Quidditch fanatics around her, she reluctantly stepped down and picked up her drink instead, choosing to accept "education" in silence.

This act of submission made the Gryffindors who had rushed over to support her sigh and leave again—after all, the match was about to begin, and there was no time to waste.

Allen only realized something felt off after sitting down.

Was I too harsh earlier?

Even normal classes aren’t this serious... and I’m not even a real professor.

I should probably apologize.

When he turned his head, Hermione was angrily staring at her drink bottle.

Tiny bubbles kept rising inside the orange juice as if it were boiling with frustration.

...Yep. She’s definitely angry.

Allen gently nudged her, his tone unusually soft—almost like coaxing a child.

"Hey, Hermione... sorry about earlier. I went a bit too far. Quidditch is just a matter of personal preference—you don’t have to like it. I shouldn’t have spoken like that. Don’t take it to heart, okay? Here, this is for you. Don’t be mad anymore."

The bubbling stopped.

Hermione turned around.

At least she wasn’t crying.

Even better—her eyes weren’t red.

Good. She’s the type who’s easy to calm down.

As an orphanage "king of kids," Allen had plenty of experience with this.

He casually placed a handful of shining candies into his hand.

This works every time—unless it’s a troublemaker. For those, just scare them once.

But this time—

The usual trick failed.

Instead of excitement, Hermione gave him a look of clear disgust.

"...Hey, that reaction will get you treated like a bad kid, you know."

Feeling slightly cornered, Allen reluctantly brought out his upgraded weapon.

A lollipop larger than his palm.

Beautifully shaped, brightly colored, and—most importantly—expensive.

According to the shop owner: "Anyone under twenty will love it."

Bought near Mount Fuji, he had trusted the claim after seeing the store’s popularity.

And indeed—

Hermione hesitated, glared at him, then snatched it away.

She still didn’t speak to him, but she had been successfully "pacified."

After a short internal struggle, she began eating it carefully.

Only then did Allen remember something important.

Right... her parents are dentists.

No wonder the first method failed.

Before he could think further—

"OUCH!"

A sharp pain shot through his hand.

He looked down.

A perfect bite mark.

The culprit was smiling innocently.

"Sorry, brother. I was dreaming of chewing bones just now. Did it hurt?"

Yeah right.

You did that on purpose, didn’t you?

Allen suddenly remembered—these lollipops were originally bought for Annie.

He had restricted her to one per week, confiscating the rest.

So this brat’s still holding a grudge?

Feeling guilty, Allen quickly changed the subject and turned his attention to the match.

=======

On the field, the sides had already been clearly divided.

Gryffindor unfortunately ended up facing the sun, making defense slightly more difficult.

But that couldn’t be helped.

Fortunately, they won the initial toss and gained possession.

Their attack was so fast the commentator could barely keep up.

In the blink of an eye—

BOOM!

The first goal was scored.

The stadium erupted into thunderous cheers.

The match was officially ignited.

The Ilvermorny team immediately felt the pressure of the home crowd.

Their first offensive attempt was quickly intercepted.

The Weasley twins seized the opportunity and slammed a Bludger straight at the opposing keeper’s stomach.

The impact was so strong it nearly knocked him off his broom.

The crowd roared like a volcano.

To outsiders, it sounded like they were celebrating a goal.

That energy only fueled the twins further.

Bludger after Bludger flew like artillery shells toward Ilvermorny’s players.

The Quaffle stayed almost entirely in Gryffindor control.

Under the twins’ overwhelming pressure, even the opposing Beaters were forced into full defense.

Their offense collapsed completely.

They could only barely block incoming attacks at dangerous angles.

In return, they could no longer disrupt Gryffindor’s rhythm.

The score quickly jumped to 60–20.

Oliver Wood was truly a model captain for all future Quidditch leaders.

Under his command, Gryffindor had reached its peak form.

And today, his goal was simple—

To crush the opponent completely.

Even while suppressing them, he continued adjusting tactics.

A slow, crushing victory through pure score dominance.

But then—something unexpected happened.

Gryffindor’s brooms were among the worst in the tournament, some even old "Comet" models.

Under repeated sharp turns and accumulated wear...

BOOM!

One broom suddenly disintegrated mid-air.

Allen instinctively tried to move—but Albus Dumbledore acted first, gently lowering the falling player to safety.

But the broom itself was beyond saving.

Normally, the match should have been paused immediately.

But even the referee froze in shock—

It was the first time he had ever seen a broom disintegrate mid-flight.

Before Wood and the others could fully react—

An Ilvermorny player seized the Quaffle.

A rapid exchange of dozens of passes happened before the whistle even sounded.

By the time a spare broom was delivered from Hufflepuff students—

The score had already jumped to 110–320.

And worse—

The score was valid.

Boos filled the stadium.

But Ilvermorny didn’t care.

They valued results over process.

The crowd began shouting for a rematch, but the ruling stood:

The match would continue.

No rules had been broken.

No interruption was official.

Every goal counted.

But the real problem wasn’t the score.

It was the players.

New brooms and new wands meant no adjustment time.

Gryffindor’s previously overwhelming momentum had been forcibly broken.

The match had entered a stalemate.