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"Draco, you're not talking about me… are you?"
That greasy tone, combined with the unmistakable platinum blond hair.
If it wasn't Malfoy, then who else could it be?
"Robert, who do you think I am? I'm Malfoy. When I say something, I mean it."
"Don't compare me to just anyone else."
Malfoy looked at Ron with disdain, slightly lifting his heels as if trying to look down on him. Unfortunately, he was a bit shorter, so even on tiptoe, they were still eye level.
"You're late."
Ron's voice rose slightly as he shouted angrily.
"And my name is Ron. Ron Weasley, not Robert."
"Alright, Robert."
Malfoy waved his hand impatiently, clearly uninterested in talking to him, and turned his attention to Harry, which only made Ron even more furious.
"Potter, where's your assistant? Is it this Robert, or… uh…"
Malfoy originally intended to mock him, but when he saw Hermione, he hesitated.
After all, everyone in Slytherin knew how close Dudley was to this Gryffindor girl.
"Ron. It's Ron," Harry corrected him, then quickly added, "Hermione just came along out of curiosity. She won't interfere."
He didn't want to drag her into this.
Ron looked at Malfoy with ill intent, eager to start something.
"So where's your assistant, Malfoy? Those two fat guys always following you around?"
"Or are you planning to fight alone?"
"Hmph. If you want to fight two-on-one, go ahead."
Malfoy wasn't intimidated at all.
Potter was barely worth his attention, and as for this Ron…
He had already found a very reliable assistant.
"Draco, you're not talking about me… are you?"
Another voice came from the door.
A large figure blocked the light from the hallway.
"Dudley?!"
"D!"
Two voices full of surprise echoed at the same time.
"Heh. This is my assistant."
Malfoy looked proud, raising his chin slightly in Harry's direction.
At first, Malfoy had considered backing out.
But after spending time with Dudley, he had changed a lot.
Of course, that had nothing to do with how much he still disliked Harry.
If before it was about Harry refusing to be his friend…
Now it was…
Why did Potter get to have a brother like that?
"I don't remember agreeing to that."
Dudley shook his head helplessly.
"Having me fight my own cousin?"
After all, Malfoy had improved a lot recently.
Otherwise, Dudley wouldn't have bothered guiding him.
"What are you all doing here in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"
Dudley had just finished his night training when he ran into Malfoy sneaking out.
After hearing about the meeting, he simply followed along.
Harry glared at Malfoy before explaining.
"This is my brother."
"A wizard duel?"
After hearing the explanation, Dudley's expression became strange.
He glanced around the cramped room.
"Here?"
There was barely space to move.
Were they planning to duel or play cards?
Then again…
Three people was just enough.
Of course, that was considering Dudley's size.
"Hermione, they're going to duel. Why are you here?"
Dudley walked over, took off his coat, and placed it over her shoulders.
It was a bit cold at night.
"I couldn't sleep… and I was worried they'd get caught and lose points."
Hermione answered vaguely, avoiding the situation in the common room.
Seeing that Dudley didn't press further, she quietly let out a breath.
At first, Dudley thought this was just childish play.
But seeing the way Harry and Malfoy stared at each other…
Sparks practically flying…
He became interested.
"So… you really want to fight?"
"Yeah!" they answered in unison.
"Then go ahead."
Dudley had no intention of stopping them.
"Dudley?"
Hermione looked at him in disbelief.
Harry was his cousin.
Dudley shrugged.
He didn't know why they didn't get along…
But if they wanted to fight, then fight.
At this stage, whether they won or lost wouldn't do either of them any harm.
With their current level, the most they could do was produce a few sparks from their wands.
At worst, it would turn into a fistfight.
Maybe a black eye or two.
Nothing serious.
And Dudley had potions to fix that easily.
Besides…
A lot of friendships between boys start this way.
"Tomorrow morning. Six o'clock. Same place."
If they really wanted a duel, Dudley would rather move it outside.
More space.
Fewer people.
"Now… go back and sleep."
Dudley didn't support staying up late.
Bad for the body.
Bad for the skin.
But waking up early?
That he approved.
With Dudley stepping in, the fight was postponed.
Even if they didn't want to.
They followed behind him obediently.
Dudley would escort Hermione back to Gryffindor first, then return to Slytherin with Malfoy.
To be fair, Hogwarts Castle was enormous.
Much bigger inside than it looked from the outside.
Clearly, extension charms had been used.
There were a total of 142 staircases.
Just thinking about it was enough to give someone a headache.
And memorizing them didn't help…
Because they moved.
Constantly.
With that many staircases shifting around, the number of possible routes was absurd.
The entire place was like a giant maze.
Not getting lost was already an achievement.
There was even a saying…
If you hadn't gotten lost in Hogwarts, you hadn't really attended Hogwarts.
Luckily, most of the time, things were still manageable.
Otherwise, students would spend their entire day just trying to find their way.
And the staircases had even more surprises.
On Fridays, they sometimes connected to completely different locations.
Strange rooms.
Unknown areas.
That was why many students loved exploring.
You never knew what you might find next.
Dudley stared at the corridor in front of him.
He was certain…
This path had not been here before.
So this was one of those "surprises."
But he wasn't amused.
"This… isn't this the forbidden corridor on the fourth floor?!"
Ron looked around in shock.
"How did we end up here?"
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