Hogwarts, Gryffindor Common Room.

Penny Dursley sat in a corner, quietly watching the little wizards in the distance, enthusiastically discussing tactics.

Unlike Mr. Weasley, who seemed trustworthy and full of professional advice, simply understanding the conversation between the wizards consumed most of Penny's energy. Even though she had a witch sister who seemed to have been very good, her understanding of the magical world was only slightly better than that of an ordinary Muggle.

Perhaps even less than some of the other "Muggle" parents present... She subconsciously glanced at Dr. Granger not far away.

Clearly, that gentleman also came from the non-magical world, but Penny couldn't see any restraint on his face. From the moment he entered, he had been quietly talking to his daughter.

This wasn't surprising, as it had been the same every time Lily returned home for the summer holidays when she was enrolled at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

From the beginning of the summer to the end, most of the conversations at the Evans family's dinner table were about magic, Hogwarts, and Gryffindor stories.

Situations like Harry, who was clearly a wizard but seemed to have no presence in the house on Privet Drive, probably only happened in their family.

Although deep down, Penny wasn't as afraid of magic as she showed her husband and son, she had to acquiesce to, and even deliberately guide, the strange atmosphere in the house where they pretended that magic didn't exist, even though they had seen it with their own eyes. This sometimes made her seem neurotic, even overly sensitive.

Just like the "polite refusal" letter from Hogwarts decades ago, as a Muggle, she could only secretly hide her admiration for magic in her heart.

According to Professor Dumbledore, this was the only way her family would be safer... her husband, her son, or her nephew.

"Is something the matter? Aren't you going to say a few words to your child?"

Just as Penny Dursley was slightly lost in thought, a gentle voice sounded beside her.

She turned her head and saw a plump woman with a gentle smile who had somehow passed through the door behind the portrait and sat down beside her.

"You must be Harry's aunt, I'm Molly, Molly Weasley. You might not remember—we met at James and Lily's wedding."

Mrs. Weasley looked at the people in the distance who were seriously discussing tactics, and proudly pointed her finger casually.

"Those are my children, well, those red-haired little fellows are."

"Uh, all of them? There are..."

Penny's thoughts were suddenly interrupted, and she subconsciously looked in the direction Mrs. Weasley was pointing.

"Seven, that's right—I know it sounds a bit exaggerated, but thankfully the fourth and fifth are twins."

Mrs. Weasley obviously understood the surprise on Penny's face and explained skillfully, "Charlie and Bill originally graduated from Hogwarts, but they've been called back for further study now."

She casually pointed at her second and eldest sons, then turned to look at the still somewhat bewildered parent from the non-magical world.

"What about you? How many children do you have?"

"Just one, or two if you include Harry."

Penny Dursley shrugged her shoulders, and the tension in her heart eased slightly.

"Are they the same age? Honestly, if they're not the same age, there's just too much to worry about—"

"Dudley's a bit older, but they're in the same grade—well, if Harry hadn't gone to Hogwarts to study, I mean."

"Oh, then you'll have to persevere for a bit longer. I've heard that full-time boarding is rare in the non-magical world."

Mrs. Weasley rubbed her shoulders, seemingly releasing some long-accumulated fatigue, looking at her children and husband in the distance.

"It's much easier on my side. Since Ginny went to Hogwarts to study, there's not much to do at home... You'll have to work hard for at least a few more years."

"Actually, it's not that hard... Dudley's been getting more and more sensible lately—"

Penny paused, looking curiously at Mrs. Weasley, and couldn't help but ask a question.

"How often are these Hogwarts parents' evenings held? You have so many children, you must come to school often, right?"

"This is the first time, I think. Hogwarts didn't allow parents to visit before, except for Christmas, Easter, and summer vacation. We usually can't see our children."

"The first time? No wonder..."

Penny Dursley nodded thoughtfully.

Just as she was about to ask more, Mr. Granger suddenly walked over to them.

"Excuse me, ladies, I'll interrupt for a moment," Mr. Granger said, "The children seem to be going to the competition venue to prepare. Would you like to say something?"

"I don't need to..."

Penny shook her head in a panic, subconsciously trying to shrink back.

Like her, Harry also seemed a little embarrassed. He had just noticed his Aunt Penny sitting next to Mrs. Weasley.

"...Uh, Aunt Penny. Why did you come... I... um..."

"There's a parents' meeting after the competition, what, you didn't think you could escape, did you?"

Fred exclaimed, nudging Harry's back with his elbow, pushing him forward under his mother's subtle prompting.

As one of the Weasley family's prankster twins, he and George had been able to survive safely to this day thanks to their ability to understand people's expressions and read between the lines.

"I heard you're representing Gryffindor in the competition later?"

To Harry's surprise, Aunt Penny didn't display her usual neurosis.

In fact, what surprised him even more was that Aunt Penny accurately pronounced the word "Gryffindor."

"I can't give you any advice about magical duels—be careful, and perform well."

Before Harry could struggle out of his confused thoughts, he felt a thin, trembling hand gently ruffle his messy black hair.

Looking into Harry's green eyes, Penny Dursley's eyes couldn't help but blur for a moment, and after thinking for a while, she added seriously.

"Remember, don't overdo it..."

…………

Meanwhile, in the Hogwarts staff room.

Compared to the excitement in other parts of the school, the atmosphere in this office was particularly tense and serious.

The four Hogwarts Heads of House, the caretaker, and the professors were all gathered here, finalizing the arrangements for today's events.

"For the competition, Madam Hooch, you're mainly responsible for the aerial area..."

"Um, so... all duel adjudication will be handled by Miss Kaslana?"

"That's the temporary arrangement. The prefects and other professors will be scattered in the corners of the stands as a mobile force."

Professor McGonagall nodded with a serious expression, looking around at the professors in the room. "This morning's competition is fine, the most important thing is the afternoon and evening..."

"Locking down the school, how are we going to explain it if the parents find out?"

Professor Flitwick frowned, asking with a solemn expression.

"That's only in the worst-case scenario, if something unexpected happens with Professor Dumbledore—"

Professor McGonagall said quickly, glancing at a little white-haired girl sitting in the corner, listening to stories obediently.

"As for the emergency lockdown of the school, the school board members will help explain things at that time—if everything goes smoothly, we just need to follow the normal procedures, explain things to the parents of each grade, and that should buy us quite a bit of time. As for the chaos, we've also set up some safety measures at the Quidditch pitch."

"What about the students' magical duels..." Professor Sprout asked with some worry.

"Don't worry, Professor. Leave these to me."

Eileen took out a badge from her bosom and showed it to Professor Sprout and the others in her hand.

"I'm now an intermediate healer, and in terms of emergency injury treatment and spell mediation, with Madam Pomfrey and I, there's absolutely no need to worry."

As her magical power increased, her ability to "extend life" in the field of healing was no less than that of an adult healer. Although this badge had some back door components, it was still a solid certification.

According to the healers at the Salzburg Magical Hospital, unless someone was instantly blown to pieces or hit by the Killing Curse, as long as there was a breath left, Eileen could save them.

"But..." Professor Sprout was still a little uneasy. Hogwarts had no precedent for competitions led by students.

"Let the students handle the students' duels, Professor Sprout."

Professor Snape shook his head lightly, glancing at the little witch sitting in the corner of the sofa.

Unlike the other professors, he immediately understood the other layer of meaning behind Professor McGonagall's arrangement.

Under the watchful eyes of the professors, parents, and students, Eileen in the center of the field was actually in the safest state... from all aspects.

…………

At ten o'clock.

The entire school's faculty and students came to the stands around the Quidditch pitch one after another.

Many students also brought binoculars, but they soon realized that this was unnecessary.

After magical modification, the venue had added many new features. Four huge magic screens hung in the air, showing the situation below in real-time.

The ground of the Quidditch pitch had been transformed overnight into a smooth, verdant grass field, and in the center of the grass field, a rectangular stage that looked like an enlarged badminton court had appeared.

The Gryffindor students gathered together, facing the Slytherin camp sitting on the other side. The only difference was that the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw students were now mixed in both camps.

Seamus Finnigan didn't know where he got a bed sheet, and cast an Enlargement Charm on it to turn it into a huge banner with [Gryffindor Will Win] written on it. Dean, who was good at painting, also used magic to paint a large Gryffindor lion underneath, and several other upperclassmen cast more decorative spells on it, making the paint on the banner flicker with dazzling light, like a golden-red torch constantly dancing in the sun.

"This inter-house magical duel, is it really not dangerous?"

Penny sat in the stands, looking at the stands that resembled an arena from time to time, and looking at the leaflet in her hand from time to time.

From any point of view, this was at least at the level of a boxing match—considering the magical factors, it might be closer to the Western cowboy duels she had seen on TV.

"Don't worry, ma'am—this is much safer than Quidditch. Besides, Miss Kaslana is patrolling the field as a referee, no one will die."

Lee Jordan grinned, adjusting the metal microphone in his hand while casually reassuring her.

Since the Hogwarts Quidditch matches had opened a new chapter, magical duels were no longer considered intense in the eyes of the little wizards.

As a Quidditch enthusiast, Lee Jordan had not missed any of the Gryffindor team's matches... whether it was a formal match or a practice match, he was one of the few wizards who had personally witnessed the "Queen of the Sky" at full power.

"Quidditch?" Penny frowned slightly, she vaguely remembered hearing about it from Lily.

"Oh, it's a wizarding sport, passing a ball in the sky while riding broomsticks..." Seamus Finnigan came over and enthusiastically explained.

"Passing... a ball in the sky? That sounds okay—"

Accompanied by Seamus's explanation, Penny Dursley looked at the goalposts standing at both ends of the field and nodded in relief.

Perhaps she was a little too nervous.

Come to think of it, this was, after all, a school.

How could a competition at a magic school be comparable to the death threats that Lily had faced?

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Yay!