Chapter 50: Why Not Play an Exciting Game of Flying Chess?

Hermione blushed when she heard Erwin's words.

But she didn't hesitate.

Taking a deep breath, she jumped down.

Erwin's arms caught Hermione, swaying slightly under her weight.

Then he said something that made Hermione's composure shatter instantly.

"Why do you feel heavier than last time?"

Hermione slapped frantically at Erwin's chest.

Even after he set her down, she still twisted his arm half a turn in retaliation.

Harry and Ron above were relieved to see that everything was fine and jumped down one by one.

Then came the sound of...

"Ouch!" x2

"Erwin, you already caught Hermione, why didn't you catch both of us?"

Harry and Ron rubbed their sore backsides and looked at Erwin resentfully.

Although soft plants were cushioning the ground, they still felt pain from jumping that high.

Erwin looked at them like they were idiots.

"Are you two the same as Hermione?"

Pfft!

That sentence was like a sharp arrow, piercing both their hearts.

They looked at Erwin, then at Hermione.

After confirming with their eyes, both realized they were dealing with people they couldn't manage easily.

Seeing their silly expressions, Erwin ignored them.

How could he let a girl hit the ground?

"[Lumos]"

The group cast the light spell with their wands, illuminating the room.

Hermione screamed when she saw the plants covering the ground.

"Oh my God! This is Devil's Snare; they're dangerous. We need to use fire..."

Before she could finish speaking, Erwin snapped his fingers.

"[Ring of Fire]!"

After he spoke, a ring of flames appeared from beneath his feet, then rapidly expanded outward.

The Devil's Snare recoiled as if meeting its natural predator, immediately withdrawing all its vines.

The speed was so fast that the three young students were stunned.

"Let's go. Don't waste time here."

Regardless of their astonishment, Erwin walked in the direction where the Devil's Snare had retreated, where a wooden door stood.

Harry looked at Erwin enviously.

He also wanted to be as cool and powerful as him.

Snapping his fingers and summoning whatever he wanted.

Too bad Harry didn't even know what spell Erwin had used, let alone how to cast spells without a wand.

In reality, it wasn't a standard spell at all, but fine control over the flame-conjuring charm.

The large number of skills Erwin had obtained recently had elevated his application of basic spells to a state of near perfection.

Just now, Erwin had simply made up a name to sound impressive.

Obviously, this wave of showing off was very successful.

There were even little stars appearing in Hermione's eyes beside him…

Walking through the wooden door, everyone was dumbfounded when they saw the winged keys flying through the air.

Harry spotted the broom nearby, and his eyes lit up.

"There's a broom over there… We just need to..."

Before he finished speaking, Erwin pointed at the ground.

A giant hand instantly materialized from the floor, sweeping toward the sky and directly grabbing more than half of the keys in one motion.

Erwin snapped his fingers again, and his palm instantly transformed into a cage, trapping the keys inside.

"Look for one with an injured wing. If someone opened the door recently, that key's wings must be different from the others."

After speaking, Erwin conjured a chair and sat down.

Mainly because he couldn't stand it anymore.

Was the broom sitting there supposed to be subtle?

It was almost like going to an escape room and having someone slap a map directly on your face.

Harry's mouth opened.

'Well, I still have some use. At least I can still find the key.'

Consoling himself, Harry and Ron went up to search for the key.

Meanwhile, Hermione remained by Erwin's side, and the two shared a conjured lounge chair.

They watched Harry and Ron leisurely as the two boys struggled to find the correct key.

When the pair finally found a key with sky-blue wings and inserted it into the keyhole on the stone wall, after a harsh grinding sound, the stone door opened.

As soon as the door opened, the key was ejected.

Having been caught twice in a row, it looked exhausted.

The group passed through the stone gate and entered a dark hall.

Suddenly, the room was brightly lit, revealing the shocking scene within.

Before them stretched a massive chessboard.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione paled.

The pieces on the chessboard were enormous, more than twice their height.

Facing them were the black pieces, and opposite stood the white pieces.

The white pieces had nothing on their faces, and combined with the black and white chessboard, they looked particularly gloomy and empty.

Several black pieces were obviously missing, clearly meant for them to act as chess pieces.

If they could defeat their opponent, they would be able to pass through.

At this moment, Erwin's inner commentary was burning strong.

Could the design of these levels be any more obvious?!

The last level was meant to showcase Harry's flying skills, and this level was clearly designed for Ron.

Was this a custom service in the wizarding world?

'Professor McGonagall, why didn't you just get a flying chessboard and let them play an exciting game of flying chess?'