According to Quidditch rules, whichever team catches the Golden Snitch first receives one hundred and fifty points. At the same time, the match ends immediately.
This means that as long as the score difference between the two teams hasn't exceeded one hundred and fifty points, whoever catches the Snitch will win the match.
So, when the Golden Snitch appeared, both Harry and Slytherin's Seeker naturally rushed toward it without hesitation.
Their starting times were nearly identical, and initially they flew neck and neck.
But as the youngest Seeker in a century, Harry's reputation was well-deserved. Despite starting simultaneously, he quickly pulled ahead by an entire body length thanks to his special flying technique and equipment advantage.
Anyone with the slightest bit of perception could see that barring any accidents, Harry would inevitably catch the Golden Snitch.
Snape, who had witnessed this scene, revealed a flash of obvious disgust in his eyes, though no one knew what he was thinking.
Not far from his right hand, Quirrell, who had been staring at Harry intently, suddenly narrowed his eyes.
Hermione, who had hidden nearby early on as instructed, saw this scene and quickly gripped her wand tightly.
Was he finally going to make his move?
Just as Harry was about to catch the Snitch, everything changed suddenly.
With a thunderous "BOOM," Slytherin captain Marcus Flint flew in from the side and crashed straight into Harry.
Under the violent impact, Harry's Nimbus 2000 was knocked sharply off course.
Fortunately, having received Sherlock's warning beforehand, Harry had maintained full mental preparation. When this sudden crisis struck, he immediately grabbed his broomstick with both hands in the first instant.
The entire stadium immediately erupted in a chorus of boos.
Madam Hooch directly blew her whistle to interrupt the match. She flew angrily to Flint and strongly condemned his behavior, then awarded Gryffindor a penalty shot in front of the goal posts.
"Flint did that on purpose!" Ron roared furiously.
Dean shouted even louder: "Malicious foul! Send him off, referee! Give him a red card!"
"You can't send players off in Quidditch," Ron said to Dean, feeling somewhat regretful. "Also, what's a red card?"
Hagrid expressed his agreement with Thomas at this moment: "They should change the rules of the game. Flint nearly knocked Harry off his broom in midair."
"He'll pay the price," Sherlock said quietly, looking at the tall Flint.
Ron, Hagrid, Dean and the others suddenly felt as if the temperature around them had dropped several degrees.
As Angelina Johnson scored the penalty, the score became twenty to ten with Gryffindor leading again, and the interrupted match resumed.
But after all this commotion, the Golden Snitch had disappeared from everyone's sight, which was somewhat disappointing.
Harry actually felt relieved. Due to Sherlock's warning, he had been on high alert from the very beginning. He had even thought that Flint's brutal collision was also Quirrell's doing.
But now it seemed that was just the opponent's personal behavior—simply a player with no sportsmanship and corrupt moral character.
After mentally condemning his opponent strongly, Harry, who was now wandering aimlessly in the high sky, felt somewhat idle and couldn't help but think:
"Could Sherlock have been wrong? Even if Quirrell really wanted to harm me, he wouldn't be crazy enough to do it in front of all the teachers and students..."
However, the moment this thought arose, his flying broomstick suddenly gave a terrifying jolt.
"Shit!" Harry cursed.
He quickly abandoned any wishful thinking and immediately used all four limbs, gripping the broomstick tightly with both hands while clamping it firmly with his knees.
Just one second later, he realized how wise this decision was.
The previously obedient Nimbus 2000 completely ignored his control and began flying rapidly through the air, accompanied by violent left-right swaying.
Clearly, the flying broomstick intended to throw its master from the sky during continuous spiral ascent.
Sherlock naturally was the first to notice Harry's abnormal condition. He quickly turned his telescope toward Quirrell.
Sure enough, Quirrell in the lens was staring intently at Harry. Strangely, he wasn't speaking as one might expect.
Sherlock immediately understood—it was a nonverbal spell!
He then directed the lens toward Snape. This one wasn't staring at Harry like Quirrell and apparently hadn't noticed anything amiss yet.
This was mainly because Slytherin had just thrown the Quaffle through Gryffindor's goal posts again, tying the score and attracting the attention of most people, including Snape.
However, Snape was still Snape—he quickly discovered the problem and immediately began responding.
At this time, only a few people noticed that the Nimbus 2000 was convulsing and twisting wildly like something possessed, carrying Harry higher and higher, away from the pitch.
Ron, who had been instructed by Sherlock, immediately became anxious: "Sherlock!"
"I really don't know what Harry's trying to do," Hagrid muttered, still not realizing the severity of the situation. "If I didn't know him so well, I'd think he couldn't control his broomstick..."
"You're quite right," Sherlock said with a cold gaze, handing his telescope to Ron. "Keep watching him!"
The "him" naturally referred to Snape.
Ron grabbed the telescope and saw Snape standing in the middle of the stands opposite them, staring intently at Harry with his lips moving constantly.
"What's he doing? Being malicious?"
"Quite the opposite—he's protecting Harry!"
After saying this, Sherlock raised his wand. A purple firework burst from the tip of his wand.
Having gotten the answer, he wanted, it was time to act.
By now, even the most thickheaded people realized something was wrong.
Lee Jordan spoke rapidly: "What's wrong with Potter? His broomstick seems to have a problem! My God, he can't control himself!"
Madam Hooch was also somewhat confused, hesitating whether to terminate the match.
Just then, Marcus Flint again displayed his complete lack of sportsmanship, seizing this opportunity to grab the Quaffle and score three consecutive goals.
However, all the Gryffindor players had their attention on Harry, and not one of them bothered with Flint.
A crowd of people rushed toward Harry, trying to bring him to a safe area first. But before they could get close, the broomstick rose higher again, leaving them far behind.
On the other side of the stands, Hermione, who had been lurking near Quirrell, watched Harry's situation with her eyes and felt anxious in her heart.
Like Sherlock, she had guessed that Quirrell was casting a nonverbal spell. But remembering Sherlock's earlier instructions, she forced herself to be patient and not interfere.
Frantically worried, her gaze constantly moved between Harry, Quirrell, and Sherlock's position below the banner.
Several times she was about to act impulsively, but ultimately chose to trust Sherlock.
She clasped her hands together on her knees, silently praying for Harry's safety.
Finally, a purple firework rose from the direction of the banner.
Hermione immediately realized this was Sherlock's signal to her.
Without hesitation, she drew her wand and whispered the spell she had prepared long ago.
Soon, bright blue flames leaped from her wand and shot straight toward the hem of Quirrell's robes.
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