Case Re-evaluation
## Chapter 156: Case Re-examination
A dark gray, slimy body wriggled forward in the damp, gloomy farmland. The spinach and cabbage, usually so familiar, loomed like castles.
It slowly crawled among them.
The sun was about to rise, and it didn't want to be exposed.
Suddenly, the leaves shielding its head were pushed aside, and a giant child leaned over, looking down at it, and exclaimed, "Look, a snail!"
"No, it's not. It's a slug," another even taller giant said, picking up its soft body with a pair of pincers.
"A slug with antennae can be used to brew a Pimple-Curing Potion," the giant said. "But we need to dry it first."
The giant placed it under the sun. The scorching sunlight baked its back. It felt like it was about to die from the heat, desperately twisting, struggling, gasping for breath in agony…
Wade woke with a start, tearing off the blanket wrapped around him. With a wave of his hand, the candle by his bed lit up.
He touched his forehead; it was slick with cold sweat.
His mouth tasted terribly bitter. He spat out a leaf, and sure enough, the third Mandrake leaf also had a missing corner.
Although Wade knew that the "slug" thing was just a joke from Professor Murray, he actually dreamed of turning into a slug while sleeping, which was just awful.
It couldn't be some kind of… prophetic dream, could it?
Wade immediately pulled back the curtains and got out of bed. He looked at his dorm room and waved his Wand—
A dozen sheets of parchment flew up, enlarged, and stuck to the wall. On the blank paper, images of eagles soaring in various poses gradually appeared.
*CRACK!*
The candlestick transformed into an eagle perched on a branch.
*CRACK!*
An eagle-shaped relief appeared on the wardrobe.
*CRACK!*
Swirling cloud patterns appeared on the legs of the desk, and a dozen eagles with outstretched wings appeared on the desktop, ready to strike.
Everywhere he looked, there were images of eagles.
Wade snorted in his heart.
Get lost, slugs!
He was a Ravenclaw; if he was going to transform, it would be into an eagle!
After hypnotizing himself this way for over ten minutes, Wade finally lay back down on the bed.
…
It was the weekend, the time Wade had arranged to meet Marchioni.
The weather that day was unusually good. Most people eagerly rushed to the Game Arena, with some shouting, "Wade, let your insect army attack too!"
"Yeah, yeah! We've prepared several battle tactics, just waiting to defeat them!"
"Let me tell you, I've gotten used to how ugly spiders and cockroaches are. I'm not scared anymore!"
Wade checked; there was still some time before the appointed hour, so he made an "OK" gesture.
This time, Professor Flitwick had claimed the referee's tall stool.
He saw Wade and said happily, "Oh, oh, I haven't seen the insect army since I became a referee! Everyone says it's the most interesting part of Battle Royale!"
Wade was surprised. Who was spreading these rumors? When they were scared to the point of wetting their pants, did they really find any of it interesting?
He felt it was strange, but his actions didn't hesitate. Just as he was about to find some insects on the leaves, Fred handed him a glass jar.
"I prepared it for you a long time ago!" Fred said with a mischievous grin. "Give those inexperienced little guys a shock from some monsters!"
Wade looked inside and was speechless.
Besides the usual ants and spiders, the jar surprisingly contained flying moths, incredibly ugly orchid mantises, plump white silkworm larvae, slender centipedes, and… grayish-black slugs.
Slugs?
Wade silently looked at Fred.
The red-haired Weasley winked at him and said, "How about it, pretty good, right? It took me a lot of effort to find them."
Professor Flitwick leaned over for a look, then nodded and said, "They are indeed very good! It's a waste to have so few students."
He stood up, waved his Wand, and expanded the Game Arena's fence several times over. Many students who had been watching from outside also became participants.
Including the Weasley Twins.
"Huh? Huh!" Fred was dumbfounded.
"Wait, I want out." Several Gryffindor students who had been complicit with them cried out and fled.
*SMASH!*
The glass jar shattered, and the insects expanded, expanded, expanded…
A three-meter-tall orchid mantis tapped its forelegs, letting out a strange chirping sound.
The slug squirmed, immediately pinning a stunned student beneath its body and coating them in slime.
"Ahhhhhh—!"
Terrified screams echoed throughout the entire school.
Wade felt a little better.
...
When the second game began, the number of participating students was unprecedentedly low.
The insects, having reverted to their original forms, had already hidden away. A few Hufflepuff students repeatedly questioned Wade, and only after confirming that the insect army would not attack again did they cautiously venture in together.
Many students, too demoralized to get back up, lay on the playground recovering, some still quietly weeping. Wade, feeling no guilt, walked through the crowd and returned to the castle.
He was headed to Hogsmeade Village, but the others probably didn't have the energy to sneak out of school for now.
On the eighth floor, only Harry was in the Room of Requirement.
Wade was a little surprised.
Harry knew what he was wondering about and said, "I wanted to ask Lupin about the progress of the case, so I didn't go to the Game Arena… Luckily, I didn't."
He said, still shaken.
Wade chuckled.
The two used the Vanishing Cabinet and were at Lupin's house in a flash. Marchioni had already arrived and was sitting on the living room sofa, chatting with Lupin over tea.
"Remus! Mr. Marchioni!" Harry greeted them enthusiastically. "Any progress on the case?"
"It will be publicly tried next Friday," Lupin said with a smile. "Mr. Marchioni brought the materials… The chances of winning are very high."
"That's great!" Harry cheered, then hesitated, saying, "I… um… that… I can…"
"I'll ask Dumbledore if you can be excused that day so you can attend too."
Lupin knew why he was stammering and said gently, "I think Dumbledore will understand the significance of that day to you. It's far more important than a single class."
Harry was overjoyed.
Marchioni smiled cunningly.
The Boy Who Lived, the Savior of the wizarding world, the boy who lost his parents due to that betrayal, would be sitting in the audience.
His inclinations, his likes and dislikes, and his clear green eyes would undoubtedly subtly influence those making the judgment.
This was an overt plot, perfectly legitimate.
He just wondered how the legendary "godfather," Sirius, who was reportedly mad, would feel seeing that scene.
Leaving Harry and Lupin to discuss the attendance details, Marchioni nodded to Wade, and the two went to the study.
Marchioni asked curiously, "Wade, what was that alchemy creation you mentioned you were going to show me last time? It should be finished by now, right?"
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