Amid the shifting lights and shadows, Allen finally made out the decorations inside the maze, though judging by the floor, it was still the school's dining hall. But at this moment, not a single ray of outside light seeped in.

Under the dim, teal-colored glow, walls woven with ivy cast mottled shadows across the floor. The light came from cleverly crafted little pumpkins hanging on the walls, but the special candles inside gave these once-cute pumpkin lanterns an eerie vibe, like ghostly flames flickering over a graveyard.

What looked like a thin leaf wall blocked all outside sounds, more precisely, even the voices of other students inside the maze couldn't be heard.

Flap-flap!

The sudden sound of wings fluttering broke the silence and caught Allen's attention immediately. Instinctively, he unleashed two Barrier Charms, level ten!

Two pitiful bats fell to the floor, each tied with a water balloon. The faint light reflected off the balloons showed they were anything but harmless water.

"I knew it wouldn't be that simple!" Allen grit his teeth, having just cast Iron Armor Charm to brace for a second attack, their beloved teacher wouldn't set traps without a purpose.

What came next was obvious: a trail of traps all the way through.

Even the most ordinary students now knew one thing for sure, never trust Professor Sigma's principles. Whatever decency he once had was probably sacrificed long ago to some prankster deity, if such a god even existed.

This was no classroom anymore. The professor himself promised everyone a chance to try, but that promise meant you could expect "miraculous" accidents. You'd been warned.

The wisest choice was to quit, but many students only realized that halfway through.

Allen, however, had a special approach.

The maze was twisted and maddening, any snake-game master could tell you how long a snake could coil inside a seemingly tiny space.

That meant a long road ahead, accompanied only by traps, from the initial friendly warning, the rest was clear.

But the fastest way to solve the maze wasn't to cling to one wall searching every corner, nor was it to stare at a map.

No, just as we learned in school, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.

As the slogan goes: Big hammer eighty, small hammer forty, once you break through this wall, we'll be connected.

No wall is too strong to fall eventually, especially one merely reinforced with growth magic on vines meant as a simple barrier.

Even if Dumbledore himself had cast spells to amplify this maze's defenses, Allen was 30% confident he could tear it open. Let alone Sigma's prank-heavy maze.

"Shatter!"

Just as Allen thought, the wall, though fortified with growth and silencing spells, was only slightly tougher than expected.

The tightly wound vines quickly tore open a passage Allen could slip through.

The new path was a dim corridor, but Allen summoned a small floating magical flame that solved the lighting issue well, though it burned more mana than simple glow spells, Allen didn't care; he had enough magic to spare.

Destruction, and forward movement, continued.

After roughly half the distance, Allen finally ran into another student.

Unfortunately, it was a Slytherin.

Maybe Slytherins just looked down on Hufflepuffs, but to Allen, every Slytherin was a walking invitation to a hospital stay.

Normally, strict school rules prevented older students from disciplining Allen, but now…

"Well, look who it is!" came a voice full of surprise, and Allen thought the joy rivaled the day he made a fortune off that killer back then.

"Isn't this the Hufflepuff prodigy, Allen, who took down the whole Slytherin team?" Bathed in the glow of the magic flames, Allen noticed he didn't recognize the Slytherin before him, good news, meaning the opponent probably wasn't very strong.

"You brat, remember my name when you're lying in the hospital, John Lind!" With this shouted introduction, a blue light shot out from the wand.

Playing the big shot? Just a side character from the name alone, Allen thought while moving fast, dodging the spell and sending out a stunning curse.

Crackle! A sizzling sound like butter on a hot pan rang behind him. Allen glanced over quickly, inside, countless alpacas seemed to gallop wildly in his mind.

What the heck, dude!?

That spell was sure to land him a week-long hospital stay! Even a broken arm was just one night's trouble!

Behind him, the vines he'd torn apart had already liquefied into a pale, snake-grass-colored fluid; he suspected the process resembled making that herbal concoction.

Quite a ruthless move, but do you know where the last guy who laid down that kind of hit is now?

Still lying at the bottom of the Thames River, feeding the fish there well.

Allen couldn't kill here, but that didn't mean he lacked ways to vent.

First things first: take down this jerk.

"Heh, brat, you're quick, but don't show off with that stunning curse. Thanks to Sigma, his methods are harsh but effective, huh?"

A violet spell silently shot toward Allen, damn, silent casting! This had to be an upperclassman!

With no time to dodge, Allen used Iron Armor Charm to block it, he hated wasting cooldown on his mana shield unless absolutely necessary.

The armor absorbed most of the unknown spell's power but still knocked Allen back a few steps, attack always has the upper hand over defense. Even Reflective Armor can't counter magic damage.

Quickly, before the next spell came, Allen flipped aside, a clumsy but effective move known as the "rolling donkey."

"Haha, look at our Hufflepuff star, " John mocked as he prepared the next spell.

Suddenly, overwhelming terror struck him, he felt like he'd just met an angry dragon. No, worse, as if some unmentionable great power had returned.

Fear froze him in place, radiating from his very bones, making him want to drop his wand and flee immediately.

Doom Bringer, Fear Spell, Activated!

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