Dudley, who was watching from the audience, was stunned. He hadn't expected Lockhart to have him come up on stage to demonstrate with Snape.
At the same time, everyone's eyes fell on Dudley.
Everyone was familiar with Dudley. Last semester, everyone knew about him riding the Norwegian Ridgeback to battle a dark wizard. This semester he'd also caused quite a stir, like putting Lockhart in the hospital for a full half month before he could return to teach.
"That's the second-year student with high talent," someone whispered.
"I heard he doesn't get along with Professor Snape."
"It's not just him. Gryffindor and Slytherin have never gotten along peacefully."
Everyone discussed among themselves, sensing there'd be a good show to watch.
Not just in terms of duelling, but also the rivalry between the two houses.
"Professor Snape, you don't mind, do you? Dudley is my most outstanding student in Defence Against the Dark Arts," Lockhart didn't forget to flash his charming smile at Snape.
Looking at Snape's side, his face was iron-blue, and whether looking at Lockhart or Dudley, his gaze appeared extremely cold.
"Professor, this isn't appropriate," Hermione immediately spoke up after hesitating for a moment.
"Dudley's just a student. How can he be a match for Professor Snape?"
Lockhart smiled slightly and said, "Miss Granger, don't worry. This is just a demonstration of spells, not a real duel."
"Then it should be two students demonstrating on stage," Harry couldn't help but say.
"Oh, well, let's see what Professor Snape thinks then." Lockhart threw the difficult decision to Snape, looking like he was enjoying the show.
He clearly knew Dudley's strength was formidable. Bringing up Dudley at this time was to have Dudley deal with Professor Snape.
He also knew the two didn't get along. Once they faced off, a real conflict might erupt.
But when Snape had attacked him just now, he hadn't left him any face, causing him to lose face in front of all the students in the school. That made him very embarrassed.
Having Dudley step up might make Professor Snape stumble in front of everyone. That'd be quite entertaining.
Professor Snape on stage narrowed his eyes slightly, glared at Lockhart, then looked at Dudley.
"If Mr Dursley has no objections, I'm willing to demonstrate with him," Professor Snape said indifferently.
Being able to dampen Dudley's arrogance in front of so many people was something Snape was willing to see.
He'd always found Dudley disagreeable, especially since Dudley often caused trouble for Slytherin and had beaten his prized student Malfoy. What made him most angry was that he'd never had a chance to properly teach Dudley a lesson.
Last time in the corridor battle, he'd inexplicably fainted and stayed in the hospital for a long time. That made Snape hate Dudley even more.
This time, in front of so many people, it was indeed an excellent opportunity to teach Dudley a lesson.
Even knowing this was Lockhart's deliberate arrangement, he didn't refuse.
Dudley frowned as he looked at Snape, then glanced at Lockhart. These two really knew how to scheme.
"Fine." After pondering for a moment, Dudley nodded.
"Go, Dudley!" someone shouted loudly.
"We're rooting for you!" Gryffindor students supported Dudley one after another.
"Beat him hard!" After Ron's words fell, he was glared at fiercely by Snape.
"Professor Snape, teach that guy a harsh lesson."
"Beat him! Beat him!" Malfoy shouted loudly, wishing he could rush onto the stage himself to teach Dudley a lesson.
Slytherin students loudly cheered for Snape, especially the second-year students, whose voices were so loud they almost lifted the Great Hall's ceiling.
The scene of Dudley beating them up last year was still vivid in their memories. Dudley's subsequent display of strength made them realise they probably wouldn't be able to get revenge on Dudley in this lifetime.
Today they finally caught an opportunity.
Even though this was just a spell demonstration, the crowd's roars made it seem as intense as a life-and-death duel.
Dudley leaped onto the stage with Gryffindor's cheers.
"Dursley, if you're afraid, it's still not too late to back down now," Snape looked at Dudley and said coldly.
"I'm honoured to face off with you, Professor Snape. How could I back down?" Dudley responded with a smile.
"Very good. I hope you can still smile later." Snape narrowed his eyes.
"Alright, you two, please bow first. We must follow etiquette like in a formal duel," Lockhart said with a smile, making himself the referee of this duel.
Dudley and Snape simultaneously bowed to each other.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the exciting duel's about to begin. Please make sure not to blink," Lockhart said to everyone below in an exaggerated tone, creating a very tense atmosphere.
"Next, raise your wands."
Both simultaneously raised their wands like swords in front of their chests.
"I'll count to three, and then you can begin casting."
"Remember, this is just a demonstration. Don't use attack-type spells."
Lockhart emphasised once more.
Snape looked at Lockhart with icy eyes, clearly having lost patience.
"Three!"
"Two!"
"One!"
Lockhart's voice echoed through the vast Great Hall. Everyone held their breath and stared wide-eyed at the scene on stage.
Snape's reaction speed was extremely fast. The moment Lockhart's voice fell, he was already waving his wand to cast.
Looking at Dudley's side, he was obviously a step slower, just like Professor Lockhart earlier.
Seeing this scene, everyone seemed to have already predicted the outcome. Dudley would be disarmed by Professor Snape and then fly out embarrassingly.
"Expell..." Snape's voice came.
However, at the same time, Dudley had already finished his incantation.
"Expelliarmus!"
He didn't wave his wand, nor did he make any sound. In his mind, he recited the spell in Hermes.
Swoosh.
A red light suddenly appeared, shooting directly at Professor Snape, accurately hitting him before his spell could be fully cast.
Bang!
The tremendous force made Snape stagger backward and fall to the ground, while his wand flew out ahead of him, drawing a beautiful arc and landing in Dudley's hand.
The entire movement was fluid without any hesitation.
The Great Hall fell completely silent at this moment. Many people hadn't even reacted to what had just happened.
The scene they'd imagined of Dudley flying out not only didn't appear, but instead Snape had been disarmed by Dudley.
"Professor Snape, thank you for your cooperation," Dudley smiled at Snape, who was getting up from the ground with a shocked expression not far away.