Chapter 333: Break Harry!!
[Ding, sensing that a scene suitable for the Holy Father System has been triggered around the host, now issuing a long-term task:
Break with Harry (A friendship that has never faced rupture is not a complete friendship. Please temporarily sever your relationship with Harry for one month.)]
[Ding, upon successful completion, the host will obtain an Animagus form. Will the host accept the task?]
---
…Wow.
Another long-term task.
Darren was briefly stunned.
He had only wanted to farm a little Holy Father value—shake Harry and the others a bit.
He hadn't expected the system to go this far.
But… for an Animagus—
He'd fight for it.
[Accept]
Darren slowly looked back at Harry and the others.
He didn't say a word.
But the disappointment in his eyes was unmistakable.
Harry had almost never seen him look like this.
They all felt a chill run through them.
They immediately began replaying what they had just said in their heads.
Only then did they realize—
They had been insulting Slytherin.
And Darren… was a Slytherin.
And Darren hated people speaking badly about Slytherins.
To him, Slytherins were not evil.
At most, they were just children who had taken the wrong path.
And many of them didn't even have bad hearts.
"I'm sorry, Darren!"
Harry said hurriedly, guilt written all over his face.
"We shouldn't have insulted Slytherin—I… I won't ever say things like that again!"
He was the one who had said it most directly.
But Darren shook his head.
He looked at Harry as if confused.
"Brother… why do you always push all the blame onto someone else?"
His voice was soft.
But that question cut straight into Harry's chest.
Harry opened his mouth—
But Darren interrupted him again.
"In this matter… we all know Hagrid was partly at fault."
"He brought a Hippogriff—classified as a dangerous magical creature—into his first-ever class…"
"He wasn't fully prepared."
"I know he was nervous because it was his first lesson."
"And because Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall were there, he panicked even more."
"But none of that changes the fact that…"
"…he still brought a dangerous creature into class."
"And he didn't properly monitor the students' safety."
"Yes."
"I admit Malfoy was unpleasant."
"He was reckless, rude… and even provoked Buckbeak directly."
"But…"
"What if he hadn't had a talisman today?"
"He would be dead."
"A student dying in Hagrid's class—"
"Have you ever thought about what Hagrid would face then?"
"So why do you all insist that Malfoy is the only one at fault?"
[Ding, Holy Father value +40]
[Ding, Holy Father value +30]
[Ding, Father value +50]
[Ding …]
Harry and the others grew quiet.
They felt guilty.
But the Father value wasn't rising much.
Darren gave a silent scoff.
Of course it wouldn't end like this.
He looked at them again.
"…Brother."
"Putting Hagrid aside…"
"Do you really hate Slytherin that much?"
Harry and the others panicked all over again.
They hadn't meant for that to slip out.
Now they wanted nothing more than to take their words back.
"No, Darren, I don't mean that!"
"Yeah, Darren, Harry didn't mean it like that!"
"Right, Darren, we promise, we won't say things like that anymore!"
They rushed to explain.
Darren's eyes flickered with emotion.
Harry finally breathed a little easier.
Then Darren spoke again—softly, but firmly.
"Brother…"
"I'm not a child anymore."
"I know what you think."
"Your dislike for Slytherin… isn't something you just say."
"It's rooted deep inside you."
"You avoid saying bad things about Slytherin now…"
"Only because of me."
"But I don't want that."
"I am a Slytherin."
"Completely."
"…Forget it."
"Maybe we both need some space."
"I'll stop bothering you so much."
"After all…"
"I'm a Slytherin."
That was it.
Harry froze.
Before he could react—
Darren patted Hagrid on the shoulder.
"Hagrid, I'll go find Malfoy and apologize."
"I'll try to keep him from pushing for your dismissal."
"Cheer up, alright?"
Then he gave a small smile.
"I'm leaving."
"I shouldn't stay here long anyway."
"I am a Slytherin, after all."
[Ding, Father value +100]
[Ding, Father value +100]
[Ding, Father value +100]
[Ding …]
Darren nodded politely to them—
Then turned and walked away.
---
After he was gone—
Ron stared at Harry in disbelief.
"Harry… Darren just… broke with you."
Everyone knew Darren respected Harry more than anyone.
He practically treated him as the most important person in his life.
Not even Headmaster Dumbledore ranked higher.
Darren had said many times—
Harry protects the world. I'll protect Harry.
And now…
He'd walked away.
"I… I didn't mean for this to happen!"
Harry kicked the table leg hard.
His face was twisted with frustration.
"I just said what most people think about Slytherin…"
"He knows I didn't mean it like that!"
"So why didn't he understand?!"
Harry paced back and forth, agitated and restless.
Hagrid, who had been crying just moments before, couldn't even cry anymore.
One moment he thought he'd lose his job—
The next, Darren and Harry had fallen out.
How did things turn into this?
"Darren probably didn't mean it seriously…"
Hermione said quietly.
"He's just angry. We can go talk to him again."
But Harry and Ron only felt regret.
They shouldn't have said those things.
Not a single word.
They kept telling themselves:
He's just upset.
He'll calm down.
We just need to apologize again.
That's what they believed.
Until they returned to the castle.
Until they saw Professor McGonagall's expression.
She strode toward them, her face grim.
"You three… had a fight with Darren?"
Her gaze was sharp.
And cold.
Like she was looking at three heartless traitors.
"I thought you understood by now…"
"That Darren never asks you for anything."
"And yet you've caused him trouble again and again."
"When will you finally grow up?"
Then she turned to Harry—
"Mr. Potter."
"I hope you don't think angering your own brother is something to be proud of."
Her words hit harder than any spell.