The sun was gradually setting, appearing and disappearing in the swirling clouds and mist. The golden afterglow formed pillars of light that pierced through the gaps in the clouds, stretching down to the distant mountain range. Amidst the majestic scenery, there was a sense of an old man's twilight years.
The weather was still very cold. A biting wind howled across the Quidditch pitch, and a faint rustling sound seemed to drift from the Forbidden Forest in the distance.
Marcel and Charlotte arrived at the pitch together. He noticed that the turf of the Quidditch pitch had obviously been enchanted; it was still a lush green even in the cold of winter.
"You're here! Quick, warm up. The tryout's about to start," Darren said, smiling and welcoming Marcel as he approached.
While Marcel was stretching his arms and legs, Darren introduced the official Hufflepuff team members to him one by one. It turned out that an old team member was about to graduate. After hearing about Marcel's talent, he had simply decided to retire early to prepare for his post-graduation job search.
Marcel greeted all the team members and then realized that, besides him, another fourth-year student would be participating in this special tryout with him. He wasn't sure if he was benefiting from the old player's departure, or if this fourth-year was benefiting from his arrival. Perhaps it was a bit of both.
"Alright, let's get started!" Darren said with a smile. His face then turned more serious as he began to explain the content of the tryout.
The goal of this special tryout was to recruit a suitable Chaser.
On a Quidditch team, there are three Chasers. They are responsible for passing the Quaffle to each other and trying to throw it through one of the opposing team's three goal hoops. Each goal scored with the Quaffle earns their team ten points.
Chasers need to have a strong sense of teamwork and must be able to dodge the Bludgers hit at them by the opposing Beaters. This obviously requires a high level of flying skill from the players.
Before the Seeker catches the Golden Snitch, they must throw the Quaffle through the hoops as many times as possible, constantly racking up the base score.
The player who had just retired had played this position.
Therefore, this special tryout was divided into three stages, following the usual selection procedure.
In the first stage, the candidates had to join the two active Chasers for a test of catching and passing the Quaffle. This tested the candidate's reaction time and passing accuracy.
The Quaffle is the only one of the three balls that does not move on its own. It is completely controlled by the Chasers of both teams.
Marcel sat on his broom, watching the fourth-year student in the distance performing various flying maneuvers with stiff movements. He suddenly felt that maybe he really could do this.
"Not bad, but your reaction speed is too slow. You have to be aware of your surroundings at all times!" Charlotte said with a smile as the other student flew toward them.
She was the Hufflepuff team's Seeker, and her skills were said to be quite good.
"Go on! My little junior, I think you're the one!" Charlotte gave Marcel a hard slap on the back, almost knocking him off his broom.
"Ouch! I say, senior—" "Stop nagging and get going!"
Marcel felt like he was a certain Pokémon in Charlotte's Poké Ball. Once she threw him forward, he had to go out onto the field and fight with all his might, without complaint.
"Here we go!" said Christine, a fifth-year Chaser, as she casually passed the Quaffle to Marcel.
Marcel immediately accelerated forward, catching the Quaffle just as it reached his position. On the edge of the pitch, Captain Darren was constantly shouting, "Move it, move it!" urging him to start moving irregularly.
"To me!" shouted the other Chaser, Charles. He had already flown behind Marcel.
Marcel, who was in the middle of a small downward dive, threw the Quaffle over his shoulder without looking back. He had already predicted Charles's exact position.
"Oh! A beautiful reverse pass!" Darren shouted excitedly from the side.
It had to be said, Marcel's observation skills were indeed very strong. He could keep track of the exact positions of the other two players while keeping his eyes firmly on the Quaffle's every move.
"To me!" Christine shot past under Marcel at high speed, the two of them coming within ten inches of each other at their closest point.
But Marcel still seized the opportunity, handing the Quaffle to Christine in the instant she passed.
The players waiting on the sidelines couldn't help but cheer, and the two veteran Chasers on the field exchanged an excited glance.
That high-speed switch was a move that even Christine herself hadn't intended to actually complete, but Marcel had done it!
The two veteran players exchanged a look, deciding to attempt a move they hadn't originally planned to test.
They quickly brought their brooms together, gave Marcel a "follow us" gesture, and then flew forward side by side.
"Twenty feet apart, weaving forward, high-frequency passing!" said Charles.
Marcel immediately understood. This was a medium-difficulty maneuver from Classic Quidditch Plays: the Trident Offensive Formation.
He quickly moved to the left position, and then began to weave in a spiral with the other two. As they flew forward at high speed, the Quaffle was passed back and forth between the three of them with extreme frequency, making the other team members on the sidelines hold their breath.
It was only when the three of them broke apart, each diving with the ball to charge toward a different goal hoop, that they finally came to a stop.
Charles gave Marcel an embarrassed smile. In the final moment of the high-speed passing, he had fumbled the catch—he had dropped it.
"Charles! It's because you're always messing up that we never dare to use more technically difficult moves in official matches! Let's see you face Marcel now. You know, he's only a first-year!" Christine said, half-laughing, half-exasperated, as she pointed a slender finger at Charles and loudly berated him.
Marcel looked at this dashing, short-haired girl, recalled the feeling of working together just now, and felt a rush of exhilaration.
"Aiyah, I know! I'll practice hard from now on and set a good example for Marcel," Charles said, scratching his head and laughing as well.
It seemed Marcel had already been internally selected by the two active Chasers in the very first stage.
"Captain, I think this is it! He's the one, no doubt about it!" Christine shouted to Captain Darren.
Marcel saw Darren nod in agreement and then glanced at the somewhat dejected other candidate. He felt that simply accepting this situation didn't fit the image he was trying to build.
He thought for a moment and then said to Darren, "I think it's better to complete the test. Otherwise, it's not fair to the senior who's also trying out."
Darren looked back at the fourth-year student next to Charlotte and nodded.
"Hmm, you're right," Darren said. "Then let's continue with the second stage of the test: shooting for the hoops."
Of course, this wasn't just a simple matter of throwing the Quaffle at the hoops. The Keeper was no pushover!
And the Hufflepuff team's Keeper was none other than the captain, Darren Chris.
"Hey, little junior! Our Captain Darren is only an average Keeper. Go easy on him, don't hurt his pride later!" Charlotte said with a grin, slinging an arm around Marcel's shoulder, with no intention of lowering her voice.
"I heard that!" Darren, at the goalposts not far away, turned his head and deliberately widened his eyes, glaring fiercely in their direction.
The fourth-year's test was over quickly. He scored three out of ten shots, which was actually quite good for a candidate. Of course, it also showed that Darren's goalkeeping was indeed just average.
It was Marcel's turn. He held the Quaffle, looking at Darren, and felt a real sense of hesitation.
"Don't worry! The stronger you are, the happier I'll be. After all, you're one of us Hufflepuffs!" Darren said to Marcel with a smile.
Hearing this, Marcel nodded, set aside his doubts, and charged toward the right-hand hoop.
Darren reacted immediately, shifting a little to the right, trying to guess whether Marcel was going to shoot or just feint him out.
He had seen Marcel's flying maneuvers earlier. The smooth and swift small-arc movements undoubtedly proved Marcel's agility was beyond question.
Closer, closer. As expected, Marcel began to pull up and spin.
Darren immediately moved toward the center hoop, but unexpectedly, Marcel only pulled up and made no lateral movement at all.
It was a feint! Using the illusion of a small spin to trick the Keeper into defending the center hoop, while he himself only needed to use the force of the spin to get back to the height of the side hoop to shoot.
The Quaffle was thrown into the now-empty right hoop without any surprise. A beautiful goal!
The ten-shot drill didn't take long. Against Darren's defense, Marcel mercilessly racked up 90 points. If the last shot hadn't been grazed by Darren's fingertips, Marcel probably would have passed with a perfect score.
"Amazing, amazing!" Darren said with a pained expression as he gestured for Marcel to fly to the sidelines. "This year's Quidditch Cup, you'll be our Hufflepuff team's secret weapon! No, a super secret weapon!"
"I've never seen a new player with such powerful talent! It's just like those rookie monsters in the professional tryouts!"
"Senior Darren, don't say that. Quidditch is a team sport. It's not something one person can win on their own," Marcel said with a smile.
And it was true. For example, in the World Cup, there was no shortage of incredibly strong elite players, but so what? In the point-based Quidditch scoring system, you don't win the championship just by winning more matches. Individual heroism is always a joke.
Even the 150 points from the Golden Snitch could be overshadowed by the base score accumulated through high-level teamwork. Not to mention the individual skill of a Chaser; seamless coordination was what mattered most.
"Next is the final stage. The test is simple: dodge the attacks from the Beaters for as long as you can!"