bacchusnovels Chapter 426 He should be under the roof
Chapter 426 He should be under the roof
Chapter 426 He should be under the roof
"Selena, are you in there?"
"Hmm, a strange sound came from inside the wooden house, which made the always sensitive Krum feel that something was wrong, and even made him feel uneasy."
"Are you alright? I saw you come in and have been here for quite a while. Are you alright?"
"N-nothing."
Hearing the intermittent responses coming from inside, Krum's voice became hesitant: "Selena, are you really alright?"
"Should I... come in and take a look?"
These words instantly put Selena on high alert.
She turned to look at Sean behind her, gritted her teeth, and whispered, "Professor, are you satisfied now?"
Faced with Selena's question, Sean remained silent. Instead, he took the opportunity to shift his body slightly backward before suddenly sprinting forward. Krum, who was outside the door, was bewildered by the shout and frowned. "Selena, I... I really feel something's wrong. Could you open the door so I can take a look?"
Selena took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.
She turned and glared fiercely at Sean, but Sean merely smiled slightly, even...
"Krum!" Seeing this, Selena suddenly raised her voice, "I told you I'm fine! You don't need to worry! If you keep talking, I'm really going to get angry!"
Krum, standing outside the door, was clearly taken aback by the shout. He paused for a few seconds, then said in a low voice, "Okay—I believe you. But—Selena, there's something I want to tell you."
Selena frowned slightly, a vague sense of foreboding creeping into her heart: "What is it?"
There was a moment of silence outside the door, then Krum's voice sounded a little nervous: "Selena, I actually like you a lot."
Selena's eyes widened instantly, and even Sean, who was standing behind her, slowed down and watched the scene with great interest.
"I know we're teammates, we've known each other for years," Krum's voice grew more urgent, "but this challenge has made me even more certain of my feelings. You're special, Selena—I hope you can give me a chance."
Selena's mind went blank; she never expected Krum to confess his feelings at this moment.
What troubled her even more was that Sean was standing behind her, looking at her with a half-smile, as if expecting her answer. "Krum... I know you like me, but our relationship has always been just a simple friendship..." Selena said the words of refusal with difficulty, but as soon as she opened her mouth, she felt her lower body tighten suddenly.
"But this competition has changed our relationship." Krum didn't seem to have given up; his tone was full of hope. "Would you like to try being with me, Selena? Trust me, I will make you happy."
[This idiot, doesn't he know what I'm doing?]
Selena cursed inwardly, but there was nothing she could do.
She tried to ignore Sean's movements behind her, focusing on the situation in front of her: "Krum—I really—"
Sean's mocking smile made Selena grit her teeth in hatred, but she simply didn't have the strength to resist anymore.
"But my friend, our friendship—isn't it deep enough?"
"No, not enough, far from enough!"
Sean suddenly...
Oh my God!
Selena felt a chill run down her spine, her vision blurred, and she almost fainted.
Outside the door, Krum's confession continued: "You're the most special girl I've ever met. Ever since the last prom, my feelings for you have changed, you know? Every time I'm with you, I feel more relaxed and at ease than ever before. I love seeing you smile—and when you gaze at me so intently, my heart skips a beat—"
"Krum."
Selena took a deep breath and finally managed to calm herself down.
Although the jerk behind her was driving her to the brink of collapse, she still didn't want to embarrass herself in front of Krum, her classmate of many years.
So, forcing herself to remain calm, she replied, "I'm sorry—perhaps our relationship is indeed a bit too close. But you know, my current situation isn't suitable for dating—and neither are you."
"Okay—"
Krum sounded a little disappointed, but he quickly cheered up: "Okay, then pretend you didn't hear what I just said. We're still good friends."
As soon as he finished speaking, his figure gradually disappeared from Selena's sight.
"Pfft, that's really cunning."
After a long while, the two gradually calmed down.
"Now—we should get down to business."
"What is it?"
"Selena asked, panting heavily."
"Do you remember what Krum just told you? He likes you and wants to take your relationship to the next level."
"Didn't I already reject him? I don't like him."
Sean shook his head. "But as a professor, I have a responsibility to help students deal with their personal growth issues."
Selena's face turned deathly pale as she imagined a terrible outcome.
So she stammered, "Phillips...you bastard, you wouldn't...you wouldn't be trying to make me..."
"What are you thinking? I mean, in your opinion, who in Durmstrang likes Krum? In other words, who do you think is a good match for Krum?"
Sai Lin'an was taken aback for a moment, then breathed a sigh of relief. Clearly, Sean did not intend for her to get entangled with Krum any further, which made her expression soften a bit, but she quickly frowned again and fell into thought.
"Who likes Krum? Who's a better match for Krum?" Selena murmured, repeating herself, then looked up at Sean. "If it's the first question, then not many girls in Durmstrang can refuse Krum. If we add the second question, then the answer isn't difficult."
"Really?" Sean raised an eyebrow, intrigued by Selena's reaction. "Then tell me about it?"
Selena paused, her tone becoming more certain: "Eileen. I've noticed her behavior; her attitude towards Krum is clearly different from others. She always finds opportunities to get close to him, whether it's during training or in small, everyday gestures. If you observe closely, you'll find that she can't hide her emotions at all."
Sean smiled slightly, seemingly quite satisfied with the answer.
He crossed his arms over his chest: "So, what's your suggestion?"
Selena glanced at him, her tone tinged with helplessness: "My suggestion? Since Krum likes me, and I don't like him, why not direct his attention to someone more suitable—like Eileen? It's not impossible for them to be together; I even think Krum just hasn't realized Eileen's feelings yet."
Sean nodded and clapped his hands. "You're right, Selena. In that case, as a professor, I naturally have to do my part to help them understand each other's feelings."
Selena looked at him warily. "Wait, what do you mean by 'doing your part'? What kind of tricks are you planning to pull in the next level?"
Sean chuckled softly, a hint of cunning in his eyes: "Don't worry, I'm just making some minor adjustments to give them more opportunities to spend time together. As for the final outcome, that's up to them to choose."
Selena rolled her eyes. "A minor adjustment? You mean the kind of 'adjustment' that puts people in danger, forces them to cooperate, and ultimately makes them closer through repeated hardships?"
"You really know me." Sean gave a noncommittal smile, then turned and left. "Alright, you should prepare for the next challenge, Selena. I think this is going to be interesting."
Selena stood there, watching Sean's departing figure, and sighed: "Eileen, if you end up with Krum,..."
You must thank me!
In the next level, Sean indeed "tampered with the controls".
When the students were assigned to the new aisles, Krum and Erin were randomly assigned to the same group.
Standing on high, the matchmaker, who had brought them together, watched intently as what was about to happen—a Durmstrang version of "The Two of Us Go Together."
Krum and Eileen were standing on a narrow stone bridge, at the other end of which was a huge magical mechanism.
A large gate leading to the exit floats beside the structure, but the bridge is shaky and could collapse at any moment.
Eileen gripped her wand tightly and looked up at Krum: "We need to find a way to stabilize this bridge before activating the mechanism, otherwise this path is impassable."
Krum nodded and agreed, "I'll take care of stabilizing the bridge; you go and study the mechanism. We need to hurry, or we won't have enough time."
The two acted swiftly.
Krum used levitation and restoration charms to stabilize the bridge, but the bridge's turbulence was clearly much more severe than he had anticipated. His spells only worked temporarily and could fail at any moment.
Eileen crouched in front of the mechanism, carefully studying the runes. She tried touching the core of the mechanism with her wand, nearly triggering a defensive spell and almost getting hit by the magic rebound.
"Krum, this mechanism is very complicated, I need more time!" Eileen called out nervously.
"I'll try to hold the bridge steady, but I can't hold it for long!" Krum shouted back, cold sweat already beading on his forehead.
Suddenly, the bridge shook violently, and Krum nearly fell to his knees. He quickly regained his balance, but his anxiety grew: "Eileen, hurry!"
Eileen gritted her teeth and focused intently on observing the mechanism.
She suddenly realized that there seemed to be a certain rhythm hidden in the arrangement of the runes. As she tried to insert the wand into the core of the mechanism, Eileen softly chanted the incantation for the repair spell.
As she finished her incantation, the runes on the mechanism suddenly lit up, and a soft light enveloped the entire bridge.
The bridge gradually stabilized, and the exit gate opened.
"We did it!" Eileen turned around excitedly and shouted to Krum. Krum breathed a sigh of relief and gave a tired but sincere smile: "Well done, Eileen. Without you, I could never have completed this."
Just as the two were arguing about whose credit it was, the ground suddenly began to shake, and the originally stable passage began to sink.
"Run!" Krum shouted, pulling Eileen along as they rushed forward.
However, the ground ahead was also cracking and breaking open, revealing a bottomless fissure from which came the sound of rushing water.
Eileen exclaimed in surprise, "What's down there—water?!"
"Don't stop!" Krum said through gritted teeth. He pulled Eileen towards the last stone steps, but the path beneath their feet suddenly collapsed, and the entire ground crumbled instantly, plunging the two of them directly into the icy water.
The icy lake water instantly submerged the two of them, and the biting cold made Eileen's breath catch in her throat.
She struggled in the water, trying to cast a spell, but the water's resistance made her movements extremely clumsy.
Krum reacted quickly, grabbing Eileen's arm and trying to pull her towards the water.
However, the current was very rapid, and Eileen's strength was clearly insufficient. She was quickly swept into the whirlpool and gradually lost consciousness.
"Eileen!" Krum shouted and chased after her with all his might.
He gritted his teeth, swam with all his might, and finally grabbed Eileen's wrist, holding her tightly in his arms, and swam towards the surface with all his might.
Finally, he brought Eileen to the surface of the water.
The two were panting heavily, but Eileen showed no reaction, her face pale and her eyes tightly closed.
Krum's heart sank. He quickly led Eileen to a raised stone platform, laid her flat, and anxiously called out, "Eileen! Wake up!"
Eileen remained unresponsive, and Krum's breathing became rapid.
He checked her breathing and found that she could not breathe, obviously choking on water.
"What should I do?" Krum's mind was a mess, but finally, he took a deep breath, lowered his head, and pinched Eileen's nose.
He pressed his mouth to hers and blew air into her lungs.
He repeated the process several times, occasionally looking up at Eileen's unresponsive face, his anxiety growing. Cold sweat began to bead on his forehead, but he didn't stop, trying again and again to get her breathing back.
"Eileen, wake up!" he murmured, his voice filled with an almost pleading urgency.
Finally, after he blew on her again, Eileen coughed violently and opened her eyes, gasping for breath. Her chest heaved, and some color gradually returned to her pale face.
When Krum saw she was awake, a huge weight lifted from his heart. He plopped down on the stone platform, panting heavily, his face full of relief: "You're finally awake—you scared me to death, Eileen!"
After a moment, Eileen's gaze gradually focused on Krum's face, her voice weak but tinged with confusion: "What...what just happened?"
Krum scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed, and replied, "You—choked on water, so all I could do was—well, give you CPR."
Eileen paused for a moment, then her cheeks flushed red.
She lowered her head, her voice barely audible, "Thank you. If it weren't for you, I might be dead."
Krum scratched his head, a smile on his face, but his tone was still a little unnatural: "It's okay, it's what I should do anyway."
After regaining some strength, Eileen sat up, but she quickly realized that her clothes were soaked through and clung tightly to her body, revealing her shapely figure.
Her face turned even redder, and she crossed her arms over her chest, trying to cover herself: "Listen—I need to find a way to dry my clothes."
9
Krum realized this too. He wanted to lend a hand, but then realized that it might make things even more awkward, so he quickly turned away to avoid seeing Eileen's embarrassment.
"Um—you do it yourself, I won't watch." Krum's voice was a little stuttering, and even a little trembling.
Eileen watched Krum's retreating figure and suddenly couldn't help but chuckle softly, "Krum, why are you suddenly so shy?"
"Who's shy!" Krum retorted instinctively, but his ears were already burning red.
Thinking back to what he had seen before and the delicate feeling he had just experienced, Krum suddenly felt an impulse.
Perhaps it's from teenage hormones, perhaps it's from...
Sean, standing at a distance, watched what happened next, gently waved his wand, and his figure gradually disappeared into the secret realm.
We should always give young people some privacy, shouldn't we?
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