NOVEL NEXT Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Meeting Harry
To read advance chapter consider subscribing my patreon.
Link: Patreon.com/zorojurown
=======================
"What are the cons of turning on Gamer's Mode?" asked Dudley.
[You cannot speak with anyone when Gamer's Mode is activated, so don't turn it on unless you are in a battle.]
"Wow, I didn't know that," Dudley said, then realized something. "Wait, does this mean I inherit all the abilities and items from Hogwarts Legacy? Does this mean I own the Galleons and also have Swift Move and Mage Warning Sense?"
[Yes, host. You currently have 45,354 Galleons, and you can use Swift Move. Whenever someone tries to attack you, you can sense where the attack is coming from. It follows the basic principle where blockable curses are yellow, and unblockable ones are red.]
"What? Does this mean my senses are better than Moody's?" Dudley replied.
[In a sense, yes, because Mage Warning Sense is much more suitable in a battle. You can sense the magic one second before it's cast by the enemy.]
"Thank you for your explanation," Dudley said. He then got ready to go downstairs. Whatever happens today, it's his birthday, so he needed to entertain the guests, and he also wanted to see his new parents.
He left his room and suddenly bumped into Harry.
"Hey, Harry," Dudley greeted.
"Dudley," Harry replied. "Happy birthday."
"Thank you, cousin," Dudley smiled.
Harry was surprised to see Dudley suddenly more talkative and approachable than before.
"Yeah," Harry then went downstairs.
"Huh," Dudley sighed. 'After looking at the memory, now I know why the AI decided not to interact with Harry so much.'
When he was at Hogwarts, the AI-controlled Dudley kept a low profile. Even if someone called him a Mudblood, he just walked away. But there was one incident when Draco Malfoy tried to curse him, and for the first time, Draco learned real fear during his 4th year.
AI Dudley transformed into Boxing Dudley during an incident that occurred while he was walking with Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott. It happened after Harry Potter's first task in the Triwizard Tournament.
Draco Malfoy, enraged and jealous of Harry's victory, sought revenge. However, fearing Harry after Professor Moody turned him into a ferret, he decided to target Dudley instead. Malfoy spotted Dudley walking with the Hufflepuffs and tried to intimidate him, but Dudley ignored him.
"Scared, Mudblood?" Malfoy taunted after Dudley's lack of response.
His words angered everyone, particularly Susan, who became furious with Draco Malfoy.
"Just ignore that ferret, he's not worth it," AI Dudley responded calmly.
"You!" Malfoy shouted, pointing his wand at Dudley and casting a curse at his face.
In that instant, Dudley used Protego and countered Malfoy's curse, hitting him, Crabbe, and Goyle. The outcome was terrifying. AI Dudley, wanting to stop Malfoy's provocations, decided to teach him a lesson.
He pummeled Malfoy like a punching bag, breaking bones, bloodying his nose, and continuing to beat him relentlessly, terrifying the surrounding students.
"What's going on here? Dursley, stop what you're doing! 50 points from Hufflepuff!" Snape shouted.
But to Snape's shock, Dudley ignored him and continued beating Malfoy, counting aloud, "53, 54, 55…"
"He said he's going to hit Malfoy 100 times," said a terrified student, noting that even Susan, who was close to Dudley, couldn't stop him.
"STOP!" Snape yelled, drawing his wand to separate Dudley and Malfoy, but Dudley blocked him.
"You… how dare you defy a professor?" Snape's anger grew, but Dudley continued counting, "73, 74, 75…"
Snape then blasted a curse at Dudley, but it was a grave mistake. The AI's casting speed was terrifyingly fast.
Dudley could cast three spells in a second—blocking, stunning, and transfiguring. The students were shocked; they had no idea Dudley was so formidable in a duel. He overpowered Snape, who was using silent casting and Occlumency, all while Dudley relied only on 4th-year spells to push Severus Snape back.
The situation escalated until Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, Moody, and Sprout arrived to stop the fight.
Dudley was almost expelled. Lucius Malfoy tried to pressure the Board of Governors into expelling him, but because Dudley was Harry Potter's cousin and excelled in his studies—gaining the favor of most teachers, except Snape—he was spared. Instead, Dudley received a year-long detention with Professor Sprout.
Unlike Hermione Granger, who always raised her hand when teachers asked questions, AI-controlled Dudley didn't bother to answer. But this didn't stop the teachers from choosing him to answer.
When Harry saw what Dudley did to Draco, it struck fear in him, reminding him of Dudley and his gang's "Harry Hunting" events. One thing was clear: Dudley was not someone to mess with.
"No wonder the AI didn't try to build a relationship with Harry Potter; there's still trauma left by the original Dudley," Dudley mumbled, then smiled. "It looks like the future will be more challenging."
Dudley then went downstairs and greeted the guests who had come to celebrate his birthday. Harry sat in a corner, watching the happy event with a bit of jealousy, which didn't go unnoticed by Dudley.
Ever since Dudley became a wizard, the Dursleys had treated him very well, and Petunia even decided to throw a birthday party for Harry Potter. However, there was a stark difference between them—while Dudley received more than 50 gifts, Harry only got 3 or 4 from Muggles.
Harry no longer hated his Aunt Petunia, but there was still some lingering anger toward Vernon and Dudley, even after four years. This wasn't helped by the fact that Dudley tried to keep his distance from Harry, not bothering to explain to others that they were cousins.
According to Hermione, Dudley could always be found studying alone in the library, sometimes accompanied by fellow Hufflepuffs.