The-Boy-Who-Improved (III)

Harry jumped to the side to dodge the Spell while Jacklyn simply leaned toward her side and the Spell passed by her. She didn't even seem to be fazed by the Spell, instead, she simply increased the speed of her Casting. Harry couldn't help but grimace when he realized what was happening. The two of them just started and yet, he was already on the back foot.

|Hadrian, don't lose focus| Lily reminded Harry, making him narrow his eyes.

Even though Harry was already on the back foot, he wasn't anywhere close to giving up… He started to watch Jacklyn intently as she continued to attack him as he kept dodging her attacks. It was a good thing that Jacklyn didn't seem to be in a hurry to knock him out. She was simply casting some random Spells at him with some Disarming Charms and Knockback Jinxes mixed in.

Harry decided to return the favor and cast a couple of Knockback Jinxes at her as he dodged her Spells by moving around, and since he was continuously moving around, his aim was a bit off, but they weren't off by much as the Spells were still heading toward Jackly. Once again, Jacklyn easily dodged the Spells and he didn't miss how easily she dodged them.

She dodged the Spells by simply leaning her body to the side… Dodging Jacklyn's Spells was becoming harder with each passing moment. Harry was using every opportunity to counter-attack, but it was simply not enough. Jacklyn was using Point Casting, so her casting was much faster than his and he had a nagging feeling that she wasn't going all-out.

With a grimace on his face, Harry decided to try something out… He decided to imitate Jacklyn's technique and while his movements weren't as refined as Jacklyn's, he could instantly feel the difference. Instead of jumping around to dodge the Spells, Harry started to dodge the Spells by simply leaning his body to the side or side-stepping. Jacklyn's way was simply way more efficient than whatever he was doing until now.

Meanwhile, Jacklyn's eyes grew wide in surprise and shock… Harry was imitating her. This was probably the first time he saw her in action and he could already imitate her movements. She was left completely gobsmacked and after a few moments, a smile formed on her face. Harry was clearly way more talented than her… If he could improve so much just by watching her, then how much could he improve with appropriate training?

Harry's movements were clumsy, and he still wasn't anywhere close to perfecting them, but he was clearly improving… Jacklyn couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy, but she quickly crushed the feeling. Yes, she would have been over the moon if she had his talent, but at the same time, she couldn't hate him for being more talented than her. In fact, she started to feel proud, but the duel has gone long enough. It was about time she ended the duel.

Jacklyn stepped forward and her speed increased as she started casting Spells even faster. Harry grimaced as he had to cast Protego to defend himself, but the next moment, the shield shattered when Jacklyn cast a Shield Breaker. Harry jumped to the side to dodge a Disarming Charm, but that brought him right in the path of a Knockback Jinx.

The Spell hit him on the side and Harry was blown away by the Spell. He landed on a heap and ended up releasing a groan when the pain coursed through his body. Another Spell hit him while he was still down and he felt his Wand slip out of his hand… This was it… He lost! Jacklyn wiped the floor with him and she could have wiped the floor with him much quicker if she was going all-out.

|Don't need to feel so disappointed, Hadrian. You tried your best and you improved. You lost, but it was to be expected. Just know that I am really proud of you| Lily tried to comfort her son as she knew exactly how he was feeling.

|But mom, I lost. How can you be proud of me? I disappointed you!| Harry was feeling really horrible for disappointing his mom. He wasn't expecting to win in the first place, but he wasn't expecting to lose this easily.

|Hadrian, I will be never disappointed in you. You did way better than I was expecting. Yes, you lost, but you didn't give up… You started to improve during the fight and that was more than impressive| Lily said softly as she started to channel her feelings through the connection.

Harry started to feel the warm feelings flowing into him through the connection and he immediately started to smile. Yes, his mom wasn't disappointed in him… In fact, his mom was feeling proud and it felt nice…

Meanwhile, Jacklyn simply stared at Harry's form with a complicated look on her face. His Wand was resting in her hand, and the memories of the short, but impressive duel kept flashing inside her mind… His reflexes and reaction speeds were the best she had ever seen, and with the ease he was improving also left her completely gobsmacked.

Her lips started to curl upwards as a smile formed on her face…

"How long you are going to keep lying there or do you want me to give you a hand?" Jacklyn asked with a grin as she started to make her way toward Harry, who was still lying on the floor.

"Be careful on the way, I left my dignity somewhere there on the floor" Harry answered as he slowly rolled over on his back.

Jacklyn snorted in amusement. "Hmm… I don't see anything on the floor. It might be way too small to see with naked eyes" Jacklyn retorted in an amused tone.

"Ouch!" Harry sat up with a grimace on his face and placed his hands over his chest. "That hurt, Jacky!" Harry mumbled as he gave her a mocked hurt look.

Jacklyn's eyes twinkled in amusement as she finally arrived in front of Harry and extended his Wand toward him. Harry grabbed the Wand and slowly stood up. "Harry, you were amazing… To be honest, I wasn't expecting you to be this good, and not only that, you improved a lot during the duel" Jacklyn praised him as she patted his shoulder.

Harry mutely nodded his head. "Thank you Jacky" Harry thanked Jacklyn after a few moments of silence.

"So… Do you want to have another go?" Jacklyn asked with a grin on her face, only for Harry to smile at her excitedly as he nodded his head in agreement…

<Line Break>

~~Timeskip~~ (Nearly Three Weeks)

|This place is huge!!| Harry exclaimed inside with a stumped look marring his face. He was watching the Diavik Diamond Mine from the air… He was able to get his hands on a second-hand Cleansweep Six for only 40 Galleons.

40 Galleons were a lot of gold, but 40 Galleons weren't much when it came to brooms. Brooms were expensive and getting a good broom like Cleansweep Six for only 40 Galleons was a really good deal. The broom might have gone out of production, but it was still in very good condition. Whoever owned this broom before him, took good care of it.

There was something else Harry realized after buying the broom… He was a natural flier and he loved flying. He may not be a huge fan of Quidditch, but he could fly for a whole day without getting tired or bored. That is also why he decided to fly to the Diavik Diamond Mine on his broom instead of using a Muggle means of transport. Harry wasn't worried about MACUSA sending Aurors or Obliviators after him as brooms in America came with built-in Muggle Repelling Enchantment and as long as the Charms were active, MACUSA will ignore you.

|I think even with the Spell it will take a lot of time to find the diamonds, so I think you better get started| Lily reminded him and Harry nodded his head in understanding.

|Yep| Harry quipped as he made his way toward the ground. He wasn't going to land inside the premises as it would simply be foolish with all the CCTV cameras.

A lot has happened in the last three weeks. Jacklyn had started to train him and he was yet to beat her even once, but he couldn't deny the improvements. While he still wasn't anywhere close to her level, he was still getting there and after another long chat with his mom, he remembered that he wasn't even twelve yet, so there was no need to blame himself for his powerlessness. He was several folds stronger than anyone around his age and Jacklyn was probably the strongest graduate in her year.

Harry has also performed the first Ritual of the Set of Seven during the night of the full moon using Sphinx Blood and Harry could already feel the improvements. His Occlumency was progressing much faster than before and his mind was also much sharper than before. Even his reaction times have improved a lot after the Ritual, which helped him a lot during his mock duels with Jacklyn.

Speaking of Jacklyn, she promised to get him two vials of Basilisk Venom, but it was going to cost him somewhere around 4000 Galleons to 5000 Galleons. The price almost made him see stars, but he was able to hold on… If he could successfully liberate diamonds from this mine, then he wouldn't need to worry about gold anymore and that is why he was here to liberate some diamonds from Diavik Diamond Mine before his birthday.

If he succeeded then he could also buy a part of a Sphinx Brain for the Set of Three Rituals he was planning to perform annually on his birthdays.

Harry finally landed on a nearby hill and decided to hide his broom by casting a Notice-Me-Not Charm on the broom, before covering it with dust. He nodded his head in satisfaction before he started to head toward the Mine after casting a Disillusionment Charm, a Scent-Masking Charm, and a Silencing Charm on himself…