Shortly after the opening ceremony ended, Russell, as the host, stood up to introduce the two teams playing tonight.
The red and white Canadian Team Accio at high speed from another mountain peak on flying broomsticks.
The Magical Projection's starlight effects chased after them, making them appear like dazzling shooting stars in the darkness.
A breathtakingly large fireball suddenly crashed into the stands, and even though the fans knew it was fake, they all instinctively raised their hands.
A lot of hot air was billowing from the middle of the stands, and a crimson meteorite could be vaguely seen lying quietly on the snow.
A blinding flash of light erupted from the crack in the meteorite, revealing the other team in the match, dressed in white, green, and red.
Their appearance immediately set the fans in the stands on fire.
Although Canada is a strong team, there is still a considerable gap between them and Bulgaria, the team with the best chance of winning the championship.
"Oh— Viktor! Look here!" Several female fans in the VIP stands stood up and shouted.
Hermione, sitting in the front row, gave Vincent a strange look. "Viktor? He seems to be much more popular than you."
The Bulgaria team received a bye in the first round of the qualifiers, and their second-round qualifying match coincided with the day of Peter Pettigrew's execution.
Although she usually follows Quidditch, what interests her most about Viktor Krum seems to be the name "Viktor".
In Latin, both Vincent and Viktor mean conqueror and victor.
Vincent blinked innocently, "He's a professional athlete, so he's definitely more popular than me."
Hermione glanced briefly at the largest close-up screen.
Viktor Krum had a distinctive hooked nose that was hard to forget, along with dark hair and thick eyebrows. He was tall and strong, and gave off a particularly honest and simple vibe.
"Viktor! I love you!" A passionate female fan in the VIP stand actually shouted her love.
Hearing the voice, Hermione quickly looked away and Vincent. "Being too popular isn't a good thing. They're much crazier than Lockhart's fans."
Although Viktor Krum is not as handsome Lockhart, he has the advantage of being young enough, physically strong enough, and his fame is something he earned genuinely on the field.
It seems that people whose names contain the meaning of conqueror and victor are particularly capable. If she were still that naive and ignorant little witch in second grade, she would probably fall for such a sunny and cheerful boy.
Vincent recalled the scene when Lockhart held a fan meeting in Diagon Alley and glanced back at the group of enthusiastic female fans who were still loudly professing their love.
"That's understandable. After all, there are only a few entertainment options in the Wizarding World. Besides, I heard from Ron that he's very skilled and is supposedly the 'World's Number One Seeker'."
Hermione glanced at the close-up screen, where Viktor Krum was looking directly at the VIP stands.
He waved his hands vigorously, seemingly in response to the fans' enthusiasm.
A passionate female fan immediately clutched her chest, "Oh— Viktor, he's waving at me!"
The female fans around her rolled their eyes at her.
With looks like that, you dare to fantasize?
Viktor Krum had just looked away when he suddenly looked back.
He stared intently at the VIP stands, as if something was drawing his attention.
"Look!" the female fan shouted as she stood up. "Viktor is watching me!"
The female fans around her pushed her back.
"Shameless! Viktor is clearly looking at me!"
"It should be me!"
"Get lost! You think you're good enough for them?"
Just as they were about to start fighting, Viktor Krum reluctantly turned away and looked towards another section of the stands.
Although the female fans did not start fighting, they were still arguing fiercely.
"Viktor is just staring at me in a daze, you guys should just give up."
"What's so interesting about you, old woman? If he's going to look at anyone, he'll look at me!"
"Ha—what do you have over me besides being younger? Your weight of over 200 pounds?"
Hermione, who witnessed the whole thing, lowered her head, her fingers gently twisting the hem of her skirt, a blush of embarrassment spreading across her face.
In her innocent and naive second grade, she briefly became a little fan of Lockhart.
The female fan's actions reminded her of that embarrassing past, but she quickly looked up again, saying, "Luckily, I gave up chasing stars a long time ago, otherwise I would regret it even more now."
Vincent shook his head and chuckled.
Overwhelmed by girlish fantasies, drawing hearts on class schedules, buying complete sets of best-selling books...
Hermione pouted, "Don't you think I was really childish back then?"
Vincent looked at her with utmost seriousness. "Everyone has a childish moment. I laughed because I thought you were quite cute back then."
He reached out and gently poked her slightly puffed-out cheeks. "But you're not as cute as you are now."
Hermione grabbed his playful hand. "Stop fooling around, there are lots of people watching."
Vincent pouted and looked around. "Who would notice us? We haven't done anything shady."
"Ahem—" Russell, sitting on his other side, coughed. "While showing affection isn't illegal, could you please consider my feelings?"
Vincent immediately straightened his posture. "Okay, Uncle Osmund, from now on we will definitely not disturb you while you are watching the game."
Russell looked at his serious face, then at Hermione who was shrugging helplessly at him, and remembered Dumbledore's previous assessment of him.
This kid is reliable, but he can also be a real headache at times.
Russell empathized with the situation, but he didn't feel a headache; on the contrary, he thought it was a good thing.
He couldn't help but laugh. "Vincent, where did you learn your sense of humor from?"
"Hmm—" Vincent pretended to be deep in thought, "Maybe...maybe...perhaps...it should be...innate."
Hermione was amused and covered her mouth to chuckle. "I've been looking forward to this for so long, and I knew you wouldn't say anything serious."
Vincent, sitting upright with a particularly solemn expression, said, "What's wrong with me? I'm answering questions very seriously."
Hermione sighed softly, "Yes, yes, you're right."
Seeing her helpless expression, Russell almost burst out laughing.
He looked at the two of them curiously. "You two probably went from being friends to lovers, right?"
Vincent and Hermione exchanged a glance and smiled and nodded in unison.
Russell was fed another mouthful of dog food (a Chinese slang term for witnessing public displays of affection), but this time he didn't feel sour like before; instead, he felt inexplicably satisfied.
The feeling is hard to describe; it's sweet and incredibly addictive.
Vincent saw the kindness and relief in his smile and immediately understood that he liked and supported Vincent and Hermione as a couple, which is commonly known as shipping them.
The cheerful "uncle's laugh" is the best proof.