The House-elf Tata

Ludo Bagman and Krum talked for about ten minutes. When he returned, he looked somewhat gloomy and was muttering under his breath, as if the conversation had made him very unhappy.

He then hurriedly brought out Three Broomsticks, and the Goblin all stood up and followed him out.

The Goblin looked too fierce, so Fred and George didn't go after him to ask for the Galleon. Instead, they huddled together and discussed it with great interest.

"Why do you think Bagman is looking for Krum?" Fred asked.

"Could it be related to the Triwizard Tournament?" George thought for a moment. "As one of the referees, Bagman should know quite a bit... including what the Second Task is."

"Do you think he might deliberately leak information to Krum...?"

"Probably not..." Cedric frowned slightly. "Referees helping Champion cheat is absolutely not allowed. As the Director of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, Bagman must understand this."

"And if this gets out, his job as director will be over."

"I know..." Fred said, "But it's too suspicious, isn't it? Deliberately avoiding everyone else and chatting alone with a Champion before the game—that doesn't seem normal at all."

"Krum definitely rejected him," Qiu said after thinking for a moment. "You all saw it just now; Bagman looked very upset when he came over."

"Perhaps he was faking it," Cedric said quietly. "It was pre-arranged, a deliberate act for us to see..."

Kyle raised an eyebrow, and for some reason, he suddenly seemed to smell a sour scent.

Cedric is now like someone who entered the wrong password when returning to the common room and got doused with vinegar.

Fred and George noticed this too, and they huddled together, unable to contain themselves.

"Why don't you go to Madam Puddifoot's teahouse..." Fred said, drawing out the last word.

"That's right," George said with a smile. "That's where you should be. Wouldn't it be better to go for a glass of syrup?"

"No, it should be coffee..."

"Okay, syrup disguised as coffee..."

The two then let out a snicker.

Of course, in the end, Cedric and Cho did not go to Madam Puddifoot's tea house. After leaving the Three Broomsticks, they returned to Hogwarts together.

The group walked through the gate, chatting and laughing as they made their way towards the castle.

"That's strange..." Kanna, who was chatting with Qiu, suddenly said, "Look at that House-elf, his appearance seems different from the others in the kitchen. Could this be Dobby?"

"What?" Kyle followed her gaze.

Kanna was right; there was indeed a House-elf standing in the open space next to the castle.

Moreover, unlike the House-elf in the kitchen who only wear tea towels and pillowcases, this House-elf's attire is a bit too fashionable.

He wore tall boots, a brown leather jacket that made him look like a race car driver, a cowboy hat, and goggles.

"Oh, that's so cool..." Fred couldn't help but say, "This House-elf is so unique, do you know where he works in the kitchen?"

"I don't know." Cedric shook his head. "Honestly, I've never seen him in the kitchen."

That's for sure...

Kyle's lips twitched. He recognized her. Apart from Tata of the Nicolas Flamel family, there was no other House-elf dressed like this in the entire Wizarding World. Even Dobby wouldn't accept such a trendy outfit.

The problem is, how could Tata be here? Hasn't he always been staying at Nicolas's estate?

Or is it... Nicolas has arrived?

Because of the Ravenclaw's Diadem?

Kyle's heart skipped a beat.

Just then, the House-elf came over and stood in front of them.

"You are... Tata?" Kyle asked.

"Yes, sir, Tata greets you." Tata removed her hat and bowed slightly. "Mr. Dumbledore and his master are in the castle; they sent Tata to see you."

"Oh, Kyle, you know this House-elf?" Fred asked in surprise.

"I know it; it works at Nicolas's house," Kyle said.

He then looked at Kanna, "Sorry, I might have to go see Professor Dumbledore first. See you at dinner. If all goes well, perhaps I can give you a surprise then."

After saying that, Kyle followed Tata into the castle, while the others stood there staring at each other in bewilderment.

Finally, Fred broke the silence, saying, "Kyle just said Nick? Nearly Headless Nick?"

"I think so too." George scratched his head. "Does that mean ghosts need House-elf too?"

"Can't you guys use your brains?" Qiu said irritably. "Kyle is obviously not talking about the Ghost Nick you know."

"I do think of someone," Cedric said quietly. "You guys remember, Kyle went to France one year during his vacation?"

"France ..." Fred suddenly realized, and he also lowered his voice, "You mean... Nicolas Flamel?"

"I think I'm right," Cedric said. "Don't forget that the House-elf just mentioned the headmaster's name."

"If that's the case... then he's really a big shot." Fred exclaimed. "I'm starting to wonder what exactly this surprise Kyle was talking about."

Meanwhile, Kyle had already followed Tata to the Headmaster's Office on the Seventh Floor of the castle.

In the large Headmaster's Office, Dumbledore was still sitting in his original seat, and opposite him was an old man with gray hair.

It was Nicolas Flamel, wearing a yellow striped shirt and sunglasses clipped to his breast pocket.

"I was just saying you should be back by now," Dumbledore said with a smile.

"Long time no see, Kyle, how have you been?" Nicolas greeted him with a smile.

"Not bad," Kyle said. "Nicolas, did you come here for that thing again? If you ask me, you didn't need to make the whole trip to Hogwarts; you could have just written a letter."

Whether it was just his imagination or not, Kyle noticed that Nicolas's expression seemed to become somewhat unnatural after he said those words.

"Oh?" Dumbledore blue eyes looked over. "I guess this isn't the same thing we're going to talk about later."

"Ahem, it's nothing, Albus," Nicolas said. "Kyle just asked me to fix a little gadget for him."

"I see," Dumbledore a smile. "I've seen Kyle always find some interesting little gadgets."

"That's right." Nicolas Flamel nodded in strong agreement.

Ravenclaw's Diadem! There's probably nothing more amazing in the Wizarding World. I really don't know where Kyle got it from.

"Well, we'll talk about that later." Nicolas didn't continue the topic, and instead said, "I did think about inviting you to the manor again, but Albus told me that you're now Champion in the Triwizard Tournament, and to avoid distracting you, I think it's better if you come over."

"No need," Kyle shook his head. "The game is still a long way off, there's no need to get distracted."

"I don't think so," Nicolas said with a smile. "The Triwizard Tournament is a grand event, especially for the Champion involved. Every second is crucial to their ultimate victory, so there's no room for carelessness."

Kyle didn't say anything. He felt that Nicolas's reasoning was a bit far-fetched, but since Nico was already at Hogwarts, there was no point in saying anything more.

"I'm so glad they've restarted the Triwizard Tournament. I saw the First Task, it was amazing, much better than the last one... If you ask me, you shouldn't have held the tournament in Durmstrang. Every Triwizard Tournament they've ever held has been mediocre."

Nicolas seemed lost in memories, repeatedly recounting how terrible the previous Triwizard Tournament was and how unreasonable the event schedule was.

It wasn't until Dumbledore had to interrupt him.

"While the history of the Triwizard Tournament is quite interesting, let's get down to business first, Nicolas."

Hearing Dumbledore's words, Kyle vaguely felt that Nicolas's visit to Hogwarts this time wasn't about the Ravenclaw's Diadem, but something else entirely.

"Oh well."

Nicolas didn't continue. He looked at Kyle and said seriously, "I've come here mainly to borrow something from you."

"What?" Kyle asked.

"The ashes after the phoenix's rebirth."