Mr. Diggory Got Promoted

"Kyle, what are you looking at?"

One morning at breakfast, Cedric noticed Kyle staring intently at a booklet and couldn't help but ask, "You've been looking at this for days, haven't you?"

It's not unusual for Kyle to read while eating, but it's a bit strange that he's been reading only one book for so many days in a row.

This thing only has a few pages, does it really take this long to read...? Kyle hasn't even played Wizard's Chess these past few days, and no matter where you see him, he always has that booklet in his hand.

"What did you just say?" Kyle asked, looking up.

"I said, what are you looking at?" Cedric repeated.

"Oh, Professor Dumbledore gave it to me." Kyle rubbed his forehead, not bothering to hide it, and pushed the booklet on the table directly to Cedric, saying, "I thought I could learn it in a few days, but this thing is much harder than I imagined. It'll probably take a week."

"It's just a few pieces of parchment, yet it takes so long to learn. Is there some complicated spell written on them?"

Cedric curiously peeked over, then fell silent.

The parchment contained only a small amount of writing; the rest was filled with complex and dazzling Ancient Runes and symbols.

"Are you learning Ancient Runes from Professor Dumbledore?" Kanna asked from the side.

"You could say that," Kyle said, quickly stuffing a few slices of fried egg and ham into his mouth, then gulping down a mouthful of Pumpkin Juice before continuing, "What he taught me is a bit complicated; I have to learn this first."

"Is this really the simplest one?" Cedric clicked his tongue, then frowned again as he looked at the parchment. "This is the 'Extension' symbol, and also 'Overlay' and 'Light.' Are you trying to make some high-end magical item?"

"No, it's a spell," Kyle said. "A spell invented by Professor Dumbledore, powerful but extremely difficult to master."

"Oh, I see." Cedric clapped his hands in sudden realization. "You must be preparing for the Third Task. That's brilliant..."

Cedric suddenly shut his mouth, glancing somewhat awkwardly at Phoebe not far away.

"I know what you're thinking." Phoebe calmly ladled some fresh leafy greens onto the plate. "Actually, you don't need to be so surprised, nor do you need to feel like you've revealed a secret, because before the Third Task begins, all Champion are the same."

"In fact, Madame Maxime has recently been teaching me some spells that would never normally appear in textbooks."

"You learned it too?" Cedric blurted out. "Then why did you never mention it?"

As soon as he said those words, Cedric knew he had asked a rather foolish question.

Phoebe represents Beauxbatons ' Champion, so of course she wouldn't willingly reveal her secret weapon to them.

Unsurprisingly, Phoebe turned her head and looked at Cedric with a strange gaze, as if she were looking at a running sea cucumber.

Cedric blushed and quickly explained, "Sorry, you misunderstood. What I meant was, why don't you always have a book with you like Kyle?"

"That's because we have other ways of learning," Phoebe said. "Things other than textbooks, and the same goes for Krum. Do you think there's anything different about him lately when he's in the castle compared to before?"

"Krum ..." Cedric thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I don't think so."

He didn't pay much attention to Krum, only occasionally seeing him a few times during meals in the Great Hall. In his memory, Krum behaved no differently than usual... still eating silently and then leaving.

"But I've seen him several times on the deck of that ship being taught a strange wand gesture by the headmaster of Durmstrang, and he certainly wouldn't let you know about it."

Phoebe said, "Krum would rather you... or rather Kyle believe that he has nothing to do with it."

After all, Kyle's score advantage was too great. Only by hiding more of his tricks and trump cards could he have a chance to win the championship in the final event.

"Of course, so do I. Madame Maxime certainly wouldn't agree to me telling you this."

"If that's the case, then why are you saying so much?" Kyle asked curiously.

That's because you brought up the topic first.

Phoebe glanced at the parchment on the table, then quickly looked away. "Only this way is it fair, isn't it?"

Kyle smiled but didn't say anything.

Just then, the messenger owls arrived.

They flew into the Great Hall in a rush, and letters and packages rained down on everyone.

Kyle first looked up at the <Witch Weekly> that the others had received, and only after confirming that the grinning person on the cover was not himself did he breathe a slight sigh of relief, and then picked up the <Daily Prophet> in front of him.

Although the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament has been over for a long time, it still occupies the front page of newspapers, and people seem to have endless topics to discuss about what happened at the bottom of the lake.

This time, the front page featured the Kelpie, and perhaps because Kyle rode it out of the water and scored the highest score, this Fantastic Beasts, which wasn't originally that popular, quickly became a sensation.

Although these dangerous Fantastic Beasts are prohibited from being kept as pets, people always find ways to evade the Ministry of Magic's inspections.

At the very bottom of the newspaper was the Ministry of Magic's advice.

Amos Diggory, head of the Beast Division at the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, believes that people are now trying to keep Kelpie a whim. He thinks it's foolish; Kelpie is wild and untamed, unsuitable for domestication, and if you can't stand it and decide to abandon it, it will hold a grudge and seek revenge...

"We've dealt with five incidents of the Kelpie this week, and I really hope there won't be a sixth."

"Oh, my dad got a promotion." Cedric also saw the article in the newspaper and said with a smile, "He mentioned it to me last week, but I always thought he was joking."

But this will probably make him busier, and I don't know if he'll still be able to come with me to Austria this holiday... We made that promise at Christmas."

"Austria?" Kyle asked curiously.

"Yes," Cedric said. "Wasn't the last International Confederation of Wizards held there? I'm a little curious and want to go and see."

"My dad agreed and said he'll take me there during this year's holidays."

"That's probably unlikely," Kyle said, shrugging.

The Beast Division is the busiest place in the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, which has six sub-departments and a huge amount of work to do every day.

When Chris was in that position, he only got one day off every two weeks on average.

"That would be a real shame," Cedric said, but his expression didn't change much.

A trip to Austria is certainly wonderful, but Mr. Diggory's promotion is equally pleasing.

Kyle continued flipping through the newspaper, and on the second page, he suddenly saw a familiar name.

[The investigation into Barty Crouch, former Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, has concluded.]