It was not only the Champions who noticed the changes in the surrounding maze. The spectators staring at the "Revealing Projection Screen" could also clearly see that the thorny hedges were sinking at a visible rate.
"That's so underhanded!" Terry Boot said indignantly as he watched the thorns and hedges sink lower and lower. "They must have realized that Wizet and the others would get the trophy."
"That's why they arranged this! First, they made the seventh level of the maze disappear, then they removed all the surrounding obstacles. Now Wizet and the others have become everyone's target."
"If it weren't for these rules, Wizet would have reached the seventh level ages ago. He could have taken the trophy and come right out. Why would there be all this trouble..."
"It's just too underhanded! How can they be so underhanded?" The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. He raised an arm indignantly and pointed a finger upward. "Karkaroff must have done this!"
"I guess it was him too..." Anthony Goldstein shrugged. "But at this point, we can only look at it another way..."
His tone was somewhat helpless. "The reason they came up with rules like these... was simply because they felt they had no way to defeat Wizet through normal means."
"That's why they made all these convoluted rules, to give the other schools more chances of winning. This is the Five-Wizard Tournament, after all. It's only natural to be competitive."
"Anthony's right!" Chris Moen nodded. "No matter what, all we need to do is believe in Wizet!"
"Beauxbatons' alchemy truly is remarkable!" Karkaroff rubbed his hands together, his voice full of anticipation.
"All the Champions are gathering in one place... I guarantee it! This will absolutely be the most thrilling tournament yet! What do