Ludo Bagman stared at the Revealing Projection Screen and said in a somewhat surprised tone, "I really didn't expect Beauxbatons to make this choice..."
Draco walked forward slowly, only to discover that his opponent was not Fleur Delacour, but Claudia Laroche.
Beauxbatons had two female Champions, Fleur Delacour and Adele Lefevre. Choosing Claudia Laroche to compete was, at least on the surface, a rather wise decision.
"Quite a wise choice indeed..." Draco's gaze passed over Claudia Laroche and briefly met Fleur Delacour's.
Clearly, Fleur Delacour had arranged this deliberately, because anyone with eyes could see that she was Beauxbatons' strongest Champion.
The situation was actually quite clear now. After their earlier string of victories, the Hogwarts Champions could already claim the trophy;
therefore, the duel between Draco and Claudia Laroche was more like an "exhibition match";
and since it was supposedly an "exhibition match," there was no need to go all out. Sending Claudia Laroche was a particularly clever choice.
"Please bow..." Wizet was once again serving as referee. "Three, two, one!"
As soon as Wizet finished speaking, Claudia Laroche immediately started running. At the same time, he gave a light flick toward his head and conjured a pair of sunglasses over his nose.
"Laroche has made a very wise move—he conjured sunglasses!" Ludo Bagman shouted. "That way, he can defend against Malfoy's Illumination Spell!"
"What a pity!" His tone carried some regret. "Malfoy revealed his trump card too soon! Everyone must be on guard against it now. What will he do next?"
Seeing the sunglasses perched on Claudia Laroche's nose, Draco gave a faint sneer. He had anticipated this situation long ago.
"Light... isn't just for illumination!" He waved his wand and cast the spell, "Oppugno!"
Several bird-shaped balls of light shot from the tip of his wand. They