Preliminary Round

The second day of the new semester.

The announcement about the Triwizard Tournament appeared on the bulletin board in the lobby.

The young wizards gathered in twos and threes, craning their necks to read the announcement of the exchange competition.

This exchange tournament was jointly organized by Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang, and the venue was Beauxbatons, located in the Pyrenees.

The competition will officially begin in ten days and will last for a total of half a month.

"Why is the competition theme Alchemy? That has nothing to do with us..."

The young wizards, who were initially enthusiastic about the event, suddenly erupted in wails upon learning that the exchange competition would be based on Alchemy.

At Hogwarts, alchemy is a course offered to sixth and seventh-year students.

Although some young wizards have acquired some knowledge of Alchemy due to family tradition or personal interest, those students are a minority, and younger students can only watch from the sidelines.

"I originally wanted to take this opportunity to broaden my horizons; Beauxbatons is a prestigious school!"

"To broaden your horizons? You just don't want to stay in school and attend classes, do you?"

"You've gone too far, seeing through things but not saying anything..."

The young wizards were discussing the details of the exchange competition, creating a lively atmosphere.

The last class was a joint class for Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Lucien and Malfoy happened to be passing through the hall after class when they were reading the announcement together.

Malfoy: "Hey, Lucien, are you going to that exchange tournament? With your alchemy skills, you should be able to win easily, right?"

This semester, Lucien has introduced many magical items at school, Malfoy naturally knows that Lucien's Alchemy far surpass those of his peers.

At Christmas, Malfoy's father gave him another alchemical item for protection, and upon checking the label, it turned out to be Lucien product.

Items like these that can automatically trigger protective magic are invaluable treasures for Pure-blood nobles, as the more wealth and power a person possesses, the more they cherish their life.

Lucien: "Heroes from all over the world are as numerous as carp crossing a river; let's participate in the school's preliminary selection first."

Each school will have two representative slots for this exchange competition, with Hogwarts holding preliminary rounds first.

Although Dumbledore had already discussed the matter of representing Lucien in the competition, the formalities still had to be followed.

Besides the fact that Dumbledore would grant him emotional energy in exchange for participating in the exchange tournament, Lucien himself was genuinely curious about the other magic schools and wanted to see what they usually studied.

Malfoy sighed softly, "Lucien, you're too modest. It's a pity, Alchemy gives me a headache just looking at it, I don't even have the chance to participate..."

Lucien glanced at Malfoy beside him and asked:

"What, are you curious about Beauxbatons?"

Malfoy shook his head.

"No, I'm actually more curious about Durmstrang, because my father originally planned to send me there to study, and the reason is... well, you know..."

Lucien knew what Malfoy wanted to say. Durmstrang was unique in that he held a tolerant attitude towards Dark Magic, and related teachings were included in the curriculum.

Another issue is that the school discriminates against Muggle-born wizard, not allowing them to enroll.

That place is practically the dream school for most Pure-blood parents.

They can openly study Dark Magic and openly engage in racial discrimination.

"Then why didn't you go to Durmstrang back then?"

Upon hearing Lucien's question, Malfoy helplessly shrugged:

My mother thought that place was too far away.

Lucien understood; it was because he loved his son so much.

"Hey Lucien, do you know about the Fountain of Fair Fortune in Beauxbatons?"

Fountain of Fair Fortune?

Lucien looked at Daphne, who was speaking, and saw that the little girl's face was full of excitement, her focus clearly not on the exchange match.

Noticing the confusion in Lucien's eyes, Daphne explained very quickly:

"That's a magical fountain in the heart of Beauxbatons, with beauty-enhancing effects. Long-term bathing in its waters can even make one younger and more beautiful... It's said to have been built by the legendary Alchemy Nicolas Flamel!"

Upon hearing the teacher's name, Lucien remembered that Nicolas had mentioned the fountain to him, but the description was brief, only mentioning that the water was very pure and effective at removing impurities, and that it even had beauty-enhancing properties, making people younger and more beautiful...

Lucien felt the fountain's function couldn't be that exaggerated, but seeing Daphne's sparkling eyes, he still asked:

"Do you need me to bring you some spring water?"

"Uh-huh!"

Daphne nodded hastily, but immediately realized that this was too unladylike, and controlled the extent of her nods.

Thank you, Lucien.

She was very confident that Lucien would be able to go to Beauxbatons through the school's preliminary rounds. Ever since Lucien slew the Basilisk and earned the Order of Merlin, First Class, Daphne felt that Lucien could do anything!