The Grand Finale
With all the judges seated, the final judging process officially began.
The players and students who were watching the competition returned to their respective positions, and the air became more formal and tense.
The contestants, following the numbers drawn in advance, stepped forward one by one to present their alchemical creations to the judges.
Lucien's number was placed last, and as the finale, he sat comfortably in the contestants' waiting area, watching the presentations before him.
One by one, the works were presented, demonstrated, and commented on.
"The language translation earmuff is a very practical concept, offering convenience for basic cross-language communication... However, there are still obvious shortcomings in translation accuracy and handling of complex contexts... 15 points."
"Material purification filter. Stable rune engraving, ingenious magic flow design, quantitatively improving the purification efficiency of standard materials... Excellent completion, 19 points."
When Phoebe introduced her work—the Magic Potion Active Preservation Bottle—the eyes of the judges and professors lit up slightly.
"This idea is brilliant." Beside Madame Maxime, a seasoned alchemist leaned forward with keen interest. "It simulates a miniature, stable magical environment designed to maintain the potion's optimal activity and extend its shelf life... This is invaluable for many potions whose potency easily diminishes over time... The design of the rune array demonstrates considerable meticulousness and patience... Twenty-two points."
To be fair, so far, the contestants' works and performances have been quite commendable.
Of course, this evaluation is from the perspective of a "student".
Alchemy is a profound discipline that requires both boundless creativity and meticulous rigor, and these two qualities are rarely perfectly combined in the same person.
The invited judges were all seasoned Alchemy, well-versed in the art, and therefore generally held a tolerant and critical attitude towards the works before them, as if they were looking at the promising works of younger generations.
They weren't really expecting to see any truly impressive works at an inter-school exchange competition.
The alchemy professors from the three schools, who have been dealing with young students for many years, naturally have a better understanding of the average level of children in this age group and had anticipated the results of the presentation.
Therefore, compared to the concise and direct scores and comments from the invited judges, the three professors usually add a few words of encouragement for creativity or effort after giving their scores.
The only exception was the guest judge named Antoine Fell, who sat slightly to the side of the judging panel.
He appeared very gentle, and he would listen attentively to each contestant who came forward, then give very specific and encouraging feedback. He could always pinpoint one or two areas for improvement, such as the possibility of optimizing a certain rune structure, or a suggestion for a more stable alternative material.
This "Antoine Feuer" is, of course, Nicolas Flamel, who was using an alias.
Initially, the other professors and judges did not have a strong impression of this unfamiliar name.
However, as he offered several seemingly mundane suggestions in a few words, upon closer examination, they stirred something within these experts.
Those suggestions often get straight to the point, bypassing the complicated, and have a sense of returning to simplicity.
The students on stage may only understand the specific modification methods, but the alchemy masters below the stage glimpsed a broader and higher-level guidance on the overall alchemical approach to the work from those few simple words.
This made the other judges realize that this seemingly unremarkable "Antoine Fell" had unfathomable alchemical skills and knowledge.
As for why they had never heard of this person before, they were not surprised.
Even in today's relatively interconnected magical society, there are still a few wizards who are eccentric and dislike worldly affairs, choosing to live in seclusion, finding a quiet forest or mountain valley to immerse themselves in their magical research.
Potions masters and Alchemy are particularly susceptible to these "symptoms".
The presentations and scoring of the first few contestants were completed in turn, and the atmosphere in the hall was subtly pushed to a climax by the accumulating scores and comments.
"The last contestant, from Hogwarts, is Lucien Grafton."
Lucien calmly rose and walked onto the display platform under everyone's gaze.
What he held in his hands were not some strangely shaped or shimmering object, but simply two rather thin, hardcover books.
He placed the book on the long table in front of the judges' panel.
As is customary, Madame Maxime, the host, began. "Please begin presenting your work and explaining its function."
Lucien's gaze swept across the judges' panel, a polite smile appearing on his face.
"Thank you to all the judges. Before demonstrating its functions, I might need the cooperation of one of the judges. And this demonstration... also requires some extra 'space'."