With the Third Task over, the situation had changed considerably once again. Some people were unaffected, while others were affected greatly.
It made little difference to Ron. After three tasks, he continued to lead the standings with 158 points. Even Elizabeth in second place was nearly ten points behind him, with only 149.
Ryan Moning Meng, whose performance in the first two rounds had been merely average, surged unexpectedly into third place with 145 points. Although she was only one point ahead of Harry in fourth, her rise in the rankings was undeniable.
Krum was fifth. His performance in the third round had been ordinary, but fortunately, he had scored enough points in the first two rounds.
Yi Qianqian, in sixth, could also be said to have turned things around. She had 140 points, and although a gap had opened between her and the leaders, she had still made clear progress compared to before.
Fleur Delacour's unremarkable performance this round had knocked her out of the leading ranks, leaving her with 139 points.
Jacob Covenas had performed at only an average level in all three rounds, so his current ranking was firmly in the middle as well. He was eighth with 138 points.
From sixth to eighth, the three were each separated by just one point. The gaps were still very small.
Markov Horton, who came next, could have scored higher if he had not played a dirty trick on Beauxbatons. Still, despite angering Madame Maxime, his score in the third round had allowed him to make up some of his earlier deficit and reach ninth place.
However, his 133 points left him five points behind eighth place. That was the debt he had accumulated earlier...
After Horton came Lei Kaiming.
Lei Kaiming could be said to have squandered all