Goblet of Fire? You've Got to Be Kidding!
"Why are you carrying that basin? Are you washing your face?"
Just as Phoebe was about to sit down, Bell suddenly asked.
Bell was puzzled when he saw the large basin that Phoebe was holding in both hands. Why did that basin look so familiar?
"... This is French fish soup! What's wrong with your eyes to think it's for washing your face?!"
Phoebe said in a frenzy.
She almost stumbled and fell to the ground.
"Fish soup?"
Bell craned his neck and peered into the basin, discovering that it was indeed a thin layer of milky white fish soup, not the water he had previously thought it was for washing his face.
"So, you see, it's just a shallow layer of fish soup, why not just put it in a few small bowls? But you France people insist on bringing a whole washbasin."
The other dishes were the same; they were just a tiny bit in the middle, but they insisted on using such a huge plate to serve them.
Isn't this just over-packaging?
Bell pursed his lips.
These France are so dishonest.
"You... you... that's still better than you Britain who can't cook!"
Phoebe was so angry that her breasts trembled. She really wanted to slam the fish soup bowl in her hand onto Bell's head.
"Hehe..."
With a leisurely skewer, Bell put a piece of steak in his mouth, chewing slowly and deliberately, a look of enjoyment on his face.
Facts speak louder than words, and he didn't bother arguing with this ignorant woman.
Seeing Bell's irritating expression, Phoebe, who had reached her limit, finally decided that she couldn't take it anymore!
"Go to hell!"
With a loud roar, Phoebe grabbed the basin in her hand and slammed it down on Bell's head.
She accepted it even if it was said to be damaging the friendship between the two schools, since there was no friendship between Beauxbatons and Hogwarts anyway.
In short, she was determined to teach that damn brat Bell a lesson today!
If Professor McGonagall knew what Phoebe was thinking at that moment, the old professor might have held Phoebe's hands with tears in his eyes and talked with her all night long.
Smack!
Bell snapped his fingers lightly, and then the bowl in Phoebe's hands suddenly broke free and floated into the air.
Controlling the bowl to drop it onto the dining table, Bell looked at Phoebe with a playful expression and said:
"Wasting food is shameful. Didn't your sister teach you that?"
This was only because of Little Gabrielle's sake, and also because she's a pretty girl. Otherwise, if it were a man who dared to do such a thing to him, Bell would have already killed him.
"I... I... my Wand!"
Phoebe was furious.
She threw all considerations of occasion and decorum to the back of her mind; all she wanted now was to kill Bell, no matter the cost!
"Ahem! Um... the professors are watching, hurry up and eat, it's almost time."
Seeing that the other person was so angry that they were about to reach for their Wand, Bell quickly tried to calm them down.
If he were to hurt Phoebe, he wouldn't know how to explain it to Little Gabrielle.
Phoebe looked toward the professors' seats and, sure enough, found that the professors, including Madame Maxime, were all looking at her with curiosity.
Taking a deep breath, Phoebe barely regained her senses.
She didn't want to lose face in front of Madame Maxime.
Phoebe sat down heavily in the chair and began eating the food in front of her quickly without saying a word.
She swore she would never speak another word to that damn kid next door in her entire life!
Shrugging, Bell ignored Phoebe's attitude and buried himself in his food.
The pleasant (?) dinner ended, and after the desserts on the table disappeared, Dumbledore stood up and introduced the two people who had appeared beside him at some point to the Little Wizard present.
The two are: Barty Crouch, Department of International Magical Cooperation, and also Percy Weasley's most admired superior; Ludo Bagman, Department of Magical Games and Sports, who is also a gambling addict.
Then, Dumbledore took a box from Filch.
He opened the box and took out a cup with a blue-white flame burning inside.
According to Dumbledore, the cup is called the Goblet of Fire, and it is also the "selector" of the Champion participating in this Triwizard Tournament.
Little Wizard who wish to participate in the Triwizard Tournament must write their name and school on a piece of parchment and drop it into the Goblet of Fire.
Then, after the Halloween Eve Dinner tomorrow night, the Goblet of Fire will select the Champion from the three magic schools, marking the official start of the Triwizard Tournament.
"To prevent younger students from succumbing to temptation, I will draw an Age Line around the Goblet of Goblet of Fire. Anyone under the age of 17 will not be allowed to cross this line!"
Upon hearing Dumbledore's announcement of the selection method for Little Wizard under the age of 17, Bell's gaze towards him once again became meaningful.
He had lost interest in listening to what Dumbledore said next. He was now wondering what tricks Dumbledore was up to this time.
Before today, he was unaware of the Champion ' selection process.
He sensed something was wrong when he first heard that the Goblet of Fire would select three Champion.
Putting aside the fact that it's just a broken cup, how could one possibly judge a Little Wizard's magic power, spellcasting skills, combat abilities, and so on, simply by looking at a name written on a piece of parchment?
(At least Bell couldn't imagine how that could be done.)
This kind of simple, even hasty, selection method is just too boring!
It's important to know that this Triwizard Tournament, which hadn't been held for centuries, attracted the attention of the entire Europe Magical World.
As a result, in the important selection of Champion, without considering the results or conducting duels, the selection was decided in just one day in such a playful manner.
How is this any different from deciding who advances to the Quidditch World Cup by rock-paper-scissors?
Luck is also a part of ability, and a very important part at that, okay?
If the selection process for the Triwizard Tournament Champion was decided by the Ministry of Magic and had absolutely nothing to do with Dumbledore, then the final Age Line is simply ridiculous.
Indeed, Bell believed that with the level of the Little Wizard, it was impossible for any of them to break the magic set up by Dumbledore.
But the question is, who says that you can't put parchment into the Goblet of Fire if you don't meet the Age Line?
You can throw it in from far away! You can also ask an older student to help you throw it in! You can also...
In short, as long as you don't give up, there are always more solutions than problems!
In Bell's view, Dumbledore's actions were tantamount to openly saying, "Come and cheat!"
Otherwise, there are many simpler and more effective screening methods. For example, Little Wizard who want to enroll could hand their parchment to the professor, who would then put it all into the Goblet of Fire.
Surely the professors couldn't have gotten the Little Wizard's age wrong?
The school keeps detailed records of every student's birth date.