I Want to Bet on Quidditch!

At noon, Ludo Bagman appeared in the Great Hall.

In the United Kingdom Wizarding World, Ludo is quite famous.

He is the greatest Beater of all time for the Wimbourne Wasps and also played for England National Team in the Quidditch World Cup more than a decade ago.

Bulgaria football star Krum, who is currently enjoying great popularity, has been hailed by the United Kingdom Daily Prophet as the modern-day Ludo Bagman.

While it may sound like self-aggrandizement, it's enough to illustrate Ludo's historical status and the formidable influence he wielded back then.

He's at least in the top five of all time among the United Kingdom Beater.

Even die-hard fans can shamelessly shout out extreme slogans like "aiming for second place and hoping for first."

His only weakness is the lack of Quidditch World Cup title, which significantly impacts his historical ranking.

Therefore, there have been persistent rumors circulating that Ludo will make a comeback to play.

There's nothing you can do if you can't win the championship; even in the United Kingdom, there's a saying that goes:

Whoever leads the England Quidditch national team to the Quidditch World Cup title will be England's the Chosen One!

The difficulty is evident; it's even more challenging than defeating Voldemort!

After all, in the public eye, Voldemort is already dead, and the England National Team is still many five-year plans away from winning the championship.

Therefore, "the Ludo Bagman of our time" is not a very good nickname; it's more like a curse.

Ludo never won a Quidditch World Cup title in his lifetime, doesn't that imply... Krum... that my Krum will also never have a title?

The Bulgarian Team this year... is gone?!

However, none of this concerns Ludo; he'd love for all the young stars to be touted by the media as his successors.

That way, people will remember him and he won't fade into obscurity too soon.

Isn't historical status solidified through repeated nostalgia trips and various forms of praise?

When Ludo appeared in the Great Hall, he was warmly welcomed by the students.

He didn't sit next to Dumbledore, but rather next to Hagrid, away from Professor McGonagall.

Clearly, he was also afraid of being publicly confronted by Professor McGonagall about the debt, which would make him lose face.

William looked up and glanced around briefly.

They were supposed to be discussing the rights to host the Triwizard Tournament, but Judy Crouch's uncle... Barty Crouch, was nowhere to be seen.

Barty Crouch Sr. is the Minister of Department of International Magical Cooperation, so this kind of transnational event should, in principle, be jointly organized by him and Ludo.

This is understandable; Barty Crouch Sr. is focused on the construction of the Quidditch World Cup venues and cannot attend to such small campus activities for the time being.

All I can say is that Barty Crouch Sr. is in a bit of a predicament.

Quidditch is a thankless and arduous task.

Minister Fudge, a long-time political rival, showed no mercy and assigned all the tasks to Barty.

If nothing goes wrong, Fudge both face and substance; if something goes wrong, then it will be the major responsibility of Barty, the Minister of Department of International Magical Cooperation.

After finishing his meal, Ludo stood up, beckoned to William, and headed towards the Quidditch Pitch.

A group of students followed behind, preparing to forcefully observe.

Ludo was already quite fat; his robe stretched taut over his large belly.

Once athletes leave the competition arena, without intense training and a disciplined diet, their bodies quickly become out of shape.

Ludo's nose is flat and weak; it's probably because the bridge of his nose was broken by Bludger.

His round blue eyes, short blond hair, and rosy complexion made him look like an oversized boy.

"William, I'm a huge fan of yours. My niece talks about you all the time at home, I'm sick of it."

Ludo happily pulled out a pen and paper and asked him to sign them.

That's not entirely untrue; William's reputation has grown immensely in recent years.

Order of Merlin, Medal of Valor... even Akali's Mystery Shop products are selling like hotcakes.

Just like Dumbledore's fans, they are all over the world.

In any case, United Kingdom spared no effort in praising William, trying to make him succeed Dumbledore terms of fame.

He and Hermione, who suddenly became famous last summer, are hailed as the twin geniuses of Hogwarts and are also the official couple designated by the Ministry of Magic.

As for whether the two will get together or become a couple... that's none of their business.

As long as it gains popularity, that's enough.

This is an old marketing account.

"I heard you and Bertha have a good relationship?" Ludo walked with a bouncy gait, as if his feet were made of springs.

William nodded helplessly. "It's alright. I met her at the Order of Merlin award ceremony."

Bertha's downside is that she has a big mouth. She's very useful for gathering information, but she's also prone to leaking secrets.

For example, she likes to intentionally or unintentionally show off that she is good friends with the famous Stark.

Therefore, the information William exchanged with her was mostly things that were about to be announced.

She only knew a few days in advance, so it wouldn't matter if it leaked out.

"Yes, the Order of Merlin award ceremony... Back then, Bertha was still working under Barty." Ludo tried to get closer to her.

Over the years, Bertha has been arguably the fastest-moving employee in the Ministry of Magic.

She was transferred from one department to another, not only because of her terrible memory, but more so because of her gossipy mouth.

She caused more trouble than she did.

Bertha now works for Ludo, and he seems to like her quite a bit.

"I plan to give my colleagues in the Department of Magical Games and Sports a few days off before the Quidditch World Cup starts," Ludo said softly.

"Everyone's been exhausted lately. I heard from Bertha that she's going on a trip to Albania."

"A holiday before the Quidditch World Cup? We probably don't have enough manpower right now?" William frowned.

"Of course it's enough. We've been working on this for a whole year, from last summer until now, and it's almost time to wrap things up."

Everyone is exhausted; it's time to take a few days off.

Of course, Barty's Department of International Magical Cooperation might be a bit busy. I'll have my staff return before the match."

"..." William realized that Ludo was truly unreliable.

It's one thing to use public funds for travel, but after Quidditch, you can't just travel however you want, why do you have to give everyone a holiday before the game?

If he weren't a star athlete, he would never have reached his current position.

Or perhaps Ludo's sudden leave was a deliberate attempt to trip up Barty Crouch?

Fudge and Crouch were old political rivals who competed for the position of Minister for Magic.

It's possible that Fudge deliberately hinted to Ludo.

This will not have a substantial impact, because the Quidditch field is already in its final stages.

The fact that the Department of Magical Games and Sports staff are going on vacation simply means Crouch will be much busier.

This is purely for the purpose of deliberately disgusting people.

Think about it, while colleagues from the company next door are all going on company-funded team-building trips, their Department of International Magical Cooperation is still working overtime?

Everyone must be complaining about their boss Crouch, behind their backs.

"By the way, William, are you interested in joining the Wimbourne Wasps? You'd be just like Krum..."

Oh, of course you're much more famous than him now, but I know... you really love Quidditch, and you're really good at it.

I dare say, even Krum right now isn't much better than you.

You're only fourteen years old, don't waste your talent.

"If you're willing to join the Wimbourne Wasps, I can guarantee that the club owner will build a super team around you as the absolute core."

"..."

It is common knowledge that all teams that claim to be "galactic battleships" will disintegrate midway through their journey.

"I will consider it, sir." William did not refuse outright.

"Of course, we must consider it carefully," Ludo said with a smile.

William is indeed seriously considering whether or not to... acquire the Wimbourne Wasps.

Although I don't have enough money now, I'm sure I will have enough by the time I graduate.

"Which team do you think will perform well this year, William?" Ludo asked again.

"The Irish National Quidditch Team, perhaps."

"Yeah, they are indeed very strong." Ludo shook his pocket and laughed.

Want to place a bet on the game?

"Professor McGonagall forbids me from betting on football," William said with a smile.

Ludo's face immediately turned awkward. "Minerva... she... makes a good point... but, a little gambling is harmless fun."

He's clearly a seasoned gambler, the kind who gets taken advantage of. Otherwise, he wouldn't be drowning in debt.

William couldn't help but ask curiously, "Are there match-fixing issues in the Quidditch World Cup?"

"Of course not." Ludo patted his large belly confidently.

"Before the match, each player will be tested with Veritaserum to ensure that no one has accepted bribes," Ludo patted William on the shoulder.

"The Quidditch World Cup has no bookmakers, no match-fixing, and is absolutely fair and just."

Otherwise, those stingy Goblin wouldn't be betting on football with us."

"Even Goblin participate in sports betting?" William was genuinely shocked.

"Of course, kid." Ludo laughed. "Those Goblin are really good at betting on football."

The Goblin don't just stay in Gringotts counting gold; they absolutely love that kind of entertainment.

"What about their reputation?"

"That's good. There haven't been any instances of them defaulting on their debts. They're all quite wealthy and wouldn't default on their payments; otherwise, it would be a fatal blow to Gringotts ' reputation."

William seemed to be deep in thought, then suddenly laughed and said, "I'll take the bet."

"Um?"

"I'm not betting with you, I want to play with those Goblin." A special gleam appeared on William's face.

"Oh, really? How much are you planning to bet?" Ludo asked.

"A little gambling is harmless, let's start with 5,000 Galleon for the first round."

"Five thousand... how much?!" Ludo's eyes widened, and he picked at his ear to make sure he hadn't misheard.

The students were all staring at Ludo when William seemed to say something that shocked him.

Ludo was genuinely shocked; his total salary over several years didn't even amount to five thousand Galleon!

The Stark are indeed rich!

The Order of Merlin and the compensation from France added up to more than 10,000 Galleon.

Ludo connections; he also heard about the Gringotts incident three years ago, Goblin suffered a loss and had to pay a considerable amount of money.

He's young and rich!

William didn't pay attention to Ludo, but was thinking carefully about how to maximize the benefits and cut a wave of leeks.

Betting on sports is legal in the Wizarding World, and if a contract is signed, it will be protected by law.

Nicolas can Prophecy the future and see parts of it. He can see the results of each game in advance, making winning even easier.

As long as there's no match-fixing, William can uproot these Goblin!

He wasn't betting on football at all; he was blatantly robbing people.

Beep, the King of Gamblers card!

The money to buy the club... is about to arrive!

The only problem is that the vault key is with Hermione.

How can I persuade her... to give me the money?

(Please vote for this post, everyone!)