X-Champion Tournament!

A grand fireworks display drew everyone to the playground.

Dumbledore stood in the crowd, head tilted back, and gently clapped his hands, saying:

"So beautiful! I haven't seen such beautiful fireworks in a long time."

I heard there was a fireworks display like that during the Quidditch World Cup final. It's a pity I wasn't there.

Madame Maxime looked at the dragon pattern in the sky, shook her head, and said, "Professor Dumbledore, I have no intention of commenting on your school management philosophy."

But if this kind of rule violation happened at Beauxbatons, I would make the troublemaker... regret what they did!

Dumbledore:

A wise man once told me: Madness is a game for young people.

Why be so demanding?

"That person can certainly be called a wise man." Maxime scoffed, then said, "This 'wise man' you're referring to, you wouldn't happen to be yourself, would you?"

"No, it's Nicolas."

Maxime rolled his eyes at Dumbledore and quickly said, "Never mind what I said."

Nicolas Flamel was not only a distinguished alumnus of Beauxbatons, but also their school's largest donor.

Why is Beauxbatons ' scholarship better than Hogwarts '?

Relying on the French Ministry of Magic?

That school has been closed for a long time.

They themselves are short of funds; I heard that the 10,000 Galleon they compensated William and Hermione last year was deducted from the Auror Stability Fund.

The Ministry of Magic doesn't invest much in education; Beauxbatons' high Fawley are mainly due to Nicolas's donations.

This wizard, so approachable yet so powerful... he is none other than the First Wise Man of Beauxbatons!!

"Professor Dumbledore, who do you think will be the Champion of Hogwarts?" Maxime asked, changing the subject.

"Hmm... that's hard to say." Dumbledore tapped his hands together lightly, fingers interlaced.

"Hogwarts has so many excellent students... many of them could become Champion."

"But there can only be one Champion, right? Does Hogwarts have two?"

"Of course not, I can assure you of that..." Dumbledore smiled.

"Hogwarts will never have two Champion."

"Unfortunately... no matter who it is, they can't compare to Krum." Karkaroff couldn't help but interject.

"Really?" Maxime scoffed. "Since Krum is so capable, why are you against Stark participating?"

"Am I the only one who objects?" Karkaroff, his face darkening. "You objected too!"

Upon seeing the Venice tragedy, Maxime immediately expressed his opposition.

Her meaning, translated, is:

If you don't ban Stark, I'm quitting the game.

This hero, enhanced dozens of times over and surpassing other minor wizards by n versions, is something you at Hogwarts can only dream of... while others might not have the same gaming experience.

This isn't a true hack-and-slash game! It's a genuine platformer!

It's about finding a balance of power.

Karkaroff thought so too.

Forget those Champion, he felt he wasn't even a match for Stark!

Such a prodigy... participating in the competition would be the biggest injustice!

"I objected because I know how capable William is, I knew that after the Paris attacks..." Maxime laughed, his tone sarcastic:

"But I'm not as confident as you, thinking my school will definitely win."

Besides... you opposed the Stark participating, yet you yourself are competing as a wizard in his thirties...

"Krum is only seventeen, his birthday was just before summer vacation!" Karkaroff growled. "How many times do I have to tell you, he just looks older than he is!"

"Oh." Maxime chuckled. "I didn't say Krum, look at you... what's the rush?"

Seeing the sharp-tongued Maxime, Karkaroff jumped up and punched her knee.

However, fighting is out of the question.

With my small frame, at such close range, I might just be picked up and torn apart!

Dumbledore, who had started the whole conversation, quietly stepped back and continued to leisurely watch the dazzling fireworks.

He even secretly drifted off into his own thoughts for a moment.

Anne once asked him about his retirement plans, and he said he wanted to go to Sunset Red Community to spend his later years in peace.

Anne said... you can come and stay at her house.

Dumbledore thought it was indeed a good idea; of course, being an old wizard selling fireworks wouldn't be bad either.

He wore a tall, pointed blue hat and a long grey robe, and pulled a carriage filled with various fireworks, wandering around the world...

After the fireworks, the Halloween dinner began again.

With two consecutive days of banquets, people didn't seem to enjoy the elaborately prepared dishes as much as usual.

Of course, the more important reason is that everyone's attention wasn't on the food, but on the Goblet of Fire.

The Goblet of Fire has been moved and now stands in front of an empty chair on the faculty desk.

The students whispered amongst themselves, their eyes fixed on the Goblet of Fire.

Everyone is very curious about who the Champion will be.

As time passed, the people in the Great Hall craned their necks to look, and every face showed anxiety.

Everyone was restless, constantly standing up to check if Dumbledore had finished eating.

Whether intentionally or not, the principal ate very slowly and chatted with others from time to time.

Finally, the golden plate was restored to its spotless state, and the noise in the Great Hall suddenly rose considerably.

Immediately, Dumbledore stood up, and the Great Hall fell silent once more.

Karkaroff and Madame Maxime, standing on either side, were just as nervous and expectant as everyone else.

They all eagerly awaited that one and only Champion from their school!

"Well then, the goblet must make its decision," said Dumbledore.

"After the Champion ' names are announced, I want them to walk to the top of the Great Hall, then down the faculty desk, and into the room next door."

He pointed to the door behind the faculty desk.

They will receive initial guidance there.

Dumbledore pulled out his wand and swung it dramatically.

Except for the candle inside the jack-o'-lantern, all the other candles went out, plunging the Great Hall into a state of semi-darkness.

The Goblet of Fire emitted a dazzling light, brighter than anything else in the entire Great Hall.

The blue-white flames, shooting Mars, were almost blinding, like a laser pointer.

Everyone watched and waited.

The blue-white flames suddenly turned red, and Mars crackled and popped out.

A tongue of fire shot into the air, from which flew a piece of charred parchment.

Dumbledore caught the piece of parchment.

"The Champion of Durmstrang," he said in a clear and forceful tone, "Viktor Krum."

Applause and cheers filled the entire Great Hall.

Krum stood up from Slytherin's table and walked toward Dumbledore.

"Fantastic, Viktor!" Karkaroff roared.

"I knew you were destined to be Champion! No one else can compare to you!"

Many of Durmstrang's students shrugged, waiting for Karkaroff to be completely taken aback.

A few seconds later, the flames turned red again. Propelled by the flames, the second parchment leaped out of the cup.

"The Champion of Beauxbatons," Dumbledore said, "Is Phoebe Delacour!"

"I'm going in first, William!" Phoebe gave William an excited hug, then stood up and gracefully walked between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables.

The two female students buried their heads in their arms and cried sadly, tears streaming down their faces.

William squinted.

He now suspects that... Anne and Gabrielle chose Beauxbatons students who were quite weak.

Soon, the Great Hall fell silent again, and it was time for the Hogwarts Champion to take their turn...

The goblet turned red again, Mars flew, and flames shot high into the air. Dumbledore pulled the third parchment from the tip of the flames.

"The Champion of Hogwarts!" he cried out, "Is Cedric Diggory!"

Every Hufflepuff was jumping up and down, screaming and stomping their feet.

William and Cho also applauded.

Cedric was indeed the strongest adult wizard at Hogwarts.

However, on the other hand, apart from William and Hermione, there couldn't possibly be any underage wizards more powerful than him.

Cedric smiled broadly and walked toward the room behind the faculty desk.

It took Dumbledore to quiet everyone down and get them to listen to him.

But before he could speak, the flame in the goblet turned red again.

Mars crackled and popped as a long tongue of fire suddenly shot into the air, carrying a piece of parchment.

Dumbledore stretched out a long, slender hand, grasped the parchment, and showed a "shocked" expression.

"The fourth Champion... Hermione Granger!"

Hermione calmly stood up, gently raised her chin, glanced at William in the distance, smiled at him, and walked towards the small room.

William clapped, and Qiu followed suit.

Gryffindor seemed to explode, and everyone immediately cheered.

Hermione Granger... the youngest recipient of the France Medal of Valor, the Italy Order of Magic, First Class, and the Venice Doge's Medal.

In the last two years, United Kingdom's most prominent witch has become famous worldwide.

He and Stark were known as the two brilliant stars of England.

The true Champion of Hogwarts were undoubtedly the Stark.

Even if he hadn't participated, he should have received the medal twice, for saving Granger in both Paris and Venice.

Unfortunately... she was also a minor.

Everyone thought Hermione wouldn't participate. Unexpectedly, she lived up to her legendary witch reputation and truly surpassed Dumbledore's Age Line.

This was completely unexpected, yet perfectly logical.

Dumbledore raised his hand, as if to say something.

The Goblet of Fire burst into flames once more.

"The fifth Champion... Qiu Zhang!"

This time, instead of cheering, everyone stared at Qiu in astonishment.

What's going on?

Granger is understandable; she's talented and has huge fame. But who is this Cho Chang?

Fraud!!

Before anyone could even get angry, Dumbledore produced another parchment in his hand.

"The sixth Champion... George Weasley!"

Sorry, bro. Looks like I'm a bit better than you.

George patted Fred's hair triumphantly and ran quickly towards the cabin.

Now no one was angry anymore; the students were all dumbfounded.

It was supposed to be Triwizard Tournament, and you already have six Champion!

But then, an even more dramatic scene unfolded:

A dozen or so parchment sheets shot out of the Goblet of Fire like bullets.

The Great Hall was deathly silent.

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