Ludo looked bewildered at Mme Maxim, supposing that Fleur was her student and that Mme Maxim must know something of her background. However, Mrs. Maxim did not answer the enquiry in his gaze, her lips tightly closed, her olive face flushed.
What could she say?
How could she tell others that the dance Fleur was performing was specifically designed by Sirens for mating, possessing extraordinary 'lethal' power to all kinds and genders of beings?
"Look, the fire dragon is coming down, and Mademoiselle Delacour has overcome the difficulty!"
In helplessness, Ludo had to focus on the situation on the battlefield again, and he exclaimed when he saw the latest situation.
Fleur's 'courtship dance' was indeed a formidable weapon, and many young witches who lacked the resilience left their seats, entranced by Fleur. Some unfortunate children fell onto the seats in front of them, causing quite a commotion. Fortunately, after enduring countless trials, the students of Amortoso's P.E. class had become resilient in spirit. They were not lured by Fleur's performance but remained dedicated to maintaining order.
So many small witches so far away were blinded, and as Fleur's main enchantment target, the Welsh Green Dragon was even more affected. This type of creature is strong in physique and has excellent Magical Resistance to their scales. However, it doesn't mean that their spiritual power is superior to wizards.
The Welsh Green Dragon's emerald vertical eyes flickered with confusion. Unconsciously, a few feet of drake's breath was expelled between its thin jawline, and the sharp claws that had been firmly embedded in the cliff wall gradually relaxed.
A primitive desire appeared in the Welsh Green Dragon's heart. It pulled out its claws from the cliff wall, and the last bit of reason kept it from releasing the spiral state of its wings that protected the dragon egg. Step by step, it slowly climbed down from the cliff wall, heading towards the ground.
Seeing this situation, Fleur's eyes flashed with a trace of light, but it was unclear whether it was joy or anger.
Thud—-
With only twenty feet left to the ground, the Welsh Green Dragon leaped directly and landed with a loud thud. It did not rush towards Fleur but spread its wings and stretched its neck, making a series of melodious and graceful moans, as if it were responding to Fleur's dance in this way.
Seeing the few dragon eggs scattered on the ground, Fleur's blue eyes clearly flashed with joy. Unexpectedly, Fleur stopped her dance abruptly. Meanwhile, the green dragon also came back to its senses in an instant when the enchantment of spirit dissipated. Before it could make any move, Fleur started dancing again.
The rhythm of the dance changed, clearly in harmony with another magical form. The movements were soothing and fluid, lacking the captivating allure of self-expression from before, yet they exuded a sense of peace that calmed the soul. It was as if a gentle breeze met the evening glow at sunset in autumn, captivating one's senses.
The Welsh Green Dragon suddenly felt drowsy. It elegantly flapped its wings a few times before lying down to prepare for a nap.
At this moment, Fleur was also close to her limits. This strange magic not only consumed her physical strength but also imposed a heavy mental burden on her.
In the moment the Welsh Green Dragon's snoring began, Fleur fell heavily to the ground, her forehead and cheeks drenched with sweat. Her eyes were blurry, but she still remembered her mission. Among several brown dragon eggs, she found the one golden egg that stood out like a peacock among chickens.
The moment Fleur's hand touched the dragon egg, not only she but even Ludo, the commentator, let out a sigh of relief. He was about to say something, but suddenly, the slumbering Welsh Green Dragon sneezed and a small cloud of fire shot out from between its jaws, barely touching Fleur's calf——
"Don't worry, Ollim—"
After Fleur was hurriedly carried off the field by a group of healers, Mme Maxim was about to leave her seat to visit Fleur, but Dumbledore grabbed her sleeve.
"I believe that the competition suit provided by Amortoso is of some efficacy. Now, the most important thing is to score for Miss Delacour's outstanding performance."
Fleur's performance was wonderful, and if she hadn't been burned by the fire dragon at the end or hesitated too long while thinking about how to get the Welsh Green Dragon down, she should have been able to outperform Cedric with her enchanting magic.
Dumbledore, Crocker, and Bagman all scored her an eight, while Mme Maxim gave her a nine. Karkaroff scored her a seven. In the end, Fleur lost to Cedric Digory of Hogwarts by a margin of one point.
"Hogwarts temporarily leads!"
Harry had just gone to find Hermione with Sirius, but he didn't get a chance to talk much with her. The staff in the tent weren't allowed to disturb the warriors at that time, so they ran back angrily. Because Sirius couldn't appear in public, father and son were hiding in the exit passage.
Seeing the score on the large screen above the arena, Harry happily waved his fist and then complained grumpily,
"The headmaster of Durmstrang only gave Cedric 6 points. I wonder how he's going to score when his warriors take the field!"
"Stop dreaming, Harry—" Sirius was also clapping for Fleur, and hearing Harry's complaint, he sneered and said with contempt, "It's unrealistic to expect a person like Karkaroff to be fair and impartial. I dare bet that as long as Karkaroff can finish the challenge, no matter how bad his performance is, he will give him a full score."
Harry was about to express his anger at Sirius's opinion when a massive voice suddenly flashed into his line of sight, and he instinctively wanted to warn Sirius to get out of the way.
"Don't worry, Harry, it's Hagrid—"
Sirius pushed Harry's hand away, grinning and preparing to go up and greet Hagrid, but upon seeing Hagrid's horrified expression, Sirius frowned between his brows and grew serious.
"What's the matter, Hagrid?"
"Oh, Sirius!" Hagrid clearly hadn't expected to see the father and son here, and he stopped in his tracks, astonished. "And Harry, what are you doing here?"
"First things first, Hagrid!"
Harry also realized that something was wrong with Hagrid and anxiously asked,
"What's going on, Hagrid? Where are you going?"
Facing the questions from both of them, Hagrid hesitated, but under Harry's repeated urging, he cautiously turned his head towards the rear. After confirming that no one was around, he wiped the sweat from his brow and spoke in a low voice, tense.
"Oh, you guessed right. There's been a bit of a complication!"
Hagrid's small eyes, like black beetles, showed panic. He panted and said,
"Hagrid's eyes, like those of a black beetle, were filled with panic. He was gasping as he said, 'Just now, Professor Brian sent me a secret message. There's a fire dragon, the one Hermione is dealing with, and it's not in good shape!' "
In that moment, Harry's mind raced with numerous thoughts.
What happened again, involving Hermione?
"What's wrong with that fire dragon, make it clear, Hagrid!" Sirius demanded sharply.
"They, I mean, Charlie and his dragon handlers. They fed all the dragons some potion to recover their spirits. Before that, they put them to sleep with tranquilizers, and the other three were all back to normal."
Hagrid panted and said,
"Hagrid puffed and said, 'The only one Hermione has to deal with, the Chinese fireball, is still sleeping. Charlie and Professor Brian checked it out, and they think someone overdosed this Chinese fireball with a potion that causes paralysis and a sedative, which is why it can't wake up.'"
Paralyzing potion. Potions!
Harry's face turned pale, and the name of Severus Snape instantly popped into his head.
"Then what are you doing, Hagrid?" Sirius's eyebrows were furrowed tightly. "What's that got to do with you. I mean, if Charlie and Amortoso need someone to understand potions, shouldn't they ask the Foe-Hog?"
"Oh, that's where the problem lies—"
Hagrid still couldn't overcome his nervousness; sweat kept dripping from his forehead.
"Charlie said that they've been keeping a close watch on the dragons for these days. Even at night, someone would be guarding them. They haven't seen any strangers near the dragons, let alone feeding them drugs. Only I—"
Hagrid gurgled and swallowed a large amount of saliva, looking like he was in great trouble.
"Only I have been in charge of providing the fire dragons with food—"
(Chapter completed)
