Deep into the night, the piercingly cold wind howls through the Hogwarts campus, mingling with the persistent sound of waves crashing against the cliffs. At first listen, it evokes a bit of a seaside ambiance.
Due to the selection of champions for the Triwizard Tournament, the doors of Hogwarts castle are open today. The wind howls through the castle, filling the halls with the mournful cry of a ghost. Inside, four massive torches and a fiery goblet on a pedestal cast an eerie glow that illuminates the entrance like midday.
Cedric Diggory from Hufflepuff just sneaked into the great hall, accompanied by a few friends, from a side passage downstairs. After confirming that no one was around, he laughed and stepped over the silver line around the cup that marked the age limit. He then dropped his parchment with his name and house into the blue-white flames. Confirming that it wasn't spit out by the cup, they cheered wildly before slinking away again.
Such a scene has already occurred several times in the past few hours.
"Cedric's fundamentals are very strong and he works hard. He did well in my sports class and I believe he has a good chance of representing Hogwarts as a champion."
In the dimly lit office, Amortosis lounged on the couch, cradling a steaming cup of tea with swirling white smoke, his tone casual.
"Pomona would be delighted to..."
Dumbledore carefully removed the cookie crumbs from his beard — Amortosis had probably eaten all the light-flavored snacks in that box,
"I have always believed that Hufflepuff should be rewarded for their noble qualities of kindness, loyalty, hard work, and steadfastness."
Dumbledore sincerely said.
Amortosis nodded slightly, showing approval.
After the other three founders of Hogwarts passed away, Helga Hufflepuff became the school's first headmistress. In that era when wolves surrounded the place, Hufflepuff stood alone in that school, almost depleting her personal and family wealth to ensure the smooth operation of the school.
Moreover, according to internal records.
It was Helga Hufflepuff who brought house-elves to Hogwarts, an act of kindness that speaks volumes in a time when students of Muggle descent were seen as little more than dust. Amortosis had pondered this too, and wondered if Helga's decision to bring in house-elves was inspired by the plight of the small magical beings living beneath Azkaban as shared by both Gryffindor and Ravenclaw.
Time flowed quietly, and several more individuals with peeping tendencies came to the great hall to register for the Goblet of Fire. Amortosis made a rough estimate that about a quarter of the eligible young wizards at Hogwarts had made their way to the great hall that night.
As the night sky grew darker, the glowing light in an irregular shape that had been blurred by thick clouds was moving towards the other end of the sky. In the safe office, Amortosis and Dumbledore had stopped talking and were each absorbed in their books, immersed in the sea of magical knowledge.
Plonk.
As the hour hand of the clock jumped forward to one, amidst the eerie wailing and howling in the shadows, a group of footsteps suddenly echoed. Amortosis took advantage of this moment to set down the magical book he was holding and his gaze directed towards the scene.
"How do you feel, Wiccorma, can you still go on?"
A group from Durmstrang walked into the light cast by the Goblet of Fire and the flaming torches. They were wearing thick fur cloaks, except for Karkaroff, most of them looked weary. Viktor's drooping eyebrows and dark circles under his eyes were particularly severe, even on his dark skin.
In response to Karkaroff's concern, Viktor simply shook his head silently and then sniffed loudly.
"When you get back, you can take some tranquilizers, Viktor. As for the rest, you'll have to rely on your own strength," said Dumbledore.
Karkaroff looked somewhat annoyed, "It's indeed warmer here than in our country, but I didn't expect you to be unaccustomed to the British climate..."
"Why not let Viktor go to the hospital, Karkaroff?"
"Yes, yes," said a withered little boy behind Karkaroff, timidly.
"Does Hogwarts have a school hospital?"
"Send him to the hospital!"
Karkaroff's kind expression disappeared in an instant. He turned to the little boy and revealed a terrifying gaze.
"To drug Viktor so that Hogwarts can take him under their umbrella? Shut up, Polyakov, this annoying boy!"
Karkaroff's stern voice echoed through the great hall, terrifying the thin boy who had just spoken and causing him to tremble.
Viktor sneezed heavily and left Karkaroff's support, trying to get closer to the Goblet of Fire to put his name in. However, Karkaroff stopped him.
"Wait, Viktor!"
Karkaroff's expression suddenly became vigilant. He intercepted Viktor and stepped into the age line himself, then immediately pulled out his wand from his robes, narrowed his eyes, and orbited around the base holding the Goblet of Fire, raising his head.
The small wizards accompanying Karkaroff were clearly curious about this behavior, but they didn't dare to ask. So, one by one, their gazes turned to Viktor Krum.
"What are you doing, Professor?"
Karkaroff was tapping the rough surface of the Goblet of Fire with his wand, occasionally disturbing his wrist to cast some spells and carefully observing the changes in the flames coming out of the cup.
Even Viktor was puzzled by Karkaroff's behavior. His eyebrows furrowed, and he asked in a hoarse voice.
"We can't be complacent, Viktor—"
Karkaroff was always observing the Goblet of Fire, using all his magical knowledge to determine if there was anything wrong with it. He answered Viktor's question indifferently.
"Once you're my age and have gone through what I've been through, you'll know that we're now facing the most cunning and deceptive wizard of the century who can do anything. I'm extremely suspicious that this cup has been enchanted to select the best students from our school and Beauxbatons!"
"You mean Mr. Amortosis Brawn?"
Viktor Krum was taken aback and said,
"He doesn't look like a wizard who would do something like this?"
"I mean Albus Dumbledore..."
Karkaroff scoffed coldly, revealing a set of disquieting yellow teeth.
"Dumbledore's image isn't as upright as you think. A man of virtue can't claim the title of the greatest wizard of our time. It's through cunning schemes that he won the title, even more so than Voldemort--"
Karkaroff took a deep breath, then hesitated before glancing around warily. After confirming that no one was spying, he let out a sigh of relief and straightened up his body.
"As for Amortosis Brawn..."
After all the fuss, Karkaroff left the age line dissatisfied, tilting his head and speaking to Krum.
"I know you admire his power, Viktor, but don't forget the things I've told you about Brawn. How he defeated us and Beauxbatons, making Hogwarts the host of the Triwizard Tournament. His methods are no less cunning than Dumbledore's, even more aggressive."
Karkaroff looked around the doorway, which was cold and dimly lit, with an expression of distaste.
"In any case, we must be very careful. I even suspect that if Hogwarts fails to win the tournament, Brawn might try to do something underhanded to you and the champions from Beauxbatons!"
(End of chapter)
