The students in the stands by the Black Lake were just about to burst into applause and cheers, celebrating the first champion to surface.
But before they could make a sound, they suddenly realized that the small figure on the shore did not belong to any of the champions.
Murmurs spread through the crowd. Where was the champion who had rescued the little girl?
Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey hurried to the lakeshore and found Ginny, who had just regained consciousness.
As fresh air suddenly filled her lungs, the little girl coughed violently several times, her eyes full of fear and confusion.
A few seconds later, Ginny's body reacted before her mind did. She walked straight toward the freezing lake, as though she wanted to return to the bottom of the Black Lake.
Professor McGonagall quickly caught hold of her. While driving the chill from Ginny's body, she comforted her gently. "She'll be fine. Don't worry, Eda will be all right."
That was what she said, but the constant glances she kept casting toward the lake betrayed her true feelings.
Madam Pomfrey also arrived in time. She wrapped a thick blanket around Ginny's shoulders, then poured a steaming potion down her throat.
The potion drove the cold from the body and helped prevent colds and fevers, though it tasted awful.
The students in the stands also kept their eyes fixed on the lake. A growing sense of foreboding rose in their hearts, and unease gradually spread through the crowd.
Just as everyone tensed up, worried that something had gone wrong beneath the surface, someone suddenly noticed a change in the water. A red glow had begun to shine up from beneath the lake.
At first, it was only a tiny circle of light that attracted little attention. Gradually, the glowing ring grew larger and larger, its radiance becoming increasingly brilliant.
It was as though an active volcano had been buried beneath the Black Lake and had chosen today to erupt.
As the blazing red light spread through the water, the corpses of Grindylows and other aquatic creatures floated to the surface. Every one of them bore scorch marks from flames.
The dragon-like crimson light rolling through the lake was actually fire!
Ordinary fire was extinguished by water unless it burned with overwhelming intensity. Even magical flames, when cast into such a vast lake, would normally be snuffed out.
Yet the brilliant red glow beneath the water and the endless stream of dead Grindylows floating upward proved that someone was casting fire magic underwater. What kind of power was needed to make flames burn and rage freely beneath a lake?
The spectators all stood up. They desperately wanted to know who had started the fire, and whether they had roasted themselves in the process.
It wasn't just the audience. Even the judges at the judges' table had risen to their feet, staring at the lake in shock.
Karkaroff's eyes held not only astonishment but also a trace of fear. He had once been an infamous Death Eater and was now the headmaster of Durmstrang. He knew Dark Magic.
But the flames burning beneath the lake belonged to no form of Dark Magic he had ever encountered.
If this really was nothing more than ordinary magical fire, then this girl's strength was simply outrageous. She was only in her teens!
Forget the Triwizard Cup. I'm done. I want to go home!
Dumbledore, watching the lake, was equally astonished. The headmaster wasn't surprised that Eda could conjure fire underwater, because he himself could do the same.
What astonished Dumbledore was Eda's age and talent. Speaking honestly, when he had been her age, he had never reached such a level.
The headmaster naturally attributed everything to talent and hard work. It was Eda's exceptional talent combined with her relentless effort day after day that had allowed her to reach this point.
But there was one thing Dumbledore didn't know. No one knew except Eda herself.
The system.
Talent, the system, and hard work. None of the three could be missing.
Although people said playing with fire would get you burned, Eda's talent for fire magic was impossible to ignore.
Combined with the "Blazing Soul" talent she had obtained long ago, she was able to accomplish this, igniting dragon-like flames beneath the water while remaining completely unharmed herself.
The firelight beneath the lake gradually faded away, yet no one surfaced. If not for the Grindylow corpses drifting across the water, the students might have believed they had imagined the fiery glow beneath the lake.
"She's out, over there!" someone in the stands shouted again.
Everyone looked over and, sure enough, saw Eda emerging from the shallow water near the lakeshore.
As the saying went, "A lotus rises pure from clear water, needing no ornament." The Black Lake at Hogwarts was hardly clear water, and the beauty emerging from it certainly wasn't Fleur.
Eda walked toward the shore one step at a time, lifting her long hair with both hands and wringing the water from it. When the lake dropped below her waist, what the spectators saw was no longer the fish tail from before, but a pair of smooth, fair, slender legs.
Despite the freezing weather, steam rose from Eda's body, making her seem as though she were walking out of a fairyland. With every step she took, she became a little drier.
The stands erupted with cheers and applause. Everyone was celebrating Eda's return, marveling at her unmatched strength.
The students' shouts gradually became unified. In the end, everyone in the stands was loudly chanting, "Twist! Twist!" calling out the name that had left them so astonished.
By the time Eda reached the shore, not a single drop of water remained on her body. It was as though she had never entered the lake at all.
Professor McGonagall, holding a blanket, appeared in front of Eda in an instant, almost as though she had flown there.
She pulled Eda into a tight hug, then quickly released her and wrapped two thick blankets firmly around the bewildered girl.
"Quick, go change your clothes. Don't catch a chill!" Professor McGonagall urged. "No, wait. Drink the warming potion first."
Ginny appeared at just the right moment. If only she hadn't been holding a cup of potion.
"Hurry, drink it!" the little girl said cheerfully.
She's worried about me... right? Ginny's worried about me... right?
Eda looked suspicious because Ginny Weasley was clearly trying not to laugh. The smile at the corners of her eyes and lips simply couldn't be hidden.
Taking the cup from Ginny, Eda frowned and pinched her nose, wearing the expression of someone marching bravely to her execution. Better one sharp pain than prolonged suffering. Tilting her head back, she downed the entire cup in one gulp.
A burning sensation traveled from her mouth down her throat, into her stomach, then spread throughout her entire body. If not for the complete lack of intoxication, Eda would have thought she'd just swallowed a cup of high-proof liquor rather than a warming potion.
Only then did the smile on Ginny's face fully bloom.
She hugged Eda and whispered softly, "It tastes awful, doesn't it? I thought it was horrible too. And... Eda, thank you."
"You little brat. Sweet words won't save you. Just wait until I deal with you later."
Eda wrapped an arm around Ginny, smiling just as brightly.
Eda didn't linger by the shore. After exchanging a few simple words with Ginny, she headed for the champions' tent. Once she had changed clothes, she bundled herself up tightly again.
Outside the tent, Eda ran into Hector, who had been waiting for her.
Eda teased, "I heard Fleur Delacour withdrew halfway through the task. Shouldn't you be comforting the girl you like? What are you doing here?"
"Ahem... I already comforted her. She's not in a very good mood," Hector said. "We're cousins after all. I should still come check on you."
Hector was a terrible liar. His face was as red as a baboon's backside. Anyone could tell he was lying. Comforted Fleur? He probably hadn't even gotten close enough to speak to her.
"Thank you for squeezing some perfunctory concern into your busy schedule, dear cousin," Eda said.
She chose not to expose him. Leave people some dignity, and you'll meet again on good terms someday.
"No need. It's what I should do." Hector hesitated before asking, "You and that little girl you rescued..."
He wasn't asking out of jealousy. On the contrary, he knew exactly where he stood. Although they were cousins, he knew that if he actually acted like Eda's superior just because of that relationship, he'd be a complete fool.
"She's my little sister." Eda held out a hand to indicate a height. "When I first met her, she was only this tall. She hid behind her mother, tiny and adorable."
Hector lowered his head as though concentrating on the path ahead, and the two walked together in silence.
"Eda, do you think it's possible for you to treat the Rosiers the way you treat the Weasleys?" Hector suddenly asked.
"Of course," Eda replied with a smile. "That'll happen when the Rosiers treat me the way the Weasleys do. But Hector, do you really think that's possible?"
Hector fell silent once more. After a long while, he answered uncertainly, "Maybe."
...
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