Chapter 348 News about the Triwizard Tournament
Dumbledore and Moody shook hands, and Dumbledoremotioned for him to sit in an empty seat at the teachers' table.
"Allow me to introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts Class Professor, Professor Moody."
The students seemed intimidated by his exaggerated physique, and there was sparse applause in response; even at the teachers' table, only Hagrid welcomed him.
Moody didn't mind this at all, or rather, he was already prepared for it. He pulled out a flask from his robes and took a big swig.
"Ahem!" Dumbledore cleared his throat, "Getting back to the main topic, Hogwarts has been chosen to host a highly prestigious event, the Triwizard Tournament."
"You're joking!" Fred shouted.
"Of course not, Mr. Weasley." Dumbledore smiled, "Some of you may not know about the Triwizard Tournament. It's a series of magic competitions between three schools.
Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. Each school selects a champion, and then the three champions compete in three magic tasks.
This was originally an excellent way for young Wizards from different countries to build friendships, but later, too many people died, and the Triwizard Tournament was discontinued. It has been over a century since then.
But this summer, the Department of International Magical Cooperation and the Department of Magical Games and Sports both felt that the time was ripe and decided to reinstate the Tournament.
The ultimate winner, in addition to bringing great honor to his school, will also receive a prize of one thousand Galleons."
As his voice fell, the Great Hall instantly erupted.
"I'm going to enter."
Fred and George shouted excitedly, their eyes gleaming with enthusiasm.
And there were many Wizards like them; people at the long tables of every house looked fervent and eager to try.
The Triwizard Tournament. The winner meant eternal glory, and his fame in the Magical World would skyrocket. This had an unparalleled attraction for everyone.
Aaron looked at these uncontrollably excited Wizards and couldn't help but shake his head inwardly.
A bunch of idiots. Even with a toe, one could figure out that this competition was full of dangers. The Ministry of Magicmight be well prepared, but who could guarantee that no accidents would happen?
Honor is important, but life is more important.
"I know you are all eager to win the Triwizard Tournamenttrophy for Hogwarts," Dumbledore said, and the Great Hallimmediately quieted down, "But the Tournament tasks are arduous and dangerous, no matter how many precautions we take.
Therefore, the Ministry of Magic has decided to impose an age limit on competitors: seventeen years old. Only students aged seventeen and above are allowed to register for the Triwizard Tournament…"
Upon hearing this, many students who were interested in the Triwizard Tournament protested, some even appearing furious.
Seventeen years old? You might as well just say only students about to graduate are eligible to participate.
Dumbledore had long anticipated this. If it were him, he would also find such a psychological gap difficult to accept.
Just as he was about to explain, a figure walked in from a side door. It was the Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation—Barty Crouch.
Barty Crouch glanced at the still-angry students, then walked up to Dumbledore with a complex expression, "There's been a change."
"What do you mean?"
Barty Crouch hesitated for a moment, then leaned into his ear and whispered.
Half a minute later, Dumbledore's blue eyes widened slightly, and his face showed a hint of incredulous astonishment.
"Are you serious? Fudge actually made such a decision?"
"To be precise, it was a decision made by the International Confederation of Wizards, and Fudge merely cast an affirmative vote."
Dumbledore was stunned for a while, then looked at the crowd below, "Some good news, which I don't consider good news, but you certainly will.
Just now, the Ministry of Magic lowered the age standard for participating in the Triwizard Tournament.
Seventeen years old has been changed to fourteen years old, which means Wizards from the fourth Class and above are eligible to register."
Many students who had been protesting couldn't help but look at each other, then immediately became ecstatic, involuntarily shouting, "Long live the Ministry of Magic!"
"Quiet." Dumbledore's face couldn't help but show a few dark lines, "Although the age standard has been lowered, I must remind some people who wish to participate in the Triwizard Tournament.
It is very dangerous, extremely dangerous. Those with weak hearts are not suitable to compete."
"Albus." Crouch gave Dumbledore a look.
"Then… next, please welcome Mr. Barty Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, to provide further explanation."
Crouch walked to the front of the stage, faced the crowd, took a deep breath, and said, "The Triwizard Tournament is being held again after more than a century, and the Ministry of Magic attaches great, great importance to it.
This time, we have invited the most professional judges, lowered the registration restrictions, but most importantly, more than one champion from the three schools can participate."
"Really, Mr. Crouch?" George couldn't hide his excitement. This meant both twin brothers could participate.
"Of course it's true." Crouch explained, "The Triwizard Tournament is a competition between three schools, not a competition between three people."
"This is very dangerous. Doesn't Fudge know that?" Dumbledore said, somewhat annoyed.
If it was just lowering the registration standard, he could accept it, because only the most excellent champion could represent the school. But if the number of participants was expanded, the possibility of an accident would be unusually high.
"Headmaster Dumbledore, I understand your concerns." Klaus said patiently, "I also thought it was very dangerous at first, but this time it's different. We have ways to ensure that participants will not face life-threatening danger.
And it's not just anyone who signs up who can participate; only excellent Wizards screened by the judges are eligible. In other words, we are just giving the fourth and fifth people a chance."
"Are you sure?"
"I am very sure, but it's not convenient to explain right now."
Receiving an affirmative answer, Dumbledore breathed a slight sigh of relief.
He wanted to ask something else, but realizing that Barty Crouch was just a messenger, he gave up the idea.
"Delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will arrive in October and spend most of this school year with us.
The specific details of the Triwizard Tournament will be announced to everyone after they arrive.
Alright, it's getting late now. To be clear-headed for Classtomorrow, go to bed."
The Great Hall buzzed with noise. Every student stood up with excited expressions, rushing towards the Great Halldoors.
"Fourteen years old, we can all participate!" Ron said excitedly.
"I suddenly feel that Mr. Barty Crouch is a very good person." Harry said with a smile, "No wonder Percy respects him so much; there's a reason for it."
"Didn't you hear what the Principal said?" Hermione said, exasperated, "It's very dangerous. Many people died in this competition before."
"That was many years ago, and besides, the Ministry of Magic assures us there will be no life-threatening danger." Fred walked over and said, "And besides the honor, there's a prize of a thousand Galleons. If we miss an opportunity like this, we'll regret it for a lifetime."
"That's right." George nodded in agreement, "The Triwizard Tournament is being held again after more than a century, and it's every five years, but we only study at Hogwarts for seven years.
Hermione, think about it, what does this mean?
It means everyone only gets one chance. Merlin won't give a second chance like this."
Hearing this, Hermione also hesitated for a moment.
What Gryffindor most wanted was an interesting adventure, and this opportunity was indeed quite rare.
Besides her, many fourth-Class Wizards had the same idea. In short, with no life-threatening danger, even just being a participant was worth it, it would broaden their horizons.
As for the higher-Class Wizards, they cared even less. There was only one winner of the Triwizard Tournament, and in terms of knowledge and ability, the lower-Class Wizards had no advantage whatsoever.
Moreover, the more participants there were, the more valuable the trophy would be… Slytherin Common Room.
Aaron lay quietly on his bed in the dormitory alone.
Everyone else was enthusiastically discussing whether to participate in the Triwizard Tournament, but he hadn't considered it at all.
Honor? Can that thing be eaten?
Even if there was no danger, it would waste a lot of time.
Instead of spending time on the competition, wouldn't it be better to learn more magic and improve his own strength?
"System, open personal panel."
"Host: Aaron Gaius"
"magic Energy: Main Body 5582, early stage Archmage; thought form 5582, early stage Archmage; Total 11164 (Great Archmage (early stage), a rare existence in the Magical World)"
"Talent: Once in a Lifetime (magic Energy increases by 4 points daily, Main Body increases by 2 points, thought formincreases by 2 points)"
"Items: moon drop (2/3 can remove any negative magicspell), Resurrection Potion (can resurrect any creature that died within one hour)"
"magic Points: 490"
"Sign in."
"Host successfully signed in at Hogwarts, gaining ten magicPoints."
Hearing the system's voice, Aaron looked at the magic Points column. Four hundred ninety had become a perfect five hundred, and his obsessive-compulsive disorder was immediately satisfied.
"Just right."
Aaron murmured with satisfaction, then opened the system store and looked at the magic category.
"magic Category: @Levitation (100 magic Points, flight speed depends on personal strength); @Charm (500 magic Points, literal meaning, but ineffective against those with strong will); @Astral Projection (300 magic Points); @Outfit Change (100 magic Points, directly switch to equipment stored in other spaces); @Undetectable Extension Charm (200 magicPoints)"
He decisively placed an order for Charm, afraid he would regret it if he was late, as other magic also held considerable allure for him.
He really coveted Levitation and Astral Projection, but he could barely control himself.
Because there was already a Tiger Talisman in the item category, he would definitely get other talismans later. These two magic spells were just simplified versions of the Rooster Talisman and Sheep Talisman, making them less cost-effective.
But the Undetectable Extension Charm and Outfit Change were different. The tent during the Quidditch World Cupgave him a very good experience. It was still unknown which world he would go to next, but learning this magic would ensure a good quality of life.
Outfit Change magic also had considerable use. He had asked Algol to craft several firearms, and the ability to switch equipment at any time was also an enhancement to his combat power.