Chapter 368: Respective Methods, the Advantages of Dragon Speakers
Boom!
A cannon shot suddenly rang out.
The five champions inside the tent exchanged glances and walked out together.
Upon entering the arena entrance, hundreds of thousands of spectators cheered. Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students shouted the names of Fleur and Viktor respectively, while Hogwarts also had three distinctly different cheers.
The arena was fan-shaped, filled with irregular stones of various sizes. To facilitate the champions' performance, an Undetectable Extension Charm had been cast inside, making the space much larger than it appeared.
Gulp!
Harry looked at the Hungarian Horntail, its wings folded, crouched low, guarding its Dragon eggs, and couldn't help but swallow.
His preparation for this match was only a summoning charm, but to get the Golden Snitch from that pile of Dragon eggs, he first had to lure the Horntail away.
"Don't be nervous, look how calm they are," Aaron comforted him.
"They are all seventh-years, they've had three more years of magic education than us.
I only have a flying broom, if I wasn't nervous, how big would my heart have to be!"
"That's true," Aaron raised an eyebrow, hesitating as he said, "Actually, I wanted to say just now, you also have an Invisibility Cloak, but you didn't bring it."
"What the..."
Harry inexplicably felt his heart twitch. He hadn't experienced the Crucio, but at this moment, he felt as if he had certainly been hit by that Unforgivable Curse.
It hurt so much, a chilling, piercing pain.
He could think of using a summoning charm to summon his Firebolt, but he actually forgot that he had a magical item even more practical than the Firebolt.
"Uh... Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, I'm very good," Harry said, forcing a smile.
"Better be," Aaron put Abel down, "This is far enough for me, you go find Big Sister first!"
Abel glanced at the Australian Opaleye in the arena, bared its teeth at it, and then turned to leave.
"Next, let's welcome the five champions into the arena," Bagman blew his whistle, acting as a commentator at the judges' table.
"Everyone, take care," Aaron strode towards Zone 4, saying as he walked, "I'll give you a little assistance if necessary."
"I hope we can all get the Golden Snitch safely!" Cedricexclaimed, then walked towards Zone 1.
Fleur and Viktor walked towards Zone 2 and Zone 3 respectively.
Harry clutched his wand tightly, trembling as he walked into Zone 5.
Although he was the last to enter, he was the quickest. The moment he took his first step, he raised his wand.
"Firebolt, Accio."
Whoosh!
The Firebolt shot out of the tent, flying into Harry's hand in just a few seconds.
He didn't dare to delay, he swung his leg over the broom, pushed off the ground, and soared into the air.
Only when he was flying steadily in mid-air did he feel a strong sense of security.
Flying was what the talented Seeker was best at, and even facing a Hungarian Horntail, he was full of confidence.
Next, he just needed to lure the Horntail away, find an opportunity to grab that motionless Golden Snitch (Golden Snitch), and he would have won this match.
"Oh my God! A Firebolt, a flying broom," Bagman shouted from the judges' table, "Yes, flying, Harry Potter has found his greatest strength.
How simple, a summoning charm can do it, but many people didn't think of this.
You know, among the five champions, there are four Seekers, including even Viktor Krum, but none of them thought of using flying.
Of course, this doesn't rule out that they have better methods."
Cedric in Zone 1 used Transfiguration to attract the attention of the Swedish Short-Snout. He transformed a stone into a Newfoundland hound and commanded it to slowly move towards the Dragon.
The Hufflepuff students in the audience shouted Cedric's name. Professor Sprout was both excited and nervous. This was their most outstanding Hufflepuff student, and he would surely not disappoint them.
"Transfiguration, a very clever method," Bagman explained, "The chances of success are high, but the opponent is, after all, a Swedish Short-Snout Dragon. Besides caution, a certain amount of luck is also needed."
Fleur Delacour in Zone 2 faced the Welsh Green Dragon. She used her Veela blood to carefully cast a hypnotic spell.
She dared not directly use a Stunning Spell on the Dragon; with her strength alone, she would only enrage the Dragonand unleash its ferocity.
So the magic she was casting now was gradual, designed to make the Dragon slowly feel sleepy and enter a state of light sleep.
Viktor in Zone 3 was more reckless, directly attacking the Chinese Fireball Dragon's eye with a spell, which was the most fragile part of the Dragon's body. He intended to seize the Golden Snitch while the Dragon was roaring in pain.
"Very daring, Krum has shown extraordinary courage," Bagman shouted loudly, and the audience who noticed his method collectively gasped.
Karkaroff, on the other hand, smiled contentedly at the judges' table. This spell was one he had specifically taught Viktor Krum, and it was most effective against Dragons.
Compared to these four intense areas, Aaron's Zone 4 seemed much quieter.
He looked at the Australian Opaleye, the most beautiful of the Dragon species, and couldn't help but smile wryly.
It looked quite dazzling, but it was completely incomparable to the Saint Dragon he raised.
"The scent of a kin, but not a Dragon tamer," the Opaleye slowly opened its pupil-less eyes, curiously observing the harmless Aaron before it, "Who are you?"
Hearing this, Aaron breathed a heavy sigh of relief. Being able to speak properly meant there was a possibility of communication.
He had originally thought that if they couldn't agree, he would expose his Disillusionment Charm and illusions, and he was somewhat confident he could succeed.
But after knowing that his opponent might be five Dragons, he felt that his Dragon-slaying magic might not be able to be hidden either. However, it now seemed that a gentler approach might solve the problem.
"Aaron Gaius," Aaron uttered obscure syllables, responding in Dragon speech, "I am a Dragon Speaker."
"What do you want?"
"One of the Dragon eggs you are guarding is fake. I need it to pass this competition item..."
Roar! [Get out]
The Australian Opaleye roared, spewing bright red flames from its mouth, but its target was not Aaron, but the azure sky.
It disliked killing and was willing to show respect to a Dragon Speaker, but when it came to guarding its Dragoneggs, it, as a mother, could not remain calm.
"I'm telling the truth," Aaron patiently explained, "Your eggs are grayish-white, but there's a golden one among them. That's not your offspring, it's just a special magical item."
The Australian Opaleye was visibly stunned for a moment, a look of confusion flashing in its pupils.
It lowered its head, scanned the pile of eggs, and found a striking golden one.
Now it believed the Dragon Speaker's words; this egg was definitely put there by those Dragon tamers while it was asleep.
However, Dragons all love shiny things, and even a DragonSpeaker couldn't make it give away the Golden Snitch for nothing.
"What can you give me?"
"What?"
Aaron's mouth twitched, but he quickly remembered the nature of Dragons.
Making a Dragon pay money was no different from pulling teeth from a tiger's mouth, unless you were its master, or could offer it greater benefits.
"Well, it depends on what you want?
Also, I need to remind you, that egg isn't yours, and what I give you, you might not be able to keep."
The implication was that giving money was definitely not an option; he could only satisfy some of its cravings.
The Australian Opaleye fell silent upon hearing this.
It wasn't some wild Dragon; it was merely kept by a Wizard.
"Send me a sheep every day for a month," the Australian Opaleye listed a menu.
Aaron:...Alright! This is a Dragon with little worldly experience.
"Deal, but I can't give it to you now.
After the competition, I will have someone specially deliver it to you."
The Australian Opaleye nodded, took out the Golden Snitch, and rolled it to Aaron's feet.
Its identity as a Dragon Speaker prevented it from harboring any hostility towards Aaron, but what truly made it trust him was the kindred aura on him.
Through that sacred and joyful aura, it could sense one thing: the Dragon Speaker before it was definitely someone who was not short on money.
Aaron did not pick up the Dragon egg, but instead used a Levitation Charm to push it back, "You hold onto it for me for now! I might not have the leisure to protect this egg later."
Having said that, he casually found a place to sit, quietly waiting for the others to determine a winner.
The Australian Opaleye was not particularly aggressive, and once an agreement was reached, it was settled. However, the Hungarian Horntail and the Chinese Fireball Dragon in the other four groups seemed very angry, and he wasn't sure he could stop them from fighting simply by being a DragonSpeaker.
In less than a minute, Aaron had dealt with his opponent.
This action stunned the audience in the arena. Bagman was momentarily speechless, unsure how to comment.
He had thought of many cool combat techniques, many high-difficulty spells, but he had never imagined such an incredible way to clear the stage.
"Ahem!" Dumbledore coughed, "Mr. Bagman, say something!"
"I, this, what should I say?"
"Say what you see," Adrian said with an amused smile, "Jean did tell me he could speak Dragon, but what comes next can't be resolved by communication."
"Dragon speech?" Bagman remembered something, his eyes widening in astonishment, and he immediately picked up the megaphone to explain to the audience: "Dragon speech, this is the language of Dragons. Mr. Gaius can actually communicate with Dragons, giving him a huge advantage in this event over everyone else.
Such a talent is rarely seen in the history of Wizards. I bet those Dragon tamers must be crying with envy."
Indeed, Charlie Weasley and others, who were at the edge of the arena ready to handle emergencies, all turned their envious and jealous gazes towards Aaron.
Maxime and Karkaroff also seemed very surprised, after all, Dragon Speakers were quite rare in the Wizarding world, and would be honored guests at any Dragon reserve.
But then they felt angry. Arranging a Dragon Speaker into the first event, what was the difference between that and just giving him points?
"Miss Klein," Maxime's voice was cold, "I personally think there's something wrong with this first event."
"Of course there's a problem," Karkaroff said sardonically, "A Dragon Speaker participating in such a competition is halfway to winning just by showing up. If it's just like this, I can at most give him a six."
"Principal Maxime, Principal Karkaroff," Adrian waved his hand dismissively, "Scoring is your business, it has nothing to do with me.
However, I hope you watch the rest of the competition, after all, Gaius hasn't left the arena yet, has he?"