Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 272, Section 271: The Triwizard Tournament and Hagrid's Thanks

His clothes weren't exactly fancy, but at least they weren't tattered and patched over patched—well, Harry suddenly thought that if Lupin's clothes looked tattered and covered in patches, it might actually indicate that he had experienced a lot.

“Remus Lupin, our new professor,” Harry continued, his mind racing. “Well, some of you may be familiar with this name. If you know him, you’ll know that I’m not joking when I say he’s a master of combat. He’s been through the Wizarding Wars and survived the Death Eaters and Voldemort’s pursuit.”

A collective gasp rippled through the students when Harry uttered the name.

"After the war, he began to wander around the magical world. He was familiar with the dangerous magical creatures that were common or rare in the wild, or the dark magical creatures that could silently take your life. He also knew how to deal with those dangerous people and survive."

“Yes, judging from your expressions, it’s just as you imagined,” Harry laughed. “Smugglers, con artists, poachers, dark wizards… I think he can teach you crucial survival skills that you might need after you graduate from school.”

“That’s so useful, Professor!!” George couldn’t help but exclaim.

Smugglers, fraudsters, poachers, dark wizards... Although it sounds a bit strange to say it like this, for students who are still in school, or for these teenagers, someone who can deal with these dangerous figures with ease is somewhat fatally attractive.

Not to mention that Lupin also has the title of war hero.

If the students were most looking forward to news about the Triwizard Tournament tonight, now their anticipation for the new professor and new courses has caught up with that – they can't wait to hear Lupin tell his story.

This is a professor personally recognized by the principal as having actual adventurous experience, unlike Lockhart who just boasts and writes books.

The students' eager gazes made Lu Ping's scalp tingle and he became restless. He couldn't remember the last time he had been stared at by so many people at the same time, and he was extremely nervous.

“Now I have introduced you to our two new professors!” Harry had to raise his voice to quiet the murmuring students. “And one last thing—I regret to inform you that there will be no House Cup Quidditch match this year.”

There were no voices of disbelief, no voices of doubt, and not even a hint of shock.

“You already know the answer in advance, which makes you less excited,” Harry said, shaking his head slightly. “Anyway, starting in October and continuing throughout the school year, Hogwarts will be hosting a magical competition that has been interrupted for hundreds of years—the Triwizard Tournament!”

The students, having finally gotten their chance, cheered loudly, whistled, pounded on the tables, and celebrated to their hearts' content.

Harry had to wait for almost a minute before he had a chance to speak.

"Since some of us don't know how this game works, I have to explain it to you. Those who do know can think about what we'll be eating later."

"The Triwizard Tournament was established over 700 years ago. It is a friendly competition between the three largest magic schools in Europe: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. Each school selects a champion, and the three champions compete in three different magical events to determine the champion."

"The Triwizard Tournament was held every five years, hosted by three schools in rotation. It was originally intended to foster friendships among young wizards from different countries, but unfortunately it was later discontinued due to the high death toll."

The word "death count" cooled down the enthusiasm of the students somewhat. After all, many of them, who didn't like reading about the history of magic, didn't really know the detailed background of the Triwizard Tournament. They only knew that the chosen ones would be called the warriors of their respective schools, full of honor—and most importantly, it would be really cool to be a warrior!

To be honest, not many students cared about the death toll; most seemed eager to sign up and start the competition right now.

“In short, there have been several attempts over the centuries to revive the tournament, but none have been successful,” Harry continued. “Until now, when the whole world is about to undergo a great transformation.”

"There's no need to go into the specific reasons, and I'm sure you don't care anyway. In short, we've done a lot of work to ensure that every warrior is as safe as possible. In October, the principals of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will lead their carefully selected competitors to the selection ceremony, which will be held on the eve of Halloween."

"A fair referee will decide which students are most qualified to participate in the Triwizard Tournament and win honor for their schools. I know you already know that this Triwizard Tournament is different from every previous one, but please don't worry about the fairness of the competition."

"No one will ask you students who haven't graduated yet to compete against professors. The competitions for students and professors are separate, so there will eventually be two champions. The winners will also receive a prize of five thousand Galleons, which I must say is a very large sum."

That's a huge sum; the prize money is enough for many wizarding families to live on for over a decade without any additional entertainment expenses.

"I want to participate! I have to participate!!"—These were the words being uttered by almost every student at every long table, especially Fred and George, who looked so excited they were about to jump for joy.

The thought of potentially gaining such honor and wealth made his face light up with excitement. He wasn't the only one like Fred who dreamed of becoming a Hogwarts champion. Harry could clearly see that at each long table, someone was staring at him with fervor, or whispering excitedly to the person next to them, yearning for both fame and fortune.

“Don’t rush, I know you’re all eager to win the Triwizard Tournament trophy for Hogwarts,” Harry continued. “But I must say that given the scale of this tournament, each school will be selected as three champions instead of one as in the past—which means the winner will have to split the prize money with their teammate.”

“Even so, each person would have over 1,500 Galleons!” someone couldn’t help but shout.

“Yes, even if it has to be split equally, the prize money is high enough,” Harry nodded. “But do you remember what I just said? The Triwizard Tournament has a death penalty, which means that if you die in a competition, there is no one to avenge you, and no one will be punished for it—of course, mutual attacks to death are definitely not allowed.”

Harry's renewed warning calmed the students somewhat; death still carried a certain deterrent effect. "This is a competition far more significant than any previous Triwizard Tournament, because not only will wizards be in attendance, but the Muggle Prime Minister will also be present, and it will be broadcast live on Muggle television," Harry said somewhat seriously. "You don't need to understand the implications behind this competition, and the fact that this is the first official encounter between wizards and Muggles is none of your concern."

"You only need to know one thing: there can be no deaths of students or professors in this competition—everything must be done from this perspective, and all we need to do is show ordinary wizards and Muggles the wonder of the magical world and the charm of magic."

"Therefore, after careful discussion, the participating schools and the Ministry of Magic have agreed that we will not use age limits to restrict you to only students who are seventeen years of age or older, that is, adults, who can register for the competition."

Some students started cheering.

"However, given the danger of the competition, even though we have taken many precautions in advance, students below the sixth or seventh grade would not be able to handle it... But we must admit that there are indeed some magical geniuses in this world who possess strength that their peers cannot."

“For example, you, Professor!” George shouted.

“Yes, for example, me,” Harry said this time without being modest, nodding in agreement. “In short, in order to allow geniuses like me to freely demonstrate their abilities, we will not use age restrictions to prevent those who are not old enough from participating. But I regret to inform you that this will not make it easier for most of you to participate.”

"Because those who are under seventeen but want to register must obtain four signatures from Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Professor Lupin, and Professor Snape. Oh, sorry, you don't need to get them all, just two are enough for you to register."

“These four professors will consider your usual knowledge and magical abilities. They will only sign you if they believe you have the ability to survive,” Harry shrugged. “Believe me, this is no simpler than age restrictions, but at least you have a chance.”

Suddenly, four more people were being watched with intense interest, especially Lu Ping. As a new professor who didn't know much about his students, many people focused their efforts on him.

"That's about all I have to say," Harry nodded and said. "Take care of yourselves, stay safe, and study hard. That's all I wanted to tell you—now, eat."

As Harry spoke, a large amount of food instantly appeared on the four long tables, making the already hungry students drool.

“But you’ve forgotten the most important thing, Principal Potter!” Instead of cheering and joining in the mealtime activities like the other students, Fred stood up and shouted, “This is your first opening banquet! Congratulations on becoming our principal!!”

Fred's words reminded the other students, and soon, congratulations and welcomes for Harry rose and fell from the long tables.

“…Thank you.” After a slight pause, Harry smiled and raised his glass, saying, “Thank you for your support.”

Needless to say, a sumptuous dinner was served, and everyone stopped eating when they were all walking with their stomachs full, before returning to their respective lounges.

"Uh, Harry?" Hagrid, not in a hurry to leave, lingered next to Harry and said, "Can I still call you that? I mean—would you like to come over for a drink?"

“What nonsense are you talking about, Hagrid?” Harry patted Hagrid’s forearm helplessly. “Of course we’re still friends, how could we change? But I didn’t expect you to still have room for a drink… Remus, want to come along? Consider it a celebration for you.”

“Oh, you’re right, Harry, I was overthinking it,” Hagrid said, looking relieved. He patted his stomach and said, “I just have some questions for you. Well, come on, Remus, we haven’t had a drink in a long time.”

"The second one?" Lupin smiled gently. "I have no objection. By the way, I guess Sirius should have arrived at the Great Totem by now. Just so you know, he's very angry that you didn't agree to let him attend the banquet."

“According to the rules, non-faculty members are not allowed to enter Hogwarts. It’s already quite good that he was able to come to the Great Totem,” Harry sighed. “Let’s go, don’t keep him waiting.”

Sirius was indeed waiting at the Great Totem—he had brought his favorite Muggle fast food and was busy grilling meat on the grass outside the Great Totem, with bottled beer piled up like a mountain on the grass.

“Well, I was planning to let you try my new collection, which is said to be brewed from a magical monkey-like creature from the East. It’s very precious,” Hagrid muttered, sitting next to Harry with a huge beer mug in his hand. “But there won’t be enough for so many people.”

“Then let’s hide for now, and wait until it’s just the two of us,” Harry, also a drunkard, said quietly, blinking his eyes.

“Okay, uh, I mean, I’m all hidden.” Hagrid winked—then the two of them burst into laughter.

"Hey, what are you two whispering about?" Sirius Black walked over with a plate of roast meat and said, "Here you are, Harry. Congratulations on officially becoming the Headmaster of Hogwarts."

“Actually, it was already last year,” Harry said with a smile, picking up a piece of steak.

“That doesn’t count,” Sirius said nonchalantly. “Only a principal who has successfully hosted a freshman orientation party is a true principal. The graduation party you hosted last year can only be considered half done.”

“Yes, that’s the complete picture,” Hagrid said after taking a big gulp of beer. “I have to thank you, Harry, thank you and Dumbledore. If you hadn’t killed the Basilisk and found evidence that it was the one who killed Myrtle, I would never have become a professor.”

(End of this chapter)