Hogwarts: Don't call me Wandmaker

Chapter 350 They couldn't possibly have gotten a fire dragon, could they?

Enraged at being punched for no reason, Karkaroff immediately left with Krum, seemingly intending to use this method to protest Moody's egregious behavior.

"Never mind him. I know Karkaroff too well. He just left because he didn't want to continue discussing the proposal to re-select the warriors." Moody's blue magic eye darted around before finally settling on Siron.

"After all, this matter cannot be accomplished unless he agrees."

“Ah, it’s alright,” Celen said. “In fact, I also disagree with re-selecting the Warriors.”

“But you will be in great danger,” Moody said softly. “I believe Dumbledore has said it countless times: the Triwizard Tournament is not a game. In fact, it was discontinued because the mortality rate was too high.”

“Of course…” Xiren nodded, “I am well aware of that.”

“In that case, we respect your choice.” Dumbledore stepped forward, thus definitively confirming your status as a Heron Warrior.

“Alright, let’s continue,” said Ludo Bagman, who seemed particularly pleased as he hopped to the front and smiled at the rest of the room.

"Next, we'll be giving our Warriors some guidance. Even though we're missing Krum, it's not a big problem. I'll have someone tell him later. So... Battier, you'll be the one to give the presentation."

Mr. Barty Crouch had been daydreaming, and only snapped back to reality when he heard his name called.

“Okay,” he said, taking a few steps forward and stepping into the glow of the fire.

I hadn't noticed it when we were in the auditorium, but now that we're closer, I realized that Crouch looks much more haggard than he did at the Quidditch World Cup.

With sunken eye sockets and wrinkled skin like a crumpled piece of paper, he looked as if he had aged more than ten years in an instant.

"Guidance... Yes, the first project tests your courage, so I'm not going to tell you exactly what to do. This is also to test whether you have the courage to face the unknown..."

When it came to serious matters, Barty Crouch quickly got into the zone, and his tone became serious and earnest.

"The first project is scheduled for November 24th..."

"You must not ask for anyone's help; you can only rely on the wands in your own hands..."

"..."

It was supposed to be guidance, but it was more like a rule announcement. Barty Crouch spoke very quickly and finished in just a few minutes.

He then left in a hurry.

Despite Dumbledore's repeated attempts to persuade him to stay, feeling that he had been too stressed lately and needed to relax, Mr. Crouch insisted on returning to the Ministry of Magic to handle the remaining work.

Ms. Maxim accepted Dumbledore's invitation to have a drink.

Overall, the Warriors' announcement ceremony went almost perfectly, and everyone was satisfied... except for Karkaroff and his bruised eyes.

After leaving the small room, Fleur Delacour looked at Celen walking beside her and said, "You really didn't expect that you would be the champion of Hogwarts."

"Aren't you surprised?" Xilun asked.

“Of course, for me, a weak opponent is definitely a good thing.” Fleur nodded, admitting her thoughts without any hesitation. “Not only me, Viktor Krum is also very happy, I can see that.”

“That’s only human nature,” Xilun said with a smile.

Just as the two reached the entrance hall, they suddenly heard a series of hurried footsteps behind them.

"Sorry, please give way."

Ludo Bagman ran up from behind.

“I’m sorry, Miss Delacour, I have a few things to say to him privately.” Bagman gestured to Siren. “He’s the youngest, so there are a few things that need extra emphasis. I hope you understand. Of course, these are just some points to note; they won’t compromise the fairness of the competition, so you can rest assured.” “Okay, no problem,” Fleur Delacour said.

Although it was unclear whose idea it was, Bagman's reasoning was sound, and Fleur said nothing, simply turning around and walking out the door, leaving the castle.

Afterwards, Ludo Bagman and Siron arrived at a secluded corridor where there were few people.

"Alright, things are resolved satisfactorily, aren't they?" Ludo Bagman said with a smile, "I succeeded. You've been chosen as a Hogwarts champion. So, what we agreed on before..."

“Of course, just as we agreed.” Xiren took an envelope and a piece of parchment from his pocket.

"We've never met at the last Quidditch World Cup, and I never gave you a hundred Galleons."

This was the first time Xiren had ever seen Ludo Bagman act so quickly; before he could even see it clearly, the envelope and parchment were already in the other man's hands.

Ludo Bagman tore them to shreds on the spot, then waved his wand.

"Clean up!"

The scraps of paper on the ground vanished instantly.

"What a hassle, why not just throw it in the fireplace?"

“That’s more reliable,” Bagman said with a smile. “At least until now, no one has been able to restore something that has been cleansed by a cleansing spell.”

Xilun felt he was being a bit too cautious, as if he were guarding against someone going back on their word.

Of course, he himself would never do that.

After doing all this, Ludo Bagman visibly relaxed, as cheerful as a snail that had just eaten Hagrid's finger.

“To be honest, this is really not a good idea,” Ludo Bagman said, rubbing his hands together. “If you knew what the first project was, you would definitely regret becoming a warrior.”

"What's there to regret? They can't possibly bring over a fire dragon, can they?" Xilun said with a smile.

Upon hearing his words, Bagman's expression underwent a subtle change; he hadn't expected Siren to be so right.

Their first project really was a fire dragon... Of course, he would never say that.

I can't wait to see what kind of expression Xilun will have when he actually sees the fire dragon!

Ludo Bagman thought to himself with schadenfreude.

It would be a lie to say he wasn't angry at all about being threatened by a fourth-grader. Unfortunately, Xiren is a warrior now, and there's nothing he can do.

“However, even a dragon isn’t so bad,” Siren continued. “If you know what’s happened at Hogwarts in recent years, you’ll know that when I was a sophomore, I helped a professor defeat a basilisk, and that thing was far more dangerous than a dragon…”

"What did you say?" Bagman opened his mouth wide and let out a sharp cry, "Basilisk, at Hogwarts?"

“What, you don’t know?” Siren said. “You can go to the corresponding Daily Prophet; it should have a report in there.”

“I… I’ve been so busy, I haven’t had time to read the newspaper…” Bagman stammered.

As for what he's been busy with, nobody knows.

……

(End of this chapter)