A magical journey that begins at Hogwarts

The last person to pass the event must not suffer too much damage to the other warriors and must win the championship... but the first person to touch the trophy is the champion.

To meet these stringent conditions, all the warriors must be secured, and everyone must touch the trophy at the same time. This will result in either a tie for the championship or a winner determined by the scores of the first two events.

In other words, the maze is full of enemies, but that's the best-case scenario. What if Adrian has some other surprises in store for me? Then it's hard to say.

The Thought-Body clicked its tongue in surprise; this possibility was not nonexistent, but rather quite high.

After hesitating for a moment, he gave a wink to the shadowy ninja beside him, signaling him to bring a box of bullets.

"These are bullets made from unicorn feathers, Thestral tail feathers, and hippogriff feathers, fifty of each, all enchanted twice."

This is half of our current stock; once it's used up, it's gone, so you'd better use it sparingly.

“Uh…” Aaron blinked. “I won’t use the Red Spider Lily unless it’s an emergency, since so many people are watching. But I won’t be stingy when I need to use it.”

Chapter 397 The Moving Maze Blocking Shortcuts, the Map in the Treasure Chest

June 24th, 5 PM.

Hogwarts teachers and students, representatives of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, the families of the warriors, and the referees all sat in the stands of the renovated Quidditch stadium.

Professor Flitwick used his wand to conduct the band in playing rousing music, while the girls from Beauxbatons sang cheerful songs, making the entire venue incredibly lively.

Amos Diggory skipped and hopped into the stadium like a little kid, excitedly opening his right arm to welcome his son, making Cedric a little embarrassed.

Karkaroff and Maxim each led Krum and Fleur into the pitch. Genes walked respectfully behind Aaron, and Harry was the last, with Dumbledore and Lupin beside him.

A twenty-foot hedge surrounded the area, revealing several identical entrances. The dark passageways were shrouded in mist, and the faint sounds of wild beasts howling and roaring could be heard.

"Quiet." Dumbledore stepped onto the podium and spoke with an amplification spell, "This morning, Professor Moody hid the Triwizard Tournament trophy in the maze. Whoever finds the trophy first will be the Triwizard Tournament champion."

The order in which they enter the maze is determined by the sum of their scores in the first two challenges, and is as follows: Aaron Gaius, Harry Potter, Viktor Krum, Cedric Diggory, and Fleur Delacour.

We've arranged for people to patrol the area. If any contestant wants to withdraw from the competition, they only need to shoot a red spark with their wand.

"The worst thing is that we won't even have a chance to fire a spark," Aaron said abruptly.

“They may not be able to, but the young master certainly can,” Genes said calmly.

He was extremely confident in Aaron. Countless near-death escapes in the family's secret chamber had almost trained Aaron to instinctively believe that no matter how dangerous the maze was, he wouldn't be unable to send out a distress signal.

"It's possible, but it's also not possible. I don't want to withdraw from the competition."

"Contestants, come here now, please hurry."

The five warriors immediately approached Dumbledore. He lowered his voice and said in a deep tone, "There will be no dragons or deep-sea monsters in the labyrinth, but you will face a greater challenge. People will undergo certain changes upon entering the labyrinth..."

"Wait a minute." Aaron interrupted him, looking somewhat awkward. "Professor, you said the change is... does this maze actually move?"

Dumbledore nodded. "This was Miss Klein's suggestion. She said her brother has a photographic memory and can find the correct and simplest path just by walking it once."

To be fair, she deliberately enchanted the maze, so that, except for the central spot where the trophy was kept, the other locations would change periodically.

Aaron was dumbfounded, and the other four warriors looked at each other in surprise and a hint of sympathy.

They hadn't expected Aaron to have such a memory, and they certainly hadn't expected Adrian to be so adept at it, effectively blocking his brother's shortcut.

"Try your best to find the trophy, but be careful, you might lose yourself along the way."

"Aaron will be the first to go in after the cannon fires, and the others will signal with whistles," Dumbledore said, then turned and walked toward the referee's bench.

“Aaron, your sister is really…” Cedric thought for a while but couldn’t think of any adjectives, so he just gave her a thumbs up.

"Heh!" A bitter smile appeared on Aaron's lips, and the light in his eyes dimmed by half.

To be honest, he was mentally prepared that Adrian would definitely set obstacles for him in the maze, but it didn't matter. He had memorized the route in advance, and he could just tough it out no matter how many obstacles there were.

He would have won half the battle if he was the first to find the trophy, but he never expected that the first step would be so difficult.

If the maze can move, the advantage of the first two items combined is only that he takes fewer detours than others.

"How about we team up?" Hibiscus smiled charmingly. "You'll be the last one to touch the trophy anyway, so why don't you help me win the championship?"

"You'll get half of the bonus, so you'll feel more involved."

The other three people's pupils contracted slightly, and they thought to themselves, "Holy crap!"

Girls are so thoughtful; how come they didn't think of this idea?

The moving maze and various dangerous animals make the third challenge incredibly difficult, and the significance of having a great teammate in this situation is self-evident.

“Gaius,” Cedric coughed somewhat sheepishly, “I feel it’s necessary to remind you that you are a champion of Hogwarts.”

Hufflepuff and Slytherin didn't have a great relationship, but it wasn't terrible either, right?

Harry was about to say something when he met Aaron's sharp gaze and couldn't help but swallow.

"Don't get me wrong, the championship isn't important, but I think we should cooperate on safety."

Although Moody, Lupin, and Dumbledore were guarding the maze, he was still somewhat uncertain about this third challenge. Who knew what methods the Death Eaters in the shadows would use against him?

If Aaron is willing to help him, then his safety will be guaranteed.

With a bit of luck, he might just be able to contend for the championship, the youngest champion in the top three tournament—just thinking about it is exciting.

"Um... I don't want any of the prize money," Krum said somewhat awkwardly. "I also..."

"Dude, you'd better not ask! We're not that close."

“I also saved Luna Lovegood in the second event,” Krum emphasized.

Aaron pursed his lips, took a deep breath, and said, "I understand. I'll repay the favor, but I'll pass on helping you win the championship."

"Is that not allowed?" Krum frowned slightly.

"I've got a plan. The last one to touch the trophy will also be the champion."

The process will be much more stimulating, perhaps even stimulating enough to make me question the meaning of life.

boom!

The sound of cannons rang out.

Adrian pressed his wand against his neck. "Now, please welcome our first warrior."

By the way, just a friendly reminder: to make the game more fun, I've placed many different kinds of treasure chests in the maze.

The treasure chests will help the warriors reach the center of the maze, but obtaining the clues within will depend on their luck and ability.

Without further ado, best of luck to you all.

Aaron paused for a moment, then walked into the maze entrance amidst applause and cheers from the audience.

Adrian smiled slightly, pointed his wand into the sky, and five projections appeared outside the maze, allowing all the spectators to enjoy the warriors' performance.

But the competition has just begun, and only Aaron's section of the five projections is lit; the rest are completely dark.

The moment Aaron stepped into the maze, all external sounds were cut off; he could only hear his own breathing and heartbeat.

Following the correct route in his mind, he took a deep breath and began to run at top speed.

But less than half a minute later, the hedges on both sides began to squeeze towards the middle, forcing him to change course and turn into an unknown fork in the road.

Here he saw a wooden treasure chest, as well as paths leading to the left and right.

"Open it, or don't open it."

Aaron was caught in a dilemma, while the other Warriors on the sidelines watched the scene with curiosity.

Adrian said the chest would be helpful, but there's no such thing as a free lunch, and what they found in this chest was very valuable to them.

Just then, a whistle suddenly sounded.

“Harry Potter enters,” Ludo Bagman announced loudly.

"what?"

Harry paused for a moment, looking at Aaron's projection screen with a complicated expression. "Can I go in later?"

“This…” Bagman hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at the other referees, as if asking for their opinions.

“Yes, but not past the final whistle,” Adrian said nonchalantly.

"Thank you."

“I suddenly feel that being ranked low isn’t so bad,” Furong said with a smile.

"I think so."

Cedric nodded, saying that through these projection screens, those who enter the maze later will know more clues and will not be flustered when encountering danger.

When Aaron heard the whistle, he finally made up his mind.

We can't wait any longer. Being first is his only advantage, and we can't let a box hold us back.

"Open the Alaho hole!"

Aaron stood ten meters away, and a lock-picking spell struck the wooden treasure chest, causing it to open.

A strange cry came from the box, followed by a wet claw reaching out, and a disgusting black-robed monster flew into the air.

"Gift crab!"

Aaron launched into a tirade of profanities, causing the large audience outside the arena to tremble with fear.

This is a Dementor, a real Dementor. The moment it appeared, the hedges were covered in a layer of white frost.

Harry was stunned, but quickly breathed a sigh of relief.

He knows the Guardian Charm, so he can handle a Dementor. If every chest contains Dementors, it would be easier for him.

"Ahem!" Fudge stood up and explained with a megaphone spell, "Don't worry, everyone. The Dementors won't leave the labyrinth area. They will return to Azkaban after the Triwizard Tournament."

"Hopefully nothing unexpected will happen," Lu Ping said with some concern.

“No, not at all,” Moody said easily. Harry had learned enough spells for him, and Gaius was also in the party.

Lupin nodded. He had also taught Harry the Patronus Charm, but he still felt uneasy.

"Call upon God for protection!" Aaron chanted the Guardian Angel incantation, and a silvery-white light repelled the Dementor into another passageway.

He walked up to the treasure chest, which contained a map of the maze, marking his location and the location of the Triwizard Tournament trophy. He had only covered less than a tenth of the distance.

In addition, there is a line of text at the bottom of the map: The maze will move again in thirty seconds, so please hurry.

Thirty, twenty-nine, twenty-eight...