Hermione, let's start a revolution from Hogwarts!

Captain Hermione raised her wand high above them and, taking advantage of the Kraken's slowed pace, slowly moved it away.

The mermaid's drumming and horn-like sounds grew more and more urgent, and the attacks from its tentacles came wave after wave. Perhaps realizing that its trick was not working, the clever squid changed its approach: it bent down and wrapped its tentacles around the squid.

Those opening and closing suction cups, those wriggling sharp teeth, are things that students don't usually see.

This is how squid behave: the more their prey struggles, the tighter they contract...

“My magic and their oxygen are almost gone!” Cedric cried out anxiously.

"I'm thinking of something!" Hermione's wand was the only light she could find. She concentrated, racking her brains for a solution. "Hold on! I'm thinking of something... Think, Granger, what are the rules of the game?"

All that matters is that the warriors can return with their respective goals, which means they must first leave the water.

To be honest, a wizard as powerful as Dumbledore should know some of the secrets of magic, and he should also know many rare or unknown ancient languages.

Levitation? No, this giant squid with magic is too big for her to handle right now.

Apparition? Hogwarts forbids wizards' spatial magic.

The spells she had learned were flipped through page by page in Hermione's mind, and suddenly, she thought of an alternative spell—Transfiguration.

The problem is that water is very difficult to control; it is always in motion, which does not meet the requirements of Transfiguration, but she doesn't need to transform the water of the Black Lake into anything else.

She tried switching to mermaid language, chanting "Vera Verto" over and over again.

Not enough... still not enough. Without realizing it, Hermione started reciting along with the melody of the mermaid's song outside.

Perhaps it worked, because she heard a lot of splashing sounds in her ears. They were wrapped inside the giant squid's tentacles, and the splashing water was being drawn out through the gaps. Then, they felt as if their internal organs were about to be thrown out.

A massive whirlpool appeared in the entire Black Lake, and the gentle giant squid, like a freshly baked meatball, was thrown onto the shore as it spun around.

When the tentacles opened, the sunlight was so bright that everyone squinted. The fresh air replaced the damp, fishy, ​​slimy smell, and Hermione felt as if she had been swallowed and then spat out something.

People in the stands stood up, craning their necks to look back.

"We're still alive?" Cedric popped the bubble, staggered away, and gasped for air. "I never want to play with that squid again in my life."

He thought he was going to be eaten.

Nietzsche woke up at this moment, but as soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Hermione sitting on the ground in a duck-like position. The slime and lake water made her clothes cling tightly to her body, forming a perfect curve.

At the same time, he only felt a sharp pain in his face.

Nietzsche covered his left cheek and said, "My face feels like it's been pinched by a crab..."

Hermione said sullenly, "It's at the bottom of the lake, so it's normal to have crabs."

(End of Hermione's perspective)

Chapter 257 'Master of Performance' Moody

The feeling of being soaked from head to toe is unpleasant, especially when Nietzsche and Hermione are supporting each other and pressed close together; that close connection is quite intriguing.

Several blankets flew over, and after wiping the slime off their bodies, they casually draped them over their heads.

Ginny woke up too, and Harry was mesmerized by her wet appearance. Before her brother Ron arrived, she seized the opportunity and gave Harry a light, quick kiss on the cheek.

Cho Chang was the next to follow suit, and the biggest beneficiaries today should be Harry and Cedric.

“And you?” Hermione asked weakly, twisting her elbow. “Doesn’t Her Highness intend to reward your warrior?”

The giant squid landed some distance from the arena. Yu Nicai turned his head and, taking advantage of the fact that the couples behind him were engrossed in their hugs and kisses, he got into the act.

He vigorously rubbed his hair, making it loose, with black wisps falling around his ears. Then he blinked like Eileen Adler, looking exactly like a noblewoman disguised as a man sneaking out of town.

In the blink of an eye, Hermione almost misjudged the situation.

He pretended to be shy, and their heads drew closer and closer as he took a step. Just when Hermione thought they were about to kiss, he suddenly stopped.

“Sadly, you’re right, but…” Ni brushed the fishy-smelling squid slime off her face with his fingers, saying with amusement, “How about we talk about it when you have time?”

Unlike Ginny, Cho, and others, his action with Hermione was more like flirting.

When Nietzsche noticed the spectators and referees rushing over from the field, he immediately dropped his previous timid demeanor, casually tugged at his soaked clothes, and stood silently to the side.

"Your theatrical performance has improved again." Hermione shook her head helplessly, looking at the cheering crowd with a sense of frustration.

Mrs. Maxim seemed to be in a much better mood. She held Fleur's hand and gently patted the back of her hand to comfort her. It seemed that Hermione had indeed helped Headmaster Dumbledore.

When Fleur embraced the dazed Gabrielle with excitement, Nietzsche knew that Beauxbatons' friendship with Hogwarts had warmed up a bit.

“Thank you…” She looked at Hermione with a complicated expression. “I didn’t know Gabrielle would be a competition item, so I panicked, but thank you anyway.”

You can still sense the conflicting emotions in her words.

Dumbledore, along with several referees, pulled Hermione away from Nietzsche, and then consulted with the other warriors before arriving at a score.

In the end, Cedric, Krum, and Harry tied with forty points, while Hermione scored forty-seven... Even when they were working together, the difference in magic still determined the winner.

Even Karkaroff, upon seeing Hermione's water vortex, had to acknowledge her talent.

“Then the third project will be held in June, and you will have plenty of time to prepare,” Scrinker said.

Just then, the spyglass strapped to Moody's waist suddenly started spinning, and he yelled at the top of his lungs amidst the commotion, "Something's up! Rita Skeeter's here! Don't even think about sneaking around doing anything bad!"

He angrily weaved through the crowd, rudely shoving many students until they stumbled.

Nietzsche's gaze followed him around several times, but he didn't see Rita's figure. The Disillusionment Curse was even more impossible, since the fake Moody's Evil Eye could even see through the Invisibility Cloak.

Moody's actions immediately put Bagman on alert, and the man glanced around timidly.

“Astori,” Dumbledore called out calmly.

“Wait a minute…she’s definitely going to make up something that doesn’t make sense again. I told you, you better not let me catch her!” Moody frantically pounded the grass with his cane.

Nietzsche observed for a long time and realized that the fake Moody was genuinely angry, not faking it. He wondered how many people that Rita Skeeter had offended.

To be honest, he originally just wanted the other party to protect Mr. Crouch indirectly.

From this perspective, it might be better if Rita sacrificed herself to become evidence against the fake Moody. That way, when he intervenes to save her, she'll owe him a favor...

“It’s that woman again!” Nietzsche feigned anger, raised his fist, and slammed it into the air. “She’s only interested in what’s happening at Hogwarts and making up stories that are bad for the headmasters.”

Mrs. Maxim gave him an approving look and then joined in the criticism.

After the second project ended, everyone became curious about what happened underwater. They all gathered around Hermione in groups, eager to hear how she had turned the tide.

Hermione talked at length about the use of magic, how she created a whirlpool to throw the giant squid ashore, but no one wanted to listen to the dry and tedious magical knowledge, so after only one day, they turned their attention to other people.

Ginny and Harry are now the focus of Gryffindor's attention, and Nietzsche has seen Ron enviously biting his fork on several occasions.

Perhaps because Moody was there, Hermione was spared from being harassed by Rita this time, which was quite rare.

"Thank goodness you sent her to find Mr. Crouch, otherwise I might have ended up in the same situation as Ginny." Every time Hermione entered the Great Hall, she would look at Ginny struggling in the crowd with heartache.

“Really? I think she was scared away by Moody…” Nietzsche glanced at the empty seat in the main guest area.

The relationship between the three schools has eased somewhat, and students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang sit casually at college tables, chatting with people who interest them.

Since the end of the second project, he often saw several Gryffindor students sitting at the Hufflepuff table, or Ravenclaw students running over to the Slytherin side to chat and laugh with the Durmstrang students.

Moreover, the flags on the table were stuck haphazardly, and Malfoy sat at the Ravenclaw table several times. If he hadn't had a few arguments with people, he would have thought that someone else had taken the wrong seat.

“That’s not surprising!” George said, sitting across from the two. “Skeet wrote bad things about Mad-Eye Moody during the summer.”

“I dare say she won’t be smug for long… Professor Moody keeps an eye on the Marauder’s Map every day to maintain school safety.” Fred tapped his plate in disappointment. “But I think we probably won’t get that Marauder’s Map back.”

The Marauder's Map shows the passageways inside Hogwarts, except for certain secret rooms, and also allows you to observe each person's path.

In other words, no matter what method Rita Skeeter used to get into the school, she would be discovered by Moody, which was not advantageous for Nietzsche.

However, at breakfast time on Friday, a tawny owl landed on Nietzsche's shoulder. It wasn't his or Hermione's owl, but it started picking food out of a bowl on its own.

Its feathers were very messy, indicating that it had been flying for a long time.

However, Mercury was not going to tolerate it. It fiercely flapped its wings and used its claws to push the evening gourd, which was full of food, behind it.

"There's a letter from Rita." She exclaimed in surprise, tearing the envelope off the owl's body.

Nietzsche immediately put down his knife and fork, habitually interlacing his fingers on the bridge of his nose. If he wasn't mistaken, Rita must have found news of Barty Crouch.

When Hermione opened it, the contents were exactly as he had expected.

The ink on the letter is very light, indicating that the writing was done quickly and the writer was very anxious; the close spacing between words and the large amount of blank space between lines suggest that the writer paused after each paragraph, indicating a lack of courage.

The letter reads:

Crouch wasn't home, and I noticed he was in a very bad state; he was unsteady on his feet, a sign he was trying to break free of the Imperius Curse. He kept muttering "Hogwarts" and "He killed Bertha"...

This is big news! Great! I've already figured out how to start: "The Director of the Ministry of Magic Kills an Innocent Witch," what do you think?

It seems that Rita Skeeter has no idea what she's gotten herself into.

Chapter 258 The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind

With Rita's letter arriving, the plans that had been delayed by the second competition could finally be put back on the agenda.

After Nietzsche and Hermione finished their Potions class in the afternoon, the professor didn't even mock Potter, and hurriedly went with them to the headmaster's office.

"Crouch killed Bertha Jorkins?" Scrimgeour was the most surprised. He paced back and forth in the principal's office, his eyes wide. "This...she disappeared in Albania...how could she have offended Crouch like this?"

He was caught off guard and summoned to Dumbledore's office, whereupon Dumbledore showed him Rita's letter.

"Bertha, Bertha, how exactly did you harm his interests..." Director Auror was completely baffled.

"What does Crouch value most?" Nietzsche asked calmly.

In everyone's eyes, Barty Crouch always seemed to be the kind of workaholic who dedicated his life to the Ministry of Magic.

This office was filled with Dumbledore's confidants, including Remus Lupin, the Head of Gryffindor and Slytherin. They all showed varying degrees of distrust regarding the message Rita brought.

There's nothing we can do; she's notorious.

"During the height of the Varian and Death Eaters' power, he advocated that the Aurors fight violence with violence. Mr. Crouch hated dark wizards the most. You know Fudge's minister was adopted, right? It was because of something that happened later..."

"His son was a Death Eater, and because of that, Crouch never recovered, and his career reached its peak."

Scrimgeour was very familiar with the former Director of the Executive Division, as he was one of the many Aurors back then.

Hermione reacted quickly; she immediately realized what was going on and whispered, "He's making excuses for his son?"

“Exonerate him? He personally sent his son to Azkaban!” Scrimgeour’s face was grave. “I watched that child die in prison... and was later buried outside the prison by Dementors.”

But the next second, he seemed to realize the key point and suddenly shut up.