Bab 628: Parting Party
Editor: Atlas Studios
Ivan's blunt words infuriated Karkaroff.
Dumbledore tried to smooth things over.
"Well, Karkaroff, Hars has a point. The Goblet of Fire does not choose four champions for nothing, and we should not blame it on two children!"
"And who is to blame? You, Dumbledore?" Karkaroff demanded.
He even suspected that Dumbledore had tampered with the Goblet of Fire, resulting in its destruction.
After all, the situation seemed to be working in Hogwarts' favour!
The participation of two champions would greatly increase Hogwarts' chances of winning the Triwizard Cup, and Dumbledore would be able to cast a spell on the Goblet of Fire.
"If you must believe that, then it was indeed an oversight on my part, in not keeping it safe. But please believe me when I say that such an outcome is not something I would wish…"
Dumbledore spoke calmly, not at all offended by Karkaroff's questioning.
"We all know how dangerous the Triwizard Cup can be. There is no reason for me to go to such lengths just to get a child who is not strong enough to compete. There are far more suitable candidates at Hogwarts if we are to choose a second champion!"
"Who knows what you're thinking? All I know is that there are two people competing at Hogwarts, and that's a serious infraction!" Karkaroff snapped.
"Mr. Crouch… Mr. Bagman!" Maxim said, turning to look at the two Ministry officials, who were frowning.
"You are the organizers of this match and the impartial referees. What do you suggest we do now? Re-sign up or ban one of Hogwarts' champions from the game…"
"Ahem… objectively speaking, it's against the rules for a school to elect two champions, but the problem is that the contract has been signed, and each and every one of them is required to take part in the tournament!" Bagman said, wiping his round, baby-faced face with his handkerchief.
"Bagman's right! Besides, we can't hold someone accountable for something that hasn't been cleared up yet. It could have been an accident!" Crouch tried to reassure him.
"You expect me to dismiss this as an accident? Don't even think about it!" Karkaroff scowled, thinking Bagman and Crouch were siding with Hogwarts to bully foreigners like them.
Maxim concurred. "Since there are two champions at Hogwarts, to be fair we will have to re-form the Goblet of Fire and increase the number of places until each school produces two champions!"
"No, I'm afraid not, Madame Maxime. The Goblet of Fire has just gone out, and it is customary to keep it lit until the next tournament." Bagman shook his head in exasperation.
"There will be no next year! Durmstrang will never participate in such an unfair match again, and I will leave with my students tonight!" Karkaroff stormed off, pulling Krum behind him.
The rest of the Durmstrang students rose indignantly from their seats and followed Karkaroff out of the Great Hall.
Maxim did the same, leading the Beauxbatons students off the field in protest.
Harry stood and watched them go, clearly at a loss as to what to do, thinking that this year's Triwizard Cup would end before it even began.
"Don't worry, Harry, they won't have the guts to go! The pact was made when that Krum and Fleur put their names in the Goblet of Fire, and if they don't make it, the backlash will be terrible!" Moody said, looking grim as he limped down the platform, but trying to comfort Harry.
Yvonne looked at Moody and asked, "Professor, why didn't Mr. Bagman suggest that a person's grades should be cancelled, and even if they had to compete, wouldn't it be relatively fair if one of the Hogwarts champions was disqualified?"
Ivan then looked at Harry with an apologetic expression. "Oh, Harry, don't mind me, it's nothing personal!"
Harry nodded dumbly. He was still wondering how he had become a champion and had not heard what Ivan had said.
"We can't do this, Harles!" Moody sighed, glancing at Harry as he explained the situation to Ivan. "This is too cruel to Harry, he's done nothing wrong and he has to face the same dangerous projects as you, and we can't have him trying and not getting a fair assessment."
"Also, the Triwizard Tournament is a very important event, and there are many witches and wizards all over Europe watching it. If Harry performs well in the tournament and wins, and we disqualify him, the referees will be overwhelmed with Howls!"
"Of course, if you want to do it your way, we can switch to the Hogwarts Warrior with the lowest score, and the result will be invalid! However, I'm guessing that Karkaroff and Maxim would not approve of this fairness!" Moody grinned.
Yvonne began to understand.
After explaining the situation to Ivan, Moody turned to Dumbledore and said, "How about I get to the bottom of the Goblet of Fire? Albus? I think what Hars has just said makes a lot of sense. Maybe someone tampered with the cup to get at Harry…"
"Naturally, it would be best if you did! After all, you are quite experienced in such matters…" Dumbledore agreed without hesitation.
Ivan gave a barely perceptible frown, but said nothing.
On the face of it, Moody was the obvious choice for the investigation, and he could not be certain that there was anything wrong with him, and to contradict him would only alert the enemy.
If he made a mistake, the next time he wanted to reveal something, such as the location of a Horcrux, the credibility of his words would be greatly reduced.
After a short conversation with two high-ranking Ministry officials, Dumbledore came to an understanding, and, raising his wand to cast the Resounding Charm on himself, he addressed the noisy crowd of young wizards.
"Alright, it's getting late. I think you guys need to rest. The dinner is over!
As for instructions and advice for the champions, leave them until tomorrow, and I will inform Mr Karkaroff and Madame Maxime!"
With that, Dumbledore, the professors, and Crouch from the Ministry of Magic left the Great Hall, while the other young wizards returned to their lounges unhappily after being scolded by the prefect.
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