Chapter 507: Are You Really a Hufflepuff?
Chapter 507: Are You Really a Hufflepuff?
Mr. Ollivander stepped into the center of the clearing, his eyes fixed on the three individuals before him. "Miss Delacour, would you like to go first?" he asked, his expertise in wands evident as he immediately recognized Fleur's wand as the most unique among them.
Fleur gracefully approached him and handed over her wand.
"Not bad," Mr. Ollivander said, examining the wand closely, "Nine and a half inches... Maplewood... The core is... Oh, Veela hair."
"It's my grandmother's hair," Fleur explained.
"I see," Mr. Ollivander replied, "Although I find wands made from Veela hair too temperamental, if you feel it suits you..."
He waved his wand, and a flower blossomed at the tip of Fleur's wand.
"Excellent, excellent, good condition," Mr. Ollivander said, returning the flower and wand to Fleur.
"Mr. Krum, it's your turn now."
Viktor stood up and reluctantly handed over his wand.
However, Mr. Ollivander's enthusiasm was noticeably less compared to the previous two.
"Hmm... A product of Gregorovitch," he said, "Elderwood... Dragon heartstring... Ten and a quarter inches... Flock of birds!"
With a loud bang, several small birds flew out.
"Very good," he returned the wand to Viktor, "Now, there's just one more left..."
Kyle immediately stepped forward.
"Oh, this is my wand, isn't it?" Mr. Ollivander said excitedly.
If the previous two inspections were driven by curiosity and professional interest, this time, he was genuinely thrilled.
Having his own wand in the Triwizard Tournament would be a matter of great pride for him.
It would be embarrassing if there were only Gregorovitch's wands and none of his own.
"Yes, I remember it clearly..." Mr. Ollivander seemed lost in a memory, "I discovered an exceptionally tall cedar tree in the heart of the Black Forest. It took me several days of negotiation with those tree-protecting goblins to obtain a branch from it. And that phoenix feather..."
Mr. Ollivander continued to narrate the wand's origin story, taking even more time than the previous two combined.
Five minutes later...
"Glow."
A soft white light emanated from the wand, and Mr. Ollivander finally returned it to Kyle.
"Thank you!" Professor Dumbledore stood up from the judges' table, "Now, you can go back to class... Or it might be more convenient to head straight to the Great Hall for lunch, as you'll be finishing class soon anyway."
After taking group photos of the champions and some individual shots, they finally left the room.
The judges headed upstairs to the Headmaster's office, while Kyle and Fleur prepared to go down to the Great Hall for lunch.
However, just as Kyle reached the staircase, a hand resembling a claw suddenly grabbed his arm.
"Ms. Skeeter, what's the meaning of this?" Kyle frowned.
"Just a few small questions, dear... For the Daily Prophet," Rita Skeeter said with a forced smile.
"I believe I already made it clear that I won't be granting you an interview," Kyle stated.
Nevertheless, Rita Skeeter didn't let go, and her excitement seemed to intensify.
Her crocodile-skin handbag was already open, and inside, a colorful quill was swiftly writing on a roll of parchment.
"The young and handsome champion has found his true love at Hogwarts, completely captivated by the stunning beauty of Fleur Delacour. He is so enamored that he wants to be by her side almost every moment..."
"Ignore the quill, Kyle," Rita Skeeter, "Can you tell me why you decided to participate?"
"Let's go, Kyle, don't pay her any mind," Fleur said.
"No, I've changed my mind." Kyle smiled, "I've decided to accept Ms. Skeeter's interview."
The quill in the handbag began to move again.
"He's eager to boost his fame, and even the Order of Merlin isn't enough for him. To gain more recognition, he's willing to give up a date with Miss Delacour..."
Kyle took a deep breath, relieved that Fleur couldn't see the words on the parchment due to their positions.
After exchanging a few words with Fleur, Kyle stepped into an empty classroom nearby.
"Tell me about your feelings regarding the upcoming competition."
As soon as Rita Skeeter entered, she eagerly asked, "Are you excited or nervous?"
"A bit of both, I guess," Kyle replied, taking a seat. "But mostly relieved. I feel incredibly lucky."
"Oh?" Rita asked curiously, "Is it because you were chosen?"
"No, it's because you're here," Kyle said, looking her up and down. "You've provided me with the perfect excuse."
"Excuse? What do you mean?" Rita felt a little lost, as this was a rare occurrence in her career.
"Of course, it's an excuse for failure," Kyle stretched lazily and smiled. "I've read your articles... to be honest, calling them garbage would be a compliment."
"You..."
"Hold on, Miss Skeeter, let me finish."
Kyle waved his hand, ignoring the quill that was frantically taking notes, and continued, "But there is a benefit to this... once my performance is poor, I can tell everyone that it's because I read your articles that I became distracted and lost in the competition."
"That way, no one will blame me. Don't you think I'm lucky?"
As he spoke, Kyle started laughing.
Read the flawless version at 69shu! 6=9+shu_bar First release of this novel.
Rita also laughed, "You won't, you're a member of the Order of Merlin..."
"No, I will," Kyle said, "Just as you said, I'm only fifteen, and it's difficult to win as the youngest champion."
"But I don't want to bear the blame for failure. This is the only way to preserve my reputation, isn't it?"
Rita's smile gradually faded.
"They won't believe it."
"No, you're wrong. They will believe it," Kyle shook his finger, "It's still an age issue... I'm three years younger than Fleur and Krum, so I'm naturally at a disadvantage. Even if I fail, no one can say anything."
"But after centuries, the Triwizard Tournament is restarted for the first time, and Hogwarts is thoroughly defeated on its own turf. Everyone needs to let off some steam, right?"
Rita tightly clutched her handbag, and the quill finally stopped.
"So I've prepared a scapegoat for them... oh, that's you, Miss Skeeter."
Kyle didn't even glance at her and continued, "No one will care about the specific reason for my failure or if it's related to your articles. They just need a punching bag."
"And you're the most suitable candidate."
Kyle stood up and bowed slightly, "Once again, my sincere thanks!"
Rita's face turned dark as if it were dripping water.
As someone known for stirring up trouble, she understood better than anyone... no one cared about the truth. They only cared about what interested them.
The scapegoat for the Triwizard Tournament's failure was too big a hat... if Kyle did as he said, she was most likely done for.
Rita breathed heavily.
When she arrived, she had learned about Kyle, a Hufflepuff with a good reputation, the model student in the eyes of the professors.
And in her definition, he was also a Dumbledore-like student.
But now... looking at Kyle's smiling face, Rita felt she had made a huge mistake.
"Are you really a Hufflepuff?" she asked dryly.
"Absolutely," Kyle stood up and pushed open the classroom door.
"Oh, by the way," he turned and said, "After the Triwizard Tournament ends, I'll compensate you. How about a hundred Galleons?"
"Aren't you afraid I won't publish this article?" Rita asked.
"I don't think you will," Kyle said, "You're known for not fearing authority. How could you give up publishing the article because of a few words of mine? That's not the unruly Miss Skeeter I have in mind."
After saying this, Kyle left without looking back.
Rita stood there, her face changing colors.
She felt relieved.
Although her definition of Kyle was wrong, thankfully, he made the same mistake.
Rita picked up the parchment full of writing and tore it to shreds, revealing a mocking smile.
"We'll see... you shouldn't have told me all this."
(End of Chapter)
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