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Chapter 661: Dumbledore's Headache
Chapter 661: Dumbledore's Headache
Harry’s sudden burst of kindness left Ivan at a loss for words.
He had only saved Fleur as a favor on his way back, but Harry’s actions were different—actively aiding his opponent, even at the cost of delaying the competition.
No wonder he took so long to get here…
"Even if you ignored Krum, the Aurors would have come to his rescue eventually!" Ivan reminded him.
"Is that so? The Professors never mentioned that…" Harry looked quite embarrassed. He hadn’t thought much about it at the time, only feeling that he couldn’t leave Krum alone in the lake.
"By the way, what happened to Fleur? Was she also attacked by the Mermaids?" Harry’s gaze quickly shifted to the Beauxbatons Champion.
"She fell into a trap and passed out!"
Ivan gave a brief explanation. After exchanging some information with Harry, he understood what had happened on the other side.
Not long after the start of the competition, Harry and Krum, who had set out first, were ambushed by a large group of Mermaids.
Due to his weaker strength, Harry only dared to use his wand for defensive spells, while Krum, relying on his powerful Transformation, engaged the Mermaids in close combat, trying to break through them head-on.
At first, things went smoothly. But when Krum severely injured a few Mermaids, they became enraged and attacked en masse with their tridents, knocking Krum unconscious on the spot.
"After they knocked Krum out, they left. I don’t know why the Mermaids let me go…" Harry said, puzzled. He had only cast a few spells with his wand, and the Mermaids surrounding him had fled in terror.
Looking at the badly injured Krum on Harry’s back, Ivan’s eyes filled with pity.
Due to Dumbledore’s orders, as long as the Champions didn’t deliberately provoke the Mermaids, these Lake Bottom creatures wouldn’t dare to be too harsh.
Moreover, the Mermaids’ fear of magic made Ivan not consider them a real threat.
Unfortunately, Krum clearly didn’t know this. Relying on his excellent Transfiguration spells, he had tried to confront the Mermaids head-on, which naturally led to a brutal beating.
Ivan suddenly realized that he had overestimated Fleur and Krum’s strength and adaptability.
When he had gone to talk to the Mermaids to increase the difficulty of the second task, he had only intended to cause Krum some trouble and slow down his rescue of the hostages.
He hadn’t expected such a result…
Ivan glanced at the injured Harry, then at the unconscious Fleur and Krum, and his lips twitched. They all looked so terrible…
"Ivan, what should we do next?" Harry asked, his strength nearly depleted after the battle and the long swim with Krum on his back.
"What else can we do? We have to take them and the hostages up to the surface. We should still have enough time…" Ivan said with a sigh.
...
Half an hour earlier, above the Black Lake, five enormous Crystal Balls faithfully displayed the events unfolding at the lake bottom for everyone to see.
The ugly Mermaids with their steel tridents, the Grindylows lurking in the underwater vegetation, and the fifteen-foot-long Giant Squid—each thrilling scene made the young wizards present hold their breaths for the Champions.
Maxime, seated restlessly on the Judges' Stand, kept her eyes fixed on one of the Crystal Balls, closely watching Fleur's every move.
At first, when she saw Fleur following Ivan, intending to pass the challenge this way, Maxime was somewhat displeased. She believed that Fleur's actions would tarnish Beauxbatons' reputation.
But when she saw Fleur being lured into a trap by Ivan and surrounded by a large group of Mermaids, Maxime could no longer contain herself. Her expression turned tense, and she quickly turned to Dumbledore, demanding an explanation.
"Headmaster Dumbledore, isn't this task too dangerous for the Champions? You never told me that the Mermaids at the lake bottom would attack the Champions!"
Dumbledore remained calm in the face of Maxime's accusation. He responded steadily, "Please rest assured, Madame Maxime... If you observe closely, you'll notice that the Mermaids are very measured and won't truly harm Miss Fleur..."
Maxime looked back with a mix of doubt and relief, seeing that Fleur had managed to hold her ground despite the Mermaids' assault, only sustaining a few scratches. This slightly eased her concern.
Dumbledore, too, watched the scene with a sense of unease. According to his agreement with the Mermaids, they should not have attacked the Champions.
Before Dumbledore could figure out what went wrong, Karkaroff suddenly leaped up in a fit of rage. He glared at one of the Crystal Balls and angrily shouted, "What is going on here? Dumbledore, you need to give us all an explanation! Those blasted Mermaids have knocked Krum unconscious! According to the rules, they are supposed to protect the Hostages and the Champions, not attack them!"
The other referees also turned to Dumbledore, waiting for his response. After all, communication with the Mermaids had always been Dumbledore's responsibility.
Dumbledore, clearly troubled, had indeed seen Krum being overwhelmed and knocked out by the Mermaids. He suspected that the Mermaids might have misunderstood his instructions.
However, he was not about to admit his mistake to Maxime and Karkaroff. After a moment's hesitation, he replied calmly, "Ladies and gentlemen, I believe there is no issue with the rules of the second task! The Mermaids are adhering to our agreement by not actively harming the Champions, but this does not mean they cannot interfere with their rescue efforts. That is part of the challenge!"
"But the problem is that they have knocked Krum unconscious, preventing him from continuing the task. Is this what you mean by not actively harming the Champions?" Karkaroff bellowed in frustration.
"Yes!" Dumbledore nodded, and before Karkaroff could launch into another tirade, he continued, "We all know that Krum provoked the Mermaids first, didn't we? They were forced to defend themselves."
"Moreover, you may have noticed that the Mermaids are extremely wary of Wizards' magic. The Champions can easily drive them away by raising their wands and casting a few intimidating spells. This is a valuable test, isn't it? I had hoped that all the Champions would realize this immediately."
(End of Chapter)
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