Chapter 707: Traditional Tricks
Chapter 707: Traditional Tricks
The unfortunate Vagadu student served as a warning to all the contestants—the Magic School Potions Championship was by no means as safe as they had imagined. The magical garden was home to numerous dangerous plants that could cause trouble for the participants and even threaten their lives.
Albert could now understand why the headmaster had refused to let Sigmund Bach, who was only fourteen years old at the time, participate in the Magic School Potions Championship centuries ago.
However, Albert had no knowledge of the exact circumstances back then, so he refrained from passing any judgment on Sigmund's situation.
Albert was more concerned about whether Sigmund Bach's last wish could be fulfilled and what benefits it would bring him.
He, Albert Anderson, was a practical man.
To ensure that no other mishaps occurred during the task, Albert stayed in his room during the afternoon break and performed a divination prophecy for the first round of the competition the next day. The results he saw in his crystal ball were quite satisfactory.
Before going to bed in the evening, Albert drank a small dose of Dreamless Sleep Potion to ensure he got a good night's rest.
In fact, the organizers of the Magic School Potions Championship also provided similar potions to the contestants to help them get a good night's sleep and ease their nerves so that they could perform at their best the next day. It was a very considerate gesture.
The next morning, Albert felt fantastic. However, as he went downstairs for breakfast, he noticed an odd atmosphere in the dining hall. Everyone looked tense, and there seemed to be a hint of gunpowder in the air.
It was understandable, given that they were all competitors. The fact that no one had started shouting at each other was already quite impressive.
The previous night, a witch wearing a bright green robe had received a punch to the nose for mocking the unfortunate Vagadu student.
Albert was curious if Castrobles' wizard hat was also bright green, but before he could ask, a fight had broken out.
As expected, the incident ended up being a storm in a teacup.
Both sides were reprimanded by their respective team leaders and ordered to refrain from fighting, or else they would be disqualified from the competition.
However, his suspicion was confirmed just now when an enthusiastic young lady from Castrobles informed Albert that their school's pointed wizard hats were indeed bright green, and they excelled in herbology and magical creature studies. They had won the Golden Cauldron numerous times, making them one of Albert's strongest competitors.
As Albert was eating his breakfast, Isabelle, who had disappeared without a trace, suddenly reappeared by his side. She glanced at the Castrobles student and asked, "You seem interested in Castrobles' uniform."
"Where did you go?" Albert tried to change the subject, knowing that the concept of "green hat" didn't exist in other countries, so he wouldn't mention it to others.
"To see a friend," Isabelle replied.
"A friend?" Albert was perplexed, unable to imagine who Isabelle could possibly know here. If it were him, he might have run into a few old acquaintances.
"You know them too. You'll see soon enough," Isabelle said mysteriously.
"Oh," Albert didn't think much of it and lowered his voice to tell Isabelle about the divination results.
After listening to Albert, Isabelle's expression became strange.
"What's wrong?" Albert asked, confused.
"Actually, quite a few schools already know that the first round involves brewing Cheering Potion," Isabelle whispered.
If it weren't for his prophetic abilities, Albert would have suspected that someone was spreading misinformation. But indeed, the first round was about brewing Cheering Potion, and it had somehow become common knowledge?
"I see," Albert nodded, indicating that he understood, and then continued eating, not too concerned. Cheating was not uncommon, and one just had to get used to it.
Isabelle also fell silent and accompanied Albert as he ate. She had a relaxed attitude, as she was here primarily to accompany Albert during the Potions Championship, and the outcome didn't matter much to her.
Just as Albert finished his boiled eggs, Professor Slughorn hurried over and plopped down next to them, breathing heavily. He lowered his voice and said to the two of them, "The first round involves brewing... Cheering Potion."
This was one of the reasons Professor Slughorn had come over—to help them through the first round.
The fact that the schools knew about the Cheering Potion for the first round was because the organizers had intentionally leaked the information. They couldn't very well have the participating schools fail to make it past the first round, could they?
Well, there had been similar cases in the past, and quite a few of them.
Hence, the organizers started intentionally leaking information.
And so, cheating became a tradition in the Magic School Potions Championship, and this was by no means an unfounded rumor.
After Professor Slughorn finished speaking, Albert and Isabelle exchanged a glance and smiled, nodding. "We already know about this," they said.
"You do?" Professor Slughorn mumbled, puzzled. "How did you find out?"
"We just heard some students from other schools mentioning it," Albert replied casually.
Isabelle made up a random excuse; after all, it was common knowledge, so it wouldn't be strange for them to hear it from someone else.
"Then you two should be... alright. I also brought an Advanced Potion-Making book with me, in case either of you needs it..."
"We're completely fine," Albert and Isabelle replied confidently.
Seeing that the pair were so assured, Professor Slughorn didn't say anything further. He merely reminded them that if they needed to review anything, they could borrow the book from him.
The first round of the Magic School Potions Championship began at 10 am, and the venue was set up in the village square. When they arrived, they saw eight large tables laid out.
Seemingly to facilitate "mutual assistance," contestants from the same school were seated together. This arrangement left Albert feeling quite disappointed in what was supposed to be a competitive championship.
What was the point of holding a competition if they were going to make it so easy for everyone to collaborate?
Or perhaps, the Magic School Potions Championship had completely deviated from its original purpose.
Albert guessed that the latter was more likely! After all, the Magic School Potions Championship had been held since 1407, and it was about to enter its sixth century. It was only natural that the event would evolve—or devolve—over time.
Nothing lasts forever, and everything changes eventually.
So, Albert couldn't help but admire the enduring love between Nicolas and Perenelle.
After entering the venue, Albert quickly gathered his scattered thoughts and looked around at the judges and spectators. His expression froze as he finally realized who Isabelle had been referring to as her acquaintance.
Katherine Nicholas? How was this refined American girl here, and why did she seem so familiar with Isabelle? Albert was skeptical.
It was often the case that beautiful girls found it hard to become close friends, as they tended to compare their looks and end up as superficial friends.
However, among the judges, Albert did spot a few familiar faces. One of them, Damocles, nodded slightly in his direction.
"Damocles?"
Yep, that was him.
Albert recognized the man from his photos in the newspapers.
Before the start of the Magic School Potions Championship, the president of the Extraordinary Wizarding Society, Bernard, gave a speech:
"Welcome to the 99th Magic School Potions Championship. In this first round, contestants will have one hour to brew a Cheering Potion. The judges will then select eight contestants to advance to the second round."
Albert felt someone looking at him and turned to the side, his gaze landing on the only male student on the Beauxbatons team. He remembered that this person was probably Bernard's grandson, whose name was... Guy Bernard?
Ah, well, it didn't matter what his name was. He was an insignificant person anyway.
Albert turned his attention back to the task at hand, focusing on the table in front of him. He carefully inspected the tools and ingredients provided and began processing the ingredients slowly and methodically after the judge announced the start of the competition.
One hour was more than enough time as long as no major mistakes were made.
However, as it turned out, even the students selected by their schools to participate in the championship were a bit flustered at the start.
This was entirely normal, as knowing the content a few hours in advance only gave them enough time to review the brewing process. Moreover, not all wizards excelled at brewing Cheering Potions.
Halfway through the competition, Albert had already smelled several odd scents, indicating that quite a few students had messed up their potions.
Yet, Albert remained unaffected and continued stirring his potion at a leisurely pace.
Everyone was cheating, and to win the competition, one had to give it their all.
As soon as the liquid in his cauldron turned a sunny golden color, Albert extinguished the fire. After inspecting his Cheering Potion, he left the competition venue with a satisfied smile and sat down next to Professor Slughorn.
"Excellent! Both you and Isabelle did wonderfully!" Professor Slughorn praised them generously.
Indeed, as Dumbledore had said, Albert was a genius in the field of potions, and being underage, his future prospects were immeasurable.
Albert wasn't the first to finish, but he was the first to complete the Cheering Potion successfully. As he turned his attention back to the competition venue, he noticed that most of the contestants had failed to some degree.
At the very least, their potions didn't look as perfect as they should, and several contestants had only managed to complete half the process, running out of time.
Albert attributed the main reason for these failures to the handling of the Sopophorous Beans.
Typically, one would use a silver knife to slice the beans and squeeze out the juice, but the amount of juice extracted this way tended to be insufficient, leading to deviations from the described appearance of the Cheering Potion.
To compensate, many contestants used more beans, but this step was rather tricky.
Isabelle's potion was almost done, and with ten minutes left, that was more than enough time for most contestants.
Just then, a golden figure flitted past Albert's eyes, and a scent unique to girls wafted into his nostrils.
Katherine sat down next to Albert and smiled at him in greeting.
At that moment, Albert felt a "danger" sign slowly floating above his head.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
