Ludo Bagman, the head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, had already pulled Harry and Jane Yu into a small room.
"This is unbelievable," he exclaimed. "There's a fourth and fifth champion!"
Krum, Fleur, and Cedric all looked bewildered, appearing at a loss.
Harry was even more bewildered than they were, desperately arguing that he hadn't entered his name, but no one spoke.
After a while, perhaps after calming the students, a large group of people came in.
Behind Headmaster Dumbledore were Mr. Crouch, Mr. Karkaroff, Madame Maxime, Professor McGonagall, and Professor Snape.
Snape was clearly pondering something, looking at Jane Yu with an expression that seemed to say, "You've finally started acting up."
He realized there must be something fishy about the Triwizard Tournament!
He just didn't know what his student had noticed that made her enter!
Soon the three headmasters began to argue, Karkaroff wearing a cold smile, his blue eyes icy:
"Hogwarts has three champions? What does this mean, Dumbledore?"
"This is highly unfair," Madame Maxime said angrily, placing a hand on Fleur's shoulder. "They're not of age. I remember you set an age line, Dumbledore."
"Calm down, everyone," Dumbledore said, looking down at Jane Yu and Harry, asking calmly, "Did you put your names into the Goblet of Fire?"
"No," they both answered in unison.
"They're definitely lying!" Karkaroff said angrily.
"No, Igor, I think someone might have played a prank," Madame Maxime explained for Jane Yu. "This girl was with me all day. She wouldn't have had the chance."
"Are you sure? What about at night? The girl had 24 hours to do it!" Karkaroff immediately retorted.
Madame Maxime now looked uncertain.
"Can I request a handwriting comparison on the slips?" Jane Yu suggested. "Maybe an older student wanted to prank us."
Dumbledore was silent for a moment. He took out the two slips, and everyone found they were written with a non-dominant hand, the writing crooked.
"Then, can I request to withdraw?" Jane Yu asked.
"No, you cannot," Mr. Crouch said stiffly. "The rules clearly state that anyone whose name comes out of the Goblet must compete. It's a magical contract."
"If that's the case," Karkaroff's voice was no longer smooth, and his smile vanished, "my students must re-enter until each school has three champions."
"I'm afraid not, Karkaroff. The Goblet has already extinguished," Bagman said. "You'll have to wait for the next tournament—"
"We won't participate again!" Karkaroff raged.
"Who are you threatening?!" Moody entered at this point. "They must compete. It's in your favor, isn't it? Maybe someone wants them dead!"
"Are you crazy?" Karkaroff clenched his fists uneasily. "Dead... paranoid... always thinking someone's out to get you..."
Moody shouted loudly:
"What, am I making it up? Whoever put their names into the Goblet must be a skilled wizard, using a Confundus Charm to hoodwink the Goblet... entering them as the fourth and fifth school's students..."
Karkaroff's eyes shifted, quickly turning his accusation towards Jane Yu:
"Really? Speaking of Confundus Charms, I heard something interesting from Hogwarts students during exchange classes. This girl recently used the Imperius Curse on you in class? You said it was a misunderstanding, was it really?"
Madame Maxime let out a short gasp, glaring at her in disbelief, speaking in a disappointed and icy tone:
"I thought Hogwarts was extremely strict about Dark Magic. So, she completely has the ability to put her name in."
"This is slander! It never happened!" Moody shouted angrily. "Besides, the school most tolerant of Dark Magic is Durmstrang, and their headmaster is standing right here!"
Moody's tone was aggressive, and Jane Yu realized he was mocking Karkaroff's identity, just as Theodore had warned, a Death Eater.
"Don't you forget what I do? I know Dark Wizards well, Karkaroff, you shouldn't forget..."
The two argued again, Karkaroff rendered speechless by Moody's sarcasm, his face as if on fire.
"Alright, it seems we have no choice but to accept this situation," Dumbledore ruled. "They must compete."
Madame Maxime, Professor Karkaroff, Krum, and Fleur all looked displeased.
Madame Maxime's gaze quickly swept over Jane Yu, her once warm and affectionate expression turning to suspicion and uncertainty, and she left swiftly with Fleur after hearing the project guidelines.
Jane Yu's mood plummeted.
She now had no doubt that her exchange plan was completely ruined!
Her credibility with Madame Maxime had dropped to negative points!
And she still had to participate in that damned Triwizard Tournament!
A competition that had been shut down for centuries due to too many deaths!
Could she survive this school year?
...
Jane Yu, Cedric, and Harry walked out of the room together.
The gathering of Gryffindor, Slytherin, and Hufflepuff was quite the Hogwarts team-building scene.
If only a little Ravenclaw were here, it would be perfect.
Jane Yu thought dejectedly.
"Look on the bright side," Cedric noticed her unhappiness and comforted, "Hogwarts' chances of winning have increased. Three out of five are our people."
"Uh... do you believe we didn't put our names in?" Harry looked up at him.
Cedric smiled, still wearing a warm expression:
"To be honest, I was a bit skeptical at first, but I don't think Yu would do that."
He gave a mischievous smile, jokingly saying:
"She's already famous enough, with three consecutive Special Contribution Awards and last term's report... half of Britain knows her and her game console."
"In comparison, isn't the Triwizard Tournament too trivial? Isn't a thousand Galleons too little?"
Jane Yu looked at him in surprise, not expecting Cedric to have such a broad perspective!
To have such faith in his competitor!
Harry also seemed completely convinced by Cedric's explanation, nodding heavily in agreement.
"I'm planning to check out after the first task," Jane Yu stated bluntly. "No one said you have to complete all three tasks."
As long as she lay in the hospital wing, no one could drag her to compete!
She didn't want to lose her life in one competition or be carried out half-dead!
It would also increase Harry's chances of winning, let him follow the plot, and become famous overseas!
But Cedric was stunned.
He thought her perspective was incredibly broad!
After all, Jane Yu was the strongest student at Hogwarts, someone who could crush Dark Wizard plots and subdue the Basilisk at a young age!
If she competed, she would undoubtedly be unstoppable, invincible!
She believed her participation would be unfair to other contestants, which is why she suggested withdrawing after the first task!
She wanted the competition to be fair and just more than anyone, and planned to use her way to maintain fairness!
"No," Cedric said seriously to her, "I think you're the one who should win this cup."
Jane Yu was once again stunned!
Where did this strange filter come from?
Or was he trying to start a wave of mutual praise?
"No, no, I think you're the one who should win," she replied.
Cedric paused again, then awkwardly ran a hand through his hair:
"I didn't expect you to think that way, you encouraged me before... I'll do my best... thank you."
He never expected her to have such high hopes for him!
He couldn't let down such expectations!
To send such blessings to a competitor—
She truly was a person with a broad perspective!
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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