bioinnovel Chapter 282, March 3
Chapter 282, March 3
Chapter 282 October 30th
After breakfast, the thick clouds that had been hanging over the campus suddenly dispersed, and warm sunlight poured down.
During the bright, sunny day, every corner of the castle is filled with the joy of anticipation.
In class, students were unable to concentrate on the lesson, and the professor was also unable to focus, appearing extremely tense.
The entire school was thinking about the delegation from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang arriving tonight, and about the upcoming Warriors selection process.
However, before the two delegations arrived at Hogwarts, officials from the Ministry of Magic, led by Barty Crouch, arrived first.
As evening approached, Belvina arrived early at the castle gate to wait.
Although there is serious doubt about Barty Crouch's motives for staying in office, the pretense of maintaining appearances must still be done.
She stood on the stone steps in front of the castle gate, gazing absently at the path where peas flew, a cold wind brushing against her cheeks, bringing a slight chill.
After a while, Dumbledore, wearing a pointed wizard's hat, came out of the castle and stood side by side with Belvina. Neither of them spoke.
The autumn wind was bleak, and the grass and trees swayed. A group of people appeared at the other end of the field. They crossed the gentle grassy slope and soon arrived at the castle gate.
Dumbledore and Belvina descended the stone steps one after the other to meet Barty Crouch, who was leading the group.
Mr. Crouch, who was still clinging to his position as director, remained the same as ever, wearing a crisp, immaculate wizard's robe and an awkwardly neatly styled haircut.
Compared to Barty Crouch, Dumbledore with his long hair and beard looks like a crazy old man.
"Long time no see, Barty," Dumbledore said warmly. "Let's go inside the castle and rest for a bit. Beauxbatons and Durmstrang's delegation hasn't arrived yet."
"It has indeed been a long time," Barty Crouch's reaction was somewhat lukewarm. "There's no rush to rest; I'd like to check out the venue for the first event first."
As he spoke, Barty Crouch looked at Belvina.
Miss Blake, whose company recently changed its name to "Tian Tong Xing," was in charge of overseeing the construction of the venue for its first competition event.
"In that case, I'll show Mr. Crouch around the arena," Belvina said. "Professor, you can set up the Goblet of Fire first." She then spoke to Dumbledore.
Dumbledore didn't say anything more and led the Ministry of Magic personnel back to the castle.
Among the people from the Ministry of Magic was a burly wizard carrying a large, jewel-encrusted wooden box. Inside the old-looking box was an even older Goblet of Fire.
The group filed into the castle, leaving only Belvina, Percy, and Barty Crouch at the gate.
"Mr. Crouch is still as serious and responsible as ever when it comes to his work," Belvina said, gesturing for him to enter.
"Miss Black, the Triwizard Tournament is of paramount importance and cannot be lost," said Barty Crouch. "The tragedy that happened at the World Cup must never be repeated at Hogwarts."
Barty Crouch followed behind Belvina, each step he took the same distance, as if it had been carefully measured beforehand.
"That's how it should be," Belvina said. "We have to go around the Forbidden Forest to see the competition area."
At this moment, the sky gradually darkened, and the dark Forbidden Forest was shrouded in shadow.
Belvina led Crouch and Percy along the edge of the Forbidden Forest, heading away from the castle.
"I had no intention of staying in the department, but with the World Cup going wrong and the Triwizard Tournament fast approaching, I was really worried," Barty Crouch said.
The light grew dimmer, and the path beneath his feet was no longer as smooth as before, but Mr. Crouch's stride remained unchanged, and each step covered the same distance.
"I fully understand your concerns, Mr. Crouch," Belvina said with a smile. "It is my honor to have your help and guidance."
Although she was smiling, there was no hint of a smile in Belvina's eyes.
Percy, walking at the very back, couldn't help but show a bitter expression, thinking to himself that the Ministry of Magic was indeed a tough place to work.
Despite Belvina's obvious wariness of Barty Crouch, and Crouch's complete lack of affection for Belvina, the two manage to get along peacefully and even chat and laugh together.
After walking a long distance around the edge of the forbidden forest, the three of them passed through a thicket of trees, and a flat, open space and a tall, magnificent competition field came into view.
"According to the plan, this is the Warriors' waiting area." Belvina pointed to an open space. "We can build a house or put up a tent."
With that, Belvina led the two into the main building of the competition venue and into the venue itself.
The playing field, constructed of stone and magic, is oval in shape and covers an area larger than the Quidditch pitch at Hogwarts.
The low, flat area in the center of the field is the competition area, with oddly shaped boulders scattered among them, presumably prepared for the warriors.
The spectator seats are distributed around the playing field, rising and extending upwards at a fixed slope, with even the lowest spectator seats being at least fifty feet above the ground.
Just as Barty Crouch and Percy were looking around the field, Belvina spoke up, seemingly intentionally, yet unintentionally.
She said, "The competition venue originally didn't need to be built so tall, but to prevent the possibility of a fire dragon rushing into the stands..."
Expansion was necessary.
Percy, who was the lowest-ranking person present, was startled. Was this the end of their relationship?
To prevent the fire dragon from rushing into the audience... expansion was necessary. These words were clearly directed at Barty Crouch, since he was the one who ordered the bow and arrow to the Treebee Dragon and Ironbelly.
However, the confrontation that Percy had anticipated did not occur; Barty Crouch's reaction was calm, as if he had not understood.
"We need to ensure the safety of the warriors and the safety of the spectators, but the entertainment value and excitement of the game are also important," Mr. Crouch explained dryly.
"Of course, if the competition isn't exciting enough, the three-way battle won't be memorable," Belvina said. "Hopefully, all the warriors can get through the first event safely."
After saying that, Belvina looked at Barty Crouch.
His hair was neatly parted, and his mustache was as tidy as a toothbrush; his appearance was no different from before.
His work attitude is rigorous and responsible, and his style of doing things is methodical, which is very much in line with the impression he has left on people, and there is nothing suspicious about him.
As night fell and darkness descended upon the arena, Barty Crouch pulled a pocket watch from his robe pocket to check the time.
"It's about time, let's go back," said Buddy Crouch. "We can't keep Beauxbatons and Durmstrang's delegation waiting for us."
As soon as he finished speaking, Barty Crouch took the lead and walked out of the playing area.
Belvina glanced at Percy, and she saw confusion and bewilderment in his eyes.
It was as if to say: Apart from the disappearance of Bertha Jorkins, I have not found anything else suspicious about Mr. Crouch. Is it necessary to continue to keep an eye on him?
The inexperienced young Percy didn't notice anything unusual, and Belvina didn't find anything strange about Crouch either.
However, Barty Crouch behaved so normally, just as people expected, that his normalcy only exacerbated Belvina's suspicions.
As the three inspectors approached the castle, night finally fell, and a bright white moon rose above the treetops, hanging in the sky above the Forbidden Forest.
On the dark ground, all the students stood in neat rows.
Whether it was the chill of the night or their overwhelming excitement, the students in the line were all trembling.
Before returning to the castle, Belvina did not join the faculty and staff, but remained with the Ministry of Magic officials, patiently waiting for the delegation from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang.
As the clock struck six, the tranquility and silence of the area were broken.
Standing at the back row, Dumbledore announced loudly, "I think our Beauxbatons delegation has arrived!"
During the foggy time, the neat rows of students began to stir. Some looked around, some asked loudly, and everyone wanted to know where the Beauxbatons delegation was.
"Up in the sky!" a student shouted.
"It's a fire dragon! They flew here!" someone exclaimed excitedly.
"It's not a fire dragon, it's a flying house!" Some people looked even more closely.
In a wizarding society, can houses fly?
The answer is of course yes. Not to mention flying houses, flying castles are also possible.
However, the enormous object that sped across the deep blue night sky was not a house, but a giant pink and blue carriage.
Twelve divine horses pulled the giant carriage across the forbidden forest, then landed with incredible speed. The pink and blue carriages crashed to the ground with a deafening roar.
A moment later, the carriage door opened, and a boy dressed in a light blue robe jumped off the carriage.
After the boy fumbled around near the carriage door for a while, a golden spiral staircase appeared, and Mrs. Maxim immediately stepped down from the carriage.
The Hogwarts students were stunned, their mouths agape as they stared at Mrs. Maxim in disbelief. Many students instinctively thought they were seeing a female version of Hagrid.
What surprised the Hogwarts students even more was that, although she was as tall and robust as Hagrid, Madam Maxim was not as rugged as Hagrid. She had a beautiful face and her manners were elegant and graceful.
Amid the students' surprise and applause, Mrs. Maxim walked over gracefully.
"Welcome, welcome to Hogwarts," Dumbledore said warmly.
"Dumbledore, I hope you are well," said Mrs. Maxime, extending her right hand adorned with sparkling jewelry.
Whether it's Belvina, Dumbledore, or Barty Crouch, everyone looks like a child standing next to Mrs. Maxime.
When Dumbledore kissed Mrs. Maxime’s gleaming right hand, he didn’t even need to bend down.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Mrs. Maxim greeted Barty Crouch and then looked at Belvina.
"It's nice to meet you again, Miss Black," Mrs. Maxim said.
"Long time no see, Mrs. Maxim," Belvina said. "The Durmstrang representatives haven't arrived yet. Shall we go into the castle?"
As she spoke, Belvina looked at the group of Beauxbatons students beside the carriage.
Just now, a dozen or so male and female students stepped out of the giant pink and blue carriage. They were wearing thin, exquisite silk clothes and were shivering in the Scottish cold wind.
Is it better to wait for Durmstrang to arrive at any time, or to go to the castle to warm up first? Is there even a choice?
Any hesitation would be disrespectful to Karkarov.
"When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Let's go inside the castle," Mrs. Maxim said casually. "My children need to warm up anyway."
The students of Beauxbatons had clearly underestimated the cold at Hogwarts; none of them were wearing cloaks, so they had to wrap their heads in scarves.
It was some consolation.
"There's one more thing," Mrs. Maxim said with concern, "my horses have traveled a long way and they need a good rest."
"Our professor who protects magical creatures will be happy to take care of them," Dumbledore said, a sly glint in his blue eyes hidden behind his half-moon spectacles.
Belvina glanced sideways at the white-haired and bearded headmaster, never expecting that this lewd old man would also like to play matchmaker!
Mrs. Maxim was still somewhat worried. Each of the twelve Divine Horses was as big as an elephant, and their hooves were as big as a plate. Taking care of the Divine Horses would not be an easy task.
At that moment, Hagrid, who had been with the other faculty and staff, suddenly approached, his mountain-like figure casting a huge shadow.
Dumbledore spoke again, saying, "This is Rupert Hagrid, the Professor of the Conservation of Magical Creatures at Hogwarts."
Bathed in the light emanating from the castle, the two half-giants locked eyes, speechless.
Belvina, sandwiched between two small hills, frowned slightly. She noticed that the air around her wasn't filled with a pinkish hue, and Hagrid was probably just having a one-sided crush.
Belvina looked at Hagrid's rugged face with concern and sighed silently. The road to winning back his wife is long, Hagrid!
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