Chapter 100
The day of the new term quickly arrived.
Soren shared a compartment with Daphne and Astoria, but one seat was empty, making everyone feel a little uncomfortable.
Before entering the compartment, Soren saw Draco, Goyle, Crabbe, and Pansy in the aisle and greeted them.
Inside the compartment, Soren looked deep in thought, his brow furrowed as if he were pondering something.
"What's wrong, Soren?" Astoria asked.
"Nothing..." Soren shook his head, as if trying to dispel a thought in his mind.
He sensed something unusual about Draco. Long ago, when he first awakened his magical eye, he had seen a similar anomaly.
He had observed strange grayish-black shadows in Lucius's magic, and at that time, he thought it was because his father was carrying magic that did not belong to him (the Dark Mark left by Voldemort). Now he was seeing similar grayish-black shadows on Draco. What did this signify?
The uncomfortable feeling surged within him, realizing that his family was hiding something from him.
It wasn't that he believed families couldn't have their own secrets; after all, he had concealed many things from his family as well. However, this time, he had a very unsettling premonition, and the grayish-black shadow made him very wary.
With his level of mastery in mental and soul magic, Soren had developed a keen intuition that others did not possess, and he believed his feelings were not wrong.
"Soren, did you know? I heard that Gellert Lestrange applied for a leave of absence this year. The Lestrange family has lost their most important direct descendant and suffered a heavy loss of family members; they are truly at the end of their rope," Daphne said, a hint of schadenfreude in her voice, knowing about the grievances between Soren and them.
Soren sighed, expressing mild regret, "Including meredith, the so-called Sacred 28 pure-blood families now have two more families withering away... The pure-blood families can barely take much more turmoil..."
What he did not say was that what awaited the pure-blood families ahead was probably only more unrest...
Before Gellert was turned into a werewolf, his memories had been completely wiped clean by Barton's hypnosis magic and Annis's nightmare magic, erasing that segment of memory. Alongside Gellert were Miles Bligh from the Bligh family and the mastermind behind them, the female head of the Selwyn family, Irina Selwyn.
A cold glint flickered in his eyes; next would be their turn.
In the Great Hall, first-year students were lining up, waiting for the sorting hat to allocate them to their houses.
At the Slytherin table, Gemma Farley and Marcus Flint had already graduated.
The new Quidditch captain was Draco. The newly elected heads of the year were Terence Higgs and a female Gryffindor head.
During the sorting ceremony, Slytherin admitted Malcolm Baddock, Graham Pritchard, Emma Dobbs, and others; Soren did not notice any particularly outstanding individuals, and this year's Slytherin happened to have no members from any strong families.
Instead, a short Ravenclaw boy caught Soren's attention. His name was Gabriel Crassway, which did not sound like it came from a long-established magical family, but for some reason, Soren found the surname familiar—ah, he seemed to recall seeing a small piece of news about Dirk Crassway being promoted to head of the Magical Creatures Liaison Office in the Daily Prophet he read on the train today.
Soren remembered that Dirk Crassway was a character in the original story. He was very talented, could speak Goblin, and was highly appreciated by Slughorn, being a member of the most inner circle of the Slug Club, often reporting insider information from Gringotts to Slughorn.
During the summer, Soren had exchanged letters with Slughorn frequently, and through their exchanges, they had established a good relationship, so he was aware of some important figures in the Slug Club. According to Slughorn's information, Dirk Crassway had two sons, and the elder one was just of age to attend school this year; it seemed that this Gabriel was his first son.
There was an empty seat at the teacher's table.
"Soren, do you know who the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher is this year?" Daphne asked.
The other people sitting nearby all perked up to listen attentively. Who doesn't know that Soren is a member of the faculty hiring committee, so he naturally has the privilege of being informed first.
Daphne's father actually knew as well, but Daphne had never asked. She thought she would find out naturally upon arriving at school, only to see an empty seat, which is why she asked.
"It's Mad-Eye Moody." Soren answered.
"What?" Many of the young wizards present couldn't help but exclaim.
Mad-Eye Moody is a retired Auror who is quite famous. It is said that half of the cells in Azkaban were filled by him, as he captured nearly all of the infamous dark wizards. Many families of Slytherin young wizards are connected to Death Eaters, so the name Mad-Eye Moody is very intimidating to them.
A glimmer of insight flashed in Draco's eyes, but he feigned dissatisfaction, complaining, "I'm not saying this to you, Soren. Since you are a member of the faculty hiring committee and have the power to veto the hiring of professors, how could you allow this madman Mad-Eye Moody to pass the selection?"
Soren, being shrewd and possessing the ability of insight, caught the change in Draco's expression completely. A wave of bitterness surged within him—Draco was ostensibly complaining but was actually undermining his prestige within Slytherin!
If Soren voted to allow Mad-Eye Moody to pass the selection, it would undoubtedly chill the hearts of many pure-blooded children. If Soren claimed he couldn't prevent Mad-Eye Moody from becoming a professor, it would undoubtedly reveal that his capabilities were not as strong as everyone imagined.
With just that short sentence, Soren found himself in a dilemma. Is this really Draco?
Not to mention that the brotherly bond between him and Draco over the years is genuine, when did this little brat become so calculating?
Soren forcibly suppressed the chaotic thoughts in his mind and put on a natural smile, saying, "Don't overthink it. There's a reason for Mad-Eye Moody coming here to teach. Dumbledore persuaded me with a reason that no one could refuse—many of you may already know that the Triwizard Tournament will be held this year. Regardless of Mad-Eye Moody's character, his strength is beyond doubt. Having him as the professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts will increase our school's chances of winning the tournament."
"Don't forget, us Slytherins have performed the best in the past few semesters. If nothing unexpected happens—" Soren's smile radiated confidence, "This time is also a great opportunity for us Slytherins to strive for glory!"
"That's right! What you said makes sense, Soren…"
"We were so foolish; how did we not think of this…"
Several young Slytherin wizards suddenly realized and responded in agreement with what Soren said.
The new head boy, Terence, also leaned over, saying, "By the way, if you sign up, Soren, I think you have a great chance of being selected as Hogwarts' representative." Terence's words received agreement from most of the nearby young wizards.
This conversation ended after Dumbledore stood up to give a speech. Soren subtly defused the underlying prestige crisis in the conversation.
After the sorting ceremony ended, Dumbledore stood up to deliver a speech. In addition to the usual school regulations, he continued, "I also regret to inform you all that there will be no Quidditch Cup this year."
"What?" Draco gasped in disbelief. He turned to his Quidditch teammates Montague and Warrington. They all gaped, silently staring at Dumbledore as if too shocked to speak.
A glimmer of insight flashed in Soren's eyes; Draco's behavior was becoming increasingly difficult to predict.
Dumbledore continued, "This is because a large event will start in October and last the entire academic year, taking up much of the teachers' time and energy—but I believe you will find great enjoyment in it. I am very pleased to announce to everyone that this year at Hogwarts—"
"This must be the Triwizard Tournament Dad mentioned before… but I never expected this event to last the entire school year; that's too exaggerated!" Draco said somewhat disappointedly, as this meant he would have to wait until the next semester to officially become captain of the Quidditch team. Just then, a deafening thunderclap erupted, and the hall doors were slammed open.
A man stood at the door, leaning on a long cane, wrapped in a black travel cloak. The people in the hall turned to look at the stranger, and a forked lightning streaked across the ceiling, causing everyone to gasp in shock.
The lightning illuminated the man's face in stark detail; it was a very terrifying face, as if it had been carved from a piece of decaying wood by a sculptor who had only a vague idea of what a human face should look like and was not very skilled with the chisel.
Every inch of skin on that face seemed to be riddled with scars, the mouth resembling a crooked gash, and the spot where the nose should have protruded was absent. However, the most terrifying feature of this man was his eyes.
One of his eyes was very small, dark, and shiny, while the other was large, round like a coin, and a bright blue color. That blue eye blinked incessantly, moving up and down and side to side, completely independent of the normal eye. Later, that blue orb rolled back into the man's head, and all that could be seen was a large white eyeball.
The little wizards all covered their mouths with their hands, staring fearfully at the man who had just burst in. His appearance completely matched the scariest villain image that flickered through everyone's minds, resembling a dangerous dark wizard.
"Allow me to introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," Dumbledore cheerfully broke the silence, "Professor Moody."
Generally, when a new teacher is introduced, everyone claps to welcome them, but now, aside from Dumbledore and Hagrid, not a single teacher or student applauded.
Dumbledore and Hagrid clapped a few times, noticing that the applause echoed dismally in the silent hall. They thoughtfully lowered their hands. Everyone else seemed to be awestruck by Moody's bizarre appearance, staring at him with wide eyes.
Moody seemed indifferent to the cold reception. He ignored the large jug of pumpkin juice in front of him and instead reached into his travel cloak, pulling out a curved flask and taking a big gulp.
"Soren, what's wrong?" Daphne asked with concern.
This wasn't right; Daphne was puzzled by Soren's dazed reaction. Moody's appearance was indeed somewhat frightening for the young wizards, but given Soren's temperament, such a strong reaction was unexpected. Who was Soren? He was a man who dared to square off against a hundred Dementors and could remain composed in the face of the resurrected feathered serpent statue; what was Moody compared to them?
What she didn't know was that to Soren, Moody emitted a wild black aura, and he recognized that aura almost instantly; it was the shadow of a dragon!
What? Where's little Barty? Who exactly is this "Moody"? What happened to the promised plot benefits?
Dumbledore cleared his throat, "As I just mentioned," he said with a smile, looking at the numerous students before him, "In the coming months, we will be honored to host a very exciting event that hasn't taken place for over a century. I am delighted to inform you that the Triwizard Tournament will be held this year at Hogwarts."
The tense atmosphere that had enveloped the hall since Moody entered was instantly shattered, and almost everyone laughed aloud.
Students from wizarding families knew something about the Triwizard Tournament, even if they didn't know the precise details; they understood that it was one of the three great honors belonging to students in the international wizarding community.
The other two honors were the "Wizard Inter-school Potions Championship" and the "Cairo International Alchemy Conference." Compared to the first two, the Triwizard Tournament, which could showcase practical skills and courage, and highlight heroism, was undoubtedly more popular among the young wizards.
Students from Muggle backgrounds were also quickly inquiring, and upon learning what the Triwizard Tournament was, they gasped in amazement and excitedly discussed it.
Dumbledore realized that some students had never heard of the Triwizard Tournament, so he explained, "The Triwizard Tournament is a friendly competition among the three European magic schools: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang, each choosing one champion to compete in three magical tasks. It is an excellent platform for showcasing talents and helps build friendships among young wizards from different countries. It once became a tradition, but later, due to the high number of fatalities, the Triwizard Tournament was discontinued."
"For centuries, there have been several attempts to resurrect the Triwizard Tournament," Dumbledore continued, "but none have been successful. However, our Ministry's Department of International Cooperation and the Department of Magical Sports believe that the time has come for another attempt. This summer, we have done much work to ensure that every champion will not face life-threatening dangers."
"In October, the heads of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will lead their competitors here, and the selection ceremony for the champions will take place on Halloween Eve. A fair judge will choose three champions to compete for the Triwizard Cup, bringing honor to their schools, and personally they will each receive a prize of one thousand Galleons."
"I know you all yearn to win the Triwizard Tournament trophy for Hogwarts," he said, "but the participating schools and the Ministry have agreed that there should be an age limit for this year's competitors. Only students who are seventeen years old and above may enter."
Dumbledore raised his voice slightly, as some people expressed angry protests after hearing his words, "This measure is necessary because the tasks of the Tournament are still quite arduous and dangerous, and students below sixth and seventh years would not be able to handle them at all."
"The delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will arrive in October and will spend most of the school year with us. While they are here, I hope you will all be warm and friendly, and once Hogwarts' champion is finally chosen, you will support them wholeheartedly. Now, it's getting late, and it's very important for you to enter the classroom tomorrow morning bright-eyed and clear-headed. Go to bed! Quickly!"
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