Chapter 256: Drawing Lots

Following Alaric's guidance, Harry finally found a way to deal with the Hungarian Horntail.

He admitted he wasn't particularly talented in many areas, but when it came to non-magical skills, his Quidditch playing was exceptional, making him at least a skilled flyer.

However, Harry remembered the rules from the Triwizard Tournament's first task—participants could only carry one wand into the task arena, and broomsticks were not allowed among the items permitted. This meant he still couldn't fully utilize his strengths.

His friend Ron Weasley pointed out a solution to this problem.

"Actually, you can use the Summoning Charm during the task to summon your broomstick," Ron suggested.

Unlike Harry, Ron grew up in a wizarding family and was very familiar with common spells like Summoning Charm, making this suggestion seem obvious to him.

The first task of the Triwizard Tournament was scheduled to begin at noon the next day. By the morning of the second day, the atmosphere at the school had become tense and excited.

Throughout the morning, Harry skipped classes, locking himself in a common room to practice the Summoning Charm repeatedly.

Inside the room, Harry concentrated all his thoughts, causing various objects in the room to fly towards him.

By midday, he had barely mastered the spell, at the cost of a cluttered floor: books, quills, a few overturned chairs, an old set of Gobstones, and even Neville's toad Trevor...

Hogwarts suspended classes at noon, allowing all students time to head to the task venue.

After lunch, Alaric brought Hermione to a grove near the Forbidden Forest, where a tent had been set up, and the four dragons needed for the task were kept nearby.

They were the last to enter the tent. Fleur sat on a low stool in a corner, looking nothing like her usual calm self, her face pale and sickly. 

Viktor appeared even more brooding than usual, while Harry paced back and forth nervously.

After Alaric entered the tent, Harry awkwardly smiled at him, acknowledging that Alaric's advice had helped him find a way to handle the Hungarian Horntail. 

Fleur immediately approached Alaric, seeking comfort from him, as if she wanted to squeeze her entire body into his arms.

"This woman is like a puppy seeing its human," Hermione muttered disapprovingly under her breath. 

Fleur clearly heard the remark but paid no attention. 

For her, dealing with a dragon was obviously a huge challenge. 

Her talent lay in charms and enchantments that were effective against ordinary wizards, but considerably less so against dragons.

Seeing the four champions gathered, Bagman grinned and said cheerfully, "Relax, treat it like you're at home!"

Standing among the pale-faced champions, he looked like a cartoon character of a big guy. He was wearing his old Wimbourne Wasps robes.

"Alright, now that everyone's here, let me explain the situation to you!" Bagman said enthusiastically.

"After the audience is gathered, I will pass this purple silk bag around to each of you."

He lifted a purple silk bag and shook it towards them. 

"You will draw a miniature model of the creature you'll face. They come in different—uh—types. Oh, and one more thing... your task is to retrieve a golden egg!"

Harry nodded to indicate he understood Bagman's instructions, then resumed pacing inside the tent; his face slightly green. 

Krum showed no reaction whatsoever, seeming like he might vomit from nerves if he spoke. 

Fleur held onto Alaric's arm tighter, completely ignoring the fact that her behavior made Hermione very unhappy.

"Damn it, why is that woman so shameless? What's so great about being so big?" Hermione muttered continuously. "And that jerk needs to show a little self-control."

Before long, they heard the sound of hundreds of feet passing by the tent, the owners of which were excitedly chatting and laughing...

The audience was entering. 

These spectators included not only young wizards from the three schools, but also many wizards from around the world who had come to watch the Triwizard Tournament.

A competition with over a thousand years of history that had significant global influence in the wizarding world. 

This was why Madame Maxime and Professor Karkaroff were willing to cheat to defeat Dumbledore—it was a great opportunity to increase their school's influence.

"Alright, I think that's about it," Bagman clapped his hands, opening the purple silk bag and telling the champions, "Ladies first."

He handed the bag to Hermione Granger first because she was the youngest.

Hermione reached into the bag and pulled out a small, intricately detailed model of a Swedish Short-Snout dragon with a number around its neck: number one. Next was Fleur Delacour, her hand trembling as she pulled out the Welsh Green dragon, its neck adorned with number two.

Krum retrieved the Scarlet Chinese Fireball dragon with number three around its neck.

Harry knew what was left for him. He reached into the silk bag and pulled out the Hungarian Horntail, marked as number four.

"Alright, you all have your picks!" Bagman said.

"You've each drawn the dragon you'll face, indicated by the number around its neck. 

Understand? 

Alaric will be ensuring your safety throughout. 

Now, I'll leave you for a bit as I provide commentary for the audience. Miss Granger, you're up first. When you hear the whistle, enter the arena, okay?"

Afterward, Bagman spoke briefly with Harry alone, asking if he wanted some "tips" to help him deal with the Hungarian Horntail, but Harry declined.

He had his reasons. 

At the Quidditch World Cup, he lost a large sum of money, especially with Alaric's heavy bet, which nearly cost him twenty thousand Galleons to repay Alaric. 

Just a few days ago, he finally paid off the last of the money to Alaric, only to now owe the goblins a large sum.

Ludo decided to bet with the goblins again, betting that Harry would win the tournament to repay his previous debts.

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