Chapter 208: Fudge's Comical Show

Alaric found that the International Wizarding Dueling Tournament held significant stature within the wizarding world, as evidenced by the multitude of spectators present today.

Notably, there were many French wizards whom he had encountered previously at the funeral of Nicolas Flamel. He even spotted some acquaintances from the French Ministry of Magic.

Furthermore, among the crowd was his old acquaintance, Cornelius Fudge.

This minister was dressed in an exquisite robe — perhaps the finest he had ever owned — with an air of pride about him. 

Surrounded by his secretary and bodyguards, he greeted those around him.

He nodded respectfully to every foreign wizard passing by him, saying "Hello" or "Hi," hoping to earn their respect and shake hands with them — even though he couldn't understand a word of any foreign language.

In the incident involving Sirius Black, Cornelius Fudge had greatly embarrassed himself, leaving his authority somewhat compromised. 

Now, he was trying everything to boost his reputation, and participating in these international events to gain recognition and support from foreign wizards was his current strategy.

After all, he was only in Britain; his plummeting reputation there could be offset by gaining international renown, which would be quite beneficial for his rule.

However, Alaric couldn't comprehend who came up with the foolish idea for Fudge to gain respect and fame by greeting people at the International Wizarding Dueling Tournament.

It was simply absurd.

At this moment, Fudge's secretary and assistant tirelessly introduced him to everyone.

"This is the Minister for Magic for the British Ministry of Magic, the greatest wizard, Mr. Cornelius Fudge."

Upon hearing his name, many foreign wizards were intrigued, considering Fudge was a Minister for Magic after all.

However, many foreign wizards asked embarrassing questions that left Fudge's secretary and assistant quite awkward.

"Shouldn't the greatest contemporary wizard in Britain be Albus Dumbledore?"

This question left Fudge's assistant unsure how to respond. While he agreed with the sentiment, Fudge was his direct superior.

Fortunately, Fudge was culturally unaware and couldn't understand what these foreigners were saying.

However, what Fudge couldn't comprehend, Alaric could — his learning abilities were remarkable, enabling him to speak mainstream comparative languages worldwide.

Hearing such ridiculous conversations, Alaric burst into laughter on the spot.

Suddenly, his laughter caught everyone's attention.

At this moment, Albus Dumbledore himself stood beside Alaric.

Dumbledore was too famous, his tall stature and long white beard making him easily recognizable.

This was trouble; these foreigners immediately abandoned Cornelius Fudge and flocked to Dumbledore, eager to shake hands with him.

Seeing Fudge's now darkened expression, Alaric couldn't help but chuckle again.

"Oh, my, are you Albus Dumbledore, the greatest wizard in all of Europe?"

"I've read your works; you're truly remarkable."

"Why doesn't Hogwarts recruit overseas? I would love to be your student."

"I heard one of your students became an Animagus at such a young age, it's truly impressive."

Wait, why are they mentioning me? Alaric's eyelids couldn't help but twitch.

In fact, as a recipient of the Order of Merlin, Third Class, he was also a celebrity in the wizarding world.

Soon, people noticed him standing next to Dumbledore.

"Isn't he Alaric, the genius from Hogwarts, the first Animagus who can turn into Dragon?" 

"I heard he also won the International Wizarding Chess Championship!"

"Alaric, could you give me an autograph?"

Alaric didn't have Dumbledore's patience. 

Sensing the situation turning unfavorable, he immediately cast a Disillusionment Charm and left before he could be surrounded, making his way to Hermione and the two professors.

There, Professors McGonagall and Flitwick were gesturing towards Cornelius Fudge, while Hermione listened with great interest.

Last year, Fudge's series of actions had completely alienated Hogwarts; both the professors and students harbored no goodwill towards him.

"Poor Fudge," McGonagall commented softly, avoiding letting Fudge hear.

"He's always living in his own fantasy. Only there can he surpass Dumbledore and become the greatest wizard."

"I think he should have given up this unrealistic dream long ago," Flitwick frowned. 

Rarely did this diminutive professor look down on anyone, but Fudge was an exception. 

"In Britain, all wizards know that Fudge became Minister for Magic for one reason only: Dumbledore didn't run for election."

"In fact, everyone says so," McGonagall shrugged.

"But who made Fudge not believe it? Now, arrogance has gradually consumed his heart. 

You know, when Fudge first became Minister for Magic, he sought Dumbledore's advice forty times a day, which was quite annoying."

Hermione also harbored considerable dissatisfaction with Fudge, not because of the Dementors, but because the Ministry took away Alaric, intending to try him, and the one who issued the order was Cornelius Fudge.

Now, after the conversation between Professors McGonagall and Flitwick, Hermione's opinion of Fudge and even the Ministry of Magic had plummeted significantly. She no longer respected the Ministry as she once did.

"Alaric was right," she thought. "Most of the people in the Ministry of Magic are fools."

...

This farce ended quickly because the dueling tournament was about to begin.

The rules of the dueling tournament were quite simple; it was a pure knockout format. There were no best-of-three or best-of-five matches. 

As long as a duelist was knocked down and unable to resist, they would be declared the loser. The rules were rather brutal.

Moreover, such duels were somewhat different from regular wizard duels.

In official wizard duels, only magic could be used. 

The two duelists would first bow to each other as a sign of respect, then assume a standard dueling position. 

After counting to three, they would attempt to disarm, stun, injure, defeat, or kill each other to force the opponent to surrender and claim victory.

Official duels often had an "assistant" — usually a trusted ally who would take over the duel if necessary.

Additionally, there were rules against physical contact, among other regulations.

However, in this sportive dueling tournament, overly powerful and deadly magic couldn't be used. 

Curses like the Unforgivable Curses, various lethal curses, Explosive Charms, Sectumsempra, and other dark magic wouldn't be allowed in such a competitive duel.

Furthermore, even ordinary spells had regulations against causing death or serious injury. 

For this reason, the tournament organizers would arrange healers and powerful wizards to monitor each arena to prevent accidents. 

But since most duelists were powerful wizards, there were still unlucky ones who suffered serious injuries in almost every International Wizarding Dueling Tournament.

Nevertheless, compared to wizard dueling tournaments of centuries past, today's tournaments could be considered civilized.

Additionally, the rule regarding assistants was abolished, as this wasn't a life-or-death duel; it was merely a test of individual skill.

This International Wizarding Dueling Tournament had hundreds of wizards participating from various countries, most of whom were recommended by their respective Ministry of Magic or reputable dueling clubs. 

Hermione occupied one of the spots reserved for the Ministry of Magic.

With so many competitors, although it was a knockout format, the tournament would last for three days in total.

Each duel would generally last only a few minutes. However, due to the need for rest and recovery time for the duelists, the tournament was extended.

Now, Hermione was about to step onto the arena officially to test her combat skills.

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