allendalepharm Chapter 351 The Top 15 of the Goblet of Fire are Announced
Chapter 351 The Top 15 of the Goblet of Fire are Announced
Chapter 351 The Top 15 of the Goblet of Fire are Announced
On the third day of the Fireball Tournament's Round of 15, the weather was clear, and there were far fewer spectators on the Hogwarts campus.
Today is Monday, and many people have to return to their jobs. Perhaps only when the finals of various projects are held will these people gather here without any regard for the consequences.
The players in the first match are quite impressive.
Or rather, this background is quite interesting to Lockhart.
Valentine Kowalski vs. Angelina Jensen!
Angelina is from Hogwarts, a Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, a member of the Duels Club, and the girl that both the Weasley twins, George and Fred, secretly like.
Relationships involving three people often end without a happy ending, so unfortunately, George and Fred have made almost no progress with her at the moment.
She has a distinct personality; she's a cool and capable older sister type. Her magic is like her—her spells are often powerful and sweeping.
Well, Lockhart couldn't offer many positive comments.
Wizardry is a field that values talent. Talent can come from bloodline, from one's own spirituality, from one's personality, or from one's own aspirations and chosen path in life.
These----
Angelina didn't have any.
Thanks to the adventure programs offered by Hogwarts, as well as private lessons and student sharing sessions at the Duel Club, she has made great progress and looks excellent.
However, he doesn't seem to have much potential, and may eventually reach the level of a head of the Auror office at the Ministry of Magic.
I'm such a weakling.
Lockhart found another player interesting, Valentine, from Durmstrang.
Once the battle began, Valentine almost completely dominated Angelina. His unique combat talent was evident in his fighting style, including his ability to dodge spells, his preemptive anti-spell attacks, and his unexpected spell attacks.
Unfortunately, his spellcasting skills were rather naive and crude, and his magic power was not very good. He could only fight Angelina, who had a very high level of theoretical knowledge and was very methodical in her spellcasting, to a standstill.
It took so long that Lockhart almost fell asleep while watching it.
On the contrary, the audience was very excited, as this was at a level they could understand, without so many outrageous spellcasting strengths.
There weren't many strange and bizarre magic spells; instead, there were the most standard duels.
They can immerse themselves in the situation, imagining from what angle they could retaliate and what magic they could use.
..
Cheers, heated discussions, and excited shouts that made faces flushed red filled the air.
"That young wizard, Valentine Kowalski, is a student at Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." Rita chose to sit next to Lord Lockhart today, and seeing that Lockhart seemed uninterested, she leaned closer and whispered some information she had gathered.
"Iphamoni?" Lockhart asked in surprise.
Rita nodded. "Many people consider Viktor Krum to be Durmstrang's championship hope, and they feel sorry for his previous loss to Draco Malfoy, thinking that Durmstrang is finished."
"But in reality, Grindelwald didn't care about this person at all; he looked down on this troublemaker."
"What he valued were the children he had gathered from all over the world, whom he personally taught after they transferred to Durmstrang."
"As you know, Gregory Goyle of Hogwarts is one of them."
Rita glanced at Grindelwald, who was sitting next to Dumbledore on the podium, and lowered her voice, "I've analyzed it. Grindelwald has two criteria for choosing children: first, they have connections; second, they have talent."
"In fact, this is almost a way for him to recruit subordinates and bestow favors—personally helping these forces to cultivate successors."
"We all know that he always has a way of making people worship him and turn these successors into his loyal followers, thereby maintaining the continuation of this power structure."
Rita gestured to Valentine in the competition, "He's one of them. His grandmother was one of the strong candidates for the position of Chief Wizard of the Magical Congress of the United States of America. Many people know that she has Grindelwald's support behind her."
"Queenie Kowalski, that old witch's name."
Rita introduced the background of this potential future bigwig, "She comes from the Goldstein family, an ancient pure-blood family. She was a proven loyal saint, and I heard she had a good relationship with Dumbledore —"
Queenie Goldstein!
Remove the husband's surname and revert to the original surname.
Lockhart immediately realized that this was Newt's sister-in-law, the one who married the Muggle Jacob!
She's going to become the chief wizard of the Magical Congress of America?
He forgot everyone but never forgot the witch.
In his past life, his greatest shock to magic did not come from Harry Potter, but from the scene in Fantastic Beasts where Queenie casts a spell to make bread.
It was an unparalleled magical visual feast.
Let him break free from the intensity of magical plasma and return to the romance of magic.
"Queenie and Jacob's grandson?"
Lockhart's expression was strange, as if the appearance of these unfamiliar yet familiar figures made the whole world seem more vibrant.
"Yes, he performed only so-so in Ilfamoni, but Grindelwald still picked him."
Rita clicked her tongue, mimicking Grindelwald's tone and mannerisms, and said in a deliberately affected manner, "Kid, you're very talented, you just haven't chosen the right person to follow!"
As he spoke, he waved his hand excitedly, "Then, miraculously, Valentine's innate magical bloodline was discovered, making him a natural Legilimency Master!"
"Wow!" Even knowing all this, Rita couldn't help but exclaim in amazement, "Can you imagine how moved that child must have been? This has completely changed his life!"
Lohat nodded. "Yes!"
Ron, Percy, Crabbe—he himself influenced too many people to know this.
Now he finally understood the performance on the stage.
Valentine, possessing powerful mind-reading abilities, easily broke through Angelina's Occlumency technique, which she had learned but not mastered well at the Duel Club, and then completely took control of the battle.
"Valentine Kowalski possesses the magical bloodline talent of the Goldstein family—the innate ability to manipulate minds."
"Gregory Goyle possesses the magical bloodline talent of the Goyle family—spiritual intuition."
"Sophia Rozier possesses the magical bloodline talent of the Rozier family—Mind Reading."
Lockhart interrupted her reciting the menu, asking, "Mind reading? What does that mean?"
"They can speak in their minds," Rita shrugged. "That's roughly the idea; I don't really understand it. But the specific manifestation is that they are extremely skilled at silent spells."
Oh~
Lockhart remembered that Vinda Rozier, the French Black Rose who used to accompany Grindelwald, possessed the ability to cast the Silent Killing Curse.
Even Voldemort, hailed as the most powerful dark wizard in history, still needed to cast a spell to counter the Killing Curse, which speaks volumes about the power of this ability.
This ability has proven to be a source of glory for the Rozier family, both in the British and French wizarding worlds.
The American wizarding world has family branches, and each branch has considerable influence.
Of course, talent is talent, and not every descendant of a family can fully possess these bloodline talents and abilities, nor can everyone make good use of these abilities.
"It's really something to be jealous of," Rita sighed.
Lockhart didn't seem to mind, and smiled slightly, "As long as you treat magic sincerely, magic will treat you sincerely in return. It will always be full of surprises, so there's no need to be jealous of it."
This is not just empty talk.
Lockhart himself can cast the Killing Curse silently with ease, and if he uses the spiritual state of a wicked werewolf, he can even cast the Killing Curse silently without a staff.
However, the Killing Curse did not quite suit Lockhart's characteristics. His use of this magic was limited to the wisdom and methods derived from Voldemort, using it as a lever to "unleash the full potential of life," which was an extension of "passion."
Rita sighed. "Not everyone is like you, embarking on the path of a magic master at such a young age."
The big shots don't understand the suffering of ordinary people.
She continued, "There are two more."
"Howard Gaunt, the American branch of House Gaunt, the family that founded Evamorni School. As you know, the bloodline of the Dark Lord, his direct ancestor was Salazar Slytherin, who possessed Parsleyan and the talent for Dark Arts."
Lockhart stroked his chin and chuckled softly. The Gaunt family had been recruited to Grindelwald's ranks?
ha~
I wonder how Voldemort would feel if he knew.
Well, Dumbledore must have felt this way too. Back when he and Grindelwald were on opposing sides, Grindelwald recruited Dumbledore's nephew as his subordinate.
The scene of Dumbledore killing Dumbledore was incredibly exciting.
"The last one comes from the Bock family, not the Bock family that were shareholders of the Bock store in Knockback Alley, but the Bock family that went to Egypt to build up their influence a long time ago. Due to historical reasons, they have always been arguing about whether they share the same ancestor."
Rita didn't bother to introduce the young wizard, and simply shrugged, "He's already lost, lost to Cedric Diggory of Hogwarts. It was a very boring loss."
Yes, it was the last show yesterday morning.
Lockhart observed that Cedric was the kind of kid who was very steady. Unlike Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Draco, he wasn't eager to show off his brilliance. Instead, he was focused on winning the game steadily and methodically.
So, in this match where Cedric defeated his opponent, no one noticed his formidable strength. He simply unleashed a series of fluid and seamless attacks. Then, his opponent, unable to parry, collapsed to the ground, his wand knocked away by a disarming charm, and his defeat was swiftly declared.
The match lasted less than twenty seconds, and some spectators who turned to talk even missed the whole thing.
"In other words—"
Lockhart seemed thoughtful. "Grindelwald selected children he deemed talented from among the factions that aligned themselves with him, transferred them to Durmstrang, personally nurtured the magical talent in their bloodlines, and nurtured it?"
That's a win-win situation!
As expected of a big shot.
With his cunning methods, while Snape and Voldemort embarked on their journeys to explore magical bloodlines, Grindelwald had already quietly acquired some of his own.
Moreover, they have an extremely keen eye; of the five young wizards they selected, four advanced to the final 15.
"Valentin Kowalski————"
"Victory!"
This was hardly surprising. When Angelina Jensen stumbled and fell slightly, the thought of "Oh no, he mustn't interfere at this moment" was instantly caught by Valentine, and everything was already decided.
A simple earthquake spell amplified Angelina's unsteady stance with the slight tremors of the ground, precisely tripping her as she tried to force herself into the next spellcasting pose.
Then he completely lost his chance. A full-body binding spell made his body gleam like stone, and he lost the match.
soon.
As the matches progressed, the top ten warriors from each school battled it out to narrow down the field to 30 to 15, and the results were in.
Durmstrang advanced to fourth place.
They are: Gore, Valentine, Sofia Rozier, and Howard Gaunt.
Hogwarts advanced to the top 5.
They are: Harry, Ron, Cedric, Neville, and Lavender Brown.
Beauxbatons advanced to 6th place.
They are: Draco, Crabbe, Fred, Fleur, Luna, and Evie Lestrange.
Lockhart could tell that the list was somewhat inflated.
Some young wizards were unlucky and were eliminated early, like Hermione. Others were lucky and didn't encounter particularly strong opponents, like Luna.
Luna's fighting skills are actually not that good; Ginny, who is the same age, is better than her.
However, Ginny encounters Evie Lestrange, captain of the Beauxbatons Quidditch Duel Team, an outstanding successor painstakingly cultivated by an old, pure-blood family.
The atmosphere in Western Europe is different from that in Britain. They don't have as much faith in the teaching abilities of magic schools, and many young wizards receive private training from their families.
Many of the spells Evie used were ones that young Ginny had never seen before, and she didn't know what their effects were, nor what counter-spells or counter-strategies to use, so she lost miserably.
However, even if they won the victory with an overwhelming advantage—
She's actually not good enough anymore.
The new generation has quietly created a significant gap between themselves and others.
"I didn't expect that Beauxbatton would have six seats, the most of any one." The editor-in-chief of "Curse of Innovation" magazine said with surprise, but the corners of his mouth were already wide open in a wild smile.
Without a doubt, he comes from Beauxbatons.
There was a stereotype that Hogwarts should be the best of the three magic schools, Durmstrang should be second, and Beauxbatons should be last. Hey, I didn't expect that.
"Don't be ridiculous! Of the six Beauxbatons who advanced, three are transfer students from Hogwarts, and if you add Goyle from Durmstrang, that makes a total of nine Hogwarts students advancing this time!"
Xenophilius Lovegood, the editor of The Quibbler and a Hogwarts alumnus, retorted irritably, gesturing his famous "9" sign forcefully, emphasizing, "Nine!"
Those from Durmstrang's circle were unhappy to hear this, asking, "What do you mean Goyle is considered a Hogwarts student?"
"We've all written articles introducing these young wizards, and we all know what Goyle's situation was like at Hogwarts. Even though he participated in Lord Lockhart's dueling club, his performance was only average. It was only after transferring to Durmstrang and receiving an excellent education that he reached his current level!"
"Bullshit! Dog shit! Nonsense!"
And so, the media professionals from the three magic schools started arguing.
Ultimately, they all looked to Elrian Greengrass, the most respected editor-in-chief of Wizarding Weekly, a nearly 100-year-old man who had mentored many newcomers in the industry and was highly trusted by everyone.
Especially considering the era he lived in during his youth, attending magic school wasn't a mandatory option for young wizards, and he didn't have much of an emotional connection to the three magic schools, so he should be able to offer some fair opinions.
Greengrass chuckled and shook his head. "Are you only looking at these young people's school backgrounds?"
"No! That's wrong!"
He unfolded the initial list of the top 30 from each school, his aged fingers tracing patterns on it. "These are all children led by the newly appointed magic master, Lord Gilderoy Lockhart, and they all bear the clear mark of their dueling club affiliation."
He then gestured to the five members of Durmstrang, saying, "These are outstanding young men personally selected by the great Lord Gellert Grindelwald, whose bloodline abilities he personally inspired and who personally guided them."
Finally, he pointed to Hibiscus on the list, "And this one, who received personal guidance from Vice Principal Beauxbatons. Yes, you all know who that is."
"That's why I said—"
Greengrass closed the list, gazing intently at everyone. "This is a continuation of the ideological debate among magical masters! It's a clash of various possibilities on the path of magic in the new era!"
Xenophilius, the editor-in-chief of The Quibbler, was unhappy. Although he was now forced to do some things under Grindelwald's direction, he still firmly believed that his school principal was the only top-notch person in the world.
He disliked this argument that excluded Dumbledore, and countered, "A debate about the ideals of magical masters without Dumbledore? That's not a sound argument!"
Greengrass scoffed. "Albus? Of course he has influence, but the continuation of his magical philosophy? What influence? I haven't seen it in all those decades he was headmaster! Oh, maybe the Mystic counts!"
Oh~
I almost forgot.
Greengrass is a staunch hater of Dumbledore.
He was a staunch opponent of Dumbledore when he joined forces with Grindelwald in writing to him in Godric's Hollow, inviting him to change the world together, then betrayed their beliefs and hid in the school, and later came back to cause trouble.
Later, after Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald at the moment when he had the most power to change the world and imprisoned him in Nurmengard Castle, Dumbledore became a number one hater. The biggest thing he did in his life was to smear Dumbledore in The Wizarding Weekly and on various occasions.
Can you really expect him to show Dumbledore even a shred of respect?
It would be better to hope that Voldemort turns into a kind-hearted guy who comes to your house to help unclog the toilet and drain.
Xenophilius shouldn't have mentioned Dumbledore.
Everyone expressed their dissatisfaction with it.
Sure enough, Greengrass had so much to say about Dumbledore, and every word he uttered made everyone feel awkward in the context of Hogwarts, worrying that someone in the school might hear it and angrily expel them from the school.
"What magical philosophies of Albus have been passed down to whom? Ha, Xenophilius, tell me, who? The members of the Order of the Phoenix? Which ones?"
"Is it Sirius Black, wrongfully imprisoned in Azkaban for over a decade, or Lupin, destitute and homeless, starving? Or perhaps the insane Longbottoms, who can only live in the hospital?"
He didn't even bother to mention those who believed in Dumbledore long ago, such as the blood-cursed orc Nagini, who received no help whatsoever.
Greengrass curled his lip. "He's the one who only cares about himself. His world revolves solely around himself; he doesn't care about others, let alone the continuation of magical ideals. Of all the excellent wizards who have come from Hogwarts, I haven't seen a single one whose spellcasting has been influenced by his ideas!"
Just then, a light, cheerful voice came from the side.
"Yes, for example, me."
Everyone quickly turned around to see who was so brave as to argue with this stubborn old mule.
"Lord Lockhart!" Xenophilius exclaimed, "You've arrived!"
Rita, standing next to Lockhart, whispered a reminder, "We just arrived."
Lockhart smiled and nodded at him, then looked at Greengrass and patiently explained, "In fact, it's not just me; the magical masters you just mentioned, Grindelwald and Voldemort, were all deeply influenced by Dumbledore's magical philosophy."
Greengrass opened his mouth, but didn't know how to retort. This old-school wizard knew best how to maintain respect for a master wizard (except for Dumbledore).
But Lockhart was clearly not the kind of person who would use his power to intimidate others; he explained things very carefully to the media professionals present.
In the capacity of a professor.
"Magic has always been a very personal thing; the magic that each person unleashes is a reflection of their life."
Lockhart smiled and looked at him. "I think you must feel this most deeply. Decades ago, when there were few half-blood wizards in the wizarding world and pure-blood wizards were the majority, how did wizards continue the tradition of magic?"
Out of respect, Greengrass didn't specifically think about how to refute it, but instead intended to listen carefully to the views of this newly ascended magic master, and was quickly led into reminiscence.
"Back then—"
He sighed, "Ancient families maintained their magical bloodlines through intermarriage, and then used the characteristics of their magical bloodlines to perpetuate their spellcasting advantages. Ordinary commoner wizards either inherit their skills from master to apprentice, or they enter magic schools—"
"But in reality, whether it's noble bloodline, master-disciple inheritance, or magic school, those who stand out from the crowd all rely on their own magical bloodline talent!"
The idea of maintaining magical bloodlines through marriage is not a false premise. The reason it's unsustainable today is twofold: firstly, the scarcity of pure-blood wizards; secondly, the permissibility of wizard-Muggle marriages; and thirdly, several wars that impacted the entire wizarding world, further exacerbating the shortage of pure-blood wizards.
"So, what's the use of all those magic schools?" Lockhart asked.
Seeing everyone's thoughtful and then bewildered expressions, he shrugged. "Right? Power depends on the abilities brought by bloodline. The magic that can truly help is the kind that is passed down through generations of families and is compatible with the power of one's own bloodline. Is school just a place for young people to get to know each other and decide on marriage partners?"
Greengrass's expression was somewhat strange. "That seems to have been the case back then."
At least, that's really how his parents' love story was.
School is a place for people to get along; improving one's abilities still depends on targeted training from the family and the power of one's bloodline.
"At least for ordinary wizards, this is the only place to improve their abilities!" The editor-in-chief of "Transfiguration Today" was a witch in her sixties, about the same age as Voldemort, and she felt this deeply.
For those of noble birth, magic schools are places for cultivating influence among their peers, building networks, and securing marriage partners, among other things. But for those of commoner wizarding origin, they are the only place to improve their abilities.
But there are very few outstanding wizards who emerged from this background. At least among the wizards from commoner backgrounds of that era, there are very few who are still considered outstanding today.
Lockhart smiled and asked, "So, what about now?"
Now?
Few people present were fools, especially media professionals with an extremely keen sense of information; many of them gasped in surprise.
Yes, and now?
"Now, the gap between pure-blood and half-blood/Muggle wizards has been bridged. It's not that pure-bloods are restricted from private instruction, but rather that the educational capacity of magic schools has smoothed out this gap!"
"This difference stems from the powerful talent and abilities bestowed by magical bloodlines!"
Lockhart raised an eyebrow. "Only by stretching the timeframe far enough can we truly see the history shrouded in mist and know what changes have quietly occurred within it."
"I've learned from students that many ancient pure-blood wizarding families have given up on private tutoring their young wizards. This isn't because they're stupid, but because they know that what's taught in schools is better!"
"Dumbledore's changes to the wizarding world were always quiet and subtle, gently quelling any potential conflicts within a framework that many could accept, so that many people did not notice the changes."
"In fact, from the perspective of magical history, since he took over Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the wizarding tradition has undergone a dramatic transformation from a 'modern magical system' to a 'contemporary magical system.'"
Lockhart looked at Greengrass, "What do you think of Dumbledore's influence on the field of wizarding education during this period?"
Greengrass felt a chill run down his spine, staring dumbfounded at Lockhart.
Did this Albus actually guide and accomplish such a great undertaking in secret?
Do not!
This shouldn't be! This troublemaker has betrayed their faith!
Can----
If it wasn't Dumbledore, who else could it be?
He knew there couldn't be anyone else.
"Perhaps future histories of magic will record one of Dumbledore's great achievements, a great achievement unnoticed in his time: his deep involvement in and completion of the construction of the modern magical system!"
Think carefully!
Greengrass recalled what Grindelwald had told him about "establishing a framework for spellcasting" that would influence every aspect of wizarding society, and why the Triwizard Tournament was so important to him.
In other words, the competition that everyone is watching with great excitement is actually the second phase of the "modern magic system" reform?!
He then thought of Lockhart, the man who had proposed the concept of a "new era"—
No wonder Lockhart got involved with Dumbledore and Grindelwald's Change Group!
So!
In this era of change, in this new era —
Is a new gap about to widen?
For example, the absurd gap between young wizards like Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Draco and their peers?
Do not!
more than!
It's about the entire wizarding society!
These young wizards have already quietly widened the gap between themselves and the Aurors, the violent organizations of the Ministries of Magic in various countries, and have quietly become the backbone of society!
What if this is just the beginning?
In the future, generation after generation of young wizards will follow suit, stepping into this level—
By then, perhaps no one will discuss the pure-blood theory anymore, because that thing will no longer be an absolute factor in widening the gap in strength.
Greengrass suddenly felt that the whole world was so unfamiliar.
He couldn't help but recall Grindelwald's words to him before ending the conversation—"Elian, don't fall behind!"
hiss~