When Harry, panting heavily, ran up to the judges' stand, the large hourglass on the table, which represented the countdown to the start of the match, had just completely emptied.
"Y-Yes, sorry, Professor Dumbledore. I... I overslept."
Harry said, still shaken.
He had nearly been late just now, and if he really had been late, even if only by a single second, the best outcome would have been being judged with zero points.
The scariest thing was that the other students might take him for a deserter.
After apologizing, Harry lowered his head in shame. He felt he had made a very serious mistake, making Hogwarts lose face in front of the other two schools.
Yet the scolding and humiliation he had expected never came.
Dumbledore only smiled kindly and comforted him with a few words, then it was over. The other judges beside him didn't show any reaction either, and even the students in the stands acted completely indifferent.
As if his presence or absence didn't matter at all.
This bizarre scene left him a bit bewildered.
In fact, Harry's guess was not wrong at all.
Everyone truly didn't care whether he came or not, whether he was late or not.
After all, Hogwarts already had Link, a hexagram warrior who could crush all the other champions.
Before Link's brilliance, Harry just seemed unnecessary.
Seeing that the situation was getting a little awkward, Bagman quickly spoke up to smooth things over, leading a bewildered Harry to stand beside Link and the others.
As he walked, Bagman also quietly said something to Harry.
"You alright, Harry?"
Seeing Harry clutching his stomach, looking pained from running too hard, Link asked casually.
But at this moment Harry was in too much pain to speak, so he could only squeeze out a grateful smile toward Link, wave his hand, and signal that he was fine.
Bagman, standing beside them, didn't give Harry much chance to recover. He pressed his wand to his throat and cast a Sonorus Charm, then began his explanation,
"Alright, the match is about to begin. But before that, allow me, Ludo Bagman, to explain to you the rules of this second task."
"Since cracking the golden egg's secret was also part of the tournament, I cannot tell you in advance what counts as completing the task."
"Only after you all officially begin will I announce the final objective, so the audience can understand what's going on."
"What I can tell you champions now is this, your arena will be inside the Black Lake. In a moment, you will be placed in the water from four shores, east, south, west, north, and complete your missions underwater."
"There is one point especially worth noting. For this task, you are forbidden from carrying or using any magical items beyond your wand that are rated above xxx danger level."
"You are also forbidden from bringing along or commanding any pets or battle creatures you may own."
"If any of you have prohibited items on you, please hand them over now. Headmaster Dumbledore will be happy to keep them safe for you."
Bagman's words were very polite, and sounded entirely pragmatic, without the slightest trace of bias.
But as soon as he finished, his eyes fixed straight on Link.
The meaning behind it was obvious.
Whether it was separating the champions at different entry points, or forbidding pets and battle creatures, both were clearly aimed specifically at weakening Link.
Letting out an almost imperceptible sigh, Link finally handed Arkam and Yoyo over to Dumbledore.
There was no helping it, Bagman wouldn't dare to take in a basilisk or a Niffler-winged beast, these terrifying creatures worthy of the title "wizard killers."
The moment Link pulled them out, Bagman was already shivering in fear. So Link had no choice but to hand them directly to Dumbledore himself.
Of course, this also had something to do with the little creatures themselves being unhappy about being separated from Link, and deliberately baring their fangs and claws to scare people.
Not only Bagman, when the other judges saw this, their faces changed dramatically too.
They had all heard from Dumbledore that Link possessed extremely powerful magical creatures. That was the very reason they had joined forces to set up rules targeting him.
But they hadn't expected the pets in Link's hands to be terrifying to this extent.
A basilisk was one thing, Link being a Parselmouth made him controlling one unsurprising.
But a winged beast? How was that even possible?
Was it really true that anyone could tame such a dangerous creature?
Oh, apparently someone had.
The last person to do so was supposedly named Newt Scamander.
Under everyone's fearful gazes, Dumbledore smilingly accepted Arkam and Yoyo.
Then came a shocking scene.
The Arkam and Yoyo that just moments ago had been clawing and snapping as if ready to devour someone instantly became docile the moment they touched Dumbledore's hands.
Yoyo even curled back up into a shell ball.
"They're all good children." Dumbledore smiled, patting Arkam's head, then fixed a half-smiling gaze on Link. "But…didn't you forget something?"
"Uh, I don't know what you mean?"
Link shook his head, feigning ignorance.
At this, Dumbledore's smile deepened, but his eyes drifted down to Link's cloak.
And so, under the stunned eyes of the crowd, Link sighed, and handed over the vampire bat he had been wearing as a cloak for warmth.
Just like with Arkam and Yoyo, as soon as the bat left Link's body it thrashed violently, until Dumbledore's wand glowed faintly, calming it down again.
"You…you actually wore a vampire bat on your body!?"
Karkaroff, who had been silent all this time, finally couldn't hold back.
The other judges' expressions also turned dark.
A vampire bat, a basilisk, a Niffler-winged beast, plus Link himself.
With that kind of strength, he could practically assassinate them, the powerful headmasters and Ministry officials, on his own.
Bringing such a setup to compete in the Triwizard Tournament, wasn't that just bullying?
Link and Dumbledore, of course, ignored them.
Since Link hadn't worn much under his cloak to make swimming easier, once the bat was removed, he was left directly in his one-piece swimsuit.
The swimsuit was pure black overall, covered in strange, streamlined patterns, and polished to a shine that glimmered under sunlight, as if painted with some special coating.
Most importantly, it was skin-tight.
Ever since arriving in this world, Link had been paying attention to training and diet. Combined with the natural advantages of adolescence, he now had a physique like a statue of a Greek hero.
Now, with that frame wrapped in a tight swimsuit, many girls in the stands peering through magical telescopes couldn't help but scream out loud.
Even Madame Maxime, and Fleur who was lost in worry, couldn't help but glance at Link a few times.
Dumbledore also looked at Link.
To be precise, he was looking at the swimsuit on Link.
"Very nice clothing, you look quite handsome in it!"
Dumbledore complimented with a smile.
But Link heard another meaning hidden in those words.
He took a deep breath and explained helplessly, "This is purely Muggle technology, not a magical item."
"Oh, is that so."
The light of curiosity instantly vanished from Dumbledore's eyes. Because of Grindelwald's influence, he did not look down on Muggles the way other wizarding nobles did. But still, he was affected by some ingrained thinking.
In his mind, besides weapons, most things Muggles created were rather useless.
So, reasoning it out, he figured Link's swimsuit must be nothing but flashy junk.
Most wizards thought the same. After hearing Link's explanation, both Karkaroff and old Barty Crouch also lost interest in the swimsuit.
Karkaroff, still clinging to pure-blood supremacy, even snorted disdainfully.
But what they didn't know was that the swimsuit Link wore represented the very peak of current Muggle technology.
It not only had excellent thermal insulation, but the strange patterns on its surface were arranged by special rules, producing an effect similar to shark skin.
Fleur, however, clearly recognized its value.
She herself was wearing a pink swimsuit, but hers was only an ordinary one, not high-end at all.
So when she looked at Link now, her gaze turned complicated, with joy, surprise, and envy all mixed in.
Once the contraband inspection ended, the competition could finally continue.
Bagman directed Percy and the other prefects to lead the three remaining champions to their distant entry points, while he personally led Link to the shore right in front of the judges' stand.
"Link, please don't blame me. The restrictions against pets and so on, they've got nothing to do with me, those were all decided by Dumbledore and the others!"
The moment they had walked a bit farther away, Bagman leaned over and whispered into Link's ear.
Link wasn't surprised.
Everything he had just handed over had been seen by the audience. The stands were already in uproar, most of them convinced the judges were deliberately targeting Link.
Some Slytherins were even shouting about confronting the judges to defend the dignity of their "cheap boss."
Of course Bagman was scared.
His strength and authority were far below that of the other judges, and just a few young Slytherin nobles were enough to give him trouble.
So what he was really saying was that he wanted Link to speak a few words in his defense.
Link understood perfectly, but had no intention of helping.
With a wicked grin, he pretended not to get the hint, and said, "No worries. Even without Arkam and the others, I can still take the championship."
With that, he strode straight toward the shore.
Bagman's mouth opened and closed a few times, but in the end his expression only darkened with despair.
He lifted his wand again to his throat and forced himself to sound energetic, "Now, I declare, the match begins!"
A tidal wave of cheers erupted from the stands.
Link could easily imagine that at the other entry points, Harry and the rest must already have thrown themselves into the water, desperate to gain an early advantage.
But Link had no intention of doing that.
This was winter swimming.
Even with a top-tier swimsuit and warming, waterproof charms, jumping straight in without warming up would still be risky.
So, he simply stood on the shore, leisurely doing a few sets of radio calisthenics. Only after that did he walk toward the water, under the "can't-believe-this-guy" stares of the others.
Before entering the water, he tapped his head lightly with his wand.
Instantly, a large bubble formed around it, making him look no different from the "Celestial Dragons" of a certain anime from his past life.
The Black Lake was icy cold.
Even though he had prepared thoroughly, the chill still spread upward as he slowly walked into deeper waters.
Link kept his pace slow, stepping carefully on the slippery silt, letting his body adjust completely to the cold before finally diving headfirst into the lake.
In an instant, all around him fell into silence.
The transparent bubble on his head was the result of the Bubble-Head Charm. Though it looked fragile, it was highly effective against water, provided enough oxygen to act underwater or even in poisonous gases, and was a standard spell for Aurors performing special missions.
With its help, Link could cast spells as freely underwater as on land, and he also enjoyed clear vision.
What spread out before him now was a marvelous underwater world.
Masses of black water plants, swaying in the current, formed a vast forest.
They served as food for the fish. Countless silvery little fish darted quickly among them, their gray protective coloration making it hard to distinguish them from mud and sand.
Only when they occasionally twisted at the right angle did their scales flash with bright silver light.
These fish were unafraid of people, some even swimming right up to Link, darting playfully under his arms and between his legs before swimming off into the distance.
And if one followed their direction of travel, one could see that in the dark, murky waters further ahead, many strange, looming black shapes seemed to lurk.
These shadows were massive, standing tall in Link's vision like beasts hidden in the dark, ready to attack at any moment.
Even further along the lakebed, faint green lights flickered slowly, like clusters of ghostly flames.
But even in such an environment, Link felt no fear at all.
The reason was simple.
Several days before the task even began, he had already, with Arkam's help, explored most of the Black Lake's floor.
Those distant shadows weren't monsters at all, just big rocks or rotten logs.
Those green lights weren't sea monsters' eyes, but the lamps shining faintly from the Slytherin common room.
As for the merfolk village that marked the end point of this task, Link knew it inside and out.
After only pausing for a moment underwater, Link had already fixed his bearings.
Then, with a flick of his wand, a surge of cursed power streamed from its tip, forming a pair of enormous wings of dusky black light behind him.
With a single beat of those wings, an immense force propelled Link forward like a torpedo, shooting straight toward his destination.
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