Chapter 294: Golden Cauldron Awards Ceremony
"Professor Snape, hello."
"Hello, Mr. Bulstrode."
Gavin shook hands with Snape and smiled: "I realise I've never properly expressed my gratitude for everything you've done for Sean. Your guidance has been instrumental in his success."
"I'm a Hogwarts professor. I teach all of Hogwarts' Potions, but only Sean has achieved anything. His accomplishments depend entirely on himself."
"Regardless, I still must thank you for your teaching."
As the awards ceremony venue gradually filled up, the lighting in the hall also dimmed, replaced by an increasingly bright stage.
The editor-in-chief entered the venue with the managing editor, looking at the darkening hall and saying helplessly in a low voice: "I said we should come early, but you insisted on arriving at the last minute. Now how do we find our seats?"
The managing editor searched for their seats while replying quietly: "My paper testing was about to finish. Abandoning it midway would have wasted raw materials and been impolite to the paper's author."
"Did the paper testing pass?"
"No, there were quite a few errors. The paper's conclusions seemed more like speculation."
"That settles it then. That paper obviously had problems, yet you insisted on testing it."
"It's my duty... ah, found it!"
The managing editor grabbed the editor-in-chief's arm and quickened their pace. Before the venue lights completely went out, the two finally sat in their assigned third-row seats.
Just as they sat down, a middle-aged wizard wearing purple-red robes with a silver W badge on his chest came onto the stage. A spotlight fell, and the middle-aged wizard immediately began.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the triennial Golden Cauldron Awards ceremony officially begins. Over these three years, countless Potion Masters have submitted to The Golden Cauldron. Many of these papers have had an enormous impact on the magical world. These papers and their authors have changed the lives of thousands of people. These authors include Potion Masters from abroad, even beyond Europe, who have travelled great distances to be here and will shortly compete for the Golden Cauldron Awards' Best International Paper award."
At this point, the host paused, and the audience below responded with warm applause.
As the applause subsided, the host continued: "Among the Potion Masters who submitted over these three years, several are very special. They are young and energetic. Their papers may be immature but possess undeniable creativity belonging to youth. They will compete for the Golden Cauldron Awards' Best Newcomer award."
Similar applause rang out again. Sean could clearly feel many gazes falling on him.
Next, the host introduced each award category one by one.
Each time, Sean conscientiously applauded along with everyone else, but in reality his mind had wandered far away, lost in thought.
About half an hour later, the host's opening finally ended.
Then a female wizard came on stage, stood on the right side of the stage, and began hosting the awards ceremony.
The awards were presented in the order established by the previous male wizard's opening.
The first award was Best International Paper.
There were four nominees, from France, Germany, South Africa, and Australia respectively.
Both the South African and Australian magical communities were within the European magical world's sphere of influence, so their wizards naturally valued The Golden Cauldron journal.
Finally, the Best International Paper award went to the South African wizard, who had created a potion called Cough-Be-Gone that could treat most epidemic diseases in Africa. A potion capable of treating most African epidemic diseases would naturally have excellent effects on European diseases as well.
Logically, this was a very great invention.
Unfortunately, there were already potions available to treat those diseases. It was just that those potions were somewhat limited in effect, only treating similar diseases, not as convenient as Cough-Be-Gone, which could treat most diseases at once. Moreover, Cough-Be-Gone's cost was also somewhat high, not affordable for ordinary wizards, so overall it only won the Best International Paper award.
Of course, for this South African wizard, this award was sufficient.
In South African magical society, such an award would earn him enormous prestige and benefits. When he returned to South Africa, he would be qualified to compete for quite a good position in the South African Ministry of Magic.
The award was presented by the Head of the Department for International Magical Cooperation.
This dark-skinned South African wizard was moved to tears, ultimately saying only a few simple words before taking his trophy and leaving the stage.
Next was the Best Newcomer Award.
There were still four nominees, including Sean.
When Sean's image appeared in the magical projection, Elena excitedly grabbed Sean's arm.
Feeling Elena's nervousness, Sean glanced at the completely composed Gavin and suddenly had a premonition.
Turning his head, Sean said quietly to Elena: "Grandmum, no need to be nervous. This award isn't mine."
Hearing this, Elena was stunned and looked at Sean incredulously: "How is that possible? You're obviously the most deserving recipient among all these nominees. What are those judges thinking?"
Gavin naturally heard the conversation between Sean and Elena. He wasn't surprised by his wife's words, but was somewhat surprised by Sean's. He turned to look at him, waiting for Sean to continue.
At the same time, Snape's ears perked up, ready to hear what Sean would say.
"Grandmum, this is actually a good thing. I am indeed a newcomer from the past three years, but the quality and quantity of my papers aren't at a newcomer's level. Even in terms of quantity and quality, very few people in these three years could surpass me. At most, only Master Damocles, the original inventor of Wolfsbane Potion, could be considered superior.
My achievements have already transcended the newcomer level. While I may be chronologically new, my work already matches that of established Potion Masters. The Best Newcomer Award isn't my competition—the final category is where I truly belong."
As Sean finished speaking, the Best Newcomer Award was also announced.
A twenty-three-year-old young wizard won this award for his underwater breathing potion that was cheap and could perform well under specific conditions.
This result surprised many people. They thought this award would surely go to Sean, but it was an upset. Some felt this was rigged, but others understood the different implications and became even more expectant of Sean's possible achievement.