Soon, the strange silence was broken by Fudge.
He entered the box with a broad smile, accompanied by a man dressed in an opulent black velvet robe trimmed with gold. Marvolio followed behind, expression blank, only flashing a fleeting look of helplessness when his eyes met Tver's and Cynthia's.
Tver glanced at Fudge as he enthusiastically greeted everyone, even pulling Harry over to introduce him to the Bulgarian Minister of Magic, and immediately understood that helplessness.
Fudge would never miss an opportunity like this to put on a show. To him, actual accomplishments were far less important than befriending influential figures in the wizarding world. That was what truly kept his position secure.
It was precisely this kind of person that both Voldemort and Dumbledore despised.
Which was why, in the original course of events, Voldemort had never intended to prop up a puppet Minister like him after his return.
As for Tver, when faced with Fudge's insincere enthusiasm, all he could do was return an equally insincere smile.
Fortunately, both of them were seasoned actors. To outsiders, nothing seemed amiss, and no one would have guessed that a moment of tension had just passed between them.
At that moment, Ludo Bagman burst into the box, moving with an agility completely at odds with his build.
That was when Tver remembered that Bagman had once been a Quidditch player, albeit retired for many years.
"Both teams are ready, Minister. Shall we begin?"
"If you think it's time, then go ahead."
It was as though stepping back into the stadium reignited Bagman's energy. With Fudge's genial approval, he eagerly strode to the very front of the box.
After all, as the only box in the stadium, this was the most conspicuous position of all.
"Sonorus," he said, pointing his wand at his throat. "Ladies and gentlemen… welcome! Welcome to the 422nd Quidditch World Cup!"
The spectators erupted, waving flags of all kinds. The cheers were at least a hundred times louder than before, nearly overwhelming the entire stadium.
"And now, let us welcome the Bulgarian team's mascot!"
On the right side of the stands, a red formation emerged. It didn't take long for Tver to clearly see who they were.
Yes, Bulgaria's mascots were Veela.
Strictly speaking, Veela were magical creatures found across much of Europe. They closely resembled humans and had no reproductive barrier with wizards. Aside from their exceptionally refined features and the natural aura of charm surrounding them, they looked almost identical to humans.
Yet Tver sensed something off.
It wasn't that the Veela could actually enchant him, but like everyone else, his gaze still drifted toward them as they danced.
After a moment of thought, Tver looked away. He understood where that odd feeling came from.
The Veela were beautiful, but their beauty was strangely uniform, as if it had been produced on an assembly line.
Of course, this wasn't meant to diminish them. They had their own thoughts and consciousness.
Rather, it was their charm itself that felt unusual. It resembled a strange fusion of effects similar to the Imperius Curse and the Confundus Charm, creating a unique form of influence.
This was the first time Tver had seen something akin to a variation of the three Unforgivable Curses.
Three years ago, his own breakthrough in soul-related research had come from a rudimentary study of the Imperius Curse. But that same incident, where his soul had been disturbed, was also why he had never delved deeply into the Unforgivable Curses again.
Among the countless spells in the wizarding world, nearly all could be refined or altered. Only those three seemed immutable, as though they were born fixed and unchangeable.
And yet now, this enchanting effect made his curiosity about the Imperius Curse stir once more.
By the time Tver came back to himself, the Veela had already finished their dance and withdrawn. Worse still, they had ignited the audience's fury, the roar of anger rivaling the cheers from moments earlier.
"What just happened?" Tver asked, genuinely curious.
He had been so focused on the Veela that he hadn't noticed what was going on in the box at all.
"Almost all the men were enchanted. The adults recovered fairly quickly, but…"
Cynthia laughed and pointed at Ron and Harry, both wearing deeply dissatisfied expressions.
"Your two students nearly flew straight out of the box."
"Everyone's furious about the Veela leaving. If the box doors hadn't been locked, Ludo Bagman would've been beaten by the crowd rushing in."
"And now, please welcome the Irish team's mascot!" Ludo Bagman shouted loudly, clearly afraid the situation might spiral out of control.
A massive green-and-gold sphere flew into the stadium. After circling the arena once, it split into two smaller orbs that shot toward the opposing goals like stars.
In an instant, a rainbow arched across the pitch, linking the two shining points.
Amid the audience's gasps, the rainbow slowly faded. The two stars converged once more, merging into a brilliant shamrock that rose high into the air.
When it reached above the stands, the shamrock began to spin. At the same time, glittering objects started falling like rain, clattering noisily to the ground.
Gold coins.
Tver watched Ron and Harry scrambling to pick them up with an amused smile and bent down to take one of the Leprechaun coins himself.
Leprechauns were delightful little creatures. They enjoyed pranks but rarely crossed the line, could learn human languages, and were perfectly capable of friendly communication.
These coins were produced through a Leprechaun's unique magical talent, though they usually only lasted a few hours. Once the magic faded, they vanished.
Tver flicked the coin lightly.
This kind of magic was essentially a variation of Transfiguration's summoning techniques. Leprechauns simply had a very specialized and limited magical aptitude, which allowed them to conjure coins, but only temporary ones.
Even so, the trick was impressive. Many wizards who didn't understand the magic immediately forgot all about the Veela and hurriedly bent down to gather coins.
"I get the feeling you're thinking about magic again," Cynthia said helplessly.
"You always say you're doing nothing, but in reality, you're more diligent and more focused on magic and our work than anyone else."
"Honestly, I really hope you can relax a little. Our plan has been progressing well the entire time—better than we ever expected."
"This plan could survive without me, without Marvolio, even without the professor, but it absolutely cannot do without you."
Tver realized that his mindset really had been off.
Or rather, that it had always been that way.
Even though he outwardly appeared calm and confident, inwardly he had always been tightly wound.
"All right, I'll pay more attention to my state of mind," Tver said, gently placing the gold coin into Cynthia's hand.
"I was just too impatient."