Hogwarts: Starting with full Unforgivable Curses

As he spoke, he walked to the center of the tent and opened his arms in a hugging gesture: "Don't be so reserved, everyone. Just make yourselves at home! I specially requested these armchairs because I was worried you might be uncomfortable sitting here."

As he spoke, he reached out and pressed the armrest of a chair next to him, nodding in satisfaction. "Look, the elasticity and texture are exactly the same as the one in my living room. You won't feel tired even if you sit on it for a long time!"

Harry leaned closer to Cedric and whispered, "Cedric, is Mr. Bagman... trying to ease the tension?"

"Ha, he was indeed trying to lighten the mood, but he only made it more awkward."

Draco chuckled coldly beside him, his tone laced with sarcasm, "But we should also 'congratulate' him; at least he successfully turned the silence into an awkward silence."

Upon hearing this, Cedric couldn't help but cough a few times, trying hard to keep his face from laughing.

He also found Bagman's behavior somewhat ridiculous, but he couldn't show it.

Harry also found it somewhat amusing, but was afraid that laughing out loud would make the atmosphere even more awkward, so he could only purse his lips tightly, his shoulders trembling slightly as he suppressed his laughter.

Most of the other warriors in the tent also showed similar expressions, and the originally oppressive atmosphere was instantly replaced by an awkward feeling of being both amused and exasperated.

Ludobagman was still rambling on around the armchair when Fleur Delacour of Beauxbatons suddenly frowned.

She had been leaning against the tent wall, but now she straightened up, looking sharply at Bagman, her tone clearly accusatory: "Mr. Bagman, shouldn't you tell us something important first? Like, when exactly will the first project officially start? We can't just sit here and wait, can we?"

As soon as Furong finished speaking, the previously relaxed atmosphere in the tent instantly became tense.

The other warriors all looked up, their eyes all focused on Ludobagman. Clearly, everyone was concerned about this issue, but no one spoke first.

Ludobagman's smile froze instantly. He opened his mouth as if to explain something, but couldn't find the right words.

Just then, a commotion arose outside the tent.

Footsteps, conversations, and laughter mingled together, growing closer and closer; it was clear that students from various schools were lining up to go to the stands.

"Soon! It'll start soon!" Ludobagman said, as if grasping at a lifeline, pointing to the tent flap. "Listen, the students are almost at the stands. Once the audience is seated, the match can start immediately. We won't have to wait too long."

As soon as he finished speaking, the tent flap was pulled open from the outside, and old Barty Crouch walked in.

He was wearing a sharp dark suit, his hair was neatly combed, and his face was expressionless.

Upon seeing this, the warriors all stood up from their seats and walked over to him, their eyes unconsciously falling on his right hand.

There he was carrying a palm-sized purple silk bag, its opening tied with a gold ribbon, giving it a mysterious look.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the audience is all seated, and the members of the referee team are all present. The competition can begin."

Old Barty Crouch's voice was steady and powerful. He handed the purple silk bag in his hand to Ludo Bagman next to him, his eyes sweeping over every warrior present.

Ludobagman took the bag and immediately tapped it lightly with his wand. The golden ribbon wrapped around the bag's opening loosened automatically, revealing several folded parchment sheets inside.

“The rules for the first event are simple,” Barty Crouch continued. “You need to navigate through the arena, overcoming the obstacles posed by the fire dragon, and successfully retrieve the golden egg placed in the designated location—the golden egg is the objective of this event.”

He paused, then delivered news that surprised all the warriors: "Next, you will need to draw lots to determine which two fire dragons you will face. Each warrior will have to confront the attacks of two fire dragons simultaneously."

"Two fire dragons?" Almost all the warriors exclaimed in surprise. Harry's eyes widened instinctively, Cedric frowned, and Draco's composure vanished, replaced by a look of astonishment.

Everyone originally thought that they would only need to deal with one fire dragon at most, but the difficulty has doubled!
"Yes, two fire dragons."

Old Barty Crouch repeated himself expressionlessly, his tone completely flat, "According to our original plan, one warrior was paired with one fire dragon."

"But now that the number of participating warriors has increased to three, in order to ensure the difficulty and fairness of the project, the number of XXXXX level dangerous creatures you need to face will naturally also increase accordingly."

"In that case, let's just change it to a three-headed fire dragon; that would be fairer."

Someone muttered something under their breath, not loudly, but just loud enough for those around them to hear.

He probably felt that since he was already facing two sides, having one more side wouldn't make much of a difference.

"It's good to have this awareness of daring to face challenges."

Barty Crouch had clearly heard his mutterings, and turned to him, his tone still calm, "But you're right, there is indeed a third dangerous creature of the XXXXX level in this project, not just the fire dragon."

These words were like a bomb, exploding among the warriors.

Everyone turned around abruptly, staring at the guy who was still gaping, their eyes filled with helplessness.

Why did you have to bring up the three-headed fire dragon?
Now, things are really messed up; we're really facing a third dangerous creature.

The man was stunned, clearly not expecting his casual remark to have such a result, and his cheeks instantly turned bright red.

"Do you remember the notification letter we received before?" Old Barty Crouch ignored everyone's reaction and continued, "The letter only contained half a riddle, and the other half corresponds to this third XXXXX-level dangerous creature. Its threat is no less than that of the fire dragon."

He pointed to the purple silk bag in Ludobagman's hand and announced, "Alright, enough said, let's begin the draw."

"The order of the draw will be based on the schools, starting with Beauxbatons School of Magic. This will also be the order in which you will perform."

"Brave warriors of Beauxbatons, come and draw your opponents first."

Barty Crouch pulled a leather clipboard from his pocket, held a quill pen in his hand, and stood to the side with a serious expression.

Ludobagman then handed the purple silk bag to the warrior of Beauxbatons, and with a gentle shake of the bag upside down, several palm-sized fire dragon models rolled out.

The model is extremely realistic, with even the patterns on the scales and the wrinkles on the wings clearly visible, making it easy to identify the corresponding fire dragon species at a glance.

"Please come forward and draw lots."

Fleur de la Cour and Adele Lefebvre took a deep breath and walked to the bag.

Furong reached out first, her fingertips touching a model with silver-blue scales. She picked it up and saw that it was a Swedish short-nosed dragon.

Adele then picked up a model of a green-scaled Welsh green dragon.

"Swedish short-nosed dragon, common Welsh green dragon."

Barty Crouch took notes quickly, his tone unchanged.

Fleur and Adele exchanged a glance and visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

These two fire dragons are less aggressive than the Norwegian Spinosaurus and the Hebdiri Islands Black Dragon, so dealing with them will be less stressful.

They put the model back into the bag, and the tension on their faces eased a little.

"Warrior of Durmstrang School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, please."

Old Barty's gaze shifted to Wikdorkrum and Franz Schmidt.

Krum's expression remained as somber as ever. He walked forward expressionlessly, picked up a model with spikes on its back—a Norwegian Spinosaurus.

Franz hesitated for a few seconds, then reached out and picked up a model with dark green scales—a black dragon from the Hebrides.

"Norwegian Spinosaurus, Hebdiri Islands Black Dragon".

After Old Barty finished taking notes, Franz pursed his lips tightly, looking like he was about to cry.

He had seen descriptions of these two fire dragons in books before, and just imagining them attacking at the same time made his scalp tingle.

Krum patted him on the shoulder without saying a word, but conveyed a "calm" signal with his eyes.

"Next up, please welcome Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Old Barty's voice finally turned to Dylan and his group.

Harry and Draco stepped forward, and Harry reached out and picked up a model of a black-green scale, which was the Hebrides Black Dragon.

Draco then picked up a model of a green scale, which was a typical Welsh green dragon.

"Hebrides Black Dragon, Common Welsh Green Dragon".

Old Barty quickly took notes, then looked at Dylan, "Mr. Hawkwood, it's your turn next."

Dylan walked to the bag and, without hesitation, picked up two models.

One is the Hungarian Tree Bee Dragon with black scales and broad wings, and the other is the Norwegian Spinosaurus with spikes on its back.

When Barty Crouch saw the two models, his already tense brows furrowed instantly, and he paused with his quill before writing on the whiteboard: "Hungarian hornet-saurus, Norwegian spinal dinosaur."

Upon hearing this combination, the warriors around him instinctively looked at Dylan.

This is undoubtedly the most difficult of all the combinations, with two of the most dangerous fire dragons appearing at the same time, and a slight mistake could lead to a desperate situation.

"Please wait patiently. Soon, staff from the Ministry of Magic will call you to the stage. You will proceed in the order drawn by lot."

Barty Crouch put away his scoreboard and solemnly reiterated the rules, "Also, it's important to remind everyone that the judging panel will have different scoring criteria for dealing with different types of fire dragons. The scoring will take into account multiple aspects such as your response strategy, spell accuracy, and risk avoidance ability."

"One more thing must be reiterated—you may bring only your wands into the arena. You are not allowed to bring any alchemical tools, potions, or other auxiliary tools. Please remember this."

After Barty Crouch finished speaking, Ludo Bagman cautiously stepped forward and tentatively asked, "Barty, shouldn't we head to the referee's box now? The audience must be getting impatient."

Barty Crouch nodded, without saying anything more.

Ludobagman immediately smiled and waved to the warriors: "We're heading to the referee's table now. Looking forward to your amazing performance! Go for it!"

He reached out and pulled back the tent flap, and a cacophony of voices instantly flooded into the tent.

The students in the stands were clearly getting impatient. Cheers and shouts mingled together, rising and falling like waves, instantly easing the oppressive atmosphere in the tent, but also making the warriors' hearts beat faster.

As Ludobagman stepped out of the tent, the curtain slowly fell, instantly shutting out the clamor of voices that had just rushed in, plunging the tent into an unspeakable silence. The air seemed to grow heavy, broken only by the occasional sound of snow sliding down the tent roof.

Beside Fleur in Beauxbatons, several people were talking quietly with their heads down. Krum and his group in Durmstrang were also standing together, gesturing with their fingers in the air, clearly simulating how to deal with the fire dragon.

The content of their discussion was not hard to guess; it was nothing more than how to divide the work to break through the joint interception of the two fire dragons, and how to reserve enough magic and energy to deal with the third mysterious creature mentioned in the riddle, and when and how it would appear.

The four Hogwarts students reunited, and Harry was the first to approach Dylan, lowering his voice to say, "The Hungarian Horned Bee Dragon and the Norwegian Spinosaurus, neither of these fire dragons is easy to deal with."

"Their adult individuals can reach 50 feet in size, and their wingspan exceeds 60 feet. The margin for error in dealing with their attacks is too low."

Draco clicked his tongue in frustration, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the armrest of his armchair: "What a pity, our draw results were too mediocre."

"If we could draw these two fire dragons, it would at least help relieve some of the pressure on you."

“Yes,” Cedric nodded in agreement, his tone tinged with regret. “While the Hebrides Black Dragon and the common Welsh Green Dragon are also threats, they are easier to deal with than the Hungarian Hornet Dragon and the Norwegian Ridgeback Dragon.”

"If we can encounter those two most difficult ones, we might be able to help you deplete some of their strength."

Harry nodded in agreement, his eyes full of approval.

The three of them had very simple thoughts at that moment.

Since Dylan drew the most difficult combination, if they can encounter these two fire dragons earlier, they can exhaust the fire dragons' energy more in their own match.

Even if it's just a matter of letting the dragon breathe fire a few more times or flap its wings a few more times, the dragon's condition will decline when Dylan comes on stage, making it easier to deal with.

Pity.

Dylan couldn't help but smile as he looked at the three men's serious expressions. He naturally understood Harry, Draco, and Cedric's feelings.

He shook his head gently and said in a relaxed tone, "It's okay, you don't need to worry about me. Don't forget, I was the last one to go on stage, maybe I even got a big advantage."

He paused, then added in a deliberately teasing tone, "With so many of you taking turns, each group will consume a lot of the fire dragon's stamina. By the time I go on stage, those two fire dragons might have been worn down and become less aggressive, making it much easier for me to deal with them. I guess that's a kind of luck."

Harry, Draco, and Cedric all subconsciously pursed their lips upon hearing this.

They knew perfectly well that Dylan was just trying to comfort them.

As top-tier dangerous creatures in the magical world, fire dragons have a stamina recovery rate far exceeding that of ordinary creatures. Unless the previous matches can inflict substantial damage on them, the short-term consumption of energy is of little use.

The three exchanged glances, each seeing the same thought in the other's eyes.

We can't just let it go like this; we need to think of other solutions.

Even if it's just to prepare some key spells for dealing with these two types of fire dragons in advance, or to share some dodging techniques that I've summarized, I can still help Dylan relieve some of the pressure.

The discussion inside the tent continued, but compared to the initial tension, there was now a greater sense of teamwork and tacit understanding.

Everyone was making final preparations for the upcoming challenges, and the silent support among the four Hogwarts students became a warm and bright spot in this oppressive atmosphere.

While the warriors inside the tent were still discussing their plans, the referee's platform was already making final preparations.

Old Barty Crouch, carrying a neatly bound stack of parchment, strode to the center of the judges' table and distributed the parchment to each of the principals and members of the judging panel.

"This is detailed information about the fire dragon that all warriors will need to face, including its species, size characteristics, and known attack habits, all of which are clearly marked on it."

His voice was steady, and every word was clearly heard by everyone present.

The principals took the parchment and began to peruse it.

Headmaster Dumbledore's fingers lightly brushed across the paper, his lips still bearing a gentle smile, but his eyes held a hint of seriousness.

When Professor Karkaroff of Durmstrang saw a certain line of text, his brow furrowed instantly, and his fingers unconsciously tapped the table.

Mrs. Maxim of Beauxbatons sighed softly, clearly somewhat worried about the Warriors' matchups.

It's truly a case of "some rejoicing while others grieve," with every principal holding their school's warriors in suspense.

"Thank you."

Dumbledore took the parchment, quickly glanced through it, and then placed it on the corner of the table.

He held his wand in his right hand, raised it slightly, and pointed it towards the arena below.

As the wand was waved, an invisible magical wave instantly spread through the air, like a transparent film, quickly covering the entire arena area.

This is to prevent the fire dragon's attack from affecting the audience in the stands during the match, while also ensuring that the sound and images inside the stadium are clearly transmitted.

The task of commentating on the match naturally fell to Ludobagman.

He strode to the edge of the judges' stand, raised his wand to his neck, and clearly uttered the spell: "Loud Voice!"

He then took a deep breath, and his voice amplified through the entire circular stands.

Even amidst the clamor of the stands, his voice remained clear and powerful: "Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the first event of the Triwizard Tournament! I am your commentator, Ludobagman!"

A burst of enthusiastic cheers erupted from the stands, with whistles and applause mingling together, instantly igniting the atmosphere.

After the cheers subsided, Ludo continued, "Now, please allow me to introduce the core of this test—all warriors must, under the protection of a level XXXXX dangerous creature, successfully retrieve the golden egg placed in the center of the arena! Only by obtaining the golden egg will this test be considered complete!"

"they?"

"He just said 'them', right?"

"Is there more than one dangerous creature?"

The students in the stands immediately picked up on the key words and began whispering among themselves, their voices filled with confusion.

Everyone thought there would only be fire dragons, but Ludobagman used the plural "them".

This undoubtedly means that the challenge is more difficult than expected!

Ludo had clearly anticipated everyone's reaction, and he said with a smile, "I think everyone is probably very curious now about who 'them' refers to. Don't worry, the answer will be revealed soon!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than heavy footsteps echoed from the entrance to the arena.

A dozen or so wizards dressed in Ministry of Magic uniforms, wands in hand, carefully guided the two fire dragons into the arena.

On the left is a Norwegian Spinosaurus, its bony spurs gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

On the right is a black dragon from the Hebdiri Islands, its black scales gleaming with a dull luster, and it occasionally lets out a low roar from its throat.

With each step the fire dragon took, the ground trembled slightly, making the students in the stands both excited and nervous.

On the other side of the arena entrance, a dozen or so wizards were escorting a huge iron cage, slowly walking towards the center of the arena.

The iron cage was made of steel bars as thick as a wrist, and its surface was engraved with complex protective runes. Something inside the cage seemed to be swaying gently.

Because the fire dragon was so enormous, it attracted the attention of almost everyone, and only a few observant people noticed the existence of the iron cage.

Luna and her roommates were seated in the designated Ravenclaw stands.

Seeing the two fire dragons enter the arena, Amy Camiller couldn't help but grab Luna's hand and shake it gently, her voice full of surprise: "My God! They actually brought up two fire dragons! Wasn't it supposed to be one warrior per dragon? This is way too difficult!"

As the arena swayed, Amy noticed that Luna's gaze wasn't fixed on the fire dragon, but rather on the iron cage on the other side of the arena.

She followed Luna's gaze and noticed the overlooked cage, asking curiously, "Luna, what are you looking at? What's in that iron cage? It looks so mysterious."

Luna narrowed her eyes slightly and said calmly, "I think it must be a magical animal unique to North America—the leopard cat. I saw it mentioned in a supplementary book to 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'."

"Cat-leopard?" Amyka repeated the name softly, her face full of doubt. "It doesn't sound that dangerous. It should be easier to deal with than a fire dragon, right?"

"On the contrary, it is also a dangerous creature of the XXXXX level."

Luna shook her head and patiently explained, "The cat-leopard is best at hypnosis and mind control, which can interfere with a person's consciousness without them realizing it. Moreover, it is extremely fast, making its attack trajectory even more difficult to predict than that of a fire dragon. I think that dealing with it will be no less difficult than dealing with a fire dragon."

"What do we do?" Amy's face instantly turned worried. She subconsciously looked towards the arena entrance, as if she could see Dylan still in the tent. "Dylan has to deal with two fire dragons and a cat-leopard all by himself. This is too unfair, the pressure is too much..."

Hearing this, Luna smiled gently, her eyes full of certainty: "Don't worry, I believe in him. He never disappoints, and this time will be no exception."

As she spoke, she gently patted Amyka's hand, trying to help her relax.

The Gryffindors gasped in disbelief.

At this moment, at the edge of the arena, the wizards responsible for controlling the fire dragon saw that the fire dragon had stopped in the designated area, so they slowly retreated and left the arena in an orderly manner along the entrance passage.

They remained vigilant until they were completely out of the arena before putting away their wands.

Ludobagman caught this moment and immediately raised his wand, announcing loudly with a megaphone spell: "Attention, everyone! A hero from Beauxbatons is about to make his entrance!"

As if in response to Ludo's introduction, the two fire dragons in the arena suddenly opened their mouths wide at the same time, revealing their sharp teeth, and let out a deafening roar.

The sound waves echoed throughout the arena, and even the students in the distant stands could feel the vibrations in the air.

After roaring, they slowly turned their heads, their gaze sweeping across the center of the arena. Only when they confirmed that the golden egg was lying on the stone platform behind them did they calm down slightly.

Sparks continued to emerge from its nostrils, and its golden pupils were fixed on the entrance, clearly wary of the impending "egg thief."

"Oh! These two noisy big guys seem to know their mission quite well!" Ludobagman chuckled, then looked down at the parchment in his hand, his tone becoming serious. (End of Chapter)