The Bard of Hogwarts

Chapter 317 Differences, Showing Off Skills, Compromise

In a dimly lit room behind the auditorium.

Upon seeing Harry, Ino immediately offered him words of comfort.

He had no choice. As mentioned before, unlike the timeline of Horcrux destruction in the original story, all Horcruxes except the notebook were destroyed after Voldemort's resurrection.

In the Triwizard Tournament, Voldemort used Harry's blood to resurrect himself, freeing himself from Lily's protective magic and creating a connection between himself and Harry.

But things are different now.

Before Voldemort made contact with Harry, he destroyed three Horcruxes beyond his capabilities, including the notebook. Coupled with Trelawney's prophecy, whether true or false, it raised alarms.

……

At the same time.

After Ino's comforting words, Harry felt completely relaxed.

The previously suppressed emotions seem to have been greatly relieved.

"Thank you, Enoch." Harry nodded slightly. "You're right, and so is Professor Dumbledore. He'll handle everything."

"That's right! Don't worry." Seeing that the other person had relaxed, Ino stopped worrying and left the rest of the reassurance to Dumbledore.

"But it's really dim here, they didn't even bother to install a magic lamp, Kreeber!"

Ino smiled and changed the subject, while gently calling out to the phoenix.

A flash of orange light appeared, and the appearance of Kreeber was like a small magic lamp, adding a lot of warm colors to the room and sweeping away the previous gloom and oppression.

Harry also felt a sense of relief upon seeing the phoenix.

As for the other two people in the room, Krum remained unchanged, still wearing his kind smile; while Fleur's expression was more obvious, with her chin resting on her hand and her eyes fixed on the suddenly appearing phoenix.

Just then, a conversation could be heard coming from outside the door, growing louder as it approached.

"...Albus, I need an explanation."

"Yes, I will explain it to you..."

It seemed to be an argument, but before the group could listen carefully, the door to the room was opened again.

The moment the door was pushed open, Ino turned her head to look.

Many people entered the room one after another: Dumbledore, Madam Maxim, Karkaroff, the two directors of the Ministry of Magic, Professor McGonagall... and Snape, who looked completely calm.

"Harry! It's alright, child! Leave everything to us." Professor McGonagall entered the room and immediately went to Harry's side.

"Thank you, Professor! I feel much better!" Harry's voice was low, perhaps because he was going through puberty or was in low spirits; it always sounded somewhat weak.

A seemingly ordinary reply caused Snape to pause abruptly.

As the most relaxed person in the room, Ino naturally noticed this subtle change, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up slightly.

But soon, that smile vanished, for a pair of empty eyes appeared in his line of sight. Snape walked over silently and then sat down in the chair next to him quite naturally.

Ino turned her head and looked closely at Koribe on her shoulder; the orange-red feathers were clearly visible one by one.

The changes in these individuals occurred within mere seconds.

Inside the room, Karkaroff launched another attack: "I'm waiting for your explanation, otherwise! I regret coming to Hogwarts. This is supposed to be a fair Triwizard Tournament, and Hogwarts is so unfair!"

After Karkarov finished speaking, Mrs. Maxim, though silent, nodded slightly in agreement.

Standing at fifteen feet tall, Mrs. Maxim was still quite conspicuous even when seated, so her subtle nod was noticed by everyone in the room.

Seeing that he had supporters, Karkarov became even more confident.

In contrast, Dumbledore's figure appeared somewhat frail.

……

Ino witnessed the argument between the principals.

Although he knew it was all arranged, he still couldn't stand Karkarov's sarcastic remarks, even though the other party was in the right this time.

"Professor Karkaroff!" Ino slowly stood up and walked towards the principals.

This action briefly silenced the argument in the room, and Dumbledore, needless to say, turned his head with a smile.

On the other hand, Mrs. Maxim also nodded in acknowledgment. Even without receiving a reply, she was happy to give them face, since they might become colleagues in the future.

Of the three principals present, two made their stance clear through their actions, so even if Karkaroff was unwilling, he could only stop complaining and see what the other party had to say.

"Professors! This is my opinion: the Goblet of Fire's decision is irreversible; Harry must participate in all the tournaments!"

Ino spoke calmly, though he was addressing the three principals, his gaze remained fixed on Karkarov.

However, Karkarov, who had been so loud and boisterous, strangely remained silent at that moment, instead listening politely as if waiting for what was to come.

What seemed like a contrasting scene was perfectly natural to Snape, who stood by, his plain robes, dark green Slytherin stripes, elegant posture, and calm tone...

Everything was very similar, not to mention the phoenix that had appeared on its shoulder. It would have surprised Karkaroff if he had dared to refute it.

……

On the other side...

Although Ino didn't understand what Snape was thinking, he responded to Karkaroff's politeness with a smile.

Those within the family know best what happened; Dumbledore was at fault from the start. No matter how righteous the reasons, Hogwarts was the one who broke the rules first. Being in the wrong is being in the wrong, and it doesn't matter who argues with them.

If they were to put on a show of bravado while actually being cowardly, or even use their strength to force Karkaroff to submit, it would be like trampling Hogwarts' millennia-old reputation into the ground, and then spitting on it afterward.

To avoid this situation, Ino spoke slowly again:

"Professors, this is my reasoning. According to Professor Dumbledore, the Goblet of Fire is scored by five judges. Since Hogwarts has one more person, we will take the average score of Harry and me as the final result."

"I think this will demonstrate the fairness of the Goblet of Fire, since it is inherently a fair competition."

As he spoke, Ino glanced at the three headmasters. Mrs. Maxim was sitting alone in a chair because of her height, while Dumbledore and Karkaroff were standing and discussing the matter.

To increase his persuasiveness, Ino looked past the three men and at the burning trident candlestick on the wall.

He reached out and snapped his fingers lightly, and the candlestick instantly split into two faint flames, which floated through the air.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the flames transformed into snowflakes in the air, and as the snowflakes landed, two high-backed chairs bearing the Hogwarts shield emblem appeared out of thin air.

"Professors! Please have a seat!"

Ino bowed slightly, then walked back to her previous position.

Everything was in place. He didn't believe that no one present recognized his skill. He cast spells silently and without a staff, using levitation, elemental conversion, and transformation magic.

After such a blatant display of skill, even if Karkarov stubbornly persists, it's likely that Mrs. Maxim will no longer support him.

However, apart from Harry, everyone present recognized its value.

Professor McGonagall looked quite proud, as the Transfiguration spell had played a significant role in the magic she had just performed.

……

At the same time.

With the appearance of two high-backed chairs.

The three headmasters also had different expressions: Dumbledore's satisfaction, and Mrs. Maxime's admiration.

As for Karkaroff, he was more like a defeated rooster, remaining silent as if resigned to his fate.

Xiao Di is sorry, there are only two photos left today.

I didn't go to sleep until 3 or 4 a.m. last night. My succulent gave birth to three beautiful tabby puppies. I'm just too tired to write anything today.

However, Xiaodi promised that she would make up for it in the next two days.

Finally, please vote! Please vote! Please vote!

(End of this chapter)