Hogwarts' Golden Glory

Harry folded the letter and tucked it under his pillow.

Neville watched him from the side. "What did Sirius say?"

"He told me to listen to Kane," Harry said.

Neville paused for a moment, then nodded. "He's actually right. Kane is indeed very strong."

"My parents even said they'd invite Kane to our house again."

Harry lay down on the bed and stared at the top bunk.

What is Sirius busy with? Making up for past mistakes?

He couldn't figure it out.

But at least Sirius is still alive and still cares about him.

This is enough.

The next morning, when Harry walked into the Great Hall, he sensed something was wrong.

It's not the kind of "whispering" that's wrong, it's the kind of "everyone is reading the newspaper" that's wrong.

Almost everyone had a copy of the Daily Prophet spread out in front of them.

The cover features a huge photograph—five people standing in a row.

Krum, Cedric, Fleur, Harry, Kane.

But their layout is strange.

Krum, Cedric, Fleur, and Harry are crammed on the far left of the cover, taking up only one-eighth of the page.

The remaining seven-eighths were all Kane alone.

Kane's photo was placed in the very center, larger than all the others combined.

Igor perched on his shoulder, his dark gold feathers shimmering in the photograph.

The title took up three lines—

"The next Dumbledore? A prodigy from the Malfoy family has emerged! The true favorite to win the Triwizard Tournament! The future leader of the wizarding world!"

Harry picked up a newspaper and turned to the inside pages.

The part about him is only a short paragraph:

"Harry Potter, the former savior, is once again in the spotlight. Although his abilities have always been controversial, it must be admitted that his presence adds drama to the competition. Can Mr. Potter prove himself in the first challenge? Let's wait and see."

"What does this say...?" Harry frowned.

Regarding the section on hibiscus:

"Fleur Delacour, the jewel of Beauxbatons, heir to the Veela bloodline. Her beauty captivates all, and the elegance and resilience she displays in training are equally impressive. The pride of Beauxbatons, she truly deserves it."

Regarding Krum:

"Viktor Krum, Bulgaria's Quidditch star—note, Quidditch. As for magical duels? Sources reveal that Krum has repeatedly used violence in training, and there are even suspicions of involvement with dark magic. Durmstrang's teaching tradition has always been controversial, and Krum's performance makes one wonder: does he truly deserve the title of 'warrior'?"

Regarding Cedric:

"Cedric Diggory, a Hufflepuff prefect, is an honest and well-behaved student. But in the most dangerous Triwizard Tournament in three hundred years, 'honest and well-behaved' might not be an advantage. Mr. Diggory was chosen, supposedly because the Goblet of Fire needed a 'normal' Hogwarts student to fill the spot. His presence is probably far less striking than his appearance."

The section on Kane took up two whole pages.

"Kane Malfoy, thirteen years old, is the youngest champion in Hogwarts' history. But he got to where he is today by no means due to luck."

In his first year, he helped clear Sirius Black's name and free an innocent man.

In his second year, he single-handedly solved the Chamber of Secrets crisis that had plagued Hogwarts for centuries, defeating the legendary Basilisk.

This summer, he confronted a region that involved extremely dangerous dark forces—(some information cannot be disclosed here, but sources say it was involved).

According to sources, after learning he had joined the Warriors, Kane silenced his doubters with his performance.

This includes Principal Karkarov and Principal Maxim.

A thirteen-year-old child left the principals of three magic schools speechless.

This is not talent.

This was destined.

Kane Malfoy is the most brilliant genius in the British wizarding world after Dumbledore.

No—perhaps even more dazzling than Dumbledore.

The three-way battle was just his first stage.

In the future, the entire magical world will make way for him.

Harry put down the newspaper, feeling as if a wad of cotton had been stuffed into his head.

Cedric sat at the Hufflepuff table, his face flushed red.

Zacharys Smith, who was next to him, was reading aloud the passage about Cedric.

"A good, honest, and conscientious student—his presence is probably far less striking than his appearance!"

"Shut up, Smith!" a Hufflepuff girl yelled.

"I read what was written in the newspaper!" Smith held up the newspaper. "I didn't write it!"

Cedric stood up. "I'm going out for some fresh air."

He walked out of the auditorium, his steps quick.

Krum sat at Durmstrang’s table, his face as somber as the sky before a storm.

His companions were whispering something in Bulgarian, their expressions angry.

Krum did not eat anything.

He just stared at the empty glass of pumpkin juice in front of him, his fists clenched tightly.

Hibiscus, on the other hand, was not affected much.

The girls from Beauxbatons surrounded her, chattering about words like "beautiful" and "elegant."

Fleur's expression was calm, but her gaze kept drifting towards the Slytherin table.

Kane was quietly eating breakfast at the Slytherin table.

People around him were also talking about it.

"Are you kidding me? I'm in the newspaper too?"

"Draco, the second son of the Malfoy family, does he feel pressured by having such an outstanding older brother?"

His segment received even more coverage than the other Warriors.

This made Draco both proud and somewhat embarrassed.

Meanwhile, at the Ravenclaw table next door, a buzz of discussion had already broken out.

"The Next Dumbledore—isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?"

"I don't think it's an exaggeration."

"He's only thirteen years old..."

"You defeated the basilisk at thirteen. What were you doing at thirteen? Writing a thesis?"

"I was doing my homework when I was thirteen."

"Well, you're quite self-aware."

"But your writing isn't as good as yours."

"Thanks."

"...I wasn't praising you."

On the Gryffindor table, Hermione had her head down, her face buried behind the Daily Prophet.

She didn't want others to see her expression.

It's not because Kane is being praised as "the next Dumbledore," but because—

Her heart raced when she read Kane's passage.

She hated that her heart was racing.

He said she was just a friend.

But when she saw his name being praised by everyone, she couldn't help but feel her heart race.

"Hermione?" Ginny called to her from the side.

"Um?"

Your bread is burnt.

Hermione looked down and found that her bread was already smoking.

She tossed the bread onto the plate and continued reading the newspaper.

Ginny glanced at her but didn't say anything.

Seamus peeked out from behind the newspaper. "So—Potter is the 'hero of the past,' and Malfoy is the 'leader of the future'?"

"That's roughly the idea," Dean said.

"Then who am I?" Simo asked.

"You're 'the one who burned through the cauldron in Potions class'."

"That's Neville."

"Both of you have been burned through."

Neville blushed. "It was an accident."

"You burned through seven crucibles last semester."

"Snape said it was a Gryffindor record."

That's not necessarily a compliment.

Neville buried his face in the newspaper.

Harry sat opposite Hermione, watching it all unfold.