Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 168 The Storm Is Brewing

An hour passed quickly, and as Harry lifted Ron to the surface, the second project came to a successful conclusion.

Unsurprisingly, Ike remained in first place, Krum was second, Fleur was third, and Harry was at the very bottom.

Unlike in my memory, Fleur rescued her sister Gabrielle this time. She emerged from the lake less than two minutes after Krum finished, a huge difference between Harry and her, almost right on time.

It's quite similar to the start of the competition; it's really uncomfortable not to hit the beat.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have made a decision!" Ludo's voice rang out, drawing everyone's attention.

"The female merfolk leader told us everything that happened at the bottom of the lake. After deliberation by the judging panel, we have made the following decision..."

"Viktor Krum used Transfiguration, albeit incompletely, but it was effective. He's the second to return, so we give him forty points!"

"Hibiscus Delacour's Bubble Head Charm was excellent; she also skillfully deflected Grindylow's attack when approaching the hostages. But since she was the third to return, we give her thirty-seven points!"

"Mr. Harry Potter used the gill herb, and the effect was amazing. However, he misjudged the duration of its effectiveness. Although it rescued the hostages, its effects wore off on the return journey. As the last warrior to return, we've decided to award him thirty-five points!"

"Finally, Mr. Ike Streid..."

Ludo suddenly became excited and shouted, "He has shown us his outstanding skill in ancient magic and his superb control over magical power!"

"Perfect sea control! Ingenious sea control!"

"He was the first to come back, and he even had half the time left!"

"So, we've decided..."

"Forty-five points! Yes, Mr. Ike Strand has once again taken first place!"

Congratulations to him!

As soon as he finished speaking, Ludo clapped first, and applause also rang out from the stands, but it was obviously not very enthusiastic, and some Hogwarts students kept glaring at Karkaroff.

Yes, four votes for a perfect score, only Karkarov gave it a five.

That's one point more than last time, so can that be considered progress?

Ekko didn't think much of it. Karkaroff's meaning was very clear: he wanted to fawn over Krum, and he was basically shameless about it.

Judging from Karkaroff's reaction, he doesn't seem to care at all.

"There's one more thing..." Ludo continued, "The final event will take place on the evening of June 24th, and the warriors will be informed of the details a month in advance!"

Thank you for your support, see you again on June 24th!

The audience in the stands slowly dispersed, but Ike and Hermione couldn't leave yet. All the warriors and rescued hostages had to go to the school hospital first, as Madam Pomfrey had mandated. To prevent them from catching a cold, everyone had to drink a cold-curing potion and change into dry clothes before they could leave.

Then, it's time for the much-anticipated celebration.

That night, at least in Ravenclaw, was indeed a sleepless one...

In March, the temperature gradually warms up.

With the last project scheduled for the end of the semester, people's focus returned to their studies.

It does have an impact. The Daily Prophet, Wizarding Weekly, and even The Quibbler occasionally publish articles about the Triwizard Tournament, which always manages to grab everyone's attention.

This is a common warm-up tactic. After all, three months isn't a long time, but it's enough for people to forget that there's still one event in the three-way competition.

It had no impact on Ike, who was thoroughly enjoying his life. Hermione also reduced the frequency of using the Time-Turner, to about the same level as Ike had used it during the second semester of last year, only using it for classes.

When they had some free time, they would often appear together in various places inside and outside the castle. Sometimes they would take a walk, and sometimes they would simply sit by the lake, quietly gazing at the Black Lake and enjoying their time together.

Ike was certain that Hermione had sensed something, but being as clever as she was, she didn't say anything about it.

It's as if nothing needs to be said...

However, Ike didn't notice that Hermione's gaze kept falling on his left arm every now and then...

Barty didn't bother him anymore. His Defense Against the Dark Arts course finally ended with the instruction on the Possession Curse and began to teach some real book stuff.

Of course, Barty the Younger didn't teach in a conventional way. Starting with the fourth-grade curriculum and continuing until the seventh grade, he picked out the most difficult parts of all the spells that students were supposed to learn in those four grades and taught one in each lesson, regardless of whether it was something that was required for that grade.

What's even more amazing is that what he taught did not contradict the teaching objectives he stated in the first lesson: what to do when facing danger.

Putting everything else aside, Barty Jr. was indeed the best Defense Against the Dark Arts professor in this course alone.

Yes, he's on par with Lupin.

Unlike the carefree Ike, Karkaroff hasn't been having a good time lately. Everyone has noticed that he's been going to see Snape a lot lately, and the two of them often chat quietly in a corner for a long time. Once, he even came while Snape was still in class and waited until get out of class ended.

People wonder why Karkaroff would visit Snape so frequently, given that these two people should never have any contact at all.

Ike was aware of this, and he had also sensed it; the Dark Mark on his left arm had become increasingly clear recently.

This can only mean one thing: Comrade Lao Fu's strength is recovering, and he is getting stronger and stronger...

Moreover, people didn't notice another thing: every time the two of them got together and talked quietly, Moody would always appear not far from them.

Of course, Moody had been secretly watching Snape and Karkaroff like this since the beginning of the semester, but what others didn't know was that Moody's Magic Eye, which used to be rotating, was now completely still...

It also exuded a strong killing intent...

You need to be careful, Professor.

After a Potions class in April, Ike, under the pretext of asking a question, found Snape with a book in hand, and a sentence flashed across the page.

"It's a very simple question. I covered it in class. If you had focused more on my lessons instead of thinking about that know-it-all girl from Gryffindor, you would have known..."

Snape uttered vicious words, but his quill pen wrote on Ike's book: After curfew, in the office.

"I understand, Professor," Ike said as he took back the book, nodded slightly, and left.

As he walked out of the classroom, he waved to Karkarov, who had been waiting outside for who knows how long.

Of course, he didn't forget Professor Moody at the end of the corridor.

(End of this chapter)