A certain Hogwarts professor of runes.

Mrs. Maxim rolled her eyes, stretched out her large, fan-like hand, and punched Felix. Felix quickly donned a humanoid armor spell on himself, and with a "bang!" he swayed.

Hagrid, who was sitting seven or eight seats away, stared wide-eyed.

The auditorium was unusually crowded today, probably because students from the four visiting schools were scattered throughout, making it a dizzying sight.

In relatively formal settings, Hogwarts students are required to wear the school uniform.

So, amidst a group of black wizard robes, there were splashes of blue and cranberry from Ilfamoni, light blue from Beauxbatons, scarlet from Durmstrang, and brown from Vargado.

Four headmasters sat on either side of Dumbledore. Felix circled the short witch twice, and she immediately turned to look at him. Felix smiled slightly, and the witch scrutinized him for a moment before turning to speak to Dumbledore.

She spoke in a strange language, fast and rapid, and Felix could only understand a few notes. Dumbledore, however, listened attentively and responded in the same language.

Karkaroff, standing next to the witch, looked rather unhappy and kept fiddling with a golden goblet, deliberately making a lot of noise.

The professors' seats were almost full, with only two empty seats left. Seven or eight minutes later, a short, chubby, red-faced wizard appeared from the main entrance of the auditorium, his face beaming with a warm smile.

“Dumbledore, I’m late. Barty had something come up, so I’m all alone…” Bagman said quickly, looking around. “Ah, you’re all here. That’s great. I was worried that Vargado’s group might be late.”

The short witch said in a hoarse voice, "Mr. Bagman, we will not delay on important matters."

“Ah, of course…” Bagman said, wiping his sweat. He glanced at the two remaining empty seats and finally sat down next to Professor McGonagall.

Dumbledore stood up, and the Great Hall gradually quieted down as everyone's eyes were on him.

"Welcome! It's unprecedented in a thousand years that students from five magic schools have gathered here." He said cheerfully, "At this solemn moment, I would like to express my gratitude to the house-elves in the kitchen; they have gone to great lengths to cater to different tastes..."

"Then, enjoy the food to your heart's content; that's the most important thing tonight."

He sat down, and suddenly the empty plates in front of them were piled high with all sorts of food. In addition to the French dishes that had appeared last night, there were also some strange and unusual dishes today, all laid out in front of them in a riotous array.

At the Gryffindor table, Ron's gaze swept over the French fish soup, yellow egg cheese, and white milk pudding, and then he saw a gooey lump of something. He reached for his fork—

"No!" Hermione cried.

"what happened?"

“You won’t like it,” Hermione said, her breath coming in short gasps, her face unnaturally pale. “I never imagined they would put this dish on the menu.”

"What is this?" Harry asked, not smelling anything strange.

“Camel fat,” Hermione said, gagging and immediately turning away. “Believe me, you definitely won’t like it.”

Ron pushed the plate away with his fork, and Seamus picked up a piece. "What kind of jam is this?" he asked, popping it into his mouth. Harry and the others stared at him intently.

"Uh, why are you looking at me..." Seamus's face visibly turned liver-colored. He swallowed it whole, snatched Dean's pumpkin juice, and gulped it down in one go.

His eyes turned green as he frantically looked around. Neville shakily handed him his pumpkin juice.

"What the hell is this stuff?" Seamus said angrily after finishing Neville's pumpkin juice. "It's even more disgusting than the slime of a fried snail."

Ron happily picked up a juicy sausage and began to eat it with relish.

As each of the golden plates was cleaned and polished, Dumbledore stood up again. A mixture of excitement and nervousness filled the air of the Great Hall.

“The moment has finally arrived,” said Dumbledore. “The Tournament is about to begin. Mr. Filch, please bring in the box. In the meantime, I’d like to explain a few things—”

"First of all, I would like to introduce our important guests today, starting with the principals."

"Mrs. Olem Maxime, Headmistress of Beauxbatons;"

"Professor Igor Karkarov, the principal of Durmstrang."

"Professor Gilbert Fontana, the principal of Ifamoni;"

"The principal of Vargadu, Ms. Hariya Miniot Nagy;"

Dumbledore paused, blinked, and smiled, saying, "Of course, there's also myself, Albus Percival Woolfrick Bryan Dumbledore."

Everyone, including students from the other four schools, stared at him in disbelief.

"Has no one noticed? It's actually a brilliant joke," Dumbledore said regretfully. "I sorted them by the length of the names..."

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat forcefully.

“Well, besides the five principals, there are two more people I have to mention, Ludo Bagman and Barty Crouch. The two gentlemen have worked tirelessly over the past few months. It’s a pity that Mr. Crouch is not here today, but we can see him on Halloween. Thank you, Mr. Filch. That’s all.”

Dumbledore smiled and said to Filch, who was placing a large wooden box on the table in front of him. He tapped the lid three times with his wand, and the lid slowly creaked open.

Dumbledore reached in and pulled out a large, roughly carved wooden goblet.

The cup itself is unremarkable, but it is filled with dancing blue and white flames.

Everyone stared at the Goblet of Fire with fascination.

"As you should know, in the next 24 hours, that is, until the end of the Halloween dinner, the goblet will select the names of the three students it believes best represent the corresponding schools."

Tonight, the Goblet of Fire is in the foyer; any student who wants to run can submit their name there.

He waited quietly for a moment, until everyone had heard him clearly, before continuing, "There are two things to note. First, I will be setting an age limit for Hogwarts students—"

A buzz of discussion arose, and he had to mention the volume.

“Secondly, this is a sincere piece of advice,” Dumbledore’s expression turned extremely serious. “I must remind everyone here that the Tournament is not a game; it is a magical contract that cannot be broken. Once a champion is chosen by the Goblet of Fire, he must see the game through to the end. Therefore, please think carefully before you act.”

Good night, everyone.

When he sat down, the auditorium erupted in chaos.

Chapter 380 Exchange

"Alright, students, please leave in an orderly manner—"

Professor McGonagall rose to maintain order, and after a burst of noise, the young wizards filed out of the Great Hall, arguing amongst themselves.

In the professor's seat, Felix pulled out a chair for Mrs. Maxim. "Oh, thank you." She rose gracefully and said softly, "Don't forget you're a member of Beauxbatons' board of trustees... You're always welcome to visit me in the carriage."

“As you wish, madam,” Felix said with a smile.

He watched as Mrs. Maxim led the students away, and the crowd automatically parted to make way. At that moment, Hagrid approached.

"Can I come with you?"

"what?"

"When you go to visit someone, could you... could you take me with you?" Haige asked anxiously, watching the tall figure disappear at the entrance of the auditorium, his expression one of rapture: "I mean, yes, there's something wrong with those silver-maned horses, I need to find out."

Felix looked at him strangely.

Hagrid immediately smoothed his hair and collar. "What's wrong? Is something off?"

“No,” Felix said softly, “I’m worried about the horses.” Who knows if Hagrid might actually cause them some kind of 'trouble' to make his lame excuse seem more believable.

Just then, an angry voice came from the doorway—

"That's right, that's Harry Potter. Have you seen enough?"

Felix looked in the direction of the sound and saw Moody confronting Principal Durmstrang. Moody's prosthetic eye seemed so terrifying that it turned Karkaroff and several students around him pale.

But Karkaroff's reaction clearly exceeded normal limits—a mixture of anger and profound, unforgettable fear. Felix was no stranger to this expression; many people had looked at him with the same gaze. Therefore, what Karkaroff would do next—

"Back down?" Felix said with amusement.

As expected, Karkaroff didn't linger. He waved his hand and walked away with his students as if avoiding a plague.

The students stuck at the back of the line scrambled to stand on tiptoe, peering over the shoulders of the others to watch the departing Durmstrang delegation.

“This night will not be peaceful,” Felix said.

“Yeah, I bet some students will choose to register at night…” Hagrid agreed absentmindedly. “By the way, do you have any good perfume recommendations?”

……

"Do you think Karkaroff and Professor Moody know each other?" Harry asked, following the crowd up the spiral staircase.

“That’s right,” Ron said confidently. “Look at their expressions, it’s so obvious. I bet they have some old grudge.”

They returned to their dormitory, where Dean stood guard at the door, seemingly trying to suppress a laugh. "Harry, I think you need to come over for a moment. There's a guest waiting for you..."

Harry walked over curiously. Niffler Varen sat on his bedside table, in front of him a pile of exquisite little things—gallons, a gold necklace, a thermostat locket, a gray hourglass…

Ron stared at the stack of golden Galon, unable to look away.

"Merlin's beard..."

Harry seemed to have thought of something. He squatted down in front of Niffler Varen and tentatively asked, "What do you want to trade with me for? That Muggle coin?"

Sniff nodded vigorously.

Ron laughed so hard he almost choked. "Ouch!" He grabbed Neville's four-poster bed, nearly pulling the curtains down. "It...it has such a good memory. Two whole months have passed since the first day of school, and it still hasn't given up..."

Harry hesitated for a moment. The Muggle coin was a testament to his countless Apparitions, and he kept it as a memento. However, now that he had learned magic, he didn't value it too much, especially since it was given to him by his Uncle Vernon.

He rummaged through the box and pulled out the coin, handing it to Valen. "Here you go."

Niffler immediately took the coin, its two bright black eyes shining. Its little hands kept stroking the coin's sharp edges. After a while, it seemed to have made a great decision, looked away, pointed to the little gadget in front of Harry, and gestured for him to choose one.

“No need,” Harry refused.

But Niffler insisted that he choose one thing, otherwise the Great Demon King would nag him to death if he found out.

"Haw!"

It patted its chest, indicating that it was there to make a deal.

Harry pondered for a long time, his fingers moving back and forth, unable to make up his mind. Niffler stared intently at his hand, his eyes wide with anxiety. Finally, the hand picked up the inconspicuous hourglass, and Niffler visibly breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed.

As Niffler gathered up its treasures and nimbly disappeared from their sight, Ron couldn't help but feel indignant for Harry: "Even if you don't want Galleons, that locket is pretty good. I heard Fred and George say that the little box can keep the temperature in a constant range, so you won't have to wear a cloak in winter."

Harry shook his head. "This one is fine too." He fiddled with the dusty hourglass for a bit, then casually placed it on the cabinet.

“Is that so,” Ron muttered, “I doubt it’s worth two siscos, unless it’s an antique…”

The next morning.

The students gathered around in a noisy commotion. At that moment, a thin golden line appeared on the floor in the center of the hall, and the Goblet of Fire was placed on the Sorting Bench, standing in the middle of the golden line.

"They're being so blatant!" Hermione said in shock. In front of her, the Weasley twins and Lee Jordan were eager to try it out, each holding a small bottle containing a thin layer of transparent liquid.

She looked beyond the crowd—Professor Hyp was standing not far away, leaning against the wall, watching them with a half-smile.

“Just one drop,” Fred said excitedly as he drank the aging serum. “We’re only a few months apart.”

“That’s right, let’s set an example for you.” George drank the potion right after him and said to Harry and Ron.

Hermione immediately glared at Harry and Ron.