A certain Hogwarts professor of runes.

“The water is the mermaids’ home turf; they have a set of coordinated methods,” Cedric explained. “They can weave thick, slippery ropes, lassos, and large nets from seaweed… each one is a master of surprise attacks—”

Harry stared at the mermaid's iron-grey skin, dark green, seaweed-like hair, and cloudy yellow eyes, and had to admit that what he said made sense. He and Hermione had also been ambushed, but as Cedric said, they were lucky enough to have two people with them at the time.

"—And then there are those Grindylows, relentlessly pursuing us like hounds. Having mermaid commands and not having them are two completely different things. These Grindylows can execute simple instructions, like carrying a rope in their mouths... And the further we go, the more exhausted we become, to the point where we can barely use magic anymore," Cedric said, shaking his head.

At that moment, a silver light broke through the water's surface, descending straight down from above the Black Lake, landing gently on the platform with a soft "thud".

Felix looked around, his silver cloak slowly transforming into shimmering points of light as he calmly announced to the crowd, "The competition is over. Warriors, stand inside the circle. I will now lead you back to land."

He waved his wand, and the platform beneath his feet suddenly trembled. The outermost stones and sand shuddered and separated, and soon, the white marble platform slowly rose up, enveloped in a semi-transparent, luminous dome, which, if one had to describe it, was like an enlarged protective shield.

Harry looked outside, his mood unusually calm. Fish darted past like tiny darts, and he even spotted a rainbowfish, though he wasn't sure if it was the one he'd encountered.

Harry sincerely hoped that it wouldn't be discovered by the mermaid.

Mermaid guards, armed with spears and forks, lined up in two rows, flanking them. After following them for a distance, they parted ways. Then, they saw shimmering waves leaping overhead, and with a "pop," they burst out of the Black Lake.

The world on the water was dazzling and incredibly bright. Harry's eyes stung from the bright light, and he couldn't help but shed tears. His mind was filled with dazzling white light.

He heard a commotion, the sound growing closer and louder, a continuous buzzing. After a while, he realized it was the cheers and applause of a crowd.

Ludo Bagman's voice also came over at just the right time—

"All the warriors are back safe and sound! Let us rejoice! They were underwater for over four hours! Ah, I see Lady Pomfrey has passed by—"

His voice was muffled and very low, as if there was something between it and his voice.

At that moment, Felix reached out and gently touched the hemispherical membrane of light. The spot where his fingers touched instantly burst into flames and vanished. Immediately afterward, a fresh, cool breeze rushed in. Felix took a deep breath and smiled at the warriors who were also breathing heavily, saying, "Warriors, we've arrived. Prepare to be cheered."

His words were drowned out by a sudden, deafening scream. Harry had never felt breathing so pleasant. The sounds in the distance became real as Madam Pomfrey waited anxiously on the shore, rushing ashore as soon as the marble platform touched down.

"Is anyone hurt?" she asked Felix.

“They may have some scrapes or bruises, but nothing serious. Their problem is that they are too tired,” Felix said, watching the warriors sprawled out, several of them snoring loudly, their sleep completely unaffected by the enthusiastic cheers around them.

“Uh… alright,” said Madam Pomfrey, taking a narrow-necked bottle from her medicine chest and pouring the potion into each of the warriors’ cups. The warrior Vagado, who was sleeping the soundest, drank it in a daze, turned over, and went back to sleep.

Mrs. Pomfrey stared at him, stunned for a few seconds before moving on to the next person.

“Thank you, Madam Pomfrey,” Harry said, swallowing the burning liquid in his mouth. He, Ron, and Hermione did not show any protest, hoping to get Madam Pomfrey’s attention away from them.

"An energy booster, maybe with something else added. I can taste the mint," Ron said, smacking his lips as puffs of white steam billowed from his ears and nostrils.

The shore was in chaos. Percy strode over and grabbed Ron tightly. "You're going to strangle me—Percy!" Ron struggled. Harry also saw Sirius and Lupin walking through the crowd.

Hermione felt a little dejected. She hadn't told her parents yet, but perhaps she could ask them for help with the third project. A blanket was pulled over her head, and she looked at Professor McGonagall in surprise.

“I think you need a hug,” Professor McGonagall said.

“Oh…uh, I think so.” Hermione said, pursing her lips. She gave Professor McGonagall a light hug and, out of the corner of her eye, saw Professor Hyp and Dumbledore squatting by the water, talking to the merman leader.

Felix keenly noticed her gaze, smiled at her, and gave her a thumbs up.

Then, he looked away and was quite surprised to see a string of shrill sounds coming from Dumbledore's mouth. The merman leader was speaking the same language. He muttered to himself, "Doesn't this merman speak English?"

Finally, Dumbledore straightened up. "Felix, let's go have a meeting with the other referees." The headmasters regrouped, and Fudge and Bagman also arrived, discussing in hushed tones.

Dumbledore relayed the information the merman leader had given them—unlike what they could only see through the watches on the warriors' wrists, the mermen could provide a more three-dimensional and neutral assessment.

Fudge put himself in an objective position, saying, "This match is very complicated. Every team has performed well. Let's talk about the points that are worth paying attention to..."

Chapter 441 Scores Released

"Krum's shark transformation, and he also proposed cooperation with other schools—" Karkaroff said eagerly.

“I must remind you, Karkaroff,” Bagman shrieked, “that it was two people who proposed the collaboration: Krum of Durmstrang contacted Ilvermorny, and Diggory of Hogwarts contacted Beauxbatons and Vagado.”

“But Krum was the first person who came to mind, wasn’t he?” Karkaroff said diplomatically.

"That's true, but his two teammates have been captured by the mermaids. He's all alone and outnumbered. What else can he do but cooperate..."

Dumbledore nodded slightly and said calmly, "At least we can confirm one thing: both heroes have proposed cooperation, which is an act we advocate. They deserve extra points."

"Potter's idea of ​​taming the rainbowfish is good..."

"It is indeed visually appealing, but it shouldn't be considered a plus."

Why doesn't it count?

"Gentlemen, our competition is not about who does the best thing, but about the valuable qualities they demonstrate in the process."

"Isn't it worth promoting unconventional thinking?"

Seeing that another argument was about to break out, the referees put the question aside for the time being. Felix asked, "Who was the first to collect all the gold gems? I was underwater at the time and couldn't see clearly."

Bagman immediately said, "It's Porter. He had a huge advantage early on. While others had only collected two or three, he had already found five. He and Krum are both excellent Seekers with amazing dynamic vision. Krum's only weakness is his slower movement speed; he relies entirely on his legs to swim..."

“Granger is second, almost at the same time as Potter. Miss Granger is very efficient because she discovered the secret of the level layout.”

“This is suspicious; perhaps someone cheated,” Karkarov said.

“Save it,” Bagman said irritably. “She cracks the blue levels faster than anyone else. That’s her specialty, and you can’t deny that!”

“Let’s continue,” Dumbledore cheerfully reminded him. “By the way, Miss Granger is indeed very intelligent, and in some subjects she is just as accomplished as the graduates.”

The referees continued their discussion—

"Iphamoni obtained the most alchemical items and also used the water tornado spell together, buying themselves enough time—"

“Then Porter’s guardian deity is also crucial.”

"Vagadu's hand gestures are very distinctive, and his final Animagus-like transformation led everyone out of the mermaid camp."

"Yes, it even broke two pillars, which enraged the mermaid."

"But undeniably, the effect is very obvious..."

"Gentlemen, you've forgotten something," Mrs. Maxim said, pursing her lips. "Only two teams of warriors had no one captured by the mermaids throughout the entire journey. One of them was Beauxbatons, and Fleur, as their captain, resolutely accepted the invitation to rescue them. Her spirit is commendable."

“Madame Maxim,” Karkaroff said sternly, “Miss Delacour’s spirit is indeed commendable, but the other two warriors were not captured because they were too slow…only a little faster than the last one, and just in time, they both escaped the mermaid’s pursuit.”

"What do you mean?" Madame Maxime said coldly, "At least Jacqueline and François have collected seven gems, while Durmstrang has people who couldn't even get out of the protective shield."

"Buk doesn't deserve to be on the Warriors at all. I'd like to take him out," Karkaroff said with disgust. Several principals looked at him in shock. He said with a straight face, "I was just joking. Do you think I'd really take him out?"

"That's hard to say."

Felix looked up at the sky and murmured, "Anything can happen." The sky was exceptionally blue today, as if it had been washed clean. Karkaroff glared at him fiercely, and the air became slightly awkward.

Perhaps even Karkaroff himself believes that if the rules really allow it, he wouldn't mind making a substitution.

Felix began to study his spellbook. As it was continuously filled and expanded, it became more and more perfect, and it was undergoing some kind of strange change, as if it had its own will.

Its interior stores a vast amount of magical runes and magical power, much like a real magical rune world. Every second, hundreds and thousands of changes occur, causing the Book of Runes to move towards greater and greater stability and continuously improve itself.

He had to slow down. Before he could figure out every little change, he no longer dared to put the book directly in the Mind House. If it exploded, the magic stored inside would be no joke.

Moreover, he also gained a lot of inspiration from it, and new magical runes would spontaneously appear every now and then.

"Felix?" Dumbledore asked softly. He had somehow appeared beside Felix, looking at the clear sky with him.

Don't you want to join the discussion?

Dumbledore smiled slightly. "Bagman seems more enthusiastic than I am, and, I must say, both groups of warriors at Hogwarts performed exceptionally well enough to be ignored..."

After spending a considerable amount of time, the judges had only reached a limited consensus. Fudge glanced at the time and said, "There's no point in arguing any further. Let's start scoring."

No one objected. Bagman added, "Based on the scoring process last time, we have added a new scoring rule: if a judge's score differs significantly and cannot convince the others, we will consider canceling the controversial score."

Karkarov gave him a cold glance, but he didn't object. Some advantages can only be taken once.

After a while, Ludo Bagman's amplified voice rang out again, and the crowd gradually quieted down.

"Ladies and gentlemen, after considering various factors, we have decided to use the following three main evaluation criteria: the number of people who escaped the protective shield, the number of gold gems obtained, and whether they were taken hostage. We will also add points for outstanding performances. We will score each group of warriors out of a maximum of seventy points."

"Group One, Warriors members: Cedric Diggory, Collins Foley, and Roger Davis. Three of them emerged from the protective shield. Two collected all seven gold gems, while the third, after collecting five gems, was attacked by mermaid guards and taken hostage. Their outstanding performances during the competition included: effectively utilizing ice bombs and assisting in spellcasting to increase their range; accurately locating the mermaid camp and proactively contacting other schools to cooperate. Based on our overall evaluation, we award them 59 points."

A round of applause erupted from the stands. Collins looked up in silence, while Cedric and Roger whispered words of comfort to her.

“I should have been more careful,” she said dejectedly.

"The second group, the warriors: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley. All three of them stepped out of the protective barrier, collected all seven gold gems, and none of them became hostages, making them the first to finish the race. Their outstanding performances included: taming the rainbow fish; discovering the patterns in the distribution and structure of the levels; and assisting other teams without anyone becoming hostages. We give them 67 points."

“That’s fantastic!” said Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Hermione was still wrapped in her blanket, surrounded by deafening applause and whistles. She nudged Harry and Ron in the ribs, gesturing for them to look toward Collins.

“It’s really not a big deal, she’s just a bit stubborn,” Ron muttered. “I mean, if you’re unlucky enough to run into a whole army of mermaids, there’s nothing you can do about it…”

"The third group, members of the Vargadu Warriors: Nona Rippert, Rashon Elivendy, and Panagiota Branziego. The three emerged from the protective shield; two collected all the gold gems, while the third, after collecting five, was taken hostage by the mermaids. Their highlights included: displaying astonishing silent, staff-less spellcasting; defeating a large horde of Grindylo; using masterful human transformation to storm the mermaid camp; and successfully escaping with the help of the others. We give them 60 points."

“They were just one point short, and they performed about the same as Cedric’s group,” Ron said. “But that African elephant was quite eye-catching. Collins should use Transfiguration more often, just in case…” He suddenly stopped because Collins was staring at him with wide eyes, which puzzled him.

"Stop talking!" Hermione said, kicking him in frustration.

“But I was speaking up for her…” Ron said, feeling very wronged.

"The fourth group of Durmstrang members: Viktor Krum, Ors Poliaco, and Adim Buwick. Two of them stepped out of the protective shield, while one failed and became a hostage. Of the remaining two, one successfully collected all seven gems, while the other was captured by the mermaid after collecting four. Notable performances include: Captain Krum collecting all seven gems in third place, and after his initial failed attempt to rescue his teammates, proposing to cooperate with the warriors of Iphamoni to use wide-range sonic magic to disrupt the mermaid's control over Grindylo. We give them 50 points."

Krum and his two teammates accepted the applause with blank expressions.

"Group 5, Beauxbatons members: Fleur Delacour, Jacqueline Bourgeois, and François Lafontaine. The three emerged from the protective shield, collected all seven gold gems, and no one became a hostage. Their highlights included: cleverly using level items to escape Grindelwald's ambush; misleading the ten mermaids with illusion magic when they appeared; actively joining the rescue team; and causing chaos within the mermaid tribe. We give them 62 points."

Furong and her teammates hugged each other; they were currently ranked an amazing second.

"Group Six Iphamoni members: Byers Bach, Victor Percival Grevis, and Ann Lenn. Two of them stepped out of the protective shield, while one failed and became a hostage; both of them collected all seven gems. Their highlights include: passing the most purple levels and obtaining a large number of temporary magical items; creating chaos in the mermaid tribe; and after escaping from the mermaid tribe, the three warriors unleashed a water tornado to stop the mermaid guards from pursuing them. We give them 50 points."

“The third and final project will take place on the evening of June 24th,” Bagman continued. “The warriors will learn the details of the project a month in advance. Thank you all for your support of the warriors. And thank you to Future World for supporting the second project.”

The audience paused for a moment, then continued to applaud enthusiastically. Ron shouted in the warm breeze, "I bet Bagman got paid by Professor Hyp for advertising!"

Harry couldn't agree any longer. He clapped his hands hard and cheered with the crowd. It was over... He thought, three long months of preparation, the third project was in four months, he had plenty of time... Then he was overwhelmed with joy. He, Ron, and Hermione had won first place. It was unbelievable, but there was no doubt that they had the highest score among the six teams...

Perhaps he needed to do some calculations. Harry thought of the previous rules, his head spinning, and he didn't want to think at all. Anyway, Hermione would tell him in the end... All he had to do now was...

"Celebrate! Celebrate!"

The students shouted loudly, waving their arms wildly, freely venting their surging emotions.

Chapter 442 Thanks

The road back to the castle from Black Lake was filled with laughter and chatter. Felix guessed they would, like last time, occupy the Great Hall for a celebration. The only difference was that warriors from the other schools were also following the crowd toward the castle.

“We’ve achieved our goal, haven’t we?” Bagman said, standing to the side, “to let students experience the meaning of cooperation through competition.”

“That doesn’t sound like something you would say,” Felix said with a slight smile.