— — — — — —

At Hogwarts, this round didn’t require judges, so the scores came in quickly.

Every champion had managed to survive two full hours in the Black Lake, earning the base fifty survival points. What remained was the difference in how many treasures each had found.

But once the totals were counted, something felt off.

"Mr. Bagman, didn’t you say there were only thirty treasures? The number we’ve collected already exceeds that, doesn’t it?"

"Ha ha." Faced with the question, Bagman laughed heartily. "Actually, there were fifty treasures in the lake. Twenty of them were specially sponsored by Mr. Riddle. We didn’t tell you beforehand because we wanted it to be a surprise."

"Unfortunately, it seems time wasn’t quite enough. Not all of them were recovered."

The moment he said that, every champion’s expression darkened.

Inside, they were already cursing the organizers and Riddle.

Two hours wasn’t enough?

Did he have any idea how exhausting it was to swim for two hours straight? Stay any longer and they’d all turn waterlogged!

Oblivious to the mounting resentment, Bagman tapped his throat with his wand and cast an Amplifying Charm, announcing the results to the entire crowd.

"First place goes to the Durmstrang champion, Miss Ariana Dumbledore! She found ten treasures, earning a final score of one hundred and fifty points!"

Thunderous applause erupted from the Durmstrang section. Grindelwald smiled in satisfaction, while Dumbledore looked even more delighted.

Professor McGonagall and the other heads of houses could barely watch this ridiculous scene. Anyone unaware of the situation might think Hogwarts had taken first place. Did Dumbledore really have to look that pleased?

"Second place goes to Miss Kamio Hozumi from Mahoutokoro! She found nine treasures, for a final score of one hundred and forty!"

"Third place goes to Miss Daphne Greengrass of Hogwarts! She found eight treasures, earning one hundred and thirty points!"

Daphne frowned slightly, her lips curling into a small pout.

She wasn’t satisfied with that result at all. Getting lost had wasted far too much time. If she hadn’t teamed up with Kamio and stolen three treasures from Jauncey, her score would’ve been even worse.

"Damn you, Tom..." Daphne muttered under her breath, blaming him for making the task so complicated. Why not just pile all the treasures together and let everyone fight it out?

Her complaint happened to be overheard by Fleur, who had just finished cleaning up her clothes. The two exchanged a glance, and for once, found themselves united in shared frustration.

"Tom’s grown up," the half-Veela said with a cold chuckle. "When he was younger, he only messed with other people. Now he’s matured, he doesn’t even spare us."

"We’re going to settle this with him later," Daphne said through gritted teeth.

Ariana opened her mouth, clearly wanting to add, ’count me in.’ Sure, she’d completed the task with ease, but some of the creatures in the lake had been so grotesque they made her physically uncomfortable.

Unfortunately... now wasn’t the time to get closer to the others. She’d have to confront him privately tonight instead.

Only Kamio kept smiling as usual. With the pressure of her nine-tailed fox bloodline, magical creatures instinctively avoided her. To her, the Black Lake felt more like an aquarium than a challenge. She hadn’t felt any pressure at all.

Bagman continued announcing the remaining scores.

Fleur had collected seven treasures, Jauncey six.

Quinta and Nassim had only managed two each, tying for last place. Both looked utterly miserable, as if this round had been personally designed to torment them.

But if anyone had it worst, it was Jauncey.

He’d originally had twelve treasures, a clean one hundred and twenty points. But in the last twenty minutes, he’d been robbed three separate times, dropping straight from first place to fifth.

But beyond anger, when Jauncey looked at Daphne and Kamio, there was still a trace of fear in his eyes.

Mom was right, pretty girls are scary... and especially those two, they were practically devils.

"Thank you to all our champions for such a fabulous performance! The current rankings are as follows. First place, Kamio..."

After finishing the rankings, Bagman smoothly shifted topics.

"The Tournament has now entered its middle to later stages. There are only two rounds left, and they will be especially important."

"Next, I’ll go over some details for the fourth round."

"The fourth round will take place on the twenty-ninth of next month."

"After midnight tonight, the treasures in your possession can be opened. Be sure to take good care of what’s inside, as they will play a crucial role in the next task."

"Can’t you be a bit more specific?" Quinta asked irritably. Today’s poor performance had put her in a foul mood.

"Sorry, I really can’t."

Despite his words, Bagman’s bright grin showed no hint of apology. If anything, he looked amused. "Since the next round is tied to the professors’ evaluation assessments, it will be entirely handled by the Astra Abyssum Guild and Mr. Riddle."

That did it. Not only did the champions’ expressions change, even the professors looked uneasy.

Anything involving Tom Riddle was guaranteed to be... unpleasant.

"Well then, everyone, prepare yourselves. You might find some clues in today’s treasures."

Bagman flashed a perfect eight-tooth smile, waved at the broadcast screen, and ended the live stream.

The audience gradually dispersed. Daphne and Fleur, both still simmering with anger, marched off with clear intent to settle the score with a certain someone.

Unfortunately, by the time they found Hermione, they learned that Tom and Astoria had already slipped away.

Daphne had been ready to chase them down, but the moment Hermione explained that the two had left to deal with the hidden dangers of Astoria’s blood curse once and for all, her anger evaporated, replaced by worry for her younger sister.

Fleur found herself conflicted. She didn’t get along with Daphne, but she adored Astoria’s sweet and gentle nature. If anything, she wished she could swap her with Gabrielle and let Gabrielle drive Daphne crazy instead.

"So what are you going to do now?" Hermione asked with interest.

"What else can I do?"

The young lady’s ahoge drooped, her whole demeanor listless. "Wait. I’ll settle things with Tom when he gets back."

...

..

"Settle things? Who exactly are you?"

Far away, on the continent of Africa, Voldemort frowned as he stared at the imposing man standing before him, still clutching the Golden Apple tightly in his hand. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Honestly, Voldemort didn’t understand what was going on. First, the apple turned into a Portkey, then this strange man started shouting about "settling things"? Damn it, they had never even met in the first place.

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