Chapter 803: Chapter 179: Quarrel Beside the Stables (Part 2)

Vid and the arrival of his companions saved Jabari.

"Aha, you’ve come too!"

Bagman, in a purple robe adorned with golden patterns, beamed with a childlike grin on his round face, and exclaimed loudly, "Vid, Miss Natalia, I knew you two would come together!"

He warmly patted their shoulders, earning a side-eye from Natalia.

"We just happened to bump into each other!" Natalia explained, taking out a brown paper bag, "Here, have some! My mom made these candies!"

Everyone grabbed one or two pieces, with Jabari eagerly putting down his barely touched crusty rock cake to get a handful of candies.

"They smell so good! I want the candy first, Professor Hagrid, can I keep the cake for breakfast tomorrow?"

"Of course you can." Hagrid chuckled, "Don’t worry, my rock cakes stay good even if kept for ten days!"

"Ah, but I prefer sweet treats, adding honey would be even better."

Bagman said with a laugh as he peeled off the candy wrapper, then his eyes lit up as he looked past the group and exclaimed, "Harry, you almost arrived late!"

"Good evening, Mr. Bagman." Harry, under the group’s gaze, brushed aside his messy bangs, somewhat anxious, "Good evening, everyone."

"Great, everyone is here." Bagman cheerfully clapped his hands and turned to Hagrid, "Professor Hagrid, please begin the introduction."

"Alright."

Hagrid’s gruff voice resonated as his gaze turned to the crowd, his expression slightly serious:

"They said to make the Forbidden Forest the location for the third event, honestly, I absolutely disagree. But unfortunately, the Ministry of Magic isn’t considering my opinion, so the forest ahead is where you’ll be battling each other in a month!"

The champions all gazed at the Forbidden Forest.

In the night, the dark forest loomed like a pitch-black wall, ancient trees intertwined, branches twisted, and sometimes swayed by the wind, emitting a mournful, shrill sound.

Occasionally, a few ghostly green glows would flicker within the forest, some creature’s whimpers could be heard, and the rustling sound of crawling creatures.

When Mando hadn’t left yet, the elephant usually grazed at the forest’s edge, never daring to step into the Forbidden Forest.

"If you still want to come back alive in a month, listen to me — the Forbidden Forest is not the kind of place muggle forests are for picnics!"

Hagrid focused his gaze, particularly on the students from other schools and said, "Inside there are Centaurs, Werewolves, Acromantula, lots of venomous snakes and deadly insects, and some have even spotted Sphinxes and Burrowing Bats."

His voice paused, letting the tension and brewing dread sink in before continuing:

"Although the Ministry of Magic temporarily drove my old friends deeper into the forest, accidents can happen at any moment, so you better not roam around recklessly!"

Clementine raised her hand, "I’ve heard there are Fire Dragons in the Forbidden Forest?"

Hagrid quickly said, "Nobeta is a good kid... and she’s also temporarily moved, so you won’t need to clash with her." 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

While the Ministry of Magic initially intended to make Nobeta part of the competition, after witnessing the first event, how could Hagrid bear to send his child out to suffer?

These young wizards were reckless, scratching the Fire Dragon’s eyes with Eye Disease Spells wasn’t a major issue, and if they were more capable, they would not hesitate to kill the dragon.

Anyway, the Forbidden Forest itself was already dangerous enough, so with Dumbledore’s tacit consent, Hagrid managed to convince Nobeta to temporarily leave her dwelling.

The cost was that, unfortunately, his carefully groomed hair and newly grown beard got burned off halfway, forcing him back to his previously unkempt appearance.

Bagman cleared his throat and said, "The third event is simple — you’ll use the Compass acquired in the previous event to find the Goblet of Fire within the Forbidden Forest! Whoever touches it first is the champion of the competition!"

"How can we confirm who touches it first?" Jabari asked, glancing at Vid, "What if someone knocks out the first to touch the trophy..."

"Oh, that’s absolutely impossible." Bagman said with a cheeky grin, "The trophy itself is a Portkey, it will instantly transport the champion to the podium — complete with the glory of victory and cheers from all the spectators!"

"But," Clementine hesitated, "my Compass isn’t complete..."

She looked sorrowfully at Bagman.

To be precise, the girl had only a pointer in her hand.

"Dear Miss Durand," Bagman blinked, sporting a sly smile, "You are the champions, you can’t expect me, the judge, to think of your strategies for the competition, right?"

He raised his head, smiled, "Well then, does anyone have any questions... If there are none, we’ll head back to the castle, it’s quite chilly out here..."

Everyone strolled across the lawn back to the castle, with distant tower windows glowing with bits of light.

Vid walked at the end of the group, catching a glimpse of an elegant figure slipping through the crowd — Clementine smilingly intercepted the reserved Hope, her fingers entwining her hair, whispering something in a low voice.

Hope hunched his shoulders, biting his lip with a moment of hesitation, eventually nodding.

...

During a break at the Magic Spell Study Group, Vid put away his Magic Wand, leaning by the window to rest his eyes.

The starlight tonight isn’t very bright, but his vision is excellent, allowing him to clearly see — two not very strong figures covering each other, crossing the lawn, heading to the Beauxbatons Divine Talisman Horse’s stable.