"No matter how many points behind in the competition or how good the opponent's tactics are, in nearly a thousand games, the outcomes of as many as eight hundred and fifty-six matches were determined by which team caught the Golden Snitch."
"What does this mean? It means that in over ninety-five percent of the games, the final outcome is decided solely by the Seeker. I think the inventor of this sport must have been a Seeker themselves."
"In my view, if that's the case, why not eliminate all other rules and modes of the sport, and just let everyone catch the Golden Snitch?"
Ian spoke eloquently, always using detailed data, rendering his two roommates speechless, as if their love for Quidditch had been greatly diminished all of a sudden.
Being rational Ravenclaw students, they were more adept at understanding Ian's point. After pondering the data, they too felt quite incredulous.
It's obvious.
No one had really analyzed such data before Ian.
"Listening to you... it seems I should strive to become a Seeker, otherwise, it's bound to be a tragedy," William sighed, seeming a bit like a little old man.
"Perhaps the first Seeker in history was Merlin's youngest son, and the one who invented Quidditch wanted to please him," Michael let his quirky thoughts roam.
"Why are you so bored that you analyze Quidditch data?" William curiously looked at the roommate ahead; in his mind, Ian wasn't a person interested in Quidditch.
"For writing a paper."
Ian still remembered his original intention of publishing a paper, and only papers that didn't involve scary magic were ones their house head, Filius Flitwick, agreed to help him correct and publish.
Actually, Ian also sought out Professor McGonagall, but as soon as McGonagall heard his research topic involved a fruit tree transformed by magic whose fruit might be edible, she immediately stopped Ian's actions, obviously fearing such a paper would mislead many wizards after publication.
This Gryffindor head, through several tutoring sessions on Transformation Technique, gradually realized Ian's Transformation Technique was somewhat bizarre and hard to understand.
"Alright, but even if you say that, I still hope Hufflepuff wins the match." Michael wasn't quite interested in publishing a paper for the time being.
He was more focused on whether he could afford a nice End-of-Term gift for Little Black Sister. Michael's bet wasn't huge, but a Golden Galleon still represented his efforts at saving money.
"Yeah, as long as Slytherin doesn't win, it's fine." How much William bet was an unsolved mystery, but judging by his usual behavior, it didn't seem like he could offer much allowance money.
"I don't really care."
Ian's viewpoint, from the heart, was just that.
Indeed.
Whichever house wins, it's not just about enjoying the honor and applause; it also heavily boosts the points for their house, although this wouldn't affect the outcome of the House Cup.
After all.
Just standing in front of the House Cup Hourglass, even students not great at maths would realize that even if they won Quidditch, it wouldn't change the outcome this year.
Regardless of which house wins Quidditch, it couldn't shake the massive advantage.
In Ian's words.
It's Ravenclaw's prolific talents; everyone is a studious talent, which is normal for house points, and most first-year little wizards actually believed his rhetoric.
However.
Senior students were full of doubts; they didn't understand why Ravenclaw seemed to be on some sort of enhancer this year, with house points leading exceptionally. Of course, due to their faith in Hogwarts' authority, they'd rather blame professors for favoring good students rather than suspecting cheating.
This made Professor McGonagall secretly relieved. As possibly the only one knowing the truth besides the principal, she had been taking extra care of other houses' little wizards during classes, yet still found the house points widening further, leaving her no choice but to give up.
Honestly.
Professor McGonagall even hinted at Ian to not overdo it, but alas, Ian thought it was about his secret tutoring for others, leading to a completely mismatched conversation that made McGonagall feel powerless.
To the extent that during this Quidditch match she loved the most, she couldn't muster much interest—perhaps also because Gryffindor hadn't made it to the finals.
"Look quickly, Ian! That's Cedric! Like a hero!" William, upon seeing the favorite player, immediately erupted with excitement.
Rekindling his love for Quidditch.
After watching a few of Cedric's matches, William had already bought a dedicated-themed pair of underpants, showing his admiration and love for Cedric.
"I heard he might join the national team in the future, but I think he should become an Auror who fights against evil," Michael, in comparison, wasn't as excited as William.
However, he clearly also had high praise for Cedric.
Hogwarts had many who adored Cedric, this big-hearted Hufflepuff boy; even Ian had to acknowledge that this elegant senior indeed possessed rare outstanding qualities and personal charm.