The news of the Triwizard Tournament quickly spread through the castle, and in just one night, people had forgotten about Sirius.
The topic that everyone had been talking about was suddenly outdated, and for the following week, all discussions were about the Triwizard Tournament.
The most popular topic was the selection of champions.
Each house had its own champion candidates.
Slytherin's Adrian Pucey.
Ravenclaw's Rob Anders.
Gryffindor's Angelina Johnson... although Fred and George repeatedly claimed they were the true champion candidates, in reality, their supporters combined didn't even exceed half of Angelina's.
Uniquely, Hufflepuff had two highly regarded candidates.
The supporters of Kael and Cedric were evenly split, with the rest being too indecisive, changing their allegiance daily.
However, Hufflepuff did not have any internal conflicts or arguments, as they believed that whether Kael or Cedric became the champion, it would be something to celebrate.
On the weekend, Fred and George went to Hogsmeade early in the morning and bought a lot of things from Zonko's Joke Shop.
In their words, these were secret weapons for the Triwizard Tournament.
Kael had reason to suspect that if either of them really became a champion, Dungbombs would surely be an indispensable aid.
Professor McGonagall's expression would certainly be quite spectacular then…
As the days passed, the atmosphere in the castle became increasingly lively, with everyone curious about what the students from the other two schools would be like.
Moreover, to welcome the guests traveling from afar, the castle was given a thorough cleaning.
Several dusty paintings were wiped clean, the armor in the corridors was polished to a shine, and could even reflect images like a mirror, which made them uncomfortable.
Many times, Kael saw armor lying on the ground trying to pick up some dust, but within ten minutes, they would be cleaned again by Filch with a clean flannel.
Filch had become more annoying than usual recently, and if anyone's shoes weren't clean enough, even with just a speck of dust, he would fly into a fierce rage.
The professors were also particularly on edge.
Elite students from two schools, including the headmasters, would come to Hogwarts, and even those who had been teaching for many years faced such an occasion for the first time.
In this tense atmosphere, a week quickly passed.
On the morning of October 30th, when Kael went downstairs for breakfast, he found the auditorium newly decorated, with huge silk banners hanging on the walls like during the House Cup award.
But this time, there were banners for all four houses, and the banner behind the head table was replaced with the Hogwarts crest, with a lion, eagle, badger, and snake circling a large "H".
As soon as Kael and Conna sat down by the table, someone immediately came over to greet him warmly, asking if he was confident...
To this, Kael could only repeatedly tell them that today was only to welcome guests from the other two schools, and the champion selection would be on another day.
He'd said this more than twenty times since getting up in the morning.
"I've never seen anything like this..." Conna poured Kael some pumpkin juice, "It's like the whole castle is tense. Last night, Tian spent an hour choosing hair accessories, and then got up at midnight to choose again."
"After all, it's an event that's been dormant for a century, so it's understandable for everyone to be a bit excited." Kael took a sip of his pumpkin juice.
It was a similar situation in his dormitory, with Mikel and Ryan chatting with him until two in the morning. Normally, they only had this kind of energy when rushing their homework at the start of term.
"Good morning..." Cedric had also arrived.
He yawned widely as he sat down, clearly not well-rested either.
"Kael, do you know much about Beauxbatons and Durmstrang?" he asked.
"Fair bit," Kael thought for a moment and said, "Krum is a student at Durmstrang, right? We already saw him during the Quidditch World Cup, and he's sure to return this time, probably ending up as the final champion."
"Oh right, Krum..." Cedric lifted his head and said.
Viktor Krum's aura on the Quidditch pitch was so dazzling that he often forgot the other was just a student who hadn't graduated yet.
However, as for Kael's claim that Krum would become Durmstrang's champion… Cedric wasn't particularly concerned.
What about the Quidditch star, it's not like the Triwizard Tournament is about who rides a broom better.
"What about Beauxbatons..." Cedric continued to ask, "I've seen the school before, but it was during holidays, so there was no one inside."
"I know Beauxbatons' headmistress, Ms. Maxime," Kael said.
"What, Beauxbatons' headmistress?" Cedric immediately perked up, "What kind of person is she, is she like Headmaster Dumbledore?"
"Much younger," Kael placed a piece of fried egg on his bread, "I dare say you'll be very surprised when you first see her."
"Is she very powerful?" Conna asked curiously.
"Certainly, being the headmistress of Beauxbatons," Kael said, "but what I'm talking about isn't about her power. You'll be surprised when you first see her."
Cedric and Conna were even more curious, but Kael didn't continue.
"You'll find out when the time comes, it would lessen the surprise if I told you now. It's the Hogwarts tradition, after all."
Cedric was so frustrated he ground his teeth, understanding how Fred and George felt on the train... it was truly uncomfortable.
No one could focus during that day's classes, with a joyous anticipation filling the classroom, and even the professors seemed distracted.
In Transfiguration Class, Professor McGonagall had them review previous material, and sternly corrected everyone's mistakes.
"This is fourth-year content, yet some are still making mistakes now!" By the end of the class, Professor McGonagall was shaking with anger.
She was worried that if the students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang found out, they might think she was not competent in teaching.
The following Charm Class was also a review.
Professor Flitwick summarized some commonly used charms in daily life, then patiently had them practice for two periods.
The only class unaffected by external factors was likely Magic History.
That's just how the class was; not even a small Triwizard Tournament, nor if Voldemort were to attack Hogwarts with the Ministry of Magic that afternoon, would stop them from reciting the dates and locations of the War of the Giants if school wasn't canceled.
...