Chapter 86 Whispering With Hibiscus Delacour
Cassandra secretly hated Li Kai for his shamelessness, but she really liked him.
Even now, Cassandra was both angry and amused. Who would have thought that the infamous Lord Thor, who had almost single-handedly swept through the entire Ministry of Magic, would have such a shameless demeanor in front of a girl?
He openly flirted with other girls in front of his girlfriend, and even said in front of her that he had no resistance to beautiful women.
Is there a more shameless man than this?
However, he is so outstanding, whether in appearance or talent, whether in strength or wealth, he is so irresistible.
Cassandra has already invested too much emotion in Li Kai, and now they are only one thin veil away from breaking through to the next level.
Now, Cassandra is truly reluctant to give it up.
Sometimes she gets angry, angry at herself for being so useless.
She desperately wanted to get far away from Li Kai and never see him again, but she just couldn't help herself.
After each time she finished getting angry, she would inexplicably end up near Li Kai, eating with him, fishing with him, having barbecues with him...
I felt safe and secure by his side, listening to his sweet talk that sounded like lies.
Time and time again, I just can't let go.
"If you dare to have an affair with her," Cassandra said viciously, "I'll bite you to death!"
"Beautiful Princess Cassandra, could you please have mercy and spare my life?" Li Kai feigned a pitiful look and said, "I am willing to accept any punishment, and I am even more willing to do anything for you to make up for my mistakes."
Cassandra's lips twitched, but she couldn't help but laugh out loud. She quickly suppressed her laughter, her face turning cold as she rebuked, "Don't even think about it! I'll bite you to death, and I mean it!"
"How should I bite?" Li Kai asked with a mischievous grin. "Can I decide which part to bite?"
Cassandra failed to grasp the meaning behind Li Kai's words. She crossed her arms and said proudly, "Seeing how pitiful you are, I'll mercifully grant your unreasonable request."
Li Kai smiled slightly, knowing that Cassandra was no longer angry. He put his arm around her shoulder, pinched a cherry, and said, "Thank you, Your Highness Cassandra. Please enjoy the delicious tribute I have offered you."
Cassandra said with a look of disgust, "Take it away! Who knows if you even washed your hands!"
Li Kai didn't care at all, stuffed the cherry into his mouth, and then glanced at Hibiscus Delacour.
He noticed that Fleur Delacour was still glancing at him every now and then, so he used magic to write a line of text in the soup in front of her—"Beautiful lady, my name is Kael'thas Lee. It's a pleasure to meet you. What's your name? No need to speak, just write it on the table."
Fleur Delacour was drinking soup when she was startled to see the glittering words that suddenly appeared in the soup. She instinctively looked up at Li Kai.
She had never seen such magic before; it was truly incredible!
She thought for a moment, then wrote a line on the table with her finger.
There was no ink or any liquid on her fingers, so she couldn't leave any writing marks on the table.
So she was very curious, wondering if Li Kai would know what he had written under these circumstances.
Soon, another line of text appeared in the soup in front of Hibiscus—"Your name is Hibiscus Delacour? What a beautiful name. It's a pleasure to meet you. Can we be friends?"
Furong glanced at it again, a sweet smile appearing on her face, and then wrote another line on the table.
And so, the two of them enjoyed their meal while chatting in this unique way…
They both felt that this way of communicating was very exciting, like having an affair, and their relationship became more and more intimate.
"Is that girl next to you your girlfriend?" Furong asked.
"Yes, she's my girlfriend." Li Kai replied, "I love her very much. Yes, I love them both."
"Them?" Furong asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Oh! I forgot to tell you, I have four girlfriends—don't you think I'm a scumbag?"
Furong was speechless, and she looked at Li Kai with disdain.
The chat has come to an end, and all topics have come to a close.
Li Kai raised an eyebrow at Furong, then turned back to focus on pleasing Cassandra.
"This moment has finally arrived!"
As the banquet was drawing to a close, Dumbledore suddenly stood up and announced loudly, "The Triwizard Tournament is about to begin. I'd like to explain a few things first, and then bring that. I need to outline the program for this school year, but first, please allow me to introduce two guests, as there are certainly some who don't recognize them. Now, let us welcome them—Mr. Barty Crouch, Director of Inter-Magic Cooperation at the Ministry of Magic, and Mr. Ludo Bagman, Director of Physical Education at the Ministry of Magic! Please welcome them!"
A few weak rounds of applause rang out in the Great Hall. Dumbledore had just mentioned the Triwizard Tournament, which reminded many of their inability to participate, so everyone was in a somewhat somber mood and naturally had little inclination to applaud.
"Over the past few months, Mr. Bagman and Mr. Crouch have worked tirelessly to arrange the Triwizard Tournament. They will join me, Professor Karkaroff, and Ms. Maxim as the judging panel to evaluate the efforts of the ten teams."
Chapter 87 The Triwizard Tournament Officially Begins!
"Now, Mr. Filch, please bring up the box."
After Dumbledore finished speaking, Filch came running over from a hidden corner, carrying a box.
The box was made of wood, but it was inlaid with many jewels.
The box looked old, but Li Kai could sense a faint magical fluctuation emanating from it—it was clearly a magical artifact, perhaps even more sturdy than he had imagined.
Everyone stared intently at the box, wondering what was inside.
Dumbledore announced the rules to himself: "Mr. Crouch and Mr. Bagman have carefully reviewed the specific events for the Warriors' competition this year and have also made many necessary preparations for each event."
Filch placed the box on a table that had been prepared in advance, and then stepped aside.
"There are three projects, conducted at different times during this school year, which will test the warriors in many different ways," Dumbledore continued. "They will test the warriors' magical abilities, courage, reasoning skills, and ability to respond to danger."
Each school will select one participant, meaning that theoretically, there can only be a maximum of three warriors participating.
They will represent their respective colleges in the competition, and the winner, along with their college, will receive the honor of being a hero.
Each competition is scored, and the player with the highest score at the end of the competition will win the Triple Cup.
Who will participate in the competition will be decided by the Goblet of Fire!
After explaining all the rules, Dumbledore took out his wand, went to the table, and gently tapped the lid of the box three times.
The lid made a creaking sound before slowly opening.
Dumbledore took out a crudely made wooden goblet. The goblet looked just as worn as the box, and even less impressive than the box itself, which was inlaid with gems of various sizes.
But that cup, without a single gemstone or even a piece of metal, looked like a child's toy.
Boom!
With a muffled thud, a large cluster of blue-white flames suddenly erupted from the wooden goblet.
"Every student who wants to run for Warrior must write his name on a piece of parchment and throw it into the Goblet of Fire."
Dumbledore smiled and said, "Those who aspire to be warriors will have their lives spared for twenty-four hours. Tomorrow night, Halloween night, the Goblet of Fire will select the student it deems worthy to represent the three schools... Finally, I want to remind everyone that the Triwizard Tournament is not a game. Do not participate rashly. Once a warrior is chosen by the Goblet of Fire, he must persevere to the end... Good night, everyone!"
After hearing Dumbledore's story, everyone immediately started discussing it.
"There's an age limit? Looks like we'll have to figure out how to get past it if we want to compete," Fred said.
The age limit was an additional restriction set by Dumbledore; anyone who wasn't seventeen couldn't even be considered for that circle.
Fred believed that age-defying agents could fool the age line, but many people thought this method was unlikely to succeed.
Cassandra asked, "What would happen if someone were chosen by the Goblet of Fire but refused to participate?"
"Dumbledore said that being chosen by the Goblet of Fire is equivalent to signing a contract. Although he didn't explain the consequences of breaking the contract, I think those consequences will definitely not be good," Hermione said with a serious expression.
"It might be a curse," Draco said seriously, scanning everyone. "I've heard my father say that the Goblet of Fire is cursed. Anyone who deserts during a match will be cursed. It's said that the Greengrass family's curse comes from this. One of their contestants dropped out of the competition, which brought terrible disaster to the family!"
"Draco! You're talking nonsense!" Daphne Greengrass said, her face ashen. "Our family's curse has nothing to do with the Goblet of Fire. It's a curse cast by an enemy who sacrificed his life."
"Who knows?" Draco said irritably. "I just heard it from my dad. Kyle, are you really not planning to participate in the Triwizard Tournament? If you don't, it'll be such a shame!"
Li Kai shook his head slightly: "I'm not old enough to participate in the competition unless I break the rules, but I don't need to do that."
For him, participating in the main tournament was indeed meaningless.
The mighty Thor, with his terrifying strength, is participating in a competition with a few kids. Winning might not bring him much benefit, but losing would definitely damage his reputation.
In this situation, the benefits and the effort are completely disproportionate, so how could Li Kai possibly participate in the Flame Cup competition?
"That's the Triwizard Tournament honor, aren't you even a little bit tempted?" Draco asked persistently.
He was curious to see how the judges would react if they knew that a wizard under the age of 17 like Li Kai was participating in the competition.
Li Kai waved his hand and said, "Don't say that. Honors mean nothing to me. I want to be able to get them whenever I want."
After he finished speaking, he ignored everyone and took Cassandra back to the dormitory.
Chapter 88 Differential Treatment! The Fifth Warrior?
The Halloween dinner began the following evening.
Many people are talking about what happened during the day.
George and Fred used age-defying drugs, but even so, they still couldn't cross that age line.
The two were blasted away by the magic, flying more than ten meters away, and both turned into old men with white beards and white hair.
In fact, quite a few students end up like this; using aging-enhancing drugs is not a unique skill of the Weasley twins.
Many people were sent to Ms. Pomfrey that day, which caused others to burst into laughter.
"Who has successfully cast their name into the Goblet of Fire?" Draco kept asking.
"Viktor Krum, and Fleur Delacour from Beauxbatons, the woman who looks like a Veela, and Cedric Diggory from Hufflepuff. We have quite a few here too, Phillips Allen and Jackson Williams have also signed up, but it's hard to say who will be selected," Daphne said listlessly. "They said there might be a life-threatening situation, but we don't know if it's true."
The banquet was about to begin, and the professors took their seats one after another.
Li Kai noticed that Haig was dressed exceptionally well today. His messy hair and beard seemed to have been carefully groomed, and his clothes looked much more fashionable.
Hai Ge, feeling uneasy, spoke in hushed tones with Ms. Maxim, like a young boy experiencing his first love.
Perhaps enough had been said yesterday. Today, Dumbledore didn't give a long speech. He simply announced the start of the banquet, and then everyone began to enjoy their food.
However, after two consecutive days of banquets, the students seemed to have lost their appetite.
Apart from Li Kai, who remained calm as always, almost everyone else seemed somewhat distracted.
In this strange atmosphere, the banquet finally came to an end.
But everyone knows that the most important moments of this banquet are only just beginning.
On the dining table, the golden plates were once again spotless.
Dumbledore suddenly stood up, and the Great Hall fell silent.
"Very good, I suppose everyone has eaten their fill, and it's time for the Goblet of Fire to make a decision."
Everyone stared at Dumbledore, even outsiders like Mr. Bagman and Mr. Crouch looked somewhat nervous.
Dumbledore continued, "All those whose names have been announced shall go to the small hall on the side of the Great Hall, where they will receive instruction."
After he finished speaking, he drew his wand and waved it forcefully.
In an instant, all the lights except those inside the pumpkin lantern went out.
The auditorium instantly became incredibly dark, and the atmosphere gradually turned eerie.
The Goblet of Fire shone with dazzling brilliance; the blue-white flames were almost blindingly bright.
Crackling and popping!
Suddenly, the flames in the Goblet of Fire turned red.
Immediately afterwards, a tongue of fire shot into the air, from which flew a charred parchment. Everyone in the hall held their breath, waiting for Dumbledore to announce the result.
He took the parchment, glanced at it indifferently, and then read aloud: "Viktor Krum, the warrior of Durmstrang!"
Instantly, cheers swept through the entire auditorium.
Viktor Krum stood up from the Slytherin table and strode toward the small bed beside him.
People were talking about it, but it only lasted a moment before the chaotic conversation gradually subsided.
Then, the second parchment floated out, propelled by the flames.
"The champion of Beauxbatons, Fleur Delacour!" Dumbledore remained expressionless.
Furong rose and gave an elegant bow in all directions before walking toward the small hall. Her face was beaming with joy, and she even raised an eyebrow defiantly when she looked at Li Kai.
"Cedric Diggory, a champion of Hogwarts." Dumbledore finally smiled.
Deafening cheers erupted once again in the Great Hall; the Hufflepuff students were practically ecstatic.
The students from the other three colleges weren't so happy. Although they were also cheering, it was somewhat of a performance.
"Excellent!" Dumbledore said cheerfully. "Very good! Now our three heroes have been chosen. I believe everyone will give them their full support and encouragement."
As they were speaking, the flames in the Goblet of Fire suddenly turned red again.
Upon seeing this, the auditorium erupted in uproar.
"What's going on? Why are there more? Weren't we supposed to only choose three warriors?"
The students were completely baffled, and the three warriors in the small hall were equally bewildered; they still didn't understand what the cheers in the main hall meant.
Dumbledore instinctively caught the parchment, his face grim as he stared at the name. He solemnly surveyed the room, and after a long pause, finally uttered, "Harry Potter."
Harry was clearly stunned; he obviously hadn't expected his name to come out of the Goblet of Fire.
An angry murmur gradually rose in the Great Hall. Everyone knew that Harry Potter was only fourteen years old and did not meet the requirements to participate in the competition.
"...Cheating! He's definitely cheating!"
"How despicable! I never imagined that the famous savior would be such a despicable and shameless person."
"How dare he do this? It's really too much! Does that age limit mean nothing to him?"
"How did he do that? Why was he chosen by the Goblet of Fire? He's not even 17 years old!"
"Someone must be helping him in secret, but who will cross the Goblet of Fire?"
Pushed and shoved by those around him, Harry walked step by step toward the small hall next door.
His mind was in turmoil; the constant chatter kept reaching his ears, preventing him from finding peace.
"Alright, go through that door, Harry," Dumbledore said in a deep voice, his expression extremely unpleasant, as if he had never expected this to happen.
Suddenly, another gasp rang out in the auditorium.
Harry looked back and saw another piece of parchment being spat out of the Goblet of Fire.
Dumbledore's expression changed drastically again. Although he hadn't received the parchment yet, he had already seen the name on it.
"Kaelsas Lee".
At the Slytherin table, Li Kai paused for a moment, then a wicked smile appeared on his face.
Although he still didn't understand what had happened, he realized that someone was definitely plotting against him.
The auditorium was completely silent, a stark contrast to what it had been just moments before.
Harry was internally devastated. He couldn't help but mutter to himself, "This is such unfair treatment! I was chosen because I cheated, I'm a despicable scoundrel, but what about him? Why isn't anyone criticizing him?"
Chapter 89: Debate! The Truth?
Li Kai walked expressionlessly to the small hall next to the main hall, without exchanging words with anyone.
Harry stared blankly as Li Kai disappeared, then followed him into the small hall.
The small hall was quiet, with portraits hanging on all four walls, where the deceased were whispering among themselves.
The three warriors who entered first kept their distance and each occupied a corner of the room.
Seeing Li Kai and Harry enter one after the other, Fleur asked, puzzled, "What's wrong? Do they want us to go back to the Great Hall?"
She thought the two of them had come in to deliver a message!
"No, you might be in trouble," Li Kai said with a slight smile.
The three true warriors were taken aback. Cedric quickly asked, "Kael'thas, what did you say? Why are we in trouble? Uh, the Triwizard Tournament is troublesome enough as it is."
Are you referring to these?
Li Kai sighed and said helplessly, "Of course not. I apologize to you first. Actually, I didn't want to, but I have to tell you that I'm afraid I will have to compete with you for all the upcoming projects."
As they were speaking, they heard hurried footsteps behind them.
It was Ludo Bagman. He grabbed Harry, then looked at Kael'thas, and said incredulously, "This is truly unbelievable! Absolutely unbelievable! The three of you, please allow me to introduce you, though it seems incredible, these are the fourth and fifth champions of the Triwizard Tournament, Harry Potter and Kael'thas Lee!"
Viktor Krum and Cedric Diggory stared at the two in astonishment. Fleur smiled and said, "Mr. Bagman, this joke is quite amusing, isn't it? You must be joking! How could there be four or five warriors in the Triwizard Tournament? That's absurd!"
"A joke? This is no joke. Their names all came from the Goblet of Fire." Mr. Bagman said helplessly, "I'm not in the mood for jokes about this kind of thing."
Cedric exclaimed in horror, "How could this be? You want us to compete against Kael'thas? Are you serious?"
"Don't worry, Cedric," Li Kai smiled and said, "I'll go easy on you. There's clearly something wrong with this, and winning the championship might not be a good thing."
"That's obviously a mistake. They can't compete; they're all too young," Furong said, dissatisfied.
Mr. Bagman stroked his chin and explained, "Yes, it is indeed surprising, but you should know that the age limit is an extra safety measure, and it was only implemented this year. What I mean is, now that we've come this far, there's no room for backing out. It's clearly written in the rules, and you must follow them. Harry must do his best to complete the challenge—well, Kael'thas doesn't have to, you might just need to put in a little effort."
At this point, the door to the small hall opened again, and a large group of prominent people walked in.
Professor Dumbledore, Professor Karkaroff, Madam Maxim, Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape...
Professor Karkaroff and Madam Maxim are extremely unhappy about Harry being chosen as a champion. They believe that Dumbledore is involved and are questioning him sternly.
Snape seized the opportunity to shift all the blame onto Harry, saying maliciously, "This is Potter's fault. He insisted on breaking the rules. He's been breaking Rule Twelve ever since he enrolled."
Dumbledore quickly interrupted, "Thank you, Severus, but we have three heroes now, and we can't put all the blame on Harry."
"Oh! Yes, and one more—Mr. Kael'thas Lee!" Snape said sarcastically. "Don't you have anything to say about that? Did you suddenly decide to play house with a few children?"
Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed.
Mr. Bagman sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Severus, the Triwizard Tournament is no child's play."
Professor Snape scoffed, "It may not be true for others, but it may not be true for him."
Dumbledore asked, "Did either of you put your names in the Goblet of Fire?"
"No, of course I didn't," Harry explained. "I knew absolutely nothing about it."
Li Kai said calmly, "Professor, I think you don't need to press this further. This is obviously a conspiracy by someone. As Professor Snape said, I have no interest in playing this childish game, but someone still managed to put my name in the Goblet of Fire. This couldn't possibly be the work of a student. If it were, there wouldn't be only five champions here. So many students want to participate. If a student could bypass the age limit and put their name in the Goblet of Fire, then that student would be their hero."
Professor Karkaroff arrogantly declared, "I don't care about the reasons—the Goblet of Fire must be brought out and the election repeated until every school has three champions!"
Mr. Bagman shook his head and said, "No, the Goblet of Fire has been extinguished and will not be relit until the next Goblet of Fire."
Professor Karkaroff stated that Durmstrang would refuse to participate in the next tournament if the Warriors could not be re-selected.
At that moment, the fake Moody opened the door and walked in, and he engaged in a heated argument with Karkaroff.
From the scene, he seemed to be thinking of Harry's best interests, believing that a dark wizard wanted Harry to participate in the tournament and then kill him during it.
Li Kai chuckled inwardly; wasn't this a classic case of the thief crying "stop thief!"?
Chapter Ninety: The First Project Is About To Begin
After arguing for a long time, Li Kai grew impatient and said coldly, "Make a decision quickly, or I'll just take the trophy and the Goblet of Fire right now, and then we won't need to hold the Triwizard Tournament anymore?"
The room fell silent. Only then did those in the know remember that there was a top wizard in front of them who was focused on collecting magical items, and that he had been caught up in a conspiracy.
If this isn't handled properly, the three-way championship might really have to be discontinued!
Dumbledore asked, "Do you have any objections, Kyle?"
Li Kai said calmly, "No matter who is plotting behind our backs, we can turn the tables on them. Their actions are nothing more than trying to sabotage me and Harry. We'll just participate in the competition as normal and see who emerges victorious in the end."
He glanced at the fake Moody and noticed that the other man was unconsciously nodding slightly.
Professor Karkaroff scoffed, "Your Hogwarts has three champions, which means your chances of winning are three times higher than ours. If you ask me, wouldn't it be better to just give the trophy to your Hogwarts and let your three champions compete for it?"
Just as Madam Maxim was about to nod in agreement, Dumbledore said, "I don't care, but what about your students? Since they've been chosen by the Goblet of Fire, it's like they've signed a contract. Can you bear the consequences of breaking that contract?"
Professor Karkaroff and Ms. Maxim were speechless. They could not possibly allow their student to break the contract; they could not bear the consequences.
The outcome is clear: either break the contract or obediently participate in the competition; there is no third option.
But no one present could guarantee that they could break free from the contract; they had no other choice.
"Alright, shall we move on to the next item?" Mr. Bagman said. "Time to instruct our warriors, shall we? Buddy, you'll give the presentation."
Mr. Crouch looked a little off; he had been restless ever since he arrived at Hogwarts, but no one noticed his unusual behavior.
He snapped out of his daze and began explaining the rules of the game to everyone.
The first event will take place on November 24th. They haven't revealed what the first round of the competition will be about, only saying that everyone can only rely on the magic wand in their hand.
But Li Kai already knew that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the first challenge would definitely be dealing with the fire dragon, because the clue to the second challenge was in the golden egg.
Their plan must have been formulated long ago, and changing it now would be very troublesome.
Since it was a match with only a few participants, Li Kai thought they wouldn't make a big fuss.
After the rules were explained, everyone went back to their dormitories to sleep.
When Li Kai returned to the Slytherin common room, he found many people waiting for him.
Draco asked with a smile, "Didn't you say you weren't going to participate in the Triwizard Tournament?"
Li Kai raised an eyebrow and said, "Someone wanted me to participate and even signed me up. If you want to know how I registered, you can forget about it, because I really didn't do it. Only one thousand Galleons, such a small prize money can't attract me."
The crowd fell silent, no longer doubting Li Kai.
Because they all knew that Li Kai was different from others; he didn't care about that small reward at all.
Cassandra frowned and said, "Who would have nothing better to do than sign you up? Is it Penelope? She really wants you to participate in the competition; maybe she's the one who put your name in the Goblet of Fire."
Li Kai shook his head slightly: "It can't be her. It's easy to cross the age line, but the real challenge is how to disrupt the Goblet of Fire and make it choose a fifth warrior. You don't need to guess wildly. I have a rough idea of who's behind this, but I'll keep it a secret for now."
........
The days that followed were very difficult for Harry.
Because he has been under constant scrutiny from everyone, while in contrast, no one has questioned Li Kai, who is also only fourteen years old.
One day at lunchtime, Harry finally lost his temper when Dean Thomas once again asked him in front of everyone how to put his name into the Goblet of Fire.
0.....0
Harry couldn't help but shout, "Why do you always have to question me? I admit I'm not qualified, but I really didn't do it. Kyle has made it very clear that this whole thing is full of intrigue and conspiracy. Why don't you use your brains to think about it? Instead of questioning me, you should find out who's behind this!"
Dean Thomas glanced at Li Kai, looking bewildered, and said, "How are we supposed to find the culprit? He hasn't left a single clue, and we have no way of finding him right now."
In reality, most of the Gryffindor students were happy, because they all hoped that Gryffindor would produce a champion.
But Harry was very unhappy because everyone kept asking him how to put his name into the Goblet of Fire, and completely ignored his various explanations.
In particular, the fact that Li Kai, who had the same experience as him, did not encounter this situation was the root of his anger.
No one likes to be treated differently unless they are on the receiving end of the favor.
Time passed day by day, and November 24th was fast approaching.
The first competition is about to begin.