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"Why haven't they appeared yet? Did something happen to the contestants?"
Seeing the prolonged delay, the wizards in the stands started murmuring amongst themselves in small groups. The judges at the judges' table exchanged glances, equally clueless about what was going on.
The curtain of the tent was pulled back, and Bagman, the final judge, hurried out. His brow was furrowed, and he looked deeply preoccupied as he made his way to the judges' table.
"Bagman, what's happened? Which champion is coming out first?" Karkaroff asked impatiently as soon as he saw him approach. He'd rather Viktor not go first, as the first contestant is always at the greatest disadvantage.
Hearing this, Madame Maxime, despite her efforts to maintain a composed expression, was betrayed by her eyes, which were constantly fixed on the two men. It was clear she didn't want Fleur to go first either; she'd prefer one of the Hogwarts champions to take the stage initially.
"It's-" Bagman panted, clearly out of breath from his haste. "It's a Dursley."
"This isn't the main point. He, he, he..."
"He drew the most ferocious Hungarian Horntail? What rotten luck," Karkaroff sneered, revealing his distinctive large yellow teeth, his tone dripping with unconcealed schadenfreude.
Bagman slammed four fingers onto the table. "No, not the Hungarian Horntail. He drew four! He drew four dragons!"
"He says he wants to challenge—four dragons!"
The moment Bagman finished speaking, the entire judges' table fell silent. Even the judges, including Dumbledore, were stunned.
"Bagman, what are you talking about? What do you mean he drew four dragons?" Madame Maxime couldn't hold back any longer and quickly asked, "What about Fleur? I mean, what did the other champions draw?"
"He took all four numbers, so naturally, no one else got one," Bagman explained, recounting the situation inside the tent, omitting the part where he couldn't quite meet Dudley's gaze. He said it with an air of inevitability.
How will the Beauxbatons contestants be scored then? Madame Maxime fretted.
"How could you let him do that?"
"What was I supposed to do? Declare his draw invalid?" Bagman retorted, his tone losing its friendliness at Madame Maxime's questioning. "Our rules don't state that a champion can only choose one dragon."
But that's... It's common sense to draw one lot, isn't it? The other champions were practically running away from the idea of facing a dragon, and this one just decided to take them all. These were dragons, not some wild goblins or watermelons of questionable ripeness found by the roadside. Such an action was utterly insane.
"I believe our Hogwarts champion, Mr. Dursley, is correct. Our rules do not stipulate that a champion can only challenge one dragon," Lucius chimed in from his seat. He cast a provocative glance at Dumbledore as he spoke. "I heard he's Professor Dumbledore's most prized student. Facing a mere four dragons should be no problem for him."
Those unaware might think he was targeting Dumbledore, while those with some insight would know he was actually aiming at Dudley. The truth was...
"Then what about the other champions?"
Bagman looked blankly at his colleagues.
Karkaroff, already displeased with Hogwarts having two champions and even more so with Dudley, quickly interjected before Dumbledore could respond, prompted by Lucius's words.
"Since the Hogwarts champion is so confident, let him challenge them," he said, a hint of cruelty flashing in his cold eyes. "However, if he fails, or even dies... his score will be zero, and the other champions will have to re-draw and re-compete."
Just one dragon was a handful, let alone four! It was something even he couldn't handle. He could already predict the outcome: certain failure. He had planned to find an opportunity to deal with him himself, but since he was acting so arrogantly and seeking death, why not give him a push?
"Professor Dumbledore, what do you think?" he added, not forgetting to take a jab at Dumbledore. Based on his understanding of Dumbledore, the old man would never let his student take such a risk easily. So, he thought, I can just say... Karkaroff had his speech prepared, anticipating Dumbledore's refusal.
To his surprise, Dumbledore, uncharacteristically, asked, "Professor Karkaroff, what if he succeeds?"
"Then only he will have a score," Karkaroff replied with a cold laugh, without hesitation.
"Let's put it to a vote. Those in favor of this proposal, please raise your hands." He was the first to raise his hand.
Madame Maxime hesitated for a moment. While she was also unhappy with Hogwarts having two champions and didn't particularly like this Dursley fellow, it involved the life of a young wizard. Challenging four dragons was a certain death sentence, and she couldn't bear to see it. Thus, she voted against it.
Lucius voting in favor was no surprise. What was unexpected was that Dumbledore also voted in favor.
With five judges, three voted in favor. Bagman's vote was irrelevant. Karkaroff glanced at Dumbledore in surprise. Didn't that Lucius fellow just say this Dursley was his prized student? Is he sure he didn't offend this old man? If he could succeed in challenging four dragons alone, I'll eat this table, Karkaroff thought.
"Since the proposal has passed, it will be officially implemented," Karkaroff said, his face beaming with excitement.
After the judges confirmed, Bagman instructed the staff. Thus, the four dragons were brought out one by one.
"They're moving! They're moving!" Seeing some activity, the audience became excited. However, upon seeing the Welsh Green Dragon, the Chinese Fireball Dragon, the Swedish Short-Snout, and the Hungarian Horntail, the audience looked a bit bewildered.
"What is that? Why are there four dragons being led out? Are four champions going to challenge them together?" they asked, expressing their confusion.
"What's the content of the competition? Teamwork?"
"This is the Triwizard Tournament, how could it test teamwork? There can only be one winner from the three schools." The person who was contradicted still sounded a bit unconvinced.
"What's impossible about that? Theoretically, the Triwizard Tournament was only supposed to have three champions, but now there are four, right?"
"Witches and wizards, esteemed spectators," Bagman's voice boomed across the stadium, amplified by a magical megaphone (the principle is the same as the Sonorus charm). "At the request of a certain champion."
"According to the draw order, the following challenge..."
"Will be completed by him, independently!"
"Let's welcome Hogwarts' champion—Dudley Dursley!"