"The world's most outstanding young wizards have gathered together; we can't just ignore that, can we?"
Antoine said with a smile, "You have your things to do, and we have our actions, let's not interfere with each other."
"You guys?" Vid raised his eyebrows and asked, "Is there anyone besides you?"
"Hmm..." Antoine touched his chin and suddenly said, "Oh, speaking of which, I suddenly remembered something; Vorvillet always wanted to borrow your Time Turner for research..."
Vid stared at him and sighed, "Forget it if you don't want to say, but I hope you don't do anything destructive at Hogwarts."
"Of course not." Antoine made an exaggerated scared expression and said with a smile, "This is Albus Dumbledore's domain. I am just an ordinary teacher here, just like you look like an ordinary student."
…
Vid left the empty classroom, and as soon as he returned to the main path, he heard Moody's angry voice:
"Yes, that is Harry Potter!"
Whether it was the name or his loud voice, many students stopped in their tracks; Vid also leaned on the railing and looked down towards the hall.
Durmstrang's headmaster Karkaroff originally had Harry blocked at the door; hearing this, he suddenly turned his head and looked shocked at the approaching Moody, saying dumbfoundedly, "It's you!"
"It's me." Moody said coldly, "What business do you have with Potter, Karkaroff?"
Karkaroff glanced warily at Moody, loosened his grip on Harry's arm without a word, and quickly left with his students.
And Moody waved his hand, signaling the students to continue leaving the hall; his Magic Eye followed Karkaroff's footsteps, until it spun back into his head, leaving only a chilling white eye.
Harry, with a bewildered expression, left under Ron's dragging, and had not gone far when a voice called out from behind—
"Harry... Mr. Harry Potter, please wait a moment!"
A beautiful blonde girl, like a doll, ran over through the crowd, speaking in oddly accented English, "Hello, Mr. Potter."
Under the mocking eyes of the surrounding students, Harry showed a somewhat nervous smile, saying, "Hello."
"I am Natalia Petrov from Kodostorians, pleased to meet you." The blonde girl graciously extended her hand.
"I-I am too." Harry stammered, subconsciously glancing around the corridor.
He was worried that Cho Chang was among the crowd watching nearby, but after scanning, he did not find that pretty girl, leaving Harry faintly disappointed.
"I want to thank you; you saved my mother, Sofia Lebedeva, at the World Cup camp. Do you remember her?" Natalia asked.
"World Cup... camp?" Harry shook his head confusedly, saying, "I think you may have gotten the wrong person. That night... I was with my friends all the time; I didn't save anyone."
Natalia's clear blue eyes carefully observed Harry and looked at his friends next to him, confirming they should not be lying nor have any reason to lie, feeling a slight sense of oddity.
Her gaze swept over the lightning-shaped scar on Harry Potter's forehead, recalling Harry's appearances in the Flow Mirror, confirming even in panic, her mother wouldn't have misidentified him.
But she didn't dwell on this point and instead smiled, saying, "Alright, maybe my mom got it wrong... Anyway, it's an honor to meet you. Are you participating in the tournament this time?"
"I..." Harry originally wanted to admit but reconsidered his abilities, he humbly said, "I am still considering..."
Not signing up is one thing, but signing up and not being selected would be embarrassing.
"Alright, anyway, I will participate." The girl smiled generously, "I hope we can be opponents in the arena, Harry."
"...Thank you." Harry said, blushing.
At this moment, he really wished he were the one who saved her mother in the camp; more so, he wished he could snatch Michael's eloquence and put it on himself, so he wouldn't be like a tongue-tied fool.
[Natalia!] A girl shouted in Russian, [Hurry up, we're heading back to the fortress!]
[Alright, coming!] Natalia replied, waving goodbye to Harry and the others before turning to run toward her companions.
In that direction, more than a dozen outstandingly looking, tall boys and girls waited for Natalia; some pointed at Harry, seemingly talking about his forehead scar.
Harry ruffled his hair, feeling his face almost burning.
…
[Natalia, is that little boy the one who saved your mom?] A bright-eyed, toothy girl asked curiously.
[He said he wasn't.] Natalia shrugged, [I think I might have found the wrong person.]
[And the other person you wanted to meet? Did you find him?]
[I didn't see Vid Gray, but as long as he's at school, I'll meet him eventually, right?] Natalia said with a smile, [If I get the chance, I'd like to exchange some Alchemy knowledge with him.]
…
The next morning, Vid got up and opened the window, seeing a familiar scene with some added elements.
Apart from Durmstrang's ship docked by Black Lake, the other schools' carriages were parked on the grass, and from above, some beetle-sized figures moved in and out of the carriages.
As for the Pegasi, elephants, three-headed dragons, and other creatures, they were arranged by Hagrid in distant enclosures; the three-headed dragon should have been shrunk by magic, as its size now looked similar to the Divine Talisman Horse, with some students curiously watching nearby.
Even from above, Hagrid's tall figure appeared extraordinarily large. He carried a giant barrel, heading towards the Divine Talisman Horse's enclosure.
Vid tidied up, took out his broom, and flew straight out of the window, landing on the ground in a few seconds.
Ilvermorny's students were crossing the grass in groups of twos and threes, heading towards the castle. Some had pets, some wielded magic wands, occasionally waving them.
Vid casually followed them into the hall, a black-haired girl saw him descend from above, so she lagged a few steps and caught up to Vid.
"Hello, I am Stella Piquelli, a Seeker from Ilvermorny's Cheetah House." The girl extended her hand, "Are you a member of Hogwarts' Quidditch team?"
"I'm not; I just didn't feel like climbing the stairs." Vid shook her hand, replying casually.
The girl blinked: "Not joining the team? You actually fly well. May I know your name?"