Harry nodded, then said awkwardly, "It's normal if I'm not chosen, after all, my magic skills can't compare to Vid's, but I still want to give it a try..."
"It's good to try." Theo said, "Besides, your combat ability is very strong, maybe you'll be chosen!"
Vid felt the same in his heart.
Harry didn't score in the top tier on the written tests, since he always had a bit of laziness in memorizing stuff.
But when it comes to combat, he's much stronger than the version of himself in the original story who broke into the Department of Mysteries.
Time passed in the blink of an eye, and night quickly fell. The group headed to the Great Hall, then split up to head towards their respective house tables.
The ceiling of the Great Hall had turned into a starry sky; the Milky Way winding and flowing, with scattered stars dotting the firmament, echoing the floating candles below.
Bats flitted about, and jack-o'-lanterns floated overhead, but no one paid attention to these Halloween decorations; everyone's eyes were concentrated on the Goblet of Fire placed on a chair in front of the teachers' table.
Michael, with a big smile, walked into the Great Hall with Daphne. Even just a few steps apart, he gallantly escorted the girl to the Slytherin long table and greeted Astoria before returning to Ravenclaw.
"There are a total of three spots." Michael said as he sat down, "Vid, you're definitely one of them. I wonder who the other two will be?"
"We'll find out soon enough." Vid said, glancing at the other Hogwarts students.
Cedric from Hufflepuff was a given, most likely being one of the champions. As for the others... aside from Harry, the prefects and student council presidents of the other houses were also strong contenders.
"Look!"
Michael suddenly nudged Vid, signaling him to look at the door.
Hagrid and Madam Maxime were entering the door together, their towering figures nearly blocking the entire entrance. Until they walked up the aisle towards the teachers' table, everyone saw a line of Beauxbatons students following behind.
The focus was on Hagrid, who had slicked his hair into two bundles and wore an awkward brown suit. As he walked past, everyone smelled a strange mixture of strong perfume and grease.
"...Merlin!" After a while, Vid heard Lisa say in disbelief, "I never thought... a person putting effort into their appearance could look worse than when they were slovenly."
"Madam Maxime is really graceful, isn't she?" Padma said sincerely, "I thought those French were all so haughty!"
"Professor Hagrid needs an image consultant." Michael adjusted his collar and said, "For the sake of my eyes, I need to take some time to talk to him..."
He then looked thoughtfully at Vid, "Vid, when do you have time?"
"Me?" Vid said curiously, "I'm not good at fashion coordination or design."
"I know." Michael said, "But I need your magic ability."
"Then... tomorrow?"
Vid said uncertainly, not understanding why they were discussing this at such a critical moment in the selection of champions for the Goblet of Fire.
"Alright!" Michael nodded and then covered his mouth with a fist, coughing dryly, asking, "Then... if I bring Daphne when the time comes?"
Vid glanced over there and said, "I think that's fine... Slytherin girls are indeed better at these things."
Even wearing the same black robes, the Slytherin girls would make unique embellishments at the edges; the cuts of their robes always fitted just right, and their jewelry wasn't too much, but could certainly withstand close inspection.
Of course, the most important thing is — Michael seemed very keen on integrating his new girlfriend into his circle of friends, and helping Hagrid design a new image was probably his chosen entry point.
…
The Halloween feast was as lavish as last night's, though few paid attention to it. After dining, everyone looked forward with anticipation.
Dumbledore stood up and said with a smile, "The Goblet of Fire is about to choose the champions who meet the requirements. Those whose names are announced, please go to the top of the Great Hall and enter the adjacent room; they will receive preliminary guidance there."
He pointed to the doorway at an angle behind the teachers' table.
Then, Dumbledore waved his magic wand, and the ceiling immediately dimmed, with only a few sporadic stars left shimmering; most of the candles in the Great Hall went out, and only the flames inside the jack-o'-lanterns continued to flicker.
The Goblet of Fire burst into bright light, with sparks flying, casting strange patterns of light and shadow across the Great Hall, making everyone's expressions seem unreadable.
Suddenly, the blue-white flames turned bright red, and a jet of fire shot into the air, emitting a burnt piece of parchment.
Dumbledore caught the piece of paper and, after looking at it carefully, announced, "The champion for Durmstrang is Victor Krum!"
The entire Great Hall erupted into cheers for this Quidditch star, though Krum appeared rather unhappy as he listlessly walked towards the door.
"Wonderful, Victor!" Karkaroff shouted enthusiastically, "I knew it would be you!"
A few seconds later, the second name appeared—
"Natasha Volkova!"
A tall girl with short blonde hair stepped forward from the Durmstrang group, her face expressionless, and the applause in the hall was much less.
"Casper Grove!"
This time, it was a pale-faced boy, handsome, with chestnut short hair softly falling over his forehead. He fist-bumped the person next to him before happily heading to the small room.
"The champion for Beauxbatons," Dumbledore caught the next sheet of parchment, "is Fleur Delacour!"
The silver-haired girl, who resembled a Veela, stood up and gracefully walked through the aisle between tables.
"Lucas Barrow!"
This was a boy with curly chestnut hair, who looked extremely surprised, as if he never expected it to be him.
He glanced at Madam Maxime first, then quickly and nervously made his way over.
"Clementine Durand!"
The freckle-faced girl let out a scream, then immediately covered her mouth. She also quickly made her way to the small room, leaving behind another girl who hadn't been selected, crying sadly.
"Why wasn't the first one Hogwarts' champion?" Michael said discontentedly, drumming his fingers on the table anxiously.
"Think positively," Anthony said, "the most important one is always last."
Sparks scattered as Dumbledore continued to announce:
"The champion for Ilvermorny is Stella Picquery!"
The girl who had greeted Vid earlier immediately jumped up, hugged her friends around her, and walked forward beaming.
"Adam Kagami!"
A boy with a gentle demeanor, who was wearing a snake-shaped bracelet.
"Ryan Smith!"
A boy who looked like a captain of an American football team stood up and headed forward amidst congratulations from everyone.
The flames in the cup shifted between blue-white and red, then, after a brief pause, began spewing out new names once more.