"Professor, you told us that those who wished to compete must place their name and school on a piece of parchment in the Goblet of Fire, and I have done so!"
Ivan looked at Dumbledore and added, "Last night at the feast, you didn't say that the Goblet of Fire couldn't be brought out, did you? I signed up myself, as per your instructions. That should count, right?"
This… this worked?
Hearing this, the young wizards could not help but feel a little ridiculous. They had been thinking about it all day, and had tried all kinds of methods, but they could not do anything about the age line. They did not expect Ivan to go around it so easily!
George and Fred were even more frustrated with themselves for not having thought of this.
Both Karkaroff and Maxim found this difficult to accept, but on second thought, they had to admit that Ivan's method did allow them to avoid restrictions.
They strongly suspected that the obvious loophole was created by Dumbledore to allow Ivan to compete.
However, when they looked at Dumbledore, they saw that the centenarian's face was also filled with astonishment.
It was some time before Dumbledore was able to catch himself, and he said ruefully, "It was indeed my oversight…"
"I'm not nearly as good at magic as you are, Professor, so I have to resort to petty tricks!" Ivan replied modestly.
"This is nothing to be ashamed of, Hulse! Wisdom is just as important to a wizard as anything else! You have taught us all a lesson… Sometimes strength is not the deciding factor." Dumbledore looked at the young wizards in the audience and sighed.
Karkaroff and Maxim were furious when they saw the two acting together, but no matter how unhappy they were, they could only hold it in.
Because the method was devised by Ivan himself, it was, in a sense, a solution to Dumbledore's restrictions.
Add to that the fact that the Goblet of Fire's champions were certain of a rule they could not change, and there was no point in arguing.
Clap, clap, clap …
While everyone was silent, there was a round of applause from the Ravenclaw table, and Ivan turned to see Luna applauding.
The young witch was as unconventional as ever. She wore a necklace made of wine stoppers around her neck, and her wand was casually tucked behind her ear, making her look strange.
As if it were contagious, after Luna's sudden applause, scattered applause soon filled the Great Hall.
First Hermione, then Dumbledore, Harry, Seamus… The applause in the Great Hall grew louder and louder until everyone was applauding.
Most of the students put aside their prejudices and acknowledged Ivan's status as a champion.
"Bravo, Hales, I knew that age line would be easy for you!"
"Hero of Hogwarts, Hero of Gryffindor!"
… .
Ivan was relieved when the hall erupted in applause and cheers, as he realised he had won the crowd's approval.
This was the reason why he asked the questions in the Great Hall yesterday. He wanted everyone to know that he intended to enter the competition, so that when he became a champion, he would not be as abrupt as Harry in the original timeline, and would be able to minimize opposition.
After a while, Dumbledore cleared his throat, interrupting the harmonious atmosphere, and spoke loudly.
"Well, it's not too late to celebrate later. Now that our three champions have been chosen, please follow the previous arrangements to…"
Before Dumbledore could finish, the Goblet of Fire next to him moved again, and a long tongue of flame shot half a meter into the air, and a piece of parchment with burnt corners slowly fell from the sky.
The sudden change attracted the attention of the young wizards.
Isn't the selection of champions over? Why are there still papers popping up?
Ivan immediately thought of something, and his eyes flicked to the teachers' table, where he stared at Moody and Barty Crouch, but could not find any fault in their expressions.
Dumbledore instinctively grabbed the parchment and looked at it, his face turning serious. He examined it carefully to make sure it was correct, then read it aloud.
"The fourth champion—Harry Potter!"
When Dumbledore said the name, everyone in the Great Hall was stunned, and the Great Hall became even quieter than it had been when Ivan was elected.
Harry, who was directly involved, was so stunned that his mind went blank. He wondered if he had misheard or if he was simply dreaming…
"This is not fair! This is cheating! There can only be one participant per school!" Karkaroff was absolutely furious. He slammed his fist down on the table in front of him, and the violent sound echoed through the Great Hall.
"I demand an explanation, Dumbledore!" Maxim said angrily, his face livid.
If Ivan's age was acceptable for forcing his way into the Triwizard Tournament, the presence of two champions at Hogwarts was unacceptable!
Ignoring their questioning, Dumbledore looked calmly at Harry and asked, "Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire, Harry?"
"No, Professor, I didn't put my name in it, and I don't know why…" Harry shook his head and explained hurriedly.
However, Harry's explanation was so flimsy that few people believed it, and he was upset by all the questioning looks.
Flustered, he turned to his friends for help. "Ron, Hermione, you should know that I was up with you all last night and all day today. I didn't have time to put my name in!"
Hermione nodded and offered a few words of explanation in Harry's defence, but not many people listened.
Ron, on the other hand, seemed distracted and kept his mouth shut.
"That's enough, stop explaining! Who knows if you're in cahoots…" Karkaroff cut Harry and the others off with a roar, then turned to Ivan, his eyes cold.
"And there's someone here who can break the rules, isn't there? Who knows if he threw someone's name in!"
"I'm not going to do that," Ivan retorted. "The Triwizard Tournament has always been dangerous. I'm not going to put my weak friends at risk."
Ivan then looked at Karkaroff mockingly, his words merciless.
"Also, please use your brain. There are many students who put their names into the Goblet of Fire, but the champion selection is fixed. There's no reason for four champions to be chosen. Someone must have tampered with it…"
"The Goblet of Fire is a powerful magical object. You don't think two fourteen-year-olds could do that, do you?"