When Dumbledore finished speaking, Crouch added:
"That's right. The difficulty of the Triwizard Tournament is determined by the average skill level of the champions. Any lower and there would be no challenge for Mr. Harls."
They played along, angering Maxim and Karkaroff.
However, they could not say anything to refute him, as the four participating warriors had all been attacked by merpeople, and everyone was treated the same…
It was also due to Krum's recklessness that he was knocked out by a group of merpeople, and Fleur and Harry, who had the same fate as him, managed to escape the merpeople by using magic.
Ivan's performance, by contrast, was highly anticipated,
During the journey to the Merpeople's village, Ivan had more trouble than the other champions.
However, whether it was the Grindylow or the giant squid, Ivan always dealt with them calmly and easily, earning him a lot of praise and applause.
So for the next few minutes, Karkaroff was visibly upset.
Maxim was not faring much better, especially when he saw Fleur's face darken with anger and distress when she ran headlong into the trap after escaping the merpeople.
Bagman was the happiest of them all, and he almost laughed out loud when he saw Ivan in trouble with the other champions.
He could almost see the gold Galleons waving at him, and he regretted not placing more on the bet.
Dumbledore was also in a good mood, but in consideration of the mood of Karkaroff and the others, he did not show it, remaining frowning and looking worried about the champion.
The delay caused Fleur's situation at the bottom of the lake to worsen.
Unable to escape the trap in time, she was bound by the tangled black seaweed and could not escape at all. The more she struggled, the more her body was bound…
The students in the audience were worried, and some young witches could not bear to look away from the cruel scene.
Maxim felt as if his heart had been wrenched out of his chest, and he immediately turned to Dumbledore and begged him.
"Headmaster Dumbledore, Hogwarts has won this match. Please send the Aurors to bring back our Beauxbatons warriors and hostages as soon as possible."
"And Krum, bring him with you!" Karkaroff added hastily.
Although Krum had been carried on Harry's back ever since he was knocked out by the merpeople, and did not have to worry about his safety, it would be humiliating for Durmstrang if Krum finished the game looking like that.
Karkaroff didn't want to think about what the Daily Prophet's front page was going to say about the match tomorrow. He only had one thought in his mind, and that was to get down there and bring the embarrassing thing back up!
"There's no hurry… if we mobilize the Aurors now, we risk disrupting the flow of the other champions." Dumbledore shook his head, rejecting their suggestion.
Maxim glared at Dumbledore in irritation.
She believed that Dumbledore was deliberately trying to embarrass Beauxbatons and the Durmstrang Warriors.
After all, the match had turned into an infighting between the Hogwarts Warriors, and Ivan's outstanding performance had made it clear who would win and who would lose. Sending Aurors to rescue the injured would not affect the match in any way.
"Please be patient, Madame Maxime. I have always believed that winning or losing is not the whole story of this game…" Dumbledore could read Maxim's mind, so he tried to reassure her, gesturing for her to look at the crystal ball on the far right.
Maxim scoffed at Dumbledore's quibbling, but when he looked at where Dumbledore was pointing, he saw that the situation had changed.
Ivan, who had been in the lead and had successfully rescued the hostages, stopped and rescued Fleur, who then, at her request, hesitated to return to Gabrielle.
Harry, on the other hand, carried Krum on his back and continued the game. Even when he was attacked by several merpeople, he did not leave Krum behind.
"That's what the Triwizard Tournament was all about, wasn't it?" Dumbledore asked, watching the events play out in the crystal ball.
The purpose of the Triwizard Tournament was to promote friendly communication between the three wizarding schools of Europe, but over time, the tournament somehow evolved into a competition for fame and victory.
Over the course of more than seven hundred years of competition, there have been instances in which champions have chosen to "accidentally" kill their opponents.
It was a tradition for headmasters to play dirty in order to compete for the title of Europe's number one school of magic.
It is safe to say that the unusually high death rates of the Triwizard Tournament are inextricably linked to the poor atmosphere of the tournament.
As a result, the competition, which was originally held to improve communication, caused a rift between the three major wizarding schools to grow deeper and deeper until all communication was cut off by the outbreak of conflict.
Ivan's and Harry's assistance in the match is a rarity.
Karkaroff and Maxim fell into a long silence as they watched the images play out in the crystal ball.
"I think a friendly match like this should go on, don't you?" Dumbledore asked, turning to face them.
"Well, the next time we hold a Triwizard Tournament, Beauxbatons will consider it." Maxim hesitated, then relented.
Karkaroff didn't give him any face, remarking sarcastically, "That's assuming there aren't two more champions at Hogwarts!"
Dumbledore winced, then smiled wryly; this was not what he had hoped for either.
However, Dumbledore knew very well that Karkaroff and Maxim would not believe him no matter how he tried to explain.
"Well, gentlemen, time for small talk can be put back! We should prepare in advance for the return of the champions!" Crouch interrupted the three headmasters.
Dumbledore nodded and waved his wand to produce several thick blankets and stretchers. He then instructed the Ravenclaw prefect to summon Madam Pomfrey, who was waiting in the tent, so that she could treat the injured champions as soon as possible.