Finally, the golden goblet returned to its dusty state, and the noise in the Great Hall suddenly escalated.
Dumbledore stood up, and the hall fell silent once more. Karkaroff and Madame Maxime on either side of Dumbledore looked as nervous and expectant as everyone else.
Ludo Bagman grinned broadly, winking at students from all the schools, while Mr. Crouch appeared disinterested, almost bored.
"Alright, the Goblet of Fire is about to make its decision," Dumbledore said.
"I estimate it will take another minute. Listen, after the champions' names are announced.
I want them to walk to the top of the hall, then proceed along the staff table and enter the room next door—" he pointed to the door behind the staff table, "—where they will receive preliminary instructions."
He took out his wand and waved it widely. Instantly, all the candles except those inside the pumpkin lanterns extinguished, leaving the hall in a dim half-light.
The Triwizard Cup now emitted a dazzling light, brighter than anything else in the hall, its sparks of blue and white flames almost blinding.
Everyone watched, waiting... Some checked their watches...
"Almost there," someone whispered quietly.
Suddenly, the flames in the goblet turned red again, sparks crackling.
Then, a tongue of flame shot into the air, and from within flew out a signed piece of parchment—everyone in the hall held their breath.
Dumbledore caught the parchment and held it up high so he could read the words in the light of the flame. The flames returned to their blue and white color.
"The Durmstrang champion," he said clearly and forcefully, "is Viktor Krum."
Applause and cheers swept through the entire hall.
Viktor Krum stood up from the Slytherin table, looking indifferent, and walked towards Dumbledore.
He turned right, walked along the staff table, and entered the room through the adjacent door.
"Well done, Viktor!" roared Karkaroff like a bell, despite the applause in the hall, his voice still audible.
"I knew you were destined to be the champion!"
The applause and chatter gradually subsided. Now everyone's attention returned to the Goblet of Fire, and a few seconds later, the flames turned red once more.
The second piece of parchment shot out of the cup propelled by flames.
"The Beauxbatons champion," Dumbledore announced, "is Fleur Delacour!"
The elegant half-veela girl stood up, tossed her shiny silver hair, and gracefully walked between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables.
"Oh, you seem to know her strength well," Hermione remarked amidst the noise. "You're quite familiar with her."
It was a bit sarcastic, and Alaric comfortingly patted Hermione's head.
After Fleur Delacour also entered the room next door, the hall quieted down again, but this time with an excitement that could almost be tasted in the silence. Now it was Hogwarts' turn...
At that moment, the flames in the goblet turned red once again, sparks crackling, and a flame tongue shot high into the air. Dumbledore pulled out the third piece of parchment from the tip of the flame.
"The Hogwarts champion," he looked at the parchment seriously, as if he had found some mistake, and after a while said loudly, "is Hermione Granger!"
There was silence in the crowd after this name was announced.
"How is this possible? She's not old enough!" someone exclaimed loudly from the crowd, it was Ron Weasley, and everyone heard his words.
Indeed, it was a surprising result. Everyone knew Hermione was only in her fourth year, three years away from seventeen.
For a moment, many people began to echo Ron's doubts, most of whom were Hufflepuffs and Slytherins.
The Slytherins simply couldn't stand a wizard like Hermione, who was born to Muggle parents, and the Hufflepuffs thought it made more sense for their prefect, Cedric Diggory, to be the champion.
In addition, the Ravenclaws cheered, some of them loudly opposing Hufflepuff and Slytherin.
The eagles knew Hermione's strength well; not to mention her perfect scores every year, she earned hundreds of points for Ravenclaw in every class.
Hermione was not disturbed by the doubts of other wizards.
This was something she had learned from Alaric—instead of arguing with others, it was better to convince them with her strength.
The noise lasted for a long time. Finally, Dumbledore quieted everyone down and spoke.
"I know some of you have doubts about the selection of the champion by the Goblet of Fire," he said loudly, "but the only criterion the Goblet uses to select champions is strength.
Although I set a limit of seventeen years old for the champions, Miss Granger has shown that she has the ability to surpass my restriction.
The fact that the Goblet has chosen her as the Hogwarts champion proves that her strength exceeds that of any other candidate.
In fact, we all know that Miss Granger once won the International Wizard Dueling Championship, so I have no doubt about her abilities."
Almost all young wizards were convinced by Dumbledore's words.
They had to admit that Miss Granger's strength was remarkable throughout Hogwarts.
So far, few young wizards had mastered the Patronus Charm completely, and they quickly spontaneously cheered for Hermione Granger.
Acknowledged, Hermione smiled and waved to everyone, then walked out of the crowd and into the adjacent room.
"Excellent!" Dumbledore exclaimed happily when the noise finally subsided.
"Alright, now our three champions have been chosen. I know I can trust all of you, including the other students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang.
You will all support your champions wholeheartedly. By cheering them on, you will also contribute greatly to this event—"
But Dumbledore suddenly stopped speaking, and everyone noticed what had caught his attention.
The flames in the Goblet of Fire turned red once more. Sparks crackled. A long tongue of flame suddenly shot into the air, and on it was another piece of parchment.
Almost instinctively, Dumbledore reached out with a long, slender hand and grabbed the parchment. He held it up, staring at the name written on it.
There was a long silence as Dumbledore stared at the parchment in his hand, and everyone in the Great Hall stared at Dumbledore.
Then, Dumbledore cleared his throat and loudly read out—
"Harry Potter."
.
.
.
Guys, do leave some power stones and reviews.
✌patreon.com/bobthewriter✌
If you guys enjoy this story, you can support me on Patreon and get access to 30 Advance Chapters, it really helps me to work on new chapters.