The age-restricting charm couldn't stop Illya, who was already well over seventeen, but she knew the champions had already been decided. Even if she wanted to participate, there would be no chance.
"Can't Professor Dumbledore just add a few more spots?"
"There were only supposed to be three champions originally, and now Harry Potter has already been added as an extra. If we add more... wouldn't it just turn into a free-for-all?"
Ethan stroked his chin, thinking that might actually be quite interesting, a magical version of the Hunger Games? But Dumbledore clearly wouldn't allow it. The more participants there were, the greater the risk of accidents.
Allowing one extra participant, and someone underage like Harry or Ethan, was still within the Ministry of Magic's acceptable range. But turning a competition for a few elites into a chaotic mess was something they absolutely wouldn't accept.
Even if they were willing, they couldn't. The procedures were already fixed, and preparations were underway step by step. If the format suddenly changed, all the work done so far would be wasted.
"What a shame. It's rare to have something this interesting happen."
For Illya, the Triwizard Tournament was just something fun, even though she had no idea what the tasks actually involved.
The registration period quickly ended. On the final day, Dumbledore, the professors, and Barty Crouch all appeared next to the Goblet of Fire.
The students gathered on their own, including those from the other two schools. They found seats and quietly waited for the Goblet to announce this year's champions.
Just like in the original story, Dumbledore gave a brief speech. Then, with a wave of his hand, the flames in the Great Hall dimmed. The eerie blue light of the Goblet of Fire became the focal point.
As Dumbledore moved, the blue flames in the Goblet suddenly turned red, and a piece of parchment was spat out.
Viktor Krum and Fleur Delacour were selected first, just as expected.
Ethan didn't know exactly what criteria the Goblet used, but these two were clearly representative of their schools. Almost no one would question their selection.
As for Hogwarts... if no interference had occurred, Cedric Diggory certainly had the qualifications to represent the school among the older students. Unfortunately, that chance no longer existed.
"And the final champion is..."
Dumbledore waited for the Goblet to complete its selection. When he caught the parchment, he paused for a moment and glanced thoughtfully in Ethan's direction.
"Great acting."
Ethan silently gave Dumbledore a thumbs-up in his mind. Dumbledore's performance looked completely natural, as if he were genuinely surprised by the name.
If Ethan hadn't already known the next name would be his, he might have thought Harry's name had come out early instead.
"Ethan... Arendelle!"
All the students turned to look at Ethan. The Slytherin table erupted in cheers.
Ethan had submitted his name openly, right in front of nearly everyone. The failed attempts by many underage students afterward—including the Weasley twins—had further proven Ethan's capability.
At this moment, no one thought it inappropriate for Ethan to be chosen. Even the other schools didn't voice objections. Choosing someone younger gave them an advantage, so why complain?
"Wait a moment. Ethan is not old enough by the standard. He shouldn't be eligible."
Professor McGonagall was the first to speak out in protest. As someone aware of the situation, she didn't doubt Ethan's strength. This was clearly part of the act.
"The Goblet of Fire's selection is magically binding..."
After a bit of debate, Barty Crouch still insisted the tournament proceed. At that moment, the Goblet spat out another piece of parchment. Dumbledore fumbled slightly before catching it and reading the name.
"Harry... Potter..."
Now things got interesting. The Goblet had chosen two students from Hogwarts, and neither had reached seventeen. This made Barty Crouch visibly uncomfortable, but he still pushed forward, saying the tournament would continue as normal.
It was just three champions becoming four.
As for the dangers the champions might face... perhaps he hadn't thought that far ahead.
After some discussion, it was confirmed that the Goblet wouldn't produce any more names. The four champions were to meet in a separate room, then return to prepare for the first task.
Since Viktor and Fleur had left the Great Hall immediately after their names were called, they didn't know what had happened and only heard the sounds of arguing.
When Ethan and Harry walked into the room, both of them looked confused.
"Um... which one of you is the Hogwarts champion?"
Harry turned to Ethan beside him. He was still dazed and didn't understand what had happened or why he was there.
"Both of us."
Fleur tilted her head, looking at the two younger boys. "Are you... seventeen?"
"Uh... fourteen."
Harry answered without hesitation.
Ethan said nothing. Because of his irregular lifestyle, he had never calculated his age since his appearance was fixed.
He had spent time across multiple worlds, so it was hard to track how many years had passed. In any case, it wasn't a small number.
"Fourteen?"
Viktor looked at them strangely. He was confused about how these two could have been chosen.
Had someone tampered with the Goblet? But that didn't make sense either. Why would anyone block the older, stronger students and send in two kids? Two at once, even?
They wanted to ask more, to learn about their new opponents, but Dumbledore and the others soon entered the room. Dumbledore immediately resumed his excellent acting, sternly questioning Harry about whether he had submitted his name, or if someone else had done it for him.
Harry kept shaking his head, saying he had done no such thing and didn't know how it happened.
Meanwhile, Ethan quietly stood by and watched. Everyone present already knew how he had done it. They just hadn't expected the Goblet to actually choose him.
"How did you do it?"
"What?"
Several professors surrounded Harry, firing questions nonstop. Viktor and Fleur were pushed to the edge of the room, like they had nothing to do with the tournament anymore.
Fleur looked around and recalled Ethan throwing his name into the Goblet without issue, ignoring the age barrier.
At the time, she had thought he was just capable. But now, she wondered if it wasn't just registering, but rather something that ensured the Goblet would select him.
"Take out a parchment, write your name, and toss it into the Goblet."
Ethan's answer was entirely true, but Fleur didn't believe it. She thought he didn't want to share the method, or maybe he was guarding against her as a rival.
So there wasn't much more conversation between them. Confused and unsure, the Triwizard Tournament officially began.
The entire tournament would last throughout the school year. There were only three tasks, but each one required ample preparation time. There was also plenty of time for the champions to recover afterward.
So there was no concern about being exhausted by consecutive events or that injuries would carry over.
In short, the Triwizard Tournament's schedule was very relaxed and gave participants lots of free time. So much time, in fact, that Ethan found it a bit boring.
Unlike the others who had no clue about the first task, Ethan knew perfectly well it would be a head-on fight with a dragon.
That was no problem for him. Even if he didn't suppress it with his aura, he could still defeat the dragon in a direct clash and turn it into a harmless worm.
However, before the competition even began, Ethan encountered a new problem.
Ever since he was selected as Hogwarts' champion, his popularity at school had skyrocketed. While he had already been well-known, it wasn't like this, where people greeted him wherever he went.
More importantly, many of them weren't Slytherins, which was previously unheard of.
"If you weren't in Slytherin, everyone would be cheering for you already."
Hermione emerged from another corridor and happened to meet Ethan. Seeing him curiously observing the students who greeted him and those who didn't, she casually explained, "After all, Slytherin House... well, you know."
Slytherin's reputation and popularity were what they were. Ethan wasn't surprised.
"Are you looking for me?"
"Actually, Harry is looking for you. He's over there."
Thanks to Ethan's early rule-breaking, Harry's situation at school was slightly better than in the original story. At least he wasn't being mocked by everyone.
In fact, many students who disliked Slytherin fully supported Harry, hoping he would represent Hogwarts, defeat the champions from the other schools, and beat Ethan from Slytherin.
(To be continued.)