[Fourteenth Day, The Day of the Second Task Competition]
Although the competition was supposed to start at nine o'clock, Link was not in the least bit anxious. Just like usual, he only lazily got up at seven in the morning, brushed his teeth and washed, ate breakfast, and then deliberately dragged things out until a quarter to nine before slowly strolling toward the arena.
The entire Hogwarts student body did not feel there was anything inappropriate about this almost negligent attitude of Link's.
No one had the thought of urging Link to get to the venue earlier to wait.
This was very normal.
After all, last year when Link had effortlessly slaughtered a dragon with that same leisurely, after-meal-walk sort of attitude, everyone felt that this year's Triwizard Cup champion would of course be Link. Even Madame Maxime and Karkaroff were no exception.
Because Link's strength was so absurdly unscientific, not even magical.
That left the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang people in despair, while at the same time the Hogwarts students were grinning so wide their mouths could barely close.
Forget all that nonsense about international friendship, what they truly enjoyed was watching these students from the other schools get humbled.
They also loved seeing Link put on that relaxed, untouchable demeanor, as if no one else even mattered in his eyes.
So naturally, plenty of people gathered around Link, laughing and showering him with encouragement and congratulations, not even bothering to go take their seats in the stands. They were all just waiting until the last moment to follow behind Link to the arena.
The whole thing looked just like Link was about to lead a mob into a big group fight.
The site for the second task wasn't actually far from the dragon enclosure used in the first one. It was a little farther west, right by the edge of the Black Lake.
The dragon enclosure, however, had already been completely dismantled. The tiered seating from inside had been moved, layer by layer, over to the lakeshore.
As for the judges' table, it stood beside the lake with a gold tablecloth laid across it. Fleur, Krum, and the judges were seated there, watching Link's approach.
The students in the stands were doing the same.
But compared to the calm and composed judges, the Hogwarts students were clearly unable to sit still.
When they saw with their own eyes Link "leading" a massive crowd of Hogwarts students marching down from the castle toward the lakeshore, they couldn't help but burst into cheers and shouts.
"Link!~"
"Hogwarts!"
"Hogwarts!"
Their voices were so loud that the surface of the Black Lake rippled with wave after wave.
Hearing these shouts, the students trailing behind Link grew even more arrogant, their noses in the air. Some of the younger Slytherins were so excited they even started swinging their fists in the air.
Among all of them, only Link remained the calmest. His face was expressionless as he headed toward the judges' table, his pace not changing in the slightest.
In sharp contrast were the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons crowds, their faces pale and ugly.
Bagman seemed to be swept up by the atmosphere of the scene, and he too grew excited. He immediately stood and rushed forward to greet Link, grabbing him and pulling him toward the judges' table.
That was where the champions were supposed to gather.
"Link, you're finally here, everyone's been waiting for you!" Bagman said excitedly. As he spoke, he rubbed Link's shoulders and arms as though he were warming him up.
Link frowned, then immediately shook him off.
But even so, Bagman wasn't offended in the slightest. He remained just as enthusiastic as before, leading Link forward.
Meanwhile, the Hogwarts students who had come along with Link also went up into the stands under the guidance of their House Prefects.
This had been Dumbledore's order. His intention was for the Prefects to keep the students under control so that the guests from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons wouldn't be made to feel too embarrassed.
Unfortunately, those Prefects weren't really much different in attitude from the other students.
So instead of calming down, the scene actually grew louder and more chaotic under their "guidance."
Maxime and Karkaroff's faces were both extremely sour, but when they saw Link approaching, they still forced out smiles, at least giving some face to this heir of the Flamel family.
Dumbledore, on the other hand, beamed at Link and gave him a nod and a smile. Link, however, had never liked Dumbledore much, and naturally didn't respond with much warmth.
There was no helping it, Dumbledore's methods were simply too crafty.
Take just now, when the Prefects led the students over. Link would never believe for a second that Dumbledore didn't know what kind of people those Prefects were.
From the very start, Dumbledore had planned to let Maxime and Karkaroff lose face. Otherwise, he could have simply sent Professor McGonagall to escort the students.
Other than those three, the rest of the judges and people around the table showed Link no goodwill at all.
Krum acted as if Link didn't exist, silently staring at the Black Lake that remained unfrozen despite the harsh winter. His expression wasn't as relaxed as Link's, but he didn't really seem nervous either.
Durmstrang Institute was located in an extremely cold region, winter swimming was nothing unusual for him.
Fleur, however, looked much worse. She too was gazing at the Black Lake, but her once soft, rosy lips were now pale and bloodless, and her eyes were filled with endless worry.
When she saw Link, her mouth opened a few times, but no words came out.
It was clear she was worried about her younger sister Gabrielle. But Link ignored the hint, not initiating any conversation. Instead, he stopped right in front of old Barty Crouch.
"Mr. Flamel, what is it you want?" Old Barty asked in a low, weary voice.
He looked more frail, older than before.
Remembering what Percy had said earlier about Barty Crouch being mysteriously injured, Link's eyes flickered with blue light.
Sure enough, he could smell a faint trace of blood on the man, along with that distinct, rotting stench unique to an old man near death.
This old fellow clearly hadn't been having it easy lately.
Confirming that, Link naturally gave old Barty a malicious smile.
He didn't bother to hide his malice at all. Which, of course, made the look old Barty gave him even uglier.
Bagman, being a shrewd man, immediately noticed the change in atmosphere between them. Laughing, he tried to make jokes to keep things from escalating beyond repair, also wanting to preserve some dignity for his colleague.
Unfortunately, neither Link nor old Barty had any interest in giving him face.
The two stood there in silence, one with a face dark as water, the other with a wicked grin, radiating malice without restraint.
Even Dumbledore picked up on the tension. He deliberately coughed twice, at which point Link finally shifted his gaze away and slowly took his place beside Krum and Fleur.
At that very moment, Harry's figure at last came bursting out of the Hogwarts castle, sprinting madly toward the lakeshore as if his life depended on it.
The instant people saw this, many let out sighs of relief.
Because the competition was about to begin.
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