Wade turned his lens and found two or three other school boxes diagonally opposite, where students were brought by their professors to watch the match.
They were all teenagers, born in peaceful times, possessing powers unimaginable to ordinary people. Even among their peers, they were considered exceptionally talented, which made them all look spirited and vibrant.
Perhaps the adults behind them came to Britain with some utilitarian goals, but the students generally didn't think that far ahead. Even regarding the upcoming competition, they simply aimed to do their best.
At this moment, the young people, like all the fervent spectators, cheered and screamed, their eyes fixed on the swiftly flying players. They cheered wildly when their favored team scored and groaned in frustration when they suffered a setback.
Suddenly, Wade's binoculars paused slightly. He spotted the Malfoy family in his view.
The reason he noticed them was that, like Sirius, they had lavishly booked an entire box but hadn't invited any other friends to fill the empty seats.
Draco Malfoy was leaning over the railing, clearly very excited by the match, his demeanor no different from Harry's next to Wade.
His mother sat smiling in a chair nearby, seemingly not very interested in the match herself, mostly keeping her gaze on her son.
Lucius Malfoy had been sitting beside them, frowning, when he suddenly leaned over and whispered something to his wife. He then stood up and left the box through a small door at the back, disappearing from Wade's sight.
Wade adjusted his lens and then saw the students who had mocked the English team for only scoring 10 points. Their school robes, a vibrant mix of blue and rose-red, perfectly matched their outwardly flamboyant yet contradictory aura.
Wade now knew that these were students from Ilvermorny in America.
Some old-fashioned British wizards considered Ilvermorny to be merely an imitation of Hogwarts, superficial and flighty. However, American wizards believed they were pioneering and full of potential, while Hogwarts was seen as a decaying relic.
However, due to the Wizarding World's inherently conservative and insular nature, wizards from the two countries had few opportunities to interact and rarely conveyed their true opinions to each other.
Just thinking about all these people gathering at Hogwarts... Wade couldn't help but feel a headache coming on for Professor McGonagall.
As for Dumbledore... Dumbledore probably wouldn't be bothered by this. He would just smile benignly as the different ideologies clashed, and generously declare that they were all doing splendidly.
After moving his gaze away from the Ilvermorny box, Wade briefly checked the match and saw the Peruvian Beater put all his strength into hitting a Bludger towards an opponent. However, the Irish Beater nimbly dodged it.
The qualities displayed by these Quidditch players always amazed Wade. It was completely dark now, the sky was overcast, and not a trace of the moon could be seen. Even with the lights in the stadium, finding the Bludgers wasn't easy.
But the players on both sides acted as if the Bludgers and Quaffle were extensions of their own limbs. Sometimes, their bodies reacted in time even before their eyes registered the balls.
Looking at it this way, Quidditch matches weren't as uninteresting as Wade had originally thought.
He watched distractedly for a moment when a Peruvian player was hit by a Bludger. Blood immediately splattered, and the player fell straight from the sky. The stadium's safety officer quickly chased after him on a broom and managed to catch him with a Levitation Charm before he hit the ground.
The match was paused for a moment, and Wade's gaze returned to the boxes in the stands.
He idly scanned for a while, hoping to spot some familiar faces, like Antoine, Grindelwald, McGonagall, Dumbledore, and so on.
A streak of light golden hair, like smooth silk, suddenly caught Wade's eye.
Lucius Malfoy had left his own box but reappeared in another. The people there were sitting in the back rows, seemingly paying no attention to the match. They were huddled together, talking in low voices, and seemed quite agitated.
Wade saw Lucius Malfoy subconsciously clutching his arm, looking somewhat fearful and with a hint of disgust.
When the match whistle blew again, Lucius Malfoy also stood up and left the box, followed by most of the others.
Among them were two burly, strong men, like enlarged versions of Goyle and Crabbe, undoubtedly the fathers of those two Slytherin classmates.
Wade had met Crabbe's father before, and now, the man's expression seemed even more grim. He didn't speak at all, just listened.
As for the other few, some were gaunt, some had fierce expressions, and one had a noticeable hunchback. Most of them would often unintentionally touch their arms, as if by reflex.
—A Death Eater gathering?
Wade frowned. After those few left, the remaining people in the box seemed to start focusing on the match.
Wade lowered his head and fiddled with his binoculars—one of the advantages of this panoramic scope was that it could replay footage, as well as zoom in and out.
The few people in the box quickly appeared in the lens. Wade tried to make out their unclear mouth movements—
"The Mark... is getting clearer... resurrection..."
"Impossible..."
"Cause chaos... test... can send a signal..."
"Wait for the right time... we need... the final..."
Wade lowered his binoculars, frowning.
Were the Dark Marks on the Death Eaters' arms reminding them that Voldemort was preparing to resurrect?
It was probably like getting an invisible electric shock now and then, impossible to forget, and to some extent, it even weakened the power of the Notice-Me-Not Charm.
Given this, would they still cause chaos in the camp and torment Muggles after the match, just like in the original story?
Suddenly, Wade heard a sharp, loud whistle—Ireland had won.
A chaotic roar and cheering erupted in the stands. Supporters danced with excitement, pointing their wands skyward and setting off countless magical fireworks.
The Irish players flew in circles around the stadium, seemingly eager to announce their victory to all the spectators.
After this match, they had secured their ticket to the finals, and their final ranking would be either champions or runner-up.
"That match was awesome," Harry said, still buzzing. "Aidan Lynch is amazing, and his teammates are great too. What do you think, Wade?"
Wade blinked and said, "Honestly, I think the most exciting match is always the first one."
"Huh?" Harry didn't understand. He wasn't much of a reader, especially when it came to history books.
Sirius and Lupin understood and burst into laughter.
"In 1473, the first Quidditch World Cup didn't have as many rules as it does now," Wade explained slowly. "I heard they used to turn Seekers into weasels and tried to chop off the Keeper's head with a cleaver. The team captain hid over a hundred vampire bats under his robes—isn't that much more exciting than a match chasing a few balls now?"
Harry was wide-eyed. "Is that even still called Quidditch?"
Wade nodded. "Orthodox Wizard Quidditch."
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