Chapter 483: Approaching the Task!!
Darren's words finally made Hagrid happy again.
He truly cheered up.
However, he wasn't just relieved—he became filled with a strong desire for vindication. He kept praising Darren, urging him again and again to take first place.
"Darren, you're the little wizard I admire most in all these years," Hagrid said emotionally.
"You were thrown into the middle of other people's battles almost from birth. You grew up in an orphanage and were bullied by those Muggles.
"Dumbledore said that if they hadn't arrived in time, you would have been beaten to death by that Muggle. And yet, you're still so kind, so lovable…
"You grew up in Harry's shadow—anyone would think your life would be hard—but you survived bravely.
"Darren, promise me this: become the best champion in the Triwizard Tournament! Defeat them openly and tell them—so what about pure-bloods?
"Pure-bloods can only be trampled under your feet. The entire Hogwarts student body is no match for you!"
He spoke passionately.
Darren looked embarrassed.
Then he replied sincerely, "Hagrid, I really didn't suffer that much at Hogwarts. As for the orphanage… although it was a bit harder, I could endure it."
[Ding, Father value +100]
[Ding, Father value +100]
[Ding, Father value +100]
[Ding…]
His sincerity convinced no one.
In their eyes, Darren had lived a miserable life.
He had nearly died in the orphanage. His life at Hogwarts had been full of hardships as well.
At the beginning, he had been sorted into Slytherin, where students mocked him relentlessly. Almost the entire school believed he was a bad person.
He lived under pressure every single day—how could that be considered "not suffering"?
Even now, he claimed that the Slytherin students treated him well.
But Hermione, who had been inside the Slytherin dormitories, felt she had the right to speak.
Darren had been ridiculed and ostracized by nearly all of Slytherin. Maybe a few Slytherin girls were kind to him, but that changed nothing. In her eyes, he was still pitiful.
Seeing that no one believed him, Darren could only wear an expression of wanting to explain yet knowing it was useless.
He thought that someday, when the truth finally came out, he could at least say that he had tried to explain—but no one believed him.
Just like in first year, when he tried to explain that Snape wasn't a bad person, yet no one believed him.
In the end, when Snape truly didn't do anything wrong, they would recall Darren's words and realize that he had always been simple-minded and trusting.
This time was the same.
To avoid future contradictions, Darren naturally put on that conflicted expression.
After all, the little "Holy Father" image couldn't have any flaws.
---
After leaving Hagrid's hut, Harry felt utterly dejected.
Hagrid hadn't just placed Darren first—he had placed Harry second.
He said the two of them had to be the best, to make those people realize that pure-blood supremacy was nothing but nonsense.
Harry didn't have the heart to tell Hagrid that he still hadn't mastered the spells Darren taught him.
Even the one possible lifeline—gillyweed—might not be available in any apothecary.
It was an extremely precious herb. It allowed a person to breathe underwater for an hour and was also a key ingredient in many important potions.
Of course it was rare.
Harry didn't even know if he could obtain it.
Thinking about how humiliating his performance might be, Harry grew increasingly anxious.
Still, he told himself there was time.
After all, February 24 hadn't arrived yet.
What if he suddenly mastered the spells? What if the apothecaries managed to get gillyweed?
Anything was possible.
But time kept slipping away.
Two weeks…
One week…
Five days…
Three days…
Two days…
One day left.
Harry finally began to regret everything.
He still hadn't fully mastered the Bubble-Head Charm.
With Darren's help, he could now maintain it for more than forty minutes—but the task required an entire hour underwater.
That meant he would definitely become a laughingstock at Hogwarts.
People would mock him for becoming a Triwizard champion through improper means, only to fail at mastering even a basic Bubble-Head Charm.
Yet the Bubble-Head Charm wasn't the worst part.
The real blow was the gillyweed.
Darren had asked every apothecary.
They all said they might get a new batch—but it would be after the Triwizard Tournament.
As for Snape's supply, Harry finally mustered the courage to ask.
Snape told him coldly that he had run out of gillyweed.
Worse still, he deliberately mocked Harry in class.
He said Harry should have asked for help earlier—after all, no one could refuse a champion's request.
Unfortunately, he had already lent it to Krum.
This made Harry furious.
"He knew I wanted gillyweed. He did it on purpose," Harry said angrily.
"He was afraid I'd steal it—or that Darren would ask Dumbledore to intervene.
"That's why he gave it all to Krum. There's no way Krum could use all of it!"
That was entirely possible.
But Harry hadn't asked in advance—and that was his own mistake.
Hermione scolded him harshly for it, to the point where Harry nearly lost his temper.
Still, nothing could be done.
Even Darren was at a loss for words.
During this period, even he didn't have any gillyweed.
He truly hadn't expected Harry to be this hopeless.
Forget about the advanced spells Darren had invented—even the most basic Bubble-Head Charm hadn't been fully mastered.
Gillyweed was ugly to eat, but it worked.
Although Harry served as Darren's "contrast," the difference was now so stark that others might think Darren was deliberately not helping him.
But Darren really couldn't do anything more—Harry simply hadn't mastered it.
If he had known this would happen, he would have revealed the secret of the golden egg earlier and forced Harry to start practicing sooner.
But at the time, he hadn't thought it would come to this.
Harry had eventually mastered the Summoning Charm, hadn't he? Why was the Bubble-Head Charm suddenly so difficult?
However.
They weren't the only ones who wanted to help Harry.
There was still one more person.
Moody.
He would definitely help Harry.