Harry Potter: Glory Bows to Me

“You…” A tall female student from Beauxbatons spoke first, staring at Amanta and the others, her words rapid, “Why are you out so early?”

"And you even brought both of them out with you?" another Durmstrang student chimed in, his voice laced with disbelief. "Then who's really done the mission? We haven't even... we've only just found the edge of the settlement—"

Did you cheat?

The moment the words left his mouth, the atmosphere in the tent froze.

“We did not cheat,” Draco said coldly. He stood in front of Amanta, his face expressionless, but his voice was icy and chilling.

"We simply achieved our goal faster within the rules of the game."

"How is that possible?" a boy shouted angrily. "The Mermaid Settlement is unfathomable. Even if you knew its location, it would be impossible to complete the mission in just over ten minutes! You must have known something beforehand—are you colluding? Did they tell you something that allowed you to find the settlement so easily?"

They all turned to Fleur and Krum, their voices growing increasingly agitated.

"This match is unfair!"

"Everyone knows that the champions of Hogwarts have close ties with officials of the Ministry of Magic. Have you conspired together to do something underhanded?"

"Or have you been in secret contact with those mermaids all along?"

Harry stepped forward, raised his hands, and tried to interrupt their increasingly heated accusations.

“There was no collusion, and we did not have any contact with any mermaids. We were completing the mission according to the competition rules. They were unconscious on the spot, and we were worried that they might be in danger, so we brought them back.”

"Just taking them?" A female student from Beauxbatons almost burst out laughing. "They're our team's targets! How can you just take our mission subjects away like that? You're stealing our points!"

Julius Hoffmann stood in the corner, remaining silent.

Only now did he give a casual laugh, his tone as relaxed as if he were discussing a paper in a library:

"If you disagree with the rules, you can appeal to the referee team. But please don't waste your time here repeating pointless emotional outbursts."

He glanced at the Durmstrang student and tilted his head slightly.

“If you’re really that capable, you should have come back before us, instead of coming to the tent to question us—why you did it faster.”

That nonchalant tone was more lethal than any sarcasm.

A moment of silence fell over the air.

The six students' faces turned bright red, but they couldn't find a reason to refute them.

Harry cleared his throat, trying to smooth things over.

“We really didn’t do anything wrong. We just… had a relatively smooth journey. Maybe it was luck, or maybe we worked together better.”

They certainly wouldn't mention the Blue Eye or the Crown.

The snow outside hadn't melted yet. Under the vast white sky, the tents by the lake exuded a faint dampness.

After a quick wash and rest, Bagman's voice came through the curtain: "Warriors, please come out for a moment, we're about to announce the scores for Game 2—"

The people inside the tent exchanged glances.

Amanta stood up, put on her outer robe, and walked at a leisurely pace at the front.

She knew it was just part of the competition, but her heart was still beating a little faster than usual.

They lifted the curtain and came out.

A biting wind swept in, and the lake had returned to calm. A group of people gathered in front of the judges' table. Students and professors from the three schools, as well as parents who had come from afar, officials from the Ministry of Magic, and reporters were all crowded on the open ground in front of the lake, their eyes fixed on the warriors who had just come out of the tents.

"It's them! It's them!"

"Look—the champions of Slytherin—how could they—"

"Quiet, quiet, quiet!" Bagman shouted, drowning out the commotion.

He waved his hands, a familiar excited smile on his face, "The second round of the top three competition has come to a successful conclusion. The judging panel has given comprehensive scores based on each warrior's time, rescue efforts, team performance, and response to unexpected situations. Now—let me announce the scores!"

A dazzling curtain floated in front of the judges' panel, displaying the scores one by one.

Hogwarts: 48 points

Beauxbatons: 35 points

Durmstrang: 39 points

"The Hogwarts team completed the entire mission and successfully brought back the hostages in just seventeen minutes—" he emphasized loudly! This is the fastest second match ever completed in the history of the Triwizard Tournament! It deserves applause!

After a moment of silence, a thunderous applause erupted.

That was a passion and excitement that even the cold weather couldn't suppress.

The Hogwarts students seemed to finally come to their senses, and cheers echoed across the lake shore.

Amanta Merlin!!

"Harry Potter! Draco Malfoy!!"

"Julius Hoffmann! You guys are amazing—!"

"Hail Slytherin!!"

"Long live Hogwarts!!!"

The first to rush out from the crowd was Neville Longbottom. He pushed aside the two older students blocking his way, ran up to Amanta with an incredulous look on his face, and his face turned red with excitement.

"I knew you could do it! I knew it!" He waved his arms excitedly. "Ten minutes! Ten minutes! You guys are simply, you guys are even more amazing than the legendary Merlin!"

Amanta couldn't help but chuckle softly.

In the distance, Hermione Granger struggled to stand on tiptoe and wave. She wasn't tall enough, and her hair was a mess; she almost got lost in the crowd, but she still managed to shout, "You guys are awesome!"

Luna Lovegood, standing quietly at the edge of the crowd, held a notebook covered in feather bookmarks. As she turned the pages, she spoke to the person beside her in a sleepwalking tone, "I knew it, they must have seen the Feathered Illusion Fish... they all had that look in their eyes." With that, she looked up and gave Amanta a gentle smile.

This scene is just too strange.

It almost made them feel a little uncomfortable.

Perhaps it was because it was so intense, the boiling fervor made it almost impossible to tell whether it was real or fake.

In an instant, all the rumors and gossip about the Dark Lord's heir, the dangerous elements of Slytherin, and the best to stay away from them seemed to have been washed away without a trace by this victory.

No one stood by indifferently anymore, no one whispered among themselves. There was only a continuous stream of applause, praise, and cheers.

They seemed to have become true heroes.

Even Draco, who had been silent the whole time, had a hint of restrained smugness on his lips.

He did not respond to anyone's shouts, but stood straight as if accepting the glory that belonged to him.

Harry's smile was more genuine; he smiled brightly and tried to respond to everyone's greetings, but the noise was too loud and the sound was quickly drowned out by the crowd.

Julius stood beside them, his usually indifferent gaze now tinged with a hint of pleasure.

He nodded slightly to Amanta, as if to say: See, this is the result.