After HP shared the dream, Lao Fu was conquered by me

"You idiot," said Ron, "you didn't take that song seriously, did you? Dumbledore wouldn't let any of us drown!"

"That song says—"

"That's just to get you back on time!" said Ron. "Hope you didn't lose time trying to be a hero down there!"

"That's enough, Ron, stop talking about Lamia like that!" Hermione pulled Ron, then took Madam Pomfrey's towel and kept wiping Lamia's hair.

The judges all stood there watching, as if waiting for the mermaid leader underwater, but unfortunately, they were all dead.

Lamia could see Madam Pomfrey fussing around Harry, Krum, Cedric, and Cho Chang, all of whom were wrapped in thick blankets.

Dumbledore and Ludo Bagman smiled at them before Lamia came ashore, and Percy, pale and looking years younger than usual, rushed over to greet them.

Meanwhile, Madame Maxime was trying to hold onto Fleur Delacour, who was in complete hysterics and was struggling desperately to throw herself into the water.

"Gabrielle! Gabrielle! Wake up baby!"

"She's fine!" Lamia wanted to tell her, but she was too tired to even speak, let alone shout.

Percy grabbed Ron and dragged him to shore, while Dumbledore and Bagman pulled Harry to his feet. Fleur broke free from Madame Maxime's hold and hugged her sister.

"It was the Grinlodi... The Grinlodi were attacking me... Oh, Gabrielle, I thought... I thought..."

"All of you, come here," Madam Pomfrey said, and she seized Lamia and pulled her over to Hermione and the others, wrapping her so tightly in a blanket that she felt like she was wearing a straitjacket for prisoners and lunatics.

Madam Pomfrey also forced a fiery potion into his mouth, and immediately hot air came out of his ears.

"Brilliant, Lamia," Hermione exclaimed. "You did it! You did it all on your own!"

"Actually..." Lamia said, but in a blink of an eye she saw Karkaroff looking at her. He was the only one among the judges who did not leave the table, and he was the only one who did not show an expression of joy and relief after seeing Hermione and Fleur's sister return safely.

He seemed worried about something.

Lamia wasn't sure if he'd discovered Tom's presence, since he was a former Death Eater.

Hermione suddenly lowered her head and cried, "Lamia, you've exceeded the time limit. Will they..."

"No...it's not too late for me to find you..." Lamia said. She didn't think she had broken any rules, but she didn't understand why she should go back now.

Maybe it was Tom's last look that reminded Lamia of the memories of the orphanage.

But Lamia felt more and more that she was really stupid.

Now that she was out of the water, she knew full well that Dumbledore had arranged effective security measures and would not allow the hostages to be lost because the champion did not show up.

She could have been the first one back, so Cedric and Krum didn't waste their time worrying about others. They didn't take the mermaid's song seriously.

Dumbledore was squatting by the water, looking at the lake in front of him. Dumbledore made the sharp and piercing sound that a mermaid made on the water. Obviously, he could also speak the language of mermaids.

But after a long time, no mermaid was seen to surface.

Finally, he stood up straight, turned to the other judges, and said, "Let's have a meeting first and then give the scores."

Several judges gathered together, but they were all silent. Dumbledore had set up a ban outside, and Lamia could not hear any sound from inside. They seemed to be discussing the issue of the mermaid population.

Lamia didn't know how to answer the mermaid's question. Was she going to say that they were all wiped out because of her?

This will definitely not work.

Madam Pomfrey freed Ron from Percy's tight grasp and led him to Harry and the others, giving him a blanket and some refreshing potions, then went over to fetch Fleur and her sister.

Fleur's face and arms were covered in bruises and her robes were torn, but she didn't seem to mind and didn't let Madam Pomfrey clean them for her.

"Go and take care of Gabrielle," she said to Madam Pomfrey, then turned to Lamia. "Thank goodness you saved her. She's okay now."