Hogwarts: My Grandmother is the Queen

Chapter 331 Krum

Henry settled into a high-backed chair in the tea room and watched as Krum sat down opposite him.

The Durmstrang warrior seemed more relaxed than when I last saw him in the hallway; perhaps the environment had changed—the hallway was public, while the tea room was a more private space.

"Viktor," Henry began, "did you encounter any trouble on your way from the ship?"

"Troublesome?" Krum thought for a moment. "A few students wanted my autograph, but I told them it wasn't autograph day, and they left."

Henry was somewhat surprised by the answer, "It's not an autograph day." "You do have an autograph day?"

"No," Krum said, "but if I say today isn't autograph day, they'll assume it really is and won't ask any more questions."

Draco chuckled beside him, "That's a good idea."

"It works very well." Krum grinned mischievously. "When I was at Durmstrang, I used it for three years and nobody noticed."

"Did many people ask for your autograph when you were in Durmstrang?" Draco asked.

"There were more at first, but then fewer," Krum said. "Because Durmstrang students got used to seeing me. When they saw me, they just saw a student like them, not a Quidditch star."

"Which one do you prefer?" Pan Xiwen.

"The latter," said Grimspeare. "It's easier to be seen as a human being than as a star player."

The room fell silent for a moment as everyone looked at Krum, whose expression remained calm, as if he were discussing something very simple.

There was a knock on the door.

"Please come in," Henry said.

Cedric pushed open the door and walked in. He was wearing a dark blue sweater today, his hair was a little neater than usual, and he wasn't carrying anything—he looked like he was just there for tea.

He saw that Krum was already sitting in the room and simply nodded: "Mr. Krum, you're here very early."

"I'm used to being on time," Krum said.

Cedric sat down next to Krum, poured himself a cup of tea, glanced at the refreshments on the coffee table, and exclaimed in surprise, "Honey cake today?"

"Lucy made it herself," Henry said. "She said Durmstrang doesn't have this dessert."

"No, there isn't," Krum said with a smile.

"Why don't you give it a try?" Cedric pushed the plate toward Krum.

Krum hesitated for a very brief moment, then reached out, took a piece, and took a bite.

"It tastes better than I expected," he said, his brow relaxing.

"What flavor are you imagining?" Cedric asked.

"I imagined it would be sweet," Krum said, "but what I actually tasted wasn't just sweetness, there was something else too."

"The honey cake recipe includes lemon zest and cinnamon," Henry said. "Lucy adjusted it herself."

"She's a great cook," Krum said with a smile. "Durmstrong also has house-elves, but their cooking is quite different from yours."

"What's different?" Draco asked curiously.

"Their food is more heavily seasoned," Krum said. "They use a lot of spices, probably because the principal likes strong flavors."

Ron, who had been trying to interject, finally got his chance: "Your headmaster is in charge of the kitchen?"

"Generally, he doesn't interfere," Krum said. "But the chef will try to figure out the principal's tastes and then adjust the menu accordingly."

"Does your principal have unusual tastes?"

"Heavy," Krum said. "He likes spicy food."

"Spicy?" Ron's eyes lit up. "I like spicy food too, but Hogwarts kitchens rarely make spicy dishes."

"It's probably because the British don't eat spicy food very well," Krum said. "Bulgarians eat spicy food, and Germans do too."

"So, when you were in Durmstrang, all the food you ate was spicy?"

"Most of the time," Krum said. "That's why I found the food here a bit bland after coming to Hogwarts."

"Can you get used to the food?"

"It takes some time to get used to," Krum said. "Actually, British food is pretty good."

Henry almost couldn't hold back his laughter, and it took him a while to suppress it.

Is British food good?

I'm almost embarrassed to say this.

Ron nodded thoughtfully: "What if you want spicy food?"

Krum glanced at him: "I brought my own bottle of hot sauce from Bulgaria."

"You brought hot sauce to the Triwizard Tournament?" Ron asked in surprise.

"Yes," Krum said. "The competition is important, but food is important too. I can't eat things I'm not used to during a competition. Would you like to try some? I can bring some next time."

"Okay," Ron said immediately, "I want to try it."

"I'll try some too," Harry said.

Henry had been quietly observing the conversation. He saw Ron gradually relax and Harry was keeping up with Ron's pace.

He also saw Cedric sitting next to him, quietly drinking tea, occasionally chiming in with a word or two, but not interrupting.

This is what a good tea party should be like.

"Victor," Henry began, "what kind of group activities do Durmstrang students participate in besides training?"

Krum thought for a moment: "We go on a hike once a month. To the Black Forest or the nearby mountains. We walk during the day, make a fire at night, and chat until very late."

Is your principal going too?

“Sometimes I go,” Krum said. “The atmosphere is different when he goes. It’s more liberating when he doesn’t go.”

"So, would you prefer him to go or not?"

Krum glanced at Henry. The look was brief, but Henry noticed a pause before he answered—

It seemed like he was considering how to answer.

"We feel more free when we don't go," Krum finally said. "But that's what we all think."

"Do you think Principal Karkaroff knows?" Draco asked.

"I know," Krum said, "but he doesn't care. He only cares about the result."

"Does 'result' refer to whether your training was good or not?"

"It's about whether we can win the game," Krum said. "He's the principal; he needs the school to win."

Cedric chimed in from the side, "Does your principal want to win the Triwizard Tournament?"

Krum glanced at Cedric: "He wants Durmstrang to win. Not just the Triwizard Tournament—he wants Durmstrang to win in any match."

"And what about you?"

"Me?" Krum laughed heartily, making no attempt to hide his feelings. "Of course I want to win. Nobody wants to be a loser, right?"

Cedric didn't press further. He picked up his teacup, took a sip, and seemed to be thinking about something, but didn't say anything.

The tea party lasted for nearly two hours. Krum didn't say much, but he seemed more natural than last time.

He started asking questions: "Where do the ghosts at Hogwarts come from?"

"Some of them lived in the castle during their lifetime," Harry said. "Others chose to remain here after they died."

"Does every college have ghosts?"

“Yes,” Harry said. “Gryffindor has Nick the Nearly Headless, Hufflepuff has the Fat Monk, Ravenclaw has the Grey Lady, and Slytherin has Barrow the Bloody.”

"What kind of personality do the ghosts in your academy have?"

"Nick, who almost didn't have a head, was very talkative," Harry said. "He loved chatting with students, especially the freshmen. He felt it was his responsibility to let the freshmen know about the history of the castle."

“The fat monk is rather easygoing,” Cedric chimed in. “He sometimes helps the students by showing them to the kitchen. He doesn’t scare people; the Hufflepuff ghosts, like the Hufflepuff students, don’t really like to frighten people.”

"What about the Slytherin ghost?" Krum asked Henry.

Henry thought for a moment: "Barrow the Bloody doesn't talk much, but he's very authoritative. The Slytherin students all respect him."

"Respect?"

“Yes,” Henry said. “Not the kind of respect between friends, but the kind where you see a person and you know they’ve been through a lot, and you know they deserve to be taken seriously.”

Krum nodded. "Durmstrong also has ghosts. We have a ghost called the Black Knight, said to be a knight from hundreds of years ago who died in the mountains near Durmstrong. He doesn't usually come out, but he does appear once every winter to circle the castle."

"Every winter?" Ron asked curiously, "Just one loop?"

“Yes,” Krum said. “His legend says that he was looking for something, but he couldn’t find it, so he keeps looking every winter.”

"What is he looking for?"

“Nobody knows,” Krum said. “He never says anything. He just walks around, and then disappears.”

A moment of silence fell over the room. Everyone was imagining the scene—a silent ghost knight, making his annual winter walk around the snow-covered castle.

"That sounds a bit—" Ron carefully chose his words, "a bit bleak?"

“Indeed,” Krum said, “but Durmstrang’s students are used to it. Every winter when we see him walk that lap, we know winter is coming.”

"Did any of you try to talk to him?" Harry asked.

“Yes,” Krum said. “I tried it once when I was in third grade. I went up to him and asked if he was still looking.” He stopped, looked at me, and then that was it.

"Just one glance?"

“Yes,” Krum said. “That was the only time he ever stopped to look at someone. I later heard that no student had ever made the Black Knight stop before.”

"So why do you think he stopped?"

Krum paused for a moment: "Maybe it's because he knows what I'm looking for too."

"What are you looking for?"

"I don't know," Krum said with a shrug.

As the tea party ended, Krum stood up: "I have to go back; I have training tonight."

"Come again next time," Henry said. "There are tea parties every Wednesday and Saturday."

"I'll be there," Krum said. He nodded to the people in the room, then turned and walked out.

After the door closed behind him, Ron exhaled. "The Black Knight he mentioned—is he real or fake?"

"It should be true," Harry said. "He doesn't seem like the type to make up stories."

"But why did he only stop when he was in the third grade?"

"Maybe it's because he sensed something," Hermione said. "People can sense things."

Cedric stood up and said to Henry, "Your Highness, will the next tea party still be on Wednesday?"

"Yes," Henry said, "Wednesday afternoon at three o'clock."

"Then I'll come next week," Cedric said, "if everyone else comes."

After Cedric left, Draco moved forward and asked Henry, "Your Highness, why do you think Krum came to the tea party?"

"I'm not sure," Henry said with a smile.

"Then what did he come for?"

"Maybe it's to see the people at Hogwarts," Henry said. "Or maybe it's just because the tea is good."

Draco thought for a moment: "The reason that the tea is delicious—it's not impossible."

"Krum is a straightforward man," Henry said. "He comes for tea, and that's it. He doesn't do anything pointless, but as he said, his presence at the tea party is a signal in itself."

"What signal?"

"He was telling others that it was no small matter for a Durmstrang champion to be willing to sit down and have tea with Hogwarts students."

Draco nodded thoughtfully. "It's definitely not a small matter. If he just wanted to prepare for the match quietly, he could have chosen not to come. The fact that he came shows that he cares about it."

"Maybe he cares about you guys," Pansy said from the side. "He wants to learn more about the people he meets in the competition."

"Understanding your opponent is part of the game," Henry said, "but you don't necessarily have to do it over tea."

"Then through what?"

"Observe," Henry said. "Watch how the other person talks, watch how they are when they're relaxed. You get more information from that than from game footage."

Draco paused for a moment. "So, Krum came to the tea party to gather information?"

"Partly, but partly," Henry said with a laugh. "He does want to talk to people. Outside he's a star Seeker, but at tea parties, he's just someone who sits down and drinks tea."

Draco didn't speak, but after thinking about it, he felt that this statement did make sense.

Krum was at the tea party again on Saturday.

This time he arrived ten minutes earlier than last time, and when he walked in, Henry was the only one in the room.

He seemed more at ease; instead of standing at the door scanning the room like the first time, he walked straight in and sat down in the same spot.

"Good afternoon," he said.

"Good afternoon, Viktor," Henry said. "You're here early today."

"Training ended early," Krum said. "The coach said we don't need to train for too long today."

"So you're here for the tea party?"

"I'm here for tea," Krum said, "and to wait for someone."

He poured himself a cup of tea, added a spoonful of honey, and leaned back in his chair without saying anything more.

He seemed to be enjoying the quiet waiting time—no need to talk, no need to socialize, just sitting and drinking tea.