Harry Potter: Glory Bows to Me

The Hogwarts Express pulled up to the platform.

Under the cover of night, the familiar outline of the castle gradually emerged before our eyes, and the twinkling lights made the black lake beneath our feet sparkle.

Amanta and a few others got off the train together, walked through the crowd, and headed towards the Thestral carriage.

"It's them..." someone whispered.

"Did they really rescue people on the night of the World Cup?" a Ravenclaw junior girl whispered to her friend.

"I heard that they were some first and second year wizards... What were their names?"

"Colin Creevey? Dennis Creevey? There seems to be a Hufflepuff named Emilia Bolton?"

"Yesterday's Daily Prophet also mentioned their fight in Diagon Alley. The newspaper even called them 'young Aurors'..."

"You believe the newspaper? Who knows if it was staged?" A Slytherin student sneered as he passed by. "Merlin is quite capable, but isn't she too high-profile? Besides, it's still unclear whether the attack was real or not."

"But many people have confirmed that they did repel the group of dark wizards... Don't you think that's amazing?" Another Hufflepuff boy frowned. "Also, Merlin can use both wandless magic and wand magic at the same time. This is not something that ordinary wizards can do."

"That's right, she is Merlin's descendant." Another person whispered with awe in his tone.

"And Malfoy, doesn't he hate Muggles and half-bloods the most? He actually joins them in rescuing people and helping them fight against dark wizards?"

"Don't forget Julius? I wrote to my cousin who was studying at Durmstrang during the summer vacation. I heard that he was acting strangely when he was at Durmstrang..."

All kinds of whispers, speculations, worship, doubts...

Amanta frowned but ignored it. The group split into two groups and each got on a carriage.

The Thestrals drove towards Hogwarts Castle.

Draco shook out the wrinkles on his cloak and said impatiently: "Did you hear that? These people are talking as if we are the successors to the Dark Lord."

Harry held his chin up: "Actually, it feels good to be admired... Oh, of course, except that they suspect we are Death Eaters."

Amanta leaned against the handrail, her eyes fixed on the Hogwarts Castle which was getting closer and closer.

At night, the lights were turned on in the castle, and the warm orange light shone through the windows, making her begin to miss the long-awaited entrance dinner.

The auditorium had already been decorated. The old students had taken their seats, while the new students filed in under the guidance of their professors, waiting for the sorting ceremony to begin.

As usual, the Sorting Hat sang a long song, and the freshmen were sorted into their respective houses one by one. Applause and cheers broke out in the auditorium from time to time.

Not long after, the Sorting ceremony ended. Dumbledore stood up and cleared his throat, and the hall fell silent instantly.

"Welcome to the new students, and welcome back to Hogwarts to the old students." He smiled and opened his arms, his voice full of joy. "This year, we at Hogwarts will have a special event - the Triwizard Tournament."

As soon as the words fell, the whole auditorium exploded.

"What? The Triwizard Tournament?"

"Is this true? Hasn't this been closed for hundreds of years?"

"Didn't the Daily Prophet say last year that the Ministry of Magic was still discussing this proposal? And it was actually passed?"

"This is a historic competition! Do you know what year the last one was held? In the 1700s!!"

"You know this is a dangerous competition that needs to be stopped, right? There are more than one or two dead..."

Students from the four major colleges began to talk about it, and a heated discussion broke out immediately with voices rising one after another.

Several Gryffindors had already raised their arms and shouted excitedly: "I want to join!" "Glorious!" "So cool!"

The Ravenclaws were discussing the background of this tournament in low voices, and a few of them had even taken out books and started reading about the history of the Triwizard Tournament.

Slytherin's reaction was the calmest, but some people still showed excitement, especially some senior students - they knew very well what the honor of this game symbolized.

"Please be quiet and listen to what Dumbledore has to say." McGonagall sat in the teacher's seat and glanced at the Gryffindor table gently and sternly. Her voice was not loud, but it was enough to silence her students immediately.

Dumbledore clapped his hands gently for silence, his eyes sweeping across the hall.

"Yes, the Triwizard Tournament, a friendly match between the three major magic schools in Europe, will officially return." He nodded and pushed up his half-moon glasses. "It was first established about 700 years ago to promote exchanges and friendship between magic schools in various countries."

"The participating schools are -" He paused, his eyes scanning the crowd, "Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang."

As expected, as soon as these three names were uttered, the auditorium became noisy again.

"Beauxbatons? The French school that's all about etiquette?"

"Durmstrang?! That's the place that... openly teaches the Dark Arts?"

“We are going to compete with them?”

"Wait, didn't you notice? Durmstrang's Quidditch star... Krum, will he come?!"

The discussion broke out again, especially when someone mentioned the name Krum, and the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables almost exploded.

Harry's eyes lit up instantly: "Krum?! Oh my God, if he comes, I must see him!"

Draco snorted. "Come on, Harry, are you planning on getting his autograph?"

Harry nodded confidently: "If you can, why not?"

Amanta watched speechlessly as the two men started arguing again, ignored them and continued to listen to Dumbledore's speech.

Dumbledore waited for a while, seemingly in no hurry to interrupt the discussion, until the noise in the hall died down a little, then he continued:

"The competition will be held at Hogwarts, and we will welcome outstanding students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang to join us in this challenge."

"Each school will select a champion representative, and the three champions will participate in three carefully designed magic competitions - these competitions will test the contestants' abilities, wisdom, courage, and their ability to adapt under pressure."

"Of course..." Dumbledore's eyes became more serious, "The reason why this game is known as the 'Trial of the Brave' is not only because it tests the strength of the contestants, but also because of its danger."

He paused, his eyes sweeping over the students at the long table.

"In the past, the Triwizard Tournament had resulted in the deaths of several champions due to the extreme danger of the challenge. For this reason, it was permanently suspended in the 18s. Although there have been many attempts to revive the Tournament, none have been successful... until this year."

This time, the atmosphere in the auditorium was noticeably different.

If the students' excitement and curiosity prevailed just now, now some people have begun to realize the real danger of this event.

"So... will people really die in this competition?" a Hufflepuff girl asked nervously in a low voice.

A Ravenclaw boy pushed his glasses up and frowned: "So, how do we ensure that no one gets into trouble again this time?"

"They won't let lower grade students participate in the competition, right?" A student from Slytherin also asked cautiously.

Dumbledore seemed to have anticipated these questions. He nodded and continued, "In order to avoid past tragedies, we have established strict rules - contestants must be over seventeen years old."

"That is to say..." He explained slowly, "students aged fifteen or sixteen will not be allowed to participate. Even if you are only one day away from turning seventeen, there will definitely be no exception."

There were some groans and complaints in the auditorium.

"Ah... this is so unfair!"

"Alas... I still have a few months left..."

"Damn it, I wish I was born two years earlier!"

Harry pursed his lips and put down his fork in disappointment: "What a pity..."

Dumbledore waited until the students calmed down before continuing, "We will officially announce the specific registration rules at the end of next month. By then, we will welcome guests from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang—"

"Now, then, please enjoy your dinner."

As soon as he finished speaking, sumptuous food instantly appeared on the empty dining table, exuding an extremely tempting aroma.

The students quickly turned their attention to the food, and the heated discussions were gradually replaced by the sound of knives and forks clattering.

Harry piled chicken drumsticks on his plate and said excitedly, "I wish I could participate in the competition!"

Draco cut the grilled lamb chops slowly and reminded lazily: "Don't forget, only students over seventeen years old can register."

"Oh... yeah." Harry picked at his mashed potatoes in frustration. "What a pity."

"Don't feel sorry." Amanta said calmly, "Maybe you can save your life - this is a game where people could die."

Harry retorted unconvincedly: "But this is also an honor!"

"It's stupid." Draco snorted, "Unless you want to die."

Harry glared at him, "You're just jealous!"

Draco snorted disdainfully and turned back to cutting his steak.

Amanta watched their bickering, curled her lips slightly, and lowered her eyes to look at her plate.

Everything seemed the same as before, but she knew clearly in her heart -

This game would end with Harry being forced to compete, and Cedric...he would face tragedy.

She wasn't sure if she could prevent those misfortunes from happening, but at least she would try her best.