"Ok... this is kinda idiotic..."
John didn't really understand the second task.
Unlike the first task, this one couldn't be watched live.
A group of people stood around staring at the pitch-black lake, seeing absolutely nothing. It made them look a bit silly—wizard logic really was something else.
John noticed a few students enthusiastically speculating about how to find people underwater, as if they were live commentators.
Anyone who didn't know better might think they had actually gone down there to fish people out before.
The lively atmosphere gradually quieted down, and John could only conclude that this task had terrible spectator value.
Time passed, second by second, until suddenly, a small bubble surfaced.
It was tiny, but John, with his sharp eyes, spotted it immediately.
"Someone's coming up."
As soon as he spoke, the others noticed too.
Excitement buzzed through the crowd—they all wanted to see who would be the first to succeed.
Students from all three schools craned their necks, hoping it would be someone from their own school. Under everyone's watchful gaze— Gasp!
A head broke through the water's surface. Silvery hair spread out in the lake, and a beautiful girl's face, having been submerged for too long, looked much paler than usual—truly living up to the phrase "a water lily emerging from the pond."
It was Fleur Delacour.
Her expression wasn't great. She swam toward the shore, but—she hadn't rescued anyone.
"There.. There was something in the water attacking—it burst my air bubble."
Fleur staggered as she reached the shore, nearly falling over. John noticed the scratches on her body, as if something had tried to grab her.
She coughed violently, expelling the water that had entered her nose.
Her eyes were slightly red from the strain, and a Beauxbatons student quickly stepped forward, offering her a towel. John took off his wizard robe and draped it over her for extra coverage.
Tears welled up in Fleur's eyes as she grasped John's hand, her voice urgent. "Gabrielle—she's still down there. I don't know what.. I think the merpeople attacked me."
John's expression darkened as he looked up at Dumbledore.
Hearing Fleur's words, a flicker of confusion passed through Dumbledore's eyes.
He had communicated with the creatures in the Black Lake. They weren't supposed to help the champions, but they weren't supposed to attack them either.
"Tearing apart a Bubble-Head Charm like that—it would cause a champion to drown." John's voice was grave. "That's an attempt to kill a champion."
A collective gasp spread through the crowd.
Especially among the students—they had never considered that this competition might lead to actual fatalities.
Dumbledore immediately grasped the severity of the situation. His voice turned sharp as he spoke in the merpeople's language, calling for them.
But despite his summons, no merpeople appeared.
The situation was spiraling out of control. Dumbledore's expression grew more serious as he gathered several judges to discuss the matter.
His original intention was to pause the competition and investigate what was happening.
But Karkaroff absolutely refused—Krum had yet to emerge, while Beauxbatons was already eliminated.
As the deadlock continued, more bubbles gurgled up from the water.
A head broke the surface—it was Cedric. He had rescued Cho Chang, but his expression was grim.
"The merpeople have gone mad, and there are Grindylows—they're hunting the champions underwater."
Cedric, with his head tangled in waterweed, continued, "I had to hide in the kelp and wait for the right moment to rescue her."
His words only deepened the students' unease.
Cedric approached John and quietly shared an even more horrifying revelation.
"When I got there, the merpeople seemed like they were trying to kill the hostages."
…
Harry was being dragged by those hands, struggling against them as he was forcefully pulled through the water.
When he was finally yanked out of the kelp, he could see clearly who they were.
Grindylows. They were armed and numbered four or five, each one intent on drowning him.
Harry finally managed to get his hands on his wand. He seized the moment and attacked the Grindylows.
He had expected them to be difficult to deal with, but to his surprise, they scattered at the first sign of resistance.
They let out sharp screams and scattered in all directions.
After being dragged for a while, Harry finally regained his freedom.
Looking around, he realized he was in a merpeople village.
In the center of the square stood a rough-hewn statue—an enormous merperson. Three people were tied to its tail.
Aside from Ron, there was also Hermione and an eight-year-old girl.
With her silver-blonde hair, Harry recalled seeing her at the Quidditch World Cup—John's tent had that little girl in it.
They all appeared to be in a deep sleep, tiny bubbles escaping from their mouths.
Harry swam toward the hostages with all his strength, but the merpeople seemed oblivious to him.
He stepped forward and tried to untie the ropes.
But they were far tougher than he expected. He grabbed a sharp rock from the lakebed and began cutting at the bindings.
Just as he was about to sever them, he noticed the merpeople moving.
A figure with a shark's head swam rapidly toward them. The previously motionless merpeople immediately took up their tridents and gave chase.
The shark was Krum in his transformed state. Startled, he quickly tried to dodge, but the merpeople were relentless.
Krum lost his chance to rescue anyone as the merpeople kept driving him away.
Harry finally managed to break the rope. Just as he was about to rescue the others, he saw the merpeople baring their teeth at him.
Something was wrong.
One of the merpeople actually raised a trident and attacked the two people who were still tied up.
Harry rushed forward to stop them. The merpeople didn't attack him, but the others turned their weapons on the hostages.
"Krum! Watch out!"
He shouted in panic, but only bubbles escaped his mouth.
Krum also realized something was wrong. He charged forward and slammed into the merperson attacking Hermione.
A merperson's spear pierced Krum's ankle, making him cry out in pain. In retaliation, he bit down on the merperson's arm.
More merpeople swarmed around them. Harry pulled out his wand and kept casting spells.
…
An hour had passed.
No third person had surfaced.
Karkaroff still refused to back down, convinced that Krum would complete the task.
John's expression was grim. Cedric had mentioned that the merpeople seemed to be waiting for a specific moment to kill the hostages.
This was no joke. There was something off about the entire event today.
If Cedric hadn't been faster and smarter, he might have ended up eliminated just like Fleur.
Fleur also heard Cedric's words. She sobbed as she begged Madame Maxime to save Gabrielle.
But the judges had to remain impartial, and as long as Karkaroff refused to concede, the others couldn't pause the competition.
John took a deep breath. If the judges wouldn't intervene, then he would do it himself.
He asked in a low voice, "Cedric, which direction?"
Cedric immediately pointed toward the location of the merpeople's village. John stepped up to the shore and clenched his fist in the air.
A silver longsword materialized in his right hand.
"Move aside and clear a path for me."
As soon as he spoke, Malfoy was the first to loudly yell at the crowd to step back.
Everyone looked at John in confusion, even Dumbledore stopped his argument to watch.
John stepped into the lake, closed his eyes, and sent his magic flowing into the water.
The ring on his right hand emitted a steady stream of magic, which infused into the Silverwick Sword.
Raising the Silverwick Sword high, John softly uttered a strange incantation.
"O spirit of the Black Lake, guide my path. Let this sword cut through all things of this world and banish evil. Interficiam In Omnibus!"
He opened his left hand, and a fist-sized ball of lake water fell into his palm. Instead of scattering, it clung to the Silverwick Sword like a slime, forming a transparent sheath around the blade.
Ancient magic—by holding the element of water, John could communicate with the Black Lake and gain its permission.
With the blessing of the lake's water, John gripped his sword with both hands.
Karkaroff loudly shouted at Dumbledore, demanding, "What is he doing? Dumbledore, is this your idea?!"
Madame Maxime was also unsure of John's intentions. Fleur rushed to her side and said, "The merpeople in the water have gone mad... The other hostages are at danger! John is going to save them."
"Save them?" Madame Maxime was puzzled. Then why was John still standing on the shore?
Dumbledore's eyes flickered with intrigue—he, too, wanted to see how John would go about saving them.
With all eyes on him, John finished his chant.
His eyes snapped open, transforming into draconic pupils, and a powerful aura radiated from him.
His hair fluttered despite the absence of wind, and his hands clenched tightly around the sword's hilt.
"Interficiam Omnia Impedimenta!"
The self-created Severing Charm poured into the blade, as runic symbols drifted from its surface.
Swosh!
John swung the sword.
The blade sliced through the water.
And under everyone's astonished gazes—The lake split apart!
An invisible mark spread rapidly from the sword's tip toward the center of the lake.
The parted water split like jelly, surging away to both sides.
Its speed was astonishing—before everyone's eyes, the vast Black Lake was cleaved in two.
At the center of the lake, a merpeople village was revealed.
This scene left everyone in stunned disbelief, their eyes widening in shock.
Standing amidst the lake, John appeared like a sea god descending upon the world, parting the waters by sheer force—a human splitting the enormous lake! This scene was too wicked!
_______________
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P@treon: Dragonel