Chapter 570: Jury Composition (Edited)

Percy, who had returned to Hogwarts on behalf of Barty Crouch Sr., appeared extremely excited, and his bright red ears were evidence of his mood. At this moment, the freshly arrived Percy, dressed in his finest attire, was trying to join any conversation at the teachers' table.

As Percy's former professors, the Heads of Houses, except for Snape, were willing to give him a chance and were enjoying talking to him. To them, seeing a student they had just graduated now being reutilized by the Ministry of Magic was something they took pride in.

Professor McGonagall of Gryffindor House was the happiest of them all. Percy was one of her students, and today he was returning to Hogwarts as a representative of the Ministry of Magic, which made her speak enthusiastically.

"Isn't the opening ceremony a bit earlier this year compared to previous Triwizard Tournaments?"

"Exactly," once Percy opened his mouth, he couldn't stop talking to assert his position in the Ministry of Magic. "Initially, we planned to follow the scheduling of the previous Triwizard Tournaments and hold the opening ceremony on Halloween Eve, but this year's tournament is a bit different overall-"

Percy suddenly closed his mouth because he realized that Madame Maxime and Professor Karkaroff next to him were apparently chatting but were actually focusing their attention on him.

Although Percy liked to show off what he knew, he was not a fool. On the contrary, he was very intelligent. A fool wouldn't be able to assume the roles of Prefect and Head Boy. Percy used to be quite immature, but that was mainly due to a lack of practical experience. The months he had spent working at the Ministry of Magic after graduating had polished him, removing the immaturity of being a "Prefect" and turning him into a competent Ministry of Magic bureaucrat.

Do you want to get information from him? It's wishful thinking!

"Getting back to the topic, this is how it looks from the teachers' table," he abruptly changed the subject, and the other professors also had fun with it, teasing Percy.

"In fact, we can see all your little movements from up here..." Professor McGonagall leaned forward and shared her observations with Percy.

After the first courses had disappeared, desserts arrived at the table.

Right in front of Tom, there was a plate of Danish pastries, so without any reservation, he took two and placed them on his own plate.

The Danish pastry was a flaky pastry typical of Denmark. It had a crispy, flaky outer layer that enveloped a variety of fresh jams. When you bit into it, the pastry melted in your mouth as the fresh fruit jam burst along with it, offering a sweet and delightful taste.

Hermione, on the other hand, cut a small piece of princess cake, which was a popular national dessert in Sweden. It had an outer layer of almond caramel, filled with thick whipped cream and jam in the center. The texture melted in the mouth, leaving Hermione delighted.

In addition, there were crepes, cinnamon rolls, macarons, and many other desserts. If it weren't for the fact that he was already full, Tom would have wanted to taste each and every one of them.

At Hogwarts, there is no banquet that doesn't come to an end, and even though the young wizards were reluctant, the desserts eventually disappeared from the golden plates.

After everything was clean and orderly, Dumbledore stood up. The Great Hall immediately fell silent, a strange mix of excitement and nervousness filled the Great Hall. Everyone was excited about what was about to happen, but they were also inexplicably nervous.

"Students, with the arrival of our distinguished guests, the Triwizard Tournament also begins," Dumbledore said with a smile, looking at the expectant faces in the Great Hall. "I recall saying that the champions would be chosen by an absolutely impartial judge... so, bring in the box."

Barely had Dumbledore finished speaking when Filch appeared from a corner, holding an ancient jewel-encrusted wooden box in his hands. With great care, he placed the wooden box on the table in front of Dumbledore and quickly retreated to the corner.

"Before revealing the riddle, I must explain this year's schedule of events and introduce you to our two guests from the Ministry of Magic, although I doubt they need any introduction. This is Mr. Ludo Bagman, Director of Magical Sports and Games at the Ministry of Magic."

The Great Hall erupted in applause as Ludo Bagman, a former Quidditch player and a popular figure among the students, was welcomed by everyone.

After introducing Bagman, Dumbledore pointed to Percy and said, "This is someone you surely all know. He is Percy Weasley, Assistant to the Head of the International Magical Cooperation Office at the Ministry of Magic and former President of the Hogwarts Students' Association."

The applause for Percy was much louder than for Bagman. While Bagman was a great Quidditch player, his active time was over a decade ago, and most of the wizards present weren't even born then! Percy Weasley, on the other hand, was different. Just a few months ago, he was still mingling with everyone at school.

As a recent graduate, Percy was warmly received at Hogwarts. Everyone's attitude toward him was much warmer than when he was in school.

"In the past few months, Ministry of Magic employees have worked tirelessly to organize the Triwizard Tournament. Finally, after careful consideration, we have decided that Mr. Bagman will represent the Ministry of Magic and join Madame Maxime, Professor Karkaroff, and three other representatives from different schools to form the judging panel, which will evaluate the champions' efforts," Dumbledore said with a mischievous smile. "To ensure impartiality, we have waited until now to reveal the names of the three representatives."

Upon hearing this, the students showed a curious expression. They were all eager to know who the three were. Unlike the students, Percy, next to Dumbledore, was concerned about another matter. He frowned, feeling something was amiss: Shouldn't Mr. Crouch be the Ministry of Magic representative? The work he did far surpassed that of Ludo Bagman. Why did the Ministry of Magic representative turn out to be that lazy Bagman?

Percy's intuition was not wrong. Ministry of Magic officials were not blind. Initially, they all agreed that Crouch should be the judge, but he adamantly refused. Now, he just wanted to retire and had no interest in getting involved in the Triwizard Tournament. Therefore, Bagman was chosen.

Dumbledore took an envelope from his pocket and opened it. Inside was a parchment on which he read the names.

"The representative from Durmstrang is... Issa May! The representative from Beauxbatons is... Barry Crowder! And the representative from Hogwarts is..." Dumbledore paused for two seconds, creating suspense before announcing loudly, "Percy Weasley!"