There are two kinds of smart people in this world. One kind seems to be able to see through the future, guess other people's inner thoughts, and know everything.

There are very few such people, or even almost non-existent.

The other type is someone who is fully prepared and can deal with any situation.

Voldemort was fully prepared at this moment. No matter what Dumbledore and Cyrus planned, and no matter whether Grindelwald really wanted to cooperate with him, Voldemort had already made countermeasures.

Once he had regained the power of the Elder Wand, Voldemort vowed never to lose it again.

But now, he should become a warrior.

Go and be a legitimate warrior selected by the Goblet of Fire! ——Today , many wizards came to Hogwarts. The auditorium seemed to be twice as big as before. In addition to more than a thousand students, it was also crowded with wizard reporters of all sizes holding magic cameras.

Needless to say, there were people from the Daily Prophet. In addition, reporters from the New York Elf Newspaper in the United States and the Gargoyle's Howl Newspaper in France also gathered here, setting up their flashlights and pointing them at the long and large dining table above the auditorium.

Prior to this, Dumbledore had already decided against all odds that the third event would go ahead, and now it was time for Beauxbatons School of Mystic Arts to choose their new warrior.

Little Batty, disguised as Maxim, sat upright in his chair early in the morning.

Of course, the reporters came here for the championship on the one hand, and on the other hand, they also came here to get some explosive news.

Not long ago, the scene of Cyrus defeating Grindelwald was recorded by a magic drone. Although most people did not see the duel between the two, that one scene alone was enough to cause a huge sensation in the entire wizarding world!

In fact, for a long time afterwards, The New York Elf and Howl of the Gargoyles reported the incident in different ways every day. Wizards all over Europe and North America had seen the vivid scene of Cyrus knocking down Grindelwald with his wand in the newspapers.

These two newspapers have even spread to some other remote places.

Of course, Voldemort was big news too.

It's just that Fudge banned the Daily Prophet from publishing this type of news during this period, so the popularity was not very high. In addition, outside of Britain, not many people cared about the Dark Lord.

But no matter what, Voldemort and Grindelwald are both among the most terrifying wizards in the world. The news about them is naturally extremely explosive, and as a result, the international attention of the tournament has also risen to a huge level.

Now, many people who have read the reports believe that Cyrus will be able to take over the title of the most powerful wizard since Dumbledore.

But at the same time they are worried.

——A game involves four of the most powerful wizards. The meaning of the championship has long been more than just a game.

In fact, the black curtains have risen again in many places now. The hidden saints of Grindelwald have finally become active at this moment. They have raised flags, announcing that the man who influenced the world has returned again. However, compared to half a century ago, they are much calmer this time and have hardly caused much disturbance.

But even so, it still caused panic around the world. Some older wizards were frightened when they saw the flags flying and covering the sky.

Everyone was worried whether this would be the beginning of another turmoil in the wizarding world.

Today, the light in the Hogwarts Great Hall was dim.

The Gublai fairy fire on the surrounding walls disappeared, leaving only the fire cup placed in the center emitting a cold blue-white light.

Harry sat in his chair and turned to look at the wizards gathered in the teachers' seats.

“So many people…”

Reporters, members of the International Confederation of Wizards, important officials of the Ministry of Magic, parliamentarians...all big shots that they don't usually get in contact with.

"The whole world is worried that the tournament might be the start of another war," said Hermione, and the whole world she mentioned also included herself.

She said to Harry and Ron: "If you knew more about the history of the wizarding world, you would know that Grindelwald was once a dark wizard who brought turmoil to the world."

"But Cyrus beat him," said Ron, looking like he had nothing to fear from Grindelwald. "We all saw it."

"That's because Cyrus is too strong, not because he is weak. What's more, Grindelwald's strength lies not in his personal martial arts, but in his appeal. That is the power that can make the world turbulent. In comparison, the mysterious man and his Death Eaters are just a group of terrorists." Hermione said.

Decades ago, Voldemort's shadow failed to cover the world, not only because he chose to stay in Britain, but more importantly, the pure-blood system no longer worked after leaving Britain. He did not have enough ideals to make wizards from other countries willing to work for him.

The voices among them became quieter as more and more people entered the venue.

Dumbledore walked on the bright red carpet, followed by important officials from the Ministry of Magic. Even the Minister of Magic, who represented the pinnacle of power in the British wizarding world, was half a body length behind Dumbledore.

"That's why Fudge started to go against Professor Dumbledore," Hermione said in a low voice.

The famous wizards began to take their seats. Hermione and Ginny watched Cyrus sit down a little unnaturally. He held a snakewood wand in one hand and stroked a large, colorful snake with the other.

They knew the snake's name was Nagini.

When the reporters saw them appear, they immediately surrounded them like sharks smelling blood. The flashes of their cameras lit up one after another like mirrors illuminated by direct sunlight, which was very uncomfortable for the eyes in the dark environment.

"Mr. Dumbledore, is the mysterious man really back?" Several female reporters squeezed through the crowd and shouted at Dumbledore with their automatic writing quills.

With her taking the lead, the other reporters started asking questions without letting anyone lag behind.

"Mr. Cyrus, did you really defeat the dark wizard Grindelwald?"

"Minister Fudge, could you please explain why the Ministry of Magic has remained silent about the return of You-Know-Who?"

Fudge's face did not look so good. He was not as calm as Dumbledore. Those sharp-eyed reporters seemed to notice this and immediately put most of the pressure on Fudge, hoping to induce him to reveal some explosive news.

"Minister Fudge, may I ask what is your conspiracy in hiding the matter of You-Know-Who? Does this mean that the Ministry of Magic is ready to surrender to You-Know-Who?"

"The mysterious man is dead!" Fudge's face seemed to have turned as red as a pig's liver.

"You mean to say that Dumbledore is exaggerating? There are reports that you secretly said that Dumbledore has Alzheimer's disease. Is this true?"

Of course it's true! Fudge glared at the reporter with his eyes wide open, wishing he could punch him to death.

Of course Fudge could say anything bad about Dumbledore behind his back, but what about now? In public, even Dumbledore was sitting not far from him, with only one seat between them. He could even poke his throat with that wand!

In this situation, how dare you ask such a question? Which newspaper reporter are you from? Fudge wanted to send this ignorant fool to Azkaban to accompany the Dementors, but he couldn't do it because the reporter in front of him was from France and he couldn't control him.

Now, facing the reporter's sharp questions and Dumbledore's gentle gaze, Fudge could only bite the bullet and shake his head:

"Of course not. Everyone knows that Albus and I have a very close relationship... I don't know what you heard. Those are all rumors."

Dumbledore also interjected: "What Cornelius said is right. In fact, if he hadn't been supporting me all the time, it is very likely that the third project would have been cancelled. I have always been very grateful to Cornelius."

Dumbledore shook Fudge's greasy hand and showed a friendly attitude.

But this move attracted the attention of reporters.

"Mr. Dumbledore, I heard that the relationship between you and Grindelwald is somewhat unusual, is that correct?" This reporter was also from France. Perhaps he had received Voldemort's approval and came deliberately to embarrass Dumbledore.

But some people don't intend to spoil them.

"What do you want to know?"

No one knew when Grindelwald arrived at the auditorium. His silver eyes emitted a fascinating power, and the powerful magic enveloped the reporter in an instant!

In an instant, the temperature in the entire auditorium dropped a little, and the reporter felt as if he was being stared at by a ferocious beast and forgot to breathe for a moment.

But Grindelwald did not take any action in the end. He chuckled coldly and contemptuously, then gave Dumbledore a subtle wink and walked towards his own seat.

Grindelwald's appearance brought tremendous pressure to the people at the scene.

But it must be said that many reporters came for him.

This dark wizard who once caused turmoil in the world, had created an illusion of death a few months ago, but now he appeared in the game openly and became a warrior. God knows what hidden conspiracy he has? However, intimidated by the opponent's power, no one dared to ask Grindelwald.

Fortunately, at this time Dumbledore walked to the front of the table, his eyes swept over everyone present, and under his gaze, all the noises were suppressed, and the hall was silent, with only the sound of the Goblet of Fire burning.

Cyrus stroked Nagini and watched the scene with interest, as if this experience was very new to him.

"Thank you all for coming to Hogwarts to witness the final task of the Tournament," Dumbledore said loudly, his words echoing in every corner of the hall.

"There have been many things going on in the competition so far, and I would like to thank Connelly for his continued support," said Dumbledore.

Now, it can be said that the whole world is watching him.

"I believe that everyone who came here must want to know some truth—"

Before he could finish his words, Fudge stood up eagerly, ran in front of him and stopped him from continuing.

"Albus..."

"We must acknowledge that he is back, Cornelius, Voldemort is back!" Dumbledore said, looking into his eyes.

"No, Albus," Fudge kept shaking his head. He didn't want Dumbledore to announce to the world that Voldemort had returned under such circumstances.

He knew his own abilities very well. Being the Minister of Magic in peacetime, taking advantage of the situation was already the limit. Nothing big could go wrong anyway, so he just needed to be re-elected quietly and make some extra money.

But once the mysterious man really comes back, it will be difficult for him to take on the responsibility.

Moreover, now Fudge might really not believe that Voldemort has returned. He has deceived himself and is convinced that Dumbledore and Cyrus lied about the return of the You-Know-Who in order to seize his power.

It was just like Cyrus had become the actual controller of the Magical Congress of the United States! "You-Know-Who is just a lie! He's dead!" Fudge didn't want to become a puppet. He had had enough of the days when he had to ask Dumbledore about everything.

After experiencing the taste of power, who would be willing to let it go? But he didn't dare to confront Dumbledore in person, as this would only make the whole world laugh at him.

So he softened his tone and changed the subject.

"Albus, after all, there is no substantial evidence to show that the You-Know-Who is back. In any case, we will discuss this matter later. The most important thing right now is to give the competition a result."

After saying this, Fudge did not give Dumbledore a chance to continue speaking, but waved enthusiastically at Barty Jr.

"Dear Ms. Olime Maxime, please come here!" He was as enthusiastic as a brothel woman soliciting customers.

"I know that the previous rules brought great injustice to Beauxbatons." Fudge said, "So we have discussed and decided to let Beauxbatons select new warriors to participate in the competition."

"Of course, Mr. Fudge, we thank you for your generosity and fairness."

Little Barty smiled at him warmly, then walked to the front of the Goblet of Fire, the flickering blue flames casting a half-light, half-dark shadow on his face.

Sitting in the long seat, Cyrus and Grindelwald both smiled as if they were watching a good show.

"Well, then please bring out your new warrior, and have him cast his name into the Goblet of Fire in front of the whole world!"

Fudge was glad that he had taken the initiative from Dumbledore. He had had enough of the ghost of You-Know-Who during this time.

He took the initiative to make way for Maxim, and sighed in his heart about his size.

"certainly,"

Little Batty's expression gradually turned crazy.

He walked to the front of the Goblet of Fire and threw a piece of paper into the flame.

At this moment, most people thought that he had thrown in his own name. The headmaster of Beauxbatons, who was of an unusual size, had to personally go out to defend the honor of the school!

But they were all wrong.

After throwing his name into the Goblet of Fire, Barty Jr. half-knelt down in front of everyone's surprised gazes, raising his hands high as if to welcome God!

"Come on, my respected Dark Lord!"

"The Goblet of Fire calls your noble name!"

“Wow!”

In an instant——

The flame from the Goblet of Fire rushed towards the ceiling of the auditorium like a whirlpool!

Under the dome as brilliant as the starry sky, blue flames bloomed like fireworks, leaving behind a brilliant name!

——Voldemort!

And under the flames, a figure in a dark green robe slowly walked out of the darkness.

He walked through the entire auditorium alone, passing by every person. As he walked by, cold air swirled around, making people shiver. Wherever he passed, magic power seemed to wrap around the throat like a snake.

Now, he walked to the front of the Goblet of Fire, and dozens of masked dark figures surrounded him and bowed at his feet.

He lifted the hood of his robe, revealing his true face.

"I heard that someone said I was dead?"

(End of this chapter)