"...Where is the legendary treasure?"
The stone door opened and closed, and after a dizzying sensation, the two saw the scene behind the door—it was not the imagined treasure vault, nor was there an expected guard, but a vast underground space. A giant cavity appeared in the pitch-black rock. Looking at the surrounding structures, Daniel blinked—
"This looks like...a colosseum?"
Stepping out from inside the door and gazing at the surrounding scene, the man's voice carried more certainty.
If you could look down from above, you would see he was right—this space was like a giant circular arena, the ground paved with neatly cut but timeworn stone slabs. The central area was slightly sunken, and they stood at an entrance near the edge.
All around were towering, rough arc-shaped stone walls, extending upwards until they vanished into the darkness overhead.
Countless mosses emitting a faint green glow clung high on the walls, like stars providing a weak light source, barely outlining the contours of this vast space, while deeper inside lay only unsettling darkness—in this place, the air was almost stagnant, with only their heavy breathing echoing in the silence.
The center of the arena was empty—there was no dazzling treasure chest, no floating holy artifact, only cold stone slabs on the ground and a faint dust. The anticipated "treasure" was nowhere in sight, leaving not only the champions puzzled but also the audience sitting in the stands—
What about the picture?
Staring at the completely garbled screen overhead, the crowd couldn't help but shout, "What the hell, refund!"
"...What's going on?"
Bagman instinctively glanced at Lupin, who was in charge of broadcasting, but was met with the latter's equally bewildered look.
...
"Damn it! Why is there nothing at all?"
In the center of the arena, Daniel, who had been knocking around for a while, couldn't help but roar lowly. He suddenly recalled, were there supposed to be four treasures, or was it that only one of the four stone slabs was correct, no one knew— the faint hope of acquiring a bargaining chip was instantly dashed, replaced by immense disappointment and renewed unease—
"What kind of game is this?"
"Calm down!"
Heller suppressed the pain in her arm and shouted in a tone that allowed no dissent, "Either there's nothing here, or the situation is worse than imagined! These treasures might have already been..." She abruptly stopped speaking, instinctively closed her mouth, raised her head, and looked in another direction, where footsteps and voices emerged from the shadows.
Another trio—Harry, Cedric Diggory, and Fleur Delacour, emerged from an opposite passageway.
Harry looked very alert, with his wand held tightly, his sharp eyes scanning the area in front of him, and he was evidently the first to notice Daniel and Heller.
Cedric followed closely behind, appearing relatively composed and calm.
Trailing behind like an assistant was Fleur, looking somewhat disheveled, her silver hair tousled, her robes covered in mud. Her expression was very complex, wary yet with a hint of relief, even mixed with a bit of schadenfreude towards Heller and Daniel? After all—
She finally found two companions who seemed in as bad shape as she was.
The moment their eyes met, everyone instinctively halted, entering a state of mutual vigilance.
"Miss Heller, and Mr. Stephens—"
Cedric spoke, his voice carrying clearly across half the arena, "Where are the others?"
Daniel's expression stiffened, and he didn't answer.
Heller coldly retorted—"That's something I should be asking you, isn't it? All I know is Yamamoto withdrew due to severe injuries—" The woman straightened her back, maintaining her dignity as a champion, "And you all seem complete?" Her gaze swept over Fleur, whose eyes avoided meeting hers as if unwilling to respond.
"Alexander also withdrew due to severe injuries—"
Cedric nodded, without naming who was responsible for the injuries, "Mr. Hamilton also withdrew; I heard the announcement before encountering those goblins." He paused, silently counting the numbers in his mind, "So, Mr. Krum—"
Suddenly, speak of the devil, urgent and heavy footsteps echoed from a more concealed side door near the passage where Fleur and the others came out.
Viktor Krum's tall figure appeared there.
The Bulgarian Quidditch star was sweating heavily, his normally brooding face carrying a hint of agitation; his coat appeared tattered from evident battles, his eyes, sharp as a hawk's, scanned the venue swiftly. Seeing Harry and Cedric made his brows furrow instantly—
And when he saw the empty central area, his agitation seemed to become almost palpable.
"Everyone's here? Good."
Krum's voice was deep, carrying a hint of oppression. He strode to the center, keeping a distance from Harry's group but distinctly apart from Daniel and Heller, seemingly intent on forming an independent stance—everyone suddenly realized that if Krum had also passed by those two sentinels, did it mean he alone took care of them…
Cedric and Harry exchanged a glance, both nodding at each other.
"Where's the treasure? Where's all that damn stuff?" Krum's eyes directly pierced towards Cedric and Harry, "Did you take them? Do you have all of it?"
"What are you talking about? Your brain is like a Troll's..."
Harry instinctively wanted to retort, but was pulled back by Cedric, who shook his head and said calmly, "Look clearly, Krum, we just got here too. Obviously, there's nothing here—so, you didn't have the tablet. How did you find this place?"
"Nonsense, chased here by a bunch of idiot goblins—"
Krum let out a short, cold laugh, "The project was hosted by the British Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts, and even the referees are your people. Outside, there are goblins, trolls, spiders, and then two damn Stone Guards arranged, just to have us staring at each other in this empty room?" His suspicion was almost written on his face.
If William were here, he would definitely proclaim innocence, as all except the two Stone Guards had nothing to do with him—
However, he had already known that this project would develop beyond expectations, so he had done a lot of subtraction to let the "mastermind" perform well—
In the field, the conversation among several people continued. Fleur spoke, her English tinged with a French accent carrying a unique rhythm, yet also a hint of fatigue, "Krum, calm down, they're not lying. We came in together, there's truly nothing here. I feel something's not right..." The girl looked up.
Her tone subtly inclined towards the two from Hogwarts, a fact that Daniel keenly captured, making his gaze deepen.
"Not right? Of course, it's not right!"
Krum's volume suddenly rose, as if convincing himself and trying to rally allies, "But this place is perfect! Although the previous plan got messed up, now fate has given us a chance—Diggory! Potter! They're all here!" He pointed at Cedric and Harry.
"And that traitor! I knew you French surrender faster than anyone!"
He turned the point of contradiction towards Fleur, initiating a regional black mode, "Now, Hogwarts holds the absolute advantage. They're three people; only by eliminating them do we have the chance to discuss slowly and then figure out what the hell is going on—Daniel? Heller? What are you waiting for? Join me!"
Krum's proposal was like placing a knife on a taut bowstring, instantly erupting the potential conflict in the field.
Daniel's heart thudded fiercely, almost leaping out of his chest—Krum's proposal was their original plan, yet now, he instinctively wanted to refuse—the previous battle with the statue kept him on edge, and Harry and Cedric… they weren't even hurt!
Don't even mention Fleur single-handedly dealing with those big guys—he didn't believe it.
However, just then, Heller's weak but firm voice emerged beside him, carrying a strange calm, even... a hint of excitement?
"He makes sense, Daniel."
Heller's gaze passed over Krum, staring intensely at Harry Potter, "The power balance on the field is indeed too unfair to us now. Hey, you don't want Ilvermorny to be eliminated in such an unfair state, do you?" Her voice held a persuasive tone, and for some reason, Daniel's gaze started to become unfocused.
But just as the plot was about to unfold, a voice suddenly spoke up—
"...Stop acting."
The silent Harry who was looking around suddenly spoke, frowning as he looked at the woman with the strange curve at her mouth.
"...Ah, you found out?"
Heller's voice was like a sliding rheostat, growing coarser and coarser until finally, a deep male voice finished the last syllable, "You're a clever little guy."
"Indeed, the cameras above us are gone—this clearly wasn't in the senior's plans."
Harry stated calmly. Fleur next to him blinked instinctively, realizing why she felt something was amiss.
Then came a long silence, with the air in the Colosseum turning thick and oily, every breath from the crowd was filled with friction.
"Who are you?"
Harry asked curiously, his scar showing no reaction, so the current "Heller" wasn't Voldemort, but... this manner of appearance inevitably reminded Harry of the nose-less creature that previously occupied Krum's body.
However, the boy instinctively glanced at Krum with his peripheral vision, seeing the same bewilderment on his face as on the others'.
"You ought to have heard my name, Harry Potter."
At this point, "Abeba Hailu" smirked, speaking with a cheerful tone, "Despicable Helbo, that's what they call me—"
"..."
"...Who?" Harry "stupidly" blinked his eyes.
"Ah...what a pity, even though I rather like that name."