Dumbledore caught the slip of parchment almost by instinct.
He did not open it at once. Instead, he frowned and slowly scanned the faces of everyone present, lingering in particular on the adult wizards seated at the staff table.
If Harry's case could still barely be written off as an accident—after all, no one present had touched the Goblet of Fire before tonight—then this fifth slip of paper could no longer be explained away. To insist otherwise would be nothing short of an insult to the intelligence of the greatest white wizard alive.
He immediately realized that something was amiss, and at the same time detected the Confundus Charm placed upon the Goblet of Fire.
Yet the faculty looked just as bewildered as he felt. None of them seemed to have noticed that the Goblet had been tampered with at all.
Dumbledore had clearly paused for too long. A low, impatient buzz rose from the students, finally pulling his attention back.
He unfolded the parchment slowly, let out a soft, wry chuckle, then turned his head with a sigh, rubbing his temple.
Under Tver's utterly blank stare, Dumbledore spoke at last.
"Durmstrang, Tver Fawley."
Silence…
An eerie stillness fell over the Great Hall.
Harry's selection had shocked them because Hogwarts had produced a second Champion in clear violation of the rules.
But now… even a professor could represent their original school as a Champion?
And yet, when their eyes landed on Professor Fawley, the students found themselves strangely at a loss for words.
To be honest, especially for the Hogwarts students, after thinking it over carefully, if the beloved Professor Fawley was the one breaking the rules… it somehow didn't feel unacceptable.
The Durmstrang contingent dared not voice any objections either. After all, they had lived under the fearsome reputation of the Panda Warlord for a full three years.
Only the Beauxbatons students let out a few weak, dissatisfied hisses, but they quickly shut their mouths under the furious glares from Ravenclaw—and even more hostile looks from the distant ranks of Hogwarts students.
"Come on, Tver," Dumbledore said, sounding both weary and faintly relieved. "I think we need to find out exactly what's going on."
Thankfully, the fifth Champion was Tver. Had it been anyone else, Dumbledore truly would not have known how to handle the situation.
Pulled along by Dumbledore, Tver followed Professor McGonagall, Snape, Moody, and the guests Cynthia and Bagman. Karkaroff and Madam Maxim came as well, all of them heading toward the adjoining room.
Madam Maxim clicked her tongue. Given that Tver had previously protected the Beauxbatons students, she couldn't bring herself to say anything harsh.
Still, the problem remained. Durmstrang and Hogwarts now each had two Champions, while Beauxbatons had only one.
Karkaroff, on the other hand, was grinning so broadly it was practically radiant, as though he were afraid someone might miss just how delighted he was.
In all of history, Durmstrang had never once won the Triwizard Tournament, while Hogwarts and Beauxbatons had each claimed victory more than sixty times.
The only reason he had agreed to hold the tournament again this year was to seize the opportunity while the prodigy Viktor Krum was still at school, to secure Durmstrang's first-ever championship.
Now things were even better. With Tver added to the roster, Karkaroff felt confident that even if their opponents fielded ten more Champions, the final victory would still belong to Durmstrang.
Dumbledore shoved the door open, leaving the hum of student chatter behind. Inside, Harry and the other three stood silently around the fireplace, gazing into the flames in a daze.
"I want an explanation," Madam Maxim demanded at once.
She restrained herself from shouting, but with her team at a clear numerical disadvantage, it was difficult to remain calm.
"An explanation?" Fleur looked at her headmistress in surprise. The other three jumped to their feet as well, startled by the sudden outburst.
Before long, though, they understood why.
"One Potter was bad enough, and now there's another professor! This is unfair to Beauxbatons. Completely unfair!"
Madam Maxim's gaze moved back and forth between Dumbledore and Tver, as if she were trying to read something from their expressions.
"Or is it that some school is so desperate to win a championship that they're willing to resort to such despicable methods?"
In the end, she redirected her anger at the smiling Karkaroff, wiping the grin clean off his face.
With her towering frame and her position of authority, Madam Maxim's presence carried an oppressive weight.
"Calm down, Madam Maxim. Perhaps, as Dumbledore suggested, this really was just an accident?" Karkaroff said carefully, having gained the upper hand and not daring to press his luck.
"To put it bluntly, even in a fair competition, Viktor would still have had a strong chance of winning. There was no reason for Durmstrang to risk its reputation like this."
"Besides," he added, turning his eyes toward Dumbledore, "this is Hogwarts' territory. The Age Line was set by Dumbledore, and the Goblet of Fire was placed in Hogwarts' entrance hall. If something went wrong, then naturally we should hear what they have to say."
"It's obvious," Snape cut in with a cold sneer. "Among the five of them, only Fawley has the ability to deceive the Goblet of Fire."
"That's impossible, Severus!" Professor McGonagall shot back at once. "Why would Tver do such a thing?"
"With his level of ability, the Triwizard Tournament offers no challenge whatsoever. And Galleons mean even less to the Fawley family. Doing this would only invite pointless suspicion!"
Dumbledore said nothing, merely exchanging a look with Tver.
"Then tell me, Tver. Did you try to add your own name using a Confundus Charm?"
"No," Tver replied, shaking his head firmly. "This competition means nothing to me."
Dumbledore nodded in understanding. He, too, could not imagine Tver—who was famously intolerant of pointless effort—suddenly taking an interest in the Triwizard Tournament.
In fact, anyone who knew Tver well understood that much.
And so, after hearing his answer, the room fell silent.
Even Madam Maxim could only let out a quiet sigh.
"Then what about Potter? What's his situation?"
"Harry doesn't have the ability to pull off something like this," Professor McGonagall said immediately. "In fact, aside from Tver and Albus, there isn't a single wizard at Hogwarts right now who could add two Champions at once!"
She positioned herself protectively in front of Harry, meeting Madam Maxim's gaze head-on without the slightest hesitation.
"But this is still unfair to Beauxbatons," Madam Maxim insisted. "I strongly demand that Beauxbatons be allowed to select another Champion!"
"Just a reminder," Cynthia interjected at the right moment, stepping forward. "The Goblet of Fire has already gone out. Its flames won't reignite until the next tournament begins."
"I don't care!" Madam Maxim snapped. "If fairness can't be guaranteed, then what's the point of competing at all? You might as well hand the trophy straight to Durmstrang!"
"Perhaps," Bagman suggested with a pleasant smile, "we could consider having Tver Fawley and Harry Potter withdraw from the competition?"
"No!" Moody slammed his cane heavily against the floor, producing a thunderous bang.
"What I mean is, the Goblet of Fire is bound by powerful contract magic. Every Champion it selects must take part in the tournament!"
Karkaroff nodded vigorously in agreement, nearly shaking his hair loose.
"Aren't you two supposed to be extremely powerful?" Madam Maxim gestured toward Tver and Dumbledore. "You can't break the contract?"
"Of course we can, Madam," Tver replied, offering a polite bow.
"But doing so would most likely wipe away all the magic on the Goblet of Fire as well. Without the Goblet, there would naturally be no contract left to uphold."