"First like this, then this, and then this... There. Done."
He paid no further attention to the now fully formed trap spell. Instead, he calmly studied the transformed wheel for a while, spending quite a bit of time figuring out how to use it.
Although Barty had already briefly explained the method of controlling the ghost ship and how to trigger the "Aquatic Teleportation" magic when introducing the rules a week ago, merely hearing the steps and actually operating the thing were naturally two different matters.
Then he slid his wand back into his pocket, groped a little deeper inside as though worried it might fall out, and withdrew his hand again before sitting down on the plain wooden chair and gripping the wheel with both hands.
The instant his palms touched the wheel's handles, the entire ghost ship began to tremble slightly, and a series of low rumbles echoed through the cabin. The wooden wall in front of Avada gradually turned transparent, allowing him to see the scenery outside directly.
He even noticed that part of the golden egg—which had already melted—had seeped through the console and out into the hull itself, where it was now projecting a thick beam of light forward...
So after merging with the ship, the golden egg could also double as a searchlight?
And Avada had no doubt whatsoever that the quality of this "searchlight" was also tied to how complete the golden egg was.
Honestly, if the pure-blood families and Barty had not insisted on scheming in secret, the design of this year's Tournament tasks really was quite entertaining and spectacular.
Of course, that was only from the audience's perspective.
Rumble...
Amid a strange roar from somewhere unknown, the ghost ship finally began to move slowly. Since the outside was almost completely dark, Avada could not judge its speed very well. He could only rely on the faint sense of pressure against his back to tell that the ship was probably not moving all that fast.
All right. Krum and Fleur should be finishing up soon too... Time to follow the plan!
He slowly took a deep breath. The fingers of his right hand quietly curled inward, tightly gripping the Fawkes feather he had secretly taken from his pocket while putting away his wand and hidden up his sleeve...
"Aquatic Teleportation!"
As Avada triggered one of the spells attached to the wheel, the ghost ship—previously sailing at a modest speed through the dark waters—suddenly vanished as though several frames had been skipped.
And yet, no hollow space appeared where the ship had just displaced the water, as though the vessel had been nothing more than an illusion from the start, or had simply melted directly into the water...
...
"Hm?"
By the lakeshore, the students who had been eagerly watching Krum's fierce battle against the Kelpie, or cheering on Fleur as she struggled onward, all froze at the same time.
Out of the corners of their eyes, they noticed that in Mr. Ken's viewing section, the mist-screen that should have been showing his every move inside the ghost ship's cabin had suddenly dimmed for some reason, turning back into an ordinary cloud of white mist floating leisurely in the air.
Beside it, on the screen showing the exterior view of the water, the ghost ship that had previously been in the center of the frame had also abruptly vanished, leaving behind nothing but an almost pure-black deep blue...
"There is no need for everyone to panic. Mr. Ken has not encountered an accident, and the broadcast magic has not malfunctioned."
Seeing the audience's reaction, Barty nodded as expected and began explaining. "This is because the ghost ship Mr. Ken is aboard is currently using Durmstrang's signature spell, Aquatic Teleportation."
"This is a very ancient and obscure piece of magic, said to have been invented personally by Durmstrang's founder, Varkanova, and cast upon the giant sailing ship moored on the lake. This magic allows a ship to instantly teleport anywhere within a body of water, much like Apparition. Even if the two bodies of water are not connected in any way, it can still allow a massive vessel to cross between them instantly."
"Moreover, this form of teleportation can move an enormous amount of mass in a single use, is not blocked by ordinary Anti-Apparition wards, and can even reach farther. If the host of this Triwizard Tournament were not Durmstrang but Hogwarts, then that sailing ship could have teleported directly into Hogwarts' Black Lake in a single jump..."
As Barty explained, the Durmstrang students could not help lifting their heads proudly. Even Headmaster Karkaroff and quite a few professors wore deeply satisfied looks.
Barty smiled at the sight, then continued, "So, because of the precision and difficulty involved in this spell, the internal broadcast magic is temporarily cut off while the ghost ship is teleporting. But please rest assured, this teleportation will last less than five minutes. Very soon, you will see Mr. Ken appear at the destination and become the first to face the final trial..."
"Ah! Mr. Krum has finally defeated the Kelpie! He's entered the ghost ship as well!"
"Mr. Krum has had fairly good luck. A Kelpie is much easier to deal with than a Horned Serpent, so he has successfully shortened the gap between himself and Mr. Ken... Good, he's inserted the golden egg. His egg is complete as well, so he can use all of the ghost ship's functions..."
"Excellent, Mr. Krum has also begun Aquatic Teleportation! The difference between him and Mr. Ken is less than two minutes now, so Mr. Ken cannot be considered safely in the lead just yet... Both of their screens will resume in five minutes, so for now let us focus our attention on Miss Delacour..."
In the mist-screen displaying Fleur's battle, she finally managed—somewhat clumsily—to deal with that huge group of Grindylows. After swimming farther down, she at last arrived at the final challenge before entering the ghost ship...
"A giant squid!"
Barty and the Hogwarts students cried out at the same time. The Hogwarts students were all far too familiar with the thing. Almost every year, quite a few drowning first-years were brought back to shore by the giant squid in the Black Lake...
However, the giant squid on the screen seemed a little smaller than the one in Hogwarts, and its color was slightly different as well. There also seemed to be a bit more ferocity in those huge eyes.
"This creature is absolutely no less troublesome underwater than a Horned Serpent! Not only does it possess a body as powerful as a dragon's, making it even harder for wizards—already poor at casting underwater—to injure it, but its immense strength is also enough to destroy most products of Transfiguration. And on top of that, giant squids possess the highest intelligence of all known aquatic magical creatures, to the point that they can even communicate with people to some extent!"
"It looks as though Miss Delacour is about to run into quite a bit of trouble... Eh?"
Under everyone's astonished gaze, the giant squid seemed to lose the light in its eyes before it had even had the chance to move. Its huge body rose and fell lazily in the water as if it had fallen asleep.
Fleur then curled her lips into a smug smile, kicked off with her legs, and swiftly swam into the cabin of the ghost ship.
(End of Chapter)