As supervising referee, Wayne naturally had to enter the ruins too.
His task was ensuring the champions didn't go overboard with forbidden spells like the Unforgivable Curses.
Additionally, he'd play the role of mysterious benefactor – he'd hidden several venues within the maze.
If any champion were fortunate enough to encounter one, passing a simple test would earn them decent rewards.
Beyond that, four particularly valuable treasures were hidden in the ruins, each significantly impacting later stages of the tournament.
One such item was gillyweed.
Whoever obtained it would essentially have smooth sailing in the next round, easily securing high marks.
The other three treasures each had their uses too – if the champions could find them and get past their guardians.
With a single step, Wayne Apparated to the maze's central chamber.
An empty plain stretched before him, flanked by four towering bronze knight statues, each three metres tall with massive swords.
They looked intimidating – and indeed were.
Especially when animated.
These weren't inert sculptures but former tomb guardians, subdued and repurposed as trial components.
Their armour bore magical engravings granting formidable defensive spells and enhanced mobility, making them troublesome opponents.
Opening his case, Wayne extended his wand inside, releasing a stream of creatures:
Niffler, Fwoopers, Unicorns, Mooncalves, a baby Zouwu...
Even the usually lethargic Iron-eating Beast emerged.
The adorable creatures lined up obediently. Wayne cleared his throat. "Since you're out, enjoy yourselves today. Remember – no lethal force against the champions. If they pass your tests, you may give them the items."
He distributed prepared materials as he spoke.
The baby Zouwu yipped excitedly before bolting off, clearly restless. The three Unicorns nuzzled Wayne before departing too.
"You too – get moving. Trying to diet again?" Wayne chuckled as the panda clung to his leg.
At "diet", the creature shuddered visibly, its flesh rippling, before reluctantly waddling off with a Mandrake in its arms.
"Eek!"
Jerry suddenly popped from Wayne's pocket, chattering animatedly.
"You want to go too?" Wayne raised an eyebrow. "At your size, one flick would finish you."
The creature indignantly squeaked protests before pointing at the massive bronze golem nearby.
"Hmm?" Understanding dawned on Wayne. "That could work."
Jerry climbed onto Wayne's shoulder, his little body wriggling impatiently until Wayne had no choice but to relent with a resigned sigh.
Crunch, crunch!
The harsh screech of metal echoed as Wayne waved his wand, awakening a bronze golem. Yet Jerry remained unsatisfied, continuing to bargain with him.
"One's enough to give them trouble. What's the point of adding another?"
This time, Wayne refused outright. The Niffler snorted before scrambling onto the golem's shoulder.
The ground trembled with dull thuds as the construct took its first steps.
"Let's hope this doesn't cause any trouble..." Wayne murmured.
Of course, it was just a passing thought. What harm could a cute little Niffler possibly do?
Wayne conjured himself a rocking chair and settled in, unfurling the ruins map that displayed the eight champions' current positions and their impending challenges.
...
Forced into sudden teleportation, Sakura panicked momentarily.
The ruins were dimly lit with poor visibility. She immediately summoned light cards to circle her like protective fireflies, their glow bringing scant comfort.
Wand in hand, Sakura kept several cards primed for activation. Only after thorough preparation did she dare begin exploring.
She found herself in a dead-end corridor that branched into labyrinthine passages. Though moving cautiously, the tournament's time constraints forced her to quicken her pace.
A strange chittering echoed from around the next corner.
Peering carefully, she spotted several imps squabbling over a box bearing Hogwarts' crest.
Instant understanding dawned - this must contain materials for the champions' quest.
"Wind!"
A gale scattered the shrieking imps. Catching the box, Sakura disengaged its mechanism to reveal several daffodil petals.
Her mind raced through potion recipes using this ingredient.
"So that's how this works?"
It reminded her of gachapon machines dispensing random prizes.
Familiarity dispelled some environmental dread. Continuing through the maze, she'd advanced five hundred metres when a bronze golem loomed overhead.
Though slow-moving, its resilience demanded three spells to dismantle. The defeated construct yielded another box - its contents noticeably superior herbs, commensurate with the challenge.
Finding herself enjoying this monster-loot dynamic, Sakura actively sought out areas with creature noises.
...
Meanwhile, Fleur's luck proved poorer than Sakura's.
No sooner had she landed than a dozen Diricawls assaulted her. Though skilled enough to eventually drive them off and claim their box, the effort proved taxing.
Examining the bat wings and lacewing flies inside, Fleur hesitated.
The ruins' full scale remained unknown, but the judges' one-hour limit suggested considerable size.
Perhaps focusing solely on finding the exit would suffice within the timeframe.
But attempting both objectives? That raised the difficulty substantially.
So the dilemma she now faced was whether to search for more materials or find the exit as soon as possible.
With time limited, Fleur didn't deliberate for long before making her decision.
Find ingredients!
If the competition proceeded normally, she stood almost no chance of defeating Sakura. Her only hope lay in finding suitable materials to brew a powerful potion as her trump card.
...
However, Krum made the opposite decision.
Having scored only thirty points in the first round—the lowest among all champions—he had little hope of winning without catching up on points.
Thus, after setting his goal, Krum began sprinting at full speed.
Simultaneously, he couldn't help grinding his teeth in frustration.
Why couldn't this round have been held near the castle? If it had, he could have emulated Harry by summoning a flying broomstick for rapid movement.
Now he was forced to rely solely on his own two legs.
Along the way, if he encountered magical creatures that were easy to handle, Krum would dispatch them without hesitation.
When faced with more troublesome ones or those appearing in groups, he would blast his way through with spells, displaying an almost reckless level of boldness.
Yet sometimes fortune favours the bold. As Krum rounded a corner, a sign appeared before him: "The mystery prize awaits in the passage to your right—don't miss out~"
After merely two seconds of contemplation upon reading the playful text, Krum decided to investigate.
Having come this far, it would feel like a waste not to see what this so-called mystery prize was.
Soon, following the sign's directions, Krum located the prize—and his expression shifted slightly.
A box rested on a raised platform, guarded by none other than a Blast-Ended Skrewt.
The creature resembled a rhinoceros with rough, heavily armoured skin that rendered most spells ineffective. Its forehead bore an incredibly hard horn capable of piercing through anything.
Most terrifyingly, it could inject venom through this horn, causing explosions.
Nevertheless, Krum resolved to give it a try.
He cast the Bogging Spell, softening the surrounding terrain. The unicorn sank into the mire, struggling violently. Thanks to his agile footwork, Krum successfully retrieved the box.
Upon securing the box, Krum's face lit up with delight, though he had no time to inspect it—the Blast-Ended Skrewt's horn had begun to glow. He sprinted desperately from the area, only relaxing once certain the creature wasn't pursuing him. Then he opened the box.
Strangely, instead of precious materials, the box contained only a parchment.
Suddenly, the parchment spontaneously combusted. As the last ashes drifted away, Wayne Apparated before Krum.
"Quite the luck you've got there, Krum."
The youth examined him with an amused smile. "You're the first contestant to trigger the mystery reward."
Krum's expression darkened further. "So the grand prize is greeting you?"
"Of course not. I'm merely the awards presenter."
Wayne reached out, producing two potion vials and a strip of boomslang skin.
"Oh, glowering youth, did you lose this Strengthening Solution, this Agility Potion, or this rune-engraved boomslang skin?"
Both potions required boomslang skin as a primary ingredient.
Krum's eyes gleamed—the Strengthening Solution was exceptional, capable of temporarily enhancing a wizard's physical attributes across the board. The Agility Potion wasn't bad either; speed variations provided significant duelling advantages.
As for the snakeskin, he didn't even glance at it.
What use was raw material alone? His potion-making skills were mediocre at best—even with all ingredients assembled, he couldn't brew either potion.
With absolute certainty, Krum declared, "I lost the Strengthening Solution!"
Having made his choice, he stared expectantly at Wayne as if urging him to hand it over.
Wayne's expression turned peculiar. "Krum, have you never read Aesop's Fables?"
"What's that?" Krum replied blankly. "Fairy tales? I don't waste time on such trivialities."
Wayne: "..."
My mistake.
He'd forgotten pure-blood families were functionally illiterate. Why would they read Muggle fables?
"Apologies, but you're incorrect." Wayne sighed. "Use your brain. Bagman clearly stated only materials could be obtained here—yet you chose finished potions?"
Krum's face fell.
Damn it. In his excitement, he'd forgotten the rules.
"Then I'll take the snakeskin," Krum hastily amended.
"Wrong answers don't get second chances. Think I deal in Regret Potions?" Wayne snapped. "Moreover, you'll face punishment."
He flicked his wand, and Krum's body levitated uncontrollably.
"Your penalty is restarting from the beginning."
Krum shot through the air like a cannonball, Wayne's parting words ringing in his ears:
"Read more books when you get back."
Krum: "..."
Damnable Lawrence! And damnable Aesop!
Why'd you have to write fables anyway!
...
Having dispatched Krum, Wayne returned to laze at the ruins' centre while monitoring other contestants via the map.
Fleur was advancing toward Tuantuan, the Mandrake in her possession being among the rarest herbs in the ruins—not only invaluable for potion-making, but potent enough to weaponise when hurled directly.
Next was Sakura, whose luck wasn't quite as good. There were no valuable treasures along her path forward.
However, if she kept going straight, it would lead towards the exit.
Wayne had just thought Sakura might become the first contestant to emerge when she made a sharp turn, heading straight towards where Cassandra was.
...
This girl probably had a slight sense of direction impairment.
As for Cedric's direction... it led to the Zouwu. Obtaining the Devil's Snare from the Zouwu's grasp wouldn't be easy.
Meanwhile, Vladimir and Buso had already joined forces. The two were sweeping through aimlessly, their efficiency much higher than working alone.
As for Harry...
"Huh?"
Wayne's expression turned peculiar.
"Is this fate's arrangement?"
Even without Barty Crouch Jr. to deliver gillyweed to Harry, it seemed the two were inexplicably bound by destiny. Harry was about to encounter the gillyweed challenge very soon.
After going round in circles, was this cheating tool still destined to fall into Harry's hands?
...
On the eastern side of the ruins, Harry fought his way through, collecting numerous materials.
He felt this challenge was much easier than dealing with the dragon. Creatures like Cornish Pixies, Ghouls and Red Caps posed no threat to him at all.
From the bottom of his heart, Harry thanked Professor Lupin for teaching so thoroughly last term, enabling him to handle these monsters with ease.
Harry pushed aside a large rock and entered a narrow path. He'd just heard gurgling sounds from within – there must be something valuable hidden inside.
Whoosh!
A fireball came shooting towards him. Harry's expression changed slightly as he quickly shouted:
"Protego!"
The fireball dissipated upon hitting the invisible barrier. Harry cautiously edged forward, pushing through the weeds until he saw the creatures inside.
Two adult Blast-Ended Skrewts and three Fire Crabs.
The creatures noticed the intruder immediately and attacked without hesitation.
The Skrewts' tails shot out fireballs while the Fire Crabs spewed long streams of flame.
Harry dodged sideways to avoid the flames, using the Shield Charm to withstand the fireballs as he rapidly incanted:
"Flipendo!"
"Impedimenta!"
"Expelliarmus!"
Spell after spell shot from his wand tip. This was Harry's favourite rhythm – defeating opponents head-on with magic.
Two Fire Crabs tripped over invisible ropes, their flames scorching the ground and burning themselves instead. Another was sent flying by the powerful Disarming Charm.
The Skrewts had higher magical resistance – the Knockback Jinx only caused their fireball-forming tails to pause for two seconds.
Eventually, Harry stunned one Skrewt with consecutive Stunning Spells and briefly immobilised the other with a Body-Bind Curse before grabbing the wooden box and sprinting away.
Reaching safety, he opened it with excitement. Inside writhed a dark, spherical mass resembling seaweed, looking almost alive and thoroughly disgusting.
Harry's smile gradually froze.
Good news: judging by the strength of its guardians, this was undoubtedly an extremely rare magical plant.
Bad news: he'd never seen this thing before, nor read about it in any book.
So...
What the hell was this thing?
Harry couldn't help recalling something Wayne had once said.
Knowledge is power...