#397 - Chapter 397 Pre-match preparation

Although Harry, Malfoy, and Cedric all believed that the second task should have measures to prevent the champions from drowning, just like Professor Slughorn being a safety officer in the first task.

But they were all well aware that completely entrusting one's life to a safety officer was a foolish choice. After all, once a safety officer needed to intervene, it meant elimination from the competition.

With the experience of the first task, the three of them deeply understood the importance of thorough preparation. At this moment, they were soaking in the warm pool, starting another brainstorming session.

"Before Harry brews the Gillyweed potion, we should probably practice the Bubble-Head Charm first," Cedric said, taking the lead and offering his suggestion.

"Although the Bubble-Head Charm can't last for three hours, it's still a good backup plan." He paused and continued.

"More importantly, using spells underwater is a big problem. I've found that once you enter the water, you can't pronounce the incantations properly. And another advantage of the Bubble-Head Charm is that it allows us to cast spells freely underwater."

"Of course, this is just our emergency plan to fall back on. We should still practice silent casting for some common spells."

That was a reliable suggestion!

Harry nodded and began to consider which spells he could cast silently with proficiency.

The Disarming Charm, the Stunning Spell, the Petrification Charm... among them, the Disarming Charm was the most familiar.

The offensive spells were sufficient for the time being, but he couldn't cast the Shield Charm silently, so the focus of the upcoming practice would be on that.

"Spells are indeed a big problem. Things definitely won't go smoothly underwater. Maybe we'll even have to fight merpeople," Harry speculated.

"Besides merpeople, there should also be Grindylows. I remember Professor Lupin saying that merpeople raise these magical creatures as their underwater hounds."

"Also, the Black Lake is so big that it wouldn't be surprising to encounter kelpies."

"I think warmth is also a big problem," Malfoy said with his eyes closed. "The next task is on February 24th, the weather definitely won't be warm, and the water in the Black Lake will definitely be bone-chillingly cold."

"For temperature, we can use the Warming Charms invented by Fred and George," Harry pondered for a moment. "If that doesn't work, we'll practice the Warming Charm."

"Let me add one more point," Cedric said. "Underwater movement is a completely different concept. We'll be underwater for nearly three hours, which will definitely consume a lot of energy. We need to think about ways to conserve energy and move quickly underwater at the same time."

Under the brainstorming of the three, problems were raised one after another. Some problems could be discussed and resolved on the spot, while others required further thought after returning.

"Right," Malfoy suddenly sat up. "Won't we get lost in the Black Lake?"

"The Black Lake is so big, and we don't know what the situation is like under the Black Lake, let alone where the merpeople village is."

Get lost?!

This problem was really quite serious.

The situation under the water was so complicated. If they failed because they got lost, that would be a real headache.

The three of them discussed for a long time, but couldn't come to a conclusion.

Just as they were having a headache, a chuckle rang out beside them: "The merpeople village is in a very, very deep place in the Black Lake, and it's indeed not easy to find."

A ghost!

The sudden appearance of the female voice startled everyone. Malfoy screamed directly, and Harry was also so frightened that he lost his balance and fell into the water, swallowing two mouthfuls of water.

After he emerged from the water, he found Moaning Myrtle sitting on a faucet, watching the three of them with interest.

Cedric and Malfoy were desperately gathering bubbles towards the side. Seeing this, Harry didn't hesitate and joined the army of gathering bubbles.

When did Moaning Myrtle arrive?!

The three of them were too relaxed just now, and they didn't even notice her presence.

"Don't worry," Moaning Myrtle blinked. "The bubbles are very thick, I can't see anything."

"Besides, I'm just a ghost, I can't do anything to you."

Cedric was the first to calm down: "Myrtle, are you familiar with the Black Lake?"

"Of course, I often play in the Black Lake, but the merpeople don't seem to like me very much, and they always drive me away."

"That's great," Cedric's eyes lit up. "Then can you draw us a map of the Black Lake? No! I mean, can you familiarize us with the environment inside the Black Lake?"

"Seeing that you're a handsome guy, I can grant your request."

Moaning Myrtle giggled, then plunged into the pool: "Come find me anytime, you know where I usually am."

Seeing this, the three of them fled the bathtub one after another, frantically grabbing towels to wrap around their waists.

However, Moaning Myrtle had completely left and didn't continue to tease them.

The three of them lost the desire to continue soaking in the bath. They simply rinsed off and went back to their dormitories to sleep.

Malfoy was very efficient. The next day, he brought Harry a lot of Gillyweed.

In order not to disappoint his teammates, Harry plunged into the library and began to study the Gillyweed potion.

However, only one day into his research, Snape found him and, without explanation, handed him a potion recipe.

"This is the Amphibious Potion recipe I invented. With it, you can cope with more complex situations."

With the most critical problem solved, the three of them came to the Black Lake, found a secluded corner, opened the ice, and prepared for their first adventure into the Black Lake.

Under the guidance of Moaning Myrtle, they swam into the depths of the Black Lake little by little.

This was a new and strange world. Harry found that his previous imagination of the Black Lake was too conservative.

In the shallow layers of the Black Lake, the gray water surface was still faintly visible, but as they gradually descended, the light began to become dimmer and dimmer.

Underneath was a large expanse of undulating black water plants, soft and tangled, occasionally swaying gently with the current. Small, shimmering pebbles were scattered like stars on the wide, flat mud and sand, as if silently pointing the way.

In the distance, large shadows shrouded the depths of the water, the darkness so heavy that it was oppressive, like the open mouth of some unspeakable behemoth.

The faint light of the Lumos spell could only barely illuminate the area a few feet around, and a little further away were black shadows of varying depths.

Occasionally, schools of fish darted past, their silver scales shimmering in the light, only to quickly disappear into the boundless darkness.

Moaning Myrtle chattered away, dispelling much of the three's nervousness.

Time slowly passed, the surrounding waters became darker and darker, and the sense of oppression gradually increased. They were gradually approaching the merpeople village.

However, the merpeople discovered them in advance and drove them out with a large number of Grindylows.