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Chapter 417: Advising You to Repay Your Debts
Chapter 417: Advising You to Repay Your Debts
During the last week of the term, students were once again allowed to visit Hogsmeade Village.
Albert prepared to go to Hogsmeade to buy Christmas gifts for his family. Fred, George, and Lee Jordan, on the other hand, were discussing their upcoming debt collection plan with the others.
Everyone had tolerated Flint for two weeks, and that jerk still occasionally caused them trouble. This time, they were determined to get back what they were owed, with interest.
On the Saturday they went to Hogsmeade, everyone signed out early with Filch and laid in wait along the route to the village.
At that moment, Fred and George were staring at the live map, pinpointing the targets' exact locations.
"Have you found them?"
Albert sat cross-legged in the snow, sipping on some freshly brewed milk tea, and asked.
"They're here! They'll be passing by in about three minutes!" Fred exclaimed excitedly, "There are three of them, and two are our targets. Make sure you don't mistake the wrong person."
"I'll go inform the others to get ready!" George ran out, eager to organize the debt collection team.
"I'll take care of them." Lee Jordan smiled, cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself, adjusted his cloak, and stepped out into the snow.
Flint and his cronies were startled by the sudden appearance of over twenty people, and they quickly reached for their wands.
"Flint, don't even think about resisting," Truman said coldly. "Just hand over the money. You owe us a lot of Galleons, and if you're not going to pay up, there will be consequences."
"Are you going to pay up, or should we take it ourselves?"
"You're a bunch of hypocrites. If you have the guts, come and take it," Flint retorted.
As soon as he finished speaking, Flint and his companion, who had been preparing to fight back, suddenly froze in place as if they had been hit by a Body-Bind Curse.
In fact, they had been secretly immobilized by Lee Jordan, who was hidden from view.
"Don't look so surprised," Fred said as he and Truman stepped forward to search the immobilized boys' pockets. "We're just here to get back what's rightfully ours. If you won't pay up, we have no choice but to take it!" They counted the money and found that there were over a dozen Galleons in total.
"Not bad," Fred said righteously. "These guys are clearly rich, but they refuse to pay what they owe us. It's despicable."
Indeed, even though they had taken the money by force, they still considered themselves the righteous party.
"Quick, take them away," Truman instructed, gesturing for the others to carry the three boys into a nearby snow hut. Naturally, they couldn't let them go and spread the word before they were finished.
With all the advantages on their side, their ambush strategy was a success. They repeated this tactic three more times, targeting the Slytherin students who had collaborated with Flint on the gambling scheme. In total, they recovered nearly forty Galleons, which Albert divided among the group according to the percentage of debt owed.
"I suggest you pay up and let this matter rest," Truman said to the Slytherin students who had been robbed. "If you want to seek revenge, we won't stop you, but just be aware that there are quite a few students you owe money to, and you'll be here at school for a few more years. We wouldn't mind paying you regular visits until you've paid back every last Galleon you owe."
"As for your wands," Fred added, holding a bundle of wands taken from the Slytherin students, "we'll send them back to you once we're in Hogsmeade. We don't want any immediate confrontations."
After releasing the Body-Bind Curse, the Slytherin students who had been robbed were left fuming.
"You'll pay for this!" Flint and his friends threatened before storming off, powerless without their wands and outnumbered.
"It seems they're not ready to let this go," Truman remarked to Albert.
"If they want revenge, then we'll have to take more drastic measures," Albert replied calmly. "We can always modify their memories with a Memory Charm."
"Is that really necessary?" someone asked anxiously.
"There's nothing wrong with it," Albert said, turning to the speaker. "If they want war, we'll give them war."
"Are we taking this too far by talking about war?" someone else said, clearly not wanting to escalate the situation.
"Isn't this already a war?" Albert said coldly, glancing at everyone in the room. "A war to reclaim what is owed. Or are you planning to back out now? If you want to leave, we won't stop you, but I can't guarantee they won't come after you later. As for us, we're not worried."
"We just need to make them realize that even if they seek revenge, they'll only end up hurting themselves. Then they won't bother us again and will stop causing trouble."
A silence fell over the group.
"Weakness and compromise will only bring more bullying and ridicule," Albert said, looking at each of them in turn. "If you back down now, you might not even get your principal back, let alone the Galleons that are rightfully yours."
"You're right!"
The hesitant students were swayed by Albert's words. They, too, didn't think they had done anything wrong. As Albert had pointed out, if the Slytherin students had just paid what they owed, none of this would have happened. It was all the fault of those untrustworthy Slytherins.
Of course, that was indeed the reality of the situation.
"Impressive," Truman whispered, giving Albert a discreet thumbs-up. He had been worried that some students might waver, but Albert had easily convinced them.
"I'm just stating the facts," Albert said with a cold smile. "Some people are just too idealistic, wanting the benefits without wanting to offend anyone. That's just wishful thinking."
"When we first ambushed Flint, the enmity between us was already established," Lee Jordan added, scoffing at those who still harbored illusions. "How could we get our money back without offending the Slytherin students? That's just a fantasy."
"Don't worry," Fred said, patting Truman on the shoulder reassuringly. "Now that we're united, no Slytherin student will dare to bully any of us. And if they do, we'll make sure to get revenge for our own."
Truman himself wasn't too keen on taking things this far, but Albert was right. If they didn't stand up for themselves, they would end up losing everything—their principal and their winnings. So, he decided to side with Albert and take what was owed from Flint and his partners.
"What's your plan for wrapping this up?" Truman asked, voicing his concern.
"We'll modify their memories slightly, making them believe that they've already sought their revenge," Albert replied without hesitation.
"I didn't know you could perform Memory Charms," Truman said, surprised.
"I understand how they work," Albert said with a malicious smile. "If they're not willing to let this go, they'll make perfect test subjects." With that, he continued, "Now, let's clean up this snow hut and head to Hogsmeade!"
(End of Chapter)
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