Chapter 440: Cheering for Quirrell
Chapter 440: Cheering for Quirrell
Much to the surprise of many Slytherins, Snape never caused any trouble for Albert, and it seemed like the prophecy would be left unresolved as life in Hogwarts returned to its usual calm.
After lying low for several months, Flint and his gang finally made their move again. Kenneth Towle became the center of attention once more when he was found unconscious in the boys' bathroom, his pants removed.
Fortunately, his underwear was left intact.
This incident caused another uproar in Hogwarts. When Kenneth Towle regained consciousness, his face was purple with rage, and he looked ready to kill. Of course, he knew exactly who was behind this, and he started sharpening his blades, ready to take revenge.
He sought Albert's help, but Albert subtly suggested that he could turn to the Weasley twins for assistance.
Fred, George, and Lee Jordan, always up for trouble, offered to teach him how to use a Disillusionment Charm.
With the knowledge of this charm, taking revenge would be much simpler.
As for Albert, he continued to focus on his own matters, and recently, another issue had caught his attention—Quirrell's health seemed to be deteriorating rapidly. He appeared increasingly pale and thin, and the side effects of being possessed by Voldemort were becoming evident. Albert realized that he might not have much time left to exploit this opportunity.
The "Good Student" mission had now reached 89/100. Although it was close to completion, Albert knew he had to speed up and finish it before Quirrell completely fell apart.
After all, the mission offered a tempting reward of 10,000 experience points, 1 skill point, and the ability to learn a specified skill from the target. Failing this mission would probably leave him sobbing into his pillow at night.
Thus, Quirrell had been in a foul mood lately. He found that he encountered Albert almost every day, and Albert would appear out of thin air like a ghost, always accompanied by his questions.
Moreover, they were questions that Quirrell found hard to refuse, as most of them were extensions of topics from their Dark Arts classes. Each time Quirrell saw Albert, he could feel his face twitching. He was holding back his frustration, unable to vent his anger at Albert for fear of ruining his carefully crafted persona.
"What are you doing here?"
As Albert prepared to seek out Professor Quirrell again, he spotted Harry, Ron, and Hermione attempting to enter the forbidden corridor on the fourth floor. He called out to stop them.
He walked over quickly and noticed that the pale-faced Professor Quirrell had already walked away hastily.
"We were just..." Ron was at a loss for words, unsure what to say.
"It seems like Professor Quirrell is avoiding you," Hermione tried to divert Albert's attention.
"Don't change the subject," Albert said, looking at the guilty trio. "Wasn't the last incident enough of a lesson?"
"What are you all doing here? Don't tell me you're planning to enter the forbidden corridor again?" Percy Weasley appeared out of thin air like a ghost, startling them.
"No, we were just passing by and discussing the Wizarding Chess tournament," Albert said with a smile, skillfully changing the topic. "How's your revision for the O.W.Ls coming along?"
"It's going well. I'm confident I'll be able to get all twelve certificates," Percy said, his eyes scanning over Ron, Harry, and Hermione before finally resting on Albert with a smile. "I believe you'll be able to get all twelve as well."
"Don't stress yourself too much. You can take a break at the end of the month and go watch the Wizarding Chess tournament," Albert suggested.
"I'll consider it, but as you know, time is getting tighter now," Percy replied.
Before leaving, Percy glared at Ron and warned him, "Don't let me catch you trying to enter the forbidden corridor again, or I'll write to Mom about it, and you'll lose a leg because of it."
"That guy is as annoying as ever," Ron said, making a face at Percy's departing back. "Fred and George don't like him much, either."
Albert cleared his throat, interrupting Ron. "Alright, I know what you're planning to do, and I won't stop you if you want to get your legs bitten off. But I think you'll regret it for the rest of your life if you end up crippled. You should know that it's difficult to recover from a bite from a three-headed dog."
"We were just passing by," Harry insisted.
"Fine, just passing by," Albert said, turning to leave. But Ron called out to stop him.
"Is there something else?" Albert asked.
"I heard that the champion of the Wizarding Chess tournament will get a reward of ten Galleons," Ron said, taking a deep breath, his voice slightly trembling.
"Yes, that's right, ten Galleons. The champion of each Wizarding Chess tournament receives ten Galleons as a reward," Albert said with a smile, encouraging him. "If you're interested, you can sign up for the selection process during the weekend. Work hard, and even if you don't become the champion, there are still decent rewards for the other rankings."
"Are you really going to participate in the Wizarding Chess tournament?" Harry asked, watching Albert's departing back and then turning to Ron, who still looked slightly excited.
"Of course, why not? The champion gets ten Galleons," Ron said, clenching his fists. "It's a pity it's not a Wizard's Chess tournament. Are you participating, Hermione?"
"No, I'll give it a pass," Hermione replied. Suddenly, she remembered something and added, "Ron, I think there's an entry fee of two Sickles for the Wizarding Chess tournament."
"What? Two Sickles?" Ron exclaimed, his mouth hanging open in surprise.
"Yes, two Sickles. All wizards who make it to the top 32 in the tournament have to pay this amount," Hermione explained, sharing the information she had gathered. "If many people sign up, there will also be a round of selection. Quite a few people in the Wizarding Chess club are preparing to join, and the selection for the 24 slots started two weeks ago."
"Didn't you say there were 32 slots?" Ron asked, confused.
"The top 8 from the previous tournament are automatically qualified if they want to participate again, so they don't need to go through the selection process," Hermione clarified.
"Do you think it's too late to sign up now?" Ron asked, remembering Albert's words.
"It's not too late," Hermione said, though she left out one thought—she didn't think Ron could win the championship. Unfortunately, Ron's skills in Wizard's Chess were just too poor.
"Ron," Harry said suddenly.
"What's up?" Ron asked absentmindedly.
"When did you join the Wizarding Chess club?" Harry asked, choosing his words carefully.
"We joined together last time. Don't you remember?" Ron thought for a moment. Indeed, he and Harry had joined the club, but after that, they had hardly attended the monthly gatherings and didn't even have their own chess pieces.
Chapter end
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