Chapter 860: Albert is Busy
Chapter 860: Albert is Busy
"You're not planning to publish a paper in Today's Transfiguration this year?" Cedric couldn't understand why Albert would temporarily give up publishing in Today's Transfiguration.
"I thought sixth year would be more relaxed, but I still have a ton of things to do." Albert sighed heavily, as if he wanted to vent all the pressure that had built up recently. "I'm so busy that I can barely breathe. And it's not good to monopolize the publication space in Today's Transfiguration. We should give newcomers a chance. Besides, I already have enough fame and don't care about those things anymore. Moreover, I think you should compete for the Most Promising Newcomer Award from Today's Transfiguration. Having more titles under your belt will make it easier for you to enter the Ministry of Magic in the future."
Cedric remained silent for a moment, then finally said thank you to Albert. He now understood why Albert was giving up on publishing in the magazine—it was to give him a chance at the Most Promising Newcomer Award.
If Albert continued to publish papers in the magazine, with his reputation as a hurdle, it would be nearly impossible for any other Hogwarts student to win the award before he graduated.
"Wait a moment, Mr. Anderson," Professor McGonagall called out to Albert, who was about to leave Classroom 21.
"Professor McGonagall, is there something the matter?" Albert stopped and turned to face the professor, who was walking towards him.
"Today's Transfiguration is planning to compile all the papers you've published in the magazine into a collection," Professor McGonagall shared the good news with Albert, but she didn't get the response she expected.
"Professor, will I receive royalties? I mean, if they publish my collection, will I be paid in galleons?" Albert asked without hesitation.
Professor McGonagall stood there with her mouth agape, unsure how to respond. Albert's question caught her off guard, as writing for Today's Transfiguration was typically done without any expectation of payment. Even when she edited articles for the magazine in her free time, it was considered a voluntary contribution.
Well, perhaps receiving a free copy of the magazine each month could be considered a form of payment.
"If there's no payment involved, then forget about it," Albert said nonchalantly, as if it were no big deal.
"It's still a great opportunity," Cedric interjected, trying to be helpful. "I'm sure Today's Transfiguration has never done something like this before."
"That's because they've never had the chance," Albert replied. "I've published quite a few Transfiguration papers in recent years, and my fame has grown significantly. They're just trying to capitalize on my popularity to make money." Albert paid no mind to the strange looks he was getting from those around him and continued, "If they don't want to pay me and still expect me to work for them, that's not going to happen."
"That does make some sense," Cedric mumbled, taken aback.
"If they don't mention anything about payment, please reply that I'm already famous enough and don't wish to become more famous," Albert instructed Professor McGonagall.
"Alright!" Professor McGonagall brushed off the matter, then continued, "Also, the Head Boy has been complaining to me that you've been neglecting your duties."
"Professor, I think we should give newcomers a chance to prove themselves," Albert quickly came up with an excuse. "I can't do everything, and they need the opportunity to learn from their mistakes, too."
Cedric once again gained a new understanding of his friend's shamelessness. How could he make slacking off sound so noble?
"This won't reflect well on your chances of becoming Head Boy in your seventh year," Professor McGonagall warned, furrowing her brows.
"It's fine," Albert said, unconcerned about the prospect of becoming Head Boy. "We have Cedric, a diligent and responsible student, right here. I think he'd be a perfect fit." Albert then added, "I've just had too much on my plate lately. There's never enough time, and I'm running myself ragged."
"Fine, you always have some excuse," Professor McGonagall said after staring at Albert for a moment. She decided to drop the matter, realizing that Albert might genuinely not be interested in the position.
Of course, it could also be that Albert was simply too busy. After turning in his Time-Turner, he found himself with less time on his hands.
As they left Classroom 21 together, Cedric asked curiously, "Are you really that short on money? I heard that you watched the Quidditch World Cup for several days in a row from the top-tier box seats."
The others around them also gave Albert curious looks. It wasn't easy to get your hands on tickets for the luxury boxes, yet this guy seemed to have a whole stack of them.
"Those tickets were gifts," Albert shrugged. "I don't have galleons to spare on such expensive tickets. I'm not that wasteful."
"Why doesn't anyone gift me World Cup tickets?" Cedric lamented, thinking about how much his father had spent on their trip to the Quidditch World Cup.
"No one sends you tickets, but someone sends you money!" Albert patted Cedric on the shoulder. "You can submit articles to The Defense Guide. If your submissions are accepted and published, you'll receive payment. I heard the highest payment is up to ten galleons, and they settle payments monthly. Think about it. It's a way to earn some money so you can take Cho out on dates and buy her gifts."
"Me and Cho..."
"You haven't won her over yet?" Albert looked at Cedric with suspicion. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about when it comes to having a girlfriend."
"What's The Defense Guide?" Cedric quickly changed the subject.
"It's a magazine publication founded by Professor Lupin," Albert explained, letting Cedric off the hook. "You know, given his identity, it's difficult for him to find work, so I suggested he start a magazine." Albert continued, "I have a copy that I can give you on Monday."
"No wonder you were badmouthing Today's Transfiguration earlier," Cedric realized.
"It's just that Today's Transfiguration is being unreasonable," Albert shrugged. "Otherwise, I wouldn't bother with such trivial matters. If they truly had good intentions, they would have contacted me directly through owl post to discuss this matter instead of going through Professor McGonagall. They showed no sincerity at all. Of course, it could also be that the editor-in-chief of Today's Transfiguration is an idiot, or perhaps he doesn't want to pay me, so he doesn't dare to talk to me directly about it."
"You certainly see things clearly," Cedric sighed softly, then changed the subject. "By the way, Gabriel wrote to me during the summer, saying that you introduced him to the Muggle Liaison Office at the Ministry of Magic."
"I don't have that kind of influence," Albert denied. "Gabriel got into the Ministry on his own merits, and the Muggle Liaison Office often has trouble finding people, as you know, many pure-bloods aren't too keen on jobs related to Muggles."
"Albert remained in contact with Truman, exchanging letters once a month. Truman often complained or shared gossip he'd heard from the Ministry of Magic. Recently, he took Albert's suggestion to write a novel based on his experiences in the Muggle Liaison Office.
'Just send me that copy of 'The Defense Guide' as my birthday gift when my birthday comes around,' Cedric paused and asked, 'What gift do you want for your birthday? A book or some candy?' 'You can get me a quill, but not one with flashy colors,' Albert replied.
Walking behind them, Katrina couldn't help but tease when she overheard their birthday gift requests, 'You two are certainly straightforward!' 'I think it's better to be clear about these things. At least, I won't end up with a bunch of unwanted gifts on my birthday or Christmas. Nowadays, many people like to give me books as presents, and most of the books on my shelf are gifts from others,' Albert joked, 'So, what are you planning to get me for my birthday?'
'I'll give you a book on your birthday,' Katrina said, having already prepared a gift. It was easy to choose a present for Albert.
'I still have something to do, so I'll head out first,' Cedric stopped by the entrance of a secret passage and bid farewell to the pair before lifting the edge of the carpet and disappearing into the passageway.
After Cedric's departure, the two continued down the corridor and climbed the moving staircase to the fifth floor.
As they walked down an empty corridor toward the library, Katrina suddenly stopped and asked Albert, 'Do you think my current look resembles Isabelle?' 'I preferred the way you were before,' Albert replied honestly, 'You are you, and she is she.'
'Were you planning to invite Isabelle to the Christmas ball?' Katrina asked, her expression turning slightly complex as she brought up the topic, 'I agreed to it.' 'Sorry, I've given up on that silly idea. I think Isabelle might have already talked to you about it,' Albert apologized directly to Katrina, 'I owe you an apology for that. I hope it didn't cause you any trouble.'
Katrina fell silent once more, offering a smile, 'You don't need to apologize. I think countless girls would want to compete for your dance partner position.' 'Thank you,' Albert breathed a sigh of relief, 'With Isabelle away, choosing a dance partner is indeed a troublesome task.'
For some reason, Katrina found the situation a little amusing and also felt a bit of sympathy for the students who would compete to be Albert's dance partner, as some things were already decided even before they began.
As the pair entered the library, they encountered Professor Moody at the entrance, who was waiting for Madam Pince to process his book loan. He grumbled, '...I can't even find suitable books for the higher-grade students as textbooks anymore. I think it would be great to use some of the Auror training materials for classes.' 'Professor Moody, do you have the Auror training materials here?' Albert glanced at the book titled 'Encounter with the Faceless Monster' in Moody's hand.
'While I don't mind lending them to you, it would go against the rules of the Ministry of Magic,' Moody turned his head and flashed an ugly smile at Albert, his magical eye scanning Albert's face and then resting on Katrina's, who had accompanied Albert to the library, before he continued, 'The Ministry certainly wouldn't like the Auror training content to be leaked. To be frank, they don't want students to be exposed to too much knowledge about dark curses, and even some knowledge about dark magic can only be accessed in the sixth year. It's ridiculous! No wonder most wizards can't cast a decent Iron-Skin Curse.' 'I thought you would let those rules go to hell,' Albert said bluntly, 'The Dark Arts defense at Hogwarts is a joke internationally.'
'You're right about that, and I think the same,' Professor Moody said in a raspy voice, 'The level of Dark Arts defense among the students here is indeed very poor. You're probably the only exception I've found. If you become the Hogwarts Champion, I'll suggest to Dumbledore that the restricted section be made accessible to you.' Moody didn't know that Albert already had access to the restricted section and could borrow books from there even if it wasn't opened to him.
'Alright, don't chat here. If you want to talk, go outside the library,' Madam Pince finally lost her patience with the two students who blatantly disregarded the library rules and glared at them, ready to shoo them away.
'With your current level, passing the Auror test would be a breeze. What you need now is more experience, not learning a bunch of random spells,' Moody said and then turned to leave.
Regarding the Auror training materials, Albert never expected to obtain them from Moody in the first place. He was confident that he could get his hands on them through the Wildsmith family without much trouble.
Katrina secured a vacant spot for them, and they began searching for information together, 'I heard Professor Moody has a nickname—Mad-Eye,' she said.
'It suits him quite well,' Albert whispered, 'Professor Moody used to be recognized as one of the best Aurors. It's said that most of the prisoners in Azkaban today were captured by him, so he has a lot of enemies, and he's always paranoid about someone seeking revenge.' 'He seems to have high hopes for you becoming an Auror?' Katrina placed a few books in front of Albert as they gathered the necessary materials for the Transfiguration essay.
'It's a pity that I'm not interested in becoming an Auror. All that fighting and killing isn't for me. I'm a pacifist,' Albert took the books and started browsing through them, also accessing his mental repository of knowledge to search for information on human transfiguration.
Katrina didn't believe a word of it. There had been several strange incidents at school, and some Slytherin students had suffered greatly, but no one knew who was responsible, as there was never any evidence to be found.
Ten minutes later, Albert began to focus on writing his essay on human transfiguration. He needed to finish the backlog of homework from the previous days. That afternoon, he had promised to visit Isabelle and check on the progress of the 'Ancient Magic Text Guide' that she had been working on.
He also had to oversee the content for the next issue of 'The Defense Guide,' and on top of that, he had two letters to reply to and an essay on 'Spell Innovation' to write. Just as he had said earlier, he was busy as hell.
(End of Chapter)
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