Chapter 864: Fevers and Sweets
Chapter 864: Fevers and Sweets
"I heard the Wizarding Chess tournament has been brought forward?"
Cedric, upon seeing Albert approach, reached into his bag and pulled out the copy of The Dark Force Defense Guide he had borrowed a few days prior, offering it back with a smile.
"Yes, they thought it would be best to hold it earlier to avoid clashing with the Triwizard Tournament," Albert replied. "Makes sense, considering everyone will be more focused on that in the latter half of the year. Not many would pay attention to a chess tournament then."
"I also heard..." Cedric glanced at Albert, a mischievous grin spreading across his face, "that the winner of the chess tournament will be your dance partner at the Christmas Ball?"
"Not exactly a dance partner," Albert quickly corrected, noticing the curious glances from the girls around them. "It's just for a few dances at the ball. Fred came up with the idea, thinking it would bring more attention to the Chess Club."
"What if a boy wins the tournament?" Cedric teased, winking. "Would you dance with him? I think quite a few of the girls would be eager to see that."
"No, if a boy wins, he'll receive an additional small gift," Albert said, waving the copy of The Dark Force Defense Guide in his hand.
"It's a good magazine, but quite pricey," Cedric commented. "If it were a bit cheaper, I'd subscribe myself."
"Is it that expensive?" Albert asked, surprised. "I find the knowledge within quite practical. Professor Lupin's insights are valuable, and his teaching style is quite suitable for newcomers to Dark Arts defense. It's a shame that, because of his condition, no parents would want their children near him. At least he's found another way to impart his knowledge."
"You're not wrong," Cedric agreed. "I've learned quite a bit from The Dark Force Defense Guide. Professor Moody is indeed better suited to teach the more advanced students."
"I think Professor Moody should teach us some practical magic," Angelina cut in, taking the magazine from Albert's hands. "Like the spells Professor Lupin mentioned in the magazine—those would be really useful."
"I'm more curious about Azkaban," Shan'na piped up, her eyes wide as she recalled Sirius Black's description of the prison in the magazine. It sounded like a place of unspeakable horrors.
"I doubt Mr. Black exaggerated the conditions of Azkaban," Albert said honestly. After reading Black's account, he could understand why Hagrid had been so fearful of such a place.
It was a gloomy, terrifying place, shrouded in despair. Only the most fanatical Death Eaters could survive in such an environment. Nonetheless, it was undeniable that Azkaban served as a powerful deterrent to the wizarding community.
"We should take some time to practice the spells mentioned in the magazine," George suggested. "There are quite a few useful ones that we don't know how to cast."
Several students nearby looked over, hoping that Albert would continue the Defense Association from the previous semester. They had all gained valuable knowledge from those gatherings.
"We could ask Professor Moody to teach us," Albert suggested without hesitation. "After all, he's the expert in this field. I'm sure he'd be much better at it than an amateur like me."
While this was true, everyone could tell that Albert was trying to deflect the responsibility. And it would likely be difficult to convince Professor Moody to take time out of his schedule to teach them spells from a magazine.
Soon, the distinctive sound of Moody's stomping footsteps echoed down the corridor, and the professor appeared, leaning on his staff. He stopped at the classroom door, fishing a key out of his pocket to unlock the door to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom.
"Today, we'll be having a practical lesson," Moody announced as he entered the room. "I will be casting the Imperius Curse on each of you, one at a time, so you can experience the effects of this spell and learn how to resist its influence."
A buzz of shocked whispers filled the classroom. Everyone knew the Imperius Curse was one of the Unforgivable Curses, and the idea of being subjected to it was deeply unsettling.
"Professor Dumbledore thought it would be beneficial for you to experience—" Professor Moody's words were cut off by a weak voice.
"Professor, I think I'm sick..." Albert suddenly spoke up, his face pale and his cheeks flushed with an unnatural redness. "I should probably head to the infirmary."
All eyes turned to Albert, their expressions filled with concern. The vibrant, energetic boy they knew now looked haggard and unwell.
“Professor, it looks like Albert is running a fever. I think he might have the flu.” George reached out to feel Albert's forehead and immediately said, "I'll take him to the school hospital!"
Before Professor Moody could react, George had already escorted Albert out of the classroom.
Then, before anyone else could respond, they had disappeared from sight.
"That guy seemed fine just now. How did he suddenly get a fever?" said the boy next to Cedric. "He's probably just pretending so he doesn't have to embarrass himself later!"
"His appearance doesn't look fake," Cedric shook his head.
However, he had a pretty good idea of the reason. Albert was most likely unwilling to let Professor Moody use the Imperius Curse on him, so he had chosen this way to skip the Dark Arts Defense class.
Well, any student with a brain would know that Albert didn't want Professor Moody to cast the Imperius Curse on him and that he was trying to find a way out for both parties.
As for how he did it, no one knew for sure, but his earlier pale face certainly didn't seem like an act.
At this moment, Moody was completely bewildered. He had originally intended to use this opportunity to test Albert's resistance to the Imperius Curse, but the other party had heard the content of the class and promptly feigned illness to skip class, leaving him with no opportunity at all.
In any case, by the time they saw Albert in the Great Hall, there was no trace of illness or fever on his face.
"Albert, what method did you use in the Dark Arts Defense class?" Angelina asked curiously. "It looked just like a real fever. How did you do it?"
"I used this," Fred replied mysteriously, pulling out a two-colored hard candy from his robe pocket.
"What is it?"
"It's a Speedy Skipping Class Candy, one of the magical candy series," Fred whispered. "If you eat this candy, you'll exhibit fever symptoms. Of course, if you use it directly, it's just an ordinary candy. Even if the professor finds it in your pocket and makes you eat it, they'll discover it's just a normal candy."
"It's quite useful. Can you give us a few?" Angelina asked eagerly, her eyes shining with anticipation. "You never know when it might come in handy."
"Two Sickles each," George replied without hesitation.
"That expensive?" The girls widened their eyes in surprise.
"If we can improve the material formula and production tools, we should be able to lower the price to around one Sickle. Right now, these are all handmade, so it's normal for the price to be higher," George explained.
Albert took out a few Fever Candies from his robe pocket and gave one to each of the girls, instructing them, "I won't charge you for these this time, but remember to keep it a secret. To use it, separate the candy, and the part marked with an 'N' is the antidote."
"What a brilliant idea. Whose idea was this?" Shanna examined the candy in her hand.
"Fred and George," Albert replied, steering the conversation in a different direction. "Why don't you tell me what happened in the Dark Arts Defense class?"
With the topic successfully changed, the girls began chatting about the interesting events that had taken place in the Dark Arts Defense class. For example, Fred had been controlled by Professor Moody to sing the Hogwarts school song, and Cedric had danced an elegant ballet in front of everyone, almost shocking their jaws off.
None of the sixth-year students could resist the Imperius Curse, and it was only after Professor Moody removed it that they returned to normal.
"What spell did Professor Moody use to remove the effects of the Imperius Curse?" Albert found this rather strange.
If the Imperius Curse could be so easily removed, it wouldn't have caused such severe consequences for the British wizarding community. After all, if they had just removed the curse daily from those affected, they could have completely avoided the risk of infiltration.
At the very least, he didn't think all wizards were fools who couldn't come up with such a simple solution.
Albert thought that the next time he visited Dumbledore, he could ask him about this. It would be even better if Dumbledore knew the principle behind the Gringotts' security system.
However, Albert suspected that the Gringotts' security system might be related to goblin magic, which was entirely different from wizarding magic.
(End of Chapter)
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