Chapter 925: Beneath the Black Lake
Chapter 925: Beneath the Black Lake
On a clear Sunday noon, with the sun hanging high, Albert, along with Fred, George, and Lee Jordan, set out from the castle across the damp grounds toward the Black Lake, intending to scout the lake bed.
They bypassed the area where Durmstrang's ship was docked and headed to a pre-arranged spot on the lake shore. Albert's plan was to explore the depths of the lake and test out some ideas he had prepared to prevent any unnecessary mishaps during the second task.
A chilly wind blew across the lake, causing the four of them to shiver as they reached the shore.
"Are you really going to scout the lake in this weather?" Lee Jordan stiffly turned his head toward Albert, who was beginning to take off his robe. "Why don't we call it off for now and wait for warmer temperatures?"
"I have to go down there, and there's no escaping it for me." Albert stared at the dark waters of the lake, knowing Lee Jordan's reluctance, so he didn't force him. "It's a good opportunity to do some reconnaissance and test out my preparations. We don't want to be caught off guard during the event."
Turning to Lee Jordan, Albert said, "If you don't want to come, you can stay on the shore and look after our things. We'll definitely need someone to take care of everything when we get back."
"Sure, I'll prepare some hot drinks for you." Lee Jordan seemed to be waiting for this suggestion, looking immensely relieved, which earned him disdainful glances from Fred and George.
This guy had finally chickened out.
So what if he couldn't swim?
With the Bubble-Head Charm, there was no need to worry about swimming.
"It's freezing," Albert said as he took off his robe, leaving only a tight-fitting outfit that resembled a Muggle diving suit. It provided decent warmth, but in this weather, it didn't feel entirely reliable.
Fred, George, and Lee Jordan whistled and pinched Albert's shoulders. "If any girls saw you like this, they would scream in admiration. You've really got a figure to be envious of."
Indeed, Albert had a well-proportioned and sturdy-looking build, thanks to his previous exercise regimen.
"Just take good care of your own bodies, and you won't need to be envious of me," Albert said as he began to stretch, ensuring his muscles wouldn't cramp up later.
"I think that kind of running is silly," Fred muttered.
"So, you can only envy me." Albert shrugged and brought the topic back on track. "You two get ready as well. I'll go down first to test if the first plan is feasible. If not, we'll have to resort to the backup plan."
"Why not use the second plan directly?" Lee Jordan suggested, preferring the idea of using the underwater breathing potion.
"Most of the champions will likely use the first plan, so I think it's necessary to test its feasibility." Albert waved his wand, casting a warming charm on himself, a variation of the Drying Charm, which kept his clothes warm and dry. Combined with the Water-Repelling Charm, it provided a decent insulating effect.
After casting the Bubble-Head Charm on himself, Albert stepped into the lake, feeling the chilling sensation of the water through his skin, despite the warming charm.
The temperature of the lake was dreadfully low.
Albert couldn't help but admire Krum at this moment. That guy had jumped into the lake wearing nothing but swimming trunks, and in the coldest month of the year, no less.
What a bold man! To be honest, Albert was curious how the other champions, aside from Harry Potter, who used gillyweed, endured the icy waters. This kind of cold was no joke.
Perhaps the magical healing effects of magic allowed wizards to have higher endurance in certain aspects compared to Muggles, but it didn't mean their physical abilities and overall health were superior.
Shaking off these thoughts, Albert dived into the lake, not rushing forward but instead opening his eyes wide to observe his surroundings and search for the Mermaid, Crybaby. They had agreed to meet here.
"Are you looking for me?"
Crybaby suddenly appeared before Albert, smiling as she examined his rather comical outfit.
"I'll need you to guide me from here," Albert said, resurfacing and smiling back at her, though his smile looked a bit odd due to the Bubble-Head Charm.
"Shall we go now?" Crybaby asked, moving closer.
"Wait here for a moment while I call the others and renew my Bubble-Head Charm!" Albert swam back to the shore, dismissed the charm, and called out to the others. "I've found Crybaby. Get ready to come down!"
Fred and George had already changed into the same type of outfit as Albert and were holding a special pill in their mouths. These pills contained the underwater breathing potion, and by biting down on them, they would be able to breathe underwater for a short period. It was a safety measure Albert had prepared for everyone.
After casting the same set of spells that Albert had used, they threw a simple underwater propulsion device to Albert, who was still on the shore.
This contraption was a rough toy that Albert had designed, easily created with a simple Transfiguration Charm. It worked by magically spinning the fan blades to generate thrust, and while it probably wouldn't be very fast, it would provide auxiliary propulsion underwater.
As for its practicality, that remained to be seen.
"Remember to have some hot drinks ready for us," Fred and George called out to Lee Jordan before following Albert into the water, immediately feeling the chill of the lake. They couldn't help but gasp at the cold.
"All right, let's go," Albert said to Crybaby.
"What's this?" Crybaby asked, eyeing the device in Albert's hand curiously.
"It's an underwater propulsion device. Since wizards aren't naturally fast swimmers, this will help us move faster," Albert explained as he picked up the rope and tapped his wand on the device, causing the two blades to start spinning at a uniform speed.
"Let's go!"
With the help of the propulsion device, the three of them moved toward the center of the lake.
They didn't need to swim; they merely had to adjust the direction of the propulsion device to follow Crybaby toward the bottom of the lake.
As they ventured deeper, the visibility worsened.
However, Albert had anticipated this and had attached a light source to the front of the propulsion device—something similar to a flashlight that burned with a blue flame, dispelling the darkness and providing some illumination.
The faint light attracted a school of small fish, which Fred curiously reached out to play with.
"Stop fooling around and keep up," George said, patting Fred's shoulder to remind him not to fall behind.
"The lake isn't that big, but it's easy to get lost," Crybaby said, swimming alongside Albert. "If we go further, there's a jungle of aquatic plants ahead, and there are some unfriendly creatures lurking there. It's not a good idea to go through it directly, as it's easy to get attacked and lost. I suggest going around it, even if it means taking a longer route. It will definitely be faster than trying to navigate the jungle."
"We're looking for the village of the merpeople.
Albert waved his wand, conjuring a message that echoed through the water, intended for the mermaid, Crybaby.
Fred and George were astonished by Albert's method. They had not expected this, but how was he doing it?
Albert paid no heed to the Weasley brothers' surprised gazes, his mind occupied with thoughts of how to pinpoint the location of the merpeople's village accurately, making the task of finding it during the second task much easier.
To be honest, Albert suspected that the merpeople's village was hidden within a certain patch of tangled aquatic plants.
With the help of the underwater propulsion device, it wouldn't take too much time to find the village, but swimming at their current pace would undoubtedly require a lot of effort to reach it. It shouldn't be more than half an hour away and was probably about fifteen hundred feet distant.
"Follow me," said Albert.
Crybaby led the trio to the lake bed, steering clear of the tangled jungle of black aquatic plants. Along the way, they also caught glimpses of what appeared to be giant squid.
After an unknown amount of time, they finally arrived at what seemed to be a merpeople village, with rough stone houses covered in clumps of seaweed.
"We're here. This is the merpeople's village," said Crybaby, glancing around anxiously as if she were afraid of something, then shrinking back behind Albert.
"It looks like our luck is holding, and we're even faster than I expected," Albert murmured, narrowing his eyes as he sensed movement in the surrounding waters.
Their arrival had evidently disturbed the tranquility of the small merpeople village, and the merpeople had certainly noticed these uninvited guests.
Albert signaled for Fred and George to move closer to him as several merpeople with spears surrounded them. One of them blew a conch shell horn, producing a deep sound that reverberated through the small village, soon eliciting responses from all around.
"I don't think we're very welcome here," said Fred, eyeing the iron-gray merpeople with spears and tightening his grip on his wand. He felt that any conflict here would be a terrible idea; the water was the merpeople's home turf.
"I think we should leave," said George, anxiously nudging Albert as he saw more and more merpeople emerging from the village.
"They don't like strangers coming too close to their village," said Crybaby, poking her head out from behind Albert. "I accidentally swam too close once, and they chased me away with their spears."
Fortunately, the merpeople did not attack. Instead, they surrounded the group, pointing and chattering among themselves, seemingly discussing the visitors' appearance and attire.
"They don't seem hostile, or they would have thrown their spears by now," said Albert, sizing up the merpeople before him. He knew that they could understand human speech and speak it themselves underwater.
"I am a champion from Hogwarts," Albert said, waving his wand to conjure a message that echoed through the water. "The golden egg led me here."
The merpeople fell into a brief state of chaos, apparently curious about how these humans could speak underwater.
"We mean you no harm, and we will leave immediately," Albert continued.
The merpeople were undoubtedly aware of the Triwizard Tournament, or at least, Dumbledore would have informed them about it. After all, the merpeople at the bottom of the Black Lake were part of the second task, and the champions' golden eggs were completed with their help.
"Leave now, champion from Hogwarts," said a merperson with green hair and a long beard, wearing a short necklace made of shark teeth. His voice was hoarse and deep. "The second task has not yet begun. We will not harm you, follow me, and I will lead you away from here."
Yes, Albert could sense that the merpeople had no ill intentions. Their encirclement was more out of curiosity than anything else.
The three of them were being watched like monkeys in a zoo, pointed at and whispered about by a group of merpeople who had likely never encountered wizards before.
After that merperson stepped forward, the crowd of merpeople parted to let them through.
"I thought they would invite us in as guests," Fred muttered, surprised that they were being sent away as soon as they found the village.
"They're like that," said Albert, waving his wand to create another message. "Very unwelcoming to outsiders, just like the centaurs in the Forbidden Forest."
"The merpeople keep Grindylows as pets," said George, nudging Albert and pointing at a small Grindylow tied to a door near them.
"Don't worry, we won't harm students from Hogwarts indiscriminately. That's an ancient agreement," said the merperson who had first spoken, noticing that Albert's group wasn't moving. "But it is surprising to see champions here ahead of time. Dumbledore has never mentioned this to me before."
"I'm just here to scout the area," said Albert.
Albert signaled for the others to leave, remaining vigilant for any potential ambush by the merpeople, although he felt they were unlikely to do so. Still, it was always good to be cautious.
Led by the merperson, the group swam through the village square, where a rough statue of a large merperson stood.
A large group of merpeople followed behind them, as if the entire village had turned out to see them off. It was quite an intimidating sight.
They swam away from the direction of the tangled aquatic plants, unsure if the merpeople had led them this way out of malice or if this was simply the village's entrance.
As it turned out, Albert had been right; this was indeed the entrance to the merpeople's village, and Crybaby had led them to the village from the rear.
At the bottom of the Black Lake, the merpeople had few natural enemies. However, when three wizards suddenly and silently appeared in their village, it had startled them, prompting the conch shell horn to be blown.
Albert suspected that the merpeople cultivated the aquatic plants, perhaps for breeding or as a food source. Regardless, the plants were lush and dense, providing ample cover to hide within.
He had no doubt that Grindylows lurked among the plants.
To be honest, Albert had no desire to swim through the tangled mass of plants, so after they were escorted out of the merpeople's village, the group headed straight for the surface.
As for the exact location of the village, Albert had, before leaving, thrown out three magically enhanced stones he had prepared earlier. These stones could be located through tracking magic, ensuring he could pinpoint the village's position.
Was this cheating?
No, this was a hidden benefit of deciphering the golden egg.
Just as they were about to leave the area of the aquatic plants, a group of Grindylows emerged from the plants and chased after the departing trio, seemingly intent on dragging them back down to the lake bed.
The merpeople who had seen them off watched this unfold but made no move to help, apparently enjoying the show.
(End of Chapter)
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