Invitation to a Nighttime Adventure

"So, you want to... sneak out tonight?"

At nine that evening, Albert was writing a letter to his family when he heard the twins' conversation and couldn't help twitching.

He seemed to have an unfinished quest related to sneaking out at night?

No!

Absolutely not!

He couldn't court death!

Not yet!

Albert reached up and lightly slapped his cheek. If he went sneaking around now, Filch would definitely catch him.

"Albert, want to come with us?" the twins asked in unison.

"I heard..." Albert put down his quill, turned to the twins, and said, "Caretaker Filch knows most of the Secret Passages in the castle. That means he can easily catch you, since you don't know Hogwarts."

"If you don't want to get caught and thrown into detention before school has even officially started, you'd better not take risks so lightly."

"That's what I said too. If we sneak out now, the caretaker will definitely catch us," Lee Jordan quickly changed his tune and agreed.

"No, no. I think that isn't the most important thing. If you want to sneak out at night, you have to be prepared, or you'll definitely get yourselves caught." Albert shook his head and warned them. "Gryffindor courage isn't recklessness. At the very least, you need to master Lumos first."

"Don't you think carrying an oil lamp is a huge hassle? It'll be hard to run when the time comes." Albert set down his wand and pointed at Nineteenth Century Charms Selection, which he had borrowed from the library. "There's a record of the Disillusionment Charm in this book. If you master that spell, Filch will have a hard time catching you."

"So you're willing to sneak out with us?" The twins clapped each other's hands, as though celebrating some happy occasion.

"You wouldn't happen to..." Albert immediately understood what they were planning and shook his head. "It's not impossible for you to ask me to go with you, but not now. I don't want Filch catching me. I suggest you first learn some useful spells. Then we can wander around the school without getting caught by Filch."

"Brilliant! With you joining us, we're much more confident in our nighttime adventure plan." George excitedly hooked his arm around Fred's, and the two began doing a strange tap dance.

In the Weasley twins' eyes, their roommate was very reliable.

"Tomorrow, George, Lee, and I are planning to go to Hogsmeade again. Want to come with us?" Fred brought up the next day's plans again. "Only third-years are qualified to visit Hogsmeade. But we can sneak there through a Secret Passage. It's the only wizarding village in all of England."

"I want to buy some things from Zonko's Joke Shop. I didn't bring any money last time," George said excitedly.

"It's the best in all of England—" Lee Jordan was about to chime in when Albert cut him off.

"I'm not particularly interested in prank items, but... it wouldn't be bad to see a wizarding village for myself."

Come to think of it, there were quite a few panel quests today. He glanced at it and immediately froze.

The Beginning of an Adventure

This was the beginning of a great adventure. Travel to Hogsmeade through a Secret Passage and experience the thrill and fun of adventure.

Reward: 100 experience points, George Weasley favorability +5, Fred Weasley favorability +5, Lee Jordan favorability +5.

Favorability? What the hell was that?

Why did this feel so much like a dating sim?

Could it be that once both sides' favorability reached 100, they could become those legendary best bros?

Albert hurriedly shook off the chilling thought.

Gay stuff, stay as far away from me as possible.

"Let's go together after breakfast." Albert agreed, then lowered his head and continued writing his letter. Based on the photos, he described many things about Hogwarts in the letter. Albert was a professional at this sort of thing. Although he had not written for a long time, it was still a skill he had once used to make a living.

Fred and George did not disturb him. The three of them flipped through Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1, searching for spells they could use. Albert was right—the oil lamp was too heavy. They should master some spells instead.

A few minutes later, Albert suddenly smelled burning paper. Turning his head, he discovered that the Daily Prophet had caught fire. The twins were hopping about, trying to stamp out the flames.

"What are you doing?!" Albert put his unfinished letter back in its box, walked over, and opened the window to let the smoke out of the room.

"George was trying the Fire-Making Spell." Fred cleared his throat. "The newspaper caught fire successfully."

"You nearly set the carpet on fire too. Don't start fires in the room." Albert said irritably, "You still can't control magic perfectly. What if you set the room on fire?"

"I think I might have a talent for Charms."

"How did you do it?" Lee Jordan asked curiously. He was already eager to try casting the spell himself.

"Don't use it here. Go to the Common Room and aim at the fireplace!" Albert irritably sent the lot of them away.

What a troublesome bunch.

"If you still want to go to Hogsmeade Village tomorrow, you'd better learn Lumos. I'm not carrying an oil lamp through a Secret Passage, so don't expect me to carry that thing for you."

"All right, I think you're right. We should practice Lumos first. It's quite a useful spell." George and Fred both agreed with Albert's suggestion.

It was much the same as when Albert had first used the spell. The light could not last for long, and Lee Jordan had not even managed to light up his wand yet.

"You're not focused enough. Concentrate all your attention on your wands." Albert put the box back beside his bed and instructed the three as they practiced Lumos. "Don't hesitate when you wave your wand. Pronounce the incantation clearly and accurately. Beginners need to focus their willpower."

"You sound a bit like a professor. Maybe you could consider going into that line of work someday," Fred joked.

"I think I'll pass!"

"Why?" George was puzzled.

"Because being a professor is too tiring, especially when you have to deal with a bunch of bratty children. My patience isn't actually very good, especially with strangers who aren't family or friends." Albert sat on his bed and picked up the Rubik's Cube from the table, fiddling with it.

"What's that?" Fred's attention was immediately drawn to the Rubik's Cube.

"A Rubik's Cube. A Muggle toy used to train spatial thinking, memory, and reaction speed," Albert answered casually. He only played with it because he was bored.

Of course, it also improved Rapid Memory and quick reactions. The experience gained was little, but better than nothing, and it helped pass the time.

The three of them mastered Lumos in a single evening.

As long as they were willing to work hard, they could quickly learn simple spells, though they still could not cast Lumos very smoothly.