Sunday at noon, the weather was clear and the sun hung high in the sky—perfect for scouting the lake.
Once Albert had finished preparing, he led Fred, George, and Lee Jordan out of the castle. They crossed the damp grounds and headed toward the Black Lake.
Avoiding the spot where Durmstrang's ship was moored, they arrived at the place they had chosen in advance to enter the lake.
According to the original plan, Albert intended to dive deep into the Black Lake today to scout it out and test the preparations he had made some time ago, so as to prevent any unnecessary mishaps during the second task.
A gust of cold wind blew across the lake, making all four of them shiver as soon as they reached the shore.
"Are you really planning to scout the lake in this awful weather?" Lee Jordan stiffly turned his head toward Albert, who had started taking off his robes. "How about we forget it this time and wait until it gets warmer before going in?"
"We have to go into the lake eventually. At least, I can't avoid it." Albert stared at the Black Lake ahead of him. Knowing Lee Jordan did not want to go, he did not force him. "Scouting ahead of time is a good thing. We can also test my preparations while we're at it, so we won't be caught scrambling if something goes wrong during the competition."
As he spoke, Albert turned to Lee Jordan. "If you don't want to go down, stay on the shore and watch our things. We'll definitely need someone to take care of us when we get back."
"All right, I'll have hot drinks ready for you." As though he had been waiting for those words, Lee Jordan looked utterly relieved, drawing