Gaze from Behind

"Sigh, I lost again. Can't we just have some fun playing cards?"

In the Gryffindor Common Room, George, having lost yet another game of Wizard Card, slumped helplessly in his chair, casually tossing the large number of cards he still held back onto the table, and couldn't help but complain, "Why am I always the one who loses?"

"Nonsense, it would be strange if you could beat me now." Albert tidied up his cards, reached out and patted George on the shoulder to comfort him, "After all, I invented this game, and with your current level, there's no way you can beat me for now. You should play cards with Fred or Lee Jordan; the three of you should be about the same level."

"No, no, George and Fred definitely can't beat me," Lee Jordan chuckled.

"You didn't get some weird cards and mix them into your Card Set again, did you?" Albert looked at Lee Jordan suspiciously, as if to say, "You're not cheating again."

"Do I look like that kind of person to you?" Lee Jordan protested, dissatisfied.

"It seems you haven't done that before. What was that Avada Kedavra Curse card from last time?" Fred glared at Lee Jordan with disdain.

"Ahem, that card, I was just testing whether to include the Unforgivable Curses." Lee Jordan coughed lightly and explained, "However, it seems it wasn't quite right, and I've just removed that card from the Card Set."

"No need, I'll modify the contents of the Avada Kedavra Curse card later," Albert said after thinking for a while. "If the player using the Avada Kedavra Curse card fails to defeat the opponent, the player using the card will lose the match."

"Why?" the three asked in unison.

"Because wizards who use the Avada Kedavra Curse will be arrested by the Ministry Auror and imprisoned in Azkaban Prison!" Albert said matter-of-factly. "This card is prepared for the Dark wizard faction. Only players who choose the Dark wizard faction can avoid losing the game if they fail to win after using the Avada Kedavra Curse card. However, each turn, their opponent will have an Auror card added to the field, lasting for three turns."

"Dark wizard gets hunted by Auror after using the Unforgivable Curses? That's quite interesting." Lee Jordan thought the idea was excellent and immediately took out his notebook to write down the idea Albert had mentioned.

"Will there be a Ministry of Ministry of Magic in the future?" Fred asked confidently. "Hogwarts, the Ministry of Magic, and Dark wizard?"

"If possible, there will also be cards about the Magical World, fairies, and magical creatures," Albert explained. "Of course, the gameplay will be different, for example, your Quidditch deck and my Spells deck."

"Why do I always lose when I play the professor's way?" George couldn't help but protest. "Your settings are unreasonable."

"George, you have too many high-star cards," Fred said, covering his face. "High-star cards can only be used in the later stages; if you can't use them in the early stages, you'll naturally lose."

"Yes, Fred is right." Lee Jordan nodded in agreement. "You actually put three ten-star Dumbledore in your Card Set. You won't be able to use them until at least turn ten. If you ask me, one would be enough. You put three. What are you trying to do?"

"By the tenth round, you won't be able to beat me," George said.

"In fact, it's hard to hold out until then." Fred had been wanting to tease George about his idea of holding back a big move.

"How about we increase the players' health to thirty?" George suggested.

"Fifteen to twenty is enough." Lee Jordan shook his head and rejected the idea. "You should know how to coordinate. For someone like Albert who specializes in using spells, you should get a card to counter him."

"Isn't there Quidditch Match Ban?" Albert reminded him.

During Quidditch Match, players are prohibited from using spells. For the next three rounds, no spells can be used on the field, and Quidditch players on the field gain +1 attack.

Fred's deck consisted entirely of Quidditch cards, so he prepared three copies of this card, but he still couldn't win when playing against Albert.

"What are you doing?" Angelina walked over and asked curiously, looking at the four people huddled together, seemingly doing something.

"Playing cards, the card game that Albert invented," Fred explained casually.

"Card games? What are those?" Angelina looked at the cards on the table, her face full of doubt. She had never heard of such a game in the Wizarding World.

George handed a card to Angelina, who was stunned when she looked at it, because she found that the card actually had George's name on it.

"The number next to the sword symbol is the attack power, the number next to the heart symbol is the health, and the line below is the card's effect," Albert explained.

"Want to play a game too?" Fred said with a smile. "My cards are the same as George's. This one is Lee Jordan's card, Albert's is this one."

"That's interesting." Angelina put down Lee Jordan's card and asked curiously, "Why do you use real names?"

"This was Albert by the Chocolate Frog Card," Fred explained. "If you want your own card, you can ask Albert to make one for you."

"Is it okay?" Angelina asked Albert.

"Of course, no problem." Albert pulled a blank card from his notebook, then took out Fountain Pen and began filling in the card. Its health and attack were the same as Lee Jordan's. However, Angelina's card effect was: Leading: Being the first to score ten points in Quidditch Match greatly boosts morale; all allies gain +1 attack for this round.

"I love this!" Angelina said with a smile. Scoring first in Quidditch Match is undoubtedly a huge morale booster.

"Want to play a game?" Fred handed his cards to Angelina.

Angelina took the Card Set and drew another card, which turned out to be a familiar face.

"Violent Beater: Swing your bat to strike an enemy, dealing 2 damage. When Erin and Mark are both on the field, deal 2 damage to an enemy each turn." Angelina read Erin's card effect aloud, then couldn't help but chuckle. She thought this game might be more interesting than she had imagined, and asked, "How do you play this game?"

A few minutes later, Angelina lost to Albert decisively.

"They actually lost." Angelina found this unfamiliar game quite interesting; she could tell that Albert's Card Set was completely different from Fred's Card Set.

"I told you not to play with Albert," Lee Jordan warned. "It's normal that you lost to him; I doubt anyone can beat him now."

"Why?" Angelina asked, puzzled.

"Because he invented this game," Fred said helplessly. "Until we figure out the card combinations and how to play, no one can beat him."

"That's true. By the way, how dare you play cards with us here?" Angelina complained, glaring at Albert.

"It seems like you were the one who asked me to play cards," Albert said with a helpless shrug. "I originally wanted you to play cards with George."

"Oh, is that so, George? Let's play a game," Angelina invited George.

A few minutes later, George slumped into a chair, looking utterly dejected, with an expression that said, "I don't want to play cards anymore."

"I told you long ago, if you don't change some of your high-star cards, you're bound to lose," Lee Jordan said to George with a speechless expression.

"However, I'm starting to understand Albert's good intentions," Fred suddenly said.

"What's the meaning?"

"Let Angelina regain her confidence."

"How pitiful." The two looked at George in unison, their expressions revealing a sense of understanding.

"Hey, what's with those expressions?" George couldn't help but protest.

"What are you doing?" At that moment, Charlie walked over with a notice, preparing to post the Quidditch selection notice on the Gryffindor bulletin board.

"Let's play a card game." Angelina smiled and handed Charlie his cards.

"A card game? What's that?" Charlie took the thing Angelina handed him with a puzzled look, glanced at the contents, and then read it aloud softly, "Devil Captain: After a long period of hellish training, all allies on the field gain +1 attack?"

Upon hearing this Wood was standing nearby, couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"It seems my training was too easy." Charlie glared at Albert and the other three with ill intent.

"Ahem, Albert was the one who made these cards," Fred shamelessly shifted the blame.

"That's right, they were all made by Albert," George immediately added.

"Devil Captain was someone Fred and George insisted on using. They thought it was more suitable." Albert ruthlessly stabbed the two in the back.

"Do you have my card?" Wood asked curiously.

"I have this one." Fred quickly changed the subject. "Goalkeeper, help a designated teammate block two points of damage."

Wood was fairly satisfied with his cards, however, he discovered that most of the players' names could be found in Fred's card deck, except...

"Why only Gryffindor?" Wood asked Albert, looking at him with a puzzled expression.

"There are no cards from other academies at the moment," Albert nodded. "We'll consider making them later. However, time is limited, so for now I'm only making these cards."

"Do professors at the school have them too?" Angelina asked curiously, "The cards of the deans?"

"Yes, most of them are," Fred said, handing Snape's cards to Angelina, who couldn't help but laugh after looking at them.

Slytherin Head of House's effect is, "Gaze from Behind: You are being watched, a chill runs down your spine, it's best to do nothing, the designated target's attack power is reduced to zero."

"Ahem, is that what you mean?" Lee Jordan coughed, trying to imitate Snape's usual voice, which made the people present burst out laughing.

It seems that everyone has been stared at from behind by the Potions Professor quite often.