Occlumency

Before returning to his dorm, Albert went to the library to check on the situation. After all, he was the one who caused this mess, so he naturally wanted to keep an eye on how things developed.

As he passed the library, he noticed several students peering into it, seemingly curious about what was happening inside.

"What's going on?" Albert walked over and asked a student who was watching nearby.

"I don't know."

"Mrs. Pince is taking inventory of the books in the Restricted Section," a girl gossiped. "I heard that several books were taken from the Restricted Section."

"The books in the Restricted Section are all quite dangerous." Someone nearby chimed in, joining the conversation.

Albert didn't stay to join in the fun; it was none of his business. He returned all the books he had "borrowed" from the Restricted Section.

Back in his dorm, Albert took ten Galleon from a hidden compartment in his suitcase and put them into a money pouch created by Transfiguration.

If ten Galleon can teach Albert Occlumency, then the money will be well spent.

Before mastering Occlumency, Albert would never have revealed the Diadem to Dumbledore.

When Albert arrived at Classroom 17, which was used by the Transfiguration Club, he found that Isobel had already arrived and was sitting in her armchair reading the latest issue of "Today Transfiguration".

"You're quite punctual," the girl said without looking up.

"Punctuality is a virtue." Albert took a money pouch from the pocket of his robe and handed it to Isobel. "I think we can begin now that the agreed-upon tuition has been paid."

Isobel closed the magazine, looked up at the money bag handed to him, took it, put it in his pocket, and nodded, saying, "Let's begin!"

"Aren't you going to check it?" Albert reminded him with a half-smile. "Maybe it doesn't contain Galleon, but Knut."

Isobel's expression froze. He glanced up at Albert, then, under the other's gaze, took out his purse and pulled out a... Knut.

This guy definitely did it on purpose.

Isobel realized he had been teased by the other person; what a nasty character!

"Sorry, I was just joking." Albert had an undisguised smile on his face; he had just seen a moment of astonishment on Isobel's face.

As he spoke, Albert pulled another purse from his pocket and handed it to Isobel. As for the ten Knut from earlier, he had no intention of getting them back.

The latter took it, opened it, and looked inside at the Galleon. This time, it was a real Galleon.

"I suppose you've already read ' The Advanced Occlumency Guide,'" Isobel said meaningfully, putting the purse into his pocket. "I think you probably went to the library's Restricted Section last night and secretly borrowed that book!"

Isobel bluntly stated that Albert was the culprit behind last night's riots.

"No, I haven't had a chance to borrow ' The Advanced Occlumency Guide ' from the library yet," Albert denied it just as readily.

"Well, Occlumency is actually a kind of magic that can prevent the mind from being invaded and affected by magic. Wizards who are good at using Occlumency are also good at Legilimency." Isobel didn't care that Albert denied it at all. He pulled two armchairs closer and let Albert sit opposite him. The two were only three feet apart. Albert could even feel Isobel's heartbeat and breathing.

He openly sized up the Ravenclaw prodigy before him. She was a very beautiful redhead, but her demeanor was somewhat cold, or rather, arrogant.

However, since all geniuses are like this, Albert could not help but understand it.

"...Some wizards are extremely skilled at Legilimency." Isobel noticed Albert's scrutinizing gaze and raised an eyebrow before continuing, "They can usually easily tell if you are lying. Professor Snape is the best example; he could always tell if someone was lying to him... Only wizards skilled in Occlumency can seal away feelings and memories that contradict lies, allowing them to lie to a skilled Legilimens without being detected."

"Clearly, you're not a very skilled Legilimens, are you?" Albert blinked and casually made another harmless joke.

"Yes, I'm not exactly a skilled Legilimens," Isobel readily admitted, and continued, "There's one thing you must know: eye contact is often crucial for Legilimency, so... look into my eyes."

Albert suddenly had a bad feeling.

"It seems you are not entirely ignorant of Legilimency and Occlumency," Isobel said after a moment of silence.

"You just used it, didn't you!" Albert suddenly said.

"Yes," Isobel said. "I just used Legilimency to open a window in your eyes and extract the sensations and memories I needed from your brain. The minds of ordinary wizards are completely defenseless against Legilimens. Of course, learning it is not an easy task."

"Do you know what I'm thinking right now?" Albert looked away, a malicious smile playing on his lips.

"Even if you flatter me, it won't help," Isobel said instinctively. "Besides, whether I age prematurely or not has nothing to do with you."

"As expected, you saw right through it." Albert looked at Isobel in surprise and continued, "It seems your Legilimency isn't as bad as you said!"

"What an annoying guy, stop with your pointless probing." A hint of annoyance flashed in Isobel's eyes; she had realized that Albert's words just now were meant to test her.

No matter which woman it is, she values her appearance, and this guy in front of her is obviously well aware of this, and is using this to test her level of Legilimency.

"Alright, I'm going to enter your brain and see how you resist." Isobel raised her wand and warned, "You need to clear your mind, let go of all emotions, and try to stop me from invading your brain."

"I understand," Albert muttered.

"Ready, three, two, one, Legilimency!" Isobel made his move. Although Albert was mentally prepared, he was still caught off guard when the spell was concentrated: the classroom disappeared in front of Albert's eyes, and images flashed through his mind like a movie.

When Albert was six years old, he rode the new bicycle his parents had given him in the park.

When Albert was eight years old, he was sitting on the sofa telling his sister fairy tales...

Albert savored the sensation, fully aware that Isobel was going through his memories.

A moment later, Albert began to try to stop her from invading his brain and began to consciously recall the economics and mathematics books he had read, preparing to use these memories to trap her and expel the feeling of her gradually penetrating and rummaging through his memories from his brain.

"You succeeded." Isobel's tone was filled with amazement; she hadn't expected Albert to actually resist her Legilimency.

In particular, she also realized that as she pushed her thoughts out of her mind, she saw Albert subconsciously creating a maze to block her from peeping into his brain.

"Hmm, this feeling... it feels strange, not good!" Albert's breathing became a little rapid as he realized he was back in the Transfiguration Club classroom.

"Let me rest for a bit." Albert took a piece of chocolate out of his pocket, took a bite, and then instinctively asked, "Do you want some?"

Isobel glanced at the bitten chocolate, her lips twitching slightly, but she still didn't refuse Albert's kindness. She took the chocolate and broke off a piece from the unbitten side.

"You did very well, much better than my first attempt," Isobel continued. "Now, you need to concentrate and use your mind to resist my invasion."

After all, having accepted someone else's Galleon, Isobel naturally still needs to do this job well.

"I know what to do!" Albert replied casually. He tried to check the Skill Panel, but unfortunately, Occlumency still didn't appear.

It seems I'll have to try a few more times.

Although it was expected, it was still quite frustrating. Even though Albert didn't care about people seeing some of his childhood memories, he was still a little annoyed.

"Clear your mind, focus, and let go of all emotions," Isobel reminded him. "I'm about to begin!"

"Wait!" Albert suddenly raised his hand to stop the other party from casting the spell.

"Is there anything else?" Isobel's arm paused, and he looked at Albert with a puzzled expression, not understanding what he wanted to do.

"Sit on the cushion." Albert moved the chair away, took a cushion and placed it on the carpet, then sat cross-legged on the cushion, relaxed his body, and tried to enter a meditative state.

"We can begin!"

"Three, two, one, Legilimency!" Isobel cast the spell again.

When Albert was nine years old, he was in the kitchen helping his family make Nia's birthday cake...

At this moment, he was trying his best to empty his mind, focusing all his attention on excluding Isobel's thoughts, and the images in his mind gradually disappeared.

Albert suddenly opened his eyes and saw a moment of astonishment on Isobel's face.

Yes, even Isobel hadn't expected that Albert would be able to master Occlumency so quickly and resist his intrusion.

"You've succeeded!" Isobel suddenly said. "I have nothing more to teach you."

As she was about to get up and leave, Albert reached out and grabbed Isobel's arm. Albert had just checked the Panel Skill again and still hadn't found Occlumency.

"That's not how you rob someone." Albert looked at Isobel with a helpless expression. "I don't think I've mastered Occlumency. Let's talk about the things to be careful about with Occlumency and Legilimency. I've been so sincere, you should at least show some sincerity too."

"Alright!" Isobel thought for a moment and agreed. Whether it was because she realized she had messed things up or for some other reason, she began to explain to Albert her own use and understanding of Occlumency and Legilimency.

The two discussed the Occlumency procedure for about half an hour.

Isobel truly deserves to be called a genius. Even though he has only recently come into contact with Occlumency, he still has his own unique insights into this magic.

After listening to Isobel's explanation and trying it several times, Albert finally discovered that Occlumency had appeared on his Skill Panel.

Looking at the Occlumency on the Skill Panel, Albert secretly breathed a sigh of relief. If he had spent Galleon and still hadn't learned it, that would have been a disaster.

Albert upgraded his Occlumency to level two and closed his eyes to experience the changes brought about by the skill upgrade. When Albert reopened his eyes, they appeared somewhat empty.

Isobel, noticing Albert's change, frowned slightly.

"I think our deal is done!" Isobel said. As she got up to leave, Albert reached out and grabbed her arm.