A Wealthy Sucker

"Fred and the others should have gone back by now." Albert got up from the sofa, looked out at the gray sky, and covered his mouth to stifle a yawn. He remembered that he had been talking with Dagworth about Potions here, and when his mind started to feel tired, the House-elf had arranged for him to rest on the sofa.

Mr. Dagworth is such a good man!

Albert had a good impression of the Potions Master. Being able to treat a child with equality was something that not everyone could do, especially since Dagworth was a very famous Potions Master.

Perhaps this is what is meant by scholarship transcending national boundaries, personalities, and ages! Of course, Albert had no idea that Dagworth valued him so much. The main reason was that Albert had once directly made Dagworth compromise and had nothing to say, coupled with his outstanding talent in Potions, which led Dagworth to subconsciously ignore Albert's age and treat him directly as a junior colleague.

Dagworth was also a genius. Someone who had already reached the top of the industry had nothing to lack. After discovering Albert's talent, he was actually very willing to give him a hand, because Dagworth also knew very well that the development, improvement, invention and innovation of Potions could not be accomplished by him alone.

"Speaking of which, Baruffio's Brain Elixir is really good stuff!" Albert put his cloak back on and his gaze fell on the long box on the table, which contained a dried Mandrakes roots. He had bought it from Dagworth for a full twenty Galleon.

"That solves the material problem. However, the Ancient Runes ..." Albert opened his Skill Panel and spent a few minutes finding the Runes skill among the many skills. He was still more than 1,800 experience points away from level three. Albert had originally planned to slowly accumulate experience and break through to level three on his own.

However, it seems I can't wait any longer!

Just then, footsteps echoed down the corridor.

"Mr. Anderson, are you awake?" The House-elf's slightly sharp voice came from not far away.

"I'm already up." Albert looked at the House-elf and smiled. "Could you please take me back to Hogwarts Castle?"

"It is my honor!" The House-elf bowed slightly to Albert and extended his hand, saying, "Are you ready?"

"Oh, all done." Albert picked up the box, reached out and took the House-elf's hand, letting it carry him back to Hogwarts.

House-elf ' Apparition is not much different from that of wizards; the principles seem the same. However, it is the House-elf ' magical system that allows them to ignore wizards' Apparition.

They appeared in some secluded corner of Hogwarts, and no one would notice that someone had suddenly jumped out of there.

The gray sky was still scattering snowflakes, and it was very cold outside. Albert immediately tightened his cloak and turned to look at the shivering House-elf. "Go back inside, or you'll freeze."

"Goodbye, Mr. Anderson." The House-elf vanished in the blink of an eye.

Albert gazed at the spot where the House-elf had left, then turned and returned to the castle.

Soon after, he found Fred and the others in the Great Hall. The three of them were discussing the club gathering the next day. After all, as the Four Founders of the Wizard Card Club, the three of them would do their best to help Albert share the pressure.

"I have good news for you." Fred waved to Albert, who was walking over, and said immediately after Albert came to his side, "We have gathered thirty-two participants."

"That's really good news!" Albert, sitting next to George, didn't take the list Lee Jordan handed him, but instead asked curiously, "Why are there suddenly so many people participating in the competition?"

"I don't know who said you were a rich sucker who thought the champion of the competition would definitely have plenty of Galleon, so..." Fred shrugged at Albert, "You know what I mean."

"A rich sucker?" Albert was stunned, repeating it to himself. He figured the guy who said that was probably one of the guys who had gotten Galleon from him before. And who it was was easy to guess—probably one of the McDougal sisters.

Albert sighed softly, unable to help but lament, "So, in everyone's eyes, I'm just a rich sucker!"

"I think this suits you quite well," George grinned. "At least, I've never seen anyone treat Galleon like this before. By the way, what's in that box you're carrying?"

"Mandrakes roots," Albert explained casually.

"Where did you get this?" Fred opened the box, glanced at the contents, and indeed it was a dried Mandrakes roots. It's not common to find one like this; the raw Mandrakes roots roots in pharmacies are all processed.

"I bought it from Dagworth," Albert blinked. "It cost twenty Galleon. I'm going to use it to make the brand new Protective Bracelet version 2.1."

"I think they're right, you're just a rich sucker." Fred and the others couldn't help but cover their faces. They had spent twenty Galleon to buy this thing, intending to use it to make Protective Bracelet. They were speechless.

Even if you have money, you can't spend it like this!

"Don't worry, I never do anything that doesn't make me a profit," Albert casually reassured him. Even the scraps from making magical items could be used to create other things. After all, Mandrakes roots itself was a medicinal herb, and Albert knew many uses for it. He had many ways to reuse Mandrakes roots Mandrakes roots, so there was absolutely no waste.

"Oh, right, I almost forgot, should there be prizes for second and third place?" Lee Jordan changed the subject and asked.

"There's also a consolation prize," Fred added.

"The first-place winner can choose between ten Galleon and a deck of Wizard Card, the second-place winner will receive a barrel of Butterbeer, and the third-place winner will receive a brand new Quill. There are no consolation prizes."

Fred and his two companions exchanged bewildered glances. They had assumed Albert would use Galleon instead, but...

"Is there a problem?" Albert noticed the surprise on Fred and the others' faces and asked in return.

"Nothing?"

"But what kind of Wizard Card are you referring to?"

"The cards we'll be selling later!" Albert explained, "We'll be selling an initial deck, and then players will acquire Card Pack through other means. The cards in Card Pack will be different, and the number of cards will be limited. For example, the rare Dumbledore card will be limited to a total of one thousand copies. That means there will only be one thousand genuine Dumbledore cards. The cards will also have official serial numbers, like the Galleon, to prevent counterfeiting. As for the subsequent plans, I need to keep that a secret for now."