Watched

The rain clouds of October never dissipated from overhead, and the heavy rain continued to fall. A faint musty smell could be detected in a corner of the castle.

In preparation for the upcoming Halloween Feast, Hagrid has to spend a lot of time saving the large pumpkins in the Pumpkin Field that are soaked in water, lest they rot from the rain.

The weather was unusually clear over the weekend, Albert went to Hagrid's Hunting Cabin for afternoon tea, where Hagrid casually mentioned Kettleburn's hospitalization.

"When did this happen?" Albert asked, rubbing his Fang dog head.

"Yesterday," Hagrid sighed, "Kettleburn bought a house in Hogsmeade, intending to settle there and keep his Little Cute Ones company. While tidying up, he tripped over a naughty Niffler, but luckily the House-elf delivering food found him in time and he's currently recovering at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries."

"Kettleburn will probably have to retire early." Albert wasn't surprised, as the professor's health wasn't very good to begin with. "If you want to apply for the professorship of Care of Magical Creatures, you should think about what you want to teach in advance. Don't underestimate the risks of dealing with Magical Creatures. Students aren't as tough as you are; they can't take any more trouble."

Hagrid stared at Albert in astonishment. Albert's words were quite blunt: he would fill the vacancy left by Kettleburn and become the Professor of Conservation of Magical Creatures at Hogwarts.

"You can visit Kettleburn when you have time and ask him for teaching tips," Albert cautioned. "Just don't bring anything strange into the classroom, especially Magical Creature that might harm the students."

Albert doubted whether his words would have any effect, but as a friend, he should still offer his advice.

As he left the Hunting Cabin, Hagrid was still in a daze, seemingly pondering Albert's words.

There's no way around it, Albert's predictions are always right, he might actually get the job as a professor of Magical Creatures protection?

However, Hagrid felt it necessary to sound out Madam Grubbly-Plank to see if she wanted to apply for the position of Professor of Magical Creatures.

On his way back to the castle, Albert encountered Ginny Weasley. The red-haired girl walking towards him gave him a strange feeling. Albert looked up and met her gaze, and found that Ginny Weasley's eyes seemed to have lost the liveliness that a child should have, causing his pupils to dilate slightly.

"Has she been controlled by Voldemort?" Albert turned back to look at Ginny's retreating figure after walking a distance, and fell into a brief hesitation.

If I take down Ginny Weasley now, I'm sure I can find Tom Riddle's diary on her. As long as I destroy the Horcrux, the next attack won't happen. But all my quests on the panel will most likely be ruined, and it won't be easy to explain this to Dumbledore.

Albert never underestimated Dumbledore, and he was sure that his weakness would be discovered.

One instance could be a coincidence, but two coincidences would be something Dumbledore should seriously consider.

"Forget it, I'll just be careful and let things take their course." Albert pushed up his glasses and continued walking toward the castle.

It's not hard to guess what Ginny Weasley, or rather Tom Riddle, wants to do.

The rooster's crowing is deadly to the Basilisk.

Tom Riddle was well aware of this, so he would never want roosters around the castle.

"Should I get a rooster as a pet?" Albert muttered to himself, but quickly dismissed the thought. Keeping a rooster was too much trouble. He thought a toy that made a rooster's crow would be a better option, though he wondered if it would work on the Basilisk.

"The ' Screaming Chicken ' was a bestseller in my past life." After careful consideration, Albert felt that the "Screaming Chicken" was a good selling point. It didn't necessarily have to make a scream; it could make other sounds. It could also be used as a joke prop in the future.

As for selling the ' Screaming Chicken ' as amulets after the attack, Albert hadn't considered it. After all, it would be easy to attract attention, and he doubted anyone would buy that thing as amulets.

After Albert walked away, Tom Riddle turned around and watched Albert's departing figure, a strange sense of unease suddenly welling up inside him for some reason.

Tom had no idea that he had almost died. If Albert had just attacked and subdued Ginny, he could have easily taken care of his Horcrux.

Tom had heard Ginny mention this Muggle-born wizard named Albert Anderson, who was said to be a genius and had recently won the International Wizard's Chess Champion.

Of course, Albert Anderson was insignificant to Tom; he was more interested in Harry Potter and wanted to know how the young Harry had defeated Voldemort. So he didn't pay much attention to Albert, even though the other was a famous genius at Hogwarts School.

After all, Tom Riddle had always been a school prodigy and had little interest in so-called geniuses; making him a prey was a good option.

The fact that such a genius was killed by Basilisk would certainly cause a sensation.

Suddenly, I felt a bit excited! After finding Hagrid at home, Tom refrained from harming the roosters in the coop. He strolled around the Hunting Cabin and then returned directly to the castle.

When Albert returned to the castle, he noticed that he had a new task. Before he could check the task, he saw Hermione rushing towards him, panting, and telling him about what happened last time.

Hermione's suggestion to establish the Defence Against the Dark Arts Club and invite Lockhart as an instructor won the support of a group of Lockhart fans. However, this was not organized by her, but by an upperclassman who idolized Lockhart and formed a club called "The Club of Gilderoy Lockhart."

Hermione soon discovered that the club was not quite what she had imagined, so she wanted to invite Albert to start their own Defence Against the Dark Arts Club.

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid that won't work." Albert shook his head and refused.

He was very busy, with Twelve courses to take and several clubs to attend, so he simply didn't have any extra time to attend the Defence Against the Dark Arts Club.

However, Albert still gave Hermione some advice, suggesting that she invite Harry Potter to join the club.

Is this really okay?

"Didn't you notice how much Professor Lockhart is paying attention to Harry Potter?" Albert reminded him. "If you want to succeed, you need to get Harry Potter into the club, because Lockhart is only interested in Harry Potter. Believe me, as long as Harry Potter is in the Defence Against the Dark Arts Club, Lockhart will definitely be happy to come and guide you."

"Why would Professor Lockhart be interested in Harry?" Hermione was very puzzled.

"I don't know, maybe Lockhart is interested in Harry defeating the Lord Voldemort!" Albert casually made up an excuse to brush off Hermione. He knew very well that a club focused on learning Defence Against the Dark Arts would hold no appeal for Lockhart.

Only Harry can attract Lockhart.

Although Hermione still didn't understand what Albert meant, she knew that Harry avoided Lockhart like the plague and would never be willing to join the Defence Against the Dark Arts Club, unless... Hermione quickly came up with a solution.