A Heap of Tasks

Under Albert's series of outrageous maneuvers, the news that Professor Moody had helped Albert put his name into the Goblet of Fire spread through the girls of Hogwarts as if it had grown wings. Nothing stirred students' curiosity and imagination more than gossip, and all sorts of bizarre rumors even reached the professors' ears.

That afternoon, in the Defence Against the Dark Arts office, Professor Moody was once again smashing things around to vent his fury. Just moments ago, someone had actually come to ask whether the rumor was true, and several girls had even thanked him for putting Albert's name into the Goblet of Fire.

Yes, on his way back to the Defence Against the Dark Arts office, Professor Moody had actually encountered this situation. A group of people had surrounded him to ask about it, all believing that Professor Moody had thwarted the conspiracy by the other schools to stop Hogwarts from winning.

Now, most of the students in the entire castle believed that he had helped that Mudblood put his name into the Goblet of Fire. No matter how fiercely Moody denied it, he could not change the students' perception of the matter. The stifled frustration and rage felt like someone stuffing a foul-smelling clump of mud into his mouth and forcing him to swallow it, making Moody want to retch.

"I'll kill him. I'll definitely kill that stinking Mudblood!" Little Barty kept muttering the words. Fury, humiliation, and hatred brewed within him, while Professor Moody's terrifying face grew even more twisted and ferocious. Before killing him, Little Barty intended to torture that Mudblood mercilessly with the Cruciatus Curse.

However, Little Barty had no idea that someone had set him up again.

His mingled shock and fury put Albert, who was on a date in Hogsmeade, in