Beneath a Mountain of Debt, There's Always a Fool (3000+)

Of course, we are happy to believe that Mr. Granger did not toy with the feelings of the two ladies; he simply harbored a sincere longing for beautiful emotions... However, juggling two such close friends at the same time seems to be a rather overwhelming task for Mr. Granger.

Thus began the anecdote of the two girls dancing together as dance partners at an earlier Christmas party.

Although Mr. Granger and Miss Granger later danced together and left together afterwards... there is no doubt that the relationship between the three has begun to become complicated.

How will Mr. Granger deal with this 'crisis'? Where will his love life ultimately lead? This magazine's editor, Beetle, will follow this story with all readers and provide the latest updates.

"Rita Skeeter... this woman really dares to write!"

With only a few days left before the start of school, Hermione was reading the latest issue of the Quibbler magazine, grinding her teeth in frustration.

Rita Skeeter was absolutely thrilled this time. She finally got a chance to gossip about Hahlou and his two friends, and she used every trick in the book to write a news article that was longer than a college entrance exam essay.

What puzzled Hermione the most was where she got so many details, even knowing that she and Luna Lovegood had eaten ice cream together?

Eyewitnesses L and B, who are these guys who love to watch the drama unfold? Why are they all so idle?

"They're all bad people anyway," Luna Lovegood commented casually, though her eyes remained fixed on Harry, clearly considering him one of her kind.

"Hey, you guys agreed to this whole scandalous plan, and now you're losing face?" Harry's face fell with frustration. "Besides... Luna Lovegood, don't be so simplistic. There were elders among the witnesses."

L and B... who else could they be but Corvus and Sirius?

Corvus knew about the three's situation in Paris, Sirius knew about their situation in Britain; after all, the first letters of their surnames were L and B, weren't they?

It seems that her strategy of deliberately creating a scandal has been turned into a celebration by her own people, who are all contributing to Rita Skeeter's article.

But let's just let it go this time. Considering that Rita Skeeter hadn't forgotten the important information and had mentioned that Hermione had solved the mystery of the Golden Egg, Harry decided to forgive her this time.

But he really wanted to complain: how come everyone was so indifferent to their relationship?

Harry glanced at Hermione, then at Luna Lovegood... Aside from being a little embarrassed and annoyed, they didn't seem to have any other special reactions.

Hmm... for a fleeting moment, Harry even wondered if he was being too dramatic.

Is this happiness within reach...? No way!

Harry, sensing that his smile was gradually becoming distorted, quickly suppressed his thoughts.

"Lord Granger, congratulations!"

However, at that moment, a phantom head suddenly popped out from the ground and let out a howl, startling the three people in the room.

"Congratulations? What's there to congratulate on? Do you really think he's doing great?!"

Hermione glared fiercely at Greengrass's ghost. "Hmph... men are all such jerks!"

Uh... she was looking at a magazine and clearly misunderstood what the other person meant.

"Ah? My lord, you already know? I haven't even started reporting yet..." Greengrass lowered his head guiltily. He was a little confused by Hermione's scolding and misunderstood the situation.

He's a little afraid of Harry now because Harry had previously asked him to investigate those Pure-blood Family, but Greengrass had come up empty-handed after going around in circles.

Among the major families, including the Malfoy family, he found no useful clues, only bringing Harry news of Crabbe's death.

Therefore, this time, he was working with the intention of making amends, fearing that his efforts would be in vain again.

"Let's get down to business," Harry said gently. "Has Ludo Bagman been found?"

"Found him!" Greengrass's ghost said definitively. "He's right here at the Hog's Head Inn!"

"He actually came to Hogsmeade Village?" Harry was taken aback. "How dare this guy show up here?"

"Sir, he probably doesn't know you're looking for him. He couldn't make it in London anymore; creditors were coming to his door every day to collect debts, so he fled here," Greengrass explained.

"Oh, I see... Perfect, I'll go find him now!" Harry sneered, gave the two women some instructions, and then followed the Ghost to the Aberforth Dumbledore bar.

Sure enough, compared to a cunning old fox, this kind of idiot who willingly jumps into a pit is much cuter~

Since he started from the nursing home, Harry arrived at the pub in just a few minutes. However, as he reached the entrance, he happened to brush past a few grumbling Goblin.

"Goblin...?"

Harry didn't understand Gobbledegook, but with a rough analysis, he could guess what these Goblin were there for... and that they had probably left empty-handed.

Greengrass had told him that Ludo Bagman was hiding in the bar's room, so the Goblin had clearly been turned away.

So after entering the bar, Harry went straight to Aberforth Dumbledore.

"Hey, what brings you here?" Aberforth Dumbledore, who was working at the bar, was taken aback when he suddenly came face to face with Harry.

"I'm here to see someone!" Harry said aggressively. "I heard Ludo Bagman is with you. Where is he now?"

"Looking for him? Does Ludo owe you money too?" Aberforth Dumbledore hesitated, seemingly wanting to cover for him, "He actually..."

"I know, he's in the room inside!" But before he could speak, Harry saw through his disguise.

"Alright...after all, you're much more troublesome than Goblin." Aberforth Dumbledore shrugged helplessly. "He is indeed in the room at the end of the corridor. Ludo begged me for a long time before I agreed to help him cover it up. Granger, he's pretty pitiful now. If the amount he owes you isn't too large, let's not make things difficult for him."

"Don't worry about that~" Harry smiled innocently, but his expression suddenly changed!

"I will absolutely push him to his death!"

Are you kidding me? Do you really think Harry would sympathize with a gambling addict like that?!

Chapter 682 Under a Huge Debt, There Must Be Foolish Men (3000+ words)

BOOM!!

The once quiet inner corridor of the bar was suddenly interrupted by a muffled thud. By the time Aberforth Dumbledore rushed out from behind the bar, he found that Harry had already kicked open the door to the room at the end of the corridor.

"Ludo Bagman, get your money back right now?!"

"You... how did you get here?"

Ludo Bagman was relieved that Aberforth Dumbledore had thwarted several Goblin who came to collect debts, but the door was suddenly kicked open, startling him.

When he finally saw who it was, he trembled with fear and was filled with deep confusion.

He now feels both hatred and fear towards Harry, because if it weren't for Harry, he wouldn't be in this predicament.

Not only did I lose my job, but now I'm being chased by debt collectors every day.

Ludo Bagman had originally planned to open betting on the Triwizard Tournament, hoping to make up for the losses from the Quidditch World Cup. However, after Harry exposed the anomaly of the Goblet of Fire, his plan was completely ruined.

Even so, he didn't dare to cause any trouble for Harry and could only hide and fret every day.

Therefore, he really didn't understand why Harry would come looking for him when he was already in this state...

Besides, when did I ever owe him money?!

"Ludo Bagman, didn't you lose a huge sum of Galleon to the Weasley Brothers before?" Harry glared coldly at Ludo. "They must have won the highest odds in the Quidditch World Cup final, right?"

"Huh? You mean them... I've already paid them back, haven't I?"

When Harry mentioned the Weasley Brothers, Ludo paused for a moment, but then his tone hardened slightly, and he seemed less nervous than before.

"You used Leprechaun coins, didn't you?" Harry lunged forward, grabbed Ludo by the collar, and slammed him onto the table with a loud thud.

After that, he reached out and pressed down on Ludo's nape, asking menacingly, "You don't actually think... that piece of junk is enough to pay off your debts, do you?"

"Hmm... this shouldn't be your problem! I don't owe you any money... Why don't those two Weasley family come to me themselves..."

Ludo was terrified; he never expected Harry to stand up for the two Weasley family boys.

What he didn't expect was that Harry, who was only fourteen years old, had an incredibly strong grip!

He was an adult, and a former Quidditch Beater, yet he was pinned to the table and completely unable to resist?!

It felt like a pair of pliers were stuck in the back of his neck. Ludo even suspected that the other person could easily snap his neck!

"Fred and George have transferred their debts to me, so from now on, I am your creditor." Harry applied a little more pressure with one hand, while with the other he pulled out the receipt from before and waved it in front of Ludo.

"Have you looked at this receipt carefully? You owe me a whole penny less!"

"Which one is... uh!"

Click!!

Upon seeing the receipt in Harry's hand, Ludo instinctively reached out to grab it, but Harry grabbed his neck and pulled him upwards, then slammed him down hard, smashing the entire table into Diffindo and slamming Ludo's body heavily onto the sawdust-covered floor!

"Ugh... ugh?!" Ludo face covered in blood from the impact, lay sprawled on the ground. His body trembled involuntarily for a few moments, but then suddenly froze, realizing with horror that he couldn't move at all!

"This... is so cruel~" Aberforth Dumbledore, who was watching from the doorway, turned his head away with great reluctance.

At this moment, he was not only astonished by Harry's ruthless methods, but also incredibly shocked by the strength Harry had inadvertently revealed!

Ludo Bagman may be a fool, but he is still an adult wizard. However, when this kid attacked him just now, he didn't even use a wand. He just glared at him and bound him!

This level of Wandless Magic ability—there are probably fewer than ten people in all of Britain who can achieve it...

Just as Aberforth Dumbledore was reflecting on this, Harry had already knelt down in front of Ludo and gently placed his hand on the back of the other's head.

"Ludo Bagman, I didn't hold any grudge against you; in fact, I thought you were a considerate guy with a lot to do for your subordinates," Harry said calmly, but his tone gradually turned extremely sinister. "But you shouldn't have, absolutely shouldn't have dragged Hermione into the Triwizard Tournament!!"

"Wh... what?" In that instant, Ludo suddenly had a flash of inspiration.

He seemed to finally understand the real reason why Harry had come to cause him trouble!

It wasn't about collecting a debt at all; the other party was just holding a grudge and hated that she had dragged Hermione Granger into trouble!

Whether it was because he sensed a threat from Harry or not, for the first time in his life, Ludo felt that his mind was working incredibly fast, and countless thoughts suddenly came rushing to his mind!

Because of a mishap that occurred before the Goblet of Fire, Hermione Granger was forced to become Champion and participate in the tournament, and Harry Granger harbored resentment because of this.

The reason he's coming to cause me trouble now is definitely because after the first match, he truly saw the danger of the competition, which is why he's seeking revenge!

Yes, most fourth-year wizards would have no chance against this kind of danger... wait, but Hermione Granger's performance in her first match was supposedly amazing!

So... I see~

That's right!

Harry Granger definitely helped her cheat, and didn't that magazine say the other day that Hermione Granger had already solved the Golden Egg problem...?

"Hmm!"

The forceful downward pressure interrupted Ludo's thoughts, causing him to involuntarily let out a cry of pain.

Harry's palms were pressing against Ludo's head against the floor, and he felt as if his bones were about to Transfiguration.

"In short, I'm giving you one week. If you owe me even a penny after that, I'll pry every single part of you off to pay off your debt! Get out of here!!"

Harry got up and kicked the other man, then casually removed the restraints from his body.

"No... no problem! Don't worry, I'll definitely pay you back in a week!"

Ludo scrambled to his feet, swearing as if granted a pardon, trying to conceal his resentment. Finally, he hunched over and slunk away from the bar.

"Kid, I really don't understand why you're pushing him like this..." After Ludo left, Aberforth Dumbledore shrugged helplessly. "He's addicted to gambling and has emptied his pockets. With such a huge debt, let alone a week, even six months might not be enough to pay it off."

"Of course I know he can't pay it back," Harry smiled confidently. "So, the most likely thing these gambling addicts do to pay off their debts is robbing Peter to pay Paul and then setting up betting odds to try and recoup their losses. But it doesn't matter, let him borrow from loan sharks all he wants. The next creditor he'll run into will definitely be me, and the betting odds he sets up will never win."

Ludo owes Harry several hundred Galleon, which he could never earn back in a week if he simply tried to make money; but if he borrowed the money, there were many ways to do so, although the interest would be exorbitantly high.

Before Harry came to the pub, he had already instructed Greengrass's ghost to stay close to Ludo Bagman and keep a close watch on him once Ludo Bagman left the Hog's Head Inn!

When the time comes, as soon as Ludo goes to borrow money, Harry will immediately go to his creditor and transfer his debts to him!

In this way, Ludo will continue to owe Harry money, and the debt will only keep increasing!

Aberforth Dumbledore, of course, knew nothing about ghosts, but he understood Harry's plan and knew that the other party was confident of success. Therefore, the way he looked at Harry now was as if he were looking at a vampire.

At the same time, he was somewhat puzzled.

"Kid, what are you trying to achieve by doing this?" Aberforth Dumbledore frowned in confusion. "Ludo is just a nobody, why are you targeting him like this?"

"The reason is simple: he owes too little money to force him to take such a risk," Harry explained calmly. "Only when the debt piles up to a point where he can no longer afford it will he have the courage to gamble everything and join forces with the Ministry of Magic to deal with me, his creditor!"

"How could that be..." In an instant, Aberforth Dumbledore understood everything.

The front-page article before "The Quibbler" and this kid's current "ruthless pursuit" of Ludo are ultimately aimed at luring the Ministry of Magic into taking the bait and presumptuously dealing with him!

So... didn't Hermione Granger cheat?

Honestly, this is way more exciting for Aberforth Dumbledore than Harry's schemes!

A fourteen-year-old being able to tear apart Dragon with his bare hands? That's truly insane...

At the same time, he was also a little confused about Harry's intentions, wondering why the other party wanted to guide him, a member of the Order of the Phoenix, to discover these things.

"Granger... is it alright for me to find out about your plan so easily?"

"It doesn't matter. Whether this plan succeeds or not, I won't lose anything." Harry shrugged nonchalantly, but his gaze toward Aberforth Dumbledore carried a clear threat.