"Could it be because of this that you made that bet with Katrina last time?" Isobel looked at Albert with an increasingly strange expression, totally confused as to what this guy in front of her was trying to do
"Ah, you actually guessed it!" Albert said in surprise. Of course, this clumsy performance could not be hidden from Isobel's eyes.
The latter said nothing, but just looked at Albert calmly, as if saying to him: You continue, I'm watching from the side.
"Ahem, okay. Actually, I'm just pursuing Katrina. It's just that your sister is too stubborn. She won't give up easily unless she wins once." Albert made up another excuse.
By the way, saying that he was going to pursue someone else's sister in front of her sister seemed a little... exciting. Well, Albert really wanted to see how Isobel would react.
Isobel had a complicated expression. She wasn't angry as expected, or had any other intense emotional reactions. She just said faintly, "I don't mind you chasing Katrina. But it's too early now, too early for Katrina!"
"Why?" Albert couldn't help but blurt out.
Of course, it wasn't that it was too early to ask, but rather that Isobel actually agreed, and seemed to approve of him pursuing her sister. This was... too strange. At least, in Albert's eyes, it was really too strange.
What does this little brat know about love
If any kid of twelve or thirteen tried to woo his sister, Albert would beat the shit out of him.
"Because Katrina's mentality is not mature enough." Isobel looked up at Albert and answered the question directly, "Your mentality is mature enough, but Katrina is not mature enough. This is not conducive to your relationship now."
"As for why I agreed?" Isobel looked at Albert. Sometimes she felt that this guy thought very differently.
"Why?" Albert was a little curious about the reason.
"After all, you are the best student in Hogwarts School, no doubt about it." Isobel's words were a direct acknowledgement of Albert's talent and ability.
In fact, he was not wrong. Albert was indeed the best student in the entire college. After all, no one had a cheat like him.
"Hehe, I was just joking." Albert's expression was a little stiff, and he smiled at the other person awkwardly.
"I know, I can see that." Isobel nodded. She was not angry about it, but found it interesting.
If you knew that, why would you say that? Are you hinting that you agree with me pursuing your sister
Albert suddenly had a strange feeling: it turned out that his three views had not yet been completely assimilated with this world!
He still retains the ideas of the previous generation, no wonder he sometimes looks a little out of place.
"However, ten Galleons, you are very generous!" Isobel sighed and said, "Thank you for that. I haven't seen Katrina so happy in a long time."
"Knowledge is always valuable. To some extent, I am not at a disadvantage!" Albert raised his hand and shook the notebook on which he recorded the Eagle Ring riddles. "One day I will compile the Eagle Ring riddles I have collected into a book. By then, I can earn not only ten Galleons, but even a hundred Galleons. I will definitely make my money back."
Isobel felt that Albert's thinking was more and more peculiar, but his idea was not wrong. Knowledge was valuable, and it could indeed be done this way, but many people did not think about it in this way.
"You continue, I'll wait for you here. After we enter the secret room, I'll tell you my discovery." Isobel brought the topic back to the topic, pulled a chair and sat next to her, quietly watching Albert knock on the door and answer the eagle ring riddle.
To be honest, the remaining riddles were not difficult, at least not for Albert. It was like he was doing a series of questions. The faster he did them, the more he felt comfortable. In less than half an hour, Albert had finished answering the remaining riddles. After he confirmed on the task panel that he had completed "The Greedy Predator", he suddenly felt happier. However, Albert was not in a hurry to claim the task reward. Instead, he pushed open the door of the secret room and went in with Isobel, who had been waiting for a long time.
"What secret did you discover?" Albert walked to the wall, stretched out his hand and brushed the ancient magic runes on the wall, and finally couldn't help asking.
"What about you? What did you find?" Isobel did not answer immediately, but asked out loud.
"You speak first, and then I'll speak." Albert made a gesture of invitation.
"Well, you know the riddle of the Eagle Ring of Ravenclaw, right?" Isobel walked to Albert's side, stared at the ancient magic runes on the wall, and said softly: "We need to answer the riddle of the Eagle Ring before we can go in."
Albert raised his eyebrows, but still listened quietly to Isobel continue.
"It's just like the first threshold outside," Isobel turned her head to look at Albert and continued, "If you answer incorrectly, you have to wait for others to answer correctly. This way you can learn knowledge. This is Ravenclaw."
"Learn knowledge? So, you think Ravenclaw hopes that newcomers who enter the Chamber of Secrets will learn knowledge?" Albert immediately grasped the key, not because of the hint given by Isobel, but because Albert had also thought about this.
"Yes, you are really smart. You figured it out right away. This is my discovery." Isobel nodded and asked, "What is your discovery?"
"Ancient runes. Perhaps Ravenclaw hopes that we can master the correct use of ancient runes." Albert's fingers brushed across the words on the wall and he muttered to himself, "It is said that runes are a kind of magical writing. However, this is obviously beyond our understanding of runes."
The secret room suddenly fell into a strange silence.
"Is Professor Smith's purpose of coming to Hogwarts really to find Ravenclaw's Chamber of Secrets?" Albert spoke again to break the silence and raised his doubts to Isobel.
"Why do you have such an idea?" Isobel was a little surprised and looked Albert up and down.
"I don't know. It's just my intuition. Although Professor Smith has shown enough curiosity about Ravenclaw's Chamber of Secrets, but..." Albert frowned and said, "I don't think Professor Smith is taking the risk of teaching at Hogwarts for this matter. There must be other reasons."
"You think I know something?"
"Yes, I think you should know a lot."
"Do you want to know?" Isobel did not deny it, but asked back. She did know something.
"Yeah." Albert nodded.
"Well, it doesn't hurt to tell you. This matter is related to you anyway."
"Is it about me?"
"It should be said that it is related to the inheritance right of the Smith family. Or, it may not be the Smith family, but it is a question of inheritance right anyway." Isobel seemed unhappy when talking about this matter.
"I think you may have misunderstood. I am a Muggle wizard and come from a Muggle family." Albert reminded kindly.
"Muggle wizard? No, I don't think you are just a pure Muggle wizard," Isobel shook her head and denied it, and was very sure of her judgment, "Professor Broad and Uncle Mog McDougal will not help you just because you are a genius."
"Why do you say that..." Albert was very surprised. Although he also thought it was a bit strange, Professor Broad obviously wanted to train him.
"Because I've been through your situation before. To some extent, you're a replica of me. Don't get me wrong, I mean certain things." Isobel's face became even gloomier, and she chatted with Albert about some childhood memories. "Since my father died, Professor Broad, Uncle Mog, and some of my father's friends have taken good care of me and my family. Thanks to their help, Katrina and I had a pretty good childhood."
"I've been considered a genius since I was very young." The girl's tone was slightly sarcastic, and she continued, "Before I was considered a genius, they were not so enthusiastic."
"You hate them?"
"No, I don't hate them. I'm actually very grateful to them. Thanks to their help, I had a happy childhood." Isobel shook her head and said, "Later, my situation was similar to yours now. They seemed to be doing their best to train me, as if they were training a..."
"Heir?"
"Yes, heir." Isobel did not deny it, but nodded and continued, "At first, I didn't pay much attention to these things, I just felt a little strange. Later, I read my father's diary..."
"As far as I know, my father and Professor Rowena Smith both had similar experiences." Isobel turned her head away, not wanting Albert to meet her gaze. "And now you are experiencing it again. Why do you think this is happening?"
"My situation is similar to yours?" Albert asked without hesitation, "Because I am also a genius?"
"Not only that, although you are also a genius, it is definitely not because of this reason." Isobel shook her head and said, "They are still doing their best to help you achieve further success."
"So, you must be related to the Smith family by blood?"
"I'm a Muggle wizard." Albert reminded with a smile.
"I know, but that doesn't mean your family must be Muggles. They could be Squibs, or wizards living in the Muggle world. It must be traceable back to a certain generation, so there might be a connection to that family, otherwise you wouldn't have been chosen."
Damn, I guessed it right!
Albert could feel his heartbeat quickening.
This guy is really not simple!
"Oh!" Albert pretended that he knew nothing, responded without comment, and shook his head, "What else?"
"There is no such thing as love without reason," Isobel reminded.
"That's true. You seem to know a lot of things, right?" Albert looked at Isobel again and frowned deeply. "But I don't think they would tell you these things. In other words, everything you said was either inferred by you or derived from somewhere. But I think the former is more likely. I won't think about how you did it, but why did you tell me? As you said, there is no love without reason in the world. Are you going to use me? Or do you want me to help you with something?"
Isobel fell into a brief silence after hearing this, and seemed to be hesitating whether to let Albert know more.
Albert took advantage of this free time to glance at the new tasks. Although he had already guessed some things, he was still unsure about what was going on with this heir.
Ancient secrets.
You seem to be involved in something that involves an ancient family. You have inexplicably become a candidate for heir, so it is necessary for you to find out what is going on.
Reward: 2000 experience points, Isobel McDougal's favorability +10.
Albert stared at the task panel, feeling a little surprised. He didn't expect that his favorability would actually increase
"Tell me what you know if you need me to do anything." Albert made a inviting gesture to the girl.
"Actually, I don't know much either. I only know that it was for a certain heir position, or more precisely, for a certain surname. But I don't know the details either, because this matter is so secretive that not many people know about it."
"Heir, what's your surname?" Albert raised his eyebrows. He naturally knew that he was related to the Smith family, but he didn't expect that this matter would fall on him.
"Every Smith has that opportunity? Or does everyone with that kind of pedigree have that opportunity?"
"Probably not. I feel the spots should be selected. As far as I know, my sister Katrina was not chosen." Isobel shook her head.
"She's really pitiful?" Albert curled his lips and asked curiously, "How did you know that?"
"She didn't have much contact with Professor Brod and Uncle Mog, and she wasn't introduced to other famous wizards." Isobel continued: "Our situation is similar. Of course, it is undeniable that you are more talented than me in some aspects."
"Do you care about this matter?" Albert asked back.
"No." Isobel did not lie. She actually didn't care much about becoming the so-called heir.
"Is your father also one of the candidates for heir?" Albert thought of Professor Smith's Boggart and had a bad feeling.
"Well, I suppose so," Isobel murmured.
"You think I'm one of them, and you're looking for an ally?" Albert thought he had guessed the answer, and it was very likely. "By the way, what benefits can I get?"
"He should be able to inherit a large sum of Galleons." Isobel said without hesitation, "Old families are usually very wealthy."
"Do you think I'm someone who would be short of Galleons? Even if I'm short of Galleons, do you think I can't earn them? Why would I fight for that ridiculous inheritance right?" Albert interrupted impatiently, "To be honest, I don't like getting involved in any family disputes. What's more, I have nothing to do with the Smith family. And, even if I am related, are you going to give the inheritance right to me?"
Isobel fell into a brief silence, then nodded to Albert.
"To be honest, I also feel disgusted by this." Isobel did not hide her disgust and continued, "My sister and mother are more important than these damn inheritance rights."
"Why don't you just give up?" Albert asked back.
"Don't you think this is funny?" Isobel's expression became even weirder. "Do you expect me to go and tell Uncle Mog about this directly? What do you think he would think? It would be wisest to pretend that I know nothing."
"Okay, you're right." Albert nodded and admitted it.
"But the inheritance you mentioned is related to Ravenclaw's Chamber of Secrets?"
"I don't know." Isobel shook her head. "I'm still trying to find a solution, but I'm still blocked here. Tell me what you found!"
"Well, do you think I was lying just now?" Albert asked back.
"At least not completely truthful," said Isobel.
"Well, according to what you said before, Ravenclaw prefers people to learn actively, just like the Eagle Ring Riddle. Although some people can get the answer with their own wisdom, they are only a minority. Most people still have to learn." Albert's finger slid across the line on the wall that read "Extraordinary intelligence is the greatest wealth of mankind."
"Those who want to pass through here and get the treasure from Ravenclaw's Chamber of Secrets need to master what Ravenclaw wants us to master in this chamber... Ancient Runes!"
"So, you didn't lie, you just hid some secrets."
"No, it's just that you didn't notice it, or you noticed it but didn't want to admit it. You should have discovered when you were studying ancient magic runes that ancient magic runes are just an ancient language." Albert stretched out his hand and brushed over the words above. "You need to know how to really use them to pass this level set by Ravenclaw and enter the next level. However, when we find that we have truly mastered it, it means that we have obtained the treasure left by Ravenclaw. This is very Ravenclaw, isn't it?"
"Knowledge is sometimes a kind of wealth." Isobel suddenly smiled, and her smile was very happy.
"Yes, this is very Ravenclaw, and it also agrees with the saying that extraordinary intelligence is the greatest wealth of mankind." She said softly, "Are you going to tell Professor Smith about this?"
"Why not? But I think he probably can't open the hidden chamber of secrets. Maybe he can ask Headmaster Dumbledore for help, but what's the use? Even if he opens it, he will just enter the next chamber of secrets and he will still get nothing." Albert curled his lips and said, "Of course, maybe in the chamber of secrets, he can find some heritage left by Ravenclaw, such as the missing crown."
"Ravenclaw's Diadem? I don't think you would place your wisdom on that thing!"
"I was just saying it casually! Professor Smith is a bit pitiful. The secret room treasure he was looking forward to turned out to be like this."
Albert shrugged his shoulders and didn't care much about it. Is Professor Smith pitiful
Who knows!
"You might be the next person to open the secret room." Isobel leaned against the wall and couldn't help but sigh. After all, Albert's level of ancient magic was far superior to theirs, and although she had learned well, she was actually just getting started.
The two chatted about trivial matters for a while, and Isobel suddenly said, "It's ten o'clock. Professor Smith should be here soon."
"Is he coming here?" Albert asked, frowning.
"Yes, we made an appointment yesterday. You should stay and study the ancient magic runes at that time." Isobel seemed to be in a good mood: "When he comes, tell him your previous guess!"
"Well, okay!"
About ten minutes later, other noises were heard outside the secret room. The door was opened from the outside and Professor Smith walked in. His eyes fell on Albert, and he seemed a little surprised that the other party was here.
"You're here too, that's just right..." Professor Smith greeted Albert with a smile.
"Professor Smith, Isobel and I just discussed..." Albert interrupted hurriedly and immediately told Professor Smith about his and Isobel's speculations.
After a long silence, Professor Smith sighed deeply and said bitterly, "What you said is very likely. This explains why this is the case here."
Maybe I shouldn't have told him, because most of the time the truth is more cruel than lies.
Professor Smith took several deep breaths, suppressed his emotions, patted Albert on the shoulder and said, "You are the only one among us who can possibly open the secret room. I hope you can work harder. When you open it, remember to let me know. I have paid so much, and I don't want to end up in obscurity. That would be too cruel."
After saying that, Professor Smith turned around and left with a somewhat dejected look. His back was bleak and he seemed to have aged several years in an instant.