After successfully sending Yanila away, Albert was ready to slip away before the other girls came over. However, sometimes things don't go as planned, and he was blocked by the girls at the door of the auditorium.
"Would you mind dancing with us?" Angelina said.
"One for each person," Alia added.
"Why are you here?" Albert looked at the three people in surprise and asked.
"Fred and George said you would definitely leave early." Sana blinked and looked at him expectantly.
"Okay, one for each of you. Remember to help me later. I've been dancing all day." Albert finally didn't refuse. He extended his hand towards Sana and made an invitation gesture.
Sana put her hand on him. She actually knew that Albert didn't want to dance anymore, but if he missed this opportunity, he might never have it again.
"You didn't find a dance partner?" Albert asked puzzledly.
"I couldn't find a suitable partner." Shanna said with a smile, "Besides, I'm not used to participating in such venues."
Albert didn't ask any more questions and skillfully took Shanna to dance in circles on the dance floor. When the song ended, Shanna just said thank you quietly and gave up her position as dance partner.
"You all danced beautifully."
Angelina stepped forward to take over Shanna's place. She danced more wildly and unrestrainedly, forcing Albert to adjust his rhythm.
"You dance much better than Fred. He can't keep up with my pace." Angelina didn't mind being deprived of the initiative at all. She was in a good mood and just wanted to enjoy this short time. She knew that there must be countless girls looking at her with envy.
Angelina was replaced by Alia, whose dancing was just average. When Albert finished dancing and was about to leave, he found another person standing in front of him.
"You won't refuse, will you?" Furong took the lead in extending her hand to Albert to invite him.
Albert: "...Of course."
How could he refuse this
Furong’s dancing was beautiful and her dancing skills were no less than Yanila’s, but this guy was a jerk. After the dance, he didn’t help Albert get away and just threw him to the group of girls.
Albert was helpless being surrounded by the girls. Suddenly he remembered that he seemed to have seen Hermione just now. He used the excuse that he had already invited other girls, pushed through the crowd and ran over to invite Hermione to dance. Krum's expression was quite interesting. Hermione did not refuse. She obviously noticed Albert's situation.
Looking at the resentful eyes of the girls around her, Hermione smiled and said to Albert: "It seems that you are in trouble."
"Yes, I'm in some trouble. Remember to help me after we finish dancing." Albert said helplessly.
"It seems that being too popular is not a good thing." Hermione couldn't help laughing.
"Yes, it's a bit troublesome." Albert said helplessly, "Sometimes they are not rational. Forget it, I will ask Krum to help me get out of this later."
In the end, Albert did not let Hermione help attract fire, as Krum was obviously a more suitable candidate.
"Looking for Krum?"
"The secret of the golden eggs. I think he doesn't know the secret of the golden eggs yet." Albert said calmly.
"You're going to tell Krum?" Hermione was very surprised.
"Karkaroff has fled, and I guess no one told Krum the secret of the golden egg." Albert saw Hermione's surprised expression and said calmly, "You don't need to be surprised. There have been cases of cheating in the Triwizard Tournament throughout the ages. Sooner or later, other warriors will know about it. Don't think too highly of others, Hermione. Cheating is the norm in school competitions, and even in international competitions, this kind of thing often happens. As long as it is not discovered, there is no problem. This is the underlying rule."
"But you solved the secret of the golden egg yourself," Hermione said with a raised eyebrow.
"It seems you have overlooked something." Albert did not continue the topic and suddenly asked, "Did you tell Potter about the golden egg?"
"Not yet..." Hermione said after a moment's hesitation.
"Tell him I don't care." Albert said confidently, "To be honest, it's not that difficult for me to win the Triwizard Tournament."
"I will." Hermione suddenly breathed a sigh of relief. She had actually been hesitating whether to tell Harry.
"By the way, thank you for the Christmas present. Did you knit it yourself?"
"Well, I just started learning." Hermione said with a slight blush on her cheeks.
"For a novice, you've knitted quite well," Albert consoled.
At the end of the song, Albert completed the last move and left with Hermione.
As soon as they left, other girls came over, looking eager to try.
"Sorry." Albert declined and took Hermione to Krum's seat.
The Durmstrang warrior had a gloomy look on his face, as if he was still unhappy about having his dance partner snatched away from him.
Of course, it's possible that Krum has always been like this.
"Would you mind coming out for a walk with me? I have something to tell you." Albert said calmly.
"What's the matter?" Krum asked gloomily.
"Something you will definitely care about." Albert smiled and motioned for him to follow.
"Go ahead," Hermione reminded.
Krum hesitated for a moment, and finally followed Albert out of the ball at Hermione's urging.
Krum looked at Albert with confusion as he took out a piece of parchment, not understanding what the other person wanted to say.
"Put the golden egg in water and you'll find its secret." Albert said to Krum after making sure no one was eavesdropping.
"Why did you tell me?" Krum looked at Albert in confusion. He really didn't expect that the other party would tell him the secret of the golden egg.
"Karkaroff has escaped. I don't think anyone can tell you this secret. Other warriors will have ways to know the secret of the golden egg." Albert reached out and patted Krum on the shoulder. "If you want to thank me, help me deal with those girls later."
"What?"
"Merry Christmas."
As he spoke, Albert took out his wand, cast an Disillusionment Charm on himself, and disappeared directly in front of Krum.
"You don't have to care. Since Harry Potter became the fourth warrior, the meaning of this game has changed. Don't die for no reason."
Krum stood there blankly, bewildered, still trying to recall what Albert had just said.
Perhaps Albert never considered them as opponents from the beginning.
Because he is just too strong.
So strong that no one else is qualified to be his opponent.
However, Krum soon stopped thinking about these things because a group of girls came over and surrounded him.
Krum, who was surrounded by a group of girls, suddenly felt a little dazed. He even had the illusion that the other party did not want to tell him the secret of the golden egg, but wanted him to help hold back these girls.
After using Krum to get rid of the girls behind him, Albert easily appeared in the secret room of Hogsmeade hut through the Vanishing Cabinet, and then used the time converter to go back a few hours ago.
When he put the Time-Turner in his pocket and came out of the secret room, Isobel was sitting on the beanbag by the fireplace in the hall, reading a book.
"Is the party over?"
The girl heard the familiar footsteps coming from behind her and asked without even turning her head.
"Not yet. I missed you, so I ran away halfway." Albert reached out and picked up the book Isobel was reading, leaned over and kissed her forehead, "I didn't keep you waiting for too long."
"Slippery tongue, could it be that you were scared away by the girls?" Isobel said this as a joke. Of course, she knew that Albert was very popular with the girls, but it was impossible for him to be scared away. Albert would definitely find a way to beat the girls who came up to him.
"Yeah, they are really enthusiastic." Albert looked like he was worthy of you.
"Where's Katrina?" Isobel was more concerned about her sister.
"I danced with Katrina for a long time until she was exhausted. I think she was satisfied."
Albert sat down on the sofa opposite and rubbed his legs. He felt that he might have back pain and leg cramps tomorrow. This was a complete sequelae of not exercising regularly and suddenly exercising. Even a wizard could not avoid this.
"Well, she should be having a good time tonight." Isobel was quite concerned about her sister. She looked at Albert and asked, "How about you?"
"Me? I'm fine. You know, I don't really like lively atmospheres, especially when there's no one around to chat with. It's even more boring. Besides, I'd rather have you as my dance partner. Do you want to dance for a while?"
"I thought you'd danced enough." Isobel was a little surprised. She knew Albert didn't really like dancing.
"I don't mind dancing a little longer for you," Albert said softly. "Come on."
"Then I'll go change my clothes."
"No need, watch me." Albert took out his wand and waved it gently, creating a new dress for Isobel. At the same time, as his wand moved, the tables in the hall were moved aside and beautiful music was played all around.
"This is a great tune." Isobel hummed.
Albert made an inviting gesture to Isobel, and the girl raised her hand.
The two danced to the music, spinning happily and leaving graceful tracks in the hall. They danced together for a long time until both of their faces turned red and their hearts beat faster.
"It's really great."
Albert drank a glass of mulled wine prepared by the house elf for him. After resting for a while, he planned to take a run to the hot springs to relax.
Isobel didn't refuse. In fact, she was a little hesitant at first, but later she got used to it.
"There is an island country in the Far East where cherry blossoms are in full bloom. Hot springs are very popular there. A famous magic house is in that country. When we have time someday, we can secretly travel to that country as Muggles."
Albert looked at Isobel who was wrapped in a towel and entered the hot spring and said, "They also put eggs into the hot spring to cook them, making half-cooked hot spring eggs. It is said that they taste good."
"You seem to be very familiar with the Far East." Isobel pulled over the wooden barrel floating on the hot spring, took a sip of the mulled wine and said.
"Before I became a wizard, I had always thought about how to make money. In the Muggle world, money is very important. With money, you basically own most things. The Far East is a good place to make a fortune, so I spent a lot of time researching it."
"No wonder you care so much about money." Isobel leaned her head on Albert's shoulder and murmured, "But you are right, with money, it is indeed a lot easier. Katrina told me about opening a beauty salon a while ago. It is easy to make money at the beginning."
"What do you think?"
"If she wants, I will support her. I can send her to the United States to learn how to run a beauty salon from Catherine and Valeria, and she can stay away from this place of trouble." Isobel hesitated for a moment and said, "As for my mother, I can't convince her."
"Didn't you make it clear to her?" Albert asked.
"She did, but she doesn't want to do that." Isobel sighed softly. Since her father's death, the work at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries has become almost everything to her, even more than taking care of her two daughters.
"Use the Oblivion Charm." Albert frowned and gave his suggestion, "I will send my family away next summer. You can go with my family and they will take good care of her."
Isobel shook her head. She didn't think it was a good idea.
"So, let me give you my advice from last time. After we get married, get pregnant as soon as possible and let her quit her job to take care of you." Albert whispered.
Isobel's cheeks flushed, but she quickly realized that it was Albert who was teasing her.
"Some things need to be taken precautionary measures for the future."
"If you didn't get involved with You-Know-Who, maybe they would..." Isobel said after a moment's hesitation.
"If I wasn't so dazzling, you would have no problem with what you said. They would blackmail, win over, and even use the Imperius Curse to control us, but they would not kill pure-blood wizards at will. But... it's too late. Being too dazzling is bound to become a thorn in their eyes, especially after we get married. If we are lucky, they will probably use the Cruciatus Curse to force us to ask about our whereabouts. If we are unlucky... So don't count on luck." Albert hugged Isobel, put his chin on her shoulder and asked, "Do you regret it, or do you want to postpone the wedding?"
"We'll use other methods when the time comes." Isobel leaned her head on Albert's chest and made a decision.
Albert heard the determination in Isobel's tone, and he was actually very happy that she had made a decision.
After the two finished taking a bath, they sat down to eat some midnight snacks specially prepared by the house-elves. Albert didn't eat much. Most of the time he watched Isobel eat and chatted about some random things at the ball.
However, Albert soon became sleepy and fell into a deep sleep leaning on the sofa.
"Really?" Isobel complained softly as she looked at Albert's sleeping face, but she also knew that Albert used the time turner and it would probably be very late when he came. Isobel was very happy that he could come and spend Christmas with her. If Albert didn't come, she would probably have to spend the holiday alone this year.
When Albert opened his eyes again, he found himself lying on the bed, and Isobel was lying beside him, looking at him.
"Sorry." Albert asked, holding up his hand to cover his yawn. "Is there something on my face?"
"Sometimes I think you look your age when you're asleep."
"Go to sleep. We'll talk about it tomorrow." Albert fell asleep hugging his sweet-smelling girlfriend.