135 Chapter 135: If Being Self-Conscious Helps, Then...

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Ever since getting to know McDougall, Albert could hardly believe the drastic changes that had taken place in his school life.

Delving so deeply into the secrets of Runic texts had placed a considerable burden on Albert's brain, and the recent result was his somewhat listless state of mind.

However, this high load situation had some advantages.

Albert's experience in Runic skills had been rapidly increasing at an astonishing pace, gaining nearly 1,000 points in less than half a month.

Most importantly, Albert felt that he was getting closer to what he wanted—the real method of using ancient Runic texts, as mentioned by McDougall.

If he raised his Runic skills to level 3, he might be able to grasp that knowledge in a short period of time. However, Albert preferred to spend more time in this area. Even if he directly raised the skill to level 3, the acquired knowledge would still require a long time to digest.

Moreover, using too much experience at once to increase skill levels would be a burden on the experience pool, and Albert wouldn't take that risk.

For him, directly raising a skill to level 2 was within his current capacity, but it had to be a practical skill for him to do so.

The experience in the pool was not just reserved for upgrading Economic and Financial studies, it was also Albert's greatest backup and safeguard.

Having an outflow of experience without any inflow was undoubtedly not a good thing.

"What's been going on with you lately? You seem exhausted," George asked.

"No worries, just a bit busy. Could you pass the orange jam over to me, please?" Albert was putting two sausages, a fried egg, and some diced and pan-fried tomatoes on his plate while absentmindedly pulling out his diary from his pocket. He began reviewing his past records to see if there was anything he had forgotten.

Albert had a strong memory, that was true, but when he focused on something, he tended to push other things to the back of his mind.

"Looking at your little book again?" Fred laughed. "By the way, there's a Divination class in the afternoon. Are you going to watch?"

"I remember in the last Divination class, a male Hufflepuff student was dismembered," Lee Jordan joked about the incidents in the Divination class.

"It was disassembled, not dismembered," Angelina glared at Lee Jordan with disdain. "Don't use such terrifying terms in the wrong context."

"I remember that guy was called Phineas," Lee Jordan said.

"It's Phigo," Albert took a bite of the fried egg, correcting him with a lackluster tone.

"How do you know?" Lee Jordan asked somewhat defiantly. "I remember..."

"Last time, I met a Hufflepuff friend in the library... cough cough." Albert took a big gulp of pumpkin juice and looked at the fried egg on his fork, temporarily setting it aside for later. He glanced at George and asked, "The book 'Euric's Biography' from last time, I couldn't repair it. But it seems like you guys took the book, did you return it after fixing it?"

Since getting to know McDougall, Albert could hardly believe how much his campus life had changed.

The deep exploration of the secrets of Runic texts had put a considerable strain on Albert's brain. The direct consequence of this was that Albert had been feeling somewhat tired recently.

However, this high-intensity situation also had some benefits.

Albert's experience in Runic skills had been skyrocketing at an astonishing rate. In less than half a month, it had increased by almost 1,000 points.

Most importantly, Albert felt that he was getting closer to what he desired—the true way of utilizing ancient Runic texts, as mentioned by McDougall.

If he raised his Runic skills to level 3, perhaps he could grasp that part of the knowledge in a short period of time. However, Albert preferred to spend more time on this aspect. Even if he directly raised the skill level to 3, the acquired knowledge would still require a considerable amount of time to digest.

Moreover, using a large amount of experience to directly upgrade a skill level would burden the experience pool. Albert was not willing to take such a risk.

To him, raising a skill to level 2 in one go was the limit he could bear at the moment, and it had to be a practical skill for him to do so.

The experience in the pool was not only reserved for upgrading Economic and Financial studies but also served as Albert's greatest fallback and safeguard.

Having an outflow of experience without any inflow was undoubtedly not a good thing.

"What's been going on with you lately? You seem exhausted," George asked.

"No, it's nothing. Just a bit busy. Hey, could you pass me the orange jam from over there?" Albert was putting two sausages, a fried egg, and half a chopped and fried tomato on his plate. He absentmindedly took out his notebook from his pocket and began flipping through it to check if he had forgotten anything.

Albert indeed had a strong memory, but when he focused on one thing, he often neglected others.

"You're looking at your little notebook again?" Fred chuckled. "By the way, we have a Divination class in the afternoon. Are you going to attend?"

"I remember in the last Divination class, one of the Hufflepuff guys was dismembered," Lee Jordan brought up an anecdote about the Divination class.

"It was disassembled, not dismembered," Angelina shot Lee Jordan a disapproving look

and corrected, "Don't use such gruesome words in the wrong context."

"I remember that guy's name was...," Lee Jordan started.

"It's Phigo," Albert interjected, taking a bite of the fried egg, his voice lacking enthusiasm.

"How do you know?" Lee Jordan asked, somewhat defiantly. "I remember..."

"Last time, I met a Hufflepuff friend in the library... cough, cough," Albert cleared his throat and took a big gulp of pumpkin juice. He glanced at his fork, momentarily setting the fried egg aside, and looked at George as he asked, "The book 'Euric's Biography' from last time, I couldn't repair it. But it seems like you guys took the book. Did you return it after fixing it?"

Albert's mind had been overwhelmed by the intense study of Runic texts, resulting in a slightly lethargic state. However, this high-intensity situation had its benefits.

Albert's proficiency in Runic skills had experienced an unimaginable rapid improvement. In less than half a month, he had gained nearly 1,000 points.

The most crucial thing was that Albert felt he was on the verge of discovering what he had been seeking—the true method of using ancient Runic texts, as mentioned by McDougall.

While raising his Runic skills to level 3 might grant him access to that knowledge in a shorter time frame, Albert preferred to take his time. Even if he were to directly raise his skill level to 3, he knew that the knowledge acquired would still require extensive digestion.

Furthermore, using too much experience to level up a skill would burden his experience pool, and Albert was not willing to take that risk.

To him, raising a skill directly to level 2 was within his current limit, but he would only do so for practical skills.

The experience accumulated in his pool was not solely meant for upgrading his knowledge of economics and finance; it also served as his greatest resource and safeguard.

"It seems like something's been bothering you lately. You look exhausted," George remarked.

"It's nothing, just a bit overwhelmed with tasks. By the way, could you pass me the orange marmalade?" Albert placed two sausages, a fried egg, and a half-cut fried tomato on his plate. He absentmindedly pulled out his diary from his pocket and started flipping through it, checking if there was anything he had forgotten.

Although Albert had an excellent memory, when he became engrossed in something, he tended to push other matters to the back of his mind.

"Back to your little notebook again?" Fred teased. "Oh, and we have Divination class this afternoon. Are you planning to attend?"

"I remember in the last Divination class, a Hufflepuff boy got dismembered," Lee Jordan recounted, amused by the stories from their previous class.

"It was disassembled, not dismembered," Angelina corrected with a disdainful glance at Lee Jordan. "Don't use such horrifying words in the wrong context."

"I think his name was...," Lee Jordan began.

"It's Phigo," Albert interjected, taking a bite of the fried egg, his voice lacking energy.

"How do you know?" Lee Jordan asked, slightly defiant. "I remember..."

"Last time, I met a Hufflepuff friend in the library... cough, cough." Albert cleared his throat and took a sip of pumpkin juice, glancing at the fork with the fried egg momentarily set aside. He looked at George and asked, "About that book, 'Euric's Biography,' from last time. I couldn't fix it. But it seems like you guys took it. Did you return it after repairing it?"

"It's not fixed, but we already returned it, and Mrs. Pens has not noticed," George's face looked a bit unnatural.

"At that time, we made a bold decision," Fred explained, "We completely tore out that page. As long as it's not flipped to that page, it won't be discovered."

"You guys were lucky," Albert said with a speechless expression. He thought the twins would fix the book before returning it, but it turned out to be like this. Well, as long as Mrs. Pens doesn't find out, it's fine.

"I wonder which unlucky person will take the blame for you."

"Cough, that's none of our business." The twins' expressions were a bit awkward.

George quickly changed the subject. "By the way, are you going to watch the Divination class in the afternoon?"

"I'll go. It's not a bad idea to listen to a class and learn something." Albert nodded. He wanted to see if he could make his skill list show the ability of Divination through this method.

Basically, whenever Wilkie Twycross came to Hogwarts to teach Divination, Albert would go to observe and take notes on some knowledge that needed to be mastered. In his little notebook, there were the three D's (three points to pay attention to) mentioned by Twycross.

If only he could try it himself.

Unfortunately, first-year students couldn't sign up. Otherwise, they could practice Divination with guidance, which would significantly improve the safety and learning efficiency of Divination.

"What are you thinking about?" Shanna interrupted.

"I guess he's brooding over why lower-year students can't sign up for Divination," George said, wearing a knowing expression.

"This opportunity is rare. However, Divination is still too difficult for lower-year students. We don't have enough magical power to complete this magic on our own," Albert said. Although he said so, he was also frustrated. Unlike others, he didn't have this problem. As long as he could master the skill, he could immediately grasp Divination through experience points.

"You can use the Polyjuice Potion!" Fred whispered.

"Don't be silly. Do you think that can fool Professor McGonagall?" Albert rolled his eyes at Fred.

"Even if you learn it, you can't use it. Magic is not allowed during the summer break," George said seriously.

"Why?" Shanna asked, puzzled.

"That's how the Ministry of Magic regulations go. The first time you'll receive a stern warning, the second time you might be expelled. Even if you're lucky enough not to be expelled, you'll be heavily fined with a lot of Galleons," George reminded her seriously.

"How do you know that?" Shanna frowned and asked, while Percy sat next to George, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

"That's because you haven't received an official notice yet during the Christmas break," Percy answered on George's behalf. "After receiving the Ministry of Magic's official notice during the summer break, you can't use magic unless you're 17 years old."

"From what I know, using magic in wizard-dense areas like Diagon Alley won't receive a warning. Pure-blood wizards should be fine using magic at home," Albert whispered, "The Ministry of Magic can't figure out who's using it."

"How do you know?" Shanna stared curiously at Albert, while Percy looked a bit awkward.

"Since that unlucky guy Dugald nearly got expelled because of this incident," Albert sneered and pursed his lips, "I paid special attention to this issue and even asked some older students. I learned that the Ministry of Magic uses something called 'trace' to locate and monitor our surroundings. If you use magic in a Muggle area, the Ministry can send you a warning letter in minutes."

"If you use magic in Diagon Alley or where wizards live, the Ministry of Magic can't figure out who's using it?" Shanna asked tentatively.

"Yes, that's the case." Albert nodded.

"It's so unfair," Shanna said indignantly.

"Wizarding families need to rely on family members' self-regulation," Percy coughed and explained.

"If self-regulation were really effective, why would the Ministry of Magic need to enact so many laws?" Shanna sneered.

"I like what you just said." Albert couldn't help but laugh. "It's so philosophical. Don't you all think so?"

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(End of this chapter)