In the early hours of the morning, Albert had just woken up from a light sleep. It was pitch black all around him, and he couldn't tell what time it was, but he could clearly hear the soft breathing of his other roommates.
Albert quietly got out of bed to change his clothes when he suddenly heard a familiar voice.
"We thought you would sleep through the night."
"So, George, you've lost." Fred sat on the edge of the bed, smiling at his twin brother. "I told you long ago that Albert would wake up."
"Okay, you win." George nodded, a little annoyed.
"Good evening." Albert pulled on his sweater and looked at his two roommates, asking, "Together?"
"certainly."
"Unfortunately, Lee Jordan really did fall asleep!"
"What should we do? Should we wake him up?"
The two lit their wands, raised them to the other bed, looked at their roommate who was breathing evenly, and shook their heads in unison, saying, "Give up, we can't wake him up!"
"Then don't wake him." Albert was putting on thick clothes and wrapping the towel Nia had given him around his neck. He casually reminded him, "It's cold at night, wear warm clothes so you don't catch a cold!"
"We were prepared." This wasn't the first time the twins had gone out at night; they were more experienced than Albert.
The three of them quietly went downstairs. The Gryffindor common room was empty, and the fire had long since gone out.
"Shadow Transformation Charm on you now?" Albert adjusted his winter cloak briefly, then raised his wand and said to the twins beside him, "Wait, when we go out, stay close, don't lose them."
"Where are you going?" Fred asked curiously, "The forbidden book section?"
"Yes, I'm going to borrow some books there." Albert didn't deny his interest in the forbidden section, and lowered his voice, "The Book of Spells, and… Potions of Power, or other potion books. I'm actually quite interested in Felix Felicis. I'm sure I can find relevant records in the forbidden section."
"Are you planning to brew some good luck-enhancing water?" The twins looked at each other and said in unison.
"It's still a bit difficult now, but I'll definitely be able to in the future. I'm confident in my potion-making skills." Albert had a skill panel, so he was naturally very confident.
Felix Felicis is a good thing, and he won't give it up easily.
"So, you're planning to sell Felix Felicis and make a fortune?" The twins looked at each other. "I bet it'll be a bestseller. Remember to take us with you then, let's get rich together."
"That's a good idea. A small sip should sell for 20 Galleons, or even more," Albert murmured. "You two are terrible at potions; what you'll probably brew is just poison."
"A small sip!"
"Twenty Galleons!"
The twins' voices instantly rose, as if they had heard something unbelievable, completely ignoring the second half of Albert's sentence.
"Felix Felicis is indeed very valuable, but it is also very difficult to brew, and the process is extremely complex. It is said that only highly skilled potions masters can brew it, and it is priceless and unavailable. After all, most people need 'luck' sometimes," Albert warned. "However, brewing it is very complicated, and if you make a mistake, the consequences are unimaginable. Even masters cannot guarantee that they will succeed. Failure means that three months of effort will be wasted."
In fact, Albert knew that Felix Felicis could not bring real "good luck," but he needed the effect of the potion; drinking it would be like giving himself a powerful buff.
Having everything go smoothly can be considered a kind of "good luck" to some extent.
Most importantly, he has a skill panel and an experience pool. Once he masters the skills, he can instantly become an expert in brewing Felix Felicis when necessary.
Felix Felicis undoubtedly piqued the twins' interest. It was a potion that could bring good luck and could be sold for a lot of money. If they could really master it, it would mean getting rich. Although they didn't specifically pursue wealth, they knew very well what it felt like to be poor.
If you could be rich, no one would want to be poor.
"Alright, I'm going to use the Disillusionment Charm now." Albert looked at the two of them and asked, "Who wants to go first?"
"No, you don't need to use the Disillusionment Charm; we have a better way."
"A better way?" Albert knew perfectly well what they meant by a better way, but at this point he should pretend he knew nothing.
"Use this." The twins, as if by magic, pulled an old parchment from their pockets and waved it in front of Albert as if presenting a treasure.
"What is this?" Albert lowered his voice, deliberately making his tone sound doubtful so as not to give himself away. He knew nothing about the Marauder's Map.
In fact, it was very dark around them, and Fred and George wouldn't have noticed the expression on Albert's face.
"Maps, remember the good stuff we got from Filch's 'Confiscated Supplies, High Danger' drawer?" Fred reminded him.
"Oh, so this is what you got from Filch, an old parchment?" Albert raised his wand and moved it toward the old parchment, which was blank.
"Invisibility magic, or invisibility ink?"
"This is a map, a map of Hogwarts. It requires a special password to use. But you're right, it can hide information inside." George raised his wand and tapped the map, muttering, "I solemnly swear I haven't done anything good."
"Didn't do anything good?" Albert felt like laughing, but still nodded seriously and said, "Indeed, didn't do anything good."
The map quickly changed, with countless ink strokes and intersecting lines outlining a map of the castle.
"It's truly a remarkable map; the creator's painstaking efforts are evident," Albert said softly. "It also contains highly advanced tracking magic."
"What magic?" George asked, puzzled.
"Tracking magic," Albert explained. "The creator used tracking magic on the map, and their skill in it was quite high."
"Yes, he would mark the location of everyone in the castle." Fred winked at Albert and said, "Just after midnight, Filch actually got up and patrolled around, trying to catch you, but unfortunately… you weren't awake yet, so he made a wasted trip."
"So...you know that the locations of those secret passages are also related to this map?" Albert asked, squinting his eyes.
"Yes, we found out from the Marauder's Map." The twins whispered, "Don't tell Li Jordan about this for now."
"I know," Albert said understandingly. "However, I think there are some secrets at school that you probably don't know."
"What secret?" the twins asked in unison.
"The broom cabinet you were looking for," Albert said mysteriously.
"Did you find the broom cabinet?"
"That's not a broom cabinet. Come with me." Albert smiled mysteriously. "You'll be very surprised in a moment."