Chapter 103: Fist and Truth

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Albert found something nice in the catalog order—a delicate silver phoenix badge. The only downside was the price, as it required a Galleon.

Nevertheless, Albert decided to have his owl place the order as a Christmas gift for Nia.

After closing the catalog order and putting it back in his backpack, Albert closed the thick book on the table and prepared to return it to its original position. As Albert held the book and walked past the bookshelves, he was surprised to see someone familiar.

"Seems like you've encountered quite a lot of trouble lately!" Truman looked at Albert with a hint of surprise on his face. He lowered his voice and said, "But you handled it beautifully."

"Thank you." Albert placed the book back on the shelf and curiously asked, "What are you looking for?"

"Dark curses, useful dark curses!" Truman muttered quietly. "I'm preparing to duel with Norbert, the Ravenclaw Prefect."

Albert couldn't help but freeze at the words. What kind of crazy plan was this?

"You're going to duel with the Ravenclaw Prefect?" Albert whispered.

Truman nodded.

"What's going on? Are you planning to have a friendly sparring match, or... settle your differences through a duel?" Albert had already guessed the likely answer. If it was a friendly match, Truman wouldn't be here looking for useful dark curses. "But the school probably won't be too happy about it. They don't want to see students resolving their issues through dueling, and..."

Albert believed that Truman had little chance of winning. Since the Ravenclaw Prefect was a higher-ranking student, it indicated that they had good academic performance, and there would be a gap between their grasp and application of magic.

"Norbert insists that Bridget Winlock belongs to Ravenclaw," Truman's voice carried a tinge of annoyance.

"Bridget Winlock?" Albert asked in confusion. He hadn't heard of this name before.

"Bridget Winlock was a famous arithmancer and divinationist in the 13th century. She was the first person to discover the magical properties of the number seven," Truman explained. "I was discussing arithmancy with someone, and when Norbert passed by, he said Winlock belonged to Ravenclaw. I argued against it, and then it escalated to this."

"So, Bridget Winlock belongs to Hufflepuff." Albert clarified.

"Of course, there's an introduction to Bridget Winlock on the Chocolate Frog card." Truman pulled out a Chocolate Frog card and handed it to Albert.

After Albert finished reading it, he asked, "Why didn't you show him this at the time?"

"I got it from a friend later," Truman explained. "And I believe even if I showed it to him, he wouldn't admit it. That guy probably knew he was wrong, but he refused to acknowledge it."

Albert understood the reason behind their duel now. It started with a typical argument that escalated into insults, and eventually turned into physical confrontation.

In his previous life, Albert had witnessed too many incidents like this. There were plenty of people with such behavior online. However, due to the distance imposed by the internet, they couldn't physically harm each other. So instead, they resorted to trading insults on online forums.

But this time was different. Both parties were already furious.

Perhaps, at the beginning, the Ravenclaw Prefect simply made a mistake. However, when the argument reached a heated point, even if he realized his error, he wouldn't admit it. That's why it evolved into this duel.

Clearly, the Ravenclaw Prefect was now enraged, at least in Truman's opinion.

Not everyone has the courage to admit their mistakes, not even Gryffindors. Dumbledore's classic quote summed it up: "It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends."

Truman was defending the honor of Hufflepuff. At least in their eyes, their house had finally produced a famous figure, and it was outrageous for someone to shamelessly claim that the person belonged to Ravenclaw.

"Do you need a little piece of advice from me?" Albert whispered.

"Sure!" Truman was slightly hopeful about Albert's suggestion.

"Not a duel. It will get you into trouble," Albert cautioned. "Don't acknowledge it as a duel."

Truman felt a bit disappointed. "..."

"You definitely don't want to be put in detention, right?" Albert said.

"I don't," Truman nodded repeatedly.

"Do you know the Disarming Charm?"

"I don't," Truman replied frustratedly.

"Follow me!" Albert signaled Truman to accompany him outside. The library was not a suitable place for conversation, and he noticed that Professor Pince was looking in their direction. If they didn't want to be kicked out by her, it was better to leave on their own.

The two of them walked out of the library, one after the other, and entered the corridor outside.

Albert squinted his eyes as he watched Slytherin students passing by. He turned to Truman and said, "The incantation for the Disarming Charm is 'Expelliarmus,' which means 'to disarm the opponent.'"

"So you mean to disarm Nochi," Truman's tone grew excited. If a wizard lost their wand, it was like a tiger losing its fangs.

"Yes, but you must be the first to act," Albert interrupted. "When you count 'one, two, three' for your duel, at 'one,' launch a surprise attack on him. Otherwise, you probably won't stand a chance against him."

"But..." Truman seemed to have something to say but was interrupted by Albert.

"This isn't a duel, is it?" Albert said casually. "After you disarm Nochi and catch him off guard, use the Full Body-Bind Curse. You know how to do that, right?"

"I do." Truman nodded.

"Then go up and give him a beating until he realizes his mistake," Albert made a punching motion.

"With my fists?" Truman had trouble understanding Albert's thought process.

"There's a saying that truth lies in the fists," Albert looked at Truman, who was dumbfounded, and said, "And he is indeed wrong, stubbornly refusing to admit it. He wants to teach you a lesson through a duel. Don't forget, he's two years older than you and more knowledgeable in magic..."

Albert's voice suddenly trailed off as his gaze fell upon a red-haired Ravenclaw girl.

"Do you know Isabelle?" he asked.

"I've met her a few times in the same club," Albert confirmed. Once he made sure there was no one around, he continued, "There's a saying that you can never wake up someone pretending to be asleep. The best way to wake them up is..."

"To give them a good beating!" Truman suddenly felt that it made a lot of sense. What did it matter if it was a surprise attack? He wanted to teach the other person a lesson.

Albert nodded. "Remember, don't use curses. Using curses is even worse than using your fists. If you get caught, explain to Professor Sprout why the fight happened. Remember, it's a fight, not a duel. Your Head of House won't punish you; after all, you are fighting for the honor of the House."

"That works too." Truman was dumbfounded, but he was already convinced by about seventy or eighty percent. Yes, he was fighting you for the sake of honor. Just as he was getting excited, he suddenly realized something—he didn't know how to perform the Disarming Charm.

"Follow me. I know what you need... a collection of self-defense spells," Albert led Truman inside. "You need to find someone to practice with. Don't look at me; I don't have that kind of free time. You can find a good friend from Hufflepuff."

"Alright, thank you. Remember to come and watch the duel this weekend," Truman grinned. "On the lawn near the Black Lake."

"I will," Albert nodded, watching Truman's figure as his gaze shifted to his own task panel.

Enthusiastic Help

Your friend Gabriel Truman seems to be facing some trouble. As your first wizarding friend, you should do your best to help him solve the problem.

Reward: 100 experience points, +10 Gabriel Truman's favorability

Distant Victory

Your friend is at a disadvantage in the upcoming duel. As a friend, you should find a way to help him turn the tide.

Reward: 1000 experience points, randomly obtain one skill from the target of the task, +10 Gabriel Truman's favorability

Albert became interested in the prospect of randomly obtaining a skill from the task target. When he returned to his seat, Shana, who had just finished her homework, curiously asked, "What did you just do?"

"Nothing much, just met a friend and had a chat," Albert noticed Professor Pince looking their way and quickly closed his mouth. He checked his completed homework, folded it, and put it away.

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Check out my Other Projects Too:-(Advanced chapter on P@treon)

=> Sailing with Whitebeard: Starting with a Question

=> Marvel: All the famous scenes were exposed by me

(End of this chapter)