"No, Fred, George—why don't you explain to your professor exactly what you're doing?" Kasen suddenly appeared behind the twins, grabbing one in each hand and hauling them off to the side.
Ludo Bagman, meanwhile, watched no less than seventy Galleons vanish into the air and desperately wanted to call the twins back—and then stuff two fat purses into Kasen's nosy hands as a distraction.
But that was impossible. Forget the fact that he still wanted Kasen's help with alchemy—he wasn't even sure he could beat Kasen in a fight.
"Alright, Professor, the truth is we're prepared for this. Even if we lose all of it, we won't be upset." The twins explained earnestly.
"Sorry, but as your professor, I don't think I should only be teaching you knowledge. You probably don't care to hear grand lectures, but I still need to say this: if you're willing to gamble away all your property now, then when you're older, won't you gamble away your entire estate in another reckless bet like this?"
"Professor, Ron placed a bet too."
"And just now, Bagman said some poor sap staked half a farm on the match."
Kasen smacked both twins on the head irritably. "That poor sap is a capitalist—she's got shares in over half the shops in Diagon Alley. Can you compare yourselves to her? And as for Ron… Mrs. Weasley is already teaching him a lesson."
After saying this, Kasen tilted his head to the side, letting the twins take in the sight of the "full-contact education" currently unfolding across the campsite.
The two Galleons were promptly and forcefully snatched back from Ludo Bagman by Mrs. Weasley, who then returned them—along with Ron's carefully saved little stash—to Sirius.
Sirius, watching this scene, shrank his neck timidly and then gave Ron a quick wink. His expression all but said: "Once your mum's gone, I'll give it back to you."
Ron gave a subtle nod in response, while the twins still clung to their own ideas. "Professor, we just want to give it a try. It's only some Galleons anyway, and if we manage to double it, we could—"
Before they could finish, Mrs. Weasley came charging over. With a flash, she bypassed Kasen and grabbed both twins by the ears. Then she took a deep breath…
Kasen calmly pulled out two sponges, stuffed them into his ears, and returned to his recliner to sit down.
Before long, Sirius walked over, knelt on one knee, and asked, "Well? Aren't you going to place a bet or two?"
Kasen removed one sponge and rolled his eyes. "I just finished lecturing my students, and then I'd turn around and gamble myself? What kind of professor would that make me?"
Sirius gave him a big thumbs-up. "As a professor, you're the best."
"And his next line would be: 'As a brother, you're the worst.'" Remus came over, speaking as he raised his middle finger, then gave Sirius a kick in the backside.
"Ouch… Remus, I think the two of us need to go back to our student days. Find some secluded place and have ourselves a passionate wizard's duel!" Sirius said, gripping the armrest of Kasen's recliner as he stood up.
"Oh? Because my pointed shoes kicked your delicate little backside? Come on then, it's been years—we really ought to spar a bit." With that, Remus grabbed Sirius and dragged him toward the nearby grove.
"...." Watching this unfold, Kasen helplessly shut his eyes.
On the other side, Ludo Bagman, overhearing Sirius and Kasen's exchange, finally let out a sigh of relief. Since Kasen himself hadn't placed a bet, and neither had his students, the wagers all came from adults. Surely, Kasen wouldn't actually come after him for scamming the grown-ups now, right?
As Bagman wandered off toward other campsites, Percy also finally relaxed, straightening his back. But when he heard that Barty Crouch had appeared in the camp, he quickly left again to chase after that lead.
Not long after, Lupin and Sirius stumbled out of the grove, half-supporting each other as though they had nearly destroyed one another in there.
The sight made Kasen want to smack them both upside the head.
He grabbed them by the collars and scolded fiercely: "Are you two serious? On the eve of battle, you pull this kind of stunt?!"
"Relax, relax, we'll definitely keep our fighting strength. We'll just wipe on a bit of dittany and be fine, really."
"That's right. Wizards rely on magic, not muscles. Take it easy, really."
Kasen shoved the pair into the tent. "Where's the dittany extract? Out of sheer mercy, I'll help you idiots."
"Oh, goo—" Sirius started to say, but was promptly patted by the ever-tactful Lupin. He quickly corrected himself: "Thank you."
The injuries weren't serious—at most just a few scrapes and bruises. After a few seconds of dittany, both men were good as new.
When they came out again, Sirius glanced around sneakily. Seeing Mrs. Weasley chatting and laughing with Mr. Weasley, he quickly signaled Ron over. Once Ron came closer, Sirius shoved a bulging pouch of coins into his hands.
"Spend it on whatever you like, just don't let your mum see…"
Then he pulled out another pouch. "This one's all Sickles. That way, when you buy snacks you won't have to bother with change. There are loads of food stalls here—take your friends and have some fun."
After saying that, Sirius started to rise, but Remus immediately added, "Remember not to wander too far. Stay where we can still see you."
Ron nodded dazedly, overwhelmed by the sudden shower of happiness.
Soon, a few of the young wizards left the campsite to explore and play, while Kasen, Remus, and Sirius gathered together again to talk about serious matters.
"Do we need to prepare in advance?" Remus asked.
"Most of the people here are grown wizards, and the kids all have guardians. As long as none of them are deadweight dragging us down, there's no need to prepare ahead of time." Sirius waved dismissively.
"You can't say that. We at least need to know the terrain." Remus countered.
"Then I'll just ride a broom up and take a look—or maybe snap a picture?" Sirius suggested.
"Eh, that's unnecessary. No need to go through all that trouble." Kasen waved his hand.
"What method do you have, then?" the others asked.
Kasen simply flipped his hand, and a rough piece of parchment appeared.
The next moment, colors suddenly spread outward from the center, quickly crawling across the entire sheet until it became a finely detailed map.
"Bloody hell!"
...
That was today's dose of Kasen's magic—warm and impressive.
(～￣▽￣)～Read 12 Chapters ahead:
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