Who goes first?
After finishing breakfast, the group stood in front of the entrance to the mirrored secret passage on the fifth floor.
"No need to ask, of course it's one of the three of you!" Albert said matter-of-factly. "You've already been in there once, so you naturally have experience."
"Okay, I'll go first." Fred carefully walked down the stairs, and the other three immediately followed. The mirror returned to its place after the four of them entered the secret passage.
The passageway was a bit crowded, with a steep incline, and it was pitch black all around. The four of them slowly made their way down the stairs.
Albert raised his wand and muttered, "Fluorescence!"
"I hate this cramped and dark place," Lee Jordan muttered under his breath.
"Stop complaining, hurry up and keep up." Fred was focused on maintaining the glowing spell as he slowly walked down the stairs.
The passageway was narrow, barely allowing the two to pass sideways, and it was pitch black all around. They walked a long way up the stairs. Along the way, Fred's wand went out several times.
"I think you should practice the Glowing Charm properly; it's the most basic spell," Albert said, extending his wand forward.
"I hate this feeling," Fred muttered to himself, trying to make his wand glow again.
"After we get down these stairs, the area ahead will be more spacious. Albert, why don't you lead the way?" George suggested. He was fed up with having to stop every few minutes.
"Okay!"
After descending the stairs, they entered a gloomy passageway. The ground was damp, made of hard earth, and water droplets occasionally fell from above. One drop landed on Albert's face, making him shiver. He quickly wiped the water off his face and continued walking.
Albert walked slowly to avoid slipping and falling. The others remained silent, focusing all their attention on navigating the uneven ground of the path.
The four stumbled forward, the passage winding and twisting, and they had no idea who had dug it.
That said, it's rather strange that they didn't suffocate.
Albert raised his wand above his head and looked up at the passageway.
"What are you looking at?" Fred asked.
"Um, there's a ventilation hole on the top?"
"Where?" All three looked up at the ceiling, but did not find the ventilation hole that Albert had mentioned.
"It's right where we just walked."
After walking for a full hour and 20 minutes, the passage began to extend upwards, which meant that the exit was very close. The four people, who were a little out of breath, began to quicken their pace.
Five minutes later, they could all feel the cold wind blowing in from outside.
The entrance to the secret passage is hidden under a large, well-concealed rock, and the exit is very narrow; the fat man might get stuck.
It's still raining outside, but the rain isn't heavy.
After Albert stepped out of the passage, he took out his umbrella and opened it to shield himself from the rain.
The three Weasleys quickly squeezed through.
"You didn't bring umbrellas." Albert was speechless.
"No." The three of them shook their heads in unison.
Albert used the Copying Charm to conjure three umbrellas for them.
"You're as reliable as ever," the three men said shamelessly.
"By the way, this umbrella is really strange?" Lee Jordan looked at the umbrella in his hand with curiosity. It could actually extend and retract.
"This is a new invention from the Germans a few years ago. It's convenient and easy to carry." Albert cast a water and fire immunity spell on himself to ensure that his clothes and boots wouldn't get wet when crossing the lush grassland.
"Watch out?" He heard George's exclamation and turned to see Lee Jordan lying on the ground, soaking wet.
"Are you alright?" Fred quickly reached out and helped the man up.
"What bad luck, my clothes are all soaked," Lee Jordan muttered.
The twins both looked at Albert.
"Why are you looking at me like that? It's not like I caused him to fall." Albert was a little confused.
"Have you mastered the Drying Spell?"
"What makes you think I possess this kind of household magic?" Albert retorted irritably.
"Ahem, we were just asking casually, but we always felt like you knew all kinds of magic." Fred coughed to ease the awkward atmosphere.
"I'm telling you three, can you leave here first?" Lee Jordan, soaking wet and in a terrible mood, said, "I hate rain the most, the most, the most."
They walked through the grass toward the village of Hogsmeade ahead.
Perhaps because of the rain, the streets of Hogsmeade were deserted. With his teeth chattering, Lee Jordan suggested going to the Three Brooms first, as he wanted to have a butterbeer to warm himself up.
The three of them had no objections.
They walked along a road and, a few minutes later, easily found the bar the three had mentioned.
Okay, there are three brooms hanging on the door of this bar, forming a triangle.
What Albert wanted to complain about was that the pointed triangular roof on the door was crooked. It really was a house built by a wizard.
Completely disregards physical rules and universal visual aesthetics.
Of course, there's also a sign in front of the bar that reads: Three Brooms.
There were very few people in the bar today. When Albert went in, he only saw a male wizard sitting at the counter chatting with the proprietress.
A roaring fire was burning in the fireplace, and Lee Jordan quickly went over, took off his robe, and placed it by the fireplace to dry.
"I'll go order some drinks," Albert said, walking toward the counter. The twins looked at each other and then sat down in the chair opposite Lee Jordan.
"Four bottles of butterbeer, warm," Albert said to the bar owner.
The wizard seemed annoyed that his conversation had been interrupted, and turned to glare at Albert.
Albert glanced at him expressionlessly, then ignored him and sat down next to the wizard.
"Where did this brat come from?" the wizard muttered under his breath, but after being glared at by the landlady with three brooms, he obediently shut up.
"Are you Hogwarts students?" Madam Rosmerta looked at the four young wizards who had entered the shop with considerable surprise. She couldn't understand how these four little ones had managed to sneak out of Hogwarts.
"How much?" Albert asked expressionlessly.
"8 Xico." Ms. Rosmerta went into the back room to warm their butterbeer.
Albert took a look around the bar during his free time.
Honestly, this is much better than the Leaky Cauldron.
The bar's main hall was bright, with several tables neatly arranged and the place very clean. There was no strong smell of beer inside, but the decor was somewhat similar to the medieval taverns in the games I remembered.
After about five minutes, four glasses of butterbeer were placed in front of Albert, and he quickly called someone over to help him take them.
"Eight Sico." Albert took out eight Sicos and placed them on the table, then picked up a glass and walked to the table by the fireplace.
The butterbeer had a strong buttery aroma. Albert took a sip and it tasted a bit like a less cloying hard butter candy. It was smooth to drink and had very little alcohol; it was more like a beverage.
"How are you feeling?" All three of them turned to look at Albert.
"It's just an ordinary drink." Albert looked at the three of them, blinked, and said, "It's like the soda you drink in Muggles. It's not bad, but you're not used to it."
The three looked at each other and couldn't help but laugh, as if to say, "I knew I'd hear that kind of comment from you."