After eating his fill, Charlie patted his stomach contentedly and pulled out a shiny Galleon from his pocket, placing it on the table.
"Thank you for your hospitality; that duck was excellent."
Billy froze when he saw the Galleon, his tennis-ball-sized eyes widening even further.
"Sir, what do you mean by this?" Billy's voice trembled slightly.
"It's payment for your meal," Charlie said as a matter of course.
"Paying for food is only right and proper."
Billy shook his head, retreating repeatedly:
"No, no, no, sir, Billy cannot accept money! Billy loves serving Wizards, it is Billy's honor!"
The other House-elves also shook their heads, all looking very agitated.
"Take it," Charlie insisted.
"You've done such a good job; you deserve to be paid."
Billy's eyes instantly welled up; he tremblingly took the Galleon with both hands and clutched it tightly to his chest.
"Billy has never met such a kind Wizard!" he choked out.
"You and Harry Potter are both the best Wizards in the world!"
The other House-elves were also incredibly excited, expressing their gratitude all at once.
This left Charlie a bit bewildered; it was just payment for a meal, was such a huge reaction necessary?
"From now on, whenever you call Billy in your dormitory, Billy will appear immediately!" Billy solemnly promised.
"Billy will do anything for you with all his heart!"
Charlie waved his hand, not taking it seriously.
It was like saying, "I'll treat you to a meal next time" when parting ways.
"Alright, then I'll head back first."
Ernie followed Charlie out of the kitchen and spoke on the way:
"Actually, you don't need to pay; House-elves don't need money, they love to work."
Charlie was somewhat surprised.
"People who love to work should receive more compensation, shouldn't they?"
"I never thought you, Ernie, with your thick eyebrows and big eyes, would be an evil capitalist. Just wait, I'll hang you from a lamppost sooner or later."
Ernie's face turned red upon hearing this, and he quickly tried to explain, muttering that he wasn't a capitalist and that he was also very kind.
Charlie walked ahead, not listening, like a turtle chanting sutras.
Back in the dormitory, Justin was already asleep.
After washing up, Charlie lay in bed, thinking about the plan he had discussed with The Twins today.
Half a month passed like this, and life at Hogwarts gradually settled into a routine.
Charlie had also completely adapted to the school's rhythm.
Sleeping in class, causing mischief after class, and occasionally blowing up Filch's office—his days were quite fulfilling.
Under the guidance of George and Fred, they explored all of Hogwarts' secret passages.
From the secret passage behind the one-eyed witch statue to the tunnel beneath Honeydukes, Charlie knew them all like the back of his hand.
There was only one place that left them stumped—the corridor on the fourth floor.
That damned staircase seemed to have a mind of its own; every time they tried to go up, the staircase always turned in another direction.
"That staircase definitely has a problem," Fred complained.
"We've tried it a dozen times, and it always tricks us."
"There must be something important hidden there," George analyzed.
"Otherwise, Dumbledore wouldn't go to such great lengths."
Charlie wasn't in a hurry; he knew an opportunity would come sooner or later.
That night, Charlie once again arrived at the staircase.
To his surprise, the staircase was obediently still, showing no intention of turning.
"This is it!"
Charlie's eyes lit up, and he quickly walked up, afraid the staircase would change its mind.
The fourth-floor corridor looked unremarkable, no different from other floors.
Rows of portraits lined both sides of the corridor, and moonlight streamed through the high windows onto the floor, making it exceptionally quiet.
At the end of the corridor was a heavy wooden door with no markings on it.
Just as Charlie was about to step forward to examine it, hurried footsteps suddenly came from behind him.
It couldn't be someone coming to catch night-roamers, could it?
He quickly pulled out his wand and cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself, blending into the environment like a chameleon, completely invisible in the dark night.
Just then, four figures ran over in a panic—Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville.
Harry was in the lead, looking panicked; he was truly afraid because Hermione kept talking about expulsion.
"I told you we shouldn't have come out!" Hermione chattered as she ran.
"That Malfoy scoundrel was clearly playing a trick on us! A midnight duel is nothing but a trap!"
"What's the use of saying that now?" Ron retorted, out of breath.
"The important thing is not to get caught by Filch!"
"If you hadn't insisted on going, we'd be in bed sleeping by now!" Hermione continued to nag.
"If we get caught, we'll definitely lose points, and we might even be expelled! Now look, we're lost, and Filch is still chasing us!"
Neville was desperately trying to keep up at the very back, his face pale.
Ron had listened to Hermione nag the whole way and finally couldn't take it anymore:
"Merlin, I wish I knew the Tongue-Tying Curse to make you shut up!"
Hermione opened her mouth, seemingly wanting to teach him the spell for the Tongue-Tying Curse, but in the end, she huffed and ignored him, isolating the other three.
The four ran to the end of the corridor, and Harry reached out and pulled the doorknob.
"It's locked," Harry frowned.
"Filch shouldn't be able to find us here, right?" Neville asked cautiously.
Charlie, realizing it wasn't someone catching night-roamers, dispelled the Disillusionment Charm and suddenly spoke: "Don't worry, he won't find you."
"Ah, ah, ah!"
All four screamed in fright at the same time, and Neville even sat directly on the floor.
"Well, now he's definitely found us."
Charlie helplessly rubbed his forehead.
After their initial fright, the four calmed down.
"Charlie?" Harry recognized him.
"What are you doing here?"
"The same as you, night-roaming," Charlie shrugged.
"That shout of yours just now, I bet the whole Castle heard it. Filch will be here any minute."
Sure enough, Filch's voice came from afar:
"You blasted brats, you can't run away, I heard you!"
"Go, Madam Norris."
"Meow!"
"We're doomed!" Hermione's face turned pale.
"He really is coming!"
Ron jumped up and down in a panic: "We're dead meat now!"
Harry desperately pulled the doorknob: "The door won't open!"
Neville had already started crying: "I don't want to be expelled!"
"Don't panic," Charlie pulled out his wand and pointed it gently at the lock.
"Alohomora."
With a click, the lock sprang open.
"Get in!" Charlie pushed the door open.
The five entered in single file, Charlie being the last, closing the door behind him.