Chapter 542: The Second Task
Time seemed to have sped up after February began. In what felt like the blink of an eye, there was only a week left until February 27th.
Fred and George were noticeably disappointed. Since the incident in the foyer, Karkaroff had not returned to the castle, robbing them of the opportunity to execute the elaborate "Skiving Snackbox" plan they had spent so much time preparing.
"The Second Task is in a week. Are you really not going to spend some time studying the stone?" Fleur asked, exasperated, as she watched Kyle playing chess with Cedric in the common room.
She had assumed Kyle was joking about his lack of interest in the stones, but she was now convinced he was serious. Her reasoning was simple: the three stones had been sitting untouched on a cabinet in the common room for over a month. If not for the diligent cleaning by the house-elves, they would have accumulated a thick layer of dust by now.
To test him, Fleur had once secretly taken the stones during the night, expecting him to notice their absence. But for half a month, Kyle didn't even seem to realize they were gone, carrying on with his usual routine without the slightest concern.
It was as if he had seen Merlin himself.
"Not really," Kyle said casually in response to her question.
If he had intended to investigate the stones, he would have done so on the day Nicolas Flamel visited. To Flamel, the secret of the stone was as clear as if it were written on its surface—obvious at a glance. Since Kyle hadn't bothered to ask Flamel then, he saw no reason to waste time on it now.
"Do whatever you want, but if I have to deal with you again, I'll be a Leprechaun!" Fleur huffed and turned on her heel, dragging Kanna with her as she stormed back to the dormitory.