Chapter 123: Leslie's General Store
Chapter 123: Leslie's General Store
Having grown up in Diagon Alley, Theo was familiar with most of the shops, except for places his parents forbade him from visiting, like Knockturn Alley. Naturally, he knew which shops offered the best deals and which shop owners were deceitful, even without paying close attention.
"We call this place Knockdown Alley because everything sold here is supposedly junk," Theo explained.
While Diagon Alley was relatively clean and tidy, this particular street resembled a rural market, with goods piled up even along the roadside.
At first glance, it seemed like a vibrant display, but upon closer inspection, most of the items were the kind that people wouldn't bother picking up even if they were lying on the ground—old, yellowing books, oddly shaped stones, roughly carved wooden sculptures, bald quill pens, tattered carpets, and worn-out water cans.
The path in the middle of the street was narrow due to the piles of goods on either side.
Theo weaved his way through the alley, guiding Vic with the knowledge he had gained from his elders:
"Uncle Jason told me it's fine to come here during the day, but you shouldn't get too close after six o'clock," Theo said.
"After dark, this place becomes a haven for thieves and werewolves looking to fence their stolen goods."
"And don't be fooled by the items displayed outside; they're mostly trash that people wouldn't bother taking for free. The truly valuable goods are kept inside by the shop owners."
"Many of the store owners here are shrewd and will overcharge newcomers. Boone Leslie, on the other hand, is much better in that regard."
"He always prices his items clearly. They might be a bit more expensive than elsewhere, but they're definitely worth the money, and he won't trick you into buying junk for a high price."
Deep in the alley, Vic looked up at the wooden sign above a store, which read "Leslie's General Store."
Theo pushed open the door, and a bird-shaped wind chime hanging by the entrance let out a series of chirps. In an instant, the entire store lit up.
Dozens of magical candles ignited sequentially from the entrance to the back, illuminating the once-dim shop, revealing its interior clearly.
A silent figure in a wheelchair rolled forward.
His hair, a mix of white and black, was disheveled, resembling a tangled ball of steel wool. In contrast, his eyebrows were thick and black, standing out prominently.
His once-green wizard's robe had faded to a pale shade, and a frayed plaid blanket covered his knees. On the blanket sat a cat, its fur as black as ink.
"Mr. Leslie," Theo said with a bright smile, "I've brought a friend to buy some things from you."
"Mhm."
Mr. Leslie returned the smile and glanced at Vic. "Feel free to look around. The prices are as marked."
"Alright," Vic nodded and stepped further into the store.
Behind them, Mr. Leslie continued chatting with Theo, "So, young man, are you about to start a new school year?"
"In a week," Theo replied.
"And how did you get here today? Didn't Mancini tell you not to wander around alone?"
"I'm not alone; I'm with Mr. Vernal! Today, my little brother and I almost got kidnapped by werewolves, but Mr. Vernal saved us..."
Theo had no intention of hiding what had happened that morning.
Mr. Leslie's expression immediately turned serious. "What? Tell me exactly what happened!"
Theo began, "It was early this morning..."
...
The items in the general store were neatly arranged, much like a regular supermarket.
Rows of shelves stood tall, each item labeled with a price tag, some even bearing warnings like "Extremely Dangerous, Do Not Handle Without Permission."
Prices here were slightly higher than those in the second-hand stores outside, but they were much cheaper than the shops in Diagon Alley.
Take wands, for example.
Ollivander's wands for newcomers ranged from a few galleons to over a dozen galleons, and some adult wizards liked to inlay gold and jade on their wands, making them even more expensive.
The wands in Leslie's store were mostly around one or two galleons, with a small area next to them for testing magical effects, containing items like feathers, stones, and spiders.
These wands were dusty and showed signs of use, but they were at least intact.
In contrast, the wands displayed outside the second-hand stores showed visible signs of repair after breakage, and their prices were only a few sickles.
Vic thought that using such wands might not hit the enemy, but it was likely to send the user to St. Mungo's.
Vic's own wand was made of silver lime wood and unicorn hair.
Silver lime wood wands were trustworthy, inclusive, and possessed consistently strong power, requiring their owners to have a clear moral compass.
Unicorn hair produced the most stable and loyal magic but was difficult to use for dark magic.
According to Michael,
Strangers who heard about his wand's materials would probably think he was an honest and loyal Hufflepuff.
Vic had gloomily thought that it would be great if the Sorting Hat could understand him in the same way.
To Vic, his wand was like a part of his body, and he could cast spells with it as effortlessly as moving his fingers.
Although Vic had learned some wandless magic techniques, he still felt most comfortable and powerful when holding his own wand, especially when casting orthodox spells rather than hexes, curses, or dark magic.
Mild hexes would still cooperate with him, but he could feel resistance when trying to cast slightly more powerful jinxes.
Vic could sense that if he insisted on using this wand to learn powerful spells like the Blasting Curse or the Cruciatus Curse, his wand might "die."
In books about wands, it was written that unicorn tail hair tended to become melancholy, which was an innate weakness.
What if one's child had too strong a sense of morality? In that case, one would have to find a "thug" with few scruples.
Vic tested a few wands and chose three that had a good affinity with him.
One was a walnut wood wand with a dragon heartstring core, symbolizing wisdom and intelligence.
The second was an elm tree wand with a phoenix feather core, offering excellent defensive capabilities.
The third was a pine wood wand with a thunderbird tail feather core, representing independence.
Since they weren't expensive, he decided to buy all three and then browsed the store, discovering some more delightful surprises.
There was a magical mirror that could offer fashion advice to its owner; Vic had no idea who its previous owner was, but they had a surprisingly good sense of style and taste, and the mirror was quite flattering.
As Vic passed by, the mirror exclaimed:
"My heavens, I can't believe my eyes! Sir, you are wasting the face that the heavens have blessed you with!"
"Listen to me, take off that robe and put on the silver-gray one next to it. Wear the pocket watch on my left, and if you have extra funds, buy the hat on the shelf. It will accentuate your charming and brooding aura!"
Vic couldn't help but laugh at the mirror's enthusiastic suggestions.
He carefully examined the runes on the mirror to ensure there were no curses or other malicious enchantments and decided to buy it.
Fiona would love this mirror that could discuss fashion and style with her.
(End of Chapter)
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