Chapter 302: A Small Profit
Chapter 302: A Small Profit
By Monday morning, the news of Professor Quirrell's attack and hospitalization had spread throughout the castle.
With no suitable substitute teacher available, classes in Muggle Studies had to be temporarily suspended.
Moreover, Marcus Flint, now discharged from the hospital, claimed that... on Saturday evening, he had witnessed with his own eyes the professor being sent to the hospital wing.
This statement left everyone astounded. The professor?
Rumors flew, and an air of suspicion permeated the school, with students moving about in groups, afraid to be alone and become the next target.
"He's lying!" Harry exclaimed at the Gryffindor table. "He was out cold on Saturday night; he didn't wake up at all!"
"But people want to believe him," Ron said without looking up. "Forget about it."
He placed a backpack on the table and started rummaging through a pile of books and notebooks, pulling out a piece of parchment and measuring it with a ruler.
"Damn, it's off by three inches again... Harry, have you finished your History of Magic homework?"
"Homework for History of Magic?" Harry was taken aback.
"Of course," Ron said, giving him a look. "It's about the International Wizarding Conference of 1289. Didn't you get hit in the head by a Bludger as well?"
"No... but I think it might be related to the fall I took," Harry said. "I don't remember anything about it."
"Then you're in trouble. We have History of Magic first period," Ron said sympathetically.
He then turned to Hermione. "What about you..."
"No!" Hermione glared at him. "You should do your own homework."
"I know," Ron said. "But I was on the eighth floor all day yesterday. I didn't have time to go to the library."
"That's what you get for messing around with the brooms!"
...
With two assaults in a row, one of them on a professor, everyone was on edge, and a somber atmosphere hung over the castle.
Fred and George couldn't stand the oppressive mood any longer. One morning, they made a grand entrance at the Great Hall door, each with three golden trophies perched on their heads as if they were wearing uniquely shaped hats.
The brooms they rode were also special, with a wooden board fixed in the middle using magical tape.
When enough people had gathered, they flew out of the castle, circling it leisurely while performing a tap dance on their brooms, much to the amusement of the onlooking students.
Professor McGonagall was among the crowd but made no move to stop Fred and George. Instead, she waited until they had completed their circuit and returned to the ground before stepping forward with a stern expression.
"Professor McGonagall..."
"How did you...?"
Fred and George's grins faded, and they averted their eyes, feeling guilty.
"Ten points from Gryffindor," Professor McGonagall said. "Flying brooms are not to be used in this manner. Don't attempt such a dangerous stunt again."
"And..." She glanced at the trophies on their heads. "...remember to clean those trophies and return them to the trophy room, or you'll be in detention."
"I'll polish them until they sparkle," Fred promised.
"Good as new," George added.
Fred and George barely managed to keep from laughing out loud. In truth, they had already prepared themselves for the possibility of detention.
Without another word, Professor McGonagall turned and walked away.
The crowd burst into cheerful chatter once more.
Fred and George, like triumphant warriors, were escorted back into the castle.
They found Kyle and asked with smiles, "So, what did you think?"
"It was a brilliant performance," Kyle praised sincerely.
Cedric also gave a thumbs-up. "But how did you keep the trophies in place?"
"Magic tape," Fred said, prying the trophies apart, still stuck together. "We considered asking someone to use a Floating Charm, but in the end, we decided against it."
"At least this way, it's safe," George chimed in. "We tried asking Ron, but he couldn't control the charm at all. He lost the test feather and still hasn't found it."
"After that, we gave up on the idea of getting help," Fred concluded.
Upon returning to the castle, Fred and George decided to return the trophies before their next class.
"Is this okay?" Connor asked, eyeing the trophies that still had remnants of magical tape on them.
With that, the two rushed up the stairs.
Thanks to their antics, Hogwarts, which had been quiet for a long time, finally had some liveliness today.
In the Dark Magic Defense class, Lockhart even said that he would write about them in the new book he was writing.
But Kyle felt that Fred and George probably wouldn't be happy if they knew the news.
When class was over, Kyle ran into Neville in the hallway. He seemed to have been waiting here all along and immediately walked over to Kyle when he saw him.
"I'm sorry, I think I messed up."
Neville's voice quivered as he took out a flowerpot from behind him.
Inside was a slender plant with green stems, but the leaves were withered and yellow, as if they were about to wither at any moment.
"They've been like this since yesterday. I... I don't know why." Neville bit his lip and said, "I'm sorry..."
"Why are you apologizing?"
Kyle reached out and touched the leaves, smiling, "Cloaking Herb revives after withering and then grows broader leaves... This is normal, you're taking good care of it."
"Really?" Neville asked, a little incredulous. "I didn't mess this up?"
"Of course." Kyle said, "You can take a look at 'A Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi', there's an introduction to the Cloaking Herb in Chapter 12."
"Thank goodness... I always thought it was my fault that they turned out like this."
Neville's mood improved a lot, "By the way, Kyle, do you guys sell amulets?"
"Amulets?" Kyle asked, puzzled. "It's still half a year before the exams, why are you buying them so early?"
"No, not for the exams..." Neville shook his head quickly. "I mean the kind that drives away dark creatures and protects oneself, like this..."
As he spoke, he took out a reeking onion head.
Kyle took two steps back, covering his nose.
The smell of this thing was comparable to that of canned sardines, and it was persistent... Neville actually dared to put it in his pocket!
It was truly worthy of Gryffindor, brave to a fault.
But it had to be admitted that this thing could indeed protect oneself, or rather, any normal creature would not want to get close to him.
Of course, except for Louie, who would probably love this thing.
"So, do you have it here?" Neville's expression was very calm, and he even took a deep breath, as if doing so would make him safer.
"No." Kyle shook his head.
Indeed, such amulets had become popular in school lately, and Fred and George had even come to talk to him about it.
However, Kyle hadn't taken it seriously from the start.
There were too many similar products, and without the Slytherin market, they wouldn't make much profit.
It wasn't worth the effort for a handful of candy.
"Oh..." Neville looked a little disappointed.
He really wanted to buy something, after all, everyone in Hogwarts knew that the things sold by Kyle's gang... team were much more reliable than those sold by others.
Seeing Neville's disappointed look, Kyle thought for a moment and said, "Never mind, wait a moment, I'll see if I have something."
He opened his Changeling Lizard Skin Bag and pulled out a piece of pointed amethyst.
This was a gift from Devies-Banks, the owner of a shop in Hogsmeade, the last time he visited. It was a decorative amethyst.
It wasn't expensive to buy separately, and one galleon could buy a piece as big as a fist.
Neville excitedly took the amethyst. "Can it protect me from harm?"
"No." Kyle said, "But if you use it to check ahead when passing by a corridor corner, sometimes it can save your life."
Neville looked at the amethyst, and his own reflection appeared clearly on its surface.
"I know, this must be like a Monster Mirror, which can find hidden monsters." Neville murmured, feeling that he had discovered its use.
"How much?"
"Normally, ten Sickles. But this one is on me..."
Before Kyle could finish his sentence, Neville took out five galleons.
"Then... I'll take ten!"
(End of Chapter)
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