Chapter 330: New Business
Chapter 330: New Business
If Headmaster Dumbledore could really take down Voldemort, he might be able to harvest a large number of offset points. Liam thought happily as he listened to the pleasant chimes in his mind. Because he had altered the major event of Voldemort’s resurrection, he had received 38 Deviation Points this time.
Of course, such a good thing was only a fantasy. Given Voldemort’s cunning, he would certainly hide himself well in this situation. Even if he wanted to cause trouble, he would likely wait until he was fully recovered.
However, Voldemort was indeed cautious enough. This time, Liam’s observations confirmed that Voldemort had not a single hair on his body. This meant that no one could use Polyjuice Potion to disguise themselves as him. So, Voldemort’s baldness wasn’t just for strength; it was also likely to prevent anyone from impersonating him.
Liam felt that his biggest problem now was having too much knowledge but not fully integrating it. For example, he had obtained the Faceless Men’s Transfiguration ability through the Mercury Lamp, but even after multiple improvements, he still needed the person’s face to gain their memories. This meant that this method couldn’t be used openly, and even if he killed an enemy in the future, he wouldn’t be able to obtain intelligence. There were many similar issues.
So, even though Voldemort had already been resurrected, it didn’t affect Liam’s previous plans. He continued to analyze and improve the supernatural power data he had obtained from other worlds in his free time. After all, only by further integrating and mastering these powers could he enhance his own strength and gain more advantages in the upcoming battles.
Fortunately, it was the fully restored Dumbledore facing a severely weakened Voldemort without a complete fallout with the Ministry of Magic. So, this period should be relatively peaceful, allowing him to focus on other matters.
With the tacit cooperation of Dumbledore and Fudge, the news of Voldemort’s return was kept under wraps. However, the kidnapping incident and the dark network established by the Vampires in Europe were thoroughly exposed in the newspapers. Rita Skeeter’s sharp pen, combined with the detailed records seized from the Vampires, completely enraged the entire Wizarding World. Countless Howlers were sent to the Ministry of Magic.
It was no wonder. Wizards had never considered other intelligent beings as equals. They would never accept that noble Wizards were being used as food by such filthy, lower beings, especially when the targets were young Wizards. Naturally, in the face of such overwhelming public opinion, Headmaster Dumbledore’s proposal to launch an operation to thoroughly cleanse the dark side of the Wizarding World was supported by the vast majority of Wizards.
In the following weeks, obvious targets like Knockturn Alley were repeatedly searched by Ministry of Magic members. Even some Pureblood Families had to hide their Dark Magic artifacts to avoid trouble.
However, this storm did not affect Hogwarts. The school continued to operate according to its own schedule, slowly doing its own things. One event that did cause a stir within the school was the arrest of Barty Crouch at St. Mungo’s, one of the judges in the Triwizard Tournament.
The fact that Barty Crouch had helped his son escape from prison was eventually exposed. Such things couldn’t stand up to scrutiny if someone was determined to investigate. According to Percy’s letter, Barty Crouch seemed relieved when he was arrested, possibly because he had felt this day coming ever since he found his unconscious House-Elf and missing son that day.
Percy also expressed his own good fortune in the letter: if he had worked under Barty Crouch back then, he would likely be in a much worse situation now.
Additionally, Percy asked the Weasley Twins in his letter if they needed any alchemical materials, as they had recently raided many illegal places and seized a lot of hard-to-find alchemical materials.
According to the rules of the Ministry of Magic, a portion of the confiscated items from risky operations is given to the enforcers. The valuable and high-demand items naturally go to the Ministry of Magic, while the lower-level clerks can only take some niche and single-purpose items. The Department of Nature Magic can convert these items into Gold Coins, but the price they offer is quite unfair.
So now that Percy has become a squad leader, he has come to ask the Weasley Twins if they need these materials. If they do, he can use them to provide some benefits to his subordinates.
"How did he know we were opening a store?" The Weasley Twins couldn't be sure, so they brought the letter to Liam, who had just finished lunch and returned to the Common Room. As Liam looked at the list attached to the letter, Fred asked curiously, because they had never told Percy about their business.
"Percy and his team have been patrolling Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley recently. That area is only so big. Your store is right there, with people constantly bringing in and taking out goods. It would be strange if he didn't notice." Liam said, staring at the materials list. "At least your brother has improved since he started working. Even though he knows about your store, he didn't write to Mrs. Weasley."
"You're right." "Indeed, this job has made him better", the Weasley Twins chimed in with a dramatic tone.
"Alright, you two, stop fooling around." Liam said, looking at the two who were still joking. "Ninety percent of the items on this list we can take."
"But most of what we're making right now doesn't use these materials", Fred said to Liam. "We're happy to help our brother, but we don't want to lose money doing it."
"Who said anything about losing money?" Liam widened his eyes. "Don't you think this is a good opportunity to introduce new products and make money? After all, the Ministry of Magic is currently cracking down on Dark Wizards, and they've mobilized a lot of staff who aren't Aurors or Hit Wizards. Many of these people have little to no combat training. We can sell them some Protective Gear."
"Protective Gear?" George looked at Liam. "What can we sell? Not enchanted armor, right? Ha ha—"
He and his brother laughed, but then saw Liam staring at them with a serious expression.
"You're not serious, are you? A bunch of people in the Ministry of Magic can't even cast a simple Armor Charm?" The two brothers stopped laughing, and Fred asked in disbelief.
"It's true", Liam said with a depressed look. "Percy mentioned this in his letter. He said that in his five-person squad, only three people, including himself, can cast the Armor Charm. And one of those two can only cast it during practice; when they face an enemy, they get too nervous to do it."
"Heavens, no wonder my father says he's the strongest combatant in his department. Has the Ministry of Magic really declined to this extent?" The Weasley Twins were stunned by this news.
"Um, if I remember correctly, Mr. Weasley's Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office only has two people, and during the summer vacation, he complained that his colleague is quite old, which means he often has to work overtime."
"That's not the point", Fred quickly changed the subject. "The key is that you're right; this could be a huge market. But we're not prepared for it yet!"
"I have something here", Liam said, pulling out a small notebook. "I've been trying to make my Copper Bracelet more affordable. This is my research, and it can be used with these materials."
"More affordable? Won't that affect the sales of your Bracelet?" George asked, worried.
"It won't. To reduce costs and production difficulty, this product can only be considered a half-Alchemical Product. The main issue is that the effect weakens quickly over time. For example, a defensive Magic Robe is only effective for a year, after which the magic fades and becomes useless. But for just two Galleons per item, this is quite impressive", Liam explained.
"True, and if the product is good, we can sell it again next year", the Weasley Twins said in unison.
(End of Chapter)
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