Chapter 368: Broad Bean
Chapter 368: Broad Bean
Phil was startled and stumbled backward, but a hand reached out and grabbed him.
"Careful," Vold said.
Phil turned around and realized he had almost bumped into the puppet's red hat. The puppet, which had been as still as a statue, was now turning its eyes to glare at him menacingly.
The menacing figure in the mirror and the menacing puppet behind him left Phil frozen in place.
Vold patted the puppet's head and said, "You wait over there by the wall."
Just as Phil was about to stand up, the puppet obediently nodded, walked to the wall, and stood there, holding its wooden stick like a cane.
Vold sat down next to Phil and said, "Don't be afraid. That person is far away in London."
"Mhm," Phil nodded, unconsciously leaning closer to Vold.
...
In the dilapidated building, Claire rushed to the window and saw an owl perched outside, unperturbed by her movement, merely tilting its head to look at her.
"It's okay, it's just an owl," Claire said to her companions. As she turned back, she noticed the owl holding up one of its claws, which held a letter and a snake-skin bag.
"A wizard's letter?"
Fatos limped over to the window, his face filled with anger. "You're contacting wizards now? Don't you know how they view us? Have you forgotten the harm they've caused you?"
"I remember, of course I do," Claire replied. "But I believe not all wizards are bad! And if we want to break free from our fate as werewolves, only wizards can help us!"
"Wizards have no solution!" Fatos roared. "If they had, there wouldn't be werewolves in the world after thousands of years!"
He looked as irritable as a bear, but Claire wasn't the least bit afraid. As she read the letter, she argued, "Just because there wasn't a solution before doesn't mean there won't be one in the future! With the changes in this world, I think anything is possible."
"Will thought the same, but where is he now?" Fatos said angrily. "I won't let you end up like him!"
Claire ignored him and, after reading the letter, fed the owl some jerky. Then, she quickly wrapped a scarf around her head and neck, leaving only the top of her head and her eyes exposed.
"Are you going to Diagon Alley?" Fatos asked anxiously. "What does the letter say? Don't go! Or wait until I'm better, and I..."
"You're overthinking it," Claire said. "It's not like someone asked to meet me; they just sent me the payment. I'm going to buy you medicine—a real potion—so your injury will heal instantly."
She took out a pouch of money and showed him a small pile of gleaming Galleons, almost blinding Fatos with their brightness.
Without waiting for Fatos to stop her, Claire quickly ran down the stairs, her footsteps fading into the distance.
Fatos stood stiffly for a moment, then turned to see the owl still on the windowsill. He took a few steps forward, pulled out a sticky note, and wrote a line in messy handwriting:
[If you need anything, don't harm Claire! I'm a werewolf too!]
He rolled up the note and tried to give it to the owl, but it refused to take it.
Fatos understood, "You want the payment, don't you? Wizards' owls are so cunning..."
He grumbled as he took out some jerky, tore off a long strip, and fed it to the owl.
"Go, little devil! Take this message to your master and tell him to come to me if he needs anything! If anything happens to Claire, I'll hunt you down to the ends of the earth!"
The owl picked up the jerky and the letter, then took flight into the sky.
It soared high into the sky and soon spotted Claire running on the streets again.
The bulky scarf was a bit cumbersome, but it was a necessary choice.
Those afflicted with lycanthropy, in their normal state, also had some differences from ordinary people, as certain parts of their appearance would resemble that of a wild wolf.
Some had very mild transformations, with only slight abnormalities, making it hard to notice, allowing them to easily hide among Muggles or wizards, like Will or Lupin.
Others had more obvious transformations, with their foreheads, eyes, noses, teeth, and ears all potentially becoming extraordinarily different, making their identities easily recognizable at a glance.
Claire's mouth and nose area had undergone more noticeable changes, making it easy for wizards to identify her as a werewolf—a child of wizards who, from the third year onwards, had to learn how to identify and kill werewolves.
Although the Ministry of Magic had enacted laws prohibiting wizards from harming non-human magical creatures, there were still many who took pride in hunting werewolves.
Therefore, Claire had no choice but to work in the Muggle world—Muggles were unaware of the existence of werewolves and only thought of her as a strangely-featured young woman.
She found some jobs that allowed her to wear a mask, which at least allowed her to make a living.
But if she wanted to exchange Wolf Poison Potion, she had to venture into the wizarding world, go to Gringotts to exchange Galleons, and each trip to Diagon Alley felt like an adventure.
Eva turned her gaze away.
The letter had been sent, and the reply received; it couldn't wait to return to its master.
So, without hesitation, it changed course and flew towards Hogwarts.
As the view turned into a vast expanse of white clouds, occasionally revealing the vast fields below, Vold put away the Flowing Mirror.
"Is this okay?" Phil asked.
"Yes," Vold smiled. "Thank you for your help, Phil."
"You're welcome, Phil is happy to be of assistance." Phil said shyly, "I have to go to work now. Zoe and Habi helped with today's tasks."
"Then I must thank them, and of course, you've been the biggest help." Vold turned and asked, "Phil, is there anything you want? I can buy it for you."
"Phil...um...Phil..."
The house elf's body swayed as if wanting to say something but holding back.
Vold already knew how to handle such situations.
He said, "It's okay, I want to know. Please tell me."
Upon hearing this command, Phil's expression relaxed.
Embarrassedly twisting his long fingers, Phil asked shyly, "Can Phil have a summoning bean?"
"A bean?" Vold was puzzled. "What kind of bean?"
Phil explained, "Not an ordinary bean, but...like Zoe's bean...a summoning bean..."
Vold understood.
His very first alchemical creation wasn't the Friend's Account, but a small, safety-ensuring bean that he had given to Zoe.
However, he no longer used it and had almost completely forgotten about it, never expecting the house elves to still remember.
Vold smiled and said, "Alright. Tomorrow morning, you'll receive this gift."
Phil's face lit up with joy.
(End of Chapter)
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