https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-376-The-Ambition-for-Eternal-Life/12946291/
Chapter 375: The Puppet
Chapter 375: The Puppet
Vold's eyes narrowed slightly.
The puppet resembled a soldier, only a couple of inches tall, dressed in a gray-green military uniform with an indistinct face, sturdy legs, and slender arms.
To a wizard, the puppet's crudeness was almost laughable, but Vold's first reaction upon seeing it was—
This image was specifically designed for a purpose.
Without voicing his speculation, Vold merely blinked and watched as Machione continued his demonstration.
The soldier puppet landed on the table and quickly climbed up, its sturdy legs ensuring a stable stance on the ground. Then, it turned its head, finally "looking" at Vold.
Since its eyes were just two black dots painted on, it couldn't move as flexibly as other puppets, but Vold distinctly felt that it seemed to be "looking" at him.
"You idiot! Your master is here!"
Machione pinched the puppet's head, turned it halfway, and then coughed a couple of times before saying, "Get me a glass of water."
Puppet: "..."
"I said—get me a glass of water!" Machione emphasized each word slowly.
This time, the puppet seemed to finally receive his command.
It spun around twice in place and clumsily walked towards the teapot with a rattling sound.
"Bang!"
It kicked over the cup with its foot.
Then, it grabbed the handle of the teapot with both hands and dragged it towards Machione.
"Thud!"
The teapot fell onto the table, the lid came off, and the water spilled out.
Fortunately, the wizards sitting next to this table were all quite capable, and they cleaned up the water with a spell.
The puppet stubbornly continued dragging the teapot towards its master, and Machione, looking at the two of them, said, "See, this is a small idiot like this, so the imitated puppets are basically ignored..."
"Bang!"
The teapot almost hit Machione's face, but he dodged it, only to still get splashed with the remaining tea.
Two tea leaves were still hanging on his face.
Vold and Lupin had intended to remain polite, but they couldn't help it and burst into laughter.
The puppet seemed to have completed its task and stood calmly, waiting for the next command.
Machione wiped the water off his face, took a deep breath, and tapped the idiot puppet with his wand.
Subsequently, the puppet disappeared from this world.
"That's it!"
Machione stubbornly ignored their laughter and continued, "The flexibility of the imitations is even worse than the chess pieces in Wizard's Chess, so puppets are our main business focus for now."
"But I heard that the British Ministry of Magic is organizing a major event, and Fudge claims it's unprecedented... This is a great opportunity for our workshop, but having only one or two main products is too risky..."
"I've actually been trying to get the Ministry of Magic to pass a law banning counterfeit Companion Ledgers from entering Britain, but it hasn't been going well... If we miss this chance, I don't know when the next opportunity will come..."
Machione muttered, clearly troubled by this for more than just a day or two.
"But now, with the Communication Beans, it's different—we can definitely catch those guys off guard!"
"However, to avoid being copied by those unscrupulous merchants, we might have to postpone sales for a year... at least six months..."
"Actually..." Vold said, "There's a part in the bean design where a Disappearance Charm is added during sealing. If someone tries to break it, the charm will activate."
"A Disappearance Charm?" Machione's eyes lit up, and he quickly asked, "Can it be added? Will there be a conflict? Is there a chance of accidental activation?"
Vold simply showed him the design diagram.
He never worried about Machione leaking secrets; when it came to protecting intellectual property, this merchant was more thorough than Vold could have imagined.
The Companion Ledger has been in circulation for almost two years, and yet the outside world can only guess at the production methods based on the finished product, resulting in poor imitations. Machione's protective measures speak volumes about his capabilities.
Machione was once a student of Professor Moreau, and his alchemy skills were no less than any other alchemist, so deciphering the design diagram was no challenge for him.
After examining it for a while, Machione grinned, "Did Professor Moreau help you with this?"
"Yes," Vold confirmed.
The two exchanged a knowing glance.
"Then I'd better get started on production," Machione said, putting away the diagram and standing up with a mischievous smile. "I can't wait to see those guys get what's coming to them."
"This is a chained spell," Vold explained. "A regular dispelling charm would only make the bean disappear, but if they try to dispel the Disappearance Charm, that's when the counter-attack is triggered."
"I understand," Machione nodded. "Don't worry, I'll take care of it... As for the contract, should I handle it with Remus?"
"Yes, of course," Vold agreed.
Signing a magical contract was never as simple as just writing down names; there were always numerous details to discuss. Over the years, Machione's magic workshop had become increasingly standardized, even adopting management techniques from Muggle corporations.
Vold had no patience for such administrative tasks.
Fortunately, Lupin was meticulous and dedicated, and Vold felt at ease leaving the follow-up work to him.
Lupin escorted Vold out of the Three Broomsticks and only then returned to the room upstairs.
"Remus," Machione said with a smile, "when you were with Vold, did you assume the role of a 'mother' to him?"
Lupin remained calm and explained, "The Three Broomsticks has some dangerous customers, and I didn't want Vold to get involved with them."
"I know, I'm not mocking you... In fact, I think you handled it perfectly."
Machione smiled and then turned serious. "Remus, since you're in Hogsmeade, you must protect Vold—recently, several renowned alchemists have gone missing in France, Germany, Italy..."
...
As Vold approached the Three Broomsticks, he spotted someone staggering towards him, looking dazed and with an unusually pale face.
It was Carrel.
He accidentally bumped into a girl, who pushed him to the ground, but Carrel just sat there, staring blankly, without reacting.
The girl stormed off, and after watching for a while, Vold sighed in exasperation. He squatted down and grabbed Carrel's shoulder, asking, "Hey, Carrel, what's wrong?"
"Sea..." Carrel mumbled.
"See?" Vold asked, puzzled. "What did you see?"
As he spoke, he glanced around.
Carrel rubbed his face vigorously and forced a smile. "The Halloween decorations in that shop were so scary... I was startled when I saw them suddenly."
"Really? Then I'll go check it out later."
Vold pulled him up forcefully and said, "But I thought you were braver than this. You're a Gryffindor, after all."
"Well, I've never seen these moving creatures in the wizarding world before, considering I'm just..."
Vampire.
Was it true? Carrel's mind was suddenly filled with immense doubt, as if a fog obscured the truth.
Were they all vampires? Why were all the delicious foods in his memories ordinary, without any... without blood meals? Could it be because they all abided by the laws?
(End of Chapter)
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