Chapter 52: They Offered Too Much
Chapter 52: They Offered Too Much
The following day, at the same time and in the same Hufflepuff common room, Kyle, Cedric, and Connor gathered once more. This time, however, there was a stack of gleaming Galleons on the table before them.
"One, two, three..."
"No need to count..." Kyle arched an eyebrow at Cedric. "It's sixty Galleons exactly, no more, no less."
Cedric's mouth hung open, his whole body feeling dazed, as if he were dreaming.
...
In fact, it all felt like a dream, for their plan that day had proceeded astonishingly smoothly.
Although Connor, due to her nerves, had completely forgotten the specific process and blurted out their map like a salesperson as soon as she saw them.
No, even salespeople would at least greet their clients and exchange pleasantries first, instead of rushing straight to the point like Connor had.
Kyle and Cedric stood frozen, unsure if they should continue with their act.
But they soon had their answer.
For Rolanda and Pansy's reaction was equally unexpected.
Even before Connor could speak, upon seeing the golden trim on the map, they eagerly inquired about its origin.
And when they learned that only ten such maps existed, they set aside their previous haughty attitudes and eagerly engaged Connor in conversation.
They linked arms with Connor, laughing and chatting about the fun they had at a party years ago as if they were longtime friends.
Connor, feeling bewildered, accompanied them along the way. And by the time they returned to the Hufflepuff table, she found herself ten Galleons richer.
As for when exactly those Galleons had made their way into her hands, Connor's memory was hazy.
Perhaps it was in the corridor, or maybe at the entrance of the Great Hall.
For Rolanda and Pansy were adept conversationalists. Along the way, they smoothly steered the topic from the party to the complex structure of Hogwarts Castle, and then seamlessly requested Connor's assistance in purchasing the map. Once she agreed, the topic subtly shifted back.
The whole process was seamless, without any awkwardness.
Although Connor's objective aligned with theirs, and their mutual cooperation had led to such a smooth transaction, Kyle couldn't help but admit that Slytherins indeed had a natural talent for socializing.
So, at the table, the first thing he said to Connor was, "Remember to stay away from Slytherins from now on. Otherwise, they might sell you out without you even realizing it."
Cedric, sitting beside him, nodded in strong agreement.
To avoid any potential complications, right after lunch, the two golden-trimmed maps were delivered into Rolanda and Pansy's hands.
And with their "promotion," it took less than two hours to sell out all the maps except for Connor's sample.
Some of the little snakes even wanted their house crest embossed on them.
Kyle had initially disagreed, but he couldn't resist the generous offer they made.
Double the price... Who could refuse such a deal?
So, in the end, it became sixty Galleons.
"It's time to split the... cough, cough, split the Galleons."
Under everyone's expectant gaze, Kyle pushed half of the Galleons toward Connor. "As we agreed before, we split it evenly."
"No, you miscounted," Connor shook her head, took out ten Galleons, and returned them to the pile. Then she looked at Kyle questioningly.
"Never mind, as long as you're happy."
Cedric beside him was laughing so hard he could barely breathe.
Kyle, bad at arithmetic?
This was something he could laugh about for an entire school year.
Kyle pushed the twenty Galleons over with a sour look. He couldn't understand how Cedric, who used to be such a nice guy, had turned into this.
What a guy, taking pleasure in others' misfortune without any shame.
Cedric paid no mind to Kyle's foul mood and picked up a Galleon, stroking it gently in his hand.
"With this many Galleons, I can buy ten quill pens made with crup feathers."
"Crup feather quills?" Kyle frowned. "What's so great about those, and why are they so expensive?"
"They look nice." Cedric said as if it were obvious. "I've had my eye on the yellow one for a while now. That color would go perfectly with Hufflepuff."
Kyle thought of something, the corners of his mouth twitching before he quickly regained his composure and calmly said, "Then you'd better buy a few more so you can switch them out."
"No, I'll just buy one for now." Cedric thought for a moment. "I plan to give the rest to my father."
Hearing this, Kyle glanced at him, about to say something, when Cedric continued, "Maybe he'll be so happy that he'll upgrade my broomstick from the Cleansweep Seven to a Nimbus 1700."
Kyle swallowed the words that had just reached his lips.
The Nimbus 1700 was two hundred Galleons more expensive than the Cleansweep Seven. Twenty Galleons turning into two hundred—Cedric's math skills were truly something else.
However, it wasn't a bad idea. Given Mr. Diggory's personality, upon learning that Cedric had made it into the House team and earned a substantial twenty Galleons, he might very well buy him the Nimbus broomstick.
Kyle's eyes narrowed as a sudden idea came to mind, but it was getting late, so he decided to bring it up tomorrow.
...
After dividing the Galleons, Cedric went to the kitchen and returned with cookies, sweets, and a large pitcher of pumpkin juice.
The three of them held a small celebration in the common room.
Kyle picked up a cup of pumpkin juice and took a sip, only to see Connor across from him taking out seven or eight tiny bags and placing two Galleons in each.
"????"
As Kyle looked on in confusion, Connor explained, "I'm afraid of losing them again, so it's better to keep them separate."
Cedric asked in surprise, "Connor, did you lose some Galleons?"
"Yes." Connor nodded and briefly recounted what had happened.
After listening, Cedric also turned serious and thought for a moment before saying, "It's probably not on the Quidditch pitch. After every flying lesson, Madam Hooch inspects the pitch, so if anyone had dropped something, it would've been found quickly.
And I didn't hear anyone mention finding twenty Galleons yesterday during practice.
Don't worry, I'll ask around tomorrow and see if anyone has seen them."
"It's fine, I don't mind anymore." Connor pointed to the pile of small bags in front of her and smiled warmly. "These are more than enough for me."
"Uh..."
"You're just going to forget about losing twenty Galleons?"
Cedric didn't say anything, but for some reason, the pumpkin juice in his hand seemed to have turned into lemonade.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
