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Chapter 767: Trading with Fairies
Chapter 767: Trading with Fairies
"A perfect vitality tonic, I can't find any flaws with it."
In the underground classroom of Hogwarts, as Professor Marchbanks spoke these words, it signified that the seventh-year students had completed all their N.E.W.T. exams.
With the sound of a crisp bell, Kyle and the others left the classroom and made their way back to the Entrance Hall via the stairs.
The exams were over, and the students' performances varied. Some were delighted, eagerly anticipating the upcoming graduation and the freedom it would bring.
But for most, there was a sense of reluctance and a desire for the holidays to slow down, just a little longer.
After seven years, the once-familiar castle suddenly felt fresh and new again. Every corridor, every painting, and even the faded handrails on the stairs seemed to exude a newfound allure.
It was as if they had returned to their first year at Hogwarts, filled with curiosity and interest in everything around them.
This feeling was something that students of other grades would find hard to comprehend.
A group of ghosts gathered, watching the students who were both crying and laughing, with expressions that suggested they had expected this.
It happened every year, and they were no longer surprised.
"Here we go again, all this crying and sobbing. I really don't understand what's so memorable about this shabby castle," said Nearly Headless Nick, glancing at the Fat Friar beside him. "By the way, when is he coming? It should be soon, right?"
"It's about time," said the Fat Friar. "Oh... here he comes."
As he spoke, a water-filled balloon flew down from the upper floor and landed precisely in the midst of a group of seventh-year students.
The water balloon hit one student's head and burst, drenching him with a large amount of vinegar-laced water.
A faint acidic smell began to permeate the Entrance Hall.
But it didn't end there. Peeves suddenly flew down from above, laughing maniacally, and threw more vinegar-filled balloons at the seventh-year students in the Entrance Hall.
He enjoyed tormenting not only the newly enrolled first-year students but also leaving a lasting impression on those about to graduate.
Every year, he would take this opportunity to cause chaos. Last year, it was fireworks; the year before, it was dung... Notably, the Weasley brothers supplied him with the materials. After using up all their stock, it was a disaster, at least for Filch.
This year, Peeves chose vinegar-filled balloons with a small amount of water.
"Stop it, Peeves!" someone shouted, ready to retaliate with their wand.
If it were first-year students, they would have no defense against Peeves' pranks. But now, as seventh-year students, they should have the skills to counter him.
Remembering the torment Peeves had put them through over the years, a few Gryffindors confidently raised their wands, determined to avenge past humiliations and teach Peeves a lesson before graduation.
However, what they didn't expect was that Peeves had used advanced prank balloons, also developed by the Weasley brothers. These balloons burst upon contact with a spell.
And so, the Entrance Hall was showered with vinegar rain, and the students, caught off guard, were soaked from head to toe.
"Hahaha... Stupid little brats... Foolish little brats... Come and see, someone's fallen into a barrel of vinegar!"
Peeves clutched his stomach and let out a shrill, mocking laugh.
More people heard the commotion and gathered, but the humiliated students, covering their faces, ran off in shame.
Among the crowd, only a few, including Kyle, remained unaffected.
When the first water balloon was thrown, Kyle had cast a waterproof and moisture-resistant charm to protect himself and Cona, who was standing next to him. So when the balloon burst, the mysterious vinegar-laced liquid didn't touch him at all.
After throwing the last few balloons, Peeves flew back up.
"Oh, little Kyle..."
He landed next to Kyle, "So, you're graduating too, right?"
"That's right," Kyle nodded, "Any last words of advice, Mr. Peeves?"
"How about repeating the year? Just one year," Peeves said with a mischievous smile. "After the Weasley pranksters graduate, you're the most interesting one left. The rest of the little brats are too boring and no fun."
"As long as you can convince Dumbledore, I'm fine with it."
"Oh... Your rejection is so cold and heartless," Peeves made a face at Kyle.
He knew that Dumbledore would never agree to such a request.
If Kyle, with his grades, were to repeat a year, Hogwarts would become a laughingstock.
"What should I do then?" Peeves sat in mid-air with his legs crossed, looking conflicted. "I haven't played enough with the dung bombs you gave me last time. Why did you have to catch all the intruders so quickly?"
Peeves was referring to the incident a month ago when Death Eaters attacked the castle.
Upon hearing the news, Peeves immediately realized this was the opportunity Kyle had mentioned, and excitedly took out the specially prepared dung bombs and ran over with them in his arms.
However, the professors acted too quickly. Before Peeves could have his fun, the Death Eaters were captured.
What excited him even more was that the professors saw his actions but didn't scold him.
They were special dung bombs, and he wasn't scolded. Peeves felt like he was dreaming.
Although he didn't care about the professors' scolding, the feeling was different, something he had never experienced before, leaving him excited, curious, and a little addicted.
Now, Kyle, who had given him the idea, was about to graduate.
"Don't worry, there might be another chance," Kyle said with a smile. "Remember to keep the remaining stock safe and don't waste it. You might need it when the time comes."
"Huh, I believe you." Peeves said, standing up straight and bowing slightly to Kyle in an elegant manner that no one had ever seen Peeves do before, amidst the astonished gazes of those around him.
Kyle returned the bow.
"Look, is that Peeves?" Ron asked incredulously from the stairs, his voice cracking without him even noticing.
He had never seen Peeves like this... so polite?
But Ron's bewilderment went unanswered, as Hermione and Harry were equally baffled. As the students most tormented by Peeves, they knew better than anyone just how annoying that ghost could be.
In their first year, it was Peeves' shouting that led them to stumble upon the place where the Philosopher's Stone was guarded, and they encountered Fluffy the three-headed dog.
To be honest, if they hadn't run fast enough, they might have become Fluffy's midnight snack.
And every time Harry went on a night adventure, he would always encounter Peeves. Hermione had also been hit by ink bottles thrown by Peeves several times while doing her homework.
"What did Kyle do?" Ron asked again.
"I don't know," Harry shook his head, "But one can imagine it's definitely not something simple."
He carefully recalled the recent events at school, but couldn't find anything that could be related.
"Could it be something that happened earlier?" Harry muttered, but no matter how he tried, he couldn't think of any connection between Kyle and Peeves.
"Forget it, let's not worry about this for now," Hermione said, covering her mouth and nose with her sleeve to block the strong sour smell wafting up from below, and pulling the two of them away.
"Harry, what were your plans for the holiday again?"
"I want to find the other Horcruxes," Harry said in a low voice, "We know from Professor Slughorn's memory that Voldemort has split his soul into seven parts, so there are six Horcruxes in addition to himself.
We've found three so far: the tiara, the golden cup discovered by Kyle, and the diary from our second year, which completes half of them.
"I want to find the remaining three Horcruxes during this holiday."
"Oh, that's a good idea," Hermione said, "But what's your plan? How are we going to search for them?"
"You should know that there are no clues related to Horcruxes in the library."
"Of course, I know," Harry said mysteriously, "But the absence of clues in this library doesn't mean they won't be in other libraries."
"Other libraries..." Ron frowned, "Do you mean Flourish and Blotts? Don't joke, I don't want to spend the entire holiday in Diagon Alley."
"No, not that," Harry shook his head, "Remember? Sirius has a private library at his home."
"You mean the one in the basement?" Hermione immediately thought of something.
"Yes," Harry said, "I only remembered recently that Kyle spent some time there, and I suspect he found clues about Horcruxes from a book."
"Are you sure?" Hermione was skeptical.
"Not sure, but we can try," Harry said, "This is the only way we can find Horcruxes now. If Kyle really found the information there, the three of us will definitely be able to find it too."
"Alright!" Hermione agreed without much hesitation. Perhaps she simply wanted to read some books.
In any case, they had planned out their holiday this way.
...
It was unclear whether it was because of the Death Eaters or Dumbledore's absence from school, but this year's holiday started earlier than before.
According to tradition, students were expecting to leave school on the seventh day after the exams, but on the third day, the Hogwarts Express arrived at Hogsmeade Station.
"Line up, everyone," Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick stood at the castle entrance, directing students to board the carriages in an orderly manner to go to the station.
"Your grades will be sent to you by owl in mid-July."
A scattered cheer rose from the crowd, seemingly delighted to receive their grades in this manner rather than taking them home themselves.
But most people remained silent, wishing they could stay at school until the end of the holiday if possible.
Unfortunately, whether it was Dumbledore or the other professors, they all seemed to have other matters to attend to and couldn't stay here to watch over everyone.
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At this moment, no one noticed that a carriage at the back quietly left the line and arrived at an empty space in front of the Quidditch Pitch.
Kyle and Cona stepped down from the carriage and looked around.
Someone was already waiting for them, their golden hair shining in the sunlight.
"To be honest, Kyle, you should have told me earlier."
Fleur Delacour walked up to Kyle's side, looking at him with a very dissatisfied look.
"If you had told me a week ago that Cona was going to France, I would have had enough time to arrange everything perfectly.
"But you only told me about such a big matter yesterday afternoon."
"It takes time for owls to deliver messages, too," Kyle said, his gaze shifting.
"Does it make a difference?" Fleur looked even more dissatisfied.
"Mainly, I didn't know school would end early," Kyle shrugged, quickly changing the subject, "But how did you come to Hogwarts?"
"Oh, I came with Madame Maxime, she's here to see your Headmaster Dumbledore."
As they spoke, another person approached.
"Kyle, I've contacted the French Gringotts," Bill ran over from a distance, "Lucky for us, there's a fairy who used to work with me, and he agreed to exchange the gold coins you provided for potion ingredients at a discounted price.
"Wait a second." Cona suddenly frowned and looked at Kyle, asking, "Are you buying potion ingredients from Gringotts? Didn't I say it wasn't necessary? Professor Snape has prepared plenty, and I have more than enough. Besides, it's not a good time to buy ingredients now."
Gringotts does have potion ingredients, or rather, anything that can make money. They have it all, but at a steep price, and they don't haggle.
Moreover, with Voldemort and his Death Eaters becoming increasingly rampant, the prices of potions in the wizarding world have skyrocketed, driving up the cost of ingredients as well.
"It's fine. The impact in France isn't significant." Kyle said.
"Are you sure?" Cona looked at him doubtfully. "Would a fairy pass up such a good opportunity, given their nature?"
"Of course not," Bill said. "Those greedy fairies would love to take every Galleon from a wizard if they could."
He walked over, and Fong, standing beside him, naturally put her arm around his arm, the two of them appearing very intimate.
Kyle raised an eyebrow and teased, "No wonder you chose to stay in Britain."
"That's right, just as you thought," Fong admitted without refuting, openly acknowledging it.
"Maybe I should ask someone else," Kyle said thoughtfully.
He wanted to find someone to accompany Cona to France. The journey was long, and with her unfamiliarity with the place, he wasn't at ease with the idea of her traveling alone.
Fong, being a native French, was the first choice, and more importantly, during the Triwizard Tournament, she and Cona had gotten along very well.
But now... seeing the overly affectionate behavior between the two in front of him, Kyle felt awkward about breaking them up.
"It's okay," Fong waved her hand, "I also have some business to take care of in France. I need to help Madame Maxime contact some of her friends, and I won't be of much help here."
"Yeah, that's right," Bill nodded repeatedly, fearing Kyle might change his mind.
"Let Fong take Cona to France. Paris is huge, and we need someone familiar with the place to guide us."
"Wait a moment, you two," Cona interrupted them. "Kyle, you haven't told me why you're buying potion ingredients from Gringotts. I know you have Galleons, but you're not usually this wasteful, are you? You should quickly get a refund for them."
"Can't do that," Kyle spread his hands. "The items have already been purchased. Do you think the fairies would return the Galleons once they've got their hands on them?"
"You..." Cona was clearly disapproving of Kyle's extravagant behavior.
"Don't worry, I didn't spend much," Kyle assured her with a smile.
But Cona obviously didn't believe him. The fairies were greedy, not philanthropists; how could they have possibly charged a small amount?
"I can vouch for that," Bill spoke up, and as he said this, he couldn't help but laugh.
"Actually, the fairy did make a request before agreeing to sell me the potion ingredients at the regular price."
"What kind of request?" Cona asked, frowning.
It was no surprise that the greedy fairy's condition would be a hefty demand, the kind that would demand a high price. The hidden value would likely not be less than the overflowing Galleons, and might even be more.
From Bill's words, it seemed they had agreed to the request. Were they fools?
"Ahem," Bill cleared his throat, suppressing his laughter. "He asked to pick an item from Kyle's vault."
"What?"
Cona blinked, as if she hadn't heard clearly.
"The fairy agreed to sell us the potion ingredients at the normal price, but the condition was that for every 500 Galleon discount, he gets to pick an item from Kyle's vault."
At this, Cona fell silent.
Only Fong seemed angry, "Greedy, shameless..."
"Don't get worked up," Kyle smiled, "In fact, my vault is empty."
"What?"
Fong was stunned. In her mind, a young wizard like Kyle, who had made a name for himself at such a young age, would surely have a well-stocked vault.
Not to mention, just the Triwizard Tournament prize money alone was 1000 Galleons. Additionally, Kyle was an alchemist, which, while not widely known, was not a secret either. After all, he had invented numerous interesting magical gadgets during his school days.
It's common knowledge that alchemists nowadays are wealthy.
"My things are kept elsewhere," Kyle said, suppressing a smile, "The vault in Gringotts... if I remember correctly, I haven't used it since my second year. There should only be three to five Galleons and some Sickles inside."
"Please don't use 'only' to describe it," Bill joked. "Our family's vault has only Sickles."
"That was in the past," Kyle laughed.
"So, the fairy miscalculated?" Fong asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Obviously, that's correct," Kyle said. "I don't know where he got his information, but he thought my collection had something valuable. Unfortunately, not everyone likes to keep their precious items in a Gringotts vault."
"How much did you trade?" Cona asked.
"Five thousand Galleons, and the discount was also five thousand Galleons... This is the most profitable deal I've ever made. Even without the Death Eaters, it's hard to buy Dragon Blood and Mandrake Root for 15 Galleons."
Kyle's smile widened, "Right, Bill, remember to remind that fairy, he can only take one item, no more."
"What if it's not enough?" Bill asked. "From what you said earlier, it seems your vault doesn't have much in it."
"Then there's nothing we can do." Kyle shrugged. "We can only let him take a few stones from the walls or tables. I'm not going to compensate him, not even a Knut."
(End of Chapter)
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