"Professor McGonagall."
Standing outside the Magical Menagerie, Vade glanced at the line on the school list that read, "Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad." He then looked at the rats, ravens, lizards, and other creatures inside the shop.
"Does Hogwarts only allow students to bring owls, cats, or toads?"
"Those are merely the recommended choices. In truth, you may bring any pet as long as it is not dangerous and does not interfere with your studies or daily life."
"Can I choose not to bring one?" Vade asked somewhat awkwardly.
"Is there nothing you like?" McGonagall asked in surprise.
"I’ve never kept a pet before. It seems like a lot of trouble."
"Magical pets are not that troublesome. You could choose an owl. It would make sending letters more convenient."
McGonagall suddenly remembered that Vade lived alone.
"You could use it to send letters to your friends in the future."
"Perhaps another time," Vade declined tactfully. "I don’t think I need one right now."
"Very well."
The sky was beginning to darken when McGonagall escorted Vade out of Diagon Alley.
They passed through the brick wall and returned to the Leaky Cauldron. By then, there were very few customers left inside.
"You can either return home or stay here for the night."
"Stay at the pub?"
"There are rooms for rent upstairs." Tom, the landlord, shrugged. "They are intended for witches and wizards who cannot make it home in time."
"How much do they cost?"
"The price depends on the room. Between six and seventeen Sickles, with meals included."
Vade weighed the pouch containing more than a hundred remaining gold Galleons and decided that he could afford to stay until the start of term.
There was no one waiting for him at home anyway. It made little difference where he stayed.
Remaining at the Leaky Cauldron would also make it easier for him to learn about the wizarding world and gather information.
"I’ll stay for one night, then."
Vade placed a Galleon on the counter.
"Your best room."
Tom gave Vade a second look, apparently surprised that the boy was such a generous customer.
McGonagall shook her head in amusement and reminded him, "The first of September, King’s Cross Station, Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Make sure you do not miss the train."
"I understand, Professor."
"Follow me, young wizard."
Tom pocketed the Galleon and led the way upstairs.
Vade followed him to Room Two.
The room was built almost entirely of wood. It contained a bed, a fireplace, a table and chairs, a wardrobe, and two windows, one overlooking Charing Cross Road and the other Diagon Alley.
Most importantly, it also had a private washroom.
After setting down the bags and parcels he had been carrying, Vade closed the door, drew the curtains, and sprawled across the bed with his arms and legs spread wide.
After resting for a while, he took a Galleon from his pocket and focused his attention on the Card of Blasphemy deep within his mind.
The Card of Blasphemy had fused with his soul, and no magic could separate it from him.
It also granted Vade a certain degree of concealment. Even Legilimency could not pry into the memories protected by it.
However, it was only today that he had finally learned how to truly activate it.
Vade flicked the Galleon into the air with his finger. It rang with the distinctive chime of money, spinning several times before falling back into his hand.
With a thought, the Galleon suddenly vanished from his palm.
The Card of Blasphemy trembled almost imperceptibly, then fell still once more.
It wasn’t enough!
Vade gave a bitter smile, grabbed a handful of Galleons from his pouch, and continued offering them.
When he sacrificed the tenth Galleon, the Card of Blasphemy finally reacted.
It began to tremble violently, forming an invisible vortex around itself as it frantically absorbed Vade’s magic.
This placed a considerable burden on an eleven-year-old wizard, or rather, a Sequence 9 Beyonder, but it was still within his limits.
The Card of Blasphemy then became three-dimensional, transforming into a thin book.
A page slowly turned, revealing an image of a clown wearing painted makeup, accompanied by a description.
Sequence 8: Clown.
Possesses extraordinary coordination and balance, precise control over the body, exceptional agility and speed, and a respectable degree of physical strength. Particularly skilled in technical combat.
Capable of effectively controlling facial expressions and body language, making lies easier for others to believe.
The potion formula is as follows:
Main ingredients: One crystallized horn from an adult Hornacis gray mountain goat, substitute: unicorn horn, 10 Galleons; one complete Human-Faced Rose, 10 Galleons.
Supplementary ingredients: 80 millilitres of purified water, 1 Galleon; 5 drops of Mandrake juice, 1 Galleon; 7 grams of black-edged sunflower powder, 1 Galleon; 10 grams of golden cloak grass powder, 1 Galleon; 3 drops of hemlock juice, 1 Galleon.
After reading it, Vade stared blankly for a moment before shaking his head with a helpless smile.
The Card of Blasphemy had conveyed three pieces of information to him: one good, one bad, and one that was neither particularly good nor bad.
The good news was that the Card of Blasphemy had adapted rather well to this world. Both the main and supplementary ingredients had possible substitutes. As long as Vade had encountered a suitable material before, the Card would identify it for him.
He had happened to see a unicorn horn in an apothecary while exploring Diagon Alley earlier that day.
Out of curiosity, he had picked it up and examined it. One horn seemed to cost twenty-one Galleons.
Even if he could not find a substitute, it did not matter. He could obtain the required ingredient by sacrificing enough money.
Whether doing so was worthwhile, however, would depend on the circumstances. Otherwise, he might easily end up paying far more than necessary.
Take the unicorn horn, for example. The price listed by the Card of Blasphemy was less than half its actual market price.
The supplementary ingredients, on the other hand, were certainly not as expensive as the Card claimed. Eighty millilitres of purified water could be purchased for a few bronze Knuts, yet the Card demanded an entire gold Galleon, more than a hundred times its proper value.
The bad news was that everything was far too expensive.
The potion formulas themselves had to be purchased, and both the formulas and ingredients became ten times more expensive with each advancing Sequence.
The Sequence 8 potion formula cost ten Galleons. Each main ingredient cost ten Galleons, while each supplementary ingredient cost one Galleon.
The Sequence 7 formula, however, would cost one hundred Galleons. Each main ingredient would also cost one hundred Galleons, while each supplementary ingredient would cost ten.
Following that pattern, the higher the Sequence, the greater the cost.
With his current wealth, Sequence 7 was the absolute highest he could possibly reach.
Sequence 6 was not even worth considering.
A Sequence 7 Beyonder would probably only be comparable to an average adult wizard in the magical world. Put simply, he would still be little more than an ordinary bystander.
He had to find a way to make money. Otherwise, being trapped at that level would be unbearably frustrating.
The final piece of news, neither good nor bad, was that he could only unlock the next Sequence after completely digesting the potion of his current Sequence.
"How ridiculous," Vade muttered helplessly. "I never expected to start worrying about money on my very first day in the wizarding world."
For a moment, the idea of robbing a bank crossed his mind.
Gringotts was not even particularly far away. It was practically tempting him into a life of crime.
All he had to do was pull off one major robbery, and perhaps...
He would earn himself a place in Azkaban.
"Forget it. I’m still young. I can’t start down the path of crime.
Money may be necessary, but it is not urgently needed at the moment. Advancing to Sequence 8 comes first."
(To be continued.)