The famous Boy Who Lived was not someone Vincent Wayne—newly introduced to the magical world—could possibly recognize.
Still, no matter how calm he tried to appear, he simply couldn’t hide the strange smile creeping onto his face.
After all— no villain had ever escaped the clutches of meme culture.
The strongest impression he had of that bald socket-head was one particular outrageously arrogant and utterly unhinged grin.
“Hehehe~”
Under Tom’s increasingly strange stare, Vincent fought desperately to suppress his laughter and pointed toward the bottle shelf behind him.
“Boss, why is there only one bottle of that drink?”
“Oh, now that is something special…”
As Tom reminisced, he began explaining its history.
After the Statute of Secrecy had been implemented, the Leaky Cauldron technically should no longer have remained in the Muggle world.
However, the Minister of Magic at the time—Ulick Gamp—not only refused to shut it down, but had even chosen the pub’s courtyard as the entrance to Diagon Alley.
The owner had been so moved he nearly cried.
To express his gratitude, he created a brand-new ale using Gamp’s name:
Gamp Vintage Social Ale.
Having successfully redirected Tom’s attention, Vincent was just about to excuse himself— when he heard the price.
One pint.
One hundred Galleons.
“Much appreciated, Boss.”
Vincent inhaled sharply.
McGonagall had just explained currency exchange earlier.
Five pounds only equaled one Galleon at Gringotts.
This was 1991.
An era where five hundred pounds was roughly equivalent to a thousand dollars.
If Vincent had that much money— he would’ve already bought two thousand shares of Apple and quietly waited for them to appreciate.
“Unfortunately…
nobody has completed the challenge to this day.”
Tom’s sigh instantly snapped Vincent awake.
Wait.
It wasn’t paying one hundred Galleons for the drink—
You earned one hundred Galleons if you could finish it.
Eric suddenly swallowed.
An ominous feeling rose in his chest.
“Honey…
why don’t you give it a try?”
Evelyn’s eyes glowed with fiery enthusiasm.
Skipping Westminster meant saving over twenty thousand pounds a year.
Add another five hundred pounds— and they’d reduce expenses by nearly seventy thousand!
That amount was enough for the couple to finally stand proudly in front of Old Wayne and stop living under someone else’s roof.
“Wait—”
“Excuse me, can my husband participate?”
Eric closed his mouth and smiled bitterly.
Whether the alcohol tasted awful or hit hard wasn’t the issue.
Under his pleading gaze, Tom answered immediately:
“Yes.”
The good news— the amount happened to equal exactly one pint.
The bad news— it was nearly a hundred years old.
“Boss…
do you have younger ones?” Eric asked hopefully.
“Mr.
Wayne, if you’d prefer older batches, I believe there are still several from the first production run in the cellar.”
“No need!”
The answer frightened him enough that he hurriedly opened the bottle.
“I was only curious!”
An overwhelming smell burst out instantly.
Something like mold— mixed with plant aromas— assaulted the noses of everyone inside the pub.
“Kordoli, do you think he can do it?”
“Impossible, Dedalus.”
The surrounding wizards whispered among themselves.
None of them seemed particularly optimistic that this Muggle could complete the challenge.
Dedalus, wearing a top hat, looked toward a neighboring table.
“Professor Quirrell, what do you think—”
“When did he leave?”
“He probably left when Professor McGonagall came in~”
Kordoli took a sip of alcohol.
“Maybe he thought staying would create a bad impression and slipped away first.”
“Not seeing this scene is truly a tragedy…”
Meanwhile, Vincent and Evelyn were enthusiastically cheering Eric on.
“Dad!
If you complete the challenge, we can save my allowance!”
“Honey, I believe in you!”
McGonagall felt deeply moved.
This father before her…
for the sake of supporting his family…
was actually willing to challenge something nobody had conquered in three hundred years.
“Oh…
what a loving family!”
Her heartfelt praise nearly caused Eric’s trembling hands to drop the bottle onto the floor.
Because if that happened— the ever-considerate Tom would absolutely head down to the cellar…
and bring back an even older bottle.
If this bottle ended up gone, the ever-helpful Tom would absolutely head down into the cellar and return with something even older.
Just the smell of a hundred-year-old bottle already felt overwhelming.
Eric genuinely didn’t dare imagine what a three-hundred-year aftertaste might be like.
“Dad, you’ve always been my hero!”
Now that his son had said that much, even if a mountain of blades or a sea of fire stood ahead—
Eric would finish this bottle before charging in.
So under the gaze of more than a dozen pairs of eyes, his entire aura suddenly changed.
Without hesitation, he raised the bottle and pressed it firmly to his lips.
The moment Gamp Ale entered his mouth— it struck him with an unimaginably terrible sweet-and-sour taste.
No wonder nobody had succeeded in three hundred years.
“Come on, Mr.
Wayne!”
Seeing Eric hesitate and nearly lower the bottle, Tom immediately clenched his fists and shouted encouragement.
“Think of your wife and child!
This isn’t an impossible challenge!”
McGonagall, who deeply agreed, extended her hand and began clapping rhythmically.
“Mr.
Wayne, you can do it.”
“Dad!
Victory is right in front of you!”
Vincent looked slightly surprised by Tom’s enthusiasm.
The publicity generated by one hundred Galleons probably brought the Leaky Cauldron profits more than ten times over.
Truly— scheming businessmen existed everywhere.
Suppressing the discomfort spreading across his tongue, Eric slowly tilted the bottle higher.
After surviving the initial wave of horror— a deeply fermented bitterness suddenly assaulted him.
The unbearable urge to spit it out twisted his entire face.
“Mr.
Wayne, you’re the bravest Muggle I’ve ever met!”
“Regardless of the outcome, you have my utmost respect!”
The surrounding wizards all joined McGonagall’s rhythm, clapping and cheering.
Everyone present knew exactly what Gamp Ale tasted like.
By reaching one-third of the bottle, Eric had already surpassed most people.
“I’ve endured harsher training than this…”
“I absolutely can’t give up…”
Eric’s eyes grew brighter and brighter as he increased the speed of his swallowing.
Every wizard with magic had failed this challenge.
Today— this Muggle without magic was staking everything on victory.
Though the hand gripping the bottle trembled violently, the figure standing firmly at the bar without yielding inspired everyone present.
Dedalus removed his hat and bowed slightly toward him.
“From today onward, Brother Wayne is my brother!”
“You are my hero!”
Kordoli beside him looked deeply moved.
True warriors never surrendered lightly.
By now Eric’s tongue had gone numb.
All he could vaguely feel was the coldness of the liquid.
He swore upon the Queen herself— after finishing this cursed drink— he would never touch alcohol again for the rest of his life.
“Victory is within reach, Mr.
Wayne.”
Tom had already taken out the money pouch.
McGonagall, her eyes reddening, wiped the corners of her eyes.
“Merlin’s beard…
I guarantee tomorrow’s Daily Prophet headline can only belong to Mr.
Wayne’s achievement.”
As the final two drops slid along the inner wall of the bottle and into Eric’s mouth— the challenge nobody had conquered in three hundred years finally came to an end.
His pupils slowly lost focus.
Swaying slightly, he set the bottle down and rasped hoarsely:
“I…
Eric Philip Wayne—”
“I…
I swear for the rest of my life…”
“for the rest of my life…”
“I will never drink another drop of alcohol.”
The moment those words left his mouth—
THUD.
He collapsed face-first onto the bar counter.
“That’s too moving!”
Tom wiped tears from his eyes using his sleeve.
Dedalus sadly rose and lifted his glass toward the entire pub.
“To Mr.
Wayne!”
“To great fatherly love!”
“To eternal and unchanging love!”
Clutching the money pouch stuffed with Galleons, Vincent and Evelyn embraced one another while “crying bitterly.”
Without question—
Eric was an admirable father.
And an unquestionably outstanding husband.
But if he knew what was happening in the pub right now— he would probably sober up instantly.