It was a pity that Allen didn't get to taste the imported sugar after all.
Ashamed and angry, Martha hugged Allen tightly and began kneading and squeezing him as if venting her frustration. But after she let out her anger, Allen was neither hurt nor moved—though Martha, on the other hand, was left thoroughly exhausted.
"Hmph, you dishonest little villain. I bet you're going to charm a whole bunch of little girls once you get into Hogwarts, aren't you? Just don't forget about your sister when that happens." Martha wiped the sweat from her forehead, her face flushed. Her little face looked particularly attractive at that moment.
"Of course not. How could any little girl be as attractive as my elder sister?" Allen replied with a smile.
"You sure have a sweet mouth," Martha said as she ruffled Allen's hair, sighing. "Remember to write to your sister when you get to school. Don't forget about her."
"I will," Allen nodded. Then, glancing at the impatient women waiting in Martha's shop, he quickly added, "I won't bother you any longer. I'll come visit when I have time."
Martha, realizing she had ignored her customers for far too long, reluctantly said goodbye to Allen and returned to work.
Allen then made his way to find Alberta.
"I was planning to move," Alberta said, still sitting in the same dilapidated shack, perched beside a bed that looked ready to collapse. "But it looks like I won't be able to. Once you leave for school, I probably won't have any more opportunities to give you dragon blood."
"There's no need to be so pessimistic. Even though I definitely won't need large quantities of dragon blood anymore, our cooperation can still continue," Allen said calmly.
After starting school, Allen wouldn't be able to cook or sell food, which meant he wouldn't need large supplies of dragon blood. At most, he might only need a small amount to satisfy his personal appetite.
But that didn't mean he no longer needed access to magical ingredients.
"Continue to cooperate? What do you have in mind?" Alberta asked curiously.
Allen smiled. "Have you ever considered working for me directly?"
He looked Alberta in the eye and explained, "I need someone to travel the world and collect magical ingredients for me—rare ones, things that aren't easy to find on the market. The quantity isn't important, but I'll need a long-term supply."
"Go on," Alberta said, leaning forward.
"Your salary would be 100 Galleons a month," Allen said. "In addition, you'd get a 50% commission based on the market price of the ingredients you collect. And I won't stop you from selling anything I don't need on the open market. But in return, I'll take 50% of those profits too."
Alberta raised an eyebrow. "So you like me? Why?"
"I think you're a perfect fit," Allen said confidently.
He looked around at the run-down shack. "You won't have to live in a place like this anymore. You can treat the work as a journey—travel the world, see all kinds of places. Some rare ingredients can be smuggled in, others can be brought back openly. Honestly, if someone offered me a job like this, I might even consider skipping Hogwarts."
Alberta's eyes lit up with interest. Still, she shook her head.
"You're right—this job is fantastic. Even better than when I was a dragon trainer. But there's one problem: I can't leave the UK through official channels. That's why I've been relying on smuggling to get dragon blood."
"You can't leave the UK? Why not?" Allen asked, puzzled.
"Because of my debt," Alberta said, embarrassed. "I still owe St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries a lot in medical fees. Until I pay it off, I can't leave the country."
"How much do you owe?" Allen asked in surprise.
"Three thousand Galleons," Alberta said, scratching her head. "Back when I was working as a dragon trainer, a fire dragon escaped due to my negligence. Unfortunately, it encountered a Muggle family that was on holiday…"
She didn't finish, but Allen could imagine the rest.
What good could possibly come from a Muggle family encountering a fire dragon? If they were lucky, they'd only be frightened—something a Memory Charm could fix. But if they were unlucky, the whole family might've been reduced to ashes.
"They didn't send you to Azkaban?" Allen asked, shocked.
"That's because I managed to save the children from the fire dragon's jaws," Alberta explained. "During the Ministry's trial, I was found innocent. But I had to pay for the medical treatment and long-term care of the child."
Allen glanced at the scars on her arms and legs. "So that's how you got those injuries?"
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"Exactly," Alberta nodded.
"With all due respect," Allen said seriously, "those injuries clearly haven't been treated properly. How can the hospital justify charging you so much?"
"You've misunderstood," Alberta replied. "I never received treatment for myself. The injuries healed naturally after I applied some white essence. The bulk of the costs were for the child—he's both a Muggle and a wizard."
"A Muggle and a wizard?" Allen frowned.
"Exactly. Because of that, regular treatments wouldn't work. St. Mungo's had to hire dozens of healers from all across Europe to treat him," Alberta said with a sigh.
No wonder the bill was so high. Most of the 3,000 Galleons probably went to pay the therapists.
"You've gone through so much, and you don't even hate fire dragons?" Allen asked. "If I were you, I'd have sworn to wipe them off the face of the earth and eat them to extinction."
Alberta burst into laughter. "It wasn't the fire dragon's fault. I was the one at fault. Why should I resent the dragon?"
Hearing this, Allen felt a sense of relief. Alberta was clearly someone who could take responsibility. Even if she had made mistakes, she was honest and reliable. The kind of person who, even in trouble, wouldn't run away. Someone trustworthy.
He thought for a moment before asking, "How much debt do you still owe now?"
"I've paid back one thousand. Took me three years," Alberta said, looking helpless. "I still have to cover daily expenses, and I refuse to stoop to shady business in back alleys. It's hard to earn money, and my living costs are high. That's why the repayment is so slow."
"I'll pay the remaining debt for you," Allen said without hesitation. "But it's not a gift—it'll be a loan, and I'll deduct it from your future salary."
"You're serious?" Alberta looked stunned. "That's two thousand Galleons!"
"It's just money. And it's worth it to secure an employee like you," Allen said firmly.
After all, the money wasn't a gift. She would be working to repay it. If you want to shear the sheep, you still have to make sure the sheep eat enough grass first.
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