Chapter 183: A New Undetectable Extension Charm
Diagon Alley's prosperity was indifferent to Sean's poverty, but the prosperity of Diagon Alley could certainly change Sean's poverty.
Number 93, Diagon Alley.
"Please, withdraw these Galleons immediately. The magical ledger will record everything. Oh, and if you want to see your manager as a witch next time, and not a biscuit, please complete the antidote production in a timely manner. An owl will find you."
Upon seeing Sean, Manager Gurt's smiling face faltered for a moment. Only when she spotted the box of biscuits in his hand did her smile return in full force.
She respectfully accepted the Animal Party Biscuit Series and ushered Sean out the back door.
Why not the front door?
Because it was completely blocked.
Wizards in all manner of robes were chattering excitedly, and various animals were hopping and flying about, leaving not a single gap.
While withdrawing his Galleons, Sean discovered a problem—he no longer had his bag with the Undetectable Extension Charm.
Consequently, he could only carry a tiny fraction of his earnings, less than a tenth of the current revenue.
Meanwhile, Professor McGonagall was still chatting with the impeccably groomed witch at Twilfitt and Tattings.
The shop owner was a smooth talker, often eliciting a gentle smile from the Professor.
Diagon Alley was still bustling. Sean heard a soft, low hooting from a dim shop. He looked up at the sign: Eeylops Owl Emporium – Tawny, Screech, Barn, Brown, and Snowy.
As he passed, several boys his age had their noses pressed against the window of the next shop, which displayed broomsticks.
"Look at that," Sean heard one boy say. "The new Nimbus 2000—fastest ever—"
Sean walked past the Second-Hand Robe Shop and the shop selling telescopes and strange silver instruments.
Its window was packed with baskets of bat spleens and eel eyes, piles of spellbooks, quills, rolls of parchment, potion bottles, lunar globes...
"Marcus asked me to inquire if you would have time to return to the... family... when the summer holidays arrive," Professor McGonagall asked softly, taking Sean's hand outside the shop.
Sean thought of the three little McGonagalls rolling around at the door.
When the cold wind howled outside, the McGonagalls gathered around the warm fire, eating sweet roasted potatoes and waiting to catch Sarah when she turned into a cat.
Marcus and Professor McGonagall would watch them with amusement, glance at the snowy window, and sip their long-steeped yerba mate.
In winter, distance disappears.
Falling snow brought him back to the present. Looking at the Portkey glove in his hand, Sean nodded silently.
Sean and the Professor returned to Hogwarts.
The Black Lake was still frozen, and wizards were having snowball fights in the white expanse.
When Sean returned to the Room of Hope, he found a emerald-encrusted pouch in his bag.
A note inside floated into his hand and unfolded:
You are no longer alone, child.
The fire burned fiercely and long, until Sean took out a gleaming broomstick.
The Nimbus 2000.
Imbuing an object with magical movement was low-level Alchemy. Even broomsticks, evolved over so many generations, hadn't escaped this framework. But now, Sean wanted to give the broom a certain degree of will.
If the broom could navigate automatically, perhaps he could free his hands.
The practical phase passed quickly. In just one day, Sean's plan bore fruit.
Since the method for imbuing will was the same as for the Wizard's Chess set, and he could sense the magical structure within the broom, Sean simply added a Transfiguration component.
Notably, broomsticks had strict secrecy mechanisms, likely Confundus Charms, preventing ordinary wizards from perceiving their inner workings clearly.
Outside Hogwarts Castle, Sean sensed the new charm cluster within the broom—Pathfinding Charm, Disillusionment Charm, Silencing Charm, and a certain evasive will...
Without hesitation, Sean mounted the broom.
The Panel gave no notification, meaning the broom still had issues. But where?
Sean found out soon enough. As he flew past the castle, Nearly Headless Nick shrieked: "Headless... Sean Green?!"
Imagining the horror of a malfunctioning Disillusionment Charm leaving just his head flying through the air, Sean quickly modified the runic cluster.
[You have practiced crafting a Leisure Broom to the Apprentice standard. Proficiency +1]
"Leisure Broom" was the name Sean gave his modified broomstick. Incidentally, he wrote to Manager Gurt asking her to send him a battered old broom so he could grind proficiency without drawing attention.
The Panel had changed significantly:
[Mrs. Norris Biscuit: Adept (10/900)]
[Owl Biscuit: Novice (10/300)]
[Stag Biscuit: Novice (1/300)]
[Intermediate Wizard's Chess: Apprentice (29/30)]
[Intermediate Leisure Broom: Apprentice (1/30)]
[Next Tier: Create three Adept-level Intermediate Alchemical items and six Novice-level Alchemical items to unlock the Expert Alchemy Title.]
For the next while, Sean focused wholeheartedly on grinding the two Intermediate Alchemical creations.
He flew past the Great Hall on his broom without attracting any attention; the Disillusionment and Silencing Charms masked his presence perfectly.
Inside the Great Hall, however, it was chaotic.
Ever since the strange Wizard's Chess set appeared, the students had become obsessed with these unpredictable, infuriating pieces.
No one knew if their pieces would fight bravely or stab them in the back.
But gradually, everyone learned the personalities of each piece.
Take the Knight, Lars Schneider. He was a hero. If you ordered him to retreat, he would feel his life's philosophy crumbling and do all sorts of bizarre things. Like falling in love with the Queen (possibly the opponent's), or claiming he was too full from yesterday's feast and refusing to move.
Take the King, Henry. He was a lecher. If you blindfolded him, he wouldn't cause trouble; or if you were a pretty witch, his fighting spirit would be roused. But then you had to watch out for the Queen, Yana. She had high moral standards, and if she discovered the King's misdeeds, she would kill him herself.
In short, the board was the same, but with the addition of strong personalities, the students found the matches endlessly entertaining.
Sean watched for a while as the students discussed tactics tailored to the pieces' quirks...
Are they actually developing into military strategists...?
The thought popped into his head unbidden.
(End of Chapter)
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