She Said I Was Charming

"I found Nagini's traces in time. I tried every way I could to guide her back to me, but it didn't work. Time kept correcting everything." Rosier's mouth was full of bitterness. "I kept trying to change things all along the way, but all I could do was make her suffer more and more."

"So I went back to an even earlier time, to when I took Nagini to find Pedro, and tried to make a change."

"After trying over and over, I realized I'd succeeded!"

Rosier laughed with delight. The handsome old man, whose face was etched with weariness and the passage of time, smiled like a child.

"It was incredible. I changed countless things, but in the end, they were all corrected. Yet when Fiennes found one of the magic books I'd left behind, things quietly began to change."

"???" Everyone turned to look at the Old Wizard.

The Old Wizard, however, sneaked a glance at Anton. The book contained all sorts of strange tales and was filled with worthless Secret Arts. It even included an Ancient Witchcraft ritual for summoning demons.

At the time, he'd merely tossed the corpse of this little apprentice onto an Altar to conduct an experiment, just to amuse himself.

"I don't know. I don't remember. It was so long ago, I can't even remember whether I read it." The Old Wizard denied it smoothly.

Rosier smiled without saying anything and clapped his hands to get everyone's attention.

"Time changed a little. I saw traces of something being used in my Castle."

"So I kept returning to this point in time. At last, I found you."

"I don't know whether you'll succeed, but I have enough patience to wait until thirty-eight years from now and see if a miracle happens."

"Of course, I can't put all my hopes in someone else. I kept going back to even earlier times. Since Pedro could invent the Blood Curse, surely the great figures of that era could find a way to undo it."

"The rules of time... I still got nowhere."

Rosier sighed and stroked Anna's head. "Child, believe me. Traveling through time can only lead to despair. Don't touch it again. You'll only miss out on your real life."

Anna gripped Rosier's hand tightly. "Mm. As long as Father and Mother are with me, I won't go anywhere."

Rosier's face was full of tenderness. "I ran around through time at will, and my appearance stopped changing when I reached middle age, but my body has grown very old. I'll treasure every minute I have with you, Anna."

Anna's eyes widened as she clutched him tightly.

Whatever else, it was a good ending.

Before Goblin Pedro could reach for it, Anton snatched the Necklace and put it around his own neck.

"That's mine," Pedro said, glaring.

Anton leisurely adjusted the Necklace and tucked it into his shirt. He grinned. "You still need me to use it to help you find your Memory."

He wearily got to his feet and stretched. "I need to go back to sleep. You can talk among yourselves. Once I've rested, we'll get started."

The consequence of overusing Charms was an overwhelming exhaustion. He'd barely turned over in bed before falling into a deep sleep.

Anna took Rosier to Nagini's room.

Pedro sat dazed in the hall. "This is insane. I went into time more than ten thousand times. No wonder I ended up in such a mess."

The Old Wizard cackled. "You brought it on yourself. If you hadn't invented the Blood Curse, none of this would've happened."

"Yeah." Pedro sighed. "Sometimes I really wish I could travel back in time and slap myself across the face."

The Old Wizard laughed even harder.

After getting ready, Lupin listened to all these remarkable stories, then headed off to work.

That was just how he was. He could stand amid a lively crowd and still be overlooked by everyone without them even noticing.

But, as Anton had said, he had to find his own Way of Survival.

A life that belonged to him.

In his life, he was the main character.

He left the apartment building through the residents' stairwell, walked around to the front, then went up from the first-floor lobby to the second floor.

Everyone greeted him, and he returned their greetings with a smile.

"Manager, the Andor Mechanical Company is trying to get out of paying. Mrs. Andor says our company only gave them one sentence, so they shouldn't have to pay such an exorbitant amount. She says it's unreasonable." A young secretary hurried over with a Notebook, looking anxious.

Lupin smiled and nodded to someone else who greeted him before replying to the secretary. "Tell them the Information Service Fee can't be reduced by a single penny. If they don't intend to pay, we'll provide some interesting information to their competitors."

"It's a minor issue. Don't worry."

The secretary nodded.

They continued exchanging questions and answers until they reached the Office door. By then, the secretary's Notebook was filled with notes.

"Anything else?" Lupin asked calmly.

"No, Manager." The secretary gazed at the Notebook in amazement. "You're incredible. You solved all those difficult problems so easily."

"No."

Lupin waved shyly.

"I couldn't do it at first, either. But if you're patient and thorough, you'll find a way to solve the problem. I've spent sleepless nights agonizing over these same issues."

"If there's nothing else, hurry along and take care of it."

The secretary nodded and opened the door for him. "Have a pleasant morning, sir."

Lupin smiled and nodded.

But this was destined to be an extraordinary day.

As the noise outside the Office grew louder, Miss Ilsa rushed in.

"Lupin, have you heard?"

Lupin looked at her, puzzled.

"The U.S. Headquarters is shutting down the British company!" Ilsa was clearly in a hurry.

"What's this rumor now?" Lupin laughed. They dealt in information, and their employees always had channels for hearing things ordinary people didn't know. But sometimes it was hard to tell whether such information was true or false.

"It's true. I checked with our colleagues in France."

Lupin frowned and tapped his fingers rhythmically on the desk. "It makes no sense. Business at our British branch has been growing steadily, and we send Headquarters a huge amount of money every month."

Under his increasingly skilled management, business had been improving day by day, and they could already look forward to a bright future. And now someone was talking about shutting them down? Had the people at the U.S. Headquarters been bitten in the head by a Werewolf?

"I'll call Mr. Smith at the U.S. Headquarters myself. We know each other a little, so he'll tell me what's really going on."

"Go let everyone know we'll have a meeting in a bit."

"Whatever happens, we need to reassure everyone first."

"All right." Ilsa hurried out, but suddenly stopped at the door and turned back with a smile.

"Is something wrong?"

Her golden wavy hair swayed. Ilsa's blue-green eyes seemed to smile. "You're so calm and collected. It's absolutely charming."

Her long lashes fluttered as she gave him a wink, then turned and walked away.

Left alone in his Office chair, Lupin grinned foolishly. "She said I was charming. Heh heh, she said I was charming!"

"Watt?"

Lupin looked rather dejected. "Anton, you heard right. The American company is shutting down our company."

"That's strange." Anton cut into his sausage, speared a piece, and chewed vigorously.

Lupin's expression was odd, as if he couldn't believe the words coming out of his own mouth. "Several young masters in the family are fighting over the inheritance. For some ridiculous reason, the one in charge of the Information Consulting Company's business has decided to take the loss and cut his losses. He plans to sell off all the companies he owns to show that he only wants to live a life of drunken indulgence and stay away from the center of power."

"That's absurd." Anton clicked his tongue and went back to his lunch.

Lupin sighed. "The other companies will be easy enough to sell, but there aren't any buyers for an information company in London. Everyone's at a loss now, and so am I. We're the only Information Consulting Company in London. We can't find any suitable jobs in the same field."

"Lupin!"

Anton put down his cutlery and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Have you ever thought about the fact that you've got some money in your hands now?"

Lupin nodded.

"Buy the company and be your own boss."

Lupin was stunned. "I... I can do that?"

"Have some confidence. You absolutely can." Anton wearily rubbed his Temple. "It's your life. You decide what to do with it. This is just a suggestion. I need to go back to sleep. I really want to know what Potions Snape gave me back then that let me feel perfectly fine the day after casting Charms beyond my limits."