Making Reasonable Use of Resources

"How stupid!" Pear looked at the crowd with a hint of disdain. "Although you are not any important figures, you have been around for a long time, and there are even some Archmage among you. You were actually outmaneuvered by a child. I am truly ashamed for you."

"Stop making sarcastic remarks," the one-eyed Warlock said eerily. "If you're so capable, why don't you do it yourself!"

"Me?" Pear glanced at Aaron, then waved his hand with a smile. "I personally admire ' Severus ' quite a bit, so I won't bully the weak."

However, to add some fun to your boring life, I can give you a little advice on how to get this sum of Gold Galleon safely.

Everyone raise your Wand, and on my count of three, two, one, attack together! Even if he wants to target the first one, he can't.

Aaron:...

This is what you call appreciation?

It's just that I won some money from you, is it really necessary to be so stingy?

The Dark Wizard exchanged glances, but soon smug smiles appeared on their faces.

This idea is very reasonable. They won't be in any danger. They can just cast a spell and split the money.

Although they might not get much, they could still live a carefree life for a few days without any problem.

"Three..." Pear gave Aaron a playful look, "Two..."

"Wait a minute." Aaron immediately interrupted him, revealing a sly smile. "We're all out here to make money, there's no need to make things so tense."

"Severus, you're still too young," Pear said meaningfully. "I've seen many talented and intelligent Warlock, but many of them are dead."

I do admire you, so I won't do it myself, but that doesn't mean I can forgive you for causing trouble on my turf.

Whether you survive this round or not depends on your luck.

Aaron's lips twitched as he pondered whether he should take back his Thought Form and kill this guy.

What's with the arrogance! You just think I'm easier to bully!

Aren't you worried that I'll target you?

"You can give it a try." Pear stretched out his arms and said casually, "The reason I can hold onto my position as boss is not only because of my reputation, but also because I am High-level Archmage."

Don't take yourself too seriously. Talent is your asset, but in the eyes of people like us, it's precisely the least valuable thing.

"High-level Archmage?" Aaron murmured softly, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

"Any more questions?"

"My guests must be getting impatient."

"Wait a moment." Aaron reached into his pocket and took off the ring on his hand, but deliberately waited a while before taking it out. "I want to make a deal with you. Consider this my bargaining chip."

"Hmm?" Pear raised an eyebrow. "You want me to give up counting? So you can walk away unscathed."

"Not only that, I also need you to do me a small favor," Aaron said with a meaningful smile. "Don't rush to refuse; this ring is worth the price."

Pear hesitated for a moment, then took the ring from Aaron's hand, but a moment later he was shocked and stood up from his chair.

"Where did you steal this from?"

"This was passed down from my ancestors; it should be quite valuable!"

"It's more than just valuable!"

The Demon Sealing Ring was an item owned by a few magical nobles during the Middle Ages, and it could be used by even Holy Magus.

This is a priceless treasure! If it were auctioned off, it would easily fetch five figures, and six figures wouldn't be impossible for a discerning buyer. Pear was overjoyed, but quickly calmed down, giving Aaron a meaningful look. "Severus, I admit this is a treasure I can't refuse. Aren't you worried I'll kill you?"

"You yourself said that your credibility has never been a problem, and..." Aaron paused slightly, "To say something you may not like to hear, you can't kill me, and I'm also good at escaping."

Pear glanced at the unconscious Mochila, hesitated for a moment, and finally decided not to gamble.

He might get a priceless treasure by killing and robbing, but if he fails, he might spend the rest of his life in fear.

He's reached the end of his career; there's no chance he'll ever break through again. Meanwhile, Severus is incredibly talented, and it's only a matter of time before he surpasses him.

A Great wizard seeking revenge is risky, and he doesn't want to take that risk.

Moreover, with so many people watching, he can't make a move if he wants to protect the reputation of the auction house.

Not only could he not take action, he also had to protect this client, otherwise he would be suspected of using someone else to do his dirty work.

Thinking of this, Pear forced an awkward smile. "Severus, I underestimated you."

"There's no other way, it's all for my life. At least I'm not in danger now." Aaron shrugged. "You didn't lose out either, you got a priceless magical item!"

"Alright! Then let's do it the way we do. What do you want me to do for you?"

Aaron smiled enigmatically. "Help me stop someone."

"What kind of person?"

You'll find out soon enough.

"But let me make it clear beforehand, if you can't stop him, you'll have to give this ring back to me." Aaron said, taking a piece of parchment from the table and simply writing down a contract, clearly stating Severus Snape's name, before pushing the parchment in front of Pear.

After hesitating for a moment, Pear wrote down his name.

Is this person strong?

"He's stronger than me, but about the same as you." Aaron said with a straight face, spouting nonsense. "This guy is in his thirties and his mind isn't quite right. Just assume he's lost his mind."

"Um... could you explain it more clearly?"

Why do you need to find out so much? Would I ever cheat you?

"So many people are watching. If you want this ring, then get it for me."

Pear glanced at the antique ring in his hand and nodded silently.

"Very painful."

Hearing this, Pear was filled with resentment. If the ring hadn't been so attractive to him, he, the auction house owner, wouldn't have taken on this mercenary job.

Aaron turned to look at the group of Warlock, his face beaming with an innocent smile.

But the Warlock scoffed at this, some rolling their eyes, others turning their faces away, and some even spitting.

What are you pretending for? You're a real idiot, what a waste of that innocent-looking face.

"Everyone," Aaron said, dumping a bag of coins onto the table.

Splash!

More than a thousand Gold Galleons, hundreds of Silver Sickle, and scattered Copper Knut exuded an alluring fragrance under the sunlight, deeply attracting their attention.

"Like I said, everyone's in this business to make money." Aaron patted a pile of coins. "If you all do me a small favor, this money is yours."

"What do you want us to do?" a witch stepped forward and asked. Her hair was disheveled and her lips were still dark purple.

"It's simple, just stop one person for me."

"Hmph!" The one-eyed Warlock sneered. "You gave Pear a precious magical artifact, and we only have twenty or thirty Galleon here? You're really underestimating us!"

"That's not how it works." Aaron shook his head. "There's always a big difference between the pay for lead roles and extras, isn't there?"

Of course, you can refuse; the fewer people there are, the more money you get!

However, I would like to kindly remind everyone that apart from the two insightful Warlock who sold me the winnings, the rest probably lost money!

Now, an opportunity to get your principal and interest back is right in front of you. If you just watch it slip away, can you respect yourselves?

"Don't embarrass yourself by using such a provocative tactic," said a Warlock shrouded in a black robe. "We like money, that's true, but we're not so desperate as to be indiscriminate in our spending."

The effort and reward are completely disproportionate; we're not helping you.

Aaron:...

If I hadn't seen the undisguised greed in your eyes, I might have believed your lies.

"Yes, what this senior said makes sense." Aaron nodded in agreement. "If we divide it up, each person will only receive twenty or thirty Gold Galleons, which is indeed not worthy of your status."

This was indeed my oversight, and I'm sorry to have offended you all.

As soon as he finished speaking, the faces of the group of Dark Wizard paled considerably.

Although they knew that Severus was talking nonsense, he was polite and spoke eloquently, which raised their status and gave them face.

"So you mean... more money?" the one-eyed Warlock asked, somewhat tempted.

"Of course not, this is all I have left," Aaron said frankly. "I also have Mr. Pear to compare me to, and I'm sure you're all unhappy about that."

But let me say two things: First, Pear is High-level Archmage, and you don't have that kind of strength. There aren't many mages, even among Archmage.

Secondly, I don't expect you all to go all out. Just casually throw out one or two spells; exchanging a double-digit number of Galleon for two spells isn't a bad deal, is it?

Ah, this...

The group looked at each other, feeling that something seemed a little off, but that was the gist of it.

With Pear, a High-level Archmage, drawing the fire, they can easily grab over twenty Gold Galleons by casting one or two spells without any danger. This is a sure-fire deal!

"This is my first time in Knockturn Alley, and I may not know the rules well, which may have offended you in some ways." Aaron coughed and continued, "There are about 1,300 Gold Galleons here. Those who are unwilling to help me can come here to collect the money you just lost, and we will let bygones be bygones."

Those who were willing to give me face and take care of me, a junior, came over to share the remaining money.

As soon as he finished speaking, all the Warlock present unanimously chose to stay and help, taking turns to share the money.

Although Severus has a bad temper, his attitude is still quite good. He's given me face, money, and everything else, so helping him with this small favor is no problem for me.

As Aaron saw the coins dwindling, his smile grew even brighter.

Problems that can be solved with money aren't really problems. These Dark Wizard seem cooperative, but they're actually full of bad intentions and completely untrustworthy, though he doesn't care.

Although these people weren't very strong, every extra person meant extra strength, and even buying them an extra second was a bonus for him.

"Alright, you've achieved your goal. Now tell us who we're supposed to hold back!" Pear said speechlessly.

He still admired Severus, the young Warlock who was only ten years old. With just his words and a capital of over a hundred Galleon, he managed to get a group of Dark Wizard, including himself, to do his bidding.

This is not something just anyone can do. Even Warlock stronger than him wouldn't dare to do this. Taking out those Gold Galleons in Knockturn Alley is no different from courting death.