The goblins' plan to occupy Hogsmeade had been a crude lie from start to finish. More accurately, it had been a rumor Kenneth spread from the very beginning to secure benefits in Hogsmeade.
The goblins were not idiots. Even if they really occupied Hogsmeade, what would be the point? Just because the previous two goblin rebellions had taken place near Hogsmeade?
What an international joke! Hogsmeade had nothing!
Its tallest "wall" might not even reach one's knees.
Could it really be that they had chosen to cause trouble near Hogsmeade merely to draw the Ministry of Magic's attention?
Although relations between wizards and goblins had become very tense, neither side was prepared to be the first to cross the line.
No one was stupid; they were all shrewd! Of course, once the poorly informed, isolated villagers of Hogsmeade learned of the news by chance, they began making their own calculations. Some villagers even planned to sell their settlement slots directly to Kenneth, who had approached them before.
The price was not high, only a few hundred Galleons.
But it was merely a slot, with nothing attached to it, so they were not really losing out.
There was no helping it. Hogsmeade was now little more than a foundation. Who knew how many years it would take to rebuild the village? More importantly, they would have to spend vast amounts of Galleons and effort rebuilding it themselves. Now that the goblins had caused such a stir, Hogsmeade's construction progress would only become even slower.
If it could not be exchanged, then a bargaining chip was just a bargaining chip. It was better to turn it into hard gold Galleons.
Those villagers had vaguely begun to regard Kenneth as a sucker.
But who was Kenneth?
How could someone like him possibly accept