To be honest.
Old Barty had never thought he could remain completely unmoved.
Along the way, Old Barty Crouch had heard more than enough of Vinson's strange requests. Now, he was secretly glad that he had nipped Vinson's ideas in the bud beforehand.
This little brat...
Did he actually want to use an owl to fight?!
"What are you thinking?"
Vinson Wright raised an eyebrow, a trace of confusion in his eyes. "Do you think I'm a freshman who only knows how to fight and cause trouble?"
"..."
Isn't that exactly what you are, you little brat?
Old Barty Crouch almost couldn't resist asking him that.
"I still need it to help deliver letters..."
Vinson Wright reached out a finger and tried to tease the owls as he rambled on. "But in a few years, I'll become very busy. If I buy one that looks a little fiercer, then after I release it, it'll be able to take care of itself..."
"..."
Old Barty Crouch fell silent.
Apart from wizards from Hufflepuff, many wizards throughout the Wizarding World raised their owls free-range, letting them find food for themselves in the wild.
Many owls only managed to get a bite to eat when they delivered letters and were fed by someone. The last time they had carefully taken care of their owl companions had been when they were students.
It was rare for Old Barty Crouch to see such a gentle, youthful side of Vinson Wright. He praised him softly, "...You have...indeed thought this through very carefully."
"Actually, it's nothing..."
Vinson Wright humbly shook his head and seriously explained, "It's also for the sake of safety. There are people in the Wizarding World who can turn into animals. Who knows whether some wizards might deliberately turn into owls to spy on our secrets?"
Vinson Wright even gave an example from his previous life. "I once heard a saying that the more people you meet, the more you like keeping dogs. But in the Wizarding World, even keeping a rat could end with it betraying you..."
"..."
Old Barty Crouch felt that he had praised him too soon.
And besides...
Wasn't this little fellow being a bit too cautious?
A wizard could indeed transform into an animal by studying Transfiguration, but the difficulty was extraordinarily high, and the risks could even be irreversible.
However, once a wizard successfully transformed between human and animal forms, that meant he had become an Animagus. He had to register with the Ministry of Magic... It also meant that the wizard had become a precious master of Transfiguration!
For example, Hogwarts Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall was a precious Animagus, and she was also Hogwarts' Transfiguration professor.
A precious Animagus...
How could one possibly be lurking beside an ordinary student?
Vinson Wright ignored whatever Old Barty Crouch was thinking and walked into the shop to look for the owner. "Hello, do you have any owls that aren't very obedient? Preferably one that I can release immediately after buying it..."
"..."
The owner of the owl shop was somewhat astonished.
The owner had run an owl shop in Diagon Alley for so many years, yet he had never seen such an unusual customer as Vinson Wright.
But...
A customer was still a customer.
Customers in the wizarding world certainly weren't gods, but the owl shop had not yet achieved a chain monopoly. It definitely couldn't refuse a customer's request.
Although the shop owner thought Vinson Wright's way of shopping was a little strange, he still carefully selected a fiercely untamed owl from the shop and showed it to Vinson Wright and Old Barty Crouch.
As a wizard from Hufflepuff, the shop owner honestly told his customers, "If you need it to deliver letters, it might take a few extra days to arrive, because it might fly off to catch rats on the way..."
"Hm?"
Vinson Wright's eyes suddenly lit up.
After hearing what the owl shop owner said, Vinson Wright suddenly felt that this owl should be raised properly for a few years. "An owl that likes catching rats?"
"But...owls are used to deliver letters."
Old Barty Crouch's expression was utterly cold as he spoke.
Had this little fellow completely forgotten why they had come here to buy an owl? An owl's duty was to be a wizard's messenger!
However, Vinson Wright and the owl shop owner chatted happily and completely ignored Old Barty Crouch's advice. He bought the fiercely untamed owl on the spot.
Vinson Wright accepted the birdcage the owner gave him, happily put the owl inside, and acquired his second pet.
At the same time...
Vinson had also obtained the most difficult spell to learn ahead of time!
[Exploration Quest: Purchase an owl pet at Eeylops Owl Emporium in Diagon Alley (1/1), quest completed. Reward: Magic Spell—Transfiguration Spell]
Because the Transfiguration Spell had no specific incantation and required different incantations to be spoken depending on the object one wished to transform, it was extraordinarily difficult for Vinson to learn and master...
After all, there were simply too many incantations for the Transfiguration Spell.
Being able to obtain this spell now was indeed an unexpected delight.
Moreover, the highest level of a wizard's use of the Transfiguration Spell—the Animagus form—was also directly mastered by Vinson Wright.
[Transfiguration Spell: Has no specific incantation. Can transform objects into other forms. If the caster has sufficient magic power, they can even transform themselves into another creature.]
Clearly, this really was only an owl.
Otherwise, the system would not have reminded him that the quest was complete.
Vinson Wright handed everything in his possession to Old Barty Crouch, then held the birdcage and looked at the fierce, unruly-looking owl inside. Smiling, he praised it, "What a little cutie who can bring good luck..."
"..."
Old Barty Crouch helplessly carried the numerous bags and packages.
He truly couldn't understand what good luck an owl could bring... Was it simply because it was good at catching rats?
The question was, could this owl really help deliver letters?
Vinson Wright didn't care whether the owl could deliver letters. He gazed at his new pet and said, "Since you like catching rats, I'll call you Voldemort from now on... The rats will definitely be scared senseless when they hear that name, right?"
"..."
Old Barty's brows instantly furrowed.
Old Barty had no idea whether any rats would be frightened by a name. He only knew that this little fellow, Vinson Wright, seemed to be acting rashly again.
Old Barty Crouch immediately looked around and found that no one had noticed what Vinson said. His expression relaxed slightly.
"Don't worry."
Vinson Wright seemed to notice what Old Barty meant and spoke leisurely. "You should know that I'm more cautious than anyone else... Only those I choose to trust will know what I truly mean."
"You still need to be more careful..."
Old Barty Crouch looked at the gray-haired boy who was still smiling and advised him in a solemn voice, "Don't casually mention that person outside. It will attract quite a few people's attention to you ahead of time. After I was transferred away from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, quite a few Death Eaters escaped punishment..."
Old Barty Crouch did not want Vinson Wright to die young before he had fully grown strong enough. Besides, his son was currently imprisoned in the Underground Fortress...
"I'll remember that."
"Vinson Wright tapped on the birdcage and looked at the fierce owl glaring at him with narrowed eyes. He smiled and said, "Then I'll be a little more subtle... I'll call it Tom from now on. Hopefully, it can help catch rats."
Posted early today, Tuesday... Tomorrow will still be at eight o'clock...
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