The Mysterious Grandma

Inside Ollivander's Wand Shop, half an hour had passed...

Adam mechanically waved wand after wand. Since the requirement was that he could use either hand, he switched hands whenever one grew sore.

He had become numb to the constant explosions by his ears. Eight times out of ten, they caused some sort of serious effect. Once, a bouquet of flowers had even bloomed from the tip of a wand. He had thought he had finally found the right one, but Ollivander said it was still wrong.

Then a wand reached Adam's hand. The instant he took it, he felt that it was different from all the previous ones.

As Adam waved it, the wand boxes around him trembled and floated up one by one, returning to their proper places. Adam, meanwhile, felt an entirely different sort of exhilaration, as though his body had gained an extra extension.

"That's right! This is the one!"

Ollivander clapped his hands.

"Sixteen inches, acacia wood, phoenix feather—I knew it!"

You knew my ass!

Adam nearly swore aloud, but his fine moral character made him hold it in. He merely rolled his eyes rather impolitely.

He seriously suspected that Ollivander's method of matching wands was simply to make every possible combination and brute-force the answer!

"Ahem... This wand's combination is exceptionally unusual, which is why it took so long."

Perhaps Ollivander had realized that the half-hour wand selection had damaged his reputation a little, but he still struggled to explain.

"Acacia wood and phoenix feathers are both extremely picky, not to mention a length of sixteen inches—I last sold a sixteen-inch wand to a half-giant!"

Although Adam suspected Ollivander was purely making excuses, the joy of finding his own wand suppressed his frustration at waiting half an hour and nearly being caught in explosions and lightning several times. He carefully examined the wand in his hand.

Its cylindrical, dark brown-black shaft was long and straight, engraved with flowing curves and runes. The handle was a spindle-shaped section surrounded by engraved symbols. Adam glanced at the base of the grip... There was even a yellow gemstone embedded in it?!

"That gemstone is Yellow Tourmaline I bought from an Eastern wizard. It harmonizes perfectly with the wand's overall magic... No extra charge!"

Ollivander spoke at just the right moment.

Fine. For the sake of that gemstone, Adam's resentment faded considerably.

It's beautiful.

After looking the wand over several times, Adam could not help thinking to himself.

A sixteen-inch wand was considered exceptionally long among wands, but Adam's Wand of Darkness stood a head taller than he did. Compared to that, this wand was already rather petite. Adam even thought it looked a little cute.

After paying for the wand—the most important and most uncertain purchase—Old Reed took Adam into full shopping mode.

Owls, snacks, cauldrons, snacks, potion ingredients, snacks, school uniforms, snacks, books...

Leaving aside the snack stalls that appeared every few steps, Adam lingered in Flourish and Blotts for a long time.

He had not forgotten that the growth of magical power was closely linked to knowledge, so he wanted to buy many books Hogwarts did not require. Besides that, he was curious about the Wizarding World, especially the parts that had never appeared in the original novels or films.

So Adam signed an order form two feet long. The books would be sent to Hogwarts; his grandfather said the House-elves there would take care of it.

"Those are broomsticks. First-year students aren't allowed to bring broomsticks."

After saying that, Old Reed hesitated.

"But if you want one, we can buy one first and keep it at home."

"No, Grandpa. I'm not very interested in broomsticks."

Adam politely declined what should have been an extremely tempting offer for a child.

"Do you think the Nimbus 2000 is too expensive? Your grandfather and grandmother are actually very wealthy."

"Dad and Mom gave me a lot of money, Grandpa."

The Nimbus 2000 was indeed expensive, but Mr. Reed and Madam Li had originally planned to send Adam to Eton College—tuition there was over forty thousand pounds a year, for five years, and they had already set aside the entire sum. Then Adam had suddenly gone to Hogwarts, which charged no tuition—Madam Li had simply waved a hand and handed Adam the money that had been meant for his school fees.

"Boys can't be raised in poverty. Otherwise, they'll spend every day pinching pennies. How can they broaden their horizons? Especially in an unfamiliar environment."

"I just think that since I can't bring it to Hogwarts yet, buying it right away wouldn't be worth it—maybe they'll release a new model next year?"

In fact, the Nimbus 2001 would be out next year, and the Firebolt the year after that... The more Adam thought about it, the more it resembled a certain fruit-brand phone.

And if Adam wanted to fly, he had The Fly among his Clow Cards. Making the Wand of Darkness grow wings would turn it into a broomstick, while giving himself wings would let him fly directly. Why spend so much money on a broomstick that would be surpassed by a better product within a year?

As one rich second-generation heir had wisely said: I'm rich, not stupid.

They shopped from one end of Diagon Alley to the other, picked up Emma from Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, and then Grandma took Adam shopping all the way back to where they had started. Grandma's spending priorities were clearly different from Grandpa's.

"Allen! Are you planning to let our precious grandson wear only one set of school robes for an entire term at Hogwarts?"

"Casual clothes, pajamas... and several sets of dress robes... Doesn't Hogwarts have dances? I simply can't imagine it... No, we still need to buy them, just in case."

"Wands need maintenance. What if it malfunctions while you're casting a spell? Buy several sets of maintenance tools. Don't save money on that."

"We need several pairs of dragon-hide gloves. Some potion ingredients are best handled with separate dragon-hide gloves. Besides, if one of your classmates forgets theirs, you can lend them a pair and build a good relationship."

"Prepare more potion ingredients. Buy some Essence of Murtlap too. Keep a bottle on you, so you can treat any wounds right away... The Hospital Wing's nurse can't just fly straight to Adam's side. Shut up, Allen!"

After making two rounds through Diagon Alley and using snacks as lunch, Emma looked at the parcels in their hands, then at Old Reed.

"Allen, take these things home first. Adam and I will look around a little longer."

Old Reed struggled to carry both of their parcels by himself. A huge birdcage was stacked on top of them—inside was a Snowy Owl.

"All right. Have fun. Will you be back for dinner tonight?"

"Not necessarily."

Emma answered quickly. Clearly, they most likely would not be coming home for dinner.

"Uh, all right."

Old Reed nodded and headed off into the distance, guarding the luggage all the way.

"Why didn't Grandpa use magic to carry the luggage?"

Emma looked at Adam in surprise.

"Magic requires concentration. Casting spells while doing other things can easily lead to accidents. Don't do that in the future."

"Is that so?"

Adam nodded thoughtfully.

Could it be that Grandpa is just too weak?

After lunch, Emma wiped her mouth and led Adam to an empty corner.

"Grandma?" Why are you being so mysterious...?

"Hold my hand tightly."

Adam did as he was told. The next instant, he felt as though he had entered a narrow tube-shaped slide. After his body was squeezed for a moment, he finally emerged from the tube and arrived on a grassy field.

"Ugh—"

Adam's face turned pale as a wave of nausea rose in him.

"That was Apparition. It lets people travel quickly from one place to another. The first time is always a little uncomfortable. Take a few deep breaths."

Emma rubbed Adam's back, then bent down and whispered something into his ear. Adam realized it seemed to be an address.

The next instant, before Adam's astonished eyes, a crack seemed to appear in the grass ahead, and a small house with a garden squeezed out of the crack from thin air.

"This is an extremely powerful protective spell. Don't rush to ask questions. Come with me."

Emma led Adam to the door of the little house and knocked gently.