Lady Alsha's Exchange Meeting

Matthew's Stunning Spell struck the middle head of the Three-Headed Dog, knocking it unconscious.

But the other two heads were unaffected and angrily bit toward Matthew.

"Three heads aren't just for show—they're a true triple-core processor." Matthew calmly raised his Iron Armor Charm.

"Armor Protection!"

Matthew did not display his skill in Silent Casting here. Decades ago, Dumbledore had been able to shield himself from Matthew's Magic Sense. Harry Potter was one of Dumbledore's key focuses; if Dumbledore were hidden here watching them right now, Matthew would not be able to detect him. He did not want to expose too much strength at Hogwarts, merely demonstrating the qualities of a senior excellent student.

The azure shield kept the Three-Headed Dog's sharp teeth at bay. The Three-Headed Dog was far weaker than the Basilisk; its teeth did not possess the Basilisk's deadly poison and could not instantly break Matthew's Iron Armor Charm.

But the Three-Headed Dog had its own advantage: it had three heads and an extremely high attack frequency!

The two heads tore at the shield one after another, attacking at an incredibly high frequency. Not long after, the Iron Armor Charm Matthew was maintaining became unstable.

Moreover, the middle head was about to wake up as well. This was a hidden trait of the Three-Headed Dog: if only one or two heads were knocked unconscious, the other awake heads would soon rouse them.

"Preserved Egg, stop it." Matthew called out, and the Black cat lying in his hood instantly understood its master's meaning.

Preserved Egg extended its tail and gave it a few shakes. The falling black fur balls turned into six clones and rushed toward the Three-Headed Dog.

Seeing the Little Ones Rushing Towards Its Face, the Three-Headed Dog bit them apart without hesitation.

But after the clones were torn apart, they split into even more Black cats.

The Three-Headed Dog lacked the intelligence to distinguish the situation before it and continued tearing at Preserved Egg's clones.

Unless the spirit cat's main body was killed, it was just competing with magic. Before its magic was exhausted, the clones would only multiply with every fight.

After a period of time, the room was packed full of Black cats.

The Meditation Method has brought Great Improvement for Preserved Egg, Matthew thought to himself.

During this time, he had taught Preserved Egg to cultivate with the Meditation Method. After successful cultivation, Preserved Egg directly entered a state of magic outburst, and the magic inside increased significantly.

Now, Preserved Egg's clones could split many more times.

Unfortunately, Preserved Egg did not know Ancient Runes. Matthew had only taught it how to operate the Meditation Method. Further cultivation required constructing a Runic Model within the Sea of Consciousness. Before Preserved Egg learned runes, it could only remain a Level One Wizard Apprentice.

"Let's go." Matthew said to the several people staring in stunned silence.

He had only come this time to test the Three-Headed Dog's abilities. He had a feeling that if he wanted to obtain the Philosopher's Stone, he would most likely need to participate in Dumbledore's obstacle course game.

Matthew stepped past Harry, twisted the doorknob, and returned to the corridor. Filch had already gone far away.

After everyone came out, Matthew shut the door, leaving the Three-Headed Dog in the room to continue playing with the Black cats.

"Preserved Egg is amazing! It can actually split into so many Preserved Eggs to stop that Three-Headed Monster!" Ron looked rather excited, but then he became somewhat dejected. "If only Scabbers had that kind of ability..."

Neville thought so too, but his Trevor only knew how to hide from him.

After hearing that, Harry imagined Scabbers splitting into a room full of rats...

Fortunately, Scabbers did not have the Spirit Cat Bloodline.

"Is it all right to leave those Preserved Eggs in the room?" Hermione held a Black cat in her arms. This was a clone she had taken with her when she left the room.

Matthew smiled. "The clones will automatically disappear once they run out of magic."

As soon as he finished speaking, the clone in Hermione's arms disappeared.

She said disappointedly, "I wanted to take one back to the dormitory to play with."

She decided that next year, she would buy a cat in Diagon Alley as a familiar too.

"What exactly is the school trying to do? Putting such a dangerous monster here." Ron muttered, "Without Preserved Egg, we probably would have been finished tonight!"

Matthew merely smiled at them without saying anything.

"I noticed a trapdoor beneath its feet." Hermione guessed, "I think it might be guarding something."

Hermione's words reminded Harry of something. When Hagrid had taken him to Gringotts, he had retrieved a package from Vault 713. Perhaps the Big Dog was guarding whatever was inside that package.

Harry did not mention this. He had promised Hagrid that he would keep it secret.

"It's getting late. Go back and sleep." Once they reached the entrance hall, Matthew parted ways with the others.

A few days later, Wizarding World, Whitestone Manor.

Today was the day of Lady Alsha's exchange meeting. Matthew had received an invitation when he attended the previous dinner.

He handed the invitation to the attendant at the entrance of Whitestone Manor.

"Mr. Matthew, please come in." The attendant returned the invitation to Matthew, pressed a hand to his chest, and bowed.

There were not as many guests at the manor today as there had been at the previous dinner dance. Matthew could perceive that everyone here this time was a wizard.

The attendant did not take him to the ballroom from the previous dance, but to the building on the right side of the manor.

"The exchange meeting has several areas. This is the rest area, with ample food and drinks. If you need anything, you can speak to the servants here," the attendant explained.

After entering the building, he saw Lady Alsha in the entrance hall, speaking with someone.

Lady Alsha was as radiant as ever today. Her Black Gauze Dress perfectly accentuated her graceful curves, while the Black Long Gloves on her hands extended up her slender arms, adding a touch of gentleness and mystery to her overall appearance.

Upon noticing Matthew, Lady Alsha apologetically bid farewell to the person she had been speaking with.

Matthew said gently, "Lady Alsha, it is a pleasure to see you again. You are as beautiful as ever."

The smile on Lady Alsha's face was elegant and bright. "Mr. Matthew, thank you for the compliment. I am very glad you could attend today's exchange meeting."

She turned to the attendant and said, "You may return to your duties. I will personally introduce Mr. Matthew to the venue."

After the attendant left, Lady Alsha said warmly, "The exchange meeting will last all day. If you become tired, you may choose a room here to rest."

Lady Alsha led Matthew out of the entrance hall. After passing through a long corridor, they arrived in a spacious hall.

Lady Alsha introduced the place, saying,

"This is the exchange area. Here, you can trade with others using money, information, items, spells, Meditation Methods, or anything else of value.

"This exchange meeting uses transparent identities, so the items traded here are generally rather common. There is also a great deal of information exchange.

"However, we hold an anonymous auction here once every three months, and there may be some higher-value items then.

"The next auction will be held soon. I will notify you one week in advance."

The place was arranged somewhat like a tavern, though its decorative style was far more refined. Many small round tables and stools were set throughout the hall. A parchment-covered notebook rested on each table, and every table seemed to be marked with a number plate.

They found a table near the edge and sat down.