Compensation from the Department of Mysteries

After wandering between various elevators for nearly five minutes, Dumbledore and Avada finally arrived in a luxuriously decorated room, where a thin man dressed in black wizard robes stood in the center. The moment he saw Dumbledore enter, he stepped forward immediately, his face wreathed in smiles.

"Welcome, Professor Dumbledore! I am an Unspeakable from the Department of Mysteries; you may call me Croaker."

"Hello, Mr. Croaker."

Dumbledore responded calmly, "I apologize for interrupting your work, but I have come today to confirm something of great importance. In the course of my investigations, I have clearly discovered traces of the Department of Mysteries."

He patted Avada on the back, signaling him to take two steps forward: "Do you know the name of this boy?"

Croaker shook his head, looking completely bewildered.

"His name is," Dumbledore paused, then drew out his words slowly and deliberately, "Avada Kedavra."

Croaker shuddered the moment he heard the first three syllables, nearly drawing his wand in fright. When he realized the situation was not what he had imagined, his expression turned peculiar.

"Avada Kedavra? Is he an abandoned orphan? And he actually has magical talent?"

"Merlin's beard, what are the odds of that! Or is it because of the name itself?"

"It seems you do know."

Dumbledore's expression remained calm, revealing neither anger nor joy: "Then, explain it to me, and to this child who is destined to be full of trouble in the future."

Croaker froze, wanting to ask something, but then a look of realization dawned on him, followed by a very colorful expression.

"The... the thing is."

Croaker spoke awkwardly, not daring to look Dumbledore or Avada in the eye: "This name originated from a research project eleven years ago."

"At that time, the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters were becoming increasingly rampant. As members of the Ministry of Magic, we in the Department of Mysteries were doing our part, striving to provide Aurors and Hit Wizards with more powerful equipment, as well as attempting to crack the various tactics of the Dark Lord."

"After long-term research, my team successfully cracked the Dark Lord's 'Name Curse'—the magic that alerts him the moment his name is spoken."

"Oh?" Dumbledore asked, surprised: "You actually cracked that spell? Do you have a way to counter it?"

"Regrettably, no."

Croaker's expression grew even more awkward: "That magic is extremely complex and difficult to cast. After we cracked the spell, let alone countering it, we couldn't even manage to modify it in the slightest."

"However, we had an idea at the time: could we utilize the characteristics of this magic to detect Unforgivable Curses and other Dark Arts?"

Avada's face twitched—he had a rough idea of what was coming.

"According to the nature of this magic, the target of the spell must be a 'name'. So, we found a newborn abandoned infant in the Muggle world, registered him at an orphanage, and named him after the Killing Curse, 'Avada Kedavra'."

"Next, we cast the 'Name Curse' on the child. In our design, this would allow us to lock onto the location of anyone casting the Killing Curse the moment they spoke the incantation, leaving them nowhere to hide!"

"And did you succeed?"

Dumbledore's eye twitched; he felt that the number of times he had been left speechless in the last decade didn't add up to today.

"As you can see, no." Croaker gave up on being embarrassed and just blurted it out in one breath: "The spell seems to have special properties and cannot be used as a regular name. Besides, if we had succeeded, we would have done the same for all Dark spells, and we would have caught every dark wizard in Britain over the last ten years!"

"Did you never consider how a person would live with such a name?"

"We didn't expect that a random Muggle orphan we chose would actually have magical talent..." Croaker replied with a mournful face: "Who in the Muggle world would know the meaning of that curse? He could have lived a perfectly normal life in the Muggle world!"

Dumbledore sighed helplessly, understanding in his heart that this really couldn't be blamed entirely on the Department of Mysteries; after all, fate is so mysterious and unpredictable...

"Then, let us ask for the opinion of the person involved."

Dumbledore turned to look at Avada: "As you have heard, your name is the incantation for an incredibly evil spell in the wizarding world. This may bring you endless trouble: being ostracized by classmates, unable to find work, or even being shunned by the entire magical society... Changing your name won't help either; a person's first name carries special magical significance and cannot be escaped. The Book of Admittance will only ever show your true name."

"The ones responsible for all this are the Department of Mysteries before you, though it was not their intention. And if they had succeeded, they could have made an immense contribution to the entire wizarding world."

"You may decide whether to forgive them, and you have the right to demand compensation."

"..."

Avada felt absolutely ridiculous at this moment.

He had just transmigrated, so why did such an absurd thing have to happen to him? He had read plenty of Harry Potter fanfiction in his past life, but he had never seen such an outrageous plot!

"Fine." He replied weakly: "I suppose I can understand that this isn't entirely their fault, so I can forgive them... As for compensation, I don't know anything about the wizarding world, and I don't know how to set it. Perhaps you could give me some advice, Professor?"

"Thank you for your magnanimity, child."

Croaker breathed a sigh of relief and offered a smile: "I have a compensation proposal here that you might consider."

"First, a direct payment of three thousand Galleons, as well as reimbursement for all necessary expenses during your time at Hogwarts, including textbooks, robes, wands, cauldrons, and other essential items."

"Furthermore, after you graduate, as long as you are unemployed, you will receive a monthly stipend of twenty Galleons. At the same time, if the Ministry of Magic has a need for personnel, you will be given priority for assessment and recruitment. And if you intend to open your own shop, the Ministry of Magic can provide an interest-free loan of five thousand Galleons for a term of five years. How does that sound?"

Avada looked at Dumbledore for help—he had no concept of the purchasing power of a Galleon.

Dumbledore nodded and said: "A very reasonable proposal; you may accept it."

"Very well, Professor."

Avada agreed, though he still felt it was absurd: the first thing he did upon entering the wizarding world was to receive a generous compensation...

He didn't even have a wand yet!

"Then it is settled." Croaker clapped his hands, looking relieved: "I will submit this proposal to the Finance Office. With the influence of the Department of Mysteries and your participation, Professor Dumbledore, it should be approved in about an hour. Mr. Kedavia can go buy a wand and then return to sign the magical contract."

"Then let us bid you farewell for now, Mr. Croaker. Thank you for your trouble."

Dumbledore nodded to Croaker, then summoned Fawkes and left the Ministry of Magic with Avada. With a flash of fire, Avada found himself on a bustling street, surrounded by pedestrians in various robes who were now staring at him and Dumbledore in surprise.

"Next, it is time to choose a wand for you."

After waving to the passersby around him, Dumbledore turned his head and smiled at Avada, causing a surge of excitement in Avada's heart.

Although he could already cast quite a few self-developed spells without a wand, who could refuse a wand of their own?

Led by Dumbledore, he finally arrived in front of a small, shabby shop, suppressing the agitation in his heart as he looked up at the peeling gold-lettered sign above the door:

[Ollivander: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C.]