Summer Vacation

Skylar had a very fulfilling and happy summer vacation.

With the Philosopher's Stone and Flamel's Notebook, Skylar hid in his dormitory whenever he had time, soaking up every scrap of knowledge related to alchemy like a sponge. Whenever he had questions, he did not hesitate to consult Nicolas Flamel, and his mastery of alchemy soared as though propelled by a rocket.

His first creation was a wizarding robe. He had long coveted the multifunctional wizarding robe Nicolas Flamel had worn that day. Once he understood the principles behind it, he had Dobby buy more than a dozen bolts of cloth and placed them in the laboratory, where he experimented with using alchemy to imprint magical effects onto the fabric.

After a month of effort and countless failed attempts—naturally, with no small amount of help from the Time-Turner—Skylar finally succeeded in imprinting the magical effects he wanted onto the fabric.

Skylar hurriedly took out the Occamy-skin fitted wizarding robe he had bought from Madam Malkin and began improving it according to his original design. First, he had to add an "appearance alteration" function, allowing the robe to change its color, patterns, and cut according to his wishes;

Then he imprinted several protective spells onto it, such as the Shield Charm, Anti-Disturbance Charm, Cushioning Charm, Finite Incantatem, Salvio Hexia, Protego Totalum, Relashio, and so on. While they could not defend against truly advanced Dark Arts, they were enough to handle most malicious curses and were especially useful when caught in an ambush.

Afterward, Skylar added a "charm aura" to the robe, allowing its wearer to constantly exude an alluring presence and become more attractive to the opposite sex. Next, he gave it a "gravity reduction" function, which increased Skylar's running speed and agility when dodging and maneuvering. Finally, with an exceptionally powerful Water-and-Fire Immunity Charm, the robe gained a certain degree of resistance to burning and dampness, as well as some magical resistance against water- and fire-based spells.

Skylar gave this painstakingly crafted wizarding robe a flashy name—"Supreme Robe." It currently possessed nine functions: pocket space, dustproofing, waterproofing and moisture resistance, temperature regulation and breathability, appearance alteration, charm aura, curse defense, gravity reduction, and water-and-fire immunity.

But Skylar's ambitions did not end there. He also wanted to add invisibility and concealment functions to the Supreme Robe. However, the only truly invisible item known in the wizarding world was Harry Potter's Cloak of Invisibility. All other invisibility items were flawed—once they encountered wizards as skilled as Dumbledore or Voldemort, their invisible state could very likely be seen through. The alchemical techniques involved in the Cloak of Invisibility had long been lost. Even someone as learned as Nicolas Flamel could not replicate a second perfect invisibility alchemical product.

Skylar quietly kept this matter in mind. If he ever had the chance to study Harry Potter's Cloak of Invisibility, he believed that, with his own abilities, he would one day create a Supreme Robe so flawless that he could no longer find a single fault with it.

[Supreme Robe (Nine Functions) acquired!]

Another thing that made Skylar very happy was that, because he had ranked first in his year, Lucius had gained enormous prestige at the pure-blood family gathering. In high spirits, Lucius generously gave Skylar a reward of one thousand Galleons.

Skylar also handed Lucius the Dragon Egg he had stolen from Quirrell and asked him to sell it off. To his surprise, that single Dragon Egg brought Skylar another thousand Galleons. It seemed that Quirrell had truly paid a heavy price to get past the Three-headed Dog, only for Skylar to reap the rewards in the end.

Skylar did not share the wizarding world's bad habit of hoarding Galleons. Having been a Muggle in his previous life, he knew very well that only money that created value could be considered wealth. Money left sitting idle was, at most, a collectible.

After spending some time carefully recalling the developments that would take place in the European wizarding world over the next few years, Skylar decided to use Lucius's connections to invest the entire sum—two thousand Galleons—in a small Broomstick company located in Germany's Black Forest: the Ellerby and Spudmore Broom Company.

As everyone knew, the Broomstick market was primarily dominated by the Nimbus Racing Broom Company. Sales of the Nimbus 2000 and Nimbus 2001 were more than triple the combined sales of all other first-rate Broomsticks.

Close behind were the Comet Trading Company and the Cleansweep Broom Company. These two companies had captured the low-end consumer market with their affordable prices and reliable performance. The Gryffindor Quidditch team almost exclusively used the Cleansweep Broom Company's Cleansweep Five or Cleansweep Seven, while the Slytherin Quidditch team preferred the Comet Trading Company's Comet 260.

Compared with those three industry giants, the Ellerby and Spudmore Broom Company was practically unknown. One of its founders, Able Spudmore, was a gifted Broomstick designer. He had created the Tinderblast in 1940 and the Swiftstick in 1952. Both were highly practical, but neither had become famous.

However, Skylar, who had thoroughly studied the original story, knew that sometime in 1993, a year from now, Able Spudmore's son, Randolph Spudmore, would surpass his father and create a work that would shock the world—the Firebolt. As Skylar knew, within twelve months of its release, the Firebolt would kick Nimbus off its championship throne and become the preferred Broomstick of international-level Quidditch teams.

As a small, obscure handicraft workshop, the Ellerby and Spudmore Broom Company was valued at no more than four thousand Galleons. Skylar had acquired half its shares for two thousand Galleons and was quite pleased with his decision. Although the original story never explicitly mentioned the Firebolt's price, it was not hard to infer from Harry and Ron's conversations that one Firebolt cost at least five hundred Galleons. Later on, after goblin strikes reduced production, a single broom might even be driven up to one thousand Galleons. Buying half the company's shares for the price of merely two brooms was an absolute steal.

But Skylar's family held different views on the matter.

Lucius had been in business for many years, and such an obscure little company had never been worth his notice. He believed Skylar's investment was merely the vanity of a child showing off his wealth. Owning shares in a Broomstick company could indeed serve as something to boast about among his classmates, but Lucius had no comment on it.

For one thing, Skylar was using money he had earned himself. For another, Lucius wanted to take the opportunity to teach Skylar a few lessons about business and investment. He believed it was a good thing for a child to come into contact with the business world early. These two thousand Galleons could simply be considered Skylar's tuition as a beginner.

No one could have imagined that in just one short year, every member of the family would be stunned by Skylar's foresight at this moment.

[Half the shares of the Ellerby and Spudmore Broom Company acquired!]

Half of the summer vacation passed just like that, and August arrived.

That day, two uninvited guests came to the house.

The visitors were Arthur Weasley from the Ministry of Magic and an Auror named Kingsley Shacklebolt. The Weasley family, known among pure-blood families as "pure-blood traitors," had always been at odds with House of Malfoy. Skylar had heard Lucius speak ill of Mr. Weasley more than a few times. Judging from the dark expression on Lucius's face, it was obvious that the two men had traveled all the way from London with ill intentions.

At the gates of Malfoy Manor, Mr. Weasley presented an official document personally signed by Amelia Bones, head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

The document stated that the Ministry of Magic had received an anonymous report from a reliable source claiming that Malfoy Manor contained Dark Arts contraband and Dark Arts books that violated British wizarding law. Therefore, Arthur Weasley, head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, had been dispatched to conduct a search and hoped that House of Malfoy would cooperate with the Ministry.

Lucius's face turned icy, but he did not dare openly defy the Ministry of Magic. He could only allow his sworn enemy to search his residence. The only sign of the towering rage in his heart was the veins bulging across the back of the hand that clenched his cane so tightly.

Mr. Weasley seemed to greatly enjoy seeing his old enemy suffer. He searched the manor meticulously, going over it again and again, but unfortunately found nothing.

That was only natural. The contraband was stored in the family's Chamber of Secrets, and the entrance was layered with concealment spells. Anyone who did not know its location would have great difficulty finding it. Even if they did find the entrance, they would still have to face the numerous protective enchantments placed upon it. If someone opened it without the correct unlocking incantation, all they would see was an utterly ordinary broom closet filled with cleaning tools.

After the two Ministry officials left that evening, Lucius furiously smashed his favorite teacup, slammed his palm onto the tea table, and viciously cursed Mr. Weasley, swearing that he would make the man pay a terrible price.

Skylar, who knew the plot well, naturally understood his father's so-called revenge plan. Lucius intended to frame the Weasley family's little girl as Slytherin's heir, ruin Mr. Weasley's reputation, and perhaps even cost him his job at the Ministry of Magic. Unfortunately, Lucius did not know that his old master was not dead, and that sending his old master's precious Horcrux away would bring disaster upon both himself and his family.

Next, Lucius summoned Kakarot to the study. They were probably going to discuss how to dispose of some of the contraband stored in the house through the black market first. The purpose was simply to put on a show for certain people in the Ministry, so that the Ministry would not continue pressing House of Malfoy too hard.

In truth, Lucius had a very good personal relationship with Fudge, the Minister for Magic. House of Malfoy had contributed greatly to Fudge's election as Minister for Magic. However, Fudge lacked the talent and prestige needed to firmly control the entire Ministry, which was why incidents such as this one targeting House of Malfoy could occur.

As long as Lucius showed the proper attitude, and Fudge cooperated by exerting pressure on his subordinates, this storm aimed at House of Malfoy would gradually fade away without a trace.