Preparations Before School Starts

Preparations Before School Starts

Although Silvan did not need a new wand, he still had other things to buy.

Silvan had been coming to Diagon Alley since he was six. By the time he turned eleven, nearly every shopkeeper here knew him. They did not even need to open his envelope to check his admission letter. After making a round of the shops, Silvan already knew what he needed.

"Little Silvan, I knew you'd come. The new books are all here, wrapped up and ready..."

"Thank you, Blotts. How much do I owe you?"

"Two Galleons altogether. How's that discount?"

"Impossible to refuse," Silvan said sincerely.

Eight books for two Galleons. Blotts at Flourish and Blotts had probably only charged him cost price.

Such a huge favor definitely had nothing to do with him. It was probably because of Ollivander.

Was this to repay the discount on his first wand?

Maybe.

After that, Silvan bought a full set of pewter cauldrons, a brass telescope, a standard measure of potion ingredients, and three sets of plain robes, including gloves, cloaks, and the like. He received discounts no one else could possibly get, saving quite a bit of money.

The herbs the apothecary owner had prepared for him also far exceeded the standard amount—about one and a half portions.

The items were not worth much, but the goodwill behind them was considerable. Silvan did not stand on ceremony and accepted them all with a smile.

Except at Eeylops Owl Emporium.

Silvan had no idea why the owner, Ms. Theodore, was so enthusiastic. She insisted on giving him an owl for free as a back-to-school gift.

Those things were not cheap. Ordinary breeds cost ten Galleons, while better ones could cost twice as much. Naturally, Silvan refused.

Looking at the shop owner, who was nearly sixty, Silvan scratched his head in confusion.

Honestly, he was not familiar with Ms. Theodore at all. He had barely even met her a few times. He truly could not understand why she was being so warm toward him.

Out of caution, Silvan did not accept such a valuable gift. But she was too enthusiastic, and unable to refuse her, he could only bite the bullet and choose another pet.

A tabby cat... probably.

It looked very much like a tabby, but its fur was not as pretty, somewhat mottled and grayish.

When Silvan looked over, it was sitting in a corner with a ginger, flat-faced long-haired cat, ignored by everyone despite being genuinely cheap.

One Galleon, only five Sickles more expensive than the cheapest rat, and even cheaper than most toads.

That was also why Silvan had chosen it.

At that price, he could accept it without feeling indebted. As for why he had not picked the ginger one... mainly because he did not have a habit of collecting cans, especially crushed ones.

Although Ms. Theodore repeatedly urged Silvan to exchange it for a prettier, gentler purebred cat at the same price, Silvan remained firm.

Before figuring out her exact intentions, he had no plans to accept such excessive kindness.

In fact, he had wanted to pay for this cat as well, but Ms. Theodore would not accept the money. She even said she was grateful to Silvan for doing her a huge favor.

"That cat is far too fierce. You'd better keep an eye on it at school, or it might eat someone's pet rat or toad."

Silvan looked at the tabby sprawled lazily over his arm and remained skeptical of Ms. Theodore's words.

Of course, even if it really was that fierce, it did not matter. Once he got to Hogwarts, he probably would not have much energy to care for a pet anyway. A little wildness would be perfect—it could fend for itself.

An hour later, Silvan, laden with purchases, pushed open the door to the wand shop.

Before school started, he planned to give the enthusiastic shop owner a wand care kit in return, along with a sheet of custom wand stickers.

The stickers were something he had made last year, inspired by Chocolate Frog cards. They could move, but they would not suddenly disappear.

A lot of people did not mind spending a Sickle to stick a Dumbledore onto their wand.

It was just that Ollivander always felt the things were a scam designed to fleece people. Even though he agreed to display them in the shop, he never actively promoted them. As a result, only a small number of people knew about them, and sales were mediocre.

Oh, and there were also custom color sprays that could change a wand's color. However, Ollivander refused to let Silvan sell those in the shop no matter what he said, so Silvan could only lock them away in a box.

This time, though, he planned to bring them to school and see if he could sell them.

Silvan actually understood very well why Ollivander objected. Wands needed to remain inconspicuous, especially for a dangerous job like being an Auror. Colors matching wood made for the best camouflage.

That was why most wands were primarily brown, dark brown, or black.

Just imagine it: during a nighttime operation, someone suddenly whipped out a bright red wand. That would be far too conspicuous, practically like walking around with a Lighting Charm over their head.

Of course, that would not be a problem at Hogwarts. Students did not need to fight at night.

Besides, the teenage years were exactly when people wanted to stand out. Who could resist giving their wand a distinctive color?

As he thought, Silvan opened a small pouch. Inside were a little over thirty Galleons and several silver Sickles.

That was all the pocket money he had so far.

For someone Silvan's age, that was not a small amount. After all, most new students only had seven or eight Galleons of spending money for an entire school year.

But Silvan had plenty of expenses too. Making wands cost money—the cores cost money, and the wood for the wand shafts was not cheap either.

And after he started school, he would no longer be able to raid the family stockpile whenever he pleased. If he wanted something, he would have to buy it himself.

Now that he thought about it, thirty Galleons really was not enough...

How about making the gold and red sprays rare editions, then doubling the price? Hmm, triple the price for green and silver...

Silvan quietly made a decision.

He definitely was not targeting anyone on purpose. He was not that kind of person.

After getting their first glimpse of the wonders of the magical world, some young wizards from Muggle families were reluctant to leave, coming almost every day.

Some who did not know how to open the entrance with a wand simply moved into the Leaky Cauldron. The experienced Tom had prepared plenty of rooms in advance and made a tidy profit.

This made Diagon Alley increasingly lively in August. At a glance, every shop was packed with people... except the wand shop.

Wands were not consumable goods. Aside from the new students who came each year, there were almost no repeat customers in the short term.

Silvan was happy for the peace and quiet. Taking advantage of the days before school started, he hurriedly plundered the things in the storeroom.

Inside was wood suitable for wandmaking that Ollivander had found over decades of traveling across mountains and rivers around the world. Every piece was top-quality.

Ollivander had always worried over them and been reluctant to take them out, but now that Silvan had received his Hogwarts admission letter, he was uncharacteristically generous as a grandfather.

Silvan was like a Niffler that had fallen into a vault, his eyes practically red.

Apple wood soaked in pine resin for an entire year... good stuff, taking it!

Ironwood—hard to work with but rare. Taking that too.

Oh, plane wood. Also good stuff. It worked explosively well with phoenix tail feathers, and there happened to be a phoenix at Hogwarts too. Taking it.

Grapevine wood—average, but no reason to leave it behind...

When he reached the far end, Silvan suddenly stopped short, staring wide-eyed at a reddish-brown branch on one of the shelves.

Merlin's beard, the main branch of a dragon blood tree at least thirteen hundred years old! Old... dear Grandfather had been hiding something this good?!!

Behind him, Ollivander's face went pale as he immediately tried to stop him.

Dragon blood wood was common; Romania had plenty of it. But dragon blood trees that could grow for thirteen hundred years were incredibly rare.

Because of its hard texture and the distinctive sulfurous scent it gave off, dragons loved the stuff. It was basically a dragon's chew toy.

Not many pieces could withstand being chewed on for over a thousand years without breaking. He had only found this tiny section.

That was the thing about young people—they reacted quickly. Before Ollivander could say anything, Silvan had instinctively grabbed the dragon blood branch, stuffed it into his robes, and clutched it tightly.

Giving it back was impossible. Not a chance. As an adult wizard, one had to keep one's word. Going back on it was something dark wizards did.

Was Ollivander a dark wizard?

Of course not.

And Silvan would not allow his dear grandfather to become a petty man who went back on his word.

The result afterward was that the young wizards who came to buy wands suffered.

They arrived happily to buy their first wand, only to look up and see a strange old man with a grim face, disheveled hair, and a habit of constantly muttering to himself.

Several of the more timid children nearly burst into tears and no longer wanted to buy wands.

Ollivander had committed quite the sin. Hopefully, that image would not leave a shadow on their young hearts.