The Late-Night Cheers Woke the Wrong Person

Lia's thinking would have made perfect sense for an ordinary person.

The problem was that Cedric was anything but ordinary.

As far as he was concerned, none of what he'd been through counted as hardship. He'd managed just fine in the wild even at the coldest point of winter, and that beat going hungry in an orphanage by a mile.

Lia crouched until she was eye to eye with him, reached out to stroke his pale blond hair, and spoke.

"Could you come spend Christmas with me, then?"

"I'm afraid not." Cedric sounded helpless himself. "It's not up to me."

He even doubted the school would let him leave campus for the holidays.

"Right." Lia deflated too. They weren't family, after all. What school would hand a student over to someone else for Christmas? "Then let's say goodbye for now. Make sure you come see me before you leave for school."

Her hand still rested on Cedric's hair, and the thought of whisking him home hadn't quite left her mind.

"Of course." Cedric agreed readily.

Cedric's new clothes drew stares wherever he went.

Everyone who saw them had something to say. The less tactful blurted out "Looks great" or "Very distinctive," while those with better social skills praised Cedric's bearing and said it made the clothes look even finer.

Cedric didn't care for flattery, of course.

So he decided to give the tactful ones a small discount in return.

It's just a reward for select regulars. The ones I picked happen to be good with words, that's all.

Looked at that way, people with good social skills really did have better luck.

Once he'd sold out of everything for the day, Cedric pulled off his apron and reached for the coat hanging on the rack behind the counter, ready to go upstairs and rest.

He'd sold blood sausage again today, but no half-finished products this time. He'd done the finishing himself, smoking the sausages over Applewood and seasoning them with a touch of apple cider vinegar.

His cooking stunned the wizards all over again. Those who had bought the half-finished sausages to cook at home found that, impressive as both the taste and effects were, they simply weren't as delicious as the ones Cedric had finished himself.

After seeing off a few more agents sent by wealthy wizards, Cedric, worn out from a full day's work, returned to his room.

Xuanling had been bored out of his mind in his cage. The moment Cedric came in, he let out a caw and flew toward him, wings flapping.

Xuanling had officially gained a level, climbing from his former feeble state to level fifteen. His feathers were a deeper, darker blue than before, and their glossy iridescence was even more dazzling. Standing in sunlight, he could nearly blind someone.

Looks-wise, at least, this evolution had been a success. He'd make a fine pet now and no longer looked like something meant for dinner.

Cedric glanced up at the much larger Xuanling. When the bird tried to land on his shoulder, Cedric reached out, caught him by the base of one wing, and held him aloft like a chick.

"Caw, caw?" Xuanling looked up innocently, his cries full of grievance.

"These clothes are new, and they're not your doormat. You're not getting on my shoulder for a month." Cedric showed no mercy.

The outfit had all sorts of dirt-repelling enchantments, but he still wanted to keep it pristine for a few days. He'd even gone to the trouble of wearing an apron while cooking.

"Caw, caw!" Xuanling nodded frantically and flapped hard, trying to get Cedric to let go. He couldn't shake the feeling that the next step in this position was having his throat slit and his blood drained. It was terrifying.

But Cedric didn't let go. He scanned Xuanling with the Eye of Discernment.

[Crow]

Hunting Level: 15

Special Abilities: Grudge A+, Permanent Homenum Revelio B

Traits: ...

[Grudge A+]: Locks onto any living creature or animal that has had contact with the user or a creature connected to the user and tracks it in real time. Even anti-Homenum Revelio measures cannot block this ability.

Both of Xuanling's special abilities had improved. Cedric wasn't sure exactly how, but for a tracking ability like this, the upgrades could only be to its "signal" or its range.

The bird was payback for anyone who mouthed off. If someone wrote Cedric another insulting letter, he could show up in front of them the next day, point a finger in their face, and tell them to say it again.

Cedric tossed Xuanling back into his cage, hung his coat on the rack, and sat down at his desk. He ran through some recipes in his head, jotted down a few notes on ingredients related to Dragon Blood, then stretched and got ready for bed.

Life among wizards was dull as hell. They were just like Muggles from the last century: after dark, all they did was sleep, make babies, or drink and brag in bars.

Muggles had plunged into the information age, while wizards still lived in something like the Middle Ages. Sometimes they even had to rely on Muggle gadgets to make life a little better.

Lying in bed, Cedric could see the glow of streetlights in the Muggle world through a gap in the curtains to his left. To his right lay Diagon Alley, gloomy despite its lamps. There was no comparison.

He rolled over to face Diagon Alley. The darker view was better for sleeping soundly.

Once he graduated from Hogwarts, he was definitely going to live in the Muggle world. He'd still come back to the Wizarding World now and then, of course. Money was easier to make here.

He was drifting off while idly thinking about the future when a sudden racket erupted downstairs.

Cedric had complained to Ron plenty about the noise, but after living there for over half a month, he'd grown used to it. As long as it didn't get any worse, he could put up with it.

The din abruptly stopped, and the unexpected quiet eased the frown on Cedric's face.

Then a wave of shrieking cheers exploded downstairs.

Cedric kicked off the covers, climbed out of bed with a dark expression, and threw on his coat.

Had those drunks downstairs lost their minds?

Keep it up, and I'll put something in tomorrow's food that'll have you all lining up at the proctologist's.