The Magic Mobile Phone Official Flagship Store closed at nine in the evening. The wizards who had finally gotten their hands on a Magic Mobile Phone let out a chorus of wails, complaining about Quirrell's laziness.
Quirrell calmly saw off every customer, watching them leave Knockturn Alley before returning inside.
"Scourgify."
Quirrell waved his wand, tossing the dust and rubbish the customers had brought into the shop into the bin outside.
This had been Director Lorne's idea too. Putting a rubbish bin outside the shop could effectively reduce the filth and disorder in Knockturn Alley, and quite a few people passing through Diagon Alley would even come in to throw away their rubbish.
Lorne came down the stairs. He had hidden upstairs all day, but he had not been slacking off.
He had finished the proposal for the Street Wizard Fighter tournament.
Things like this really did get easier with practice. With his experience organizing events at Hogwarts and designing events for Wizard Legend, coming up with something like this was a breeze.
"Quirrell, how was business today?" Lorne sat on a tall chair. "Did anyone report any problems?"
"The usual," Quirrell said, finding a chair and sitting down too. "Complaints about there not being enough seats, people wanting to pay for a seat, and people asking whether Magic Mobile Phones are for sale."
"But overall, there wasn't any major trouble," Quirrell said with a smile, then held up a notepad. "I even found some time to do a little sorting."
This was actually another task Lorne had given Quirrell, one he had told him about when hiring him as the shop manager.
Since Quirrell had graduated from Ravenclaw, Lorne had asked him to write a book covering the knowledge and key points of every subject at Hogwarts, preferably including actual questions from previous Hogwarts final exams.
With the release of the Magic Mobile Phone, Lorne could imagine how many Hogwarts students would be affected by it. What if Professor McGonagall ordered a ban on Magic Mobile Phones?
He had to give the Magic Mobile Phone study functions too.
A study app would solve all of this nicely.
Lorne's idea was to make a simple search engine, but it did not need to cover too much: just the main subjects with final exams across all seven years at Hogwarts, with content such as memorization tricks, key and difficult points, and after-class exercises.
"How long do you expect it to take?"
Quirrell did not answer immediately. He estimated his progress and the content he planned to write before giving an uncertain answer. "Three weeks, or possibly four."
"That'll be in time," Lorne said, unceremoniously taking on the role of a capitalist. "I'm planning a tournament. I might need your help with some aspects of it."
"A tournament?"
"Yes, a Street Wizard Fighter tournament, while it's still riding high. But don't worry, I'll arrange the specific steps. I might just need your help with a few bits and pieces of magic."
"But Lorne, I still don't understand. Can we really earn Galleons doing this?"
Lorne was not worried about that at all. Galleons were not his primary goal, but they were an extra he could obtain with little effort.
"Don't worry, Quirrell. I can't promise anything else, but sooner or later, you'll lose interest in Galleons."
Morning.
Quirrell pushed open the shop door at eight sharp.
The moment he opened it, the crowd that had been crouching outside for ages rose in unison. There was a fierce gleam in their eyes, as though they would bare their teeth and tear into one another at a single command from Quirrell.
Quirrell cleared his throat. "Everyone, form a queue."
He was already used to this.
At the head of the queue stood Sains, who had graduated a year after Quirrell. This half-blood Hufflepuff graduate still had not found a good job and could only work as a shop assistant at a souvenir shop in Diagon Alley that sold specialties from around the world.
Sains had not performed very well on his O.W.L.s, which had kept him from becoming an Auror.
When the Ministry of Magic had come to school and promised to try to find everyone a good job, he had foolishly believed them. He had never expected that their idea of a good job was lending them out to the Goblins at Gringotts as miners.
Wizards lived longer than ordinary people, which meant they stayed in their positions longer. But there were only so many positions at the Ministry of Magic. Sains felt that the Wizarding World's job market was already saturated, and he feared Hogwarts graduates would never again find work as easily as before.
The shop where Sains worked did not open until ten in the morning, so he could play for an hour at the Magic Mobile Phone Official Flagship Store before going back to work.
"Quirrell, I never imagined an outstanding graduate like you would go into business too," Sains said with a sigh.
Before Quirrell could speak, someone behind Sains explained on his behalf. "Manager Quirrell's shop has a bright future. I'd rather see the Ministry of Magic close down than Quirrell's shop."
Sains did not deny that. Quirrell's Magic Mobile Phone shop was packed every day, far better off than his deserted souvenir shop. He really worried that if his boss went bankrupt and closed down one day, he would be out of a job.
Sains was the first through the door.
Wait, the Magic Mobile Phone shop seemed a little different today.
An enormous, brightly colored poster hung on the wall directly opposite the entrance. All eight characters he knew from Street Wizard Fighter struck poses on it, and eight bold, striking characters caught his eye.
Street Wizard Fighter. Your battle awaits.
For some inexplicable reason, Sains did not rush to claim a seat. Instead, he walked over to examine the poster closely.
"This shop will hold a one-day Street Wizard Fighter tournament on August 8. Those interested in participating may register at the front desk."
"This tournament will use a one-on-one, single-elimination format. Each match will be best of three, with the winner advancing and the loser eliminated. The tournament champion will receive one Magic Mobile Phone (special tournament edition). Participants placing second through eighth will receive a coupon for 50% off the purchase of a Magic Mobile Phone."
Of course, the system shop could not make a special edition for Lorne. He had simply used ink made from Moonlight Grass juice to draw a few exclusive designs on a Magic Mobile Phone.
He had also left a space specifically for the winner's name.
There was still over a week until August 8. One reason for scheduling it so late was to accommodate players who could not visit the shop every day, giving them ample opportunity to register. The other was that Lorne wanted to see whether the Power of Emotion generated each day would increase during the buildup.
"A Magic Mobile Phone!" At some point, a crowd had packed in behind Sains.
"And it's a special tournament edition."
The onlookers' eyes burned with fervor. They had wanted a Magic Mobile Phone of their own for ages. They came to the shop to play for free every day not because they had no money, but because this damned shop would not sell them.
Apparently, that tiny Magic Mobile Phone could play Street Wizard Fighter too, and controlling it with both hands was smoother. It even allowed matchmaking battles and climbing the rankings.
Sains came to his senses and quietly slipped out of the crowd. He looked toward the front desk, where Quirrell usually sat. A young man was already standing there.
Lorne yawned.
It was rare for him to get up this early.