While Maka was being interviewed by reporters in the minister's office at the top of the Ministry of Magic, a slightly stooped figure suddenly appeared near the guest entrance of the Ministry of Magic.
Yes, that old phone box in front of an abandoned car park in London.
To be honest, this place is indeed a relatively remote corner in London, but it is not that no one has ever passed by. But even so, the seemingly eye-catching phone booth seems to not exist, and few people will turn their heads to take a look when passing by.
It was obvious that it had been enchanted and invisible to Muggles.
But today, a man also dressed as a Muggle paused in front of the phone booth. Looking at the way he stopped and glanced, he seemed to be very hesitant.
"Tsk."
After a while, the man in a coat and felt hat clicked his tongue lightly, and paced in front of the phone booth as if he was unhappy. Immediately afterwards, he lowered the brim of his hat, lowered his head slightly, passed the phone booth, and slowly left towards the other end of the abandoned parking lot.
Not long after, the man walked into an alley opposite the parking lot and disappeared without anyone around.
This man's intention was obviously obvious. He came here just for the phone booth, and of course what he was going to was the Ministry of Magic building buried deep beneath London.
It's just a pity that the other party seems to know very well that the Ministry of Magic has entered a state of 24-hour martial law, and it is not easy to sneak in.
And in about ten minutes, at the entrance of the black market, which was also located underground in London but had long been different from the past, the slightly bleak figure of the man suddenly appeared among the sparse crowd.
It has to be said that the confrontation between Maca and Haierbo almost turned this underground town that had lasted for hundreds of years into a dead city.
However, even if many people have abandoned darkness and turned to light under a series of arrangements by the Ministry of Magic, and have gone to new settlements to resettle, there are still wizards who are unwilling to leave and return afterward.
For example, the goblin organization Darkling Pavilion has established a foothold in the black market since a long time ago.
I remember that after the entrance to the underground black market was destroyed by Haierbo, these goblins in the Dark Spirit Pavilion were the main force in transporting the people trapped in the black market who were in urgent need of escape from the black market.
After the disaster was over, the goblins in the Dark Spirit Pavilion simply opened a new entrance for those who needed to enter and exit.
Of course, since this passage is opened by a goblin known as the "Scrooge", it goes without saying that there is a fee.
Fortunately, the goblins seemed to have taken into account that the number of people entering and exiting the black market had decreased a lot, so in order to earn more popularity, the fees they set were not too high.
"Three Si can and one certificate, only for one in and one out; one Galleon and one weekly card, unlimited times within seven days!"
Even though the goblins in Darkling Pavilion have become extremely rich with their savings over the years, these little guys are still very greedy, and they like to add a bit of marketing acumen to even the ticket money.
But to be honest, this little trick really works.
You know, one gold Galleons is equal to seventeen silver Sickles. On the surface, there seems to be a big discount in purchasing a weekly card. After all, if you buy a one-time certificate every day, you may need twenty-one sickles in a week.
Therefore, the words "unlimited times" are indeed very attractive.
However, many people who buy weekly passes forget that they often do not come to the black market every day, and even two or three times a week is considered too much.
And for those who buy the weekly card and want to use it as much as possible, the fairies in the Dark Spirit Pavilion will naturally be happier, because this will naturally bring a great boost to their other businesses. effect.
Therefore, it must be said that these fairies are really geniuses in business.
By the way, the man in the felt hat who was mixed up in the queue at the entrance was one of those "poor people" who were tricked by the goblins into buying a weekly pass.
"Oh, welcome to the black market, my wizard friend... Thank you. Please take your weekly card. There are still three days to use it. Please pay attention to repurchase!"
The goblin who stood by the exit of the black market and stamped the entry and exit certificate took the card, checked it, and quickly handed it back to the man. As he passed forward, the goblin shouted loudly in his sharp voice:
“Those who re-purchase an expired weekly card will receive a super-value card discount of 10% off!”
In the team, some wizards who spent wisely couldn't help but twitch when they heard this - these damn goblins are really good at making money!
But even if they know it well, they won't be able to remind others when they are full.
Not to mention the proverb that "Hindering one's business is equivalent to killing one's brother" - this is a black market, who would care about others being deceived
The man heard the scream of "Welcome to the black market" coming from behind him again, and did not stop at the Dark Spirit Pavilion for any longer. After leaving the hall and reaching the street outside, he walked straight to the alleyway beside a certain street.
In fact, it was obvious from this point on that the underground black water had indeed bid farewell to its past prosperity. Not only were there fewer pedestrians on the streets, but many of the shops on the streets were closed and never reopened.
However, perhaps because today's underground black market is no longer as secretive as it used to be, among the sporadic passers-by walking on the streets, there are many more ordinary wizards.
I remember that in the past, people who came to the black market were basically guys who covered their heads and kept their heads hidden. Many of them had worked in shady jobs.
Perhaps many years from now, this place will be completely connected to the magical world on the surface, so that the black market will no longer be a gray area that can only thrive in the shadows.
It's a pity that I don't know how long it will take for that to happen.
Not long after, the lonely man in the felt hat walked along a certain alley and walked to the deepest part of the alley with a familiar path. And when he took out his wand and tapped a certain section of brick wall at the bottom of the alley a few times, he saw that the brick wall suddenly dented, revealing a thick wooden door.
You can see that there are a few crooked words written on the old wooden door - "Mianlong Bar".
When the man saw this, he immediately stretched out his hand and pulled the wooden door open. And as soon as he stepped through the door of the bar, he was immediately drowned out by the overwhelming noise.
This was a very popular bar in the past, especially among young people, who often came here to vent their excess energy.
But now, there are obviously many fewer people coming here, and only the deafening restless dance music is still echoing in the ears.
After the man came in, he subconsciously glanced at the dance floor.
I remember that when I came here yesterday, there was only one Veela dancer left working here. The bar owner must have felt that having only one Veela was too shabby, so he went to great lengths to find another one.
Looking at the two Veelas twisting their graceful figures under the dim light, the man couldn't help but take off the felt hat on his head, and gently shook his hair that was flattened by the hat.
It was only then that it was discovered that this man was actually the one who had been injured in Knockturn Alley by Martin Kingsley, who seemed to have fully recovered.
"A glass of Padre stout, come on!"
Martin walked to the bar and shouted inside. Then he saw a house elf on the high stool inside, and quickly placed a glass filled with black liquor in front of him. .
When he raised his neck, he drank heavily, swallowing the cold wine into his throat. In a short while, he had put the whole glass of beer into his empty stomach.
Then, along with a wine burp, Martin let out a sigh of relief as if he was about to let go of his inner boredom.
"boom!"
The sound of wine glasses clattering on the bar was almost inaudible amid the noisy dance music.
"Muriel... The one who rescued that little witch from the dungeon of the Ministry of Magic should be Pansy Parkinson, right?" He frowned and growled angrily, "Parkinson... why didn't you save Muriel by the way?" Let’s rescue them together!”
As Maka expected, Martin easily guessed what the Ministry of Magic's missing suspects was all about, and it was obvious that he was quite angry now.
Pansy's secret rescue operation was only half successful, causing the Ministry of Magic to enter a state of martial law, so that it is now difficult for Martin to save Muriel.
"damn it!"
Martin slammed the wine glass again, then pushed it in, and shouted louder than before:
"Continued Cup!"
To be honest, this extremely noisy bar is indeed a good place to vent. Even if you shout, it is difficult for others to hear what you are saying.
However, the current underground black market is no longer what it used to be. Even the Mianlong Bar, which was often crowded in the past, now seems a little deserted.
Therefore, although no one could hear what Martin said clearly, his large movements and angry expression could be seen clearly in the eyes of some customers who looked here.
Among them, there happened to be a short figure wearing a black cloak who seemed to be very concerned about him and looked over here several times.
Not long after, he didn't know what the other party was thinking, but he suddenly stood up and walked slowly toward the bar where Martin was.
"Hmm... Sure enough, is this guy also one of the teacher's students?"
The short wizard walked slowly behind Martin, stared at his back for a long time, and then whispered to himself.