In a secret basement in Malfoy Manor, an eleven or twelve-year-old boy was guarding a cauldron. He held his breath and concentrated, not daring to relax in the slightest. The four-corner table was filled with unknown materials and various utensils. The medicine in the crucible was bubbling and bubbling, exuding an intoxicating fragrance.
Suddenly, the boiling of the bubbles stopped, and the potion turned from a faint golden color to a solid golden yellow, and Malfoy knew that he was done.
He was brewing Felicia, his first success after many failures.
The conditions in Hogsmeade's basement are too crude, and Felicia is considered the most demanding potion for the environment. Sometimes a speck of dust may be enough to give up all previous efforts. In that kind of dusty basement Under certain conditions, this problem will be magnified without limit; and Malfoy near Hogwarts can't fully devote himself to it, he may be distracted, wondering if someone will check the bedroom, in short, he can't concentrate; even Because some materials are not very medicinal, after all, Hogwarts is a school for wizards, not a herbal medicine store. Sometimes, for the safety of the students, it is necessary to find some weak medicinal herbs. This part of the objective reason eventually led to his previous failure.
But it was different now. Malfoy had the professional laboratory that Lucius used to study black magic, and rare materials purchased at high prices, and perhaps some experience gained from previous failures.
And there is one more important point to add.
Malfoy looked at the most conspicuous bottle on the table, most of the liquid in that bottle had been used, and he couldn't help showing a pained expression on his face, it was the dragon's blood he blackmailed last time.
As a creature in various legends, dragons are a symbol of power. In even more exaggerated legends, there is even a saying that after bathing in dragon blood, one can live forever. However, it seems that the dragons in this world are not so scary, otherwise Voldemort would not have to do anything The Horcrux is gone, just kill a dragon and take a bath.
However, although the dragons in this world are not as powerful as people imagined, their blood still plays an important role in alchemy or potion science. In addition to Dumbledore's "Twelve Uses of Dragon's Blood", some rare books even wrote: "Dragon's blood can increase the success rate of brewing Felicia and speed up the time for the finished product. Strong vitality and magic can play a great role in brewing potions."
"This is a life-saving thing." While thinking, Malfoy slowly poured the Felix Felicia boiled in the crucible into a small bottle, without letting it spill a drop, and then sealed it perfectly with the stopper , into his pocket.
"Luck is also a part of strength." Although this sentence is a bit biased, it does have some truth. under the malice against them.
Felix is not a panacea. When ordinary people face Voldemort, even if they drink a hundred bottles, they will probably die. But then again, if Dumbledore and Voldemort were really dueling in their heyday, Dumbledore would come to the game Take a small sip, that's really hard to say, Lao Deng, who was already able to beat Voldemort, and with the bonus of luck, might really have unexpected gains.
"So it still depends on your basic attributes." Malfoy maintained a calm enough judgment on this bottle of potion. Only the stronger he is, the greater the effect of the Felicity Potion.
As for side effects? That's a question that only those who drink it like water need to consider. Malfoy originally only regarded it as a necessary means, so naturally he wouldn't abuse it.
"The holiday is half over." Malfoy estimated the time and came to this conclusion. During this holiday, he basically never went out, staying at home all the time, except for the issue of Felicia, he is still maintaining his progress in learning new knowledge. It is worth mentioning that the quality of dragon blood seems to be good, and it has been compressed to an extremely long time. The time was beyond his expectation.
"It's time to contact Pansy, after all, the holiday tasks are completed ahead of schedule." He thought to himself, after tidying up all the messy utensils, he walked out of the basement, preparing to return to his room to write a letter to Pansy. But he found that there was already an extra letter on the table in his room. He opened the envelope and read it, a little dumbfounded.
Pansy wrote in the letter that she had traveled to France with her parents, here are some excerpts from the letter.
"No letter was sent to me for dozens of days, so I decided to abandon you. I think the scenery in France must be very good. Maybe there are many beautiful girls, but you can't see them all. Of course, to pity you I should bring you back a gift or two, so you can thank me." She also drew a grimace symbol next to it, and Malfoy could imagine Pansy's expression when she wrote this letter.
"So now I'm alone?" Malfoy laughed at himself silently. Except for teachers and students, not everyone can have summer vacation treatment. Narcissa and Lucius have their own jobs. Apart from the servants and housekeepers in the manor, in a sense he is indeed a loner now.
"Then that plan can be advanced a little bit, and you have to try to know." Malfoy pulled out a yellowed piece of paper from under the table. The writing on it was densely packed and distorted beyond recognition. It should be done on purpose by the author. He then ticked and circled each of the two lines of writing, which represented one of the plans that had been completed and the next one that needed to be completed.
"Evil capitalists should feel the life of the proletariat. It is necessary to receive re-education from the poor and lower-middle peasants." Malfoy began to tease himself again, and then he read a book in his bedroom for a while, looking up at the At that time, he found that the sky had gradually darkened, and the setting sun in the west coated the scenery outside the window with a layer of light gold. He even saw a few huge owls flapping their wings and flying towards the main house, sending out " Googoo" sound.
It's time for dinner, and the family gathers around the table to enjoy the usual dinner.
"Baby, why do you always have some strange ideas?" Narcissa at the dining table shook her head, not quite understanding what Malfoy had said before.
"My child, if you want, I can even arrange for you to go to the Ministry of Magic to have a look, but the goblins at Gringotts are not easy to deal with." Lucius also said his suggestion, while drinking a cup of strong tea After taking a sip, it was difficult to understand his son's thoughts.
"I think it's necessary for me to train myself. If I go to the Ministry of Magic, all of them are your acquaintances, my lord father. What's the point of my training?" Malfoy began to talk nonsense, anyway, it doesn't make sense.
Lucius frowned tightly on his pale face, and said: "Okay then, but I'm not familiar with those goblins either, I'll take you to Diagon Alley tomorrow, if not, you can either go home or go with me. Just go to the Ministry of Magic and have a look."
"Our baby is really promising." As if moved by her son's words, Narcissa took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the wet corners of her eyes.
At the subsequent dinner, Lucius explained to Malfoy some precautions about dealing with goblins. Several goblin rebellions in history showed that the relationship between wizards and goblins is not very good.
Early the next morning, Malfoy and his son reached Diagon Alley via the Floo network.
Walking slowly on the long cobblestone-paved street, Malfoy felt the long-lost hustle and bustle and popularity. Some wizards were loudly attracting customers, although the things on their stalls looked like fakes at first glance. You can buy a phoenix egg here, and even that egg already has a hole in it. Some wizards kept bargaining for a few copper Knuts, blushing, and even raised their wands.
When they passed the Slugger & Ziggs pharmacy, both father and son covered their noses in unison. Not only in the pharmacy, but even in front of the door could smell a mixture of rotten vegetables and rotten eggs.
Some shops are deserted, and there are only a few worn-out brooms outside the house, which are covered with dust. This is Lihen Bookstore. There are only a few customers in the bookstore flipping through the books on the table. Even the store manager He and the clerk were also a little absent-minded. Of course, in a few days they would be too busy. Maybe it was because the start of school was approaching, and of course it was more likely because of a certain peacock boy's autograph session.
After walking for some time, a tall white building appeared in front of the two of them.
"Son, although you are here to exercise, members of our Malfoy family can't do that kind of low-level coolie work. If you are going to do some warehouse work, I think we can go back now." Lucius said so.
"Of course, my father. Besides, even if I want to guard the warehouse, the goblins probably won't let me go. Don't you think, Father, that I can beat a dragon?" Malfoy answered his question.
"I think so." Lucius nodded, with a satisfied smile on his pale face.
Then the two climbed the marble steps of the bank to a door of gleaming bronze, guarded by goblins in uniforms of scarlet and gold, bowing to them as they entered.
They passed through the second door again. The door was silver, whether it was plated with silver or made of the same material itself, it was engraved with the words:
Come in, stranger, but take care,
What is the end of insatiable greed,
Blindly ask for, get for nothing,
will be severely punished,
So if you want to take it from our underground vault,
A treasure that was never yours,
Thief, you have been warned,
Be careful not to bring treasures, but evil rewards.
Passing through this warning door, the father and son came to a spacious marble hall. About a hundred or so goblins sat behind a long counter and registered hastily in a large ledger. Some used scales to weigh coins, and some used eyepieces Detect gems.
A goblin came to the father and son, he had a bright head, long nose and pointed ears, he said in a thin voice: "Lucius, it's been a long time, your little guy really thinks It's strange that I thought of coming to work here."
"You don't need to worry about that." Lucius' voice became low.
"Then what can you help us do? Gringotts doesn't accept useless people, although I have a good relationship with your father." The goblin stared at Malfoy and said, and then added: "Forgot to introduce myself, my name is Griphook, you can call me Mr. Griphook," he said as he straightened his collar, as if it would make him look more elegant.
Malfoy only recited two poems at that time, oh no, he recited a nine-nine multiplication table.
"It just proves that your calculation ability is good, but our employees can still do it with a little more time." Griphook tried not to look shocked, and forcibly picked on it.
Malfoy walked up to a goblin who was keeping accounts, glanced at the ledger and said, "On the fifth line of this page, the last data seems to be missing a decimal point, Mr. Goblin." The goblin helped him up. With his own glasses, he hurriedly looked at the place Malfoy said, and then added a little bit up with a quill, looking around while writing, so as not to be seen by the people around him.
For a former financial student, the crude bookkeeping methods in the wizarding world are full of flaws in his eyes.
"Lucius, your son is really outstanding. Aren't wizards a bunch of illogical people? It seems that your son is an exception." Griphook praised, obviously recognizing Malfoy's ability.
"Of course." Lucius' tone was full of pride.
"Next, let me express my welcome to our new employees, Mr. Draco, you should have a fulfilling holiday here." Griphook extended his hand, and Malfoy had to bend down to shake him get started.
This is how someone's part-time job life began.