Hogwarts: Don't call me the Staff Maker

Chapter 77 The Trap in Knockover Alley

Siren and Garrick left the Dragon Sanctuary at five o'clock in the afternoon, and a few minutes later they appeared in a room in the Ministry of Magic.

That's the downside of using a proper door key: whenever you want to return to England, you have to go to the Ministry of Magic first.

In Romania, there are no such complicated regulations; when they go there, they simply appear at the entrance of the protected area.

"5:03, from the Romanian Fire Dragon Reserve," a voice said.

"Good afternoon, Basil," Garrick said familiarly, having used the door key so often that it was second nature to him.

When the Ministry of Magic staff saw that the visitor was Garrick Ollivander, they let him through without even asking any questions.

"Luckily it wasn't Lambert, otherwise we would have had to wait at least ten minutes to leave." Garrick seemed very happy, clearly satisfied with the results of this trip to the Fire Dragon Reserve.

This was the first time Xilun had learned that his grandfather had to "steal" the high-quality dragon heartstrings and heart nerves from the protected area.

With Dumbledore's help, he clearly "snatched" quite a bit from his peers. According to him, Grigorovich and Akayor left with pale faces and looked very unhappy.

The two left the room, walked through the bustling halls of the Ministry of Magic, and returned to the Leaky Cauldron via the ministry's fireplace.

After that, Garrick locked himself in his room again, and Celen did the same, only occasionally going to the Leaky Cauldron for a while.

Although the wizard in the cowboy hat hadn't reappeared for several days, there was never a shortage of drunkards who would boast and brag when they were drunk, so everyone could always find something new to have fun with.

It wasn't until the end of July that owls began to appear one after another in the skies over London.

That evening, as darkness fell, Siron emerged from the Leaky Cauldron as usual. As he passed Knockdown Alley, he habitually turned his head to take a look.

"Um?"

This glance made Xilun instinctively stop in his tracks, his eyes fixed on something held in the hands of an old witch.

It was a dried lizard, nothing special. These animals are indispensable in both potions and magic. In some African sorcerer tribes, dried lizards even serve more practical purposes, sometimes being used as currency.

But this lizard was different; it was translucent, like it was made of crystal, making it stand out in the dim environment.

Xilun's foot twisted uncontrollably inside, just like it had before.

As they got closer, Xilun could see it more clearly: on the back of the crystal-like, dried lizard, there were natural patterns resembling Ness script, each side different.

The Secret Pattern Chameleon, also known as the Shapeshifting Chameleon, is not uncommon among magical creatures, but it is extremely difficult to capture.

This lizard has the amazing ability to change its appearance to suit its environment; its color, shape, and even size can blend perfectly into its surroundings.

One second it might be an inconspicuous stone, the next it becomes a withered leaf, and sometimes it can even disguise itself as a lost old light bulb. You can never guess what it will look like next.

If anyone wants to catch it, the only way is to use a wide-ranging detection spell in the forests where it might appear, searching every inch of land indiscriminately like casting a net.

If you're lucky, you might encounter one or two before you've explored the entire forest.

Knockover Alley truly lives up to its reputation as a magical black market; you can find almost anything except legal items... The way they handle the shapeshifting lizards is clearly from North America; only they would straighten out the tail as well.

In other words, this thing was smuggled in.

But wasn't this old witch a poisoner before? She was always either holding her nails or embracing skeletons, how did she suddenly get involved in smuggling?

"How much?" Xilun frowned and asked bluntly.

"Five hundred Galleons," the witch said, grinning and revealing her black and green teeth.

Add to that her straw-dry hair and her filthy, old robes, and she looked exactly like the witches in Muggle fairy tales who wholesale poisoned apples and frog soup.

Especially after dark, even Xilun felt a chill down his spine.

"Too expensive." He subtly took a step back. "This thing costs a hundred gallons. Even in Knockturn Alley, it's not that expensive."

"No bargaining," the witch said ominously, "but you can talk to the seller yourself; they should be happy to."

After she finished speaking, she suddenly burst into a strange laugh.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

The sudden sound of footsteps behind him made Xilun realize that something was wrong. But just as he turned around to leave the overturned alley, he froze on the spot. Without him noticing, two dark figures had appeared behind him.

Turning around again, three more dark figures emerged from the depths of Knockdown Alley, making a total of six people, including the old witch.

Xilen knew he seemed to have fallen into a trap; the shapeshifting lizard was the bait that lured him here.

But why?

"You must have the wrong person." Celen tried to calm himself down. "I'm just an ordinary Hogwarts student."

"You are anything but ordinary, Siren Ollivander." A dark figure stepped forward, his hoarse voice seeming to come from a great distance.

He was completely shrouded in a large black hood, and the moonlight shining on him seemed to be swallowed up, making even his outline indistinct.

But what he said made Xilun's heart sink.

The other party is targeting me.

There's no reason for that. He's not Harry Potter; he's just an ordinary wand maker...

"I know, you're after the wands." Siren seemed to suddenly realize something, his tone certain. "For Ollivander's Wand Shop!"

The leader paused, then changed to a tone of interest.

How did you know?

He admitted it without any attempt to hide it.

"I guessed." Xiren shrugged.

"No rush, we can talk as we walk." The man took out his wand and gestured for Siron to walk deeper into Knockturn Alley.

Xilun had no choice but to comply, explaining as he did:

"Knowing my name and my occasional habit of coming to Knockover Alley, they obviously inquired about me on purpose, and that person..."

Siren pointed to the quintessential evil old witch on the left. "She's been here for about a month now, replacing a stall I used to frequent. That stall owner never showed up again... You killed him, didn't you?"

Without waiting for a reply, Celen continued, "You probably learned from him that I was interested in magical creatures, and a month later, I happened to be passing by and saw a shapeshifting lizard."

As Xilun analyzed the situation, many things suddenly became clear.

No wonder he always felt there were more unfamiliar faces in the alley, and that rare things like the shapeshifting lizard hadn't been bought by anyone immediately.

……