Hogwarts: Don't call me the Staff Maker

Chapter 5 Preparations Before the Start of School

Although Siren doesn't need a new wand, she still needs to buy other things.

From the age of six until he was eleven, almost all the shopkeepers in Diagon Alley knew him. They didn't even need to open the envelopes to look at his school acceptance letters; just by walking around outside, he knew what he needed.

"Little Xilun, I knew you were coming. The new books are all here, all wrapped up..."

"Thank you, Mrs. Brotter. So, how much do I need to pay...?"

"Two Galleons in total, how's that discount?"

"It's irresistible," Siron said from the bottom of his heart.

Eight books, two Galleons—Mrs. Brotter of Flourish and Blotts must have only charged him the cost price.

Such a huge amount of face definitely has nothing to do with him; it's probably because of Ollivander.

To repay the discount on the first wand?

Maybe.

After that, Xilun bought a complete set of pewter crucibles and brass telescopes, a standard-measured dose of medicine powder, and three sets of plain robes, including gloves and cloaks, all at discounts that others could not get, saving him a lot of money.

The herbal medicine shop owner prepared far more herbs for him than the standard amount, about one and a half portions.

The gifts weren't worth much money, but the sentiment was very meaningful, so Xilun didn't stand on ceremony and accepted them all with a smile.

Besides the Ee-la-Owl Shop.

Siren didn't understand why the shop owner, Ms. Theodore, was so enthusiastic and insisted on giving him an owl as a back-to-school gift for free.

Those things aren't cheap. The ordinary kind costs ten Galleons, and the better ones can cost double that. Naturally, Xilun wouldn't take them.

He looked at the female shop owner in front of him, who was about sixty years old, and scratched his head blankly.

Honestly, he didn't know this Ms. Theodore very well, and hadn't even met her many times. He really couldn't understand why she was so enthusiastic.

Out of caution, Xiren did not accept her expensive gift. But the other party was too enthusiastic, and Xiren, unable to refuse, had no choice but to bite the bullet and choose another pet.

A tabby cat...maybe.

It looks a lot like a tabby cat, but its fur color isn't as pretty; it looks a bit messy and grayish.

When Xilun looked over, it was sitting in a corner with a ginger-colored, flat-faced, long-haired cat, ignored by everyone, even though it was really cheap.

One gallon costs only five sieverts more than the cheapest mouse, and even less than most toads.

This is also why Xilun chose it.

He accepted the price without any qualms, and as for why he didn't choose the ginger-yellow one... it's mainly because he doesn't have a penchant for collecting aluminum cans, especially flattened ones.

Despite Ms. Theodore's repeated attempts to persuade Celan to exchange his cat for a better-looking and more docile purebred for the same price, Celan remained adamant.

He was not going to accept such overly enthusiastic kindness before he understood the other party's specific purpose.

In fact, he really wanted to pay for the cat as well, but Ms. Theodore refused, saying that she was grateful to Celen for doing her a great favor.

"That cat is too fierce. You'd better be careful at school, lest it eat someone's pet mouse or toad."

Looking at the tabby cat lazily perched on his arm, Siron remained skeptical of Ms. Theodore's words.

Of course, it doesn't matter if he is really that fierce. Anyway, he probably won't have much energy to take care of pets after he gets to Hogwarts. Being a little wild is just right so he can be self-sufficient.

……

An hour later, a bountiful Xilun pushed open the door of the wand shop.

He planned to give the enthusiastic shop owner a wand care kit as a return gift before the start of the school year, along with a board of special wand stickers.

The stickers are something he came up with last year, inspired by Chocolate Frog pictures. They can move, but they won't suddenly disappear.

Many people wouldn't mind spending a Sicco to stick a Dumbledore image on their wand.

Ollivander always felt that this product was a rip-off, so even though they agreed to display it in their stores, they never actively promoted it. As a result, only a small number of people knew about it, and sales were generally mediocre.

Oh, and there's also a custom-made color spray that can change the color of the wand, but Ollivander absolutely forbids Siron from displaying it in the shop for sale, so Siron can only lock it in a box.

However, this time he plans to take it to school and see if he can sell it.

In fact, Siren knew very well why Ollivander objected. Wands needed to be discreet, especially for dangerous jobs like those of Aurors, and the same color as wood was the best disguise.

Therefore, wands are mostly brown, tan, and black.

Imagine if someone suddenly pulled out a bright red wand during a nighttime operation—that would be incredibly eye-catching, practically like having a light-up spell on their head.

Of course, this isn't a problem at Hogwarts, where students don't need to fight at night.

Moreover, teenagers are a time when people are naturally independent and unconventional, so who can resist the urge to dye their wand a unique color?

As he thought about it, Xiren opened a small bag containing about thirty Galleons and a few Silver Sickles.

This is all the pocket money he has so far.

Considering Xilun's age, this amount is quite substantial, considering that most freshmen only receive seven or eight Galleons in pocket money for the entire academic year.

But Siron also has many expenses. He needs to make a wand, the core of which costs money, and the wood for the wand is also not cheap.

Moreover, after starting school, he could no longer freely take from the family fortune; he had to buy whatever he wanted himself.

Thinking about it that way, thirty Galleons really aren't enough...

Or, how about making the gold and red sprays rare and doubling the price? Hmm, and triple the price for the green and silver ones...

Xilun made a decision in his heart.

He definitely wasn't targeting anyone intentionally; he's not that kind of person.

……

After witnessing the wonders of the magical world for the first time, some young wizards from Muggle families were reluctant to leave and came back almost every day.

Some who weren't sure how to open the entrance with their wands simply stayed at the Leaky Cauldron. The experienced old Tom had prepared enough rooms in advance and made a small profit.

This made Diagon Alley even more lively in August, with every store packed with people at a glance... except for the Wand Shop.

Wands aren't consumables; aside from the new students each year, it's almost impossible to have repeat customers in the short term.

Xilun was happy to have some free time, and took advantage of the days before school started to rummage through the storage room.

Inside are pieces of wood that Ollivander painstakingly searched for over decades, traversing mountains and rivers to find suitable woods for making wands; each one is of the highest quality.

Ollivander had been hesitant to give it up, but now that Siron had received his Hogwarts acceptance letter, he, as the grandfather, was unusually generous.

Xiren was like a Niffler who had fallen into a vault of gold; his eyes were practically red with envy.

Applewood soaked in pine resin for a whole year... Good stuff, I'll take it!

Ironwood, difficult to handle but rare, was also taken.

Wow, paulownia wood, that's a good stuff too. It looks amazing when paired with phoenix tail feathers. And there's a phoenix in Hogwarts, so I'll take it.

Grapevines, generally speaking, might as well take them if you want...

As they walked further to the end, Xilun suddenly stopped, staring in disbelief at a reddish-brown branch on a shelf in front of him.

Merlin above, a main branch of a dragon blood tree at least 1,300 years old! My dear... my grandfather still keeps such a treasure hidden away?!

Ollivander, standing behind him, turned pale and immediately tried to stop him.

Dragon bloodwood is common, with plenty in Romania, but those that grow to 1,300 years old are extremely rare.

Because of its hard texture and unique sulfurous smell, that thing is very popular with fire dragons; it's like a chew toy for them.

There are very few things that have been worn down for over a thousand years and still persist; he only found this small section.

As expected of young people, they reacted quickly. Before Ollivander could even speak, Siron had already instinctively taken the dragon blood branch and stuffed it into his bosom, clutching it tightly.

Returning it is impossible, don't even think about it. As an adult wizard, you have to keep your word. A black wizard goes back on his word.

Is Ollivander a dark wizard?

of course not.

Moreover, Xilun would not allow his beloved grandfather to become a treacherous and unreliable person.

The result was that the little wizard, feeling wronged, came to buy a wand.

He came happily to buy his first magic wand, but when he looked up, he saw a strange old man with a stern face, unkempt hair, and who was always talking to himself.

Several of the more timid children almost burst into tears and didn't want to buy the magic wands anymore.

Ollivander committed many atrocities; hopefully, this image won't leave a shadow on their young minds.