#24 - Section 24

The night allows me to be alone with the big-wave senior, such is my irresistible charm.

"Let's go!"

Penelope reached out her hand for Ethan to pull her up, following behind him out of the lounge.

Here in Hogwarts, she wasn't afraid that Ethan would sell her off.

Descending the spiral staircase, Ethan directly took out the Marauder's Map.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good!"

Pointing his wand at the Marauder's Map and uttering the password, streaks of ink began to outline the parchment, showing Filch on the west side of the third floor, and Dumbledore still in his office on the eighth floor.

Witnessing all of this firsthand, Penelope was truly astonished. There was such a thing that could know the location of everyone in Hogwarts. Wasn't this an invasion of privacy?

No wonder Ethan dared to go out for a night tour so recklessly. With this thing, he'd be a ghost if he got caught.

There was just one thing Penelope couldn't figure out. It was understandable for pure-bloods to have such alchemical tools, but Ethan was Muggle-born just like her, so where did he get it?

Looking at the worn-out condition, it must have been quite old.

Turning her head to look at Penelope's puzzled eyes, Ethan explained:

"This is called the Marauder's Map. Reciting the password I just said will activate it. You've seen the effect. It was made by Hogwarts students, but they've already graduated. Fred and George accidentally found it and gave it to me."

"Fred Weasley and George Weasley?"

Even if they weren't in the same year, Penelope knew about the famous twins in Hogwarts.

It was because they deducted points too ruthlessly.

Moreover, their brother, Percy Weasley, had expressed his affection for her in her third year, but she had rejected him at the time.

"That's them!"

"You're very close to them?"

It was obvious that this was a rare alchemical item, and no one would give it away casually.

But Ethan and the twins could be said to have nothing in common. Different houses, different grades, one Muggle-born, one pure-blood, how could they have any interaction?

"Very close. We even went to Hogsmeade Village together this afternoon!"

"You went to Hogsmeade Village?"

Penelope found that she understood Ethan less and less.

What did he take the rules of Hogwarts for? Was he sure he was a Ravenclaw and not a Gryffindor?

"That's right, is there a problem with that?"

Ethan nodded quite calmly to confirm.

"Do you know that I'm a prefect? How dare you say that in front of me?"

Penelope sighed. In front of this junior, her authority as a prefect seemed to be completely absent.

"Senior, are you going to tell Professor Flitwick?"

Ethan turned his head and smiled at Penelope.

Penelope patted Ethan on the shoulder, looked into his eyes, and said with a slight smile:

"Next time, senior will take you!"

As expected, when it comes to flirting, it's still the senior who knows best!

The two chatted idly as they walked all the way to the eighth floor!

"Are you going to take me to the Headmaster's office?"

Besides the Headmaster's office, Penelope didn't know what else was on the eighth floor.

Moreover, practicing magic anywhere on the eighth floor would probably alarm Dumbledore if there was any commotion.

"Just follow me!"

Ethan continued to lead the way until he stopped opposite the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy trying to teach trolls ballet.

"The Room of Requirement, have you heard of it, senior?"

"The Room of Requirement?"

Penelope couldn't believe it. What place dared to say it could fulfill any requirement?

"Walk back and forth in front of this wall three times, focusing on the room you need, and it will respond. Also, senior, I don't like that this is well-known among Hogwarts people."

"Don't worry, senior understands. Now let me try to see if it's really that magical."

Penelope said, walking back and forth three times, and then a smooth door appeared out of thin air on the wall.

Ethan didn't know what kind of room she was thinking of, and followed behind Penelope with a puzzled heart.

"Are you a little girl?"

Ethan couldn't help but complain, as it really subverted Ethan's impression of Penelope.

He originally thought it would be a room for practicing magic, or full of books, but the result was a crystal palace from a fairy tale.

"Is there a problem?"

Penelope was quite excited as she toured inside.

What girl didn't have a princess dream of a castle and crystal palace when she was little? It's just a pity that Hogwarts' castle emphasizes practicality and doesn't meet the requirements of a princess.

After a tour, Penelope and Ethan opened a room for practicing magic together.

Ethan originally wanted to separate from Penelope, but Penelope insisted on being in the same room.

"Senior, try drinking this!"

Ethan handed a small bottle of green potion to Penelope.

This was a finished potion product that Ethan had guided Michael and the others to make before coming. Ethan wanted Penelope to try it and then advertise it.

Even if a first-year wizard touted this potion to the heavens, not many would believe and buy it, especially since this potion was worth five gold Galleons.

But the prefect was different. Her credibility in Ravenclaw was not low.

"What is this potion?"

Penelope shook the potion for a long time, but couldn't figure out what it was.

"Love Potion!"

"Really? I don't believe it!"

Saying that, Penelope finished it in one gulp. Did she really think she didn't know what a Love Potion was?

It wasn't even this color.

"Baruffio's Brain Elixir. If you practice magic or study, the effect will come out."

Ethan reminded her, as the duration was only twenty minutes.

"I've been learning the Shield Charm recently. Let me try it."

Listening to advice and eating your fill, Penelope immediately went to the side to practice.

The Shield Charm was a very difficult spell that many graduates couldn't use, but if you wanted to participate in Auror selection, you had to know this Shield Charm.

After graduating, Penelope wanted to try taking the Auror exams. Getting into other magical departments was nearly impossible, but while becoming an Auror was difficult, there was still a glimmer of hope.

Ethan went back to practicing the Fiendfyre Curse, planning to max it out before anything else. He could also practice with Mjolnir while he was at it.

She had been practicing the Shield Charm diligently when she suddenly felt a heatwave. Looking towards Ethan, Penelope was dumbfounded. Who was the first year here?

How could a first year cast such a powerful fire spell?

And that enormous lightning hammer... what was that all about?

Could we really be attending the same magic school?

Only after he finished practicing and the flames began to dissipate did Penelope dare approach Ethan.

"Ethan, what was that spell you were using just now?"

She handed Ethan a handkerchief she always carried to wipe away sweat, asking curiously.

She knew some spells were family secrets, not easily revealed, but Ethan, like her, was Muggle-born!

"Fiendfyre Curse and Mjolnir. The latter is probably some ancient magic!"

The Fiendfyre Curse was indeed Dark magic, but not an Unforgivable Curse. Hogwarts didn't teach Dark magic, but learning or using Dark magic wasn't illegal unless it hurt someone. (Most pure-bloods in the upper years knew a Dark spell or two, except for the Unforgivable Curses.)

"I know about the Fiendfyre Curse. I saw it mentioned in the Ravenclaw common room library. It didn't explain how to learn it specifically, but it described it as not difficult to learn, but hard to control. But you seem to control it pretty well!"

"And Mjolnir... is that Thor's hammer?" Penelope naturally knew about Thor's hammer. Norse mythology was quite prevalent in Europe, especially in Britain, which was a key invasion target for those barbarians in the early Middle Ages. As a result, much of British culture overlapped with Norse culture.

"What's the deal with this potion?"

She decided not to dwell on the magic, as she shouldn't pry too much. However, Ethan had given her the potion, so there must be a reason.

And the effects were truly remarkable. For a while, her mind felt exceptionally sharp, and she noticed things she hadn't before.

"Baruffio's Brain Elixir. Five Galleons a bottle. You sell a bottle, and I'll give you one Galleon. How's that?"

This way, Ethan would make a net profit of nearly three Galleons per bottle. Frogs were cheap, but the special potion oil was quite expensive, about one Galleon per batch.

Plus, he had his roommates doing the grunt work, earning one Galleon per pot, which could yield five bottles if controlled well.

Besides Penelope, the Weasley twins could also help with sales, as they were quite popular in Gryffindor.

"So, you want your senior to help you with sales!"

Penelope stared at Ethan with a smile.

But she had no reason to refuse: "This, of course, is no problem!"

Five Galleons for just twenty minutes of effect was a bit expensive. Penelope herself certainly wouldn't buy it.

But those wealthy pure-bloods or half-bloods were a different story. She knew how anxious her classmates were when facing the O.W.L.s exams. If they knew about this potion, they would definitely buy it.

The profit margin was considerable.

It could be said that he was sending her money.

Chapter 45: Hot Pot

On Sunday, when Ethan was discussing sales with the Weasley twins while holding Baruffio's Brain Elixir, they introduced him to Cedric.

They suggested that Cedric could be responsible for sales in Hufflepuff.

Unlike the twins, who were known in Gryffindor for their pranks, Cedric was popular in Hufflepuff for his excellent character and outstanding academic performance.

Having experienced the effects of Baruffio's Brain Elixir, Cedric patted his chest and assured Ethan:

"Leave Hufflepuff to me. You don't know how anxious some of the fifth-year students are; some can't even eat."

For Hufflepuffs, not being able to eat was a very serious matter.

Five Galleons was a bit expensive, but quite a few Hufflepuffs could afford it. Potions were expensive anyway; you couldn't expect someone to sell potions at a loss!

"Cedric, we've introduced you to a good business. Shouldn't you treat us to something good?"

Fred put his arm around Cedric's shoulder, a sly expression on his face.

The four Hogwarts houses usually ate in the Great Hall, and the food was the same for everyone. It wasn't extravagant, but it wasn't bad either. However, Hufflepuff, being close to the kitchen and having a good relationship with the house-elves, could get special treatment.

It was just that many badgers didn't like doing that, thinking it was too much trouble for the house-elves. They would only choose to have a special meal in the common room when there was something to celebrate, or someone's birthday.

Now, the twins wanted to rely on Cedric's connections to get something good to eat.

"Sure, meeting Ethan today is worth celebrating."

Cedric nodded in agreement without hesitation.

"Can we prepare the ingredients and cook ourselves?"

Ethan asked. Compared to the usual pan-fried steak and lamb chops, Ethan preferred to make hot pot. The temperature was only in the teens during the day, so eating hot pot was suitable.

Before entering the wizarding world, Ethan often made hot pot at home in winter.

Before coming to Hogwarts, he also brought some hot pot soup base, which he bought at a high price from an authentic Chinese restaurant in London's Chinatown. Unlike those modified to suit local tastes, their hot pot was quite authentic.