"Hey, did you hear? Tarquin, the sixth-year Slytherin, was beaten up in Hogsmeade. I heard he provoked a drunkard and was knocked down by the opponent before he could even use his magic. Although it were all just superficial injuries, many people saw what happened, and now the entire school knows about it. It's so embarrassing."
"Isn't that a good thing? Those people in Slytherin… Hehe, that Tarquin is one of the most annoying types in the house. He deserved to be beaten. He's always going on about being a pure-blood. Someone should teach him a lesson."
"But what about the person who hit him? The Slytherins won't go looking for trouble for him, right?"
"Of course not. The man was wearing a hooded robe, so no one could see what he looked like. Moreover, after he hit Tarquin, he seemed to have sobered up a bit. Knowing that he had beaten a Hogwarts student, he ran away immediately. I heard that he stumbled while running, so it looks like he won't be returning to Hogsmeade anytime soon."
"That's fine. In this way, even if he hits Tarquin, it will be in vain. After some time has passed, Tarquin won't be able to find him."
Sean passed by two older Hufflepuff students. He didn't hear the rest of their conversation, but it didn't matter. In the past few days, the news of Tarquin being beaten had spread throughout Hogwarts. From Sean's observation, no one suspected anything. They just thought it was an isolated drunken fight. Hogwarts didn't even send anyone to investigate. It was only later that Tarquin gathered some people to look for the person Sean had transformed into, but naturally, they couldn't find him at all.
Back in the Slytherin common room, Sean pondered the matter.
In a while, this incident with Tarquin will probably be forgotten. After I get the unicorn blood, I'll find an opportunity to leave Hogwarts and prepare the curse.
Sean's plan now only had the issue of unicorn blood remaining. Of course, this problem was no simpler than obtaining Tarquin's hair, blood, and teeth had been, and it might even be more dangerous. But to leave no trace, Sean couldn't obtain the blood of magical creatures through official channels.
It's a pity Hagrid is guarding that baby dragon so strictly, he thought. Otherwise, finding a way to get some of the young dragon's blood would be much safer than getting unicorn blood.
"Sean, can we talk?"
Sean looked at Dorian Cook, who was waiting in the common room, and muttered something unlucky under his breath. He put on a smile and said, "Of course. I'll just put these things in my room and come right back to you."
Smiling and nodding, Dorian said, "Okay, then I'll prepare some black tea first and wait for you to come over."
"Thank you for your trouble."
After thanking him carelessly, Sean quickly returned to his room.
Kulkan slithered off Sean's body and returned to her snake nest in a familiar way. Sean changed into a set of casual clothes and then returned to the common room, sitting on the sofa in front of Dorian.
"Sean, this is the black tea I prepared for you. Have a taste."
He picked up the black tea on the low table in front of him, took a small sip, nodded, and said, "It tastes good."
Putting down the teacup, Sean looked at Dorian and said, "Dorian, what do you want to talk to me about?"
"That's right…" Dorian also put down the black tea in his hand and said, "Can't I come to you for tea even if there's nothing specific to discuss?"
After hearing Dorian's nonsense, Sean didn't reply at all. He just picked up the teacup again and sipped the black tea inside.
Seeing Sean's lack of response, Dorian's face didn't change at all, but whether there was a change in his heart or if he was secretly cursing Sean, no one else could know. Unless Sean was like Dumbledore and Voldemort, a master of Legilimency, only then could he possibly peek into Dorian's inner thoughts.
Seeing that Sean didn't speak, Dorian smiled again and said, "As for the matter, I do happen to have something to discuss. I heard that you and Andy are cooperating to buy and sell potion materials and finished potions. I would like to know, Sean, if you are interested in changing your cooperation partner. In terms of treatment, you will definitely be satisfied."
"My cooperation with Andy has been smooth and pleasant. There is no need to change…"
"No, no, no… no, no, no…" Dorian shook his head repeatedly, interrupting Sean, and said, "Sean, I know very well that the profit-sharing ratio between you and Andy is probably between forty-sixty or thirty-seventy. I can give you an eighty-twenty split and a broader sales channel. If you cooperate with me, then I can let you possess a large amount of assets before you graduate. When you graduate, you can live a life that ordinary wizards in the magical world would find very difficult to achieve even by working hard their whole lives. These are things Andy cannot give you."
"The share Andy gives me now is actually not bad. Even if yours is a bit higher, it's not worth me changing cooperation partners."
"No, no, no… Sean, you still don't understand. Let me explain it properly." Putting down the cup in his hand, Dorian leaned forward slightly and said to Sean, "While the profit share represents how much you can get, there is a prerequisite here, which is how much a potion can ultimately sell for."
"Andy can only sell these things within Hogwarts. His target customers are just Hogwarts students. And how many Hogwarts students are there? How many can afford to buy potions? Moreover, they buy Andy's potions precisely because they are much cheaper than outside. Otherwise, they would, of course, buy potions from outside shops that offer more security."
"This determines that the potions sold by Andy are bound to be significantly below the normal market price. If you sell potions at such a price, even if your profit share is a bit higher, how much money will you actually make?"
"If you cooperate with me, it's different. I have shops in the outside wizarding world behind me. We'll take as many potions as you have, and the selling price will be the outside market price. Although the profit share we give might be similar to Andy's, or perhaps a little bit higher, the money you earn will definitely be much, much higher than with Andy."
"Moreover, if you are willing to cooperate with me, after you graduate, I can even introduce you to the shop behind me to become a Potion Master there. In that case, you can even get a share of the shop's profits. At that time, the money you earn won't just be simple hard-earned money."
I have to say, Dorian's words were very tempting, at least they were indeed very tempting in Sean's view. Of course, Sean also heard some things in Dorian's words. For example, Dorian didn't think his relationship with the Bulstrode Family was very close at all. It was even very possible that in his view, Sean, the son of a Squib, was no different from those who came from lower-class wizard families. This point made Sean quite concerned.
What makes him so sure?
Especially after Malfoy was injured by me before and my grandfather Gavin personally came to Hogwarts, he still thinks this way. I don't believe that someone like Dorian wouldn't know about this!
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