Hogsmeade

Early that morning, Adam was dragged out of bed by Klon.

"Come on, stop sleeping! Adam, do you remember we’re going to Hogsmeade today?"

"Mm…?"

Still half-asleep, Adam rubbed his eyes, picked up Kero—who had also been woken up and was stretching—and took a deep sniff.

"There’s no need to get up this early…"

As he spoke, Adam scooped up Suppi and took another sniff.

"And why are you all so excited… Is my cooking not as good as the Three Broomsticks Pub? Are my desserts and candies not as good as Honeydukes Sweetshop? Or are Fred and George’s prank props not as interesting as the ones at Zonko’s Joke Shop?"

Other than those few shops, Hogsmeade did not have many other stores that could attract them…

"But I want to take you to see my home too!"

Hearing Klon’s words, Adam suddenly realized.

"Right, Klon, your family’s shop is in Hogsmeade too… While we’re there, we can also see whether any shops or houses are up for sale and buy one if there is."

Having finally gotten a chance to leave the castle, Bernard, who was unusually putting on shirt stays, slowly turned to look at Adam.

"You… have enough money to buy a shop?"

"I should have enough…"

Adam currently had several million Galleons in his satchel. If that was not enough, he could simply turn one into two, then two into four… The goblins trusted too much in their ability to identify every genuine coin, relying entirely on manual inspections of Galleons, which gave Adam tremendous convenience.

Since they were visiting Klon’s home, they certainly could not go empty-handed. Bernard and the others planned to buy some souvenirs once they reached Hogsmeade… Even if they were right near Klon’s house, buying some daily necessities could not go wrong.

Adam, meanwhile, had prepared a large box of pastries that would keep well. Given the current weather, they could probably last around a month if kept dry.

He could not help it. The mental state of Klon’s sister Kelly, as Klon had described it last time, was simply a little too beautiful. Adam could not help worrying about Klon’s physical and mental well-being.

After washing up and having a simple breakfast, everyone gathered in the castle entrance hall. Filch held a long roll of parchment that nearly hung to his feet and stared wide-eyed at every face, making sure each person matched a name on the list and that no one had slipped into the group.

Only after checking everyone in the group did Filch lead them toward Hogsmeade. Before setting off, he even turned back to close the doors leading from the entrance hall to the outside.

Along the way, the students around them chattered about the destinations they had decided on long ago. Klon looked at his roommates.

"My parents should only just be opening up around this time, so they’ll be busy. We can look around elsewhere before going over… How about getting a Butterbeer first?"

"Butterbeer? We can drink alcohol?"

Adam raised an eyebrow. That drink contained alcohol.

"Butterbeer is fine. Its alcohol content is very low. Even young wizards can’t get drunk on it. It’s rich and creamy, and it tastes pretty good."

Klon shrugged.

"Though it’s still not as good as the drinks you sell, Adam, it has alcohol at least. It’ll be a novel experience for you and Bernard to try it."

Even though Adam could sell sweets and drinks at school, alcoholic beverages were clearly unavailable. At most, they could skirt the rules by ordering something like "sweet fermented rice balls with extra fermented rice and no rice balls" to get a little rice wine. The rice wine created by Sweet Card could not get anyone drunk anyway, so the professors simply turned a blind eye.

People naturally became curious about things they were forbidden to do, so Butterbeer had still managed to hold onto its place in the market even though Adam’s drinks had nearly conquered Hogwarts.

"Then let’s give it a try~"

Adam rubbed his chin. He had never had Butterbeer before either~

The owner of the Three Broomsticks Pub, Madam Rosmerta, was a charming woman who had aged gracefully. When Adam and the others saw the Three Broomsticks Pub, she was enthusiastically standing at the entrance, inviting new third-year students inside to try the roast meat set meal, which came with a complimentary Butterbeer.

"I heard before that, because of you, Adam, the incomes of Hogsmeade shop owners in food-related businesses have plummeted. Looks like it’s true."

Klon leaned close to Adam and spoke in a low voice.

"If that’s the case, Adam, shouldn’t you disguise yourself?"

Eugene hesitated before speaking.

"There might be quite a few Hogsmeade shop owners who are unhappy with you…"

"There’s no need. I’m going to open a shop in Hogsmeade later anyway. Why should I be afraid of them?"

Adam shook his head. His voice was soft, but it brimmed with confidence.

"I haven’t engaged in malicious competition. If they still lose business to me, they should reflect on their own problems."

If he truly wanted to compete maliciously, he could just put Butterbeer on the shelves at the little shop and sell it for one Silver Sickle less than the Three Broomsticks Pub. In any case, no one could tell whether this kind of liquid had been duplicated with Twin Card. Then the Three Broomsticks Pub would lose all of its student customers.

"That’s true, but…"

Bernard narrowed his eyes, drawing out his words.

"If everyone thought that way, London’s crime rate would drop by at least three percentage points."

"If they make a move against me, it’s not certain who’ll suffer the worst losses in the end."

As they spoke, they had already reached the entrance of the Three Broomsticks Pub.

"Oh~ All new faces, I see. Would you like to try our signature roast meat set meal? Every set comes with a complimentary Butterbeer~"

Madam Rosmerta rested one hand on her waist and the other against the Three Broomsticks Pub’s doorframe, her face filled with a warm smile.

"No, thank you. Just five Butterbeers."

"All right, you can order at the bar. There have been quite a lot of customers lately, so guests need to collect their own drinks."

Hearing Adam’s answer, Madam Rosmerta’s smile did not diminish in the slightest.

"If the five of you are together, there’s still a large table available farther inside. After entering, please keep left and head inward."

"Mm… This landlady is much steadier than I expected. I thought she’d push the set meal a few more times."

After entering, Bernard nodded.

"Madam Rosmerta is famous for being warm and hospitable. Otherwise, the Three Broomsticks Pub would not have become one of Hogsmeade’s most important attractions. Everyone who comes to Hogsmeade stops here for a while."

Klon explained, then glanced in the direction Madam Rosmerta had indicated.

"You go find seats first. This round’s on me~"

Five Butterbeers did not cost much. Everyone nodded and went around the bar and a wall on the left, finding a round table in the space behind it.

Not long afterward, Klon returned carrying five Butterbeers.

"Hurry, hurry! Brothers, come give me a hand!"

"Whoa~ That’s a huge mug!"

Adam looked in surprise at the kind of glass used for draft beer. This one probably held more than a liter.

With a lift of his hand, the five Butterbeers floated up from Klon’s hands and landed on the round table.

"Whew~ Adam, your Levitation Charm is truly incredible."

Klon wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. If he had used the Levitation Charm, he would not have been confident he could keep the full mugs of Butterbeer from spilling even a drop.

"I didn’t expect this shop’s Butterbeer to be such a good deal…"

Adam picked one up and examined it carefully. This mug was truly filled to the brim. The foam on top was less than a centimeter thick, and everything beneath it was Butterbeer.

"The mugs weren’t this big before. It looks like Madam Rosmerta adjusted things to attract customers."

Klon took a big gulp. The chilled Butterbeer carried a distinctive aroma, and he could not help letting out a long breath.

"Good thing the taste hasn’t changed… Hurry up and try it!"

At that, Adam and the others raised their mugs and drank.

However, after taking only one sip, before Adam could properly savor the taste of the Butterbeer, he looked up and happened to see a red-haired, green-eyed figure pass through the wall of the Three Broomsticks Pub, then pass back out again…

"Cough—"