[193] The Serpent's Tooth

A few days before heading to Romania, Fred and George were almost nowhere to be seen at home.

"Where have those two gone again? Can't they just stay in their rooms and pack quietly?" Molly said, exasperated, as she packed.

Ginny, enjoying afternoon tea, smiled. "Mum, Fred and George aren't house-elves. They're definitely not that well-behaved."

Ron chuckled.

Percy, finally emerging from his room, frowned at the commotion. "Mum, can you be quiet?" He carried a book titled How Prefects Gain Power.

Ron pursed his lips at Percy.

Ginny's smile faded slightly.

"Percy might as well get some earplugs," Hall said, following him down the stairs.

Percy was startled. He instinctively pushed up his glasses — his hand missed. He realised he hadn't worn them because he was at home.

Hall walked past the frozen Percy and sat down at the table. Ginny smiled and handed Hall a cake — double the sugar. Hall was the only one who liked this flavour, but Molly always made a special one for him.

No one paid attention to what Percy had said earlier. It wasn't that they didn't care about him. It was true — Percy often felt out of place in the family. No one meant him any harm, but no one was going to force themselves on him.

Percy pursed his lips and stiffly walked to the table.

"If only Fred and George were as well-behaved as Percy..." Molly sighed, handing Percy a plate of cookies. She trailed off. Percy was a good boy, but what if there were three Percys in the family? Fred and George together made two. Why couldn't they all be as well-behaved as Hall and Ginny?

"You're right, Mum," Percy said, unaware of her pause. "Fred and George are going into fifth year this year. They need to take the Ordinary Wizarding Level exams. I can't even imagine what kind of results those two idiots will get."

Ron glanced at Percy. "Fred and George aren't stupid, you know." Fred and George were smart — a little bit smarter than him. But definitely not as smart as Hall.

"Not everyone is like you, needing twelve O.W.L.s," Ron said confidently.

Twelve O.W.L.s? That would kill him.

Percy didn't see anything wrong with that requirement. "The Ordinary Wizarding Level exams are the most important exams every wizard student faces! If you can't get a good enough score, how will you prove yourself? How will you demonstrate your ability to handle more important positions?"

Every single person present, without exception, wasn't really listening.

Percy, satisfied with his eloquent speech, finally began to enjoy his afternoon tea.

Ginny shook her head at Hall. "Percy probably wants to join the Ministry of Magic or something like that in the future."

Hall recalled Percy's original life trajectory — he did join the Ministry, and later, because of Voldemort, Fudge, Dumbledore, and so on, Percy had quite a falling out with his family.

Hall took a bite of cake. Respecting others' choices. Not forcibly changing their fate. Provided Percy wasn't a terrible person — just a little too power-hungry. Hall once again praised his own foresight. Investing in Lydia was truly the best thing he'd ever done.

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"We'll see," Hall mumbled. "To get Percy under his thumb..."

He winked at Ginny.

Ginny's eyes widened, then she nodded. All-powerful Hall!

Percy, eating nearby, sneezed. He quickly put down his cookies and book, checking if it was dirty. "Mum, I'm not eating anymore!"

Percy's commotion didn't affect the rest of the Weasley family's mood. Just as Percy knew how much Hall loved money, the other Weasleys knew how unsociable Percy was. But what could they do? They were still a family.

"We're going to Romania tomorrow... it feels like I haven't seen Charlie in ages," Ginny said wistfully. A brilliant idea flashed in her head. "How about I bake some desserts and cookies for Charlie?"

Hall was silent for three seconds. He gave Ginny a thumbs-up. "You can do it, Ginny!"

Whether Ginny could do it or not, Hall didn't know. But he knew that Molly doted on Ginny — after all, she had seven sons before having her only daughter. Ginny had never tried cooking before Hogwarts. The closest she'd ever come was making potions in Potions class.

Hall couldn't comment on Ginny's cooking skills. He thought it better to let Charlie experience this unique affection first. Hall didn't want to stay and be a guinea pig at all.

He quickly finished his afternoon tea and ran off.

Before leaving, he had to take care of another matter.

Russell was overjoyed when he received the message from Hall. This caused a hint of curiosity to appear on Vinda Rosier's usually cold face as she sat next to him. She glanced at her nephew. "Is it the young master?"

"It's the young master," Russell nodded without hesitation.

Vinda found it intriguing. She willingly addressed Hall as "Young Master" because her true master, Gellert Grindelwald, acknowledged his identity. And her nephew willingly addressed Hall as "Young Master" because he genuinely regarded Hall as a young master yet to come of age. On the surface, the difference was negligible. But the underlying meaning was entirely different.

"You said the young master asked you to find a wizard within the British Ministry of Magic who lacked official status but had an outstanding track record?" Vinda asked thoughtfully, her hand supporting her chin.

Russell nodded again. He hadn't expected to keep this from his aunt. After all, the people he'd mobilised were all Rosier's spies in France. Within the Rosier family, Vinda, whose status was higher than his, could easily find out this information.

"Interesting." Vinda's lips curled into a slight smile. "I wonder who my young master chose from those people you gave him." She had seen that list too. Even ten or twenty years ago, none of those people would've had a chance of becoming Minister for Magic of England. The magical world was that concerned with bloodlines. There would always be a deep, insurmountable divide between pure-bloods, half-bloods, and Muggle-born wizards. The rise of the latter two would only squeeze the already limited living space of pure-blood wizards.

That was precisely why Grindelwald became associated with dark magic, and why they followed him.

But times had changed. The person about to take power from their master had a completely different mindset. Vinda's feelings were complex. But to say she would stop him — it wasn't worth it.

"Let's see if our young master can take this step and do what he wants," Vinda chuckled, deciding to observe for now. "The British Ministry of Magic's xenophobia isn't just talk. Unless there's strong support from a third party, any one of those people wanting to become Minister for Magic... ha."

Her icy gaze flashed — a testament to Vinda Rosier's pride. Would the younger generation readily accept Hall? Would they genuinely accept his commands and arrangements simply because of their master's orders? That would depend on this young man's methods.

Russell listened to his aunt's words, his expression stiffening. He understood the unspoken meaning — Rosier and the other Saints could provide Hall with the list, but to expect them to protect those on the list? They couldn't. This was a game of power between the first generation of Saints and Hall.

However, to Russell's surprise, Hall didn't mention the matter at all after finding him.

"...Mr. Hall, you mean you want me to acquire a magazine or newspaper? Publish weekly and monthly?"

Russell's face showed utter shock. This was completely different from what he had imagined!

Hall looked at him with a puzzled expression. "Is starting a magazine really that shocking?" He thought about his requests. Not excessive. Really not excessive.

Hall had even thought about the magazine's target audience. Women — female witches, mothers of female witches. Focusing on a female-centric demographic. Witch Weekly did a good job in this respect, but it wasn't enough. Witch Weekly included articles, quizzes, news columns, recipes, and occasionally the latest gossip. It featured numerous celebrity articles and awarded an annual Most Charming Smile Award, which Gilderoy Lockhart had won for five consecutive years.

At first glance, it seemed like a magazine every witch would own. However, Hall didn't think so. Witch Weekly was far too disorganised. If the wizarding world weren't so closed off, with almost no interaction with the outside world, Witch Weekly's sales would've long been devoured by Muggle magazines and television.

What Hall wanted to do was strike Witch Weekly hard before it realised this and steal the market that rightfully belonged to them.