[207] Fifty Percent Off

After finishing their butterbeers, they received fifty-percent-off movie coupons from the Hog's Head.

"Want to go see it?"

"Yes!"

"Let's go!"

"I'm curious!"

"I haven't seen a movie!"

"I'll sell them to you at twenty percent off," Hall said with a smile.

The others groaned. There it was. The shrewd businessman Hall, late but surely.

Hall successfully recouped the cost of the drinks and even made a small profit.

The theatre was full of Hogwarts students from all four houses. For an hour and a half, not a single person left. Everyone sat and watched the entire film.

"Ms. Lydia is truly amazing," someone murmured in the darkness.

Lydia's journey to becoming Minister for Magic was incredibly difficult. Every step was fraught with thorns and temptations. The film didn't show Lydia as a perfect character — quite the opposite. It showed her wrong choices: almost giving up her identity as a witch to marry a Muggle, wanting to return to Hogwarts to teach only to find she wasn't suited for it. She made mistakes, but she didn't give up. She adjusted in time and started anew.

A real, flesh-and-blood Lydia appeared on screen. Audiences couldn't help but be captivated.

During the end credits, an Easter egg appeared. Hall was certain the Lydia on screen was the real Lydia — not an actress. She stood on the long steps leading to the Ministry of Magic, walking forward. Halfway up, she turned back. Sunlight bathed her in a golden glow. She gave the camera a smile full of ambition and encouragement — "You, or perhaps you, also want to be like me?"

The screen went black.

Hermione held her breath, speechless for a long time. Even back at Hogwarts, the sounds of Ron and Harry playfully bickering couldn't rouse her from her reverie. She looked at Lydia and thought of herself. Ten years later, could she become the next Lydia? She needed to think carefully about how to proceed in the next few years.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Lydia's rise to Minister for Magic wasn't without challenges. She had her own worries — about Mr. Henry Slytherin.

A letter addressed to "Henry Slytherin" landed on Lydia's desk. She'd seized the opportunity, secured the position. Now she had to worry about what Mr. Henry wanted her to do. She racked her brain, even considering the possibility that Mr. Henry might be a spy for another country.

She opened the letter.

"To lay out signal towers in the British magical community?"

What the hell?!

Lydia examined the two notebooks "Mr. Henry" had sent her for trial use. She tested the built-in internal network and experienced their speed and convenience.

Her eyes lit up. This was a good thing.

She recognised the limitations — the base station towers and signal network. Lydia considered whether it was worth it. Even if the notebooks only applied to the British magical community, it would still be worth it. "And this can also be considered my political achievement."

The credit for capturing Death Eaters had faded after she assumed office. She needed more substantial achievements. The Squib potions, silver coins, and clone dolls Mr. Henry had previously provided were unusable for wide promotion — and she was wary. She was unilaterally demanding from him. What could she offer in return? An investment had to yield a return.

This transaction relied on base stations, which she could provide. She also had an ulterior motive — could she learn Mr. Henry's true identity through this?

"The Rosier family?" After settling the base station issue, Lydia discovered the person in charge of selling the notebooks was the Rosier family. Not the British branch — the French Rosier family. That was at least a year from now, given Britain's infrastructure speed.

At Hogwarts, things moved faster. With Helena's help, Hall installed the base station tower near the Whomping Willow — central enough to cover the entire castle, and difficult for anyone to approach.

Small wooden blocks and magic cards quickly became popular. Students short on cash bought wooden blocks as small decorations. Those with more money bought magic cards. Fred and George added a shimmering starlight effect that made the cards even more dazzling. Many bought them just for the designs.

"I don't know why, but my intuition tells me Hall must have made these," Draco said, holding a card with a ferret and peacock design.

Zabini's card featured a black leopard with golden eyes. "If you really came up with this, remember to give me a discount next time."

"Hmph! You'd give in for a mere five Galleons?"

"That's a whole five Galleons."

The Gryffindor trio walked over. "Hall, let's exchange numbers!" Ron excitedly waved his small wooden block at Hall. Since the cards were something Hall and the twins had researched together, they didn't offer their dear brother even the slightest discount. The only saving grace was the wooden blocks functioned the same. Ron could still do the math — one Galleon versus ten.

Harry and Hermione had both bought magic cards. Hermione's card featured the scene from the film — Lydia standing on the steps, turning back with her confident, ambitious smile.

Slytherin and Gryffindor stared at her. Unexpected! You're actually like this, Hermione!

"From the perspective of added emotional value, it does seem quite like Hall's method." Hermione carefully put away the card and turned to Hall. Compared to Draco's intuition, Hermione's analysis was much more logical.