[222] Who Are You Really

Lydia was taken aback by Hall's words. How could he, under a false identity, speak so openly?

Then she thought again — after becoming Minister of Magic, were all the people she dealt with daily really good people? This Mr Henry, whose true identity she didn't know, had at least provided considerable help.

"Presume you've come to see me for something?"

Hall smiled. He truly thought highly of Lydia. She was shrewd. She had integrity. A very good partner.

"Ms Lydia, what are your thoughts on the current state of the wizarding world? Muggles are almost entering the twenty-first century, but wizards are still stuck in the eighteenth."

Lydia was taken aback. She had thought about many things, but she never expected to hear anything related to Muggles from Hall. "Tell me more?"

Hall laid out his proposal. The main theme: persuading Lydia to give him the green light for a wizarding commercial complex. Building a supermarket in the wizarding world required Ministry approval. Going through lower-level officials would be nearly impossible. Persuading the Minister directly was the better path.

"Your proposal is truly..." Lydia paused. She curled her lips into a smile. "It startled me."

"I don't believe that could scare you."

Lydia picked up the bone china teacup. "The attitude of pure-blood wizards towards Muggles is self-evident." A wizard using the surname "Slytherin" suddenly wanting to learn from Muggle business models — of course she was surprised.

"I'm a businessman."

Lydia didn't press further. She supported Hall's decision. Even a Muggle supermarket model was a beginning — a beginning of friendly coexistence between wizards and Muggles.

"Now I understand why you chose to support me," she said. "Only I would support your seemingly insane idea."

"Pleasant to cooperate?"

"Pleasant to cooperate."

Hall stood, dusted off his clothes, and vanished in a flash.

Lydia watched the spot where he disappeared. "Once the application report reaches me, I'll know Mr Henry's true identity."

Half a month later, she stared blankly at the application form bearing the Malfoy family crest.

Mr Henry, Malfoy?

Everyone knew the Malfoy family. Was this Lucius or Draco?

Lydia snorted. Instead of believing Mr Henry was a Malfoy, she should consider how capable he was to have even a member of the Malfoy family agree to cooperate.

Hall was unaware of Lydia's shock. He was searching outside Hogwarts for a suitable place to set up the array.

Privacy. All to himself. Not easily discovered.

Should he buy a house?

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He hadn't considered this before. Now it seemed he needed his own property. Some in the wizarding world, some in London.

Hall reverted to his identity as the Slytherin heir, went to Gringotts, and found the goblins. No one was more familiar with money, land, and property.

"For the right location, the price is negotiable."

For the London houses, he paid several qualified middlemen, used his Legilimency to select the most ethical one, and handed a few lawbreakers to the London police.

In half a day, Hall transformed from a wealthy man into a wealthy man with multiple properties. His nearly seven-figure Galleons were now several zeros short.

But Hall wasn't worried. War profits were enormous, and a new batch of Galleons was coming in. Just in time to invest in the supermarkets.

Hall cast a Notice-Me-Not Charm and a Muggle-Repelling Charm on his new house. No one could sneak in while he was away.

He set up a new Portal Array anchor point in the centre of the living room. The next second, he was safely back in the Room of Requirement.

"How was it? An interesting day, Helena?"

Helena, wrapped around Hall's wrist, stuck out her tongue in response.

Very interesting.

"Pay up."

Hall found Sirius, offered no explanation, and simply banged on his desk demanding money.

Sirius's temper flared instantly.

Before he could speak, Hall said, "I'm almost finished replicating the time-related array. We've run out of materials. Go buy some."

Sirius shut his mouth. "...What do you need?"

"Unicorn Tears, Sunflower, Blood Dragon Thorn... and finally, all sorts of gems. Any gems will do. The higher the purity, the better."

The materials were increasingly expensive. Unicorn Tears alone might not be findable anywhere. But Sirius didn't object — a time-related formation should use precious materials.

"Gems?" Sirius asked suspiciously. "Do you like gems?"

Hall rolled his eyes. "What kind of person do you think I am?"

Sirius fell silent.

"Trust me and listen, or there's no reason to cooperate."

Sirius's face showed anger. He was just asking normally.

"Gems with sufficient purity improve the accuracy of the time formation," Hall said coldly. "Used as a medium or ground into powder for drawing arrays — extremely useful."

Hall had chosen gemstones after trying various materials. Unfortunately, gems of sufficient purity were extremely expensive. Hall volunteered to research the arrays, but he wasn't willing to bring his own money.

Let the patient's family pay.

"I remember the Black family owns a sapphire mine," Sirius recalled. "It came from my mother's dowry. She'd be more than happy to use it on Regulus."

Hall, who could command seven-figure Galleons, thought he was wealthy. But hearing Sirius casually mention a family gemstone mine, he realised he was far from old money.

Damn rich people.

"The colour isn't an issue," Hall said. "Only purity matters. The more gems, the better."

Two days later, Sirius returned to Hogwarts, travel-worn.

"You're so fast." Hall glanced at the materials. Everything he'd asked for was there. The gems alone weighed five pounds. Large and small sapphires were piled in a bag, looking like the score stones from the Ravenclaw hourglass.

Harry happened to pass by. His eyes widened. "Did you rob Ravenclaw's hourglass?!"

Hall burst out laughing and gave Harry a thumbs up.

Sirius glared at Hall. "No, Harry, these are sapphires. Do you like them? I'll take you to the gem mine to pick one out!"

Before Harry could answer, Hall drawled, "Don't forget to save some. If Regulus really comes back, he should get a share of the Black family fortune."

Harry nodded. "That's right."

Sirius's expression froze. He hadn't thought of that. Not because he was greedy — he just wasn't mentally prepared to welcome Regulus's return.

"Stop joking." Hall finished organising the materials and glanced at Sirius. "If your brother really comes back, have you thought about how you'll deal with him? And the mess at the Black family? If you haven't thought about it, start now."

Without waiting for a reply, Hall turned and walked deeper into Sirius's office, where the Inferius Regulus lay.

"Your office is under requisition. Don't bother me unless absolutely necessary, or you'll be fully responsible for any accidents."

Sirius's face was filled with annoyance, anger, unease, and anxiety. Like a stray dog kicked in the street.

Harry looked at him with a small smile. "Sirius... calm down. Think about it carefully. I'll think about it with you. Regulus is your brother. Your family. Your blood."

Sirius gave a muffled "Mmm," then perked up. "Hmph! I'll see what that little Slytherin is up to. If he wanted to pocket the materials..."

Harry sighed. As long as Sirius was happy. And Hall didn't pocket materials — he openly demanded a price. Thinking about it, Harry thought of his rapidly depleting wallet.

Hall the Niffler.