Hogwarts: Don't call me Wandmaker

Chapter 286 Lupin's Ingenious Ideas

Just as Siren had said, for a period of time afterward, he went to the Melpta Magic Arena almost every day.

Lupin wanted to go along, but the exorbitant ticket price of one gallon deterred him... Lupin simply couldn't accept having Siren bear this extra cost for him.

But he was also really worried about Siren's safety. After all, it was an arena themed around duels, not Hogwarts School, where anything could happen.

After much thought, Lupin came up with a brilliant idea that didn't require paying for tickets... He signed up for the new round of duels and entered the arena as a contestant, thus avoiding the need to pay.

To be honest, both Siren and Bill were stunned when they first heard the idea, and then they both gave it a thumbs up.

It's no wonder he's Lu Ping; he always comes up with all sorts of clever ways to save money.

Not only will he not have to pay for tickets, but he might even earn extra income... If he wins to the end, he can get a prize of 100 Galleons.

Of course, the prize money wasn't Lupin's goal. If he hadn't received Dumbledore's invitation before, he might have gone all out for those hundred Galleons.

But things are different now. A year as a professor has allowed him to save some money, so there's no need for him to compete with those professional dueling wizards for a living.

More importantly, he wanted to attend Sirius Black's hearing afterwards. And the dueling tournament was a long affair, not something that could be concluded in a short time.

So from the very beginning, Lupin had only one goal... to avoid being eliminated too quickly.

Given Lupin's own strength, it would be quite simple for him to do this: when he encounters a powerful wizard, he should let the other win, and when he encounters someone of average strength, he should rack up some points.

Over the course of several days, although he remained stuck in the bottom tier, he was never eliminated... In other words, he saved Xilun a Gallon every day.

No, perhaps more than one Galon.

This place also provides food for duelists, with a wider variety of dishes than the Sphinx Bar.

Xilun also joined in for a few meals, and the food was really good, plus it didn't cost any money.

……

A few days later, Sirius Black's first hearing was drawing ever closer.

That morning, Lupin couldn't help but find Siron, wanting to ask him when he would leave Egypt, and if they couldn't make it to the hearing, could they go back first and then come back later.

Lupin went to the bar on the first floor and quickly found Celen and Bill... They were sitting at a table in the corner, heads down, doing something.

From Lupin's perspective, all he could see were seven or eight empty beer glasses on the table.

Strange, neither Celen nor Bill are heavy drinkers, so why are they drinking so much beer so early in the morning?

Lupin walked over curiously.

Before he could even figure out what to say, Bill packed several bottles into a box and handed it to Celen.

"Here's everything you wanted; I've bought it all for you."

“Thank you,” Xilun said. “I was thinking of buying it myself, but it was too expensive and the quality was poor.”

“It was nothing, you should have asked me a long time ago.” Bill waved his hand and said, “But I really couldn’t find a pure copper pyramid souvenir. Even Old Thutmose’s shop only had these.”

Bill took out a pyramid with a yellowish metallic sheen and weighed it in his hand.

“Old Thutmose said it was also pure copper, and he wanted three sicoes for each of them, but I felt it was lighter than yours. I guess it’s not pure copper, but mixed with other metals. That old guy must have been influenced by the goblins.”

“But it’s still much better than a stone one.” Billton paused for a moment before continuing, “If you’re not in a hurry to leave, I can go to the Halleli Magical Market and ask the wand shop owner where he bought his.” “Ah, no need, this is fine.” Siron shook his head. “Besides, I bought a lot of other gifts, not just this one.”

“That’s good,” Bill said. “It’s a pity that if you could have stayed a few more days, perhaps we could have gone back together.”

"Are you going back to England too?" Lupin asked as he walked over.

“Dad got tickets to the Quidditch World Cup, and the best seats at that,” Bill said. “It’s a super event that happens only once every four years, and you can’t miss it.”

“So you really can’t stay a few more days?” He turned to look at Xilun. “I feel like we get along quite well.”

“Actually, I’d like to, but there are other things to do.” Celen shrugged. “In a few days, it’s a public hearing for a friend of ours. It’s very important, and we need to go to the Ministry of Magic to support him.”

Lupin subconsciously looked at Xilun as well, and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Surprisingly, Xilun still remembered, so his worries were somewhat unnecessary.

“Well, there’s nothing we can do about that,” Bill said. “Then we’ll see you at the Quidditch World Cup. You must come visit the Burrow then.”

“I…” Lu Ping instinctively wanted to refuse.

The Quidditch World Cup tickets are much more expensive than those for the Merpta Arena of Magic; they're practically astronomical, like robbery.

Forget about the high platform tickets with a great view, he can't even afford a regular grandstand ticket.

But before he could speak, Xilun interrupted him.

"No problem, we'll definitely visit the Humble Abode then."

The two chatted for a few more minutes before Bill left.

In order to be able to return to the UK to watch the game smoothly, he specially applied for a long vacation.

But the price he paid was that he had to work overtime to finish the work that was supposed to be done during the holiday before he could enjoy his vacation.

It's just that time was too tight, otherwise Bill would definitely have gone to the Khan el-Khalili Magical Market to try and buy the perfect pyramid souvenir.

As soon as Bill left, Lupin asked, "Are we going back to England today?"

“That should be right.” Celen nodded. “I’m going to the Egyptian Ministry of Magic to apply for a Portkey later. If everything goes smoothly, I should be back before noon today.”

“If possible…” Lupin pursed his lips somewhat shyly, “Silen, could you apply for a door key for this afternoon?”

"Afternoon?" Xilun asked, somewhat puzzled.

He remembered that Lupin had been acting strangely for the past few days, always seeming to want to say something but holding back, clearly wanting to return to England as soon as possible but too embarrassed to say it.

Why do you want to postpone it to the afternoon now...?

“Is that so…” Lupin noticed Xilun’s confusion and explained, “Didn’t I sign up for the dueling tournament? I want to take care of this before I return to England.”

"Don't worry, it won't take long. With my current points, I only need to lose one more game to be eliminated."

……

(End of this chapter)