The Return to Hogwarts

Amosta certainly hadn't forgotten that a few months ago, when he came to Paris for a question-and-answer session about the Triwizard Tournament, it was these two little devils who 'kidnapped' him from that devil hotel.

"Golden spears and flute playing—"

Amosta walked to the dining table, looked at the two little ones who were silent as cicadas in fear, and smiled.

"If I remember your names correctly, you seem to be recovering well?"

That night, he, along with Jin Ge and La Di (both with missing arms) and a group of guard fairies, clashed in this office. The two fairies were seriously injured; normally, they would be crippled even if they didn't die. But judging from their upright posture, their bodies should be fine.

“They should thank you for your restraint, Mr. Blaine--”

Suddenly, the hidden door at the other end of the room opened, and Mr. Barna, dressed in a silver-green robe with a few strands of dark green beard interspersed among his graying hair, slowly walked into his office. After entering the room, he adjusted his reading glasses perched on his long nose, and after confirming that the visitor was indeed Amosta Blaine, his aged body moved with surprising agility, stopping only when he stood before Amosta.

"Welcome, Mr. Blaine--"

The old fox extended his somewhat withered hand towards Amosta. Amosta chuckled, bent down, and shook Mr. Barna's hand a few times.

"I hope my uninvited visit will not cause you any trouble, Mr. Barna—"

Ladi and Jingo pulled out the soft chairs for Amosta and Bana to sit down. Their movements were shaky, not because of Mr. Bana, but because of Amosta Blaine.

The fairies are always well-informed, and even if they sent a message by snail, news of Amost Blaine's epic duel in the Quidditch World Cup final would have reached their ears long ago.

After learning the details of the battle through the goblins' unique channels, all the goblins who participated in the kidnapping that night and were still alive were terrified. When they came to their senses, they realized that if it weren't for Mr. Barna's wisdom, perhaps the goblins of Gringotts World Bank would have all perished on the night they carried out the kidnapping.

Amostah noticed the cold sweat on the forehead of the goblin named Jingo. He smiled slightly, but unexpectedly, his supposedly gentle smile made the one-armed goblin tremble violently, and its dark green skin turned pale.

So he could only turn his attention to the delicate pastries and exquisite teacups on the table, and the steaming green tea.

"It seems you understand my habits very well?"

Amosta said with a chuckle.

"You've been in Paris for several months, Mr. Blaine—"

The shrewd old fox nodded slightly and said in a hoarse voice,

"Therefore, it's not difficult to inquire about your personal habits. We are equally well-versed in the etiquette of wizards, and a distinguished guest like you deserves our hospitality. We only hope you won't feel neglected—"

"Hehe, of course not—"

Amostah picked up his teacup, took a small sip, savoring the unique bitterness. Looking into the eyes of the old fox across the table, he could clearly sense the wariness and probing in them. He smiled faintly.

"Ah, that's really good—"

Amosta pointed with his gaze to the green leaves floating in the exquisite teacup.

“I must admit, Mr. Barna, I have never tasted such fragrant and refreshing tea before. Oh, I’m already a little regretful. If I had accepted your invitation to cooperate, I might have been able to taste it sooner!”

Amostella was referring to the letter Old Barna had written to him, requesting that he use the Triwizard Tournament as an opportunity to advertise at the tournament. Amostella had refused, not only because he didn't want the Triwizard Tournament to be overly commercialized.

This is also because Gerson Barner, who was in charge of the Gringotts World Bank, wrote to him for this small reward, and his motives were not pure. He was just using this seemingly reasonable pretext to send himself gold.

"It is its honor to receive your appreciation--"

The old vixen smiled slyly.

"Of course, it is indeed my regret that we were unable to reach a cooperation agreement—"

Du--

Amosta set down his teacup, his fingers interlaced on the edge of the table. He gazed at the shrewd old man, Gerson Barna, whose eyes, though seemingly dull, constantly gleamed with a sharp light, and smiled slightly.

"My purpose in coming here is precisely to make up for my regrets—"

Chapter 540 Cooperation with the Fairies

2023-10-17

"I came here precisely to make up for my regrets—"

When Amosta casually uttered those words, a brief silence fell over the room. Mr. Barna watched Amosta Blaine across from him without flinching, the creases on his skin, which was as wrinkled as old tree bark, deepening.

"This is truly a pleasant surprise, Mr. Blaine—"

Mr. Barna spoke slowly and deliberately, without revealing the slightest hint of his surging surprise. How could a wizard like Amosta Blaine go back on his decision? He narrowed his eyes, displaying just the right amount of delight.

“I must thank you for your leniency, Mr. Blaine. Of course, you need not worry about the payment. In this matter, the goblins will not take any fees. All advertising fees belong to Hogwarts.”

"Please don't misunderstand, Mr. Barna--"

Amosta chuckled softly.

"I still don't intend to let those motley crew of workshops or companies advertise during the Triwizard Tournament at Hogwarts. This isn't the Quidditch World Cup; such a commercial atmosphere is inappropriate."

Under the focused gaze of Bana, Amosta pulled something from his pocket, turned and handed it to Jingo beside him. The little elf, who had been anxiously watching Amosta, was stunned for several seconds before recovering. He hurriedly took the item with his one hand and ran to deliver it to the other side of the dining table.

"This is--"

Mr. Barna fiddled with what Amosta Blaine had brought out, adjusted his reading glasses perched on his nose, and said without hesitation,

"This is the surveillance mirror you mentioned in the security report you submitted to the competition judging panel at the Wizarding Council meeting. It's a very interesting invention and also very practical. The fairies have done an internal evaluation, and if this thing can be mass-produced, it will be another huge market."

Bana's voice became more animated.

"Yes, this thing is indeed widely used, but—"

Amosta said with a smile.

"For several reasons, I personally do not want it to be used on a large scale in the daily lives of wizards. Mr. Barna, now that you have some understanding of the surveillance mirror, have you considered using it to broadcast the Triwizard Tournament live?"

The old goblin was truly stunned this time; it hadn't expected Amostra Blaine to make such a suggestion, but—

In Europe, all countries with Gringotts are broadcasting the three-way championship live.

The cloudiness in Gerson Barna's eyes was quickly replaced by a sharp glint.

"Is it possible to play the video at the appropriate time?"

Bana sat up straight, his back slightly hunched, his tone revealing surprise and doubt.

"We need some methods--"

Amosta nodded slightly.

"You can partner with WWN (Wizard Radio Network), paying them to use the signal receiving stations they've established across Europe. With just some adjustments to the monitoring equipment, there shouldn't be any problems. While the Triwizard Tournament is merely a competition for junior wizards, this traditional event holds a significant place in the magical history of Europe. I believe many will be interested in it—"

It all started with interest!

Even the two little fairies, Jin Ge and La Di, realized just how much wealth was hidden here!

Tickets to watch the game are just the basics. The advertising placed at various viewing sites and the Gallon that can be earned by the betting organized by the fairies are unimaginable. When Amosta Blaine refused to cooperate in producing surveillance mirrors, Mr. Barna was a little disappointed, but now, the blood flowing in the veins of his old body has completely surged.

“This is indeed a very good business, Mr. Blaine--”

The old witch's hoarse voice was tinged with excitement.

"With this brilliant idea, you will become one of the wealthiest wizards, Mr. Blaine. And if we can extend this method to Quidditch league matches, then—"

Amosta raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised.

This fairy has a good business sense; it only started something, and it immediately innovated.

This is indeed an idea that can generate a continuous stream of wealth, but there are still many hurdles to overcome before it can become a stable source of wealth.

Watching the old fox envisioning the industry's future, Amosta tapped his finger on the table.

“Your business acumen is very sharp, Mr. Barna, but we can talk about these long-term things later. Right now, we need to focus on the broadcast of the Triwizard Tournament.”

“Ah, please forgive my rudeness, Mr. Blaine—”

The old goblin immediately snapped out of its reverie and bowed slightly to Amosta.

"I haven't come up with such a brilliant idea in a long time. Ah, of course, we're currently discussing the live broadcast of the Triwizard Tournament. We need to hurry up and reach an agreement with WWN, as well as rent venues and newspapers across Europe for advertising. But this will still bring us huge profits, you see—"

"The fairy needs to pay me ten percent of the profits—"

Amostella smiled and said something that the fairy found unbelievable.

"This 10% of the profits will be paid to the warriors who participated in the Triwizard Tournament as a thank you for their wonderful performances in the European magical world."

In other words, Amosta Blaine has no intention of interfering with any of the remaining profits; they all belong to the fairies.

This is impossible!

Gerson Barner made his judgment instantly.

Throughout his long career, he encountered many traps set by cunning wizards. These traps were all wrapped in tempting cloaks, but if you were truly blinded by greed and dared to take them, you would suffer unbearable losses.

Fairies are always pursuing the greatest profit, but that doesn't mean they'll be blinded by the lure of gold. In fact, it's precisely because of their desire for wealth that fairies are more ruthless than most wizards.

"Thank you for your generosity, Mr. Blaine--"

Gerson Barna calmed down, and its voice regained its alertness.

"But I think that since you contributed this brilliant idea, you and Hogwarts should also be well rewarded for it, shouldn't you?"

"Don't misunderstand, Mr. Barna--"

Amosta maintained his charming smile.

"Neither Hogwarts nor I will take a single gold coin from the revenue generated by the live-streamed events, but that doesn't mean we have no other desires."

Looking at the old demon listening intently, Amosta calmly said,

"On the surface, the goblins focus on Gringotts' banking business, but in reality, the goblins are involved in many industries in private. In addition to investments, you have various alchemy workshops directly controlled in various countries. What I need is an alchemy workshop in the UK with complete production functions."