The mastermind behind Hogwarts

Chapter 64 The Grandeur of Athens

The bearded man gladly accepted the gems and patted his chest, assuring them that he wouldn't deceive Moriarty and Lilith just because they were young. In fact, he had managed to thrive in the chaotic world of Athenian wizards, so his judgment was naturally sharp.

What little wizard throws out gems right away? Especially gems he's never seen before.

"Come on, you two, follow me." The bearded man led the way, then turned to Moriarty and introduced the street: "This street is called Sosskisrose Street, a combination of your London's Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley."

I'm very proud of this. Dark magic was prevalent in Greece, and the man who brought it there—you should know him, the international magic community habitually calls him the despicable Helbo! Haha, that's him.

The bearded man was very talkative. He said his name was Uria Candisletto and kindly advised Moriarty not to wander into the shops on either side of the street.

Moriarty nodded in agreement, and just in case, he held the Slytherin staff in his hand—he had briefly stored the staff in his system space when boarding the plane.

They strolled through the streets and came across a wooden shop with a black window display filled with rag dolls, each with a crooked, eerie smile.

A shop next door had a sign with ancient runes on it, which Moriarty recognized this time. He read it softly: "Light the candle on the seabed, cut your neck with a silver knife, and you will come to Ferdowdo Grocery Store."

"What is this? A death curse? It sounds like magic that summons the dead?" Lilith became interested, but when she saw that the shop floor was blood red and that baskets of bat spleens and whale eyeballs were piled up at the entrance, she gave up the idea of ​​going into the shop.

A low, hoarse hooting sound came from a dimly lit shop. Lilith guessed it was the sound of an owl. Uncle Uria shook his head: "I really hope you never know what's in there." He then glanced at the shop with pity and walked away quickly.

The shops they saw next were much more normal, including shops selling robes, shops selling telescopes and various statues, and many strange and unusual silver items that Lilith had never seen before.

Moriarty could tell at a glance that the silverware sold in the market was all fake, but many foreigners still bought it in large quantities.

"Athens is an inclusive city; foreigners come here every day," the man said proudly. "I must recommend Senpousaran; it's the best place to gather information!"

The uncle pointed to a golden temple not far away, with several dim pumpkin lanterns hanging on it, and a large group of people gathered at the entrance.

"How did you know we wanted to gather information?" Lilith asked, her voice filled with suspicion.

The older man gave her a sly smile and looked at Moriarty, saying, "Where are you going? It'll be very convenient for you with me here."

"Of course, this is the best chance to prove your worth!" Moriarty took out another emerald and waved it in front of the old man, making the old man's eyes widen before he put the gem away and said, "Lead the way."

On their way to Shengbosaran, Moriarty instructed Lilith, "Stay close to me at all times."

Lilith happily took Moriarty's arm, her face radiant, as if she were attending a pureblood banquet.

Upon reaching the entrance of Shengbosalan, one finds a stone gate formed by seven marble steps, where a chaotic crowd is huddled together.

"Make way! Make way!" The middle-aged man pushed through the crowd and shouted, "What's the game today?"

Someone told him, "Thirty Galleons or some trinkets of the same value."

"Stingy Shengbosalan!" the uncle cursed angrily. "The price's gone up again! Here you go, you mountain troll's dung!"

A burst of laughter erupted from the crowd. "Boss Uria is so awesome!"

The man pulled a box that had been shrunk by a shrinking spell from his pocket and threw it inside. Several angry curses came from inside, but the man didn't care. He forcefully pushed aside the crowd outside to make way for Moriarty. "Let's go!" the man said with a smile.

Since they were communicating in Greek, Moriarty couldn't understand it, so he asked. The man told Moriarty that what they called "shuaizi" was like a membership card, except that the value of the shuaizi changed every day.

Sometimes it's cheap, you can get a few nats' worth of coins. Sometimes it's expensive—Gringotts is just across the street from Shengbosaran, so if you can't afford coins, you can go to Gringotts to get money.

"But it doesn't matter, Boss Uria still has some influence on this street!" the uncle said smugly.

Moriarty and Lilith nodded in deep agreement; using dung as a scapegoat was truly unique.

As they entered Shengbosalan, a large group of guests greeted Uncle Uria, and a man dressed as a waiter greeted him.

Most of the guests focused their attention on Moriarty and Lilith.

They heard a woman cry out in a weak voice, "Oh! Spare me! Why are there so many British kids coming to Shengbosaran lately? British blood doesn't taste good at all! It smells like petrol!"

Moriarty and Lilith exchanged a glance. It seemed like another vampire.

As they looked around, the first thing that caught their eye was a wide silver counter, inside which sat two bartenders in tailcoats, their heads seemingly covered in a bag of excrement, as they busily cleaned themselves with wands.

A stone tablet stands on the counter, inscribed with various wines and potions in ancient runes, along with their corresponding prices.

Below that was a smaller note: "For any secret communications, please hand over 100 Galleons."

Moriarty noted down the information and turned to scan the room.

The interior was nothing like an elegant counter; hundreds of wooden tables and chairs were haphazardly placed on the stone floor, and the place was packed with people.

Moriarty saw wizards, witches, Indian priests, people wrapped in black robes, skinny men who looked like mummies, and many pot-bellied bald men.

Having a full beard seems to be fashionable here; at least a hundred people have full beards.

The smells of leather, tobacco, corpses, fish, spiciness, cloying sweetness, blood, various alcohols, and a pungent odor from the aftermath of lovemaking all mingled together, eagerly burrowing into Moriarty and Lilith's nostrils.

Lilith choked and sneezed, immediately attracting the attention of many men. Their eyes gleamed with lust as they greedily scanned Lilith from head to toe.

Lilith's heart skipped a beat, and she gripped Moriarty's arm tightly. Moriarty felt that Lilith's nails were about to tear his clothes apart.

The middle-aged man rested his arm on the counter, watching the scene with a leisurely air, wanting to see what Moriarty would do.

"A Long Island Iced Tea, with a pint of euphoria!" Moriarty said coldly, glancing at one of the bartenders. "And a lemonade, with an ounce of tranquilizer."

Moriarty tapped his staff, and a neat stack of Galleons appeared on the counter. The bartender hurriedly cleaned his head before rushing off to mix drinks.

When the other guests heard Moriarty's unique way of ordering drinks, they realized that Moriarty was a connoisseur and put away their underestimation of him.

Uncle Uriah laughed and clapped, drawing all attention to him. He said to Moriarty, "How did you come up with the idea of ​​adding strong liquor and potions together? I'll try it too, I hope it tastes good!"

Hmm... let me think... give me a Bloody Mary with a pint of soothing agent!

"The soothing medicine doesn't taste good," the waiter said to the older man, only to be chased away by the man.

The man turned to look at Moriarty, his expression turning into a smile. He found a table in the corner and sat down with Moriarty.

Lilith relaxed a bit, her big eyes regaining their sparkle, and she curiously surveyed the surrounding guests and environment. Moriarty casually brought up the topic: "There seem to be a lot of vampires around here?"

(End of this chapter)