Chapter 443: Richie's Concerns (Edited)

Tom and Hermione returned to Hogwarts a day before the new school year began. Miraculously, they had completed all their tasks.

"We can finally rest a bit," Tom said as he leaned back in a chair in the common room, enjoying the warm fire beside him, feeling particularly comfortable.

Hermione sat across from him, doing the final review of the tasks. Perhaps because they had finished all the assignments, her mood seemed to be exceptionally good, humming a song while correcting errors in Tom's essay with a quill.

"This quill is really good," her eyes curved into crescent moons as she crossed out some incorrect phrases in the essay. At that moment, Richie, the captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, found Tom and gave him a pat on the shoulder, signaling him to come closer to talk.

"I hope you have enriching and happy Christmas holidays," Richie said formally.

Tom raised an eyebrow. His Christmas holidays were going to be much more than enriching.

Richie looked around and, not seeing anyone, leaned against the wall and whispered, "When I arrived at Hogwarts today, I received three pieces of news. The first is that the Dementors in the vicinity of Hogwarts have completely withdrawn."

This was natural. As soon as Operation "Whirlwind" began, Tom withdrew all the remaining Dementors from the vicinity of Hogwarts. They were now at the White Dolphin Prison, taking shifts.

In a letter, Mr. Borgin informed Tom that the White Dolphin Prison now had nearly a thousand dangerous criminals and was operating normally. The prisoners had fallen in love with their work, and the guards ordered them to return to the rest areas, but they refused. There were even some conflicts, but Peter dealt with them severely. The leaders received a full week of solitary confinement in their individual cells, and their right to work in the factory area was revoked. They would have to wait until their confinement was over to line up again. With the current high demand in the factory area, it would be lucky if they could get a spot after a month.

Once isolation was implemented, all the prisoners became obedient. They behaved well and could rest in the dining hall three times a day. If they misbehaved, they were kept in complete confinement for a week. There was also a rumor in the prison: there were invisible creatures constantly watching everyone in the rest areas. No one could commit suicide here, nor escape. The administration seemed very relaxed, but in reality, it was the most difficult prison to escape from in the world.

To compete for a place in the prison factory, the prisoners became increasingly competitive in terms of quality and quantity. Only those who worked fast and well could stay in the factory. There was a minimum wage for factory work. Prisoners would choose to spend their entire salary in the store.

The store was located in the work area, and as long as they paid, they could stay there for a while. The store owner, an unpleasant hunchbacked man, had a black heart. Even sitting and doing nothing in his store required money.

Prisoners earned one pound per hour and worked eight hours a day, while seats in the store were sold for ten pounds per hour, with a minimum of half an hour. This means that a prisoner can only sit in the store for half an hour after working all day.

Regarding the remaining three pounds, Borgin had already planned something for the prisoners. He patiently presented a snack package: a cup of tea or coffee with a cookie, all for three pounds. It was the perfect snack for prisoners to enjoy during their breaks.

After work, going to the store was a true heavenly delight. All of this depended on whether they could get a spot.

The space in the store was limited, and the prison guards prohibited prisoners from queuing outside the store. Therefore, after work, prisoners had to rely on their luck to be the fortunate ones to get a spot or spend money to buy the right to use a seat from those who arrived first.

Those who were lucky could buy other treats in the store and take them back to the rest area. Chocolate and beer were especially popular in the store, as they relieved the extreme cold of the rest area. A thumb-sized piece of chocolate cost ten pounds, as did a small cup of beer.

Of all the prisoners, Villanelle and Ames were the happiest. Both had become regular employees in the cafeteria and had to go there punctually every day, which provoked envy from the other prisoners. But that wasn't their biggest advantage. The two had successfully monopolized the supply of vodka in the prison. The vodka they obtained from the cafeteria's grandmother allowed them to numb their brains and make the despair brought by the Dementors not so palpable. If they could get drunk before returning, it would be even better, as they wouldn't feel the despair that the Dementors brought after passing out.

...

After the Dementors withdrew, it was great news for Gryffindor, as they no longer had to worry about their Seeker falling from the sky during matches. After the match in the pouring rain, some doubts arose in Gryffindor about their team's Seeker.

They weren't concerned about Harry's skills but rather his resistance to the Dementors. Gryffindor believed they could beat the other three Houses in terms of pure skill on the field, but the Dementors were clearly an external factor. Some even thought about finding a replacement for Harry.

But when they learned that the Dementors had gone, those voices disappeared. However, Slytherin was quite disappointed.

After discussing the Dementors, Richie's expression became serious. "I've heard some news; it seems Harry has received a Firebolt, a real and authentic one... This news is completely reliable..."

A Firebolt would be more than enough to outperform any other broom. The Gryffindor Quidditch team, with a Firebolt, would be like having the air force with fourth-generation fighter jets, giving them a significant advantage over the other three Houses, which generally had third-generation or third-and-a-half-generation fighter planes.

After hearing the news, Richie couldn't sleep well and rushed to find Tom after learning that he had returned to school. He hoped that Tom could fully return and leverage the absolute advantage they had in the Seeker search, trying to open up a big lead in points to secure victory. As for those who had the idea that their Seeker should find the Golden Snitch before Harry, Richie thought they should wash their faces with cold water.

Tom's expression became strange. "A Firebolt? I just received one for Christmas."