Chapter 11 A big profit

Luke and Luna sat on the floor surrounded by a group of kittens while Booker lay on Luna's lap, looking down at the kittens with a look of victorious pride.

　　Luna gently smoothed Booker's fur while looking at Luke beside her. He was carrying the copy of Singing the Contrary, with a rather serious look on his face, still smiling but much better than the disdain most people had. She didn't know why she had an inexplicable feeling of affection for the boy at the first sight of him. Was it because he was just so handsome?

　　But then Luna shook her head, good looking people did take advantage, but she didn't think she was someone who would care so much about her face.

　　"Er, the story of the bent horned snoring beast ..."

　　Luke looked over at Luna with a puzzled look on his face.

　　"The bent horned snoring beasts are real, they're supposed to live in Sweden and my father and I had plans to go looking for them!"

　　Luna said as soon as she heard the words bent-horned snoring beasts, still in a light tone, but that tone was quite firm.

　　Luke could only nod at this and then smiled, "Yes, we can go looking for them together, I'm interested in this magical creature too."

　　Luke didn't know where that inexplicable connection between Luna and himself had come from, but his instincts told him it should be a good thing.

　　Luke himself had quite a bit of affection for Luna, and with that connection added to the mix, he was even more reluctant to piss Luna off over something so minor.

　　Though according to Luna's character, she shouldn't be angry at something like this either is all.

　　"Luke!"

　　Professor McGonagall opened the door and called out to Luke.

　　"I'm here, what is it Professor?"

　　Luke looked up in response. But by the look of his calm face, it was clear that he was prepared for the shout.

　　"Come over here, Catherine has something to discuss with you."

　　Professor McGonagall said with a smile.

　　Luke didn't hesitate much and walked over. Honestly, he hadn't really thought before that the Gunter family actually had so many more relationships to deal with. He had underestimated the mess left behind by a family with a long heritage after all.

　　As he approached the lounge, both Professor McGonagall and Lady Catherine looked fairly normal, although they smelled a little of alcohol.

　　"You're watching Singing the Contrary?"

　　Professor McGonagall asked with a puzzled look on her face as she saw the magazine Luke held in his hand.

　　"Er, yes, there are some things that seem a bit absurd, but it's still a book that deserves to be taken seriously. At least this editor-in-chief has the courage to offer a different perspective."

　　Luke admired such people. He's always been a firm believer that nothing is ever completely good. So even if all the vocal outlets were praising it, at least one person had to point out the flaws and disadvantages.

　　"Xenophilius is indeed such a man, but of course it would be nice if his views were a little more factual."

　　Professor McGonagall said, somewhat reluctantly.

　　When he had finished, Professor McGonagall pointed to the chairs at the table.

　　"Sit down first, this matter is important to you too. If you really don't want to, then don't say yes."

　　Hearing Professor McGonagall's words, Luke's mood calmed down a bit, and then blandly sat down in his chair and looked across at Catherine, only now his eyes were, obviously, not as gentle. There was still a smile on his face, but there was also a vague air of superiority springing up.

　　Catherine took a deep breath, then prepared to speak.

　　"Lady Catherine, you wanted to come and discuss with me about the pact between the Lance family and the Gaunt family, right?"

　　Luke's sudden opening knocked half of Lady Catherine's pent-up energy out of her. But she still had to speak with a stiff upper lip.

　　"Yes, I wish to be released from this pact.

"

　　Luke leaned back in his chair, his expression relaxing a trifle, and smiled, "I wasn't actually aware of the existence of this pact until I came here. Of course, I would have known sooner or later, after all, even if you hadn't mentioned it, the other nobles would always have warned me about it, especially those families who had feuds with the Lance family."

　　"You should be grateful to have a friend like Professor McGonagall."

　　"That deed wasn't signed by my ancestors, so to speak, at the time of the separation of the families, and although both had the surname Gunther, they weren't very related anymore. I don't agree with the deed itself, and the harm it has done to you. So I am willing to cancel this deed."

　　"But there is a price for that."

　　Luke chuckled, "Now, let me see your price."

　　Luke's casual and condescending look really brought back a lot of bad memories for Catherine. But nay, she was still the same as before and had little room for resistance at all. Back then they had relied on this contract to keep the family.

　　Then what they were suffering now was actually the fruit of that. Luke's willingness to break the pact today was largely a matter of giving Professor McGonagall face.

　　"We are willing to pay enough money ..."

　　"I hope you will be more sincere, Lady Catherine." Luke spoke again and interrupted Catherine, "Surely Professor McGonagall has told you that I am not short of money. Or do you think that your Lance family already has a lot more money now than the Gunter family inheritance?"

　　Catherine looked up at Professor McGonagall and, noticing that by now Professor McGonagall was also looking at herself a little coldly, knew that her proposal from her husband was ill-advised to a certain extent.

　　So she simply threw out her bottom line.

　　"Our Lance family was previously given a sufficiently old magical notebook. According to our research, this note belonged to Godric Gryffindor. And this note has all of it written in his unique secret language. I believe this note is valuable enough."

　　"On top of that, we will provide enough for the estate. Although you have a lot of money, these estates are a must for a nobleman, after all, sitting on your hands is not an option."

　　"And finally ..." Katherine gritted her teeth, "we will trade for a place on the Hogwarts Council from another family and give it to you."

　　Professor McGonagall was shocked at such a grand gesture.

　　Luke, on the other hand, was happy inside. But his face remained perfectly composed.

　　"Great offer, I have no reason to refuse."

　　Said Luke, holding out his hand.

　　"When you have everything ready, come to me for the deal."

　　Catherine's face was complicated, with both a sense of relief and a few moments of flesh.

　　"Yes, we'll raise it as soon as we can."

　　"By the way, let me ask, what is your relationship with Luna, madam?"

　　Catherine looked at Luke a little strangely, but since the boy in front of her was only eleven years old, she didn't look at him with more than a passing glance.

　　"I'm friends with Pandora Lovegood, Luna's mother, and Xenophilius occasionally gets rambunctiously busy, so Luna sometimes comes to stay with me for a while."

　　Luke could roughly guess the tone of Luna's feelings for the lady in front of him.

　　"Yes, thank you for clearing that up, Lady Catherine."

　　With that, he simply got up and walked out of the lounge.

　　Catherine watched Luke's departing back with a slightly odd face and no light frown.

　　"Minerva, they are still children ..."

　　Catherine spoke to Professor McGonagall with some complexity.

　　"Luke is more mature, but don't worry, he's very measured. And, I have a feeling that, for the moment at least, it should be more curiosity between them."

　　Professor McGonagall was also a little surprised, she hadn't expected Luke to be so direct, and wondered what magic that little girl called Luna Lovegood had that had gotten Luke to take the initiative.

　　"You seem to have a lot of trust in him."

　　Catherine looked at her friend a little strangely. This was more than just a teacher's attitude towards her student.

　　Professor McGonagall pondered for a moment, then said, "He's just giving too much."

　　Kathryn: ????