Chapter 168: What Does He Want to Do

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Lately, Hertock had been feeling particularly unlucky. He managed to mysteriously lose his Gold Membership Card while watching an opera in France, and his previously smooth potion research suddenly encountered a series of problems, hitting a bottleneck.

Even consuming the Felix Felicis potion from his reserves didn't improve his luck.

Hertock hadn't reported the incident of the lost Gold Membership Card to the Extraordinary Potion Masters' Association, nor had he dared to tell anyone else about it.

Sometimes, knowing too many people would only bring a lot of trouble.

Hertock never expected that placing a lost item ad in the Daily Prophet would help him retrieve his Gold Membership Card.

Through his connections, Hertock had someone help him make a prediction: the Gold Membership Card would be brought to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Currently, he should go to Hogwarts and consult with Dumbledore, identifying one student at a time until he found the boy who had picked up the Gold Membership Card.

However, this was undoubtedly not a good idea.

Just when Hertock was still struggling with this matter, someone sent him a letter through an owl. The letter read: "You seem to have encountered some troubles. I can offer you assistance."

Attached: Eight o'clock in the evening, I enjoy having evening tea on the terrace.

The sender was called: Bard Broad.

Hertock knew Bard Broad. Both of them were members of Wisengamot, but they hadn't had many conversations.

After all, their expertise and areas of communication were entirely different.

Different trades have different rules.

However, Hertock still intended to visit Bard Broad. Since the person had written to him, it surely wasn't aimless.

Quarter to eight.

Hertock arrived early at the lakeside. The cool breeze blew on his face, temporarily dispelling the summer heat.

"He really is someone who enjoys life," Hertock looked up into the distance, squinting his eyes slightly. He murmured, "They actually prohibit the use of the Patronus Charm here?"

Hertock illuminated the tip of his wand and walked along the lakeshore until he stopped at a dilapidated dock, gazing at the only small, shabby boat on the dock, lost in momentary silence.

Hertock stepped onto the boat, and it sailed toward the small island in the middle of the lake under the cover of darkness.

After a short time, the boat arrived at the dock on the lake island. A house-elf was waiting there to greet Hertock.

"The master asked me to wait for you here, Mr. Hertock Diggory. Please follow me," the house-elf bowed to Hertock and then led the way with an oil lamp.

They walked on a pebble-paved path and passed through several defensive enchantments before entering the estate.

"Good evening, Hertock. You arrived earlier than I expected," Broad greeted his guest, sitting at a round table on the terrace.

"I'm here. Tell me, what good news do you have?" Hertock suppressed his inner anxiety and asked.

"Oh, it seems the rumors are true. You lost something valuable," Broad smiled and gestured for Hertock to take a seat.

Hertock sat down and patiently listened to Broad's small talk. As long as Broad could provide him with useful information, he didn't mind waiting a little longer.

"I have a young friend who recently wrote to me, telling me about some strange incidents," Broad poured some red wine into Hertock's glass and continued, "He said he just returned from vacation in France but received a letter from the Ministry of Magic, claiming he used the Levitation Charm in France. However, in reality, he just finished his first year and hadn't even learned how to use the Levitation Charm."

Hertock opened his mouth but ultimately didn't say anything.

"He brought me this gift from his vacation in France—Muggle red wine. It feels quite nice," Broad said, smirking as he looked at Hertock.

No matter how foolish one might be, they could understand the meaning behind Broad's words. The little friend Broad referred to was likely the boy who had picked up Hertock's Gold Membership Card.

"What's his name?" Hertock took a deep breath and lowered his voice, asking.

Broad didn't answer immediately but calmly looked at Hertock and responded, "How do you plan to handle this matter? Are you going to confront him directly and demand the item back?"

"It seems like it's none of your concern?" Hertock blurted out but immediately regretted it.

"Of course, it does concern me," Broad assessed Hertock from top to bottom and shook his head. "It seems you need a glass of red wine on the rocks to cool down."

Hertock fell silent. It was only after a long while that he said, "I apologize. I was rude. I've encountered a lot of unfortunate events recently, and my temper is a bit short."

"I understand," Broad didn't blame Hertock for his impoliteness and handed him the letter Albert had written to him.

After reading the letter, Hertock looked up and asked, "What do you want me to do?"

"It's not about what I want," Broad corrected, "It seems you've caused some trouble for that young friend of mine."

"I will compensate him," Hertock quickly replied.

"Oh, oh, it seems you... didn't understand what I said," Broad interlaced his hands, looking at Hertock and kindly reminded him, "He doesn't need any compensation from you. You just need to clean up the mess you've caused."

"A mess?" Hertock repeated softly.

"Isn't it?" Broad countered.

"To some extent, it is indeed a mess," Hertock didn't deny it, "but it's not a big deal."

"For him, it might be a big deal," Broad said.

Hertock fell silent and nodded again, indicating that he understood.

"Thank you, Mr. Broad," Hertock stood up, expressing his gratitude to Broad before preparing to leave.

"Don't you want to stay and have a cup of evening tea together?" Broad smiled and asked in return, "We can sit down and chat..."

"No, thank you," Hertock firmly refused, "I appreciate your kindness, but I'm busy. I have a lot to do and not much time to enjoy leisurely moments."

"I think you'll be willing to sit down and chat with me soon," Broad didn't mind and smiled at Hertock, "We won't meet here next time."

Hertock left the lakeside cottage and returned to the shore on the small, shabby boat. He now knew the name of the boy and what awaited him was to negotiate with him and retrieve his Gold Membership Card.

"He's gone!"

Just as Hertock left, McGonagall smiled and sat in Hertock's vacant seat, picking up the untouched wine glass and taking a sip of red wine. She smacked her lips and said, "It tastes good. But Anderson didn't send me a bottle."

"Because I'm his professor!" Broad touched his beard and laughed cheerfully.

"Do you think Hertock will succeed?".

"If he cleans up the mess he's caused, he'll get his item back," Broad said with a smile.

"By the way, why did you meet Hertock here with me?" McGonagall asked.

That's right, the lakeside cottage was actually one of McGonagall's homes. Although it was called a cottage, it was actually a small estate.

"That guy definitely won't be able to retrieve his Gold Membership Card. If he comes here looking for me, he won't find anyone," Broad said happily.

"How did you guess it was the Gold Membership Card?" McGonagall asked.

"Otherwise, what do you think would make Hertock put so much effort into finding it?" Broad said joyfully.

"Then why..."

"Why did he fail?" Broad countered.

"Well..."

"Anderson is different from other children," Broad said softly, "If Hertock wants to solve this matter by compensating, he'll definitely face disappointment."

"Well, I heard that Lawrance intends to become the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts," McGonagall suddenly changed the topic.

"That...," Broad sipped his red wine and frowned.

McGonagall's tone became very serious, and she furrowed her brows slightly, "What is he going to do at Hogwarts?"

"Gabe knows about this?" Broad suddenly asked.

"Not sure for now," McGonagall shook her head, "Go and ask him to find out what's going on!"

"Gabe definitely won't tell Lawrance about the inheritance issue just because they're related by blood," Broad directly rejected the most likely scenario, "As a direct descendant of the Smiths, he must have seen some relevant records. Lawrance is very clever, and he probably deduced something from those records."

"He's clever, but unfortunately, his personality isn't suitable," McGonagall said softly, "And... forget it, anyway, two suitable candidates have emerged now. We'll just choose one of them later."

"Well, until then, keep an eye on them."

"I will," McGonagall smiled and swirled her tall glass, "This wine is good. By the way, I won the last bet, didn't I?"

"I remember you gave away most of your books, right!" Broad shook his head helplessly, "How many books did you actually sell?"

"Probably about half of them?" McGonagall thought for a moment and smiled, "I'm a good loser."

"Alright, he's yours," Broad pointed to the open bottle of red wine. After saying that, he poured himself a small glass.

"Come on, let's go find Gabe and figure out this matter," McGonagall walked towards the fireplace with half a bottle of red wine. Broad followed behind her and disappeared into the fireplace, engulfed by the emerald flames.

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(End of this chapter)