Chapter 489: First Customer (Edited)

The layout of the adjoining room was exactly the same as Mr. Penney's studio, but there were also some differences. The difference was that the material cabinet was not open access like the one next door but was a closed unit. In the lower-left corner, there was a coin slot, and below the slot was the material dispenser.

On the worktable, there was a small book detailing the codes and prices of each material. The procedure was that Tom selected a material, entered the code, and then placed a coin in the cabinet's slot to finally obtain the material, just like a Muggle vending machine.

And just like a vending machine, the items inside were a bit more expensive than what was sold in the market...

Tom felt like he had fallen into some sort of trap.

He firmly decided in his mind that if Mr. Penney asked for any payment for uniforms, training, or deposit, he would flee. Tom made up his mind about that.

Fortunately, Mr. Penney didn't continue with any dirty tricks. He even gave Tom a set of carving tools as a gift.

"Well, I'm going to the shop upstairs. Familiarize yourself with the surroundings here," Mr. Penney said as he left the studio, leaving Tom alone in the room.

Tom was about to do something when suddenly, the gas in the wall lamp went out with a click. Unlike the adjoining room, the gas meter here didn't have an advance warning.

Tom instinctively reached for the valve and turned the gas lamp switch. It made the same noise as a gas stove, but the gas lamp didn't light up.

Tom slapped his head. How forgetful he was! He fumbled for the gas meter and took a penny from his pocket, then inserted it into the meter.

With a clatter, the coin emitted a crisp sound and came into close contact with the ground. The coin slipped away.

Tom: ...

Was this meter meant for magical world currency? Tom, with a testing attitude, tossed a copper Knut, and this time, the meter made the noise of gears turning.

Darn it! Tom couldn't believe Mr. Penney was waiting for him here. Why did this guy like taking advantage of others so much? An alchemist like him didn't need money that badly, right? Mr. Penney didn't need money, but taking advantage of others was a kind of little indulgence he had. And in the alchemist profession, there were many people with indulgences. In comparison, Mr. Penney was quite normal.

Tom felt uncomfortable as if he had constipation as he lit the gas lamp and saw the room illuminated. But it wasn't a big problem... Penney had his own strategies, and Tom Yodel also had his own methods. Let's see how it turns out.

Tom quickly tidied up the studio and turned off the lights, then left the room.

For the rest of the day, Penney's alchemical workshop received no customers. Tom, who was bored, even had time to carve a fox mask for himself.

Mr. Penney was not in a hurry either. At noon, he and Tom enjoyed a hearty lunch together, and after finishing, he told Tom to check the store and then went to sleep in the basement. At five in the afternoon, he appeared punctually in the store with sleepy eyes, indicating that it was time to close.

Seeing him so carefree, no one would have imagined that the store's sales for the whole day had been zero.

Tom returned to Diagon Alley, and Hermione was already waiting for him at the entrance of the alley.

"Did you find the job you liked?" She looked very pleased.

Tom told her about his experience at Penney's Alchemy Workshop.

"This shop sounds very unreliable... Can you really make money?" Hermione was full of doubts, but compared to money, there was something else bothering her.

"That's Knockturn Alley! Why didn't you tell me earlier?" After inquiring about the exact location of the alchemy workshop, Hermione burst into anger.

"That's Knockturn Alley, where dark wizards gather! Do you dare to work there? Quit immediately! There are so many job opportunities in Diagon Alley!" Hermione had an extremely bad impression of Knockturn Alley.

Tom shrugged to indicate that Knockturn Alley wasn't as bad as Hermione thought. The Department of Magical Security had just cleaned it up, and now it was quite clean.

Hermione couldn't do anything about Tom's attitude. She unconsciously wanted to write to Dumbledore or Professor Flitwick, but thought it was unlikely they would intervene. For a moment, she realized she had no way to control Tom.

"As you wish." In the end, she could only stomp her foot in frustration. This Tom, she couldn't control him anymore!

It turned out that Knockturn Alley wasn't so dangerous. The unstable elements that were there before in the alley were sent to Azkaban by Minister Bones, and they weren't expected to return soon, so Tom's part-time job in Knockturn Alley had been going fairly well so far.

Of course, "fairly well" meant that no one had come to cause him trouble. As for the alchemy workshop, Tom hadn't even had a single customer.

Not many people came to the alchemy workshop, and even if there were customers, they specifically asked for Mr. Penney to do alchemy, and Tom, as a new employee, didn't have much to do with it.

Days passed one after another, and in the blink of an eye, a week had already passed.

Today, perhaps it was Tom's lucky day. Mr. Penney had to leave urgently due to an unforeseen matter, leaving the store in Tom's care. Tom felt that an opportunity was presenting itself.

When Penney is here, ask for Penney. If Penney isn't here, why not try with Tom? If he doesn't open the business soon, Tom will have to consider changing to a full-purchase cooperation. After all, if he spends the whole day there doing nothing, this part-time job is meaningless.

A figure appeared on the main street of Knockturn Alley and walked casually toward Penney's alchemy workshop, stopping in front of the door.

"I didn't expect the one in charge to be Mr. Penney..." he muttered quietly before pushing open the door to the alchemy workshop.

The door creaked open, and the welcome bell hung on the door began to ring, emitting a clear sound.

Tom looked up and recognized the visitor: Lucius Malfoy.

"Welcome to Penney's Alchemy Workshop. How may I assist you?" Tom asked.

Tom's voice caught Lucius's attention, who looked toward him and saw a person with a fox mask behind the counter. This person seemed young from his voice, and his height was not very tall, clearly not Mr. Penney.

Lucius Malfoy frowned. He was looking for the alchemist Penney, as he had heard he was a skilled alchemist who could meet his demands.

"Where is Mr. Penney?"

"Mr. Penney is not available at the moment. How can I assist you? I'm sure I can also meet your needs," Tom responded instantly.

Lucius instinctively considered rejecting this strange individual, but after thinking for a moment, it wouldn't cost him more than a few Knuts, and he was already here, so he didn't want to leave directly, which would be a bit unsatisfying.

"I need an alchemical item that combines attack and defense. Can you make it?"

"Of course I can!" Tom responded immediately.