Chapter 61: The Gears of Fate and Quidditch

As the Christmas holiday came to an end, everything at Hogwarts returned to its usual routine.

However, the only difference lay in the students' attitudes.

It seemed that the break had been a mistake. Instead of bringing back joy and happiness from the holiday, every student's face was clouded with gloom.

One might think they had experienced some tragic events during the holiday.

In this atmosphere, Hogwarts achieved a rare unity. All the students, including those from Slytherin, wore expressions of unhappiness.

But this melancholy didn't last long.

It seemed the professors understood the students' minds well. After the Christmas holiday, the annual Quidditch House Cup began.

This event, which unfolded in the second half of the school year and lasted six months, would ignite everyone's emotions.

Yes, everyone! Not just the students, but also many Quidditch-loving professors and Quidditch enthusiasts from around Hogsmeade.

But Ino didn't care about all this commotion and change. He was more fascinated by the wonders of Animagus transformation.

In the days following the holiday, with the help of Madam Pince, he found many books on Transfiguration, especially the past issues of *Transfiguration Today* that the library had.

Among these, there were even papers written and published by Dumbledore when he was the Transfiguration professor over sixty years ago.

This was truly a treasure trove of knowledge!

While thanking Madam Pince, Ino absorbed this valuable knowledge like a sponge.

In these books, he also found a solution to the problem of holding the Mandrake leaf in his mouth for the Animagus transformation. After all, keeping a leaf in one's mouth for an entire month didn't seem very realistic.

However, the solution to this problem was simple. A Sticking Charm could easily fix it, making the Mandrake leaf stick firmly to the roof of his mouth.

Although this somewhat affected daily life, it was the only feasible solution.

...

Evening.

After having dinner in the Great Hall, Ino quietly left.

On his way back, there were no meaningless conversations or magical encounters; he just returned to his dormitory in a simple, straightforward manner.

Although it was somewhat dull and monotonous, he enjoyed this life, where he could absorb magical knowledge every day and read about past glories.

After all, the feeling of loneliness is more about spiritual and mental emptiness, an inner desolation.

In the dormitory.

As he opened the door, he saw Draco lying on the table, secretly laughing and doodling.

Ino was used to Draco's intermittent antics. After all, it wasn't uncommon for him to laugh wildly in his sleep at night. Seeing him laugh alone at the table was just a minor incident.

Meanwhile, upon hearing the dormitory door open, Draco immediately stood up.

"Ino, what do you think of this? We'll use it to cheer for the team tomorrow and watch Scarhead make a fool of himself!"

Draco held a two-foot-tall painting of the Slytherin crest, flashing dark green. It looked beautiful even from a distance.

"Quidditch, tomorrow?" Ino asked somewhat belatedly.

His recent life had been so fulfilling that seeing this painting reminded him that Slytherin's first match against Gryffindor was indeed tomorrow.

"Merlin! Are you living in the Middle Ages? I bet you're the only one in Slytherin with this reaction."

Malfoy widened his eyes, as if seeing him for the first time.

At the same time, upon hearing "Quidditch," Ino suddenly remembered something forgotten.

He turned to his bedside, opened a box on the shelf, and took out ten real gold coins.

"Speaking of Quidditch, I always meant to give you a return gift. Those sweets don't match the value of the golden man you gave me, so I found these in my family's vault. Consider it a return gift."

As he spoke, Ino casually placed the gold coins on the table, as if a couple of pounds of gold were no different from a box of Drooble's Best Blowing Gum.

Although this showed he had no greed, in Malfoy's eyes, it meant something different, especially upon hearing the words "family vault."

Unlike Malfoy's dilemma, after placing the coins, Ino sat down and began planning his future.

If nothing unexpected happened, tomorrow would be Harry's debut, a highlight moment. It would also be when the trio dismissed their previous suspicions and concluded that Snape was the one trying to steal the Philosopher's Stone.

Honestly, he didn't care much about a magic-depleted Philosopher's Stone.

Having seen great things, and having heard tales of Adam's golden apple while with Hans, he knew true immortality was easy in a fantasy world.

There were too many ways in fairy tales and folklore to achieve immortality or even wish fulfillment.

That was true immortality, unlike the longevity offered by the Philosopher's Stone.

Meanwhile, as Ino pondered his future, Malfoy's somewhat hesitant voice broke the silence in the dormitory.

"Ino! I... I need to tell you that the statue I gave you... it's not pure gold."

"Not pure gold?" Ino looked up in surprise.

He had played with the Quidditch statue, and its weight, density, and color were just like gold. Now Malfoy said it wasn't pure gold.

"Yes! Not pure gold." Now that the secret was out, Malfoy spoke without stammering or hesitation.

"The statue is made of Goblin gold, the same material as Galleons. It's just a craft, worth at most a few dozen Galleons."

"..." This explanation left Ino feeling puzzled. Goblins at Gringotts sure knew how to play tricks.

However, before he could say anything, Malfoy's voice came again.

"I can't accept those gold coins. They're too valuable! My father wouldn't allow me to accept gifts worth more than fifty Galleons. He always says to write to him if I want something, and he'll buy it for me."

"Alright, let's do as you say."

Without any reluctance, Ino waved his wand, and the ten gold coins on the table floated into the air and returned to the box by his bedside.

He understood now. If the statue were pure gold, it would be worth thousands of Galleons. Lucius might afford it, but it clearly wasn't suitable as a gift between children.

Speaking of Lucius, he quickly remembered another unfinished task.

"By the way, Draco! Do you know where I can get a flying carpet? Compared to a broomstick, I prefer leisurely flying on a carpet."

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