Conna didn't know why she agreed to Kael.
Maybe she really needed some Galleons, or perhaps it was because of Kael's words… proving to everyone that she had the ability to survive.
In any case, Conna agreed somewhat muddle-headedly.
In the common room after dinner, Kael, Cedric, and Conna sat around a table, discussing the entrepreneurship plan for the next day.
"In short, Gryffindor has the Weasley Brothers helping, so there should be no problem. The main focus now is Slytherin."
Kael looked at Conna and said, "Alright, tomorrow find a chance to 'accidentally' run into that Row… Row-what's-their-names."
Conna whispered a reminder, "Rowle and Yaxley."
"Ah yes, those two. Find a chance to bump into them and greet them casually."
Kael thought for a moment, then said, "The corridor on the first floor would be good. If Hufflepuff and Slytherin are heading to the auditorium, they need to pass through there, so it's normal to run into them. Just find a reason to walk with them."
"Uh-huh, uh-huh." The little witch nodded while quickly taking notes, appearing very earnest.
After she finished writing, Kael continued:
"At that time, I'll be in front of you with Cedric, complaining about how complicated the castle layout is and how easy it is to get lost. He'll boast about his ordinary map to me.
Then you need to show disdain for us and take out the limited edition map."
"Disdain?"
Conna paused her quill, tried making a few expressions… which made Kael abandon the previous idea.
"Forget it, just take the map out and flaunt it to them, telling them it's a limited edition not for sale, with only ten copies."
"Remember this phrase well."
"If they ask questions, just say you have connections to get these maps and that, for the sake of friendship, you're willing to help them if they want one."
"Okay." Conna finished taking notes and started reciting them silently.
Then Cedric curiously asked, "What if they don't ask?"
Kael shrugged, "Then sell it to someone else."
Turning ordinary goods into limited editions was Kael's idea, after all, that's the hook for those Pure-Bloods.
Adding Conna just made everything go smoother.
Because once Rowle and Yaxley got their hands on the map, they'd certainly brag about it, becoming the best spokespersons.
If they didn't bite the bait, they'd revert to the initial plan.
Taking out a limited edition to distinguish it from the ordinary one, the Little Snakes would come looking themselves when they caught wind of it.
But doing this could easily catch the professors' attention. Ten Sickles isn't much, but five Galleons is quite a sum, and it might get banned before it's even sold.
So it's better to keep it discreet, so even if it gets discovered, it doesn't matter. After all, once the Galleons are in hand, they can't exactly take them back, right?
At most, they'd just deduct some points.
The thing Hufflepuff cares the least about is House points.
After hearing Kael's explanation, Cedric was thoroughly impressed.
"Can it really work like that?"
He too knew that Pure-Blood families loved things that weren't like the ordinary goods, otherwise, he wouldn't gild the edges of parchment.
But initially, he only priced it at a Galleon.
Now Kael had quintupled the price, and suddenly it had that familiar feel to it.
And it didn't matter if the new Slytherins knew, because what they really wanted wasn't the map, but the "limited edition."
It's not that Pure-Bloods are fools, they're just rich but not stupid, they have different pursuits.
Even he himself always wanted to switch to a Fwooper feather quill, although it didn't differ from a regular quill, it was beautiful and pleasing to use, and he could write two more lines of homework with it.
Cedric smacked his lips and asked, "Kael, are you sure there are only ten copies?"
"Yes, just ten." Kael nodded.
He found out that although there are thirteen new Slytherins, not all are rich Pure-Bloods, so ten copies are just right. Those who don't buy also have a good excuse.
After settling this, Cedric talked to Kael about that afternoon's Quidditch tryouts.
As expected, Fred and George also joined the house team as Beaters.
Additionally, a second-year witch named Alicia Spinnet became a reserve player.
"This year's Gryffindor is absolutely a strong rival," Cedric said gravely. "Their team is too good; I've seen Alicia train. Her performance is no worse than our Chaser Matt Blington, yet she's only a reserve in Gryffindor.
And then there's Oliver Wood; his save rate is the highest among the four Keepers. With him on the field, it's hard for us to have an advantage."
"Is that so~~" Kael casually agreed, "Well, you better keep at it."
No matter how strong Gryffindor's team is, he's just a first-year without a broom, unable to play in the games; he could only cheer a bit louder while watching.
Cedric didn't notice Kael's lack of interest and continued talking about Slytherin, focusing this time on the brooms.
A team with five Nimbus 1700s held a massive advantage.
But when it came to Ravenclaw, Cedric suddenly paused and then naturally skipped over it.
"We must go all out in every match from now on, leaving no room for error,"
Cedric said seriously, "No one wants to finish the semester in third place; for this reason, Harris increased the weekly group training from three times to five times."
Speaking of this, Cedric's voice involuntarily raised quite a bit, but Conna seemed unaffected, absent-mindedly staring at the parchment in her hand.
Every time she thought of talking to others the next day, anxiety overwhelmed her, so much so that she barely noticed what Cedric was saying beside her.
In fact, when Kael discussed the specifics earlier, the thought of quitting crossed her mind countless times.
But each time she was about to utter "quit," a voice within her stopped her.
Conna didn't know why this was so, but she ended up choosing to follow her inner voice.
Before long, Kael and Cedric yawned and returned to the dormitory.
The common room was left with just Conna, still endlessly reviewing that piece of parchment.