The next day, Diagon Alley was far livelier than usual.
Dozens of newly opened shops were holding their grand opening ceremonies simultaneously.
The sheer scale of the event attracted enormous crowds of curious witches and wizards.
Even more surprising—
Aurors had been stationed throughout the streets to maintain order.
Inside the backstage reception area, Lucien calmly blew across the surface of the hot tea in his hands.
Beside him, Vinda casually lowered the teapot after refilling his cup.
"Thank you very much for your assistance, Mr Malfoy."
Lucien smiled politely.
"Without your help, acquiring these properties in Diagon Alley would never have gone so smoothly."
"You're too polite, Mr Grindelwald."
Lucius quickly wiped sweat from his forehead again.
"We're partners now. Helping each other is only natural."
Despite his outward composure, Lucius felt unbelievably nervous.
Long before Hogwarts opened, he had already witnessed Lucien's terrifying methods countless times.
Decisive.
Meticulous.
Ruthlessly efficient.
Even as head of one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight families, Lucius often felt inferior beside the boy.
But that alone wasn't the true source of pressure.
The real problem…
Was the woman currently standing nearby pouring tea.
Vinda Rosier.
The Black Rose of France.
A legendary witch whose status and age both vastly exceeded Lucius'.
And yet she was personally serving tea while he sat comfortably in front of her.
Lucius suddenly felt like he no longer understood the meaning of the word death.
"Mr Malfoy," Lucien said gently, noticing his discomfort, "the ceremony should be starting shortly."
He stood smoothly.
"Shall we go have a look?"
Lucius instantly stood as well.
"Of course."
Then, after noticing Vinda following behind them silently, he unconsciously slowed his own pace slightly again.
Outside, the ceremony had already begun.
The host enthusiastically promoted the new stores one after another.
His exaggerated humour and dramatic gestures constantly triggered bursts of laughter from the crowd.
Seeing the lively atmosphere, Lucius finally regained a little confidence.
"Mr Grindelwald," he said proudly, "many important pure-blood families should attend today."
"If you'd like, I can introduce you personally."
A faint smile appeared.
"The Malfoy family still carries some influence in Britain."
"Thank you, Mr Malfoy."
Lucien smiled politely without refusing.
Unfortunately for Lucius, before they even walked a few steps—
A loud voice suddenly called out nearby.
"Lucien!"
A middle-aged wizard hurried over enthusiastically.
"You're finally here!"
Lucius paused in confusion.
Lucien immediately smiled warmly.
"Mr Carrow."
"It's been too long."
Ian Carrow laughed loudly.
"You're the star of today's event and you're arriving this late?"
Then his eyes shifted curiously toward Lucius.
"And this gentleman is…?"
Lucien calmly introduced them.
"This is Mr Lucius Malfoy, head of the Malfoy family and one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight."
Then he looked toward Lucius.
"And this is Mr Ian Carrow."
Lucius immediately recognised the surname.
Another Sacred Twenty-Eight family.
But Ian suddenly looked displeased.
"What do you mean I 'rarely appear'?"
He glared at Lucien dramatically.
"I study magical creatures, thank you very much."
Lucius quickly greeted him politely.
"Pleasure to meet you, Mr Carrow."
"It's a pleasure."
Before Lucius could relax, two more figures suddenly approached rapidly.
"Mr Grindelwald!"
A large bearded man enthusiastically slapped Lucien's shoulder.
"About the new broom stabilisation mechanism we discussed previously—"
Another thinner wizard interrupted excitedly.
"We still haven't finished discussing the Nimbus development concepts from last time!"
Lucius blinked blankly.
"And these two are…?"
Lucien answered casually.
"Mr Bellis and Mr Dave."
"They're senior researchers at Nimbus."
"The original development concepts for the Nimbus 2000 came from them."
Lucius nearly choked.
Before he could recover—
Pop. Pop. Pop.
Several more figures Apparated nearby.
"Mr Grindelwald!"
"Looks like we arrived just in time!"
"Ross wanted to come personally too, but he's delayed slightly."
A large group of elegantly dressed witches and wizards quickly surrounded Lucien.
Lucius barely had time to process things before another elderly wizard strode over aggressively.
"Lucien Grindelwald!"
The old man glared furiously.
"You still owe me an explanation!"
Lucien instantly smiled helplessly.
"Professor Travers."
"It's good to see you still in excellent health."
Travers snorted heavily.
"You had the nerve to abandon Durmstrang and run all the way to Hogwarts!"
"Do you know how angry I was when I heard?!"
Lucien immediately attempted damage control.
"I'll explain everything after the ceremony."
"No!"
Travers pointed directly at him.
"You explain today!"
"Otherwise I'm personally visiting Dumbledore tomorrow!"
Lucien could only continue appeasing him patiently.
Then he turned toward Lucius.
"This is Professor Travers from Durmstrang."
Lucius instantly froze.
Professor Travers.
Author of Origins of Dark Magic.
One of the foundational books many pure-blood heirs studied growing up.
Even Lucius himself had once treated that book like sacred scripture.
"Professor Travers!"
Lucius almost sounded excited.
"Your writings on dark magic deeply influenced my early magical education!"
Travers finally looked slightly satisfied.
"So you're the Malfoy boy."
He nodded slowly.
"You've managed your family rather well over the years."
"At least you haven't embarrassed your father."
Before Lucius could even finish thanking him, another wave of visitors arrived.
Then another.
And another.
The reception area became absolute chaos.
Lucius felt increasingly exhausted.
You're telling me this boy only arrived in Britain two months ago?!
How does he know more influential people than I do?!
Wasn't the Malfoy family supposed to be the social centre of Britain?!
Originally, Lucius intended to proudly introduce British elites to Lucien.
Instead, Lucien ended up introducing powerful people to him nonstop.
Meanwhile, Lucien quietly enjoyed the situation.
Did they really think he came to Britain completely unprepared?
The older generation among the Saints might no longer possess overwhelming combat strength—
But their connections throughout Europe remained terrifying.
And unlike traditional pure-blood families obsessed with bloodlines, the Saints valued talent above everything else.
Every person appearing today represented the pinnacle of their respective field.
Researchers.
Inventors.
Professors.
Businessmen.
Political figures.
Talented people were always the most valuable resource.
Lucius wiped sweat from his forehead again.
"Mr Grindelwald…"
His smile had become rather weak.
"Surely everyone important has arrived by now?"
"Actually…"
Lucien glanced toward the entrance.
"There are still a few more."
Lucius nearly stumbled.
There's more?!
Lucien kindly reassured him.
"Don't worry."
"You should know these ones quite well."
Only then did Lucius finally relax slightly.
Good.
At least he'd finally meet familiar people.
Then suddenly—
A large group of black-robed figures entered from the distance.
Lucius' pupils instantly contracted.
Before he even clearly saw their faces, a loud familiar laugh already echoed through the venue.
"Mr Grindelwald!"
"Hahaha!"
A heavily built man strode forward confidently.
"Please don't blame the Aurors under my command for last time!"
Lucius instantly recognised the voice.
His expression changed completely.
Meanwhile, Lucien smiled calmly and stepped forward.
"You flatter me, Minister."
Then he spoke the name clearly.
"Cornelius Fudge."
....
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