"The wizards Madam Jill hired for the exploration work are low-level apprentices with weak combat capabilities. Because of this, she intends to apply to the Court Wizards for three official Investigator teams to join the expedition. The total team size will be about twenty people."
Link took a sip of black tea and continued. "She invited me, and I agreed. This is a perfect opportunity to venture into the Winter Forest to look for clues."
A standard Investigator team generally consisted of one Third-Level Wizard Apprentice with strong combat capabilities leading one to five elite Second-Level Apprentices. Link's team was considered to be on the smaller side, and his position as captain was a recent promotion.
Damian pondered for a moment. "Would the Court Wizards even accept a private commission like hers? "
Link spread his hands. "They wouldn't accept an ordinary private commission, no. But Madam Jill pays entirely too well."
"The Court Wizards simply issued an internal commission to investigate the disappearance of a formal member. Nominally, the three Investigator teams are going into the Winter Forest specifically to investigate my grandfather's disappearance."
Damian raised an eyebrow. A wizarding team of twenty people was a formidable force that couldn't be ignored anywhere. Being able to assemble an expedition of this scale proved that Madam Jill wielded considerable influence.
Moreover, the Court Wizards rarely accepted private commissions. Wealthy individuals could occasionally bribe off-duty Investigators for protection, but for the Court Wizards to issue an official, on-the-books commission for a private citizen, the price paid under the table must have been astronomical.
Link continued, "You are still a temporary operative and not yet a formal member of the team, so it's entirely up to you whether you participate. However, this operation offers a massive reward in contribution points. Once completed, you'll easily have enough to apply for the formal member assessment."
The contribution points awarded by the Syndicate and the Court Wizards were quite attractive to Damian. Even if he didn't use them for the formal assessment, they could be exchanged for rare wizarding supplies, such as magical artifacts, spell manuals, meditation methods, potion recipes, and premium alchemy materials.
Furthermore, these points could be exchanged for restricted items that were impossible to buy on the open market. Certain resource nodes in the Blizzard Kingdom were strictly monopolized by the Court Wizards, and the materials produced there fetched exorbitant prices on the black market.
"I'll join as well," Damian agreed after a moment of thought.
Link nodded approvingly. "Madam Jill still needs a few days to finalize preparations. Besides, the other two Investigator teams won't arrive in White Stone Town for another three or four days."
"The Winter Forest is an incredibly dangerous place right now. Use this time to prepare yourself," Link advised. "As for the serial killer and the evil ritual case, we'll let Madam Alsha's people take over the investigation for now."
They still hadn't found many solid clues regarding the bizarre rituals. However, due to the high death toll, the residents of White Stone Town had been living in absolute terror, rarely venturing outside the town gates. Consequently, the number of macabre corpses appearing in the outskirts had temporarily decreased.
Before venturing into the Winter Forest, Damian planned to return to Hogwarts. He needed to brew several highly lethal potions for the expedition. The magical ingredients in his Undetectable Extension Pouch were running dangerously low, meaning he would need to make a trip to Hogsmeade Village to restock.
*** Hogwarts, the Great Hall.
Damian was eating lunch with his roommates, but today's atmosphere was a bit different. The table space directly in front of him was completely buried under a massive mountain of brightly wrapped gift boxes.
Today was November 11th. It was Damian's birthday.
Jerry teased him with a grin. "After completely crushing Harry Potter on the Quidditch pitch, you seem to be even more popular. You definitely didn't get this many gifts last year."
Damian poured a splash of milk into his coffee and stirred it gently. "I don't think it has much to do with Potter. After all, he's just a first-year student. It's mainly because people were genuinely afraid of me before. After I won Best Beater, that fear shifted into admiration."
Quidditch was the undisputed most popular sport in the wizarding world. Star players easily garnered massive, devoted followings.
Jerry rolled his eyes. "Your ego is certainly healthy."
Geralt nudged Jerry with his elbow and jutted his chin toward the opposite end of the Slytherin table. "Look over there."
A Slytherin girl with fluffy long hair was sitting a few seats down. She was resting her chin on her left hand and absentmindedly stirring her teacup with her right, staring intensely at Damian.
As soon as Damian looked up, their eyes met.
The moment Damian offered a faint, polite smile, the girl's face burned crimson. She quickly snapped her gaze away, pretending to be deeply engrossed in her tea as if nothing had happened.
Geralt chuckled. "I bet more than half of this massive pile was sent by secret admirers!"
He wasn't exaggerating. Countless girls had casually approached Geralt over the past week just to confirm Damian's exact birth date.
Damian took a calm sip of his coffee. Suddenly, a large brown owl swooped down into the Great Hall and dropped a neatly wrapped package directly into his lap.
He caught the package smoothly and fed the owl a piece of bacon from his plate as a reward. He checked the tag attached to the string. It was from Luna Lovegood.
Inside the package lay a beautifully knitted scarf and a handwritten letter.
"When I woke up this morning, I couldn't find my Dirigible Plum earrings. I thought I must have forgotten something important. I checked the calendar and realized today is November 11th."
"The baby Thunderbird has been eating more and more lately. The normal insects I catch are no longer enough for him. Yesterday, Father had to go with me deep into the forest to catch enough magical beetles to finally satisfy his appetite."
"He also started molting last week. I carefully gathered the shimmering tail feathers he shed and wove them into this scarf. I hope you like it."
"Happy birthday. — Luna Lovegood"
Damian pulled the scarf from the box. He had to admit, Luna's handicraft skills were genuinely impressive.
It was a dark, golden-brown scarf, the exact same shade as Luna's hair. The fabric she had chosen was incredibly soft, high-quality cashmere. The iridescent Thunderbird tail feathers were seamlessly woven into the edges, adding a natural, magical shimmer that didn't look out of place at all.
Damian was extremely satisfied with the gift. The Scottish weather had already turned bitterly cold, so he immediately wrapped the warm, golden-brown scarf around his neck.
Geralt watched with open jealousy. Although he had been in many short-lived relationships, he had never experienced that kind of thoughtful, childhood-sweetheart affection.
After finishing lunch, Damian levitated his mountain of gifts and headed back to the Slytherin dungeons to open them in peace. However, halfway down the corridor, he ran straight into Fred and George Weasley.
The twins stepped directly into his path, blocking the hallway.
"Hey, Fred, look who it is!" George called out dramatically.
Fred gasped, pressing a hand to his chest in mock awe. "Oh! If it isn't our Best Beater of the Year—Damian Black!"
"You're wrong, brother!" George shook his head solemnly. "Did you forget that massive mountain of presents we just saw at the Slytherin table?"
Fred snapped his fingers in sudden realization. "Oh, you're right! It's Hogwarts' resident heartthrob—Damian Black!"
Damian slapped a hand over his face. He really didn't have the energy to deal with these two clowns right now; being publicly acquainted with them was truly exhausting.
"What do you two want?" he sighed helplessly. "And stop giving me those embarrassing titles."
Fred clutched his chest as if he had been physically struck. "So cruel! We merely came here to offer you our warmest birthday wishes!"
George grinned, pulling a brightly colored gift box from behind his back."Happy birthday, Damian!"
"Thanks..." Damian raised a skeptical eyebrow and carefully took the box. Knowing Fred and George, he was fully expecting it to be a volatile prank prop rigged to explode in his face.
Damian eyed the box cautiously. "Is this gift... safe? "
Fred and George looked at each other, immediately wrapping their arms around one another and fake-weeping bitterly.
"George! He is questioning our deep and sincere friendship!"
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