Chapter 107: Barty Crouch

Mr. Claude and Mr. Weasley seemed to be old acquaintances in the Ministry of Magic.

But they weren't too familiar; this could be seen from Mr. Weasley seeing Titus for the first time.

This time the sons of the two families accidentally gathered together, which was an opportunity for them to deeply communicate about each other's life and work.

After John and the others arrived, they found a place to sit down casually.

Regarding their arrival, the most enthusiastic ones were the twin brothers.

Just as John found a seat and sat down, George and Fred surrounded him from left to right.

"Hey John, want to learn about our inventions?"

Fred winked and took out a box of toffee milk candies wrapped in colorful candy paper from his pocket.

"If you meet someone you hate one day, give him one to eat, and his tongue will become fat and long, and he won't even be able to speak clearly."

George also took out a box of milk block cookies from his pocket and smiled at John.

"Or this, eating it can make people turn into a canary."

After listening, John was stunned for a moment; what kind of thing?

Let the user turn into a canary?

"During the period of turning into a canary, do you still have autonomous consciousness?"

John asked curiously.

"Of course!"

George heard John's question and knew there was a customer, immediately introducing it even more enthusiastically.

"After transforming, you can experience the feeling of flying like other birds; of course, this might require a certain amount of training."

"Yes, besides not being able to use magic, everything else is as usual."

Fred also immediately added.

"And don't worry about not being able to change back; this effect can only last for one minute; of course, if you want a version with a longer duration, we can also provide it."

The more John listened, the more he felt amazed.

Turning people into animals, this level of Transfiguration John could also do.

But applying this level of Transfiguration to food, letting the eater transform, John really felt his knowledge was short.

"Are there any with a longer duration?"

John asked curiously.

"Of course there are; we also developed versions that can maintain five minutes, ten minutes, and even thirty minutes."

"However, the thirty-minute version is still in the testing stage, so we only dare to sell it after signing a disclaimer, and I suggest finding someone to watch before using it."

George, like counting family treasures, took out one box of cookies after another for John to choose from.

"How much?"

"One-minute version, 7 Sickles. Five-minute version, 1 Galleon. Ten-minute version, 2 Galleons. Thirty-minute version, hmm... 4 Galleons."

Hearing their quote, John couldn't help but shake his body.

"So expensive?"

Fred and George laughed in unison: "Value for money, isn't it?"

That was...

John lowered his head and looked at his wallet.

Last year he swiped a handful of unicorn tail hair from Hagrid, he sold half of it, and earned 400 gold Galleons.

Plus he occasionally went to the Forbidden Forest with Hagrid to pick up dropped items.

Hmm.... didn't seem that expensive?

"Except for the thirty-minute one, give me three of each."

John said directly and generously.

Fred and George looked at each other and revealed smiles: "Thanks for the patronage!"

Their transaction was completed in the corner.

John took the bag with cookies packed, and each type was marked with its duration.

At this time, he suddenly remembered an important question.

"Hey by the way, does this thing have a shelf life?"

"Of course, I suggest you eat it within a week; if it exceeds the time, the magic is still effective, but eating it might make you have diarrhea."

Fred said as a matter of course.

"......"

Careless.

He also wanted to use this thing as a kind of magic prop to deal with special situations.

George also saw John's thoughts and smiled and gave him a suggestion.

"If you want to extend the storage time, you can use special containers to store it; there are quite a few in Professor Snape's workshop; I heard you often go there, maybe you can swipe one?"

John's corners of the mouth twitched slightly; swipe a magic container of Snape's?

Hiss... didn't seem impossible.

Forget it, don't care for now.

Just treat it as a lesson learned.

Hey by the way, I seem to have forgotten to bargain...

After ending the transaction, the twin brothers also left him contact information; if he wanted any joke products, he could find them at any time.

After John returned to his seat, he shared this thing with his friends, and they were all curious and wanted to find a chance to try it.

But now wasn't the time.

Their group stayed here for a morning.

It was just a normal visit, and nothing else happened.

Until noon, they stood up and prepared to go back.

Ron intended to stay; he would come back to meet them when the match started at night; after all, Ron's ticket seat was on Mr.

They had just walked out of the tent.

They happened to run into a stiff-looking Ministry of Magic official, who was wearing a suit and dressed like a meticulous Muggle.

Barty Crouch.

He was walking briskly through the campsite, his briefcase pressed tightly against his armpit, his gaze fixed straight ahead, as if all the clamor around him had nothing to do with him.

Only when he passed their group did he suddenly pause, his gaze landing on their side, or rather, on Harry.

"Oh hey, Old Barty, you finally made it."

"Ludo has been looking for you all day yesterday; those foreign teams have started chattering away again in languages we can't understand."

Mr. Claude immediately stepped forward to greet Old Barty when he saw him.

Their department and the Department of International Magical Cooperation were jointly responsible for the security and coordination of this World Cup, so they often interacted in their work.

Upon hearing this, Old Barty looked at Mr. Claude and nodded slightly.

"I know, that's exactly why I'm here."

As he spoke, he came before Harry, his gaze lingering on Harry's forehead for a moment.

"Barty Crouch, I've heard much about you, Harry Potter."

"Uh, hello Mr. Crouch..."

Harry couldn't help but feel a bit reserved toward this solemn-looking official.

As for people greeting him, he was long used to that.

Many people in the wizarding world would greet him the first time they met him.

Old Barty didn't say much more, just nodded.

Then he greeted Mr. Weasley as well, before hurrying away, his figure soon disappearing into the crowd.

"Oh, Old Barty has really been coming and going like the wind lately."

Watching Old Barty disappear, Mr. Weasley joked with a smile.

"Indeed, ever since Fudge investigated his house last time, he has become even more reticent, working desperately every day, as if he's brewing some big move."

"I heard he plans to take full responsibility for that matter at Hogwarts next semester, staying at Hogwarts to follow up on the progress; he really is pushing himself."

Mr. Claude also nodded and said, as someone who often dealt with the Department of International Magical Cooperation, he knew Old Barty's changes better than anyone.

And hearing the conversation between the two adults, John looked at them with some curiosity.

That matter at Hogwarts?

Could it be that something big was going to happen at school next semester?

"Mr. Claude..."

"Hmm, John, I know what you want to ask, but I can't tell you about this yet. You'll naturally find out when you return to Hogwarts."

Mr. Claude noticed John was about to ask and interrupted him in advance, a mysterious glint flashing in his eyes.

"......"

They were going back to school in a few days anyway, was there any need for secrecy?

John curled his lip, but he felt even more curious inside.