Professor of Gemology at Hogwarts

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"This is just what you understand." Gray said, "I found that I don't know a lot of things, which feels a bit uncomfortable. I just want to find time to chat, but not now, I have something to do Go out for a while."

Mason watched helplessly as the pendant was put away by Gray.

"Then if you have anything to say, ask now!" Mason's beard stood up in anger, "Stop using it as a trick to threaten me. In my opinion, it would be weird if you were half as strong as Frandy. At least she can't take things. Threatening an old man!"

"Provocation is ineffective, Mr. Mason." Gray said politely, "I don't disrespect you, but Frandy is my mother. I should be qualified to know some of her experiences, right?"

Mason was so angry that his mouth twisted. He stared at Gray without blinking. His hunched shoulders shook and his bones made a crackling sound.

"Calm down." Gray smiled politely, "I think I have to go."

Diagon Alley is shrouded in darkness at night, with dark storefronts standing on both sides of the road. Only the light from the stores is reflected on the wet stone bricks, allowing people to vaguely see the road.

He walked to the end of Diagon Alley. There was an inconspicuous winding alley at the corner. Gray was hesitant to walk in. The humid air-conditioning around him made him energetic. There were no signs on the streets of Diagon Alley. It wasn't as lively as it was during the day, with only three or five people passing by occasionally, and three drunkards huddled together on the steps, taking turns drinking a bottle of beer.The streets were so deserted at night, not to mention the so-called group of French people in Knockturn Alley.

"If Mr. Morris is interested in this aspect," a hunched man appeared behind the counter in the store. He chuckled twice, "you might as well take a look at the things in the store. I believe in your vision, and My prices here are very fair.”

"I'm interested in something much stronger than these." Gray said coldly. "If you haven't met that group of people, there is no need to waste each other's time here, Mr. Borgin."

"Is it a crystal?" Mr. Bojin said in his smooth tone, "Actually, you may not know that crystals are also related to these things..."

"I don't think so," Gray said.

"That's because you are ignorant, sir." Mr. Bojin smiled. "It is rumored that hundreds of years ago, a wizard used spar and alchemy to create something that could lock the soul. The locked living creature's body was attached to the body. His soul is forever imprisoned in a stone. And his strength does not diminish with the passage of time, but he can only serve the person who imprisoned him."

"Oh," Gray was doubtful. He was curious about the source of these people's information about the crystal stone, "So where did you see it?"

"Haha... Those who work in this industry will more or less hear some legends, but sir, sometimes the legends are not groundless. People like you who have a deep study of stones are different from ordinary wizards." Bo Jin whispered, "If you know something that few people know and do something that no one can do, wouldn't you be the one who has the final say in the future?"

So this is some legend among dark wizards?Gray didn't expect the man in front of him to be so glib and wanted to use the spar as an entry point to shake him.

Mr. Borkin saw that he was silent and spoke again.

"Like this... and this... you use them, coupled with your knowledge of crystal science, it is very likely that the legend will become a reality. These two treasures are related to that aspect-" He just touched it The greasy-haired hand gestured twice in the air, "Soul!"

But by the time Mr. Borgin finished speaking, Gray had already walked out of the dark and creepy shop, and his black robe blended into the night on the street.

When Gray pushed open the dilapidated and damp wooden door in front of him, the wooden door made a creaking sound, and then a pungent smell of decaying damp wood mixed with the smell of alcohol entered his nostrils.

"Hello, Mr. Morris." Tom saw someone coming in and looked over from the bar. "Would you like a drink? Beer? Brandy?"

Gray glanced at the guests in the bar. There were a few old ladies sitting in the corner smoking cigarettes, and a drunk man leaning against the wall, dazed and mumbling a few nonsense.

"He doesn't love me at all!" the drunk man suddenly shouted, then picked up the bottle and took a few gulps.

"I didn't expect it to be so deserted here at night." Gray shook off the wood chips that stuck to his hands when he opened the door.

"I think there will be a lot of people sitting in Mrs. Puddy's Teahouse today," Tom said with a chuckle. "Who would choose to sit in a dirty place like mine? It's possible to fall out of love like that." He said with a chuckle. Look at that ugly drunk man.

"People who want to inquire about people and things will also come." Gray walked to the bar, "Have you seen a group of French people recently?"

Tom was holding a plate in one hand and wiping it with a rag in the other: "Many people pass by here every day, but I don't necessarily remember them."

"A glass of sherry," Gray understood. He pushed the money on the bar, but those coins cost more than a glass of sherry. "Have you seen the Frenchman in navy blue robes?"

Tom put the money away and grinned, which made the wrinkles on his thin and shriveled face appear even more. His teeth were all gone, and all he could see was a dark mouth.He set the plate aside, leaned over and pulled half a bottle of wine from under the bar and poured it into a shot glass.

"They came here a few days ago," Tom handed him the wine glass, "but they didn't stay at the hotel, they just had a few drinks and left."

"How many of them are there?"

"Four, one of them has a goatee," Tom said. "They must be the group you mentioned."

"Do you know what they do?"

"I don't know," Tom said, "but it seems that they are not preparing to socialize with anyone, nor are they waiting for anyone, so they must not be businessmen, right?"

“Where did those French people go after that?”

"I really don't know anything else, sir."

Tom shook his head and turned his attention to a guest who had just walked next to him.

"The same glass of sherry." It was a woman's voice.

Gray squinted at the customer next to him. The person was leaning on the bar, and the hood slowly slid down from her head, revealing shoulder-length brown chestnut curly hair.

"What a coincidence, Mr. Morris," she said. "You're having a pretty good time teaching, aren't you?"

"Ms. Hill, long time no see." Gray looked her up and down, "I didn't expect you to be interested in coming here for a drink."

"Miss Hill is a long-time customer." Tom said with a smile, "Basically she comes here once every Monday night."

"Why is it Monday?" he asked curiously.

"Because there are the least people on Mondays, I can come here to hide away after work." Hill drank the small glass of wine in one gulp and motioned for Tom to refill it.

The whole movement is skillful and elegant. Who would have thought that she would wear glasses and look serious when she was working at the Ministry of Magic?For a moment, Gray wondered if Arnold was adding fuel to the fire. Hill was not as rigid as he said, and the comments he had heard at work were also untrue.

"Yeah," Gray glanced at the bottomed wine glass, "cool."

As she raised her glass to take another sip, Gray saw a fleeting smile appear on her face through the glass.

"Are you talking about drinking?" Hill said simply. "Actually, it's not cool at all. Drinking is harmful to health."

Hill turned the wine glass twice with his hand, and the bottom of the glass made a gurgling sound as it rubbed against the rough wooden bar.

"Then it's time to talk about you. Are you here to take a break from your busy schedule?" she asked.

Tom glanced at Gray and said no more. He walked out of the bar and went to find the two old ladies sitting in the corner of the room to pay.

"I'm just like you. I take a break from my busy schedule and come here to have a drink. The school's affairs are really no less important than those of the Ministry of Magic."

"I thought being a professor would be easier, at least I usually deal with kids," Hill said. "It's better than having to deal with a talkative guy every time I go to work."

She was referring to Arnold, but Gray felt there was no difference. In addition to facing students, he also had to face a talkative Lockhart.

"It seems that I'm not getting along well with my partner," Gray said, "but Arnold talks a bit too much."

"He -" she said without hesitation, "has no professional qualities, and many of his tasks are not rigorous and full of loopholes. This will expose many tricks. In the Ministry of Magic, when others are trying to trick him by bringing up old scores, he will I will definitely get into trouble because of my previous negligence..."

This scene seemed familiar, exactly like the way Arnold criticized her on Christmas Day.

"Haha," Gray was amused by this scene, "So now he has a reliable partner like you to guide him?"

“But it won’t last long,” she said, having finished her third glass of wine. “He is always so self-righteous, thinking that superficial efforts are enough, and he doesn’t care about the subsequent consequences. Let’s not mention him anymore. You should have a good relationship with Arnold. I suggest you persuade him. What I said before was not a joke at all, Maurice.”

Both Arnold and Hill's speeches made Gray feel reasonable, but not entirely. When they evaluated each other, they both magnified the other's shortcomings many times.

"Okay, I will persuade him." Gray smiled, "But I think this is a partnership. Two people deal with things from different angles, and only by neutralizing them can the best be achieved."

"Yeah," Hill sighed, "but I'm not willing to take that risk."

After several conversations, the two of them walked out of the Leaky Cauldron and stepped on the wet stone bricks of Diagon Alley. Some shops were closed and there was almost no one on the street. It seemed that they couldn't find that group of people this time. , but it can be regarded as barely getting a new clue, there is a person with a goatee.

……