Clinging tightly to Hagrid’s side, Harry walked into the Leaky Cauldron.
Everything here surprised him.
Behind a dilapidated, unassuming facade, the dirty, cramped pub was packed with people, all strangely dressed Wizards.
But what surprised Harry most was that everyone here knew him; they raised their glasses to him, lined up to shake his hand, and showed him great respect, even a Hogwarts teacher among them.
Having never been welcomed since he was little, Harry had become a beloved figure, which made him feel somewhat unreal.
It wasn’t until Hagrid led him to the pub’s courtyard and tapped a brick on the wall three times with the tip of his umbrella, causing the bricks to ripple and part into a wide archway, that he snapped out of his dazed feeling.
Passing through the archway, sunlight spilled onto the winding street, illuminating one peculiar shop after another: stacks of cauldrons piled high at doorways; display windows showcasing biting books and sparkling crystal balls; shadowy little shops selling strange silver artifacts and eel eyes... until Hagrid’s booming voice called Harry’s name, “Hey! Gringotts! This is it, we’ll get some money first.”
They went in and out, quickly finishing their business at Gringotts.
Hagrid continued to lead Harry through Diagon Alley.
But soon they reached their destination. Hagrid pointed to a large building across the street and said, “There, we’ve arrived, Stone Tower Trading Company. Most of the things on your list can be bought here, and not only are the prices fair, but the quality is also good. That’s why more and more Wizards have preferred to shop here over the years.”
Harry was amazed to see a huge white stone tower standing between two houses across the street. It was a square stone tower with clean, sharp lines, no superfluous decorations on its exterior, and its pure white marble walls gleamed in the sunlight.
At the base of the tower, facing the street, was a massive rectangular stone gate large enough for Hagrid to pass through freely. Wizards were constantly coming and going from it.
At the top of the stone tower was a large circular emblem, the design of which was a clenched fist with the index finger pointing firmly skyward. Above the emblem were several smooth, mirror-like, jet-black characters — Stone Tower Trading Company.
“The Daily Prophet said that the emblem at the top of the tower is Stone Tower proclaiming itself the world’s number one trading company.” Noticing Harry’s gaze was drawn to the emblem at the top of the stone tower, Hagrid bent down, his massive body casting a shadow. He winked and lowered his voice, saying, “No one knows who their boss is, but they certainly do a lot of business. They have shops in many countries, so saying they’re the world’s number one seems about right.” He straightened up.
“Alright! It’s getting late, we need to hurry and get your things bought! Dumbledore is waiting for me.” Hagrid strode forward, “Keep up, Harry, this place is always very crowded, it’s easy to lose someone if you’re not careful.”
Looking at Hagrid’s massive size, twice that of a normal person, Harry doubted he could get lost from Hagrid, but he obediently followed, reaching out and grabbing Hagrid’s moleskin overcoat.
Pushing through the crowded people, they entered the stone tower.
To Harry’s surprise, the interior space was enormous. The entire stone tower had five floors, with the very center of each floor left open. A huge waterfall chandelier hung down from the ceiling of the top floor, illuminating every level.
Harry’s first feeling was that everything was orderly, a stark contrast to the Leaky Cauldron he had seen earlier. Still wearing Dudley’s old clothes, the bright, polished surroundings made him feel a bit uncomfortable.
The floor beneath his feet was polished white marble with natural patterns. Different shops, categorized by what they sold, were neatly arranged on different floors, and some goods were tidily displayed at the shop entrances.
Numerous company employees, dressed in uniform white robes, moved among them, politely serving every Wizard who stopped. Harry noticed each of them wore a small sky-pointing emblem pinned to their chest.
He was dazzled, “How is it that inside it’s much bigger than outside…”
“Much bigger?” Hagrid finished Harry’s unfinished sentence, then answered, “Undetectable Extension Charm, a spell that can infinitely expand internal space. The Ministry of Magic supervises the use of this spell extremely strictly, but Stone Tower Trading Company… they have connections with the Ministry of Magic, and the Ministry of Magic allows them to cast the Undetectable Extension Charm in all their branches.”
Harry murmured to himself, “This place is just like the super department stores I’ve seen in magazines.”
“What? What department store?” Hagrid didn’t hear Harry clearly. He continued, “Do Muggles call many shops put together a department store? Then you’re right, Harry, this is the Wizards’ department store!”
As they talked and walked, Harry noticed that on the other side of the ground floor hall, many people were gathered, their expressions excited, with cheers erupting from time to time.
Harry showed a curious expression.
“Oh, is there a match today?” Hagrid explained to Harry, “That’s a Wizard Dueling Card Game. It’s a competition launched by the Stone Tower Trading Company and has become very popular these past two years. Winners can receive a good amount of Galleon rewards and can also represent their region in regional competitions. I heard the Stone Tower Trading Company is planning to launch a world competition, which will be quite something to see.”
Due to time constraints, Hagrid didn’t let Harry watch the match, and the crowd was very dense, so Harry couldn’t see anything through the gaps.
But he was still very interested in that place.
Finally, on the second floor, when Hagrid took him to buy a brass scale, through the gaps in the railing, over the heads of the spectators, Harry saw the Wizard Dueling Card Game Hagrid had mentioned.
He couldn’t help but widen his eyes. In the center of the crowd, there was a huge rectangular table. On either side of the table stood a young Wizard, who must have been the two opponents in the duel. Another person stood at the side of the table, with his back to Harry, so his age couldn’t be seen. Harry guessed he was the referee.
But what most attracted Harry’s gaze were the translucent magic projections, suspended above the table in front of the two dueling Wizards, performing actions: in front of the right-hand Wizard was an old Wizard holding a wooden staff, wearing green robes and a pointed hat, while in front of the left-hand Wizard was a roaring Dragon, spewing flames!
The left-hand Wizard pointed, and the Dragon flapped its wings, flying towards the old Wizard, spraying surging flames.
Just as the audience couldn’t help but exclaim, the old Wizard’s projection slammed his staff heavily onto the ground. A circle of transparent, invisible ripples spread out, and the Dragon let out a wail, falling from the air before shattering and disappearing.
Deafening cheers erupted from the crowd.
Harry watched, captivated.
“Merlin’s beard!” A strange voice suddenly came from beside him. It was several other Wizards, drawn by the match, talking to each other by the railing. “That card is Arch-Wizard Merlin! Only one hundred copies were released worldwide! That Hungarian Horntail Dragon was already rare enough, I thought he was sure to win, but he ran into Arch-Wizard Merlin! What a pity!”
The Wizards walked past Harry as they spoke.
Just then, Hagrid came out of the shop with the brass scale and a telescope. He told Harry, “Most of the things you need are ready. Now all that’s left is a good wand. And there’s only one place to buy the best wands, and that’s Ollivander’s!”
“Ollivander’s is somewhere else, we have to leave here now.”
Hagrid, carrying the purchased items, led Harry towards the exit on the first floor of the company building.
As they walked out the door, Harry reluctantly looked back at the Wizard Dueling Card Game on the other side of the first-floor hall, then followed Hagrid out with the stream of people.
In an office at the top of the building, a grey-robed Wizard stood before a huge floor-length mirror, watching the thin little boy follow the giant Hogwarts gamekeeper out of the department store… almost at the same moment Harry walked out of the department store and merged into the bustling crowd of Diagon Alley.
Hogwarts, deep in the Forbidden Forest.
Lynch took a deep breath and stepped over the boundary of the Stone house.
