Hogwarts: Don't call me the Staff Maker

Chapter 53 The Weasley Brothers: Impatient

This operation was incredibly exciting for Siron; he wasn't sure if he heard someone shouting inside the castle.

Of course, it could also be the sound of the wind, or some other sound.

Fortunately, Siren didn't run into Filch or Professor Sprout in the end and returned safely to the Gryffindor common room.

"If this happens again, I'll tell the professor!" the plump woman threatened as she opened the passageway to the common room.

Xilun pretended not to hear.

The Weasley brothers had already told him that the Fat Lady was just saying it and wouldn't tell the professor about the nighttime outings with the young wizards; that would only cause her trouble.

To Siren's surprise, even though it was already past midnight, the lights were still on in the common room.

Then Celen realized it was Fred and George, who were sitting in armchairs, fiddling with a pile of junk they'd somehow found.

They remained quite calm in the face of the sudden appearance of Xilun, since they had known about it for a long time.

"We were just saying you should be back soon." Fred turned and glanced at Celen.

"What are you holding in your hand?"

"A branch," Siron said.

"You broke school rules and ran out of the castle in the middle of the night, just for a tree branch?" George didn't quite understand.

Is this thing not everywhere? Do we really need to risk getting caught and go out in the middle of the night?

"These are branches of the Willow Tree," Xiren emphasized, then walked over and sat down in the armchair opposite them.

"Is there anything different?"

"It costs three gallons per ounce, which is twice as expensive as the same weight of dragon blood."

"How much?" Fred and George stood up at the same time, their voices changing.

"One ounce?"

"Are you sure you didn't mispronounce it? It's three Galleons, not three Nats?"

"You're right, it's Galleons." Xiren nodded. "And even three Galleons, you might not be able to buy them even if you wanted to."

Celen had previously asked his grandfather, Garrick Ollivander, and learned that there was only one Whomping Willow in all of Britain, and no more than five in the entire wizarding world combined, making it as rare as the Phoenix among magical creatures.

Currently, Fox is the only phoenix in the UK.

So this thing is really expensive, and Xilun really can't afford it, otherwise he wouldn't need to take the risk.

As for asking the principal to use it... even his grandfather couldn't do that, let alone a first-year student like Xilun.

Professor Sprout has a veto in this matter, and even Dumbledore's words have no effect—even though he planted the Whomping Willow there.

Meanwhile, after receiving an affirmative answer from Sheryl, the Weasley brothers' eyes practically turned into Galleons.

"Oh..." Fred groaned, "What have we all missed..."

They knew there was a willow tree at school, but they never paid attention to it. Now it seems that it is a shining golden tree.

Oh no, if we calculate it at three Galleons per ounce, it would be a whole size bigger if we converted it to gold.

The two exchanged a glance and rushed outside without saying a word.

Xilun didn't even have time to react. By the time he came to his senses and chased after them, the two had already disappeared into the dark corridor.

Why are you in such a hurry? At least let him finish what he has to say... Xilun returned to the common room with some trepidation.

There's no way to stop them now; I hope they're alright.

Xilun sat back down in his original spot and looked at the large pile of things on the table in front of him.

A plate with a chipped corner, a faded old tapestry, moldy parchment... I have no idea where the Weasley brothers found all this junk.

After thinking for a moment, Xilun changed his position and, for the first time, seriously examined his gains for the night.

The leaves withered instantly upon hitting the ground, leaving only a grayish-brown branch with a rough, hard bark. However, it wasn't as heavy as I had imagined; it felt similar to oak.

Silen gestured with his hand again. It wasn't long, about twenty inches. It would definitely be enough to make one wand, but two would be a bit of a stretch.

Xilun watched for a while longer, and since he was not sleepy at all, he simply started to make preliminary work on the branches right there.

The first step was to remove the rough outer skin. This time, Siron did not choose to use the Cutting Charm; he had a better option.

"Sieve out the impurities!"

A warm yellow light emanated from the tip of Xiren's wand, and then a gentle breeze, like a serpent, coiled around a branch and swirled forward. Wherever the wind passed, the dust, pebbles, and twigs on the branches were swept away.

"Integration and fusion!"

This time, the light was silvery-white. The originally rough bark seemed to be squeezed by an invisible force, gradually becoming smooth and even.

Grigovich, the most famous wand maker in Eastern Europe, usually made wands without bark, believing that rough bark would affect the conversion of magic.

Ollivander was the complete opposite of him in this respect, and Silen was no exception; he believed that overall integrity was far more important than a single merit.

Using magic to completely fuse the entire branch together is a time-consuming and laborious but necessary step.

Half an hour later, the branches of the willow tree had shrunk considerably, and its originally rough bark had become smooth as marble.

That completes the first step.

Before Xilun could make any further move, a rustling sound came from the entrance of the common room.

Fred and George returned, heads drooping, and listlessly crawled in through the passageway.

Yes, they crawled in, covered in dust and dirt, and George's robe was ripped open, revealing a dirty blue sweater underneath.

As soon as they entered, the two of them collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

"Its temper...is really fiery...isn't it?" Fred looked up at Xilen with a wistful gaze. "You really should have told us sooner."

"Who told you to be in such a hurry? You ran off before I even had a chance to say anything," Xiren shrugged.

"Who could stand this?" George said quietly. "Now I finally understand why the Man-Beating Willow is so valuable... it's even more terrifying than a fire dragon."

"You should be grateful," Celen said. "This beating willow was planted in the school and pampered by Professor Sprout for over a decade, so its aggressiveness has long since diminished. Otherwise, you'd all be compost by now."

"Stop talking." George seemed to have thought of something terrible, his face turned pale, but he felt more annoyed and regretful.

"Actually, I saw some branches break when that big guy tried to hit me on the head," Fred sighed. "But the noise from the Whomping Willow woke Hagrid up."

"Professor Sprout is here too. We didn't have time to pick them up, so we had to come back first."

"Wait, the professor found you out?" Siren couldn't help but ask.

“She didn’t see us,” George said. “Maybe she thought some kind of animal had angered the Whomping Willow.”

"I hope so," Xiren said, but he quickly cleared everything off the table and headed back to the dormitory with the completely deformed branch in his hand.

Professor Sprout may not have seen them, but what if he did? In that case, the ghosts would go to each house to check the situation, and staying in the common room would be too risky.

……