Indeed, Hogsmeade already had a long-established shop specializing in prank products: Zonko's Joke Shop.
If Fred and George chose to open a shop in Hogsmeade, then Zonko's was a competitor they simply could not avoid.
Under the shadow of a great tree, it was difficult for new saplings to grow strong. People were creatures of habit. If customers were already used to shopping at Zonko's, why would they suddenly start buying from Fred and George instead?
Forget the other students, even Fred and George themselves were regular customers of that shop!
Astoria only needed to think about it briefly to realize just how difficult the challenge awaiting the twins would be, and these were things she had never considered before.
"Of course." Fred's expression remained relaxed. "I know Zonko's products very well. Our stuff is more interesting, and more importantly, we still have two trump cards."
"What trump cards?" Daphne asked curiously.
"For now, that's a secret." Fred deliberately kept them guessing.
"You'll find out eventually anyway," George said, pulling a face at the three of them.
After informing Rhys and the others of their major decision, Fred and George left the compartment. By then, it was already lunchtime.
Rhys gave Astoria a look, and the girl took out the ingredients she had prepared in advance.
She had brought an entire slab of beef!
The food container had been enchanted, maintaining the perfect temperature inside and keeping the beef in its freshest state. When the lid was opened, a burst of white steam drifted out, revealing a beautifully marbled piece of beef before the three of them.
Daphne, meanwhile, took out a pile of fresh bread along with jam, butter, and other accompaniments.
Rhys produced several bottles of chilled juice and a grill plate. He had not brought charcoal, because having Daphne with him was enough.
Daphne clapped her hands together, creating a small ball of magma. After tossing it into the compartment beneath the grill plate, she pouted. She had never expected domain power could be used like this…
Rhys glanced at her and told her that this was also training, an exercise in precise control over domain power, while simultaneously slicing the beef into thin three-millimeter pieces. After sprinkling black pepper and salt over the meat and brushing on some oil, Rhys spread the slices onto the grill.
The aroma of sizzling fat instantly filled the air.
"Add some onions, then sprinkle in a bit of soy sauce. Daphne, watch the heat," Rhys instructed the two girls while covering the grill plate with slices of beef.
The three of them busied themselves happily inside the small compartment.
The barbecue was soon ready. Under the heat, all the fat within the meat fibers had been fully rendered, elevating the aroma of the meat to an entirely new level. Meanwhile, the smoke from the grill was guided out through the window by magic, leaving the compartment surprisingly fresh.
With such delicious food, the snacks from the trolley became completely unnecessary.
When the snack cart attendant slid open the compartment door, she was utterly stunned. She had never expected students to be grilling barbecue on the train. However, neither the school nor the Ministry had forbidden such a thing, so the attendant merely reminded the three young wizards to be careful and not set the train on fire.
The pleasant day passed in the blink of an eye. The sun gradually sank westward, and Hogwarts was almost in sight.
Before the train arrived, Hermione came to find them and brought news: she had heard that Hogwarts would be hosting some kind of mysterious major event this year.
"Have you heard the rumors?" Hermione had specifically come to confirm the truth with Rhys and the Greengrass sisters. In her eyes, the three of them were all exceptionally well-informed, so any information from them would surely be accurate.
"Not at all." Daphne and Astoria shook their heads at the same time, while Rhys did not respond to Hermione's question.
Hermione narrowed her eyes. Rhys's attitude already answered everything.
"I understand. See you at school."
She hurried off. The train was nearing its destination, and she needed to quickly change into her wizard robes.
"So what exactly is this major event?" Even Daphne had realized by now that Rhys clearly knew something they did not.
At this point, there was no longer any point in hiding it, so Rhys briefly explained the grand event Hogwarts was about to host to the two girls.
"Hogwarts is about to host an unprecedented competition, one that spans the entire world. You two had better perform well and not disgrace Hogwarts." Rhys could not suppress the excitement in his voice at all.
The coming year would be Hogwarts's moment of proving itself, and he had waited far too long for it. The seeds planted a thousand years ago had finally reached the moment when the sweetness of their fruit would be tested.
According to the process he and Helga had discussed earlier, each house would send one or two students to represent the school in the competition and fight for its honor. In the end, there would be a world ranking, with each placement awarding a certain number of points. The final standings between schools would then be determined by total points. In Rhys's view, this format gave Hogwarts an enormous advantage.
After all, he believed that Hogwarts sweeping the top three places would be effortless.
He would be cheering for the adorable Daphne and Astoria. Let the two of them wash away Slytherin's bad reputation and promote the true "Slytherin spirit"!
Daphne was just as excited as Rhys. She was already eager to show off her abilities before young wizards from all over the world.
Astoria, however, sharply noticed that Rhys's wording was strange. He had said "you two." Did that mean he had no intention of participating in the competition himself?
Rhys did not explain the details of the competition too thoroughly. He only told Daphne and Astoria that Dumbledore would clarify everything during the opening feast.
That left both girls rather distracted.
And it wasn't just Daphne and Astoria. Although the news was theoretically supposed to be kept secret, paper could never fully wrap up a fire. By the time the students arrived in the Great Hall of Hogwarts, the rumor that "a massive competition would be held this year" had already spread to nearly everyone.
As a result, the atmosphere during the first half of the opening ceremony was extremely strange. Everyone was in a near-distracted state, all waiting for Dumbledore to stand up and finally reveal the truth.
After the Sorting Ceremony ended, Albus Dumbledore indeed rose to his feet. Everyone in the hall immediately fell silent, staring expectantly at the white-haired old headmaster.
"It seems everyone's information network is quite efficient. But before announcing that matter, let us first welcome our new professor, Ms. Aries, with a warm round of applause!"
The moment his words fell, a fierce gust of wind swept through the Great Hall. The students instinctively bent down and clutched their robes to keep their belongings from being blown away.
When the wind finally died down, everyone discovered that a beautiful young woman had appeared at the staff table. She had the features of an Eastern European woman, with eyes as sharp as an eagle's.
The moment Rhys heard the name "Aries," he felt a bad premonition.
As soon as the wind rose, he instantly understood everything.
That woman had arrived.
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12 Chaps ahead at Patreon.com/HornyFBI