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Chapter 300 – Fleur Steals Something and the Black-Hearted Shop!!
"Professor, you don't have to keep fishing. You're never going to catch anything, right?"
Darren really didn't understand how things had turned into this.
From the start of summer vacation until now, Nicole Flamel had basically forced him to read all day every day.
Maybe his "Holy Father" value was too high, because in just a few days he had finished all the books Nicole Flamel had given him.
When Flamel saw the results, he was completely shocked.
Both Nicolas and Perenelle kept whispering to each other, worried sick.
They never told Darren that those books were meant to last him a full year of study.
They thought Darren must have worked through the nights, desperate to satisfy them.
After that, they didn't let him study at all.
Every day was just eating, drinking, and resting.
One day Darren casually sighed that he was too poor to even afford to raise a single magical herb.
The next morning he found Flamel had built an entire greenhouse for him—filled with rare herbs.
Then when he mentioned he liked Muggle things, they built him a whole playground and even gifted him a massive magically-enchanted Lego set.
He had stood there completely stunned. Wizards really did know how to play.
And then… came today.
Darren had looked at the fish in Flamel's river and quietly wished he could try eating one.
Too bad those fish were Flamel's alchemy-test fish, full of unstable dark magic, so they couldn't be eaten.
So in order to let Darren eat fish, Nicolas Flamel personally took him to Beauxbatons, planning to catch fish for him in the lake near his old school.
There they met Madame Maxime.
She was tall, elegant, and beautiful.
She admired Nicolas deeply and immediately grew affectionate toward Darren.
Darren also saw Fleur Delacour.
A doll-like girl.
Arrogant beyond belief.
When she saw Flamel and Darren, she merely nodded, offered a short greeting, and left.
Only after she walked away did Darren learn from others that she was Fleur.
Right now, he had just finished greeting her when—
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[Ding—Sensing a Holy Father scenario around the host. Temporary Mission Released:]
Go to the outer grounds of Beauxbatons. When Fleur Delacour arrives, grab her and stop the goblin chasing her from getting close.
And say: "Who are you? Why are you chasing Miss Delacour? Please explain yourself clearly!"
[Ding—Mission Reward: Fleur Delacour Favorability +50. Accept mission?]
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Darren stared at the message in shock.
Recently, system missions had become fewer and fewer.
And even when they appeared, they were only Holy Father–type missions.
He thought he wouldn't get anything other than Father Value tasks this summer.
He didn't expect a Fleur favorability mission.
[Accept]
He didn't know why a goblin was chasing Fleur, but since the system triggered a warning, the goblin must be up to no good.
As he walked toward the school gates, he saw Fleur running toward him from a distance—face pale, breathing fast.
Her eyes met his, with a strange mixture of pleading and embarrassment.
Clearly she thought that because she'd acted arrogant toward him earlier, he might not help her.
Darren ignored her expression.
He first looked at Fleur, then turned toward the goblin chasing her.
The goblin spat angrily:
"Boy, don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong! That woman stole something from our shop! I'm only asking her to return it!"
Darren frowned.
He stepped forward, grabbed Fleur with one hand and the goblin with the other, pushing them apart.
Both of them tried to struggle free—but neither could break Darren's grip.
Their eyes widened. Darren didn't even look strong.
"Mr. Goblin, it's not that I don't believe you," Darren said sincerely, "but I need you to tell me exactly what item you're talking about. And I hope you're not lying to me."
Then he turned.
"And Miss Delacour, I also ask you to tell me exactly what happened. Did it happen the way he says?"
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[Ding—Host has gained Fleur Delacour Favorability +50]
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Darren accepted the reward and continued speaking seriously.
Even though he looked like a pretty, slender teenager, there was a frightening pressure around him.
"My name is… Pull-Ring…" the goblin said stiffly.
Darren froze.
Pull-Ring?
Wasn't this the goblin who had helped him withdraw money at Gringotts?
Why was he here?
And why did he look so much older now?
"Don't look at me like that, boy! That woman stole the treasure of our shop!"
Pull-Ring bared his teeth and glared at Fleur.
Darren turned to Fleur, stunned.
Would such a beautiful girl really steal?
"What are you looking at?" Fleur snapped. "I only broke it by accident… and then I panicked, so I ran with it!"
Embarrassed, she pulled out a pile of shattered fragments.
Something made of glass.
"We can't use magic during summer break. I couldn't repair it. I just wanted to bring it home and have my father fix it."
"Then I'd return it. That's all!"
Fleur huffed, dismissive.
Darren felt speechless.
You steal a shop's grand treasure, run off with it, and then blame them for chasing you?
This girl's personality was… not exactly good.
"And I even got hurt because of it! Look! I've had this for two days!"
Fleur pointed to a tiny scar on her arm.
Darren stared.
That little scab?
"I don't care!" Pull-Ring shouted. "Either return it intact or pay one hundred thousand Galleons!"
Darren almost dropped Fleur.
One hundred thousand Galleons??
Lily had left only a bit over three hundred thousand. That was one-third of their whole inheritance!
For what item?
He looked at the fragments in Fleur's hands.
An alchemical accessory.
From what he'd studied recently, it was an alchemical necklace.
Its ability was… to make someone slightly more beautiful.
That's it.
And it cost one hundred thousand Galleons?
Why didn't they just rob people?
Flamel had dozens of such things lying around. He could probably make one himself soon.
He studied the crack on the necklace.
It wasn't freshly broken.
There were traces of a previous Mending Charm.
This type of alchemical item was incredibly hard to repair. A normal wizard couldn't manage it.
But if you had an alchemist… they could just make a new one.
Pull-Ring's shop was definitely a black-heart shop.
But Fleur wasn't exactly innocent either.
Stealing this kind of item… she was definitely bold.
Sure enough, you couldn't underestimate the heroes of this world.
Even the pretty ones.
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