Harry was also startled. Compared to his first visit, Diagon Alley was much more crowded today, practically overflowing with people.
"So many people, are they all Wizards?" Chris asked.
Howl nodded, "Most of them are Wizards, but it might be because the school season has arrived, which is why there are so many people."
"School season?"
Howl wasn't in a hurry to answer. Seeing the crowds, he wasn't eager to buy anything, so he suggested, "Let's go sit in a cafe. Many shops must be swamped right now."
The group navigated through the crowds to a cafe in the middle of Diagon Alley. Hermione was awestruck the entire way, feeling like she had a ton of questions to ask. Harry wasn't much better; it wasn't nearly this lively when he came last time.
They ordered drinks and some snacks. Chris initially wanted to pay, but upon seeing the gold coins Howl took out, he immediately withdrew his hand from his wallet.
"These are Galleons, the currency of the Wizarding World," Howl explained. They sat under a parasol by the street, leisurely passing the time.
"Mr. Jones, what did you mean by the'school season' just now?" Chris immediately asked impatiently.
"The Hogwarts school season. That's a Wizarding school, specifically for Little Wizards of the right age, to teach them how to use the magic within them."
"magic school?!" The couple's eyes widened in shock. "So, our daughter will also have to go there to study in the future?"
Howl nodded, "Yes, according to the information I've found, almost every Little Wizard has to go there. By the way, how old is your daughter?"
"I'm ten this year," Hermione immediately blurted out.
"Same as me, then we should be together next year," Harry looked at Hermione in surprise.
"Klee, you can take Hermione to look around," Howl suggested. He had already sensed the two children's restlessness.
"Mom, can I?" Hermione looked at her mother. Seeing her hesitate, she added, "You come with us."
"Martha, let's go for a walk. Little Hermione is clearly excited," Chris said with a smile, then suddenly remembered something. He turned to his daughter and whispered,
"I'm sorry, girl. Your mom and I didn't believe you earlier."
He was, of course, referring to what happened earlier on Charing Cross Road.
"It's okay, Dad," Hermione smiled happily, then pulled her mother and, led by Harry, bid farewell to the two men.
"Klee, just stay in Diagon Alley, don't go too far," Howl instructed.
Harry nodded. The first time he came, Uncle Howl had sent him to the candy shop alone, so he wasn't unfamiliar with Diagon Alley.
As for Knockturn Alley, although that incident was over a month ago, he would absolutely not go near there, not at all.
...
After the children left, Howl and Chris talked a lot. Chris's first reaction upon hearing that his beloved daughter would have to go to a far-off place to study in the future was unwillingness.
But then Howl told him the consequences if a Wizard couldn't master the magic within him, and he fell silent again.
"There's still a year, you don't need to be overly anxious," Howl said calmly.
Chris rubbed his forehead helplessly, "I don't know... Today's news has impacted me too much. Perhaps tomorrow when I wake up, I'll still feel like this was all a dream.
Besides, as parents, how can we not worry?"
After speaking, Chris suddenly asked, "Mr. Jones, is Klee your child?"
Howl shook his head, "He's my neighbor's child. He's not doing very well, I think you can tell. So occasionally I take him out to look around."
"Oh, alright," Chris felt he should skip that topic.
As for Howl, he diverted his attention and began to look around. He had felt someone watching him since earlier.
Before long, he pinpointed a person in the passing crowd.
It was a short, fat man with bow legs and a greasy appearance.
The moment Howl met his gaze, the man smiled, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth, then pulled out a piece of parchment from his clothes. On the parchment, a cat-headed, human-bodied creature was clearly drawn.
After confirming Howl had seen it, he vanished amidst the crisscrossing crowd.
Howl's eyes narrowed into a vertical slit, a smile playing at the corners of his lips. He stood up and straightened his clothes, "Mr. Granger, please excuse me for a moment."
"Oh, of course, make yourself at home," Chris extended his hand.
Howl nodded and then moved down with the flow of people. In a blink of an eye, Chris could no longer find a trace of him.
Knockturn Alley. After the big explosion a month ago, it had been restored to its original state through the repairs of various personnel.
At this moment, a figure darted out from Diagon Alley, running non-stop with bow legs towards the depths of Knockturn Alley. He seemed very flustered, but at every corner, he would frequently look back.
Mundungus looked at the crowd behind him, feeling confused. Had he recognized the wrong person? Or had the guy not followed him at all?
Thinking this, he turned his head again and ran into the alley.
But what he didn't expect was that a figure had appeared in front of him at some point. Before he could react, he crashed right into him.
With a thud, Mundungus felt as if he had hit an iron plate. He even had the illusion that it was Rubeus Hagrid standing in front of him.
Clutching his aching nose, Mundungus slowly opened his eyes and finally saw who was standing before him.
It was precisely the man from the cafe earlier.
Howl patted away non-existent dust from his chest, looking at the man before him with a half-smile. "I'm very curious, you deliberately held up my portrait, trying to lure me over here. What do you intend to do?"
Mundungus hurriedly scrambled to his feet, putting distance between himself and Howl. Clutching the parchment with Howl's likeness, he forced a triumphant look and said,
"I didn't think you'd actually dare to follow. Don't say I didn't warn you, if you dare to mess around, your picture will appear in the Auror Office mailbox tomorrow."
Howl looked at him, the feigned confidence in his smile was completely transparent to him.
"So what are you trying to say?" With that, Howl suddenly raised his hand!
The next moment, Mundungus's body suddenly flew up and slammed heavily into Howl. He didn't even have time to panic before his neck was gripped, making a clicking sound.
Is this... the strength a Wizard should have?!
At this moment, Mundungus felt as if his throat was clamped by an iron vice.
Howl whispered, "I'm asking, what is your purpose?"
Saying that, he snatched the parchment, unrolled it, took a glance, and then tossed it into the air.
Under the sunlight, the parchment quickly corroded into ashes and vanished.
Howl slightly loosened his grip, waiting for the fellow's next words.
"Cough, cough... I... cough, cough..." Mundungus instantly lost all strength, trembling as he fell to the ground. One hand clutched his neck, the other scrabbled, trying to get further away from Howl.
Those two blows had completely scared the wits out of him.
Having long mingled at the lowest echelons of the Wizarding World, he was utterly incapable of resisting the feeling of death being so close.
"No, I'm sorry, I apologize!! Please don't... I didn't mean to provoke you... cough, cough, he told me you were a criminal and to find you in Diagon Alley.
So when I found you... I just wanted to extort some money from you, I'm sorry! Please, let me go..."
Howl slowly walked towards Mundungus, scaring him into retreating repeatedly.
"Who is 'he' you're talking about?"
"Borgin and Burkes, you previously—" As he was speaking, a green light suddenly flew out and struck Mundungus, cutting off his words abruptly.
"Tongue-Tying Curse!!"
Howl looked towards where the spell came from; it was an alley between houses. A hunched-back man stood in the darkness, his rugged, wrinkled face also shrouded in shadow.