Diagon Alley is a wonderful place.
A month after his first visit, Andrew finally managed to scrape together enough money for the round trip to London and the expenses he'd need for Diagon Alley.
As a consequence, his study of textbooks and his experiments with magic hadn't progressed as quickly as he had imagined, but it was a necessary trade-off.
As he got off at King's Cross Station, he even found himself glancing at the signpost. According to Professor McGonagall, he'd be taking the train to Hogwarts from Platform 9¾. But at this moment, he wasn't interested in testing whether that platform actually opened by running his head into it.
Train turned into the Tube, and by around midday, he successfully arrived at the entrance to Diagon Alley—the Leaky Cauldron.
"This is truly a fantastic place," he muttered to himself as he looked at the tavern's entrance. He then took off his backpack, pulled out a cloak, and threw it over himself. He also fished out a cup of ice, tucking it into his cloak.
Last time, with Professor McGonagall leading him, he hadn't had much choice. But this time, he was not about to walk around in a set of clothes that made him stand out in a wizarding area. He suspected most wizards wandering the streets knew a spell to keep their robes cool, but he hadn't found anything like that in his first-year textbooks.
Due to the special nature of his previous visit, he hadn't yet learned how wizards normally greeted each other, but that wasn't much of a problem. Many people were visiting Diagon Alley before the Hogwarts term started, so he just needed to keep his hood up to blend in.
Everything went smoothly, except for the stifling heat.
So, after leaving the Leaky Cauldron, he quickly took off his hood, gave up on the silly disguise, and bought a large ice cream before heading straight for the second-hand bookstore.
After a brief negotiation with the owner, Andrew obtained the right to browse any book outside the "premium" second-hand section for one Sickle an hour—and he could even bring in his half-eaten ice cream.
That was about all he could get. Discrimination based on age was something only time could erase. At his age, most adults would only talk to him seriously if they weren't face-to-face.
"This is why I chose writing as my first income stream..."
Andrew quickly finished his ice cream, put on a mask, and then began flipping through the old books.
Unlike last time, when he picked mostly school textbooks, this time he focused on entertainment books.
Entertainment was a human instinct, whether Muggle or wizard.
In plain language, everyone liked a good time, although the methods of seeking entertainment differed.
He wasn't arrogant enough to think he could change how wizards entertained themselves, but if he could figure out what they liked, he was confident he could deliver content the magical world would enjoy.
However, investigating in a second-hand bookstore had a drawback—the owner wouldn't stock anything too time-sensitive, nor could he collect second-hand books aimed strictly at adult wizards. Still, the rest would do.
Fairy tales and bedtime stories were great materials. Twisting well-known childhood tales into "ruin your childhood" versions was a classic move for hidden gems, as long as they didn't deviate too much from the original—readers would enjoy them immensely.
"Focus, Andrew... you came here knowing that as your grasp of grammar improves, you'll write books with a broader appeal."
He reminded himself to take on a different persona for this, and resumed flipping through biographies.
Any biography that was bought, sold, and resold at a second-hand bookstore had to have been quite popular. Rewriting it into an adventure story series seemed like a solid choice.
Then he could add a little fantastical twist, exaggerate the magical effects, and as long as he avoided portraying the characters in a negative light, it would be well-received.
After getting a general idea of popular magazine series, familiarizing himself with commonly read wizard fairy tales, and reviewing biographies of famous wizards, Andrew felt he had a decent understanding. He picked out the books that caught his eye and realized he hadn't even gone to Gringotts to exchange money.
After paying for the books he'd browsed, he asked the shopkeeper to hold onto his selected books and quickly dashed to Gringotts to exchange his money for Galleons (it helped that he picked a good day, as Gringotts wasn't too busy).
"You know, a lot of the storybooks are also available in the Hogwarts library," the shopkeeper remarked, noticing Andrew's hurried coming and going. His main profit came from second-hand textbooks, as he managed to buy many cheaply during the end of each year at Hogwarts, after O.W.L.s or graduations.
"That's exactly why I want these, sir," Andrew replied, nodding. "Can I look for some of the most popular second-hand books in your premium section?"
"Nope, I don't have any of those." The shopkeeper spread his hands. "Gilderoy Lockhart's books are all the rage, and his second-hand books are hard to come by. They're highly sought after—lots of people have them reserved."
"Lockhart?"
"Of course, the most famous adventurer. His stories are so vividly told."
The shopkeeper praised him—he himself harbored an adventurous spirit, though making a living by buying second-hand textbooks from Hogwarts had kept his dreams grounded.
'Alright, looks like I'll need to get the Lockhart collection too... thankfully, my budget isn't too tight.' Andrew thought, as he packed up his selected classics. "Also, I need an owl—an ordinary, common owl."
About ten minutes later, he arrived at the famous Eeylops Owl Emporium.
Another ten minutes later, he walked out, carrying a grass owl. According to his reading, this type of owl was the most common in the entire magical world—even the owls used at Hogwarts were mostly grass owls.
"Still," he looked at his owl, "I can't shake the feeling the clerk tricked me. You are quite uniquely... ugly... oh, no, stop!"
The owl's beak had already made contact with his finger. It was just a gentle peck, but the look in its eyes carried a serious warning. Clearly, if Andrew pushed it any further, it was prepared to take a real bite.
This made Andrew realize that the clerk's description of the owl being "very smart" wasn't just a sales pitch.
"So, the invisibility-reducing charm on your cage is real too?" Andrew studied the owl carefully. "Alright, since you held back, I'll give you a nice name—but not now. We need to get back first."
The owl gave a slight nod, surprising Andrew once again, even though he thought he had already grown used to the magical world.
"The right books, the right audience, and now a fitting owl..."
Andrew nodded in satisfaction. This outing had gone perfectly. His next step was to find a reasonably priced inn for the night and head back to the orphanage from London the next day.
"Hey, I've got an idea," Andrew said, turning to his new owl companion. "How about the Leaky Cauldron? We might as well gather some intel on the wizarding world."
"Hoot."
"Legendary Wizard... I think it could work."
"Magical Legends... Worth a try for a submission..."
"Trendy Wizard? Sure, it sells a lot, but it's not a good fit... Why would a second-hand bookstore even bother with something like this?"
"Wizard Monthly... This could be worth a shot..."
"Contrarian Opinions? Sales are weak... but judging by the content, it might be worth submitting something, so why not try..."
"Magical Reader?... This is pure inspirational fluff... Maybe I could add my own twist. I think I can work with this."
Inside his room at the Leaky Cauldron, Andrew flipped through his haul of magazines for the day, deciding where he wanted his owl to fly. Poor bird—it didn't yet realize that each enthusiastic nod meant another flight, and it was still cheerfully cooing along.
"Got it! Let's test the waters with Magical Reader first." Andrew suddenly felt inspired. He spread out the parchment and, though not yet entirely comfortable, took up his quill and scribbled away. Before long, a fresh manuscript was finished.
"There are still some grammatical issues, but it's good enough."
He quickly gave himself a new pen name, tied the letter to his owl, and sent it off to deliver the submission.
"By the time I get back to the orphanage, I should have a reply. The article should pass easily enough."
He patted his owl on the head, tying the hastily written article to its leg. Considering the risk of writing too directly about the contemporary magical world, he had shifted his focus instead to glorifying the ancient magical world and offering a critique of the modern one.
To his surprise, by the time he was preparing to sleep that evening, his owl had returned with eight Sickles and a letter inviting him to submit again. They stated that his article would be published in the next issue of Magical Reader and hinted that if he wrote another excellent article, perhaps about the educational differences between pureblood and Muggle-born wizards, the pay rate could be doubled.
"No thanks. I don't want someone coming after me with a curse on my head..."
Though he had earned enough for a night's lodging and food, Andrew decided not to continue submitting there—curses were very real in this world, and drawing too much attention could end badly.
He even canceled the link between himself and the temporary pen name—a spell that allowed the owl to locate its target. It was entry-level magic and even taught in related content within the magazines (because it was so simple, there wasn't a dedicated class for it; Sirius Black had even canceled his link to his name without a wand after escaping).
"Alright, it turns out that money isn't easy to make, but at least we've made a good start."
Andrew picked up his owl and used both thumbs to rub its head. "Next, we need to make a breakthrough with Lockhart's legendary books."
Due to the high price, Andrew only bought the two best-selling books from the series, which nearly blew his budget.
"I feel like I'm not focusing on what I should be," he said as he spread open the book. "But there's no other way. If the stuff in Hogwarts Legacy is true, then I absolutely need to try to learn ancient magic. Though the lore suggests a bloodline requirement, there are ways to steal that magic. And even if that fails, experimenting with ancient runes, Transfiguration, alchemy—all those magical experiments require startup capital, you understand, buddy?"
"Earning a few Galleons is like sharpening the axe before chopping firewood. Once I have the initial funds, I can get something to organize my thoughts better, and then I won't need to divide my attention for this stuff anymore, pal." He tapped his owl's head and began reading Lockhart's story.
It was an outstanding story—though, unfortunately, Andrew had no time to savor it. He skimmed through it at high speed.
"Great setting, great appeal, great characters, and solid writing," he praised. "If the story weren't so novel, I wouldn't dare try to imitate it."
+++++
"Levitation Charm, three levels."
As the magically infused stone rose, the Gryffindor wizard's face remained expressionless, but there was a hint of bitterness at the corners of his lips. His tightly clenched wand cut into his palm, causing a stinging pain.
...
The pureblood family's way of testing children under the age of eleven differed from other places—using the Levitation Charm to lift a specially crafted anti-magic stone as high as possible. The higher it rose, the greater the magical power, and the higher the future growth potential.
...
"This hard-earned growth in power... completely swallowed up by this wand chosen from Ollivanders... Is it really suitable for me?"
...
"The Herpo family—thirty years west of the Thames, thirty years east of the Thames—never underestimate a young man's determination!"
...
"So, this is the legendary Elder Wand?"
...
Ravenclaw frowned, retreating behind the crowd (this scene was crossed out. Andrew thought it over and figured it was best not to write anything about non-glorious portrayals, and crowd scenes couldn't compare to a focused main character).
A week after Andrew returned to the orphanage, these manuscripts were laid out on the desks of the editors he had carefully selected.
Although these were just early drafts and had removed what might have been iconic scenes or inappropriate characters, incorporating elements like the Elder Wand, ancient potion recipes, and ancient spells, the content still held enough allure to fit the times.
Andrew soon received responses.
The only rejection came from Contrarian Opinions—they stated that the draft was too serious and suggested adding goblin rebellions or organizing an army, as that would make it a better fit for their publication.
The rest of the submissions were accepted, with each publication offering a different rate. Andrew carefully chose to go with Magical Legends—they claimed they would only need to add minor edits, promised not to reveal the author's name, and offered the second-highest pay.
If there was any drawback, it was that they insisted on taking the title of second author—a necessary condition for making edits and concealing the true author's identity.
The offer was reasonable enough, and after some consideration, Andrew agreed to sign the contract.
---
"Alright, it's settled!"
"Even if my writing isn't polished and my market research isn't thorough, the story itself is legendary enough!"
"Editor, are we really going to do this?"
"Why not? We have the interview rights—and compared to that fool Rita Skeeter, our edits are harmless."
"True. If Rita can get away with it, we even did a special issue on her once."
Something happened at the Magical Legends editorial office that Andrew couldn't have foreseen—due to one notorious person in the industry lowering standards, Andrew's editor decided, with a flourish of his pen, to make drastic changes to the story for the sake of making it more compelling and boosting magazine sales.
"The story of Gryffindor is too distant, it lacks a selling point. How can it compete with Lockhart?"
"Change the protagonist to Dumbledore, and say it's based on our interview, officially adapted!"
"Call it: Dumbledore, A Legend!"
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