Chapter 16 – Gold and Galleons
Gargamel was the name Dudley gave himself.
His impression of Gargamel was of someone who rarely used magic, instead constantly brewing potions. Dudley felt that was very much like himself.
The only difference was that Dudley had a thick head of hair and a physique strong enough to knock out twenty of those scrawny fellows in one go.
Do you think this is a gathering place for wizards?
No! Dudley could not yet mix in with such places.
This was a gathering ground for Squibs.
Squibs could not cast spells, so there were no Extension Charms placed on the rooms. The appearance of impoverished wizards was already shabby, let alone that of Squibs.
Life was not easy for Squibs in the wizarding world. Since they could not perform magic, they could not take on magical professions, which meant no source of income. After all, not every Squib was as fortunate as Mr. Filch, the caretaker at Hogwarts.
If Squibs did not rely on their families, they had to find another way to survive in the magical world.
They were the lowest rung of the wizarding society. For the sake of survival, Squibs often traveled between the Muggle and wizarding worlds, making them the ones most accessible to Muggles.
After all, those self-important wizards would never deign to look a Muggle in the eye.
Among Squibs, attendants looked the most presentable, but even so, their clothes were greasy and filthy.
Except for rare cases like Mrs. Figg, one should not expect most Squibs to be clean. They refused to use Muggle laundry powder or cleaning agents, and they also could not perform the wizard's Scouring Charm.
Only one word described them—slovenly.
At least wizards had Hogsmeade, but Squibs lacked the means. They could only lodge in houses built by Muggles.
As they passed one room, Dudley faintly heard words from inside—such as magic, shortcuts.
The attendant, with a flattering smile, led Dudley to the innermost room.
That was the agreed trading place.
Dudley was their major client, so they naturally treated him with care.
Inside, several Squibs who had been waiting for a long time stood up together the moment Dudley entered, fawning smiles on their faces.
"The goods?" Dudley got straight to the point as soon as he walked in.
The stench here was unbearable. With his sensitive sense of smell—stronger than most people—he did not want to linger even for a moment.
"Respected Mr. Gargamel, here are the items you requested."
One Squib, looking a little cleaner than the others, handed Dudley a small shoulder bag.
Dudley took it and opened it directly. The bag had clearly been enchanted with an Extension Charm. Its space was much larger inside than outside, though still limited, able only to hold somewhat more.
Glass bottles neatly contained common magical ingredients well known in the wizarding world, such as Jumping Roots, Gillyweed, Bloodwort, Cowbane, and Sneezing Grass. There were also several magical books.
Enough to last him for a while.
Dudley gave a quick glance. Although the quality of these ingredients was not top-grade, they were not too bad either.
Most importantly, he could not buy them directly from the wizarding world himself, so being able to get these was already decent.
"The items are fine, but next time I want some rarer materials. Things like Ashwinder eggs, Jumping Toadstool caps, troll mucus, Dripping Grass, or African tree snake skin."
"What you're asking for is not easy to obtain," the Squib said, rubbing his fingers together. "But if the price is right, it's not impossible. Since you're satisfied with these goods, perhaps…"
He was only saying this casually. Many of the items Dudley wanted were contraband, difficult for even regular wizards to obtain, let alone Squibs.
In fact, Dudley also wanted some bicorn horn powder, but that was contraband of the highest order. Expecting Squibs to procure it was impossible.
"As long as you can get them for me, money is no problem."
Dudley spoke as he set the small bag on the table and poured it out.
The group of Squibs in the room stared wide-eyed, their gazes locked in unison, filled with greed.
Under the dim yellow light, a dazzling golden brilliance shone, almost blinding.
Inside was all gold.
Naturally, the currency Dudley used in trades with Squibs could not be pounds; they only accepted gold.
It was not that Squibs were old-fashioned, but because gold could barely serve as a circulating currency in the wizarding world.
If not for the Philosopher's Stone that could transmute objects into gold and disrupt the market, gold itself was hard currency.
After all, one of the main materials for Galleons was gold.
In fact, Gringotts did provide pound-to-Galleon exchange services: five pounds for one Galleon, but the yearly limit was one hundred Galleons, and only for young wizards attending Hogwarts.
Ordinary people could not profit from exploiting exchange differences. Do not think those goblins are fools—their hunger and greed for gold far surpassed imagination.
Even with a whole bag of gold taken to Gringotts, one could only exchange for a pitifully small amount of Galleons.
Galleons were gold, but gold was not equal to Galleons. Special processing and numbering by goblins were required.
After deducting the cost of magical ingredients, Squibs only earned hard labor's worth, while the goblins took the lion's share.
One had to admit that wizards were truly careless, entrusting the lifeline of their economy to a defeated race.
"Pleasure doing business."
Gaining a free Extension Charm shoulder bag put Dudley in a good mood. Without even glancing at the gold on the table, he carefully put away the bag and spoke to the Squibs.
Now he lacked no money, only potion ingredients.
Moreover, he discovered that as long as potions were brewed well, they were in no way inferior to ordinary wizards.
Some potions were actually remarkably powerful.
"Pleasure doing business." The Squibs, having received the gold, were naturally delighted.
As for robbing Dudley to reclaim the potion ingredients, the thought never crossed their minds. For Squibs, potion ingredients were useless, and in these times, a patron as generous as Dudley was hard to find.
Offending him would mean disastrous losses.
Besides, Squibs could not cast spells—how would they rob him? By fistfights?
Looking at Dudley's strong and solid frame, anyone with such ideas quickly extinguished them.
Leaving the alley, Dudley soon arrived at the rendezvous point and got into a car. The driver then took him to a property Dudley had specially purchased to store potions. With some time left before noon, he intended to put things away first.
There was no need yet for Petunia, who despised magic, to see any of it.
At least, not for now.
(End of Chapter)
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