Chapter 771
Zhangsheng Alley 2
Chapter 771 Echo Alley 2
Compared to Diagon Alley, Echo Alley offers a wider variety of goods, and is more trendy, daring, and creative.
In Diagon Alley, without Vader's new inventions, the things sold in the stores wouldn't change much from year to year. At most, the bookstore would have a few more new books, or the broom shop would introduce a new flying broom.
Apart from that, its appearance has not changed much compared to ten, twenty, or even fifty years ago.
Echo Alley, on the other hand, follows the Muggle trend—the shops play popular punk and hip-hop music, the robe shop's clothing seems to imitate the Batman movies, genuine vampires dress up as vampire counts, and Wade even sees wizards wearing ripped jeans and Doc Martens under their robes.
Wade took a steaming cup of "cauldron coffee" from the clerk, gripped the crucible-shaped cup by the handle, glanced at the hip-hop-dressed young people on the street, turned to Salina beside him, and asked:
"Ms. Goldstein, I thought you had always insisted on completely isolating yourselves from Muggle society?"
Salina, holding her coffee, looked like she was in a meeting room. She turned to Wade and said:
“Isolation is about building barriers in terms of stance, emotion, law, and life, but it is not about burying your head in the sand and being completely unaware of the changes around you—that is not protection, but ignorance, a way to self-destruct!”
Her gaze swept over the rather "clumsy" decorations as well, and she said, "To ensure our world remains undetected, we must know them better than anyone else so that we can blend in perfectly and avoid their observation."
"In other words... if you want to hide in the forest, you have to become a leaf first."
Wade felt that what she said made a lot of sense, much better than the stubborn and inflexible thinking of the British, but something seemed a little off.
He thought for a moment and slowly said, "But when you accept their rich and colorful culture, imitate their trendy clothes, and immerse yourself in their wonderful music and art, can you really still be completely free of emotional bias, as you say?"
“Of course,” Salina replied without hesitation. “Our history is filled with memories of being persecuted by Muggles. Forming a bond with them will inevitably lead to exposure, persecution, or even devastating wars. Any American wizard knows that you should never trust or fall in love with a Muggle!”
She didn't deliberately lower her voice. Wade noticed that after hearing Salina's words, several young people sitting in the store started making faces, and some even showed indifference.
Moody scoffed: "People aren't machines, ma'am. You can only represent your own thoughts, but you can't control what other people think."
"My idea is the idea of most wizards in America!"
Salina said stubbornly and earnestly, "There may be a few individuals who have different opinions, but the vast majority of us believe that the Rappaport Law is correct and that repealing it would be a huge mistake!"
Wade shook his head, offering no comment. After finishing his coffee, he said, "Let's go back. I'm a little tired today."
Salina naturally wouldn't object; she was more than happy for these foreign wizards to stay home, so as not to increase their workload.
……
As the start of the Alchemy Tournament drew closer, the number of guests at the White Bridge Inn quietly increased. When Vader and his companions returned to the inn, they saw a tall, stern-faced young man with short gray hair checking in.
In the instant they brushed past each other, he heard a cold, hard voice with a distinctive accent say:
"Lev Zakharov, I booked the room three days ago."
His tone of voice was somewhat similar to Natalia's, and Vader, who was going upstairs, couldn't help but turn around and glance at him.
The young man had broad shoulders and a taut jaw, exuding an almost militaristic coldness and focus. His fingers, which were resting on the counter, were large and his hands bore the marks of burning and corrosion.
Beside him was a huge suitcase, with no extra decorations, only a few symbols engraved near the wheels.
"What? Did you run into someone you know?" Lu Ping stopped and asked.
“No.” Wade turned around and smiled, “But perhaps… I ran into a competitor.” “Oh?”
Lupin glanced back as well, then said, "That man doesn't look like an alchemist... more like an Auror."
As they reached the third floor, just as they approached the heavy wooden door at the end of the corridor, Moody, who was walking in front, suddenly raised his arm and blocked Wade and Lupin behind him.
“Something’s not right.” He muttered hoarsely, his normal eye narrowing as his demonic eye darted wildly, scanning the doorway and walls from top to bottom. “There seems to be someone in the room… my magic…”
His voice suddenly stopped, his eyes fixed on the door, his brows furrowed.
The atmosphere immediately became tense. Lupin leaned against the wall, his wand already in his hand, and Vader also consciously moved to the side to avoid becoming a target of attack as soon as the door opened.
They were about to break down the door when Moody, the most vigilant of them all, paused for a moment and then simply pushed the door open.
"Wait, Alastor..."
Before Lupin could finish speaking, Moody pushed open the door and entered, followed closely by Wade. They saw a young guest in the center of the room—
Dobby stood beside the chair, clutching the hem of his clothes, looking at the doorway with a mixture of nervousness and anticipation.
Upon seeing Wade, he immediately exclaimed excitedly, "Mr. Wade Gray, Dobby did it! Dobby brought your things safely and on time! He was extremely careful along the way and was absolutely not discovered by anyone!"
He took out his pencil case, held it with both hands, and handed it to Wade, his big eyes shining as he looked at him.
Wade immediately stepped forward, took the crucial pencil case, and gently swung the brass latch in his hand—the doorbell of the wardrobe space—twice.
Everything is intact.
Wade reached out and patted Dobby on the head, saying sincerely, "Thank you, Dobby. You did a fantastic job, even more reliable than I expected! You've done me a huge favor, really!"
Dobby was so happy he almost fainted; all the hardships of the journey seemed to disappear at that moment.
Immediately afterward, he heard Moody cough awkwardly, turn his head and say very awkwardly, "Hmm...not bad...better than some careless wizards."
Dobby stared at Mad-Eye in disbelief at this endorsement, even touching his own ear.
Before anyone else could utter a single word, Lupin, the last to enter, had already cast a silencing spell and a locking spell. Standing by the door, he smiled and said:
"That's good. With the puppet by his side, Wade's safety is now better guaranteed."
Wade corrected, "It's our safety, Remus."
“Yes, I misspoke,” Lupin said to Dobby. “To be able to traverse such a vast distance unnoticed and to find us so precisely… Dobby, you are a truly reliable friend and warrior. Wade is lucky to have your help!”
"Dobby...Dobby is the luckiest Dobby ever to know Mr. Wade!"
The house-elf clenched his fist, his face showing an unprecedented determination: "New York is dangerous, Dobby has to stay and help! He can keep watch and deliver messages, he's extremely useful!"
(End of this chapter)