Regulus of Hogwarts: Lord of the Stars

Chapter 321 Big Shots and Small Shots

Christmas in Spider's End is gray: brick walls, coal ash, and dust from factory chimneys all mix together and stick to the windowpanes, no matter how much you wipe them clean.

This street is located on the east side of Kirkworth, next to an abandoned textile factory.

The river flows past the end of the street, never freezing in winter, but it becomes dirtier and slower, its color turning grayish-green, carrying a smell of industrial waste and mud mixed together.

Spider Tail Alley is not long. Two rows of red brick houses enclose a narrow road. Several of the stone slabs paving the road are cracked, and withered yellow weeds grow in the cracks.

The house numbers are numbered from 1 to 21, with odd numbers on the left and even numbers on the right.

Snape's house was the innermost one; the house number was illegible, and rusted iron plates hung on the door frame, leaving only a crooked shadow.

Other households had some Christmas decorations: a string of cheap lights, a plastic wreath, or a 20-centimeter-tall fake Christmas tree on the windowsill.

Snape's family had nothing.

Most of the paint on the door had peeled off, revealing the gray wood underneath. The door handle was made of brass and had oxidized to a greenish-black color.

The house was cold, the fireplace wasn't lit, and several empty wine bottles lay overturned on the living room table, untouched.

The sound of snoring came from upstairs, heavy and intermittent, interspersed with a few muffled coughs.

Tobias Snape was lying in bed, drunk on Christmas morning, or perhaps last night, and hadn't woken up.

Snape rummaged through the kitchen and found half a piece of bread left over from yesterday. It was so hard you could bang it on the table. He broke off a piece, put it in his mouth, and chewed for a long time before swallowing it.

I poured half a glass of cold water into the cup, ate some bread, and took two sips.

He was wearing an old dark gray sweater with a neckline a size wider, shoulders that sloped down, and sleeves that were longer than his palms. He had rolled up the cuffs twice.

He took his water glass into his room and closed the door.

The room was small, with a single bed against the wall. The blankets were not folded neatly, and the pillows were yellowish-black.

The window was ajar, and a cold breeze slipped in through the crack, causing the curtains to billow slightly.

Under the window was an old desk, worn out over the years, with several scratches on the surface and a loose drawer handle held together with wire.

There was a small glass bottle on the corner of the table, with a single flower inside.

The white lily's petals were already somewhat wilted, and the edges were beginning to curl, but the center of the flower was still a bright yellow.

He sat at his desk, finished his bread and water, rested his hands on the table, and gazed out the window.

Outside the window is the back alley of Spider's End, with a moldy brick wall and several trash cans piled at its base. One of them is overturned, and garbage is scattered all over the ground.

Today is Christmas.

Lily was at home, on the other side of Kirkworth, on Lilac Drive.

She will receive many gifts today.

He knew Blake would give it to him; he had given it to him last year—a handbag with a spatial charm. Lily treasured it and took it everywhere she went.

What will you give as a gift this year?

Snape didn't know, and didn't want to know.

He shifted his gaze from the window back to the table.

The lily swayed gently in the glass bottle, as if blown by the wind.

Two fluttering sounds.

An owl's wingtip slipped through the crack in the window and tapped twice on the window frame.

Snape frowned, stood up, and opened the window wider.

Two owls flew in, one after the other.

One was a grayish-brown barn owl, not very large, with its wings folded. The other was a darker-colored long-eared owl, about the size of the barn owl.

Two owls landed on the desk almost simultaneously, each untied a letter from its talons, tossed it onto the table, and then huddled in the corner, staring at him.

Snape looked at the two letters on the table but didn't touch them immediately.

Two letters arrived at the same time.

No one will write to him except for the Hogwarts reading list.

These two are not book lists; the envelopes are the wrong style and thickness.

The fact that two owls arrived together suggests it wasn't a coincidence; they came from the same place.

A name flashed through his mind.

Last time in the common room, when he handed over that potion, Blake said the potion was well-brewed and then left.

I neither agreed nor refused.

Later, he betrayed Labastan Lestrange for Black's sake.

If you do something, you should be rewarded.

He had experienced Blake's fairness firsthand. Last Christmas, the gift he received—a potion recipe and a piece of black magic parchment—was the payment, clearly priced, no more, no less.

The reward this time could be even greater, because what he did was also much bigger.

He had been waiting for this moment, but two letters came at the same time?

He picked up the one on the left first. The envelope was black and made of thick paper. He turned it over and looked at the back. There was an emblem pressed on the wax seal.

His breathing paused for a moment.

He recognized the emblem; it came from a shop in Diagon Alley, Silvermoon Pharmacy.

He's been eyeing this shop for a long time.

From first grade onwards, every time he went to Diagon Alley, he would stand in front of that shop for a while.

The display window was filled with various finished potions, from healing to supportive to experimental types. Each bottle was sealed with standard potion-making runes, and the effects and grades were clearly written on the labels.

As he stared at those bottles, only one thing was on his mind: he could produce something even better.

He knew that Silvermoon Pharmacy was a property owned by the Black family.

Of the potions shops in Diagon Alley, this one isn't the biggest, but it has consistent quality, a good reputation, and caters to a mid-to-high-end clientele. The items it sells are expensive, but everyone feels they're worth it.

He opened the envelope, took out the parchment inside, and saw the official letterhead of Silver Moon Pharmacy printed on it. The font was standard business style, and the wording was precise.

To Mr. Severus Snape:

Silvermoon Apothecary presents the following proposal to you regarding cooperation in the procurement of magical potions.

Based on our assessment, the quality of your potions has reached commercial distribution standards. Silvermoon Apothecary is willing to discuss the following three cooperation models with you, and you may choose one:

Option 1: Commission the brewing process.

All raw materials and formula requirements are provided by Silvermoon Pharmacy. You will then brew the finished potions according to your order, and our pharmacy will inspect and accept them upon delivery.

Upon successful acceptance, payment will be made per piece, and the workshop will bear the cost of any raw material losses within a reasonable range.

Option 2, Independent Supply:

You will provide the finished potion, and Silvermoon Apothecary will provide the shelf display and sales channels. You will be responsible for procuring the raw materials, and the price of the finished product will be determined through negotiation between both parties.

Our store charges 15% of sales revenue as shelf space and channel fees. Quality standards are uniformly inspected by our store, and products that fail to meet the standards are returned without additional charges.

Option 3: Long-term revenue-sharing cooperation:

Both parties have established a long-term cooperative relationship. Silver Moon Pharmacy will place monthly purchase orders and can provide you with advance payment services for raw materials, which will be deducted from the sales proceeds.

After the finished products are sold, the sales revenue will be distributed in a ratio of 55% to our workshop and 45% to you. The cooperation period is calculated on an academic year basis, and settlement will be made at the end of each academic year. Either party may terminate the cooperation on the settlement date.

All the above options are based on the principle of equal business. You are free to choose according to your own circumstances. If you are interested, please reply to confirm within thirty days of receiving this letter.

Sincerely, Silver Moon Pharmacy Management Department

The letter was stamped with the official seal of Silver Moon Pharmacy, but had no personal signature.

Snape read the letter twice, word by word.

The commercial contract was in a standard format, with cold, impersonal wording, like any cooperation agreement a potions shop would send to a supplier.

There were no polite words, no hints about his special relationship with so-and-so, and not a single word made him feel that it was charity.

Three plans, each building upon the previous one.

The first one is the safest. He doesn't have to worry about anything; he just needs to demonstrate his skills and get paid by the piece, like working for someone else.

The second advantage is the high degree of freedom. He controls the product categories and output, but he has to solve the material problem himself, so the cost falls on him.

The third one is the most deeply tied: paying for materials upfront means buying on credit, and buying on credit means a credit relationship. A 55 to 45 split is not harsh.

However, the terms of the academic year settlement indicate that this is a long-term contract, and signing it means being registered in Black's system.

Snape placed the letter on the table and picked up the one on the right.

This one is a bit thinner. Turn it over and look at the emblem on the wax seal: a bird with outstretched wings, its claws grasping a herb.

He knew Bobins Herbals and Potions Shop.

Located in the northern part of Diagon Alley, this small shop has been open for forty or fifty years. It's a long-established business specializing in herbs and basic potions, focusing on bulk sales at low prices, and catering primarily to students and ordinary families.

He bought raw materials there and also tried asking if he could consign his own potions.

The shop owner was a witch in her fifties whose last name was Bobins.

She glanced at the samples he brought, her expression showing some surprise, but ultimately shook her head.

"You're still in school, kid. When you graduate, you can come and try working for me. I need a potion master."

That was the first time he was rejected by a formal business channel, but the reason for the rejection was his age, not his ability.

She recognized his skill level, left a message, but refused to accept his goods.

Now this shop has also sent him a letter.

He opened the letter; its content and structure were similar to the previous one, also a cooperation proposal, but the conditions were clearly different.

Option 1, Independent Supply:

You will provide the finished potion yourself, and our bank will provide the shelf display and sales channels. You will be responsible for procuring and resolving the raw material issues yourself, and the price of the finished product will be determined by our bank based on market conditions.

The bank charges 25% of sales revenue as shelf and channel fees. Quality standards are uniformly inspected by the bank. Substandard products are returned and a quality inspection fee of two nanograms is charged each time.

Option 2: Long-term revenue-sharing cooperation:

The two parties have established a cooperative relationship. Our bank will issue purchase orders on a quarterly basis, and you will be responsible for procuring the raw materials yourself.

After the finished product is sold, the sales revenue will be distributed at a ratio of 60% to the bank and 40% to you. The cooperation period is calculated on a quarterly basis, with settlement at the end of each quarter.

The absence of a clause regarding commissioned preparation means that Bobbins does not provide materials, and Snape bears all the costs himself. Without material upfront payment, it means he has to pay for the raw materials himself.

The shelf fee is 25%, which is 10 percentage points higher than Silver Moon Pharmacy's 15%.

The profit-sharing ratio is 60 to 40, which is five percentage points less than the 55 to 45 ratio of Silver Moon Pharmacy.

If the product is defective, it will be returned and a quality inspection fee will be charged, but Yinyue will not charge that.

It's normal for the conditions to be harsher and the treatment worse.

Bobbins operates independently, without the support of a large family, resulting in a different cost structure. Consequently, the terms offered are naturally not as generous as those of the Black family's businesses.

But the fact that both letters arrived at the same time clearly indicates that it was all arranged by Blake.

As for Bobins, he clearly rejected him last time, saying he would come back after Bobins graduated. Why did he suddenly change his mind?

Someone greeted them.

Snape placed the two letters side by side on the table; he knew what Black meant.

Two choices: choose Silver Moon Pharmacy, which means playing your hand out in the open.

That was Black's property, where his potions, his bottle shoulder runes, his personal mark were displayed, and everyone who entered the shop would see them.

He understood what it meant if word got out that a third-year mixed-race student's potions were on the Black family's shelves.

He could imagine the faces of some people, and that some would laugh at him.

"That poor Snape is working as a pharmacist for the Black family now."

But some people will see something else.

To produce potions of commercial quality at such a young age is something not just any student can do; even most adult wizards cannot.

In the magical world, being a potion master is not a title that just anyone can claim. Being able to sell potions in a legitimate shop means that one's skills have been proven in the market, that there are prices, quality standards, and repeat customers.

Your reputation will gradually grow, recognition will come, and status will follow.

But at the same time, choosing Silvermoon is tantamount to announcing to everyone that he has chosen a side and is now associated with Black.

Lena Costa and Samuel Vance are doing better than before.

After the two half-bloods accepted Black's protection, their situation clearly improved. They were no longer bullied at Hogwarts; people made way for them, and some even spoke to them.

But what are the downsides?

The negative aspects have been addressed.

The only harm he suffered fell on his own head; he was hospitalized, drank the potion himself, and endured it all by himself.

Thinking of this, his face darkened.

Another option is Bobins.

The conditions are worse, the costs are higher, the share is smaller, and you have to do everything yourself.

But they have no overt relationship with the Blake family.

His potion appeared on Bobbins' shelves, which made sense to outsiders. I found the channels myself and got it on the shelves through my own abilities; it had nothing to do with anyone else.

Blake's meaning is clear: the reward has been given, and the choice is yours.

Choosing Blake offers protection, resources, and better conditions, but at the cost of being labeled.

Choosing Bobbins means independence and cleanliness, but the conditions are demanding; you have to rely on yourself for everything.

He could choose either side; the only difference was whether he was willing to let others know about his relationship with Blake.

Blake's arrangement, offering two options, seemed to be for his benefit: if you don't want to be tied down, I'll give you a way out.

But let's look at it from another angle.

The conditions are obvious: Silvermoon's are much better, and Bobins's are much worse.

The two letters arrived at the same time, and he could compare them as soon as he opened them and know which one was more cost-effective.

His gloomy mind raced for a moment. Was Blake just waiting to see him struggle with this little bit of profit?

In Blake's view, these things were probably nothing at all. He could just make a quick arrangement, have his family shop send a letter of cooperation, have someone give Bobins a heads-up, and then send the two letters together.

Blake might forget about it as soon as he finishes, and then turn his attention to something else.

But he had to toss and turn, weighing the pros and cons.

A casual arrangement by a big shot, and the entire Christmas for an ordinary person.

Snape's lips curled slightly.

He wanted to choose the one on the right, but he knew very well that the one on the right wasn't something he could get through his own efforts.

Then he thought of something else: Lestrange.

If he chooses Silvermoon now and registers his business with the Black family, his relationship with Black will be out in the open.

If Lestrange investigates, or if Labastan realizes what's going on and traces the clues back to him, he might be exposed.

Therefore, it cannot be selected for the time being.

At least until we figure out what's going on with Lestrange, we can't reveal our relationship with Black.

What about Bobins?

There's no rush.

Snape placed the two letters face down on the table, pressed them down with his palm, and stared out the window for a while in a daze.

The two owls were still perched on the windowsill. The gray barn owl tilted its head and stared at him with its yellow eyes.

They are waiting for food.

Snape glanced at the half-full glass of cold water and bread crumbs on the table; he hadn't even eaten enough for himself.

A sudden surge of embarrassment rose from my chest, sharp and stinging, turning into shame and anger.

He waved his hand stiffly, as if shooing away a fly.

"Walk."

The barn owl cawed and flapped its wings to fly to the windowsill. Its cry was short, sharp, and sounded like a sneer.

The long-eared owl jumped up and flew off to the other side, letting out a drawn-out, hoarse cry that took a detour, as if it were saying something unpleasant.

Two owls squeezed out of the window crack one after the other, their wings brushing against the window frame before flapping and flying away.

Snape stood by the window, watching the two owls turn into two black dots and disappear into the gray sky above Spider's End.

He lowered his head and looked at the two letters on the table.

The lily swayed again in the glass bottle.