Andeluosuo's sudden interjection startled Tangmu. He rolled his eyes mentally and shot back, "Andeluosuo, do you even have a Galleon to bet? She's only eleven—does she even understand what liking someone means?"
Tangmu wasn't talking about himself. The idea of falling for an eleven-year-old was laughable.
Still… raising one for a few years wasn't out of the question.
"What's the problem?" Andeluosuo replied nonchalantly. "In my day, people married and had kids at thirteen or fourteen—sometimes earlier."
"Oh? And what about you, Mr. Andeluosuo?" Tangmu asked, landing a perfect combo of silence and emotional damage.
Back in his day, Andeluosuo was a battle maniac and magic-obsessed. Women only slowed his pursuit of arcane knowledge. Forget marrying at thirteen—he died a lifelong bachelor.
His extraordinary magical gifts died with him. Had he passed them on, he might have founded a legendary bloodline.
The magical world's obsession with bloodlines wasn't baseless. Powerful wizards often left fragments of their strength—and, more importantly, vast reservoirs of magical knowledge. Pure-blood families, like the Gante or others in the Sacred Twenty-Eight, had a greater chance of enduring across generations.
Having silenced Andeluosuo (who deactivated the Learning Space himself), Tangmu smirked and continued chatting with Dafuni, who fired off questions like a machine gun.
Tangmu subtly fished for intel. The naïve girl stood no chance against a seasoned schemer like him. A few gentle probes, and she spilled nearly everything about the Gelingelasi family.
Her mother was Head of the Department of Magical Transportation. Her maternal grandmother? Also a Head of Transportation. Great-grandmother? The same. A family monopoly.
And—the Gelingelasi tradition was for husbands to marry into the family. For three hundred years, all their children were girls.
When Dafuni casually complained her pocket money was only two hundred Galleons per term, Tangmu's heart skipped.
Marrying into the family? Not a problem.
Hogwarts had three terms yearly, so Dafuni received six hundred Galleons annually—nearly what Dengbuliduo gave him for all seven years.
A rich girl. Not just rich—adorably fluffy and rich.
How could that not be tempting?
Tangmu's attitude toward Dafuni softened noticeably. Her smile widened, practically lighting up the compartment.
Around 12:30, the door slid open. A kindly woman peeked in and said cheerfully, "Anything off the trolley, dears?"
"Yes, please!" Dafuni jumped up excitedly, skipping to the trolley like a curious kitten.
"Choosing" food was a stretch—she bought nearly everything, in varying quantities, sweeping up most of the Chocolate Frogs.
The bill came to 2 Galleons and 13 Sickles—about the Weasley family's annual allowance.
Tangmu understood why Dafuni felt 200 Galleons per term wasn't enough. At this rate, she could burn through it in a month.
As Dafuni paid, Tangmu observed the trolley witch.
Rumor had it she'd worked on the Hogwarts Express since 1830, when the magical train was commissioned—making her at least one hundred and eighty years old.
Longevity among wizards was one thing, but this was remarkable.
Tangmu wasn't just observing for fun—he dragged Andeluosuo out of his sulking to look. But even after the trolley witch rolled away, neither noticed anything unusual.
Maybe she's just naturally long-lived, Tangmu thought, brushing it off.
Dafuni placed all the food on the table to share.
Tangmu accepted without hesitation.
If you're going to freeload, do it with dignity.
They chatted as they ate, and the topic turned to House Sorting.
"Everyone in my family was a Slytherin," Dafuni said with a shy smile. "So unless something unexpected happens, I'll likely end up there too. But the other Houses are nice. My mum says it's fine as long as I'm not in Gryffindor."
"Why do you hate Gryffindor so much?" Tangmu asked, curious.
"Mum says Gryffindors are walking disasters," Dafuni replied, making a face. "Wherever there's a Gryffindor, there's chaos. You never know what trouble they'll stir up."
Tangmu thought about it… and admitted Madam Gelingelasi's critique was eerily accurate.
"Um… Lideer, do you want to be in Gryffindor?"
Seeing Tangmu go quiet, Dafuni worried she'd offended him.
"No," Tangmu smiled. "I hope for Ravenclaw. Or Hufflepuff—somewhere peaceful, good for studying."
"You love learning so much—you'll definitely make it into Ravenclaw," Dafuni said confidently.
A scream echoed outside, but neither paid it much mind. They were finishing their snacks and ready to nap.
But soon, someone knocked at the door.
Before they could respond, it was pushed open.
"Have you seen a toad—wait… Lideer?! What are you doing here?!"
The intruder was a bushy-haired girl with slightly protruding front teeth that didn't quite match her otherwise cute features.
She froze mid-sentence upon seeing Tangmu, as if she'd seen a ghost.
The chubby boy behind her flinched at her shriek.
Dafuni frowned at the rude entrance. Seeing the girl recognize Tangmu, her expression darkened further.
Tangmu remained calm and looked up. "Miss Gelanjie, since you're on the Hogwarts Express… why wouldn't I be here?"
"No! I didn't mean that—" Hemin Gelanjie stammered. "I-I just meant… this is wonderful!"
Dafuni's expression turned stormy.
For the first time, she felt a specific dread: My favorite toy is about to be snatched away…
[^1]: In the Wizarding World, the Sacred Twenty-Eight is a list of prominent pure-blood families compiled by Cantankerus Nott. Chocolate Frogs are a popular magical sweet that include collectible wizard cards.