Chapter 64: The situation of Knockturn Alley

Seeing that the other party was so cooperative, Erwin didn't hide anything and readily explained the contract's contents.

"You can rest assured that this contract isn't strict. As long as you don't disclose my existence and follow my instructions, the contract won't harm you."

In truth, Erwin hadn't set up any harsh conditions.

His main goal was to cover up his existence so they couldn't trace things back to him in the future.

Hearing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Although Erwin could now order them, everyone hoped their new boss wouldn't be difficult to serve.

Judging from his demeanor, he seemed like a reasonable superior.

"Alright, everyone else can leave. I need to discuss future development plans with our previous boss."

When everyone heard the dismissal, they all withdrew.

In the large room, only Erwin and Arya remained.

The atmosphere became silent for a moment.

Seeing that everyone had left and only she remained behind, Arya felt a flutter of panic and sudden nervousness.

‘He wouldn't be planning to...’

Before she could finish that thought, the robe and hood covering Erwin were removed, and the magic concealing his face was dispelled.

Dark brown hair swept back, deep gray eyes with subtle green undertones, and a refined, handsome face were revealed.

Arya was stunned.

She had never imagined that the mysterious figure who had defeated the faction's strongest members with a single move would turn out to be such a young, striking boy.

"What? Seeing how young I am, are you having second thoughts?"

Erwin looked at Arya with interest, appreciating her surprised expression.

"No, no! I'm just shocked. I didn't expect you to possess such strength at your age."

Collecting herself quickly, Arya defended her reaction.

Erwin didn't particularly care what Arya was thinking.

Once someone signed his contract, they wouldn't escape his control.

"In the future, I'll only communicate directly with you. If there's anything urgent, you can channel magic through the contract to notify me."

"Yes, sir..." Arya hesitated, uncertain what to call him.

"My name is Erwin Gaunt. You may call me Mr. Gaunt." Leaving Arya to process this, Erwin moved on, knowing she had been struggling with how to address him.

"Now, give me a detailed introduction to your faction and the other two powers in Knockturn Alley."

After finding a chair and settling into it, Erwin prepared to examine the distribution of forces in Knockturn Alley and consider how he could expand his influence here.

"Of course, Mr. Gaunt..."

Through Arya's explanation, Erwin gained a thorough understanding of the three major families of Knockturn Alley.

First was Arya's faction, which consisted of about fifty members in total, all people she had recruited gradually over recent years.

The most powerful wizards had all been present in the room earlier.

Originally, they had planned to hold a meeting today to distribute the previous month's profits.

Instead, Erwin had swept in and taken control.

The Arya faction primarily dealt in potion ingredients and also sold some smuggled goods on the side, such as the Romanian Longhorn, which was classified as a dangerous magical creature.

The Frank faction and the Rambis faction controlled the most profitable commodity in Knockturn Alley: human trafficking.

In the magical world, nothing proved more suitable for experimenting with dark magic and potions than living subjects.

Every wizard made an excellent experimental subject, and naturally, the prices were extremely high.

These two families had nearly monopolized the human trade throughout the entire country's magical community.

The two families despised each other, each wanting to eliminate their rival and monopolize this lucrative business.

Therefore, neither would provoke Arya's faction, which had minimal conflicts of interest with them.

Although the Arya faction was weaker than the other two, if it fully allied with one side, it would become a significant problem for the other.

After hearing all this, Erwin developed a general understanding of the three major families.

Despite being called the three major families, they were essentially errand runners doing dirty work for the pure-blood wizard families.

The pure-blood families felt these shady operations were beneath them, but inevitably had needs that required such services, which allowed the three major powers in Knockturn Alley to profit from the gaps.

His fingers tapped unconsciously on the table while Arya stood quietly, awaiting Erwin's orders.

"Does your faction operate any shops in Knockturn Alley?"

Erwin asked suddenly.

"We have two. One sells medicinal ingredients, and the other provides 'customized services.'"

Arya replied.

Erwin understood that the so-called customized service meant obtaining whatever the customers wanted, through whatever means necessary.

"Close the medicinal ingredients shop." Erwin had formed a plan and gave his order to Arya.

Arya's expression shifted. The medicinal ingredients business generated their faction's largest profits.

If they stopped operating it, everyone would be struggling within days.

Erwin tossed a bag directly to Arya and continued his instructions.

"Inside are various potions I've brewed, ranging from ordinary healing potions to Veritaserum and intelligence-enhancing draughts."

"Keep all the potions I provide for your own use when needed, and sell the surplus. That shop will specialize in selling these finished potions from now on."

"Pay close attention to the news in the magical world. If anything unusual happens, contact me immediately."

Arya looked at the potions in the bag with amazement.

Seeing that there were hundreds of potion bottles of all different varieties in the bag, which had been enchanted with an Undetectable Extension Charm, she felt her excitement rising.

In the magical world, aside from some very expensive and profitable rare ingredients, the profit margins on other magical materials were actually quite low.

However, once concocted into finished products, everything changed.

The value could increase dozens of times, or at a minimum, more than tenfold.

With these items, she could definitely earn substantial money and then recruit more personnel.

Arya stared at Erwin with her striking eyes.

She hadn't expected that the young wizard before her was not only powerful but also a potion master.

With her experienced eye, she could tell that the quality of these potions far exceeded those circulating on the market.

"Alright, that's the arrangement for now. If I have new instructions, I'll inform you at any time. As long as you follow my directions, I'll be generous with advanced magical knowledge and sophisticated magical items."

Erwin stood up, preparing to leave.

He needed to visit Cho’s residence that afternoon and didn't have time to linger here.

"You're leaving already?"

Arya couldn't help but speak up, and immediately after the words left her mouth, she regretted it.

What right did she have to question his schedule?

But Erwin didn't seem to mind and waved his hand dismissively.

"Everything's settled. What else would I be doing here, staying for lunch?"

Seeing that Erwin wasn't angry, Arya felt relieved.

It seemed this young wizard wasn't so difficult to work with after all.

Then she spoke more boldly.

"Lunch would be fine, actually. My house-elf's cooking is quite good."

Erwin paused, surprised that this woman would invite him to dine at her home.

Laughing lightly and saying, "Perhaps another time," Erwin apparated from the location.

Only the striking woman remained, staring at where Erwin had vanished, lost in thought.