stonecrandall Page 7
Page 7
"What kind of help do you mean?" the female shop assistant asked, looking puzzled.
“I can help you find the Niffler who stole the pocket watch.”
“Well,” the female shop assistant looked at him suspiciously for a few moments, and said, “I’m glad you’re willing to help me, but you’re really too small. You’ll get hurt if you try to catch the Niffler.”
“You’re overthinking it, clerk.” Levin smiled confidently. “I don’t need to lift a finger to figure out who the thief is.”
Having said that, he stepped forward, went to the cage, and said to the sniffler inside:
"Hey little guys, who just got a new treasure?"
To outsiders, Levin didn't speak, but only made a series of "chirping" sounds.
The sound was almost like that of a real sniffler.
This is precisely where the ability to "talk to animals" comes into play.
This strange scene made the shop assistant, who was trying to stop Levin, stop in his tracks.
At this moment, the sniffles in the cage were also stunned.
They were also puzzled as to why the enormous creature in front of them could speak their language. Could it also be a giant snorkel?
Their little brains couldn't process such complex information, but they still answered Levin's question honestly.
Then, Levin turned around and looked at the female shop assistant:
"It's confirmed, the thief is this little guy, and it has a finger missing from its left front paw."
Hearing Levin's words, the shop assistant grabbed the Niffler with some skepticism and started swinging it upside down.
Soon, a gold pocket watch fell out of the little guy's belly pouch.
“Yes, that’s it, my pocket watch! It’s the best gift Marlene left me.”
The suit-clad wizard excitedly picked up the pocket watch, carefully tucked it into his pocket, thanked Levin, and left the shop.
This is the end of a farce.
"Oh, thank you, thank you so much, kid!" After the crowd dispersed, the shop assistant held Levin's hand, expressing her gratitude profusely. "You've done me a huge favor."
Then, curiously, she asked, "You can actually imitate a Niffler's call, and you can tell at a glance which Niffler stole the pocket watch. How did you do that? Can you talk to a Niffler?"
Levin shook his head, then nodded: "Pretty much. I have a talent for vaguely sensing the emotions of small animals."
He did not fully acknowledge the ability of "animal communication," but rather downplayed it.
This immediately caused the shop assistants to scream in surprise.
"My God, it's amazing that you have the same talent as Mr. Newt Scamander."
Newt Scamander, a renowned magizoologist and author of "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," is a big name in the magizoology world; anyone who is interested in or works in the field has heard of him.
Scamander himself was known for his ability to communicate with magical creatures.
This is why Levin partially concealed his abilities.
The saying goes, "If you're half a step ahead of others, you're a genius; if you're a full step ahead, you're a madman."
There's a precedent for Newt Scamander claiming to be able to communicate with magical creatures, so people would only envy him.
But to say that you can talk to magical creatures is a huge exaggeration.
Communication can involve only simple emotions, but dialogue requires complex logic and language.
Sure enough, upon hearing this, the female shop assistant's gaze softened even more:
"I'm Hayden Trist, an employee at this Fantastic Beasts Shop. Thank you for helping me with this problem. Little one, if you ever need any magical beasts or related products in the future, feel free to come to me. I can give you a 10% discount within my authority!"
“It’s alright, shop assistant,” Levin waved his hand magnanimously, then looked up and gave her an innocent look. “So, do you need part-time child labor?”
Chapter 8: Speed Reading of Quantum Fluctuations, Kid
Eh?
Eh?
So, do I have to repay the favor I just owed so quickly?
Hayden Triss was a little confused.
She suddenly realized that she seemed to have fallen into a trap she had dug herself.
But when she saw the boy's sweet smile, the female shop assistant immediately changed her mind.
Thinking about it carefully, working with such a handsome boy isn't so bad after all.
Moreover, he possesses the same talent as the renowned Newt Scamander.
It should be very convenient for someone like that to take care of magical creatures.
So Levin found his first job—caring for animals at the Magical Animals Shop.
Since it's only a part-time job, the daily working hours vary from 3 to 5 hours, and you just need to complete the tasks for the day.
The daily wage is 3 Sickles.
Currency conversions in the wizarding world are really troublesome: 1 Galleon = 17 Sickles, 1 Sickle = 29 Nats
I wonder which genius invented this messy conversion method. Do they just really like prime numbers?
Considering the wizards' mathematical level in burning books and burying scholars alive,
Levin strongly suspected that this was a huge hoax.
The purpose was to make things difficult for these foolish wizards.
All in all, the wages were not bad for a child laborer.
If you do the math, you can earn 5 Galleons and 8 Sickles a month, and you'll get your money back for the wand in two months.
"So let's start by cleaning up after the animals."
The shop assistant demonstrated by raising the wand in front of Levin and chanting towards a cage containing a cat:
"Cleaned up."
Instantly, all the cat hair and feces in the cage flew into a bucket, making the entire cage look brand new.
“Try it, Mr. Grimm,” the shopkeeper said, putting away the wand. “At first you may only be able to clean a small area, but if a powerful person uses it, they can clean the entire room.”
Levin nodded, raised his wand, and pointed it at another cage containing the exterminator:
"Clean up!"
With his extraordinary comprehension, he successfully used the spell on his first try, leaving the shop assistant completely dumbfounded.
"Um...you learn really fast. You've used this spell at home before...Alright, next we'll learn the Whirlwind Sweep Spell. Unlike the Cleansing Spell, this spell is better at dealing with liquid waste..."
……
Since this was their first time doing the job, Hayden's demonstration and instruction were needed.
Levin was busy until 4 p.m. before he finished work and returned to the Leaky Cauldron.
"How was your day, son?" old Tom asked with concern.
"Great, Mr. Tom, I've found a job!" Levin said beamingly.
"Ah, that's wonderful!" Tom nodded and handed Levin a glass of butterbeer. "This is to celebrate your first job; it's on me."
"So, what kind of job did you find?" Tom asked after Levin took a big gulp of butterbeer.
"I work part-time at the Magical Animals Shop."
"Fantastic Beasts, that's great. What exactly do they do?"
"Feeding, grooming, cleaning... I do everything, but the most important thing is cleaning their cages. These little guys are so unhygienic; they always end up getting themselves all dirty with their own poop."
“This is really not a good job,” Old Tom shook his head.
He could imagine what a filthy working environment it must have been.
"For a novice wizard like me who hasn't even started school yet, this is enough. I've not only learned a lot about magizoology, but I've also learned a few new spells."
With that, Levin waved his wand:
"Cleaned up."
In an instant, a previously uncleaned desktop became spotless.
"This makes my work with Mr. Tom much easier."
Ah, this kid is still eager for the job I'm going to give him.
Old Tom found himself starting to like the boy.
So mature and optimistic at such a young age, always able to face difficulties positively without complaining or blaming others, such a child is sure to achieve great things in the future!
And so, Levin's part-time career began in the days that followed.
The work of the Magical Creatures Caravan is tedious and difficult.
There are many kinds of animals here, including chameleon snails, fire crabs, black mice, owls, ravens, cats of various colors, fluffy cats, and shapeshifting rabbits.
Each animal has different dietary habits and lifestyles, so their diet and other arrangements must be handled differently for each one.
For the average person, just remembering the habits of each animal would be a huge headache.
However, one of the byproducts of this extraordinary comprehension is absolute memory.
Keeping track of what your cats and dogs eat is incredibly easy.
At the very least, Levin could simply ask him himself.
Just as one knows best whether water is hot or cold when drinking it, for him, whether the little animals were full or thirsty was simply a matter of asking a question.
Soon, the shop assistant was full of praise for his work, believing that his abilities were no less than those of an average adult wizard.
But Levin was not satisfied with this.
He can complete his daily work at the Fantastic Beasts store in about 2-3 hours.
There is plenty of time left to take on more challenges.
Compared to the urbanized Muggle society, the wizarding world, due to its overall backwardness and low population size, is still largely a society based on personal connections.
In a close-knit community, a person's credit is not determined by their personal file, but by the endorsement of the people they know.