When the two of them came downstairs, they found the hall bustling with cheerful conversation.
Laughter echoed throughout the room.
The deep voices of the gentlemen blended with the bell-like laughter of the ladies.
Above them all rang Xenophilius Lovegood's warm, energetic voice as he welcomed every guest into his home.
Everyone gathered around the dining table, chatting happily while sampling the dishes he had prepared.
"Ha! Xenophilius!"
"This freshwater Pufffish soup is absolutely delicious!"
Someone exclaimed after finishing a bowl.
"My daughter Luna caught them herself."
Xenophilius declared proudly.
Lewis glanced toward Luna.
The girl beside him nodded.
"Unfortunately..."
"I couldn't catch any Big-Mouthed Pufffish."
Her voice carried a hint of regret.
Naturally...
Big-Mouthed Pufffish were just another of the Lovegoods' imagined creatures.
At least, there was currently no evidence that such a subspecies actually existed.
Throughout the gathering, quite a few guests greeted Lewis as well.
Many recognized him as a First Class Order of Merlin recipient.
Their attitudes toward him were exceptionally warm.
From Lewis's observations...
Most of the guests invited today were either wealthy or influential.
Their greatest common trait...
Was their interest in The Quibbler.
"This month's issue was wonderful."
"I heard sales increased immediately."
"Have you considered expanding publication?"
Lewis overheard one guest asking Xenophilius.
The editor's eyes immediately lit up.
"Mr. Toots!"
"If you'd be willing to make an investment..."
"We could print as many additional copies as you'd like!"
The other man immediately laughed awkwardly and changed the subject.
Similar conversations occurred several more times throughout the banquet.
Xenophilius enthusiastically promoted investment opportunities in The Quibbler to nearly every guest present.
Apparently...
Today's gathering was essentially a shareholder recruitment event.
Well...
What perfect timing.
Perhaps noticing Lewis's thoughts, Luna quietly confirmed them.
"Dad's magazine has been having difficulties recently."
"So he invited everyone here hoping someone would help."
"But..."
"I don't think most of them ever intended to."
Lewis looked at her questioningly.
"They don't really believe what Dad writes."
"They only read The Quibbler because they enjoy laughing at it."
A trace of dissatisfaction appeared on Luna's face.
"They came here..."
"Just to enjoy watching my father ask them for help."
Now that she had begun mastering the techniques of a psion...
Luna's ability to perceive people's true intentions had become even sharper.
After saying that...
As though none of it concerned her...
She calmly poured two glasses of an oddly colored green drink.
One for herself.
One for Lewis.
Lewis looked suspiciously at the strange green liquid.
"What is this?"
"My favorite drink."
"Gillyweed juice."
Luna looked at him expectantly.
It was the first time she had ever shared her favorite drink with a friend.
Unable to disappoint those large silver eyes...
Lewis took a sip.
The flavor was mildly bitter...
Yet incredibly refreshing.
It almost tasted like chilled mint juice.
Clean.
Fresh.
Surprisingly pleasant.
"It's actually pretty good."
He nodded approvingly before taking another drink.
Luna rested her chin in her hands, smiling quietly as she watched Lewis enjoy the Gillyweed juice.
When the final guest finally departed...
Xenophilius let out a long sigh and collapsed onto the sofa.
His expression wasn't merely exhausted.
It was one of complete disappointment.
"Dad..."
"No one wanted to invest?"
Luna walked over and gently leaned her head against his arm.
Xenophilius slowly shook his head.
"Well..."
"There were one or two interested."
"But their conditions were far too demanding."
"They wanted to completely transform The Quibbler into one of those ordinary magazines."
"How could I possibly agree to that?"
Just then...
Lewis stepped forward at precisely the right moment.
"Mr. Lovegood..."
"I actually know someone who may be able to solve your problem."
"Really?"
Xenophilius looked at him in surprise.
He knew Lewis wasn't an ordinary student.
Naturally...
He took the boy's opinion seriously.
"Absolutely."
"I have a friend working at the Ministry."
"She's been looking to invest in a magazine."
"And I think..."
"The Quibbler would be perfect."
"Who is this friend of yours?"
Xenophilius asked eagerly.
"Lady Catrana Prestor."
"She works in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures."
"You may have heard her name."
"Of course!"
"Of course I have!"
"Lady Prestor!"
"I've admired her reputation for quite some time."
"I never imagined she'd even heard of The Quibbler."
Xenophilius was visibly excited.
It seemed Onyxia's reputation had spread remarkably quickly.
As expected of the Black Dragon Princess.
She truly excelled at building influence.
Since Xenophilius already knew who she was...
Everything became much simpler.
"I'll arrange a meeting between the two of you in the next few days."
"You can discuss the details directly."
"No problem!"
Xenophilius immediately agreed.
The following day...
Lewis personally brought Onyxia to the Lovegood residence.
As a reward for helping with this matter...
Her punishment of remaining in cat form had been temporarily lifted.
Inside the Lovegoods' sitting room...
Lady Catrana Prestor and Xenophilius Lovegood sat facing one another.
After exchanging a few polite greetings...
Xenophilius went straight to the point.
"Mr. Green told me..."
"Lady Prestor wishes to invest in The Quibbler?"
"That's correct."
Onyxia nodded gracefully.
"I've studied nearly every newspaper and magazine in Britain."
"In my opinion..."
"Most of them are painfully mediocre."
"They're filled with meaningless gossip."
"Or sensational headlines designed solely to attract attention."
"They care only about money."
"They've completely forgotten what journalism is supposed to be."
"Only The Quibbler truly caught my attention."
Xenophilius immediately beamed.
"Exactly!"
"I've always believed that writing solely for money is the dullest thing imaginable."
Unfortunately...
He celebrated far too early.
"However..."
Onyxia continued calmly.
"I don't believe The Quibbler has gone nearly far enough."
"To be more precise..."
"The current The Quibbler doesn't deserve its own name."
"B-but..."
"I've already tried my best to publish unusual stories..."
Xenophilius protested weakly.
Moments earlier...
He had thought he'd found a kindred spirit.
Instead...
She immediately criticized his life's work.
"No."
"Not enough."
She calmly shook her head.
"Or perhaps..."
"Your magazine simply lacks sufficient influence."
"And reveals far too few truths."
"For example..."
"Even now, people still believe Sagewort is merely an imaginary plant."
"They refuse to believe that Howlers were responsible for the deaths in Glamorgan Valley."
"They simply dismiss the incident as another werewolf attack."
"And another example..."
"There truly exists an ancient race known as the Dragonkin."
"They're hidden somewhere in the world."
As Onyxia casually revealed one astonishing mystery after another...
Xenophilius stared at her with his mouth hanging open.
Never in his life had he imagined meeting someone who shared his enthusiasm for uncovering strange mysteries.
Then...
Her next words shocked him even more.
"Besides overturning people's understanding of the world..."
"And revealing hidden truths..."
"I believe The Quibbler should also become more willing to challenge authority."
"For example..."
"The Ministry of Magic."
"Or our Minister..."
"Cornelius Fudge."
"I think today's newspapers already praise them far too much."
"Even after the Dementor attack at the Hogwarts Quidditch match..."
"Their reporting remained far too restrained."
"The Quibbler should go even further."
"It should present opposing viewpoints."
"Only then..."
"Will it truly deserve its name."
After listening to everything...
Cold sweat trickled down Xenophilius's back.
He had always believed himself to be the radical one among Britain's journalists.
After all...
His new investor worked for the Ministry itself.
Surely she would be a conservative.
Instead...
He discovered that compared to Lady Prestor...
He was the conservative.
At the same time...
He couldn't help becoming excited.
What journalist was ever truly satisfied with the status quo?
He nodded repeatedly.
"Lady Prestor..."
"You're absolutely right."
"I never expected you to teach me such a valuable lesson."
"It seems..."
"You truly are an investor whose ideals align perfectly with The Quibbler."
"In principle..."
"I'm willing to accept your investment."
Since their philosophies no longer conflicted...
The discussion naturally shifted toward pricing.
To secure complete control over The Quibbler...
Onyxia insisted upon holding an absolute majority of the shares.
In return...
She offered an astonishingly generous price.
One impossible for Xenophilius to refuse.
Furthermore...
She promised he would remain Editor-in-Chief.
After all...
Everyone already had their own responsibilities.
They simply needed someone who genuinely understood journalism to oversee the publication's daily operations.
Onyxia also proposed several changes to the magazine's management.
"We must pay contributors properly."
She emphasized firmly.
"Not everyone is willing to write merely for reputation."
"If we want talented people..."
"We have to respect their work."
"The ideal that journalists shouldn't care about money..."
"Should apply only to ourselves."
"In addition..."
"I'll provide several regular contributors."
"They'll occasionally submit articles."
"I'd like you to publish them whenever appropriate."
Seeing Xenophilius hesitate...
She added one final sentence.
"The first articles..."
"Will discuss Sagewort..."
"And Howlers."
Instantly...
His hesitation disappeared.
"So..."
"Your contributors are fellow truth-seekers!"
"In that case..."
"I have no objections."
What Xenophilius failed to realize...
Was that Onyxia—and the Lewis behind her—were playing an entirely different game.
Xenophilius's strange creatures...
Like the Crumple-Horned Snorkack...
Or Moon Frogs...
Were almost entirely products of his own imagination.
But the Sagewort...
The Howlers...
And even the so-called Dragonkin...
Were all genuinely real.
The Dragonkin were simply humans transformed using dragon blood by Onyxia herself.
Because these creatures originated from another world...
And had only appeared recently...
The British magical community had never properly studied them.
As a result...
They were naturally dismissed as myths.
Lewis's plan was simple.
First...
Publish articles about these "fantastical creatures" in The Quibbler.
Once enough public attention had accumulated...
Lewis and his people would personally locate Sagewort...
Capture Howlers...
Conduct thorough research...
And publish the scientific results in respected academic journals such as the Magizoology Journal.
When everyone realized...
That these newly discovered magical species had first been reported by a so-called third-rate tabloid...
The credibility of The Quibbler would soar.
It would no longer be viewed as a gathering place for conspiracy theorists and dreamers.
Instead...
It would become recognized as the publication most willing to uncover hidden truths about the magical world.
As for the stories that remained unproven...
That hardly mattered anymore.
After all...
Even potion experiments required countless failed attempts.
Discovering entirely new magical species couldn't possibly succeed every single time.
It was much like Muggle fiction.
To most people...
Ultraman was nothing more than children's entertainment.
But if one day...
A real Baltan Alien descended upon Earth...
Everyone would immediately begin reconsidering whether Ultraman had been fiction after all.
As for Onyxia's proposal to publish articles criticizing the Ministry...
Neither she nor Lewis expected those pieces to immediately increase the magazine's prestige.
Nor did they intend to use The Quibbler to openly promote their own faction.
Before Voldemort's return...
Every article criticizing the Ministry or Cornelius Fudge would merely serve as groundwork.
The more ridiculous...
The more alarmist...
The more paranoid those articles seemed today...
The more prophetic...
The more trustworthy...
And the more respected The Quibbler would become once Voldemort truly returned.
When that day finally arrived...
Guiding public opinion would become infinitely easier.
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