Harry Potter: This senior is pretty strong

Chapter 177 Hermione's Search for Qin

Hermione dared not leave the bookstore to look for the "missing" Qin Yu, because the two had agreed that if they got separated, they would wait for each other at the entrance of the bookstore.

Until the reason for his "disappearance" is determined, it's best to stay here and not go anywhere else.

"If you get on the wrong tram, you'll only get further and further away from your destination, so you might as well stay where you are."

This is what Qin once said to her, to remind her not to get on the wrong tram in a daze and end up going further and further away.

Hermione felt that this also applied to the current situation—if she went out and looked for people randomly, she might miss Qin when he returned, and then she would be the one who got lost.

Qin's words always struck her as full of wisdom.

However, how did such a wise fellow get lost?

The little witch frowned, thinking with considerable worry.

"Could he really have been tricked by some other little girl who's both bad and pretends to be cute?"

This thought popped into her mind.

No, no, no, I should think positively. Maybe he was captured by a female ghost, a giant monster, or a she-devil?

He had just mentioned these three terrifying monsters.

Thinking about it that way, well, my worries lessen a lot...

Oh, right.

Hermione searched upstairs and downstairs again, but still found nothing.

He sat back down in his previous seat.

She definitely wouldn't be able to concentrate on reading anymore.

My brother is gone, what's the point of reading magic books!

Logically speaking, the possibility of Qin encountering danger is very low, after all, Diagon Alley is a place with a certain degree of order, not some chaotic black market that can be exposed to the light of day.

However, Hermione still couldn't help but wonder if something had really happened to him, otherwise why would he disappear without saying goodbye?

As the saying goes, it's not the ten thousand that's scary, but Ivan.

If there is real danger in the magical world, then it is truly very dangerous.

So the more I thought about it, the more anxious I became, and how could I concentrate on reading?

It was only then that she truly realized that studying might not be the top priority in her life.

"This guy, he got lost just from buying a juice..."

Hermione couldn't help but complain about someone, thinking that she would definitely punish him properly when he came back and make him realize the seriousness of the matter!

However, she then thought that it was better for him to come back safely than anything else. Maybe he really had his reasons, and she should be more understanding and tolerant.

It must be said that at this moment, Miss Granger deeply empathized with millions of mothers who couldn't find their unruly children—their feelings were remarkably similar.

We're talking about some little witches who, despite their young age, have already developed a motherly demeanor.

……

"Excuse me, have you seen a black-haired, black-eyed Asian boy? He might have bought juice here earlier..." After calming down, Hermione realized she could ask the bookstore clerk.

Upon hearing Hermione's question, the female clerk in charge of selling drinks immediately replied, "Is it that handsome boy?"

“Yes, yes, yes!” Hermione’s eyes lit up and she nodded vigorously.

After she finished speaking, she also felt that simply describing Qin as handsome might not be enough evidence, but that didn't stop her from instantly feeling hopeful.

The sales clerk's next words dispelled her concerns. The sales clerk continued gesturing, "Is he this tall? Wearing a blue wool coat, and always smiling when he speaks?"

"Yes, yes, yes, it's him, it's him!" Hermione was now 100% certain it was him.

Although the shop assistant's words and expressions revealed her fondness for a certain handsome Eastern boy, making the little witch feel a little jealous, it was precisely because the other party was talking about the person she was looking for that she felt this way—which meant she had asked the right person.

So she quickly followed up, "Have you seen him? Have you seen where he went?"

“I did see him there. He had already paid for two cups of Qiwei juice. But it seemed like he wanted to read some news, so he asked me which section of the bookstore I could buy newspapers in. I told him to go to the special newspaper section in the east area. Yes, over there!” The female clerk pointed to a spot in the east.

Hermione looked in the direction she was pointing, but didn't go over immediately, because she had already looked there, and Qin was obviously not there at the moment.

"And then?" the little witch asked patiently.

"Then, I saw him go over there for a short while, and then he hurriedly went out the door." The female shop assistant frowned and continued with some distress, "You see, I had already prepared these two glasses of juice. When I saw him leave, I called out to him loudly, but he didn't respond, as if he had something urgent to do."

As the female clerk spoke, she pointed to two glasses of juice on the bar. The orange-yellow, translucent liquid with an amber sheen looked delicious.

Thank you so much for your answer!

Hermione thanked them and then turned and headed towards the East End.

In the newspaper section, after briefly describing the features of "a handsome Eastern boy with black eyes" to a female clerk, she indeed remembered him.

"Yes, he did want to buy a newspaper to read one of the news stories, but that story was only published in 'The Voice of Wizards,' and the last copy of 'The Voice of Wizards' was recently sold out, so he couldn't get it," said the second female clerk.

"And then what? Did he say anything?" Hermione pressed.

She believed that, given Qin's personality, if he really wanted to buy the newspaper, he certainly wouldn't give up easily.

Sure enough, the second female clerk nodded and said, "He asked us if we had any stock stored elsewhere, or when we would restock. I told him that we basically wouldn't have any more of that newspaper; the few copies we received were already sold out."

"Did he ask you if there were any other places in Diagon Alley that sold newspapers?" Hermione paused for a moment before asking patiently.

"Huh? How did you know he would ask that? You're so smart!" the second female shop assistant said in surprise.

That's because I know him so well, I've even counted how many eyelashes he has. Hermione added silently to herself, trying to remain calm in the face of the shop assistant's praise.

"Thank you for the compliment. So, he really did ask that question?" The girl looked into the other person's eyes as she spoke, seeking confirmation.

"Yes!" The second female shop assistant nodded, giving a clear answer.

"So what did you answer him?" Hermione felt this was the key to the problem, a crucial clue to finding Qin's whereabouts!

“Of course we don’t sell it anywhere else!” the female clerk said, raising her voice slightly and speaking with pride. “Our Flourish and Blotts is the only bookstore in Diagon Alley. Who would go anywhere else to buy books and magazines?”

"..."

In other words, this lead has gone cold?!

"Where did he go after that? Did he say? I heard from other employees that they saw him leave through the door. Do you know where he went?" Hermione asked, somewhat unwilling to give up.

The second female clerk shook her head: "No, he didn't say anything, he just left, and he didn't say where he was going."

Okay, the matter has been clearly explained, and the shop assistant doesn't know where Qin went next.

Hermione slumped her shoulders dejectedly, but out of politeness, she thanked the shop assistant.

"I'm sorry, darling, I couldn't help you." The second female shop assistant noticed the girl's low spirits and said apologetically.

"It's alright, thank you again for your reply! I'll ask around elsewhere."

The little witch left the East Wing and returned to the drinks bar.

She had already tried every possible method she could think of, asked everyone she could, and learned about Qin's general movements and the reason for his departure—he must have suddenly wanted to see a certain news story and planned to buy a newspaper to read it. However, the newspaper that carried the news story was sold out, so Qin was anxious to find another way to see the newspaper.

However, knowing all this was useless; she had no idea how Qin was going to find that newspaper.

Then she wondered what news was in that newspaper called "The Voice of Wizards" that made Qin so anxious that he didn't even have time to leave her a message.

"Um, young lady..." The barista's voice sounded behind her.

"Hmm? Did you call me?" Hermione asked, turning around in confusion.

"I was wondering if you would like to take these two glasses of juice for that young gentleman? I think you two are together, right?" The female clerk pointed again to the two attractive glasses of juice on the bar.

"Yes, we're together. If it's alright, I'll take them."

"Of course!"

As a result, many people saw a little brown-haired girl sitting on a corner of the steps in front of Flourish and Blotts bookstore in Diagon Alley, with two glasses of juice next to her.

The little girl looked thoughtful, as if she had encountered something very distressing. Most of the time, she rested her chin on her hands and stared blankly at the pedestrians on the street, as if she was looking for someone.

Occasionally, I would turn to the side, pick up the juice and take a sip, alternating between the two glasses to keep them as level as possible.

The juice tastes just as good as it used to, but it's not quite the same as it was back then.

That's what she was thinking.

(This chapter title was only come up with right before publication, haha, it was such a brilliant idea!)