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"It seems you still remember me, Mundungus."
Under the silver mask, John's tone was cold as he leaned closer to Mundungus's face, allowing Mundungus to see his eyes through the holes in the mask.
"So... why didn't you come out to greet me?"
Mundungus saw that the eyes inside the mask had transformed to look like those of a dragon, and a wave of pressure fell upon him.
Mundungus's body trembled uncontrollably. He screamed and rolled out to kneel before John.
"Honorable Lord Silverhand, Mundungus Fletcher offers you his sincere and utmost respectful greetings."
The bit of pride and arrogance he had felt vanished instantly in the presence of Johnny Silverhand.
Large beads of sweat dripped from Mundungus's ridiculous nose. He stammered with a fearful trembling voice, showing a fawning smile, "Lord Silverhand, this is all just a misunderstanding."
"A misunderstanding?"
John walked indifferently into the Johnny Silverhand Specialty Store. The security wizards tensed up; they were werewolves and could sense the extreme danger emanating from the man before them.
They looked to their captain and saw Tommy Shelby step forward and bow respectfully to John.
"Welcome back, sir."
As the only one who had seen Silverhand Johnny's true face, Tommy had been the one managing all the store's connections.
He was even more shocked by John's current state. The faint pressure emanating from John gave him the feeling of facing a superior being.
He respectfully said, "We have been waiting for your arrival."
Seeing their captain act in such a manner, the security team naturally would not point their wands at their boss.
"It seems you all like this place," Johnny remarked, pleased with the current state of the Johnny Silverhand Specialty Store. Mundungus and Tommy, one managing the internal affairs and the other the external, had been running the place quite well.
With the mysterious Silverhand's return, all the employees in the store came out to see him. The security team had expanded to ten members. Besides the original four werewolves, there was also Remus Lupin and four other retired Hit Wizards, forming a team with combat strength comparable to the Aurors of the Ministry of Magic.
Including Tommy, this ten-person team boasted a fighting force not inferior to the Ministry's Aurors.
Mundungus had also hired an employee to help run the business when he was away. That young man was named Kim Ladislay, a tall and handsome boy with golden hair and blue eyes, who had come to work during his holiday.
Standing next to Mundungus, Kim Ladislay's dashing appearance created a comical contrast, making the situation seem somewhat absurd.
"Honorable Lord Silverhand, here is last year's income. Most of it has been deposited in Gringotts, and there are still some items in the warehouse reserved for business purchases," Mundungus said, handing over the ledger.
Given the size of the shop, John alone couldn't supply everything needed through his crafting; Mundungus had also been purchasing goods from various places.
Some of these items, which were of questionable legality, were discreetly handled and distributed through his connections.
John glanced over the ledger briefly, fully aware of Mundungus's greed for money.
"Mundungus, I don't want you to be erased from Johnny Silverhand Speciality Shop forever."
With just this simple sentence, John scared Mundungus so much that he collapsed to the ground. Terrified, Mundungus said, "Lord Silverhand, I swear, I absolutely haven't!"
"Your oaths are too cheap," John said calmly.
Mundungus was pulled by an unseen force and floated toward John. A hand gripped his neck, lifting him off the ground as he struggled to cry out for help. His wand flew out of his hand as soon as he drew it. Even as a wizard, being unable to breathe would still lead to death.
The feeling of suffocation quickly overwhelmed his brain, and the fear of death made Mundungus deeply regret his actions.
"Enough, Lord Silverhand!"
Remus Lupin was the first to speak up. He raised his wand and pointed it at John, shouting, "You should let him go."
Tommy drew his wand, his voice cold. "Remus, you should recognize your position."
"Let him go? Remus, do you know where the money he's been embezzling these days has been coming from?" John said, pressing down Tommy's wand.
"I set up a fund for every young wizard who has been persecuted by curses. With this fund, even the poorest young wizard can receive a bottle of Wolfsbane Potion each month."
Lupin's expression changed. John's grip tightened slightly, and Mundungus was on the brink of suffocation and death.
John spoke coldly, "But this person, he's embezzled more than half of the funds from that account. Do you know what that means?"
Lupin opened his mouth but eventually lowered his wand.
"No, Remus, save me."
Mundungus squeezed the words out from his throat, and seeing Lupin put down his wand, he was filled with despair.
He hadn't expected his little schemes to be so clearly known by Johnny Silverhand. What was most deadly were the looks of hatred from those werewolves.
Lupin had been a werewolf since childhood, so he understood that werewolves faced discrimination and, as they grew older, couldn't even get a job.
Every knut that Mundungus embezzled was effectively killing a young werewolf wizard. How could they not hate him?
Just as Mundungus was on the verge of death, that merciless hand released him.
Thud!
He fell to the floor, his body convulsing as he greedily sucked in air through his mouth and nose.
The deep, cold voice spoke again, "This is the first time, Mundungus. I hope you understand that I've given you quite a lot."
"I.. I understand, Lord Silverhand. I'll return everything immediately."
Mundungus didn't dare to hope for anything more. Crawling and stumbling, he clutched John's leg and swore his loyalty.
The masterful wandless magic, combined with that terrifying strength…
Mundungus no longer dared to harbor any thoughts of rebellion; he only wanted to keep his job.
At first, the wizards in the security team didn't think much of it, but now they understood why the powerful Tommy treated this Lord Silverhand with such respect.
They put away their arrogance and bent their knees in humility.
John's act of "killing the monkey to warn the wolves" subdued everyone.
The young Kim Ladislay looked at John, his eyes revealing a mix of emotions.
"Such a surprising sense of generosity." Although Kim Ladislay was brought in by Mundungus, his gratitude to Mundungus was merely that of a subordinate to a superior.
But Johnny Silverhand was different. He didn't expect someone to dip into their coffers for the cursed young wizards. Such magnanimity filled the righteous Kim Ladislay with admiration.
Even though he was just a temp worker, Kim Ladislay felt he could learn a lot from this Lord Silverhand.
Leading a team requires both kindness and sternness; providing free Wolfsbane Potion to underage werewolves is kindness, while punishing Mundungus is sternness.
...
Knockturn Alley was never a calm place.
After John resolved the embezzlement issue and announced the ownership of the shop, trouble soon arrived.
A group of uninvited guests entered through the shop's front door, exuding a primitive scent. Their rough attire made them look like a biker gang.
Lupin saw the leader and took a deep breath, struggling to stay calm.
Standing to John's left, Tommy whispered, "Fenrir Greyback, the leader of the werewolf community. He's been eyeing the Wolfsbane Potion."
A few simple words clarified the situation. John, rubbing the wand at his waist, realized that this group had come with ill intentions.
Glancing at Lupin, who was taking a deep breath, John found it odd and asked calmly, "Lupin, what's wrong?"
Lupin hadn't expected John to notice his small gesture. He closed his eyes to calm himself and said, "I was bitten by Fenrir when I was four years old. He's a scumbag who likes to bite children."
Hearing this made John's eyes narrow dangerously. No matter the society, harming children was the lowest of actions.
Fenrir stepped into the Silverhand Johnny store with arrogance and said, "I need to see the owner of this place."
John stepped forward and said coolly, "You better have a reason to be here."
"So, it's you—the legendary Silverhand?"
Fenrir moved closer to John, his nose twitching. John was taller than most kids his age, so Fenrir didn't notice anything off. After taking a sniff, he said with bloodthirsty intent, "You'd better give me the Wolfsbane Potion, or I'll tear your throat out."
He was a despicable person who specifically bit children, nurturing them with hatred to make them his followers.
He was a cruel person who stole and killed for food, sometimes even attacking people when it wasn't a full moon.
Fenrir was known for doing all sorts of evil deeds, so threatening a shop owner was just another ordinary act for him.
In response to the threat, a cold smile appeared on John's face beneath the mask.
John spoke slowly, "It seems you've misunderstood something."
"Hmm?" Fenrir frowned.
John leaned closer to that ugly, fierce face and said calmly, "Only the strong have the right to dominate the weak."
Fenrir bared his fangs, ready to bite through John's neck.
The next second, a scream filled the air as blood splattered everywhere.
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