Chapter 4.
It has been a few days since Dudley drew the blue seaweed-headed magician, and after the initial gloom, he quickly adjusted his state of mind.
Life must go on as usual; instead of complaining about fate, it's better to find ways to improve oneself.
Thus, Dudley threw himself into the intense training of Ripple energy.
St. George Primary School.
"Dudley, I heard you went to Oxford Primary School last time. How was the experience as an exchange student?"
A few sturdy boys in olive team uniforms wrapped their arms around Dudley's neck and asked him with friendly expressions.
Not all students feared Dudley; he wasn't a fighting maniac who went around causing trouble.
As he himself said, he hated trouble.
As long as his principles weren't touched, Dudley was usually quite 'cultured and easygoing.'
Of course, these boys in olive uniforms were not students of St. George Primary School but soon-to-graduate students from the boxing team of the neighboring Smelting Secondary School.
"Boring, it's just a bunch of nerds there," Dudley said as he grabbed a hot dog and began to devour it.
Hearing the system message in his mind, 'Experience +1 for eating a whole hot dog,' he felt incredibly pleased.
The Mage Training System supplements energy primarily through food intake, and Dudley can activate some ordinary life skills using experience points.
Of course, those skills have nothing to do with magic; according to the system's explanation, they are mostly daily life skills.
For example: English, mathematics, physics, firearms, boxing, archery, and so on.
This thing called the Mage Training System is exceptionally stingy regarding anything related to magic, but quite generous otherwise.
After all, it's all about eating.
That's why Dudley is called the 'Food protector.'
Touching his food is equivalent to becoming his enemy.
"I heard the students at that school are very good at studying. Has our Mr. Dudley been discouraged?"
"Good at studying? They're just average to above average; besides rote learning, there's nothing impressive about them."
Dudley waved his hand and took a cup of 'happy water' and drank it all in one go.
'Experience +1 for drinking a cup full of happy water.'
Thinking about his experience as an exchange student at Oxford Primary School, Dudley found it amusing.
He had given those nerds quite a lesson, both academically and in sports.
Every time he thought of those little kids running back home with snot bubbles and crying, he couldn't help but laugh.
Oxford Primary School is located in Oxfordshire, England, and is a co-educational private primary school that claims to be a preparatory school for Oxford University.
As everyone knows, a preparatory university is just a joke.
In fact, with Dudley's grades and abilities, he shouldn't have been at St. George Primary School. The main reason the Dursley family sent Dudley and Harry to this school was that it is a public school, meaning the tuition is cheap.
The Dursley family had to bear not just Dudley's school fees but also Harry's.
Just look at the clothes Dudley and Harry are wearing.
Harry is wearing Dudley's old school uniform, while Dudley, despite wearing new clothes, has garments of rather average quality.
Moreover, since Dudley eats a lot, their living conditions appeared even more strained.
In reality, the Dursleys were not as wealthy as depicted in the movies when they first appeared; life was quite tight while Harry was in primary school, and this situation persisted until two months ago.
Dudley's father, Vernon Dursley, got a job at Grunnings through the recommendation of his sister, Marge Dursley, and things improved after he successfully secured a large order for drilling machines.
Now they were discussing transferring Dudley to another school; otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to be an exchange student.
However, Dudley didn't want to go to another school, mainly because Harry wouldn't be there, and Dudley couldn't 'take advantage' of him.
Given the tuition fees of private schools, the Dursley family certainly couldn't afford for both Dudley and Harry to study there at the same time.
Even if they could afford it, they wouldn't let Harry go.
His mother, Petunia Dursley, and his father, Vernon Dursley, didn't like Harry very much.
As for the reason, it's a long story.
After swallowing the last bite of food, Dudley happened to see Harry coming out of the teaching building with a backpack. He turned to his companions from the Smelting Secondary School boxing team: "It's been a while since we moved our hands and feet. Want to practice?"
"..."
After a moment of awkward silence, everyone exchanged glances and began to look for various excuses.
Finally, only Dudley was left.
It was precisely because their relationship with Dudley was good that they could better appreciate his terrifying side; practicing with him was purely looking for trouble.
Dudley pouted, "Tsk, so boring."
He walked briskly towards his dear little cousin Harry, threw an arm around the other's neck, and affectionately said, "Come on, let's go home together."
Watching the two walk further away until they disappeared at the end of the street, the students of St. George's Primary School collectively breathed a sigh of relief.
"Oh my, poor little Harry is going to be bullied by his evil cousin again."
"So, are you going to save him?"
"Don't joke, are you asking me to go to my death?"
That's how rumors were formed; clearly, Dudley and Harry had a good relationship.
Well, at least Dudley thought so.
The two lived at 4 Privet Drive in Little Whinging, Surrey, not far from school, about a twenty-minute walk.
Seeing that Harry was focused on walking, Dudley took the initiative to break the silence, pulling out a few crumpled banknotes from his pocket: "Harry, this is the remaining £8.50 from fixing your glasses. I don't think it's safe in your hands, so I'll keep it for you to use when you get them fixed later."
"Okay, Big D."
Harry had lost count of how many times he had heard the same words; his ears were almost calloused.
Dudley, satisfied with Harry's response, stuffed the crumpled notes back into his pocket.
At that moment, he had transformed into a miserly character.
Not that he was really stingy; Dudley kept a clear account of every penny Harry had with him, mainly because Dudley needed to continuously consume food to ensure the energy collection of his system.
Fortunately, most of the food Dudley consumed was converted into muscle; otherwise, with his eating habits, he would definitely end up round like Dudley.
Pushing open the door of the two-story house, the super-sensitive Dudley immediately caught the scent of dinner, instantly increasing his appetite.
Indeed, the best cuisine in the world was : English Recipes.
There really isn't much good food in England; apart from the fish and chips that every housewife knows how to make, there are hardly any dishes worth mentioning.
But no one stipulated that the English had to make English food; Petunia Dursley was good at German cuisine, and the taste of crispy pork knuckle was quite nice.
Note : Guys, if you're liking the story; make sure to throw some power-stones at it :)