Fleur refused to give an inch. Sitting across from Leonard, she fixed her eyes on him.
Even Leonard felt a bit of pressure under that stare. He glanced at Fleur and noticed her lips moving slightly.
I want to help you.
Though he had originally intended to refuse her, Leonard's heart stirred. Stroking his chin, he lowered his head in thought, as if an idea had just come to him.
"If you insist on going to Hogwarts, then it's not impossible," Leonard said seriously. "In fact, I may even need your help."
"Leonard!" Lehende glared at him. "That's not what you were saying before."
Wasn't he the one saying Hogwarts was dangerous and that Fleur must not go? How had he suddenly switched sides?
Fleur paid no attention to what Lehende was thinking. She straightened up and looked at Leonard intently.
"Don't get worked up." Leonard waved a hand. "I can guarantee your safety, but you'll have to follow my instructions. Understood?"
"No problem," Fleur agreed without hesitation.
"Ah. Fleur... you..." Lehende scratched his head, irritably crushed out his expensive cigar, and tossed it aside.
"Calm down, Lehende. I promise Fleur will be safe. Even if things go beyond my control, I'll still send her back," Leonard said.
His ravens could break through Hogwarts' anti-Apparition wards, so Fleur's safety was absolutely guaranteed.
Even if Leonard's plan failed, as long as the World Tree still stood, those ravens would not lose their power.
Lehende let out a long sigh and complained to Leonard, "If this is how it was going to end up, then why did you bother telling me about it in the first place?"
He would have been better off not knowing. At least then he would have felt a little less miserable.
"Sorry," Leonard said, offering an apology with no real sincerity behind it.
Lehende rubbed his face, speechless at Leonard's utterly unconvincing apology.
"In any case, you absolutely must protect Fleur," Lehende said firmly.
"Don't worry." Leonard stood up. "Come on. It's time to show me your precious plants."
"Wait, let me recover for a second..." Lehende pressed a hand to his chest. "First my daughter, now my precious plants. Are you trying to kill me?"
He still remembered promising Leonard that he could take a few plants, and even choose them freely.
Before Leonard arrived, Lehende had originally planned to secretly hide several of his most treasured rare plants. But after hearing about the train accident, he had been too panicked to do anything and had rushed straight to the station.
Which meant all his precious plants were now sitting openly in the greenhouse.
"Well... how about later?" Lehende gave a dry cough. "You've had a tiring journey, so why not rest for the night first? I can take you to see my greenhouse tomorrow."
"No need. I'm not that tired yet. Let's go now. I've been looking forward to seeing your greenhouse for a long time," Leonard said with a cheerful smile.
In truth, Leonard did not really need to collect plants anymore. He just found it amusing to look at Lehende's face, which made his thoughts far too easy to read.
"No, no, no. You're too tired." Lehende tried to refuse again, but Fleur stood up from the side.
"Dad, if you're tired, then go get some rest." Fleur stuck her tongue out at him. She had been elegant and proper the whole time, every bit the young lady, so this playful expression gave her a different kind of charm. "I'll take Leonard around your greenhouse."
Lehende froze.
This was bad. His little padded jacket was leaking air again.
If his daughter took Leonard there, would she not reveal the whole family fortune?
Whenever he had time, Lehende loved showing off his precious plants to his wife and daughters. So while Fleur might not know every detail, she definitely knew which plants were the most valuable.
"Fleur, wait for me. I'll show you around!" Lehende gritted his teeth and hurried after them, already deciding that at most, Leonard would only be allowed to take one plant, and not one that was too endangered.
...
Although Lehende's greenhouse was only a private one, its facilities and size were in no way inferior to Hogwarts' greenhouses.
"I have three large greenhouses here in total, used for magical plants that can adapt to normal conditions. Inside each large greenhouse, I've also partitioned off several smaller special greenhouses specifically for plants with weaker adaptability."
Lehende began introducing his greenhouse. Though it pained him to think of Leonard taking plants away, the moment he started talking about his greenhouse and plants, he became as chatty as a fisherman showing off his prized tackle.
After spending so much effort and money on something, what was the point if he could not show it off? Especially when he was showing it to someone who shared the same hobby. The satisfaction and joy more than doubled.
And Leonard just so happened to be exactly that kind of like-minded enthusiast. The only problem was that this fellow enthusiast was also about to take away his precious plants, which made Lehende's heart ache even as he enthusiastically introduced them.
So throughout the tour, Lehende's mood kept swinging between satisfaction and pain. It was deeply conflicting.
"This is the Moroccan Tentacle Pear. The fruit is sour and bitter, but it's used as a supporting ingredient in certain potions. It's already quite rare now."
"This is the Nightmare Sunflower. A single seed is enough to give someone nightmares for an entire day."
Lehende introduced the plants in his greenhouse one by one, explaining their cultivation requirements as fluently as if he were counting off family treasures.
Very soon, he had finished introducing the plants in several of the greenhouses. Lehende looked at Leonard nervously and said, "See anything you like? Just say the word, and I'll give it to you."
Leonard swept his gaze around the greenhouse and smiled at Lehende. "You still have quite a few plants you didn't introduce, don't you?"
Lehende's expression instantly collapsed. "But those are all endangered species. I still haven't figured out their cultivation conditions, and right now they're only staying alive through magic. I can't give them to you."
"I'm just looking." Leonard rubbed his hands together with a grin. "At most I'll touch them a couple of times. Don't worry."
"I mean it. Don't mess around with them. Those are all extremely valuable specimens," Lehende said.
Leonard rolled his eyes. "I didn't realize you were this stingy back then."
"It's not that I'm stingy. I'm just being responsible for those plants." Lehende sighed. "All right, come on. I'll take you to see them. But let's be clear. If you want to touch anything, tell me first. Those plants are very fragile, the kind that will die the moment you touch them."
"Relax, they won't die," Leonard said, half joking and half serious. "With me here, they definitely won't die."