After Professor Kettleburn happily fiddled with his new prosthetic leg for a while, he suddenly seemed to remember something.
"Take a look at this, Archer."
He picked up the suitcase he had tossed aside and gently placed it on the table.
As Vison watched in confusion, Professor Kettleburn opened the lid.
Inside was a thick layer of soft cloth, carefully wrapped around a round object.
The professor gently peeled back the fabric, revealing the egg-shaped object within.
"Is that a dragon egg?" Vison blurted out in surprise.
"A Chinese Fireball egg," Professor Kettleburn explained briefly. "I traded a large piece of fresh dragon hide for it."
The Chinese Fireball is a species of dragon from the East, rare even among dragons.
Vison had seen many during his travels in those distant lands.
But for Kettleburn, this was a true treasure. He had always been obsessed with magical creatures, especially the dangerous, large, and aggressive kinds.
Dragons were naturally high on his list.
Vison still looked puzzled. His eyes lingered on the egg for a few moments before turning back to the professor.
"Professor, why are you showing me this? Just to show off?"
Professor Kettleburn smiled but didn't answer directly. Instead, he carefully tucked the egg back into the suitcase and covered it with the cloth.
"That's only half the reason," he replied.
"And the other half?"
"The other half is that I'm not quite sure how to handle this egg," he admitted. "I've just heard that the Ministry of Magic is tracking down a lost Chinese Fireball egg."
Vison's expression shifted. He had nearly forgotten that privately owning dragon eggs was illegal in England.
But then again, he was used to operating outside the law.
"So… is this the one the Ministry lost?" Vison couldn't help but ask.
Professor Kettleburn looked at him and winked. "I bet it isn't."
"..."
Vison was speechless for a moment, marveling at how eventful the old man's retirement life had become.
He shrugged helplessly, casting another glance at his eccentric professor.
This is going to be trouble, he thought.
Still, he couldn't turn his back on Kettleburn.
"Alright," Vison agreed. "I'll take care of the egg. Chinese Fireball dragon egg powder is a very rare medicinal ingredient..."
Professor Kettleburn's face darkened, and he quickly interrupted Vison, his tone tense.
"No, Vison, this egg is alive! It's still hatching. Don't you dare think about doing anything improper."
"Okay." Vison replied, though there was a flicker of regret in his voice.
Even so, he secretly decided that when the time came, he might grind just a little powder from the egg — not much, just an ounce or so.
Satisfied with Vison's agreement, Professor Kettleburn looked visibly relieved.
He stood up, stretched, and gave the egg — now tucked back in the suitcase — a lingering, worried glance.
"Alright, Archer," he said as he headed toward the door. "I need to find someone to help me deal with this little headache. In the meantime, you must take good care of it. Oh, and it should hatch in about a week — contact me when that happens."
Seeing the concern etched on the professor's face, Vison couldn't help but ask, "Professor, why don't you take care of the dragon egg yourself? You're an authority on this stuff!"
Kettleburn paused, his face clouding with annoyance.
He grumbled, "The Ministry's already searched my home. Blast it, how could they suspect a retired old professor? Unbelievable!"
Vison gave an awkward smile but didn't comment.
Frankly, if he worked for the Ministry, Kettleburn would be his first suspect too.
"Don't worry, Professor," Vison finally said. "I'll hide it well. And if there's any issue with your prosthetic leg, just write to me."
…
After seeing Kettleburn off, Vison stood there, staring blankly at the Chinese Fireball dragon egg resting on the table.
About a week to go, huh?
Just then, the egg suddenly quivered.
"?"
Vison instinctively stepped closer, reaching out a finger to lightly touch its surface.
It felt icy cold — surprisingly so, considering it was summer.
As if sensing Vison's presence, the egg gave a sudden violent shake, nearly rolling off the table.
It almost seemed like it knew it was freezing to death.
Everyone knew that dragon eggs required extremely high temperatures to hatch.
Vison was no exception.
"High temperatures, huh…"
He muttered to himself, closed the box, and carried it into the plantation.
To make things easier for Lupin, the door's entrance had been set up in Shed No. 3.
Whoever designed the door to be movable was a genius — otherwise, with the plantation's size, getting around would have been exhausting.
As soon as he stepped inside, Vison spotted Lupin squatting in the Deadly Venomous Moly area, carefully harvesting the plants.
With his previous painful experience still fresh, Lupin now moved with exaggerated caution.
His thick dragon-hide gloves were particularly striking.
Determined to avoid skin contact with the deadly plant, Lupin had bundled himself up from head to toe.
Deadly Venomous Moly was most potent when freshly matured — much like people, plants had a prime age when their properties peaked.
As they aged, the plant's toxic strength would gradually fade.
Thus, once harvested, Vison would promptly process the Deadly Venomous Moly into Essence of Murtlap — no, more precisely, Deadly Venomous Moly Essence of Murtlap.
Once transformed, its medicinal potency skyrocketed. Moreover, this potion had a remarkably long shelf life — properly stored, it could last indefinitely.
Every year, Vison cultivated a batch of Plant Poison and Deadly Venomous Moly, resulting in large reserves of both regular and enhanced Essence of Murtlap in his warehouse.
Essence of Murtlap was a common healing potion, but so far, Vison hadn't found a good occasion to use the more dangerous Deadly Venomous Moly variant.
Still, he believed it was better to have it stockpiled — someday, he was sure it would come in handy.
Lupin noticed Vison's arrival and, while carefully depositing the Deadly Venomous Moly he had picked into his basket, quickly shifted his gaze toward the box in Vison's hand.
"What's that?" Lupin asked, his tone curious. "What are you carrying in there?"
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