Volume 4: The Sea and the Ship Heading North Chapter 209 Sir Stoke
Neville and the others followed Jon, and at Rabbi's invitation, they walked into the tower.
Seen from the outside, the entire tower is very slender, giving the impression that the inside is at most like most lighthouses at sea, with only space for a spiral staircase built around the wall.
But in fact, the Traceless Stretching Charm is a practical skill that almost every wizard must have. This convenient magic allows them to build a house that doesn't need to be that big, while still having enough space.
After entering the door, there is a not-so-small foyer, or rather, the entire floor is a foyer.
The floor was covered with a cashmere carpet that looked warm, and in the fireplace on the wall there was a flickering flame emitting light and heat, causing Neville and the others, who were shrinking their necks due to the cold outside, to relax their bodies as soon as they entered the room.
In the middle of the foyer is a spiral staircase that winds up to the ceiling.
Rabil led them straight to the stairs. After their feet stepped on the wooden steps, the spiral staircase began to move upwards automatically like the moving stairs in Hogwarts Castle. Jon and the others didn't have to take any steps themselves.
The stairs went up very quickly, and apart from the entrance hall, they could only occasionally see the furnishings on other floors. Most of the floors were enclosed, and each floor had only one door connected to this almost endless spiral staircase.
Jon estimated in his mind that after they climbed up about forty or fifty meters, the spiral staircase still hadn't reached the top and suddenly stopped.
This is also an open space. The floor is covered with a cashmere carpet that is even more exquisite than the one in the foyer. The chandelier illuminates the place with gentle warm light. On the coffee table, the kettle jumps up by itself and pours water into the teacup. Several silver plates filled with various cakes are floating on the table.
After arriving on this floor, Jon casually glanced at the ordinary fireplace and did not find any small box containing green powder on the fireplace.
There was only one person sitting in this room that looked like a reception room.
The old man with glasses, silver hair and elegant temperament was sitting on a single sofa chair. He was holding a black cat in his arms and looking at Jon who was walking up with Neville and the others with a smile on his face.
"Mr. Johnson? Welcome to Starr. This is the first time in all these years that a professor from a magic school has come to visit me. Take your children and sit down. I live in a simple way here and have nothing to entertain you. I can only provide some tea and snacks."
These were obviously polite words. The furnishings and appliances in this tower were not something that people with a simple life could afford. Most of the items were obviously antiques that were priceless even in the wizarding world.
"You are very polite, Lord Stocker. We should be the ones to feel sorry for our intrusive visit."
Jon sat on a single sofa diagonally opposite Sir Stoke, and Neville and the other four also sat on the long sofa together.
None of them touched the tea and snacks on the coffee table. The five people that Jon chose to take off the boat were all smart. Even Luna, who was nicknamed "Mad Girl", was just a little eccentric, but not stupid at all. Lee Jordan hung out with the Weasley twins all day and was even more of a villain.
Not to mention Neville and Hermione, even Ron has become much more stable in the past two years than when the school started.
"During the Capetian dynasty of Muggles, my ancestor was awarded the title of knight because he had been supplying healing potions to the royal family for a long time. Since then, Sir Stoke has become the name of every generation of my family, even in the wizarding world."
Sir Stoke calmly spoke about how he was a wizard but had the title of knight.
"My real name is Tobias Stocker, and I inherited this Starr Tower from my family. However, my family rarely came here before, and my father even forgot that we had such a tower on this sea. It was not until I inherited the family business that I sold my property in the magic world because of my interest in astronomy, expanded this tower, and settled down here. However, this place is far from the land, and there are very few wizards going out to sea by ship. I have never been back since I came to Starr, and I have basically no communication with the outside world. I wonder, Professor Johnson, how did you know about this place?"
His question was not abrupt or impolite, because Jon and the others could only come here if they knew the place in advance, otherwise it is impossible for them to just wander here randomly.
This sea area is close to the North Pole, and few wizards go out to sea, let alone travel to the North Pole via the ocean.
But Jon was obviously prepared for this.
"I have a friend named Richard Williams. Do you still remember him?"
Sir Stoker had a look of surprise on his face.
"Of course. He is the only wizard who has visited me in the past decade or so. Was it he who told you the location of Star Tower?"
Jon noticed the time period of "more than ten years" he mentioned and nodded calmly.
"During a casual conversation with him, he mentioned to me that he was entertained by your place when he was young. Recently, I brought my students on a school trip to this nearby sea area, and I wanted to bring them to visit you and broaden their horizons."
Richard Williams was naturally the identity of Dumbledore in disguise. After learning of Voldemort's voyage route several years ago, he visited the tower once under a concealed identity, but he did not gain anything that time.
After learning from Jon why he was able to find this place, Sir Stoke's attitude obviously changed.
His attitude seemed a little more enthusiastic, and he invited Jon and others to have dinner together.
Of course, Jon had no reason to refuse. Judging from the situation before him, there was nothing wrong with the performance of Sir Stoke, who lived in the tower.
He was wary of Jon and the others at first, simply because no one would normally discover this tower. After Jon gave a reasonable answer, he regained his friendly enthusiasm.
Jon didn't notice anything wrong with his eyes or facial expression, nor did he feel like his mind, which had been kept in Occlumency, was being spied on.
This certainly couldn't completely dispel Jon's guard, but some questions could always be asked at the dinner table.
