Hogwarts: From Selling White Peppers to Becoming a God

Chapter 333 War! War!

Lakeside villa.

Murphy and Patrick's three-year-old son, Ares, played "mind-to-catch" for a while. The two of them tossed a baseball back and forth between each other without using their hands, just by thinking about it, leaving Patrick dumbfounded.

But this kind of game seemed to be very mentally taxing, and Ares soon became sleepy and was taken away by his mother to rest.

"Training in the use of magic during childhood can improve one's control over it," Murphy told Patrick. "Little Ares' progress is proof enough. If he continues with this purposeful training, I suspect Ares might become a natural wandless spellcaster."

"My son isn't your experiment," Patrick retorted. "Audrey's been getting really angry these past few days. She's worried you'll take Ares to the wizarding world and then never see him again."

"How could we not see him?" Murphy smiled. "By the time Ares is old enough to go to school, he might already be learning magic in a regular elementary school."

"I hope so," Patrick said.

"That depends on you," Murphy said. "How's the People's Livelihood Party doing lately?"

“I have quite a few followers,” Patrick said. “You’re right, the wealth gap in Britain is too serious, and many so-called ‘elites’ or middle-class people, including myself, have never realized this problem before. The voices of the underprivileged have never been heard.”

“It’s not surprising that our society is not yet at the right stage of development,” Murphy said. “However, you must remember to recruit as many people as possible, rather than creating class conflict and class hatred. That might attract a group of people quickly, but anything built on hatred is very fragile and meaningless to our goals.”

"Of course I understand." Patrick nodded. "By the way, the United States has been putting a lot of pressure on the Prime Minister lately, and there's been a lot of commotion in Parliament. The United States is imposing more and more sanctions on Britain, and many of them have expanded from the umbrella of protection to other areas. They even brought warships to the English Channel a while ago, ostensibly to resupply, but the warning was obvious even to a primary school student."

"Oh?" Murphy had been focused on the magical side lately and hadn't heard about this. "How many ships?"

"Two guided-missile destroyers," Patrick said. "But their aircraft carrier, the Enterprise, is also nearby."

Even warships have arrived; the United States is getting a bit anxious this time.

"Interesting," Murphy smiled. "Patrick, you are one of the founders of Umbrella Corporation. You can't be soft on them; you must remain firm."

Patrick nodded. "Of course, but hardliners on the US aren't popular with the public. The British are spineless; they've long lost their fighting spirit. Don't be fooled by the fact that there are still quite a few people challenging them now. In another six months, everyone will be back to sucking up to the Americans."

"Don't worry, we'll see results soon this time," Murphy said.

Patrick asked, puzzled, "Why? Unless a local war really breaks out, Britain cannot maintain a hardline stance against the US in the long run. Parliament doesn't have the confidence, and neither do the people."

Murphy smiled. "A war might not be out of the question."

……

Mid-May, the lake area.

On a hilltop covered by a Muggle expulsion curse, Murphy unfolded a map and looked at it.

"This is it."

The Muggle engineer behind him looked around and nodded. "This is a good spot. The view is wide open with almost no obstructions, and the signal can travel very far. If we put the radar here, it should be able to scan a thousand to two thousand kilometers. One scan will cover almost the entire UK."

"Drive a stake here," Murphy ordered, but his gaze suddenly caught sight of a black hem of clothing on a rock not far away.

"Drok," Murphy called out to an Auror nearby, "didn't you realize you were being followed when you came out?"

"What?" The Auror was startled, only to see Murphy suddenly turn into a bolt of lightning and disappear. The next moment, he reappeared amidst crackling lightning, but this time, he was already holding someone in his hand.

"Damn it!" Auror kicked the man Murphy had grabbed. "These spies are like flies, impossible to get rid of! Sir, should we kill him?"

Murphy shook his head. "We've killed enough. Every time we kill one, another one comes along. The Wizarding Association is clearly going against us. Forget it, I'll take care of this guy."

"It's perfect to use him to gather information and see what they're planning to do."

……

The Loire Valley, France.

In an ancient castle, hundreds of wizards are gathered together, engaged in a heated debate.

"Does anyone still think that Murphy Darkholm is just a minor problem for Britain?" shouted a French wizard with a thick mustache. "He has killed six of our agents, and the previous investigation team has been imprisoned. This man has completely disregarded the law; he has become a major threat to wizards worldwide!"

"Mr. Gaston, are you sure your accusations against Murphy Darkholm stem from concern for the wizarding world, and not from coveting his vast empire of gold-digging in the Muggle world?"

Another dark-skinned wizard bluntly exposed, "We received information that you seem to be looking for an agent in Muggle society, imitating Murphy, preparing to sell potions to Muggles?"

"Nonsense! Utter nonsense!" shouted the French wizard Gaston. "There is no such thing! Murphy has already threatened the security of the French Ministry of Magic. His love potion perfumes have caused a great deal of trouble for Muggle society! This year, the Muggle president told me that there are a full fifth more newborns than in the past! And we don't even know what kind of problems these children born under the influence of small amounts of love potion will have."

"We sent investigators to contact Muggles to investigate similar incidents; it's definitely not what you're describing!"

"What's the point of this investigation now!" someone else shouted. "Didn't you see the dead wizards?! Murphy has already publicly massacred the Federation's special envoys! What else wouldn't he dare to do? I propose that Murphy Darkholm be listed as a Class A international fugitive, and that he and his accomplices be enemies of all wizards. Anyone who sees him should be killed without question!"

"Murphy has already taken control of the British Ministry of Magic. The British Aurors and the Watchmen can be considered his followers. Are you perhaps planning to wage war against the British Ministry of Magic?!" someone retorted.

"At the very least, we should help British wizards overthrow that puppet government! And restore freedom to the British wizarding community!"

"Ha, that sounds nice, a Frenchman helping the British? That's laughable!"

"Enough! This is the Federation, not a place for you to spread ethnic conflicts! Quiet down! Let's hear what the chairman has to say," said a male wizard wearing glasses.

Everyone turned their attention to the wizard on the stage.

"Dumbledore, I heard you fought him before, but didn't win. Is that true?"

(End of this chapter)