Hogwarts: From Selling White Peppers to Becoming a God

Chapter 77 I, Murphy, cannot bear to see human suffering.

"I haven't found a breeding center for house-elves," Locke said regretfully, "but through my extensive contacts, I have collected more than forty house-elves from sellers all over the world."

"Oh?!" Murphy exclaimed in surprise. "Great, where are they?"

"I've already bought them all, and they're at my house now. Would you like to go take a look?"

"Okay! Let's go!"

……

Locke's house was on a hillside in Devon.

It was a small cabin carved out of the hillside, hidden among the grass. If it weren't for the bright windows and the oak door, Murphy would have almost forgotten it existed.

Standing in front of the cabin, you can overlook a vast open field, with forests and swamps in the distance.

"The scenery here is quite nice," Murphy said, looking around. "I'm even thinking of buying a house here."

"Ahead is the village of Autri-St. Catchpol, and across the river is Autri-St. Mary, both places where wizards live." Locke pointed to a strange-looking building in the wilderness. "Look, that's the Weasleys. On that mountain over there lives the Lovegoods, all oddballs. That higher mountain is Weasley Mountain, it's very beautiful."

Weasley?

The Burrow?

Murphy looked up and could vaguely see one or two figures walking around the crooked house.

As for the houses in Lovegood, which are further away, all that can be seen is a strange spire.

For some reason, seeing these places gave Murphy a feeling of laziness and comfort. Maybe it would be nice to buy a house here and stay here occasionally when he wants to relax.

But for now, let's take a look at those house-elves.

Bending over as he entered Locke's house, which resembled a Hobbit's cottage, Murphy discovered that the space inside was surprisingly large.

As soon as Murphy entered the house, he saw seven or eight house-elves busy with various tasks. One was carefully wiping the already gleaming floor with a rag for who knows how many times. Another was posing the flowers, holding a water glass and occasionally pouring in a drop of water. Yet another was washing clothes, but the laundry water was so clean that it seemed like you could drink it directly.

"They're so boring, I can't stop them from working."

Sure enough, every room in Locke's cabin was filled with house-elves. They tried their best to find work for themselves, and several elves even got into fights over who would do the work, resulting in bloody head injuries.

No wonder it's a house-elf.

So dedicated!

Forget 996, they always work 007, and they don't ask for a salary or overtime pay. Their work enthusiasm is off the charts, and they'll fight you to the death if you don't let them work.

Such a perfect employee, if he were with a Muggle boss, wouldn't he be treated like royalty and given awards every day?

But these wizards don't even know how to cherish it?

Not only did they not give us rewards, they didn't even provide us with clothes or enough to eat, and they frequently beat and verbally abused us...

That's outrageous! So outrageous! Even capitalists would weep at this.

Take them all away, they must all be taken away. I, Murphy Darkholm, cannot bear to see human suffering.

"By the way, when you were looking for these little sprites, did you encounter any therapists or doctors who knew how to treat them?"

"Huh?" Locke was taken aback by the question. "Who would treat a house-elves?"

"..."

Okay, he's overthinking it.

Wizards don't even consider house-elves as human beings, or even as dogs; they don't even have a veterinarian.

These little guys are surviving solely on their own strong immune systems.

"Alright," Murphy said, taking out a rope. "Have them line up and hold on tight to this rope."

Before leaving, Murphy gave Locke a few more instructions: "Keep an eye on the Wizard Security Shop business. Buy a few shops in Diagon Alley, Knockturn Alley, and Hogsmeade. For now, just recruit people. Graduates from Hogwarts or other famous magic schools will be given priority. We only need recent graduates and young people who have graduated one or two years ago."

"Oh, by the way, buy me a house nearby."

……

Returning to the Enchanted Labs with forty-three house-elves, Murphy went to find Laura Kruger.

"Are those house-elves?" Dobby was receiving treatment in the medical lab, and Laura was seeing house-elves for the first time. "Wow, they're so cute!"

"Hmm?" Murphy glanced at the wrinkled, limp creatures with long noses and big ears, looking almost like oversized, upright mice. "Cute?"

"Look at their big eyes, don't you think they're adorable?"

This was the first time Murphy had seen her assistant so lively, a stark contrast to her usual reserved and aloof demeanor.

To be honest, I think you're cuter.

"Ahem," Murphy coughed lightly, "They will replace the staff in the research institute and will be responsible for the logistics of the entire institute. Find some people to familiarize them with the place, and then arrange for the dismissal of those Muggle staff."

The institute initially needed those Muggle staff members out of sheer necessity.

The more unrelated individuals are involved, the greater the chance of the research institute leaking its secrets.

But now that we have house-elves with guaranteed loyalty, those staff members can be dismissed.

"Okay." Laura jotted down Murphy's instructions in her notebook. "By the way, Chief, the security team at the mansion outside sent word today that a man named Boris wants to see you."

"Okay, I got it. I'll go see him later."

He's been using Apparition to enter the research institute lately and hasn't been back to the mansion for several days. If Boris comes looking for him, he really won't be able to find him.

After settling the house-elves, Murphy went to the medical lab to check on Dobby.

"How is he?" he asked the doctor who was giving Dobby an injection.

The institute has no shortage of medical experts; in fact, Murphy has recruited several veterinarians to conduct joint consultations on Dobby in order to study the magical creatures.

"He was too weak, severely malnourished, and many of his organs were malfunctioning, even close to failure. If it had been any later, he probably wouldn't have survived," the doctor said. "However, his will to live is very strong. We are supplementing his nutrition. Although his body structure is very different from that of humans, fortunately, the nutrients he needs are not much different, and medications such as datura and wound cleaning agents are also effective for him. Therefore, the possibility of his recovery is not small."

Murphy nodded, but then he saw the big-headed creature on the hospital bed open its eyes, stare at him blankly for a while, and then close them again.

"Alright, please take good care of them. In addition, a new batch of house-elves has arrived at the research institute. They are all of the same kind. You can conduct some physical examinations on them, which should give you a better understanding of these creatures. If any other sick house-elves are found during the examination, treat them as well."

"These little elves are having a very hard time in the outside world, so don't be too harsh on them."

……

After leaving the research institute, Murphy returned to the mansion.

Where is Boris?

(End of this chapter)