A Professor of Magic at Hogwarts
Chapter 608: Welcome - (2)

With an exaggerated scream, a domesticated house elf leaped down from its position, swiftly scampering on its two short legs to appear in front of Felix Harp.

"Hello, Dobby," Felix greeted.

"Hello, Mr. Harp!" Dobby exclaimed, scrutinizing Felix with his large, round eyes. All the house elves stopped their work, timidly gathering around, gazing at Felix with the same careful expressions as Dobby.

"Hello, everyone—uh—house elves."

"Mr. Harp, this is Buck," Dobby pointed to the house elf closest to him, happily introducing. "Hello, Buck," Felix nodded. "This is Kiki, Beck, Holly, Betton, Cheechee," he introduced them one by one, then slapped his forehead suddenly, "Oh, right!" Dobby pulled another house elf from the crowd as if by magic, "And Sparkle."

Sparkle, wearing a neat little dress, shrunk back into the crowd.

"Sparkle?" Dobby looked at her excitedly.

"Mr. Harp—" Sparkle said hesitantly.

"How are you doing here?" Felix asked.

"Not good, not good at all!" Dobby exclaimed loudly. "Sparkle still thinks of her old master, Mr. Crouch. I told her we have a new—um—employer, but she refuses to accept any wages!"

"Buck doesn't want an employer either, Buck wants a master!" the first introduced house elf said eagerly, staring straight at Felix.

"Kiki too. Kiki doesn't want to be an unwanted house elf!" a slightly sharp-voiced house elf called out. Her words prompted a chaotic chorus of agreement, with a group of bat-eared heads nodding up and down.

"I came for this matter," Felix said gently. "Honestly, when I found out there were so many house elves in the company, I was surprised. Personally, I don't need house elves to serve me, so I came up with a good idea—have you heard of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?"

The house elves nodded nervously.

"In the Hogwarts kitchen, there are house elves similar to you in number. They don't belong to anyone but are nominally under the ownership of the ancient castle. Of course, if a house elf wants to leave, I believe Dumbledore won't stop them—"

"They won't leave, their days are extremely happy!" one house elf shouted with envy and discontent.

"Kiki?" Felix blinked, asking.

"Yes, Kiki, Mr. Harp!" Kiki answered excitedly, seeming very honored that Felix remembered her name.

"...Now that you know, things become much simpler. I plan to adopt a similar model, sign a magical contract. I won't set a time; you can stay as long as you want. The specific terms are concentrated in the confidentiality agreement. If you want to leave, you cannot disclose product information... There are also some rules about treatment; Dobby and Miss Crivat will explain them to you."

"We don't need treatment, and we don't need wages!" another house elf shouted.

"Oh," Felix showed a hesitant expression, "but the Ministry of Magic has regulations, and this is what you deserve. I don't want trouble from the Ministry... And, to be honest," he became serious, "staying in the company is different from serving a wizarding family. The tasks you'll handle are more professional and challenging."

The house elves nodded in a confused manner.

"As for Sparkle—" Felix paused, squatting down to speak to her.

"Since you have nowhere to go for now, why not continue staying here and save some money—listen to me, don't you want to buy a gift for Mr. Crouch? Sparkle, there are no Dementors in Azkaban anymore, which means Mr. Crouch will be out soon, three years will pass in the blink of an eye. If you want to be with him, I won't stop you, but I think he'll be very happy to see the gift you give him."

After finishing his words, Felix extended his hand, revealing a golden Galleon.

Sparkle blinked her large brown eyes continuously, her nose, shaped and sized like a big tomato, twitching. Apparently, she was in a deeply conflicted state, finding it difficult to untangle these complex issues in her small head.

Just when Dobby urged her for the twelfth time, Sparkle tremblingly reached out her hands, holding up the golden Galleon, tears streaming down her face.

"T-thank you, Mr. Harp."

She lifted her little dress and bowed deeply to Felix.

...

In the evening, back at the school, Felix and Valen were a bit hungry. They descended the crooked staircase, each sniffing along, preparing to find something to eat in the kitchen.

It's unclear who started it, but they began playing the game of stepping on each other's shadows. Valen swung its feet agilely, running around Felix, shouting excitedly—it was calculating scores.

Suddenly, Felix felt he was at a disadvantage; his shadow was much larger.

"Squeak!"

Valen suddenly shivered, a wisp of smoke appeared, and it ran to his shoulder, chattering away. That person's eyes were so scary!

Felix turned his head, seeing Professor McGonagall and Mr. Bagshot walking side by side. Professor McGonagall was speaking rapidly, not noticing Felix and Valen's presence. Mr. Bagshot, however, focused his gaze on Valen, squinting his eyes with a dark expression.

"Now that Dumbledore has agreed... I can't say much, Mr. Bagshot, but please be prepared. Managing young wizards is a very difficult job. I will tell you everything I know, including textbooks, teaching tasks, school rules... Oh, Felix?"

Professor McGonagall looked up in surprise, staring at Felix and Valen on his shoulder.

"Professor Miller," Felix nodded slightly, but his gaze remained on Mr. Bagshot, with an evident scrutiny, "Who is—"

"The new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for the new school year," Professor McGonagall said.

"Ah, of course..."

Felix looked at Mr. Bagshot, and just when Professor McGonagall thought he would introduce himself—Felix was always so polite—Felix's eyes suddenly sparkled, staring straight at the school's new professor.

Mr. Bagshot showed an agility inconsistent with his age, his exclusive wand appearing in his hand instantly. A fierce magical vortex erupted, blocking Felix's line of sight. But with a quick glance, Felix had already obtained the result he wanted.

Miscalculated...

Normally, he wouldn't use magical vision to scrutinize strangers; the provocation was too strong. But someone seemed to have seized this loophole, disguising themselves as a squib. No, Felix remembered Dumbledore's words; he was no different from a squib now.

But what magic did he use to remain lively after meeting Dumbledore, and even secure himself a teaching position?

Felix would never admit he misunderstood.

Just as he provided shelter for the remnants of pure-blood families, Dumbledore did the same.

"Felix... Mr. Bagshot... You..."

Professor McGonagall, caught in the middle, could hardly breathe. She stared

with wide eyes, looking at the two serious faces, not understanding why they suddenly became tense and surprised at how a squib could burst out such powerful magic.

She didn't know whether to feel relieved that Dumbledore didn't make a mistake or surprised that the new professor wouldn't be bullied by the students.

"Mr. Bagshot?" Felix spoke in an almost whispering voice, the pressure enveloping them gradually diminishing, "Since our encounter earlier today, I've been puzzled. Bathilda Bagshot, the author of the book 'A History of Magic,' is related to you—"

"...Grandmother." Grindelwald spoke in an equally gentle tone.

"She lives in the Godelic Valley, a wonderful place with clear skies and clean water. Godelic Gryffindor, the founder of Hogwarts, was born there, and so was Bowman Wright, the inventor of the Golden Snitch. More recently, there are the Dumbledore and Potter families."

There were, of course, more famous figures from the Godelic Valley.

The two simultaneously thought of a name, Ignotus Peverell, the possessor of the third Deathly Hallow, the Invisibility Cloak.

Felix and Grindelwald stared at each other for a moment, revealing smiles at the same time. The hands they extended—one young and slender, the other old and wrinkled—firmly clasped together, like wrestlers, swaying in the air.

"Welcome, Mr. Bagshot."

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