Backstage at the Blackstone Auction.
"Professor Lockhart, here are your items, as well as the gold galleons from the auction, after deducting the previous expenses."
"For a valued customer like you, our boss has decided to only charge a one-point handling fee this time."
"Also, this is a medal given to the most distinguished guests by our Blackstone Auction. Please remember to keep it. Information about subsequent auctions will be notified through the medal."
The goblin who had just hosted the auction had a flattering look on his face and said to Lockhart in a sycophantic manner.
He held the space extension bag in both hands, and next to it was a dark green medal. From the middle of the medal, a dark black stone was carved.
On the edge of the medal, the name of the Blackstone Auction was written.
Lockhart looked at the goblin's obsequious expression, raised his eyebrows, took the space extension bag, and asked calmly, "Then help me thank your boss. And where is my house-elf?"
"Professor Lockhart, wait a moment." In response to Lockhart's question, the goblin immediately replied, "The Avery family will be here soon, and then the house-elf handover ceremony will be done."
"Blackstone Auctions guarantees that nothing will go wrong."
His circle is different from Gringotts. Through his network, he knew that Professor Lockhart had taken action recently, which was considered generous.
Various potions and magic items were purchased in large quantities.
It's like the God of Wealth has arrived!
In response to the goblin's answer, Lockhart nodded slightly, thought for a moment, took out three gold galleons from the bag, handed them to the goblin, and said calmly, "Your auctioneer level is quite good. Consider this a tip."
"Thank you, Professor Lockhart, thank you."
Hearing this, the goblin was a little surprised and quickly took the money. He kept expressing his thanks and his attitude became even more fawning.
But what he didn't know was that the moment he took it, a pale golden mark engraved on the gold galleon disappeared into his hand.
Then, Lockhart sat down on the sofa next to him, opened the space extension bag, and checked whether there was anything wrong.
He looked at the large amount of gold galleons and various magic items inside.
Of course, the most important thing was the small bottle of light golden potion at the top – The Liquid Luck or Felix Felicis, with a satisfied smile on his face.
This time, the trip to the auction was very successful.
"Chirp Chirp"
Sunny, the Golden Snidget sitting on Lockhart's shoulder, sensed his owner's excitement and got a little curious. He tilted his head and looked at the bag in the owner's hand.
Then he raised his head very disdainfully.
It's not food, what's so exciting about it? the bird thought.
Sunny didn't quite understand and continued to look at the novel environment around him.
Lockhart, on the other hand, looked at Snape, who was also coming back with a space extension bag, and waved.
"Snape, I still have something to do here. If you want, you can go back to Hogwarts first."
"I'll go back after I'm done."
Snape took a look at the bird on Lockhart's shoulder, nodded, and said briefly, "Okay!"
Then he passed directly by Lockhart and walked out of the Blackstone Auction.
He certainly knew what Lockhart was going to do.
He witnessed with his own eyes that Lockhart spent more than 1,000 gold galleons to buy a house-elf.
Although he didn't know why Lockhart bought a house-elf himself, he wasn't curious either.
His gains were significant this time as well.
The potion materials alone were worth going back to study carefully.
After a while, the goblin seemed to have received some message and said to Lockhart, "Professor Lockhart, the Avery family is almost here."
"The house-elf handover ceremony will begin soon."
As he said that, Lockhart saw a middle-aged man wearing a black wizard robe coming from a distance, followed by the house-elf he had seen on the magic projection before.
Seeing this, the goblin immediately came forward to greet him, and Lockhart stood up from the sofa.
"Hello, Professor Lockhart, I am Hanson Avery."
Hanson Avery's attitude was a bit embarrassed. His family had fallen on hard times, and he had to sell the house-elf. This was a scandal for the pure-blood Avery family.
Especially since the other person was a professor at Hogwarts and his son was studying in Slytherin house, this made him feel even more embarrassed.
But Lockhart didn't think much of it. He gently shook the hand offered by the other party very naturally, then put it down and said gently.
"Mr. Avery, let's begin the ceremony."
"Okay!" Hansen Avery nodded, and then ordered the timid house-elf next to him, "Coffy, stand in the middle."
The house-elf Coffy, who was wearing rags, also knew his fate. He walked unsteadily between Lockhart and Hanson Avery.
He looked at his future master, Lockhart, and then at his current master, with confusion and panic in his eyes.
"Coffy, from now on, you are no longer a house-elf of the Avery family."
"Your master will be Professor Gilderoy Lockhart."
"According to the ritual, you are not allowed to reveal any secrets about the Avery family. Other than that, all orders by Professor Lockhart must be obeyed. The Avery family has nothing to do with you."
"Professor Gilderoy Lockhart will be your only master."
With that said, Hansen Avery handed out a black sock and ordered coldly, "Now, hand it to your current owner."
"Okay, Master." The house-elf's expression was full of disappointment, and his arms trembled as he took the black socks from his former master.
Then he walked towards Lockhart step by step and handed the black sock in his hand to its current owner, Gilderoy Lockhart.
Lockhart, who knew this handover ceremony in advance, picked it up naturally and then put the sock into another space extension bag that contained nothing.
He was full of the desire to complain about this ritual.
When the master gives a house-elf socks, it means the house-elf's freedom.
And when the house-elf hands the socks to another person, it represents surrender.
It's a bit childish, but this is a tradition formed by house-elves after being enslaved for many years. It is engraved in their bones and forms their instinct.
It has to be said that the ancient wizards were really ruthless to turn such a bizarre ritual into a house-elf tradition.
What outrageous things did house-elves do back then?
It actually made an ancient wizard do such a thing.
Forcibly, this behavior that seemed like child's play, after years of deliberate cultivation, became a house-elf tradition, engraved in their bones.
Hanson Avery let out a sigh of relief when he saw Lockhart put away the socks.
The ceremony was over, which meant that the more than 1,000 gold galleons in his pocket were finally settled. This money was a life-saving straw for the Avery family.
In his family, apart from him, only his son is a wizard. The others are all squibs, and his son is currently studying in Slytherin House.
However, when he thought of Lockhart's identity, Hanson Avery hesitated but still said, "Professor Lockhart, my son Anthony Avery is currently studying in Hogwarts's Slytherin House. Please help take care of him."
As he spoke, he reached out and found a dark purple magic book in his hand, which he handed to Lockhart.
"Professor Lockhart, I heard from my son that you usually like to read. This is a magic book inherited from our family."
Lockhart looked at the book in front of him with slight magic fluctuations, glanced at Hanson Avery, shook his head slightly, and smiled.
"Don't worry, Mr. Avery. I think Anthony is a good kid. If I can take care of him, I will take good care of him."
"No need for gifts."
Speaking of this, Lockhart recalled the situation of the Avery family and said something meaningful.
"Maybe we will have a chance to cooperate in the future!"
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[More Chapter available and More Update 10 chapter Weakly at p@treon.com/goldengaruda]
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Hogsmeade, Lockhart's study.
In the originally dark study room, a circle of sparks suddenly appeared.
Immediately afterwards, Lockhart stepped forward with a small golden bird named Sunny sitting on his shoulder, followed by a house-elf, Coffy.
With Lockhart's gentle wave of his hand, the entire study, including the corridor and living room outside, lit up instantly.
Lockhart looked at Coffy in rags before him, sat on the chair, put Sunny on the desk next to him, and asked directly, "Coffy, tell me about your current situation and the magic you have mastered."
The timid Coffy immediately bent down, made a deep bow, then raised his head sharply and said loudly, "Master, Coffy used to be a house-elf of the Avery family. The only master now is you, and your happiness is the lifelong pursuit of Coffy."
"Coffy will fully obey all its master's commands."
Hearing this, Lockhart frowned slightly, but he also knew that this was the typical character of a house-elf, so he directly ordered, "Don't talk about that, Coffy. First, tell me about the magic you have mastered."
"Okay, Master." Coffy nodded quickly, and then replied loudly, "Master, currently, I have mastered the teleportation spell, the repelling spell, and the invisibility spell."
Hearing the series of magic spells Coffy had mastered, Lockhart raised his eyebrows. After waiting for Coffy to finish, he asked curiously, "Coffy, where did you learn magic?"
"Master, part of it was taught to me by my mother," Coffy replied loudly. "And part of it was learned naturally as I grew up."
"What's the approximate proportion of magic you've comprehended yourself?" Lockhart asked with interest.
Coffy frowned and fiddled with his fingers. After a while, he said with some hesitation, "Master, I have mastered a total of 27 kinds of elf magic, about 70% of it."
What!
Hearing Coffy's answer, Lockhart's heart seemed to stir up a thousand waves.
In an instant, he knew why the house-elves were so oppressed.
The potential is too strong.
Although 27 types of magic may not sound like much, ordinary young wizards can master thirty or forty types after training.
However, students have been trained, and even some young wizards still have difficulty mastering it after years of training.
House-elves, on the other hand, are naturally capable of mastering it.
What does that mean?
A huge threat!
To ancient wizards, even though house-elves sought peace, their potential was sin.
And being weak is the original sin.
Ancient wizards would not let go of any race that might threaten their status.
Especially a race that they could not defeat themselves.
Lockhart asked himself, if he had discovered the potential of house-elves, he would not have let it go.
And the reason why the ancient wizards didn't exterminate them was probably because they saw the potential of house-elves.
No wonder they were so cruel.
At this time, Lockhart's eyes looked at Coffy a little differently, full of a desire to study him.
Being born with the ability to master magic has absolutely nothing to do with blood.
But soon, he suppressed his desire for research.
He is not in a hurry. Coffy is now his house-elf. According to the character of house-elves, he will never refuse any request he makes.
Even if it means suicide!
Lockhart then asked Coffy a few more questions.
Coffy answered truthfully one by one, and Lockhart's understanding of Coffy deepened.
The deeper the understanding, the more pleasantly surprised he felt. This purchase was indeed the right one.
Coffy's fighting ability is no weaker than that of ordinary wizards, and the most important thing is his loyalty, which there is no need to question.
The thoughts, education, and instincts he received all spoke of loyalty—loyalty to his master.
At the thought of this, Lockhart's eyes flashed with excitement.
Looking at Coffy in front of him, Lockhart felt more and more joyful. Then he gently waved his wand and pointed at the rags Coffy was wearing.
In an instant, the originally gray and even dirty rags began to turn into clean black, then quickly transformed and expanded, covering Coffy's entire body.
Finally, Coffy appeared in front of Lockhart, dressed in a black suit, somewhat like a Gringotts goblin.
Seeing this, Lockhart nodded with satisfaction. He still had certain requirements for appearance, and he really couldn't stand Coffy following him in rags every day and doing things for him.
Bang bang bang!
When Coffy looked at his very neat clothes, he felt a little frightened, so he kept hitting his head on the ground with loud bangs.
While smashing it, he shouted loudly, "Master, Coffy is wrong, please don't drive Coffy away. Coffy obeys the master's orders."
"Coffy doesn't want to wear this outfit and wants to wear the original one."
Looking at Coffy's actions, Lockhart frowned slightly, sighed, and directly ordered, "Coffy, raise your head, don't move."
Upon hearing Lockhart's order, Coffy, who was banging his head on the ground, immediately raised his head and remained motionless, fully following Lockhart's instructions.
Seeing such Coffy, Lockhart felt a little headache.
House-elves have some really good habits, such as being loyal, not betraying, obeying orders, taking pride in working, and being ashamed of laziness.
But some of their traditions over the years have been criticized.
For example, just now Coffy kept banging his head on the ground or wall, self-harming.
This made Lockhart quite uncomfortable.
He wasn't much of a Holy Mother, but he simply felt that it would be very difficult to communicate with such a house-elf.
Just changing clothes suddenly triggered their tradition of wearing rags, and they began to mutilate themselves.
If he were an outsider, he would be able to watch the show as if it were nothing. After all, watching the excitement is not a big deal.
But now Coffy is his subordinate and doing nothing would be a headache.
After thinking for a while, he said directly with a commanding tone, "Coffy, you will wear this outfit from now on. Keep it clean and don't embarrass me."
"You have to remember that I am a professor at Hogwarts. When I go out, your dress and behavior will affect my reputation."
"So, I order you to keep your clothes clean from now on, and don't bang your head against the ground or wall."
Upon hearing Lockhart's order, Coffy's wide eyes immediately burst into tears, and he shouted with gratitude, "Thank you, master, thank you, master."
"As long as the master orders it, Coffy will definitely do it."
In house-elf tradition or worldview, clean clothes mean that the owner is disgusted with them.
That's why Coffy's reaction just now was so intense.
But Lockhart's explanation was different.
For Coffy, who had been taught that his master's orders were greater than the sky since he was a child, he immediately abandoned the so-called tradition.
In particular, Lockhart specifically mentioned that his actions would affect his fame.
He instantly knew how important fame was to his master.
For house-elves, there is only one thing they pursue in life, and that is to please their master and increase their status in their master's heart.
This is why Lockhart believes that ancient wizards' methods were a bit ruthless.
Then, Lockhart looked at Coffy in front of him and fell into deep thought, hesitating a little. Should Coffy participate in tonight's plan?
After all, it had just been less than 24 hours.
After thinking about it, he made a decision in his heart.
So he closed his eyes slightly and felt the mark he left on the goblin's body in Gringotts.
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[More Chapter available and More Update 10 chapter Weakly at p@treon.com/goldengaruda]
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