Harry Potter and the Secret Treasures-Chapter 1254: House-Elves Without Masters

“Correct, this is an improved version of Dream Potion and Sleeping Draught,” said a voice behind them. “We added a few herbs to the original recipe to make it more interesting.”

Evan and Hermione looked up and saw a beaming Fred standing before them, wearing a set of magenta robes that clashed magnificently with his flaming hair.

Fred had changed a lot in the few months since they had last seen him.

If they weren’t so familiar with him, Evan might have thought he’d stepped out of a comic book.

But his personality remained unchanged, and he shook hands with Evan and Hermione enthusiastically.

“How did you manage to do this?” Hermione marveled. “Dream Potion is something you only learn in N.E.W.T.s-level classes, and you’ve actually managed to improve it. That’s incredible.”

Not to mention N.E.W.T.s, Fred and George hadn’t even passed their O.W.L.s in Potions. This meant they probably couldn’t even brew a simple Draught of Peace, yet they had somehow managed to modify a more advanced potion, make it more fun, and produce it in bulk.

One had to admit, that was a talent…

“Thank you for the compliment, Hermione,” said Fred. “The recipe is a trade secret, so I can’t tell you, but if you’re interested, you can take one for free.”

Hermione took a bottle of ‘Daydream’ and asked with some concern, “It’s safe, isn’t it?”

“Of course, all our products are perfectly safe,” Fred reassured her. “Come on, Evan, it’s your first time here, and you actually own shares in this shop. I’ll give you a tour.”

They walked into the shop, where George was entertaining Harry and the Weasleys.

Harry and Ron were looking at a tub labeled EDIBLE DARK MARKS – THEY’LL MAKE ANYONE SICK!

Meanwhile, George was showing Ginny and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley a set of magic rope tricks, which were Muggle magic. Mr. Weasley was very interested, asking George repeatedly how it worked and requesting a set of ropes.

Unlike Fred, George was wearing sky-blue robes and his hair was dyed blue.

The twins stood out in their rivalry, looking identical yet dressed so flamboyantly.

Their outfits alone made it clear what it meant to be flashy.

Bill was already dressed coolly, unlike normal wizards, but Fred and George now looked even cooler than him.

Seeing Evan and Hermione, George came over enthusiastically to shake hands and even hugged Evan.

Guided by Fred and George, they toured the store.

The variety of interesting products was dazzling and overwhelming, and everyone could find something that interested them.

In the display case at the center of the shop was the Starcatcher broomstick that Evan had developed, along with promotional material about its performance.

Many children were gathered there, talking excitedly.

No matter where you were, broomsticks were always the most popular item among wizards.

The Starcatcher, which was on par with the Firebolt in terms of quality but with its own unique features, naturally attracted attention.

Last term, Hogwarts students had already witnessed the power of this black, thick and long broom.

“Ever since we put it on display, many people have inquired about the price and shown interest in the Starcatcher. If there are no technical issues, we could try producing it,” said Fred. “What do you think, Evan?”

“I don’t think there’s a problem. I have detailed records of the relevant technology and magic, but the Starcatcher must be handmade. If you’re planning on producing it, you might need to hire a lot of people to help,” said Evan.

“We have our own production line, so there’s no need to worry about that,” said George. “Remember, Evan, we outsourced some of the materials to Muggles for production, and it was your father who helped us contact them.”

Evan nodded. That was indeed the case. It seemed that they had expanded their scale!

This made sense given the current situation. Fred and George’s products were very diverse. In addition to potion products, they needed things like special candies, quills, telescopes, etc. If all these things were produced by wizards, the costs would be very high.

Especially since the Wizarding world was in such chaos right now, it was even more difficult to find wizards to do this kind of work.

Entrusting the production to Muggles could perfectly solve this problem and reduce costs to a reasonable range.

“They could help with producing broom parts, like the broom handles and tail sections,” Evan suggested. “But the magical components can’t be made by Muggles. The Statute of Secrecy doesn’t allow it.”

“That’s why we hired a team to handle the magical aspects of the products,” said Fred with a grin. “Actually, this was inspired by Hermione.”

“Inspired by me?”

“Yeah, we hired a bunch of house-elves to work for us,” Fred continued. “Of course, there’s still a lot that George and I have to do ourselves, since house-elf magic is different from ours…”

He pushed back a curtain beside the Muggle tricks to reveal a darker, less crowded room.

Dozens of house-elves were at work, placing packaged products on the shelves.

These house-elves were wearing simple clothes, and when they saw them, they hurriedly bowed and saluted.

Their large eyes were wide open, looking like lightbulbs.

“Oh my goodness, where did you find all these house-elves?” asked Hermione in surprise, looking at them in disbelief.

“From the underground world of London — you’ve heard of that place, right? The entrance is deep within Knockturn Alley,” said Fred. “I only recently found out that it’s a gathering place for house-elves without masters. They all live there, though it’s recently been taken over by werewolves, so…”

“House-elves without masters?” Hermione immediately picked up on the key point.

It was well known that house-elves were a subordinate race, bound to serve wizards, and could not exist independently.

They were slaves of ancient, wealthy Wizarding families and were bound to serve their masters for generations.

As magical creatures unique to Europe, the living conditions of house-elves had remained the same since they were conquered by wizards in war several centuries ago. Their way of life hadn’t changed, not even today, and they hadn’t thought to challenge the status quo.

Just look at Dobby and Winky — house-elves willingly took on all household chores, bound by their masters, unable to disobey their orders. If they disobeyed, they would have to punish themselves. They took pride in working diligently without pay, and traditional house-elves believed being cast out by their masters was a disgrace.

But it was the first time that Evan heard of house-elves without masters…

And what exactly was this Underworld of London and its connection to a house-elf gathering place?

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