Hogwarts: Me? Fight Voldemort?

On the way to Hack's Alchemy Workshop, Jimmy was still complaining in his mind about the boss's card skills. "Even when I threw the ball to the bottom, I could still keep up with him."

It's tough running sales!

Compared to selling Duel Cards, licensing the use of the Memory Restoration Charm was much simpler. The owner of Hack's Alchemy Workshop greatly admired Jimmy, and when negotiating the licensing fee, Hack made significant concessions, directly spending 1000 Galleons to buy out the rights for 5 years, plus 5 Galleons for every Memory Orb sold.

A new memory ball costs 50 Galleons...

These things related to magic are ridiculously expensive.

After closing the deal, Jimmy received 1,000 Galleons, which he thought would be a lot of money. However, he ended up chatting with the owner of Hack's Alchemy Workshop for a while.

It turns out that the alchemy workshop is not so simple to operate. The alchemical items commonly used on the market, such as lamps, clocks, and fully automatic teapots, basically all have their own design families.

To produce similar products, they either need to have different uses or completely different designs. Otherwise, if the products they produce are too similar to those family patent samples, the Alchemy Workshop will be sued by Wizengamor and then given a "just" verdict by the court members who are all pure-blood families.

Moreover, the alchemy workshop's products are generally not sourced from manufacturers; they are mostly made and sold by hired people, with a portion of the profits being taken away by others.

In Hark's Alchemy Workshop, there are only a handful of alchemical products with their own patented designs, and the Memory Ball is one of them.

Those shops that manage to stay open in Diagon Alley are basically those with a few of their own products. It's not that there aren't wholesalers, but rather that alchemical items are not special items that can be mass-produced. Therefore, designers are generally too lazy to make products after they've designed them, and they only collect dividends each year.

Porter's Quick Smooth Hair Treatment uses a similar profit model. They license the production method of the quick smooth hair treatment and the Porter brand to others. Every year, all you have to do is wait for dividends, and the money just flows in.

The business environment in the wizarding world is even darker than in the Middle Ages; those pure-blood families have already made their fortune for the next hundred years.

All of the Ministers of Magic before Foxy were related to pure-bloods. They joined forces to monopolize the market for ordinary alchemical products in Diagon Alley, leaving no money for ordinary entrepreneurs!

Cursing the vampire families in his heart, Jimmy, feeling utterly depressed, checked out the best-selling and monopolized products at Hack's Alchemy Workshop. He discovered that the basic products that many people needed were still the most numerous.

For example, pots and pans, various tea sets, clocks, radios, tape recorders, and even a pseudo-replay camera, etc.

The variety of goods is astounding, reaching its peak within the current alchemical system.

Some alchemy masters even created fully automatic cooking equipment in order to make money.

It's not the kind of rigid machine that follows a pre-programmed sequence, but rather an outrageous contraption with countless complex and precise magical abilities built in, capable of creating random dishes based solely on the user's verbal instructions.

Even if Jimmy told that bulky iron box he wanted to eat a mix of pretty girl underwear noodles and No. 42 concrete, it could still make it.

In other words, unless Jimmy designs some very unique alchemical items that are either fun or practical, opening an alchemy workshop is tantamount to working for the wizarding families who have been deeply involved in this region for many years.

At most, they can only produce some simple items that have been disclosed in the patent, but those items have very low added value and don't make much money.

Only complex alchemical furniture and special alchemical items can support the market for alchemy. The best-selling alchemical items are all cheaper than house-elves and more cost-effective than DIY tools.

If you want to make money through alchemy, it's not as good as potions; at least potions, which are in high demand, are not subject to patent restrictions.

Jimmy's alchemy items should continue along the card game path so that Raccoon Alchemy can make money.

Alternatively, we could introduce some foreign products, such as fully automatic milk tea makers or fully automatic dumpling makers. Ideally, we could also bring in televisions and the internet.

The Wizarding World is great in every way, except that information exchange is too slow.

Chapter 95 An Unbreakable Vow

One characteristic of the Wizarding World that makes Jimmy very happy is that common materials are very cheap.

Jimmy could start by offering cheap milk tea, then make and sell the milk tea using a machine. He believed that the various drinks that would later become hugely successful would also find an audience in the wizarding world.

Back at Raccoon Alchemy, Jimmy had the employees who had finished decorating the shop scrap some of the design and increase the size of the rest area.

Then comes training, job assignments, and task allocation.

Senior Mary is sweet-looking and hospitable; she manages the beverage section as the store manager. Senior Olivia, as the assistant store manager, is responsible for the sales of the Duel Cards.

The remaining people will temporarily be responsible for making the duel cards and various logistical tasks, such as purchasing materials, cleaning, and accounting...

After the work was assigned, it was time for the storefront's interior decoration. We went to a deserted mountain forest, used the Cutting Charm to cut down a few trees, put them in a bag of Unmarked Expansion Charms, brought them back, made them into tables and chairs in the back room, painted them white, reinforced them with simple alchemy, and moved them to the front for use.

Jimmy then boiled the milk he bought together with different teas, making up a few random recipes, and left the rest of the flavoring to Mary.

As a Hufflepuff student, Mary has truly put in the effort when it comes to food. She can easily judge which drinks will sell well, and at the same time, she actively innovates, learns, and develops more recipes.

The various training and work arrangements kept them busy until the evening of the next day. These innocent senior students, fresh out of school, were completely clueless. Jimmy taught them for a long time, but they still didn't know how to deal with some unexpected problems.

He had already submitted the application to the Department of International Magical Trade of the Ministry of Magic during the day. Someone will come tomorrow morning to verify the business scope and qualifications of the shop, as well as the tax collection and reporting.

In the evening, Jimmy told the seven employees to go back and memorize the management rules, while he went to the fireplace in the inner room, grabbed a handful of Flour, and sprinkled it in.

"Malfoy Estate"

Pfft!

Green flames burst forth instantly, engulfing Jimmy; the feeling of being teleported via Floo Network was similar to Apparition.

It felt like being shoved into a tubing and moving rapidly. During the process, Jimmy saw many other people moving through the flames just like him. Sometimes, when several people were about to collide, their speeds would change, and they would eventually pass right through each other.

In just over ten seconds, Jimmy felt his feet touch the ground again, and then, in a blur, he found himself in a brightly lit hall.

Just ahead stood a family of three: Lucius Malfoy and his wife Narcissa Malfoy, with Draco between them.

All three of them were dressed in formal attire; Malfoy's all-black outfit made it difficult to discern anything, but Lady Narcissa was quite different.

Her deep blue starry dress and accessories were as captivating as a deep gemstone, and her long, half-black and half-white hair was styled in a bun, exuding the elegance of a dignified noblewoman.

Her bare skin on her arms and neck was smooth and delicate. She looked only twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, like a woman who was mature to the core. I doubt anyone would guess that Mrs. Narcissa was nearly forty.

Of all the women Jimmy had ever met, Lady Narcissa was the most beautiful, her beauty mainly stemming from her noblewomanly air.

Jimmy withdrew his polite gaze, stepped out from behind the fireplace, and brushed off non-existent ashes from his clothes.

"Welcome, Jimmy, welcome to Malfoy Manor!" After spending a day at home and learning more about Jimmy from Draco, Lucius became even more certain about his investment in Jimmy.

Tonight's dinner is a high-class affair, and he wants to make a good impression on Jimmy.

Mrs. Narcissa smiled and greeted her, "Welcome."

This behavior, which was not deliberately obsequious and humbly deferred the status of host to Lucius, should have been a perfect start, but unfortunately, Draco's words ruined the reception ceremony.

“Hey Jimmy, we use the most expensive Dustless Floo Powder from Floo Bomb. Only fireplaces like the Weasleys', which can’t afford Dustless Floo Powder, get covered in soot.”

Draco, like a dog seeing its best buddy, started rambling on and on, winking and making faces, clearly very excited.

Lucius turned around and scolded Draco with displeasure, "Draco! Show your manners in front of your friends."

Faced with his father's authority, Draco dared not argue and nervously replied, "Yes, Dad."

"It's okay, Draco and I are good friends!" Jimmy waved his hand to indicate that it was alright. He was a very magnanimous person and usually wouldn't stoop to the level of a brat.

Coming to the Malfoys' house felt as comfortable as coming home.

Lucius was hospitable, Lady Narcissa was gentle and virtuous, and Draco was best left unsaid.

The family sat at the dining table, enjoying a dinner prepared by their house-elf, the abundance of which far exceeded Jimmy's expectations.

The food selection wasn't extensive, but it was mostly made from ingredients from magical creatures. There was even a small piece of meat from the Reem cow that Mr. Scamander had once rescued, just enough to get a taste.

Drinking the blood of a Reem cow greatly increases one's strength, while beef doesn't have the same effect, but it can still make one healthier.

This small piece of top-tier ingredient from the wizarding world probably costs hundreds of Galleons. The Malfoy family is really rich!

After a hearty meal, Draco was sent away by Lucius, but he didn't go far and hid outside the restaurant.

At the dinner party, both the casual atmosphere and Jimmy's attitude made Draco feel strange.

Lucius's dismissal of Draco was more like a group of adults about to have serious business and shooing away a child.

Jimmy and his dad just met yesterday, didn't they?

This question has been on my mind ever since I heard Lucius say yesterday that he was going to invite Jimmy over to his house.

I'm not a fool like Goyle or Crabbe...

Lucius's attitude toward Jimmy today made Draco, who was pampered in the family, feel wronged. Even his mother was focusing her attention on Jimmy, who was the same age as him.

Draco felt wronged, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he hid in the corner, intending to see what his parents and Jimmy had to say.

He heard Jimmy ask, "Shall we begin now?"

"Yes." That was Dad's voice.

Then Jimmy said, "Have you thought about what you want to say? To avoid mistakes, I suggest you read from my manuscript."

Manuscript?

“Caution is a good quality, Jimmy. I’m appreciating you more and more.” Lucius’s voice was filled with admiration that made Draco envious to the point of madness.

"The above content is fine, let's begin." Narcissa's voice was calm, which moved Draco once again; his mother still loved him.

Then came the sound of a chair scraping against the floor, and the familiar sound of Dad's footsteps.

Draco immediately held his breath and listened carefully. After listening for a while without hearing any sound, he couldn't help but peek out into the restaurant.

Behind the table, Lucius and Jimmy stood facing each other, each reaching out a hand to grab the other's forearm. Their palms were originally facing each other, one above the other, but as they rotated their wrists, their palms became parallel.

As Narcissa tapped her wand, golden threads immediately began to climb onto their clasped arms, blurring the lines as if merging their hands into one.

Narcissa stood between the two, reciting the oath from the prepared document, "Jimmy Blaine, will you provide any feasible and within your power to help the Malfoy family in the future when they need it?"

“I will,” Jimmy replied cooperatively.

The ceremony should have ended there, but when Narcissa looked up, she saw Draco emerge from the restaurant entrance, and their eyes met; Draco hurriedly shrank back.

Narcissa's heart tightened. She looked at Jimmy again and added a clause in a trembling voice, "When choosing someone to help, can Draco be given priority?"

Lucius looked at Narcissa with surprise, but he did not stop her.

Jimmy was just as surprised, but after thinking about it, he figured there wouldn't be any problem adding this, so he simply said, "Okay."

Chapter 96 Opening

The ceremony ended, and although it didn't deviate from reality, Jimmy was still not very happy. He picked up his suitcase and was about to leave, saying, "Since the ceremony is over, I'll be leaving now."

Lucius urged, "There are many rooms in the manor, why don't you stay for the night?"

"No, I have other things to do."

With the shop opening still not fully settled, Jimmy naturally wouldn't linger at Malfoy Manor. He headed straight for the living room, intending to return to the Alchemy Workshop via the fireplace.

Seeing that Jimmy was determined to leave, Lucius quickly followed and said, "Let me take you."

Narcissa was the only one left in the restaurant. She glanced at Lucius's retreating figure, then turned back towards the direction Draco had disappeared in.

After everyone had left, the Malfoys' house-elves quietly appeared and cleaned up the messy restaurant.