Chapter 25: The Hope of Increasing Magic Power

"The Ministry of Magic has a fund of 700,000 Galleons I can borrow. As long as it's returned on time, no one will notice."

"With the Ministry as our backing, we'll have ample margin to avoid a forced liquidation." Andrew nodded quickly, and both men looked at Rogge.

"Are you going to participate?"

"I..." Thompson hesitated. "I can play with a few thousand Galleons... it mainly depends on whether you're going to use it."

"If you're willing, I'll handle the Ministry and the Galleon exchange. As for the final returns... how does a 10% profit share sound?"

"No problem." Rogge agreed, showing no disdain for Thompson's lack of nerve.

"Andrew, what would be an appropriate margin?"

"10% to 20%... though 30% would be ideal..." Andrew calculated internally. The total funds for this bet could eventually reach a scale of ten billion.

"Then 30%. Andrew, your name will appear on the list of asset managers for the Travis family."

"Thank you, sir. May I ask, are there any others on the list?"

"As far as I know, you are the only one." Rogge raised his juice glass in a toast to Andrew. "I'll give you a 3-point cut."

"3 points?" Andrew thought for a moment; 3 points meant 3%.

He began to calculate furiously, factoring in the exchange rates of the wizarding world. With the first round of leverage—8 times for cash and 5 times for real estate—the available capital would reach 58.7 million.

The second round would be 10 times, with a 20-fold off-market bet, pushing the total wagered funds to 11.74 billion. Keeping a 30% margin, the actual bet would be around 8.218 billion.

If Rogge’s prophecy held true, the conservative estimate for returns was 1.5 times the invested capital. This wouldn't just solve his financial crisis instantly; it would turn him into a major player in the City.

"Mr. Rogge, I feel the percentage is a bit low. Such high leverage is unprecedented. If you weren't a wizard, I wouldn't dare agree to this; the operational risk is too high."

Andrew asked cautiously, "How about a 5% commission?"

"I can certainly accept 5%, but I have a better commission scheme."

"Please, go ahead."

Rogge smiled and offered a sliding scale: "For returns up to ten billion, you get a 2% cut; for any amount exceeding that, your commission will jump to 30%."

"30%! Are you serious?" Andrew licked his lips, his blood suddenly stirred by the prospect.

"I am a wizard; my word is naturally my bond."

"Mr. Rogge, please rest assured, I will generate the maximum possible return!"

"Mr. Andrew, I have no doubt about that. Here's to our success!" Rogge raised his juice, and the three glasses clinked together.

"Remember to hire some bodyguards—perhaps even retain a wizard for security," Rogge added, his expression turning serious.

"London is actually quite safe; it shouldn't be necessary..." Andrew sounded hesitant.

"Consider it for the sake of your life and livelihood. It is better to be safe than sorry." Rogge packed the money into ordinary suitcases and handed them to Andrew. "From today on, you will become a mogul of the City. Remember to manage them well."

Andrew nodded, his eyes gleaming with excitement and greed.

In the afternoon, Jessica returned with the house-elf, Popsy. Popsy had a mop of fluffy, silver-white hair, and her large green eyes sparkled. Compared to Winky and Dobby, Popsy was cuter and had a more lively personality.

Most importantly, Popsy excelled at French cooking, which meant Rogge didn't have to suffer through fish and chips. British cooks, French workers, German police, and Russian customs—ah, meet them, and you will understand what a wonderful life is.

Jessica instructed the elf to clean the house and prepare dinner, unaware that in a sense, the house was already gone.

In the basement laboratory of the villa, Rogge was brewing a potion. The liquid in the silver cauldron emitted a deep blue glow, but as Rogge waved his wand, the potion exploded just as it was about to crystallize.

The wobbly cauldron let out a loud bang, and the potion burst into colorful fireworks, leaving Rogge’s face soot-black, like a little mouse that had been rolling in a coal pile.

Popsy came over with a towel, nimbly and lightly tidying up the workstation and the cauldron after the failed brew.

Jessica, resting in the garden, shook her head; this was the 40th explosion. She held a stack of letters, mostly from relatives in France, with a few from former classmates. This made one particular Muggle letter stand out.

"It wouldn't be another bill for Muggle toys Rogge bought, would it?" Jessica had noticed her son was far more interested in various Muggle toys than in spells.

She opened the letter and glanced at it, freezing in place. It took a long time for her to recover.

"Rogge, you actually dared to mortgage our house to Muggles!"

For once, his mother was full of vigor, rushing into the basement in a fit of rage.

"Rogge, you sold our house?!" Jessica grabbed Rogge’s ear without ceremony and hauled him out of the laboratory.

"Mom, easy, easy!" Rogge glanced at the letter in Jessica’s hand and cursed his luck. He had been so busy with his potion experiments that he had forgotten the Muggle bank would mail back the mortgage agreement.

"Tell me, what is going on!" Jessica threw the letter on the table, demanding an explanation.

...

"So, you sold our house for a pile of waste paper?"

"I didn't sell it, just mortgaged it temporarily... we still have the manor..."

"The manor?" Jessica gave a short, cold laugh and glanced at the house-elf.

"Ask Popsy what the ancestral home of the Travis family looks like now. It's practically a ruin! Even now, it's about the same; and you call it a manor..." Jessica spoke bluntly about the state of the broken-down estate, her tone filled with disgust.

"Everything that could be stolen has been stolen; except for a bunch of nagging portraits, there's nothing left but weeds and rats."

"Get the house back from those Muggles immediately."

"Mom, I only mortgaged it two days ago..." Rogge saw the look in Jessica’s eyes and hurriedly nodded in agreement. "I'll contact Andrew right away and get the house back tomorrow."

"Your remaining pocket money is cancelled." Jessica flicked her son’s head and told him to go take a bath.

Rogge looked at his disheveled reflection in the mirror and realized he hadn't left the lab in a week. He took a shower and walked out wearing a bathrobe.

"Popsy, go prepare the materials."

"Young master, the materials bought last time are used up. Does Popsy need to go to Diagon Alley to buy more?"

"How much money do we have left?"

"Young master, there are 200 Galleons left, enough to buy ten sets of potion ingredients." Popsy touched the large pouch; the bag of gold coins he had been entrusted with was now completely shriveled, leaving only a pitiful 200 coins.

"You go to Diagon Alley to buy the materials first. I'll see where things went wrong." Rogge sighed and picked up his notebook to flip through it.

In the potion books he had scavenged from the junk shop, he had indeed found several formulas that could boost magic. There was the Giant Potion with severe side effects, the Sprint Booster for a temporary mana spike, and Devil’s Nettle Juice, which permanently increased mana limits but was addictive... After tireless searching, Rogge finally found two recipes that seemed viable.

The first potion was called Phoenix Blood, and it lived up to its name. Making it required adding a small amount of phoenix blood to the cauldron to boost a wizard’s magic.

It had to be said, the wizard who created this formula was very imaginative. But he was perhaps too imaginative, as the recipe was only theoretically feasible and had no practical application.

Who in the wizarding world didn't know that phoenixes were rare creatures, and the only one with a known location was in Dumbledore's office? Rogge didn't have the courage to jump in front of Dumbledore with a syringe and say, "Old Bee, hand over your pet!"

Before Dumbledore could even be surprised, Fawkes would probably spit a mouthful of fire and burn him to ash.

Compared to the impractical Phoenix Blood, Rogge favored the other potion, called Blue Moonshine. Its recipe also looked quite feasible, and the ingredients could all be found on the market. Its effects were equally excellent, offering a combined enhancement to both spirit and physique.