"Biological Alchemy?"
Vid's first thought was the walking tin can man, then he recalled the knowledge he had learned from books: "Is it like the Sorting Hat and Wizard's Chess?"
Professor Morry smiled.
"Wizard's Chess and the Sorting Hat seem similar, but they are actually quite different."
He raised a finger, the lid of a box on the table opened, and black and white chess pieces lined up and walked out, noisily settling onto the chessboard.
The White Queen glared at Vid with dissatisfaction: "Hurry up and make a move, aren't you going to give commands?"
From the other side, the Knight clamored: "Let me charge! I want to crush the opposing army!"
Professor Morry gestured, and the chess pieces immediately quieted down.
"This is Wizard's Chess."
Professor Morry said, "Sometimes it gives people the illusion that they have life and thought. But in reality, they don't—do you know why?"
Vid thought carefully.
He didn't play chess often, but because the pieces were interesting, he had collected a set and would let them battle on the board when bored.
After observing them multiple times, he noticed that these seemingly lively pieces actually behaved quite rigidly.
"They always display similar personalities, say almost the same things... Occasionally, there's some variation, but they themselves don't grow or learn from failures."
"Exactly, so they're merely toys pretending to have thought."
Professor Morry let the chess pieces return to the box, then said:
"Injecting thought into lifeless objects, making mirrors, measuring tapes, and flying broomsticks appear as if they have ideas, is just low-level Biological Alchemy."
"But the Sorting Hat is different. If you communicate with it more, you'll discover that it truly has thoughts."
"It genuinely thinks independently and makes its own judgments, rather than rigidly following the ideas of the four founders to select students."
Vid remembered the time the Sorting Hat rejected him and secretly ground his teeth.
——That's right! That guy not only has thoughts but is also quite sarcastic.
"Yet the Sorting Hat doesn't count as a real life... It has intelligence, but cannot reproduce or metabolize."
"True Biological Alchemy—actually called Life Alchemy in ancient times—can create real living beings, and the most successful creations are not unfamiliar to you. Guess, Vid... what is it?"
Vid lowered his head in thought.
Biological Alchemy... real life forms... capable of self-reproduction... successful creations...
He had learned about many magical creatures from books, but had truly encountered very few.
A moment later, Vid lifted his head and confidently said, "House-Elves."
Professor Morry revealed a satisfied smile: "Exactly, it's House-Elves."
"Legend has it that because ancient wizards were far removed from people, they felt inconvenienced, and various elves were born from nature."
"Feral Imps assist craftsmen in improving skills and making tools;"
"Dwarf Elves aid farms, and some even help make shoes;"
"Wine Cellar Spirits help manage food and wine, though they also steal drinks themselves;"
"Kobber helps milk cows, collect eggs, and clean yards;"
"Brown Elves perform chores with extraordinary speed and efficiency, but will disappear forever if compensated."
"Meanwhile, due to wizards' evil intentions, many malicious elves also emerged from swamps, from beneath tree roots, and from dark forests."
"Goblins cause disasters, Red Caps hunt for blood, Magic Spirits make animals sick, Piksi lead people astray, Bertak scares children at night."
"Some of these elves have become legends. We don't really know if they exist; but some... you can learn about them in Defense Against the Dark Arts Class."
Vid nodded: "In the third-year textbook, there are Red Caps... House-Elves are descendants of those Good Elves?"
Excluding the wizard-centric worldview, even the most fantastical magic world legends... they likely are true.
"Calling them 'descendants' is too mild, Vid."
Professor Morry said: "To be precise, ancient wizards used extreme methods, attempting to strip away parts of those elves' bodies that weren't beneficial to humans—"
"Such as laziness, theft, mischief... and dignity."
"The first House-Elves were born from the experiments."
"But their magic power was too weak, greatly reducing work efficiency, and they were often harmed by livestock."
"Thus, ancient wizards modified them further—integrating the bloodline of Goblins, granting House-Elves powerful mana."
"But Goblins don't seem to consider House-Elves as kin, do they?" Vid asked.
"Of course not." Professor Morry slowly replied: "Goblins are extremely proud. In their perspective, House-Elves are lowly beings unworthy of being called kin."
"After House-Elves gained powerful magic power, they no longer wished to be enslaved by wizards."
"Their forebears—like Brown Elves and Dwarf Elves—enjoyed working for wizards, yet were proud beings. If they felt insulted, they might even bear malice towards their masters."
Vid nodded and said: "That's why there's a record of the Elf Rebellion incident in Magic History."
In Magic History, more than half of wizard and alien race wars stem from Goblins, causing many students to overlook subtle differences in statements, conflating Goblin Rebellion and Elf Rebellion.
"Indeed." Professor Morry sighed: "Though not many, House-Elves have rebelled a few times."
"Wizards couldn't bear to completely destroy such creations and could only repeatedly modify their thoughts, erase their personalities, imprint absolute obedience in their minds, making them eager to be enslaved by wizards."
"Thus, the most ideal servants were domesticated."
"But there's one thing rooted in such a creature's soul that wizards can't erase—it's life's innate yearning for freedom."
"So wizards and House-Elves have an unchangeable covenant—when the master gives them clothing, they gain freedom."
"But..."
Vid recalled the storyline in the original, the attitude those House-Elves had towards freedom, and especially the exiled elf named "Winky."
"The House-Elves I know almost all abhor freedom. Being banished by their master would make them feel shameful, and suffer greatly."
"Yes—great suffering."
Professor Morry's smile carried a sarcastic taste.
"Exiled House-Elves are free; they can go anywhere—including their former master's house."
"But tell me, has any exiled elf returned?"