The Prophet's First Step on the Path to Longevity

If, in Voldemort's eyes—Voldemort being skilled enough in magic to recognize Roger's strength—Roger was an out-and-out "monster,"

then, in the eyes of the other ordinary students, Roger was a "weirdo."

He was polite and composed, making anyone who spoke with him feel comfortable.

He could successfully cast nearly every spell in class at once, and quickly achieve mastery over them.

He never grew too close to anyone, maintaining a slight distance even during playful banter.

He stood apart from the group, always reading or scribbling incomprehensible things in his notebook, carrying the mystery and faint madness of a "prophet."

To many ordinary students, Roger was an extremely contradictory existence.

But one thing was certain.

No one dared provoke him.

Especially after several Slytherins—whether because they had offended someone, were poorly informed, or simply could not think straight—tried to cause trouble for Roger. He turned them into "balloons" with a Levitation Charm and left them floating around him in circles for several hours, utterly humiliating them.

Beyond his politeness, Roger was also someone who dared to act.

After hearing from Harry Potter that Roger was "mysterious and powerful, but also a good person who protected his companions," Quirrell was not satisfied. What he wanted was not such surface-level information, but deeper secrets.

"I heard Roger is researching things related to Eternal Life?" Quirrell asked, seemingly casually.

When Roger had told him about it, he had spoken as though he were talking about something as trivial as having fried chicken for dinner.

Either he did not think it needed to be kept secret at all, or he was deliberately dropping hints with casual words.

Quirrell wanted to probe Harry for clues.

"Mm... that is true," Harry said calmly after thinking it over.

Having grown up in a Muggle family, Harry did not think there was anything wrong with seeking Eternal Life.

There were plenty of old wizards who had lived for a very long time in Muggle stories about wizards. The Chocolate Frog card he had collected on the Hogwarts Express even listed information about Headmaster Dumbledore.

That was a wizard over a hundred years old! So, in Harry's eyes, wizards were supposed to live very long lives. Wanting to live even longer was not strange.

"He even asked whether I was interested, but I thought Wizard's Chess was more fun."

Classes at Hogwarts did not have fixed seating arrangements by class; students were free to sit wherever they wished.

During lessons, Harry sometimes sat beside Roger.

He had once peeked at Roger's notes, densely packed with all sorts of annotations. Just looking at them had sent a chill down Harry's spine.

Roger had thought Harry was interested in it... Eternal Life was an immensely long road, and longevity was merely the insignificant first step on that path. Roger did not mind having someone walk that difficult road with him, but unfortunately, Harry had refused.

"I think he asked Neville too?" Harry Potter added uncertainly.

Quirrell nodded.

Good. There was no need to ask any more.

He had indeed overthought it.

This prophet was simply a monster who had wanted to research Eternal Life since the age of eleven, not someone playing the cryptic riddle games prophets were known for.

Completely reassured, Quirrell gave Harry Potter a meaningful look before turning and leaving.

From now on, he would devote most of his energy to obtaining the Philosopher's Stone.

He would maintain only the most basic vigilant attention toward Roger.

Mm, and if he had the chance, it would be even better to get rid of Harry Potter for his master.

In the wizarding world, prophecies were not merely the ramblings of prophets. They truly possessed power.

After a prophecy was made, a ritual-like force would arise and become something like so-called "fate." If no one tried to change it, instead leaving it alone or even fueling it, then over time, that force would exert a terrifying effect at a critical moment.

Whether he had been forced into it or had done so willingly, he was already aboard the Dark Lord's pirate ship and could not get off.

If he eliminated Harry Potter while the boy was still weak, not only might he raise his standing in his master's eyes, but he could also prevent the Dark Lord from suffering another defeat at the hands of The Boy Who Lived—and from being dragged down with him.

Professor Quirrell suppressed the chaos and struggle in his heart, completely accepting the Dark Lord as his master. As he walked away from Harry, a deep... murderous intent flashed through his eyes! Behind the turban, Voldemort's lips curled in mockery.

Who it was directed at, no one knew.

"Hiss!" Harry suddenly sucked in a sharp breath.

"Harry, what's wrong?" Hearing Harry's reaction, Ron hurried over in concern.

Ron had been born into a large family with seven children. Growing up, he too had often been overlooked at home and had few friends.

He cherished his friendship with Harry just as much.

"It's nothing, just a bit of a headache." Warmed by his friend's concern, Harry felt as though even the sudden pain from his scar had eased somewhat.

Wait.

The last time his scar had hurt seemed to be...

Harry Potter looked around.

Sure enough, in the distance behind him, he saw Snape's black-robed figure, dark and oppressive, unpleasant to behold.

Though he disliked Snape, Harry Potter would not disrespect a professor to his face. Nor did he think it wise for a student to accuse a professor without evidence.

So Harry Potter merely changed expression, greeted the Potions class professor, then grabbed Ron's sleeve and quickly turned away.

Snape did not say a word throughout, watching Harry like a bat lurking in the dark.

Only after Quirrell's figure had completely disappeared from the corner of his eye, and Harry's figure had vanished from his sight, did Severus Snape withdraw the gaze that had long been quietly watching both sides.

He turned and walked in the direction where Professor Quirrell had disappeared.

.

.

.

Roger had no idea that, in another corner of Hogwarts, a small incident related to him had just occurred.

Even if he had known, he would not have cared in the slightest.

At that moment, Roger had devoted all his energy to his new magical experiment.

After a long period of theoretical design,

discussions of technical details with numerous professors, and verification with Professor McGonagall, a master of Transfiguration,

the magical development related to his path toward longevity could finally begin its first practical step!

"I bought these things just in case. I didn't expect they would really come in handy."

Roger took a package from his suitcase. It was about as tall as a computer tower, but narrower.

"Mitsubishi Blood Collection Needle."

"Glass Slide."

Roger unpacked the parcel and arranged the items.

"And this, the most important thing of all... a microscope!"

Once everything was ready, Roger waved his wand.

Show me a miracle... Transfiguration!!