Professor McGonagall fell silent.
She could not be sure.
The boy before her looked utterly harmless, even somewhat gentlemanly.
But that cold tracker from earlier and the figure that had vanished in an instant were like thorns lodged in her heart.
And there was Snape's meaningful warning from yesterday...
In the end, she did not take the flower. She merely gave Skofot a deep look, her tone calm yet carrying unquestionable force:
"Keep the flower yourself, Mr. Leoqi. Remember, Hogwarts hopes its students will devote their energy to proper pursuits."
With that, she did not linger. She turned and strode into the Great Hall, her back straight, though it carried an almost imperceptible heaviness.
Skofot looked at the rejected rose in his hand, then at Professor McGonagall's departing figure. The gentle smile on his face slowly turned into an amused calm.
He casually tucked the rose back into his buttonhole, its pink-and-white petals swaying gently against his dark green Slytherin robes.
It seemed Professor McGonagall's vigilance had been successfully raised as well.
[Emotion Points +110] [Emotion Points +20]
The days passed in a strange balance.
Attending classes, finishing classes, completing assignments with the remarkable efficiency granted by the [Level 2 Leader] state, and... unfailingly watching Severus Snape.
Like a tireless ghost, Skofot wandered through the castle's shadows, treating the observation of the Potions Master's movements as a daily pastime.
As for eating, it remained a problem.
The [Anorexia] debuff left him utterly uninterested in the lavish food in the Great Hall. He even found it repulsive.
At mealtimes, he would usually find an excuse to leave the crowd, temporarily remove the [Leader] card, and reluctantly eat some system-produced rations or fruit with tolerable flavors to fill his stomach.
Then he would equip the card again and return before