Hereditary Disease Uproar

Herbology follows the A History of Magic.

Because they had slept soundly in Professor Binns' class, the third-grade lion cubs ran out of the classroom full of energy after the bell rang, heading together towards the Greenhouse outside the Castle.

Harry and Ron went to the restroom together as soon as class ended, while Loren and Hermione walked slowly down the corridor, waiting for them.

"The class schedule is so detailed, even the schedule changes for alternating weeks are clearly marked." Loren looked at the timetable in his hand, his eyes crinkling with laughter.

The girl's handwriting was beautiful and neat; even the table lines were drawn meticulously. And Hermione even helped him write down the required courses.

Lost in his joy, Loren didn't notice that Hermione's gaze was a little strange, and the dark mark on his face twitched with his smile, like a comical little worm.

How silly she looks... Hermione lowered her eyes and silently thought to herself.

"Hey! Loren, you look great today!"

I really hope you can keep it up!

George and Fred greeted the two men with laughter and joking, then hurried down the corridor.

The teaching reform is only being piloted in the second and fourth grades and has not yet been implemented throughout the school. The Twins were in the fourth grade with half the content the previous year, but this year they suddenly entered the fifth grade, the OWL exam preparation year with double the learning tasks, resulting in a strong sense of disparity.

In truth, given their talents, they could have managed if they had focused on their studies. However, having just earned some money, they couldn't wait to turn their many good ideas into reality, which added a lot of extra study and research tasks unrelated to the exams. This sense of urgency made them rush through their studies.

"What do you mean?" Loren asked, watching the Twins disappear around the corner of the corridor.

During recess, the number of little wizards in the corridor gradually increased.

Hermione glanced at him, and before running into any other acquaintances, she took out a tissue and wiped the ink off his face.

Loren stared at the ink on the paper, his face filled with disbelief, his eyes brimming with feigned sadness and indignation. He said with a pained expression, "Hermione, Hermione, how could I have trusted you so much..."

Just as Loren was about to use this to coerce Hermione into signing hundreds of unequal treaties, Harry and Ron returned.

Harry jogged up to catch up. "I looked around, and it seems we're among the first to take Herbology class when school starts."

"This means we'll be the first to be exposed to the Greenhouse atmosphere," Ron said with a distressed expression, "Fermenting for the entire summer, the purest and strongest aroma."

Loren and Hermione's expressions turned solemn.

The rain had stopped outside the Castle, the sky was a clear, light gray, and the grass underfoot was wet and springy.

The air after the early autumn rain carries a cool, moist scent. Taking a breath feels like your lungs have been cleansed by a refreshing mountain spring.

In front of the gate of Greenhouse Three, students from Gryffindor and Slytherin spontaneously formed two lines.

From time to time, you can hear discussions about Pure-blood and inbreeding in the Slytherin Quidditch Team. For example, at this moment, Theodore Nott, Pike Selwyn, and Pansy Parkinson are having a heated discussion.

Theodore Nott looked down at his feet, his gardener's boots scraping against the grass as he walked. "Hereditary disease? It seems like every Pure-blood Families has some kind of case, more or less. I've heard of several. The Gaunt family likes to torture others for amusement, and the Black family are mostly paranoid, sometimes even going insane in their old age."

Pike Selwyn, who replaced Crabbe in the clique, chuckled, "And Crabbe, his family is all fat and stupid!"

Goyle, who had been looking blank and not understanding what they were saying, suddenly looked up and gave Pike a strange look. He couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong, but he felt a little uncomfortable with what Pike had said.

Theodore Nott cleaned the mud off his feet, looked up and exhaled. "But wizards aren't as fragile as Muggle. For Muggle, a broken hand or foot is a serious injury. If a bone is broken, they can only wait for their body to heal on its own, or they'll die. So what seems like a serious genetic disease to them might not be a big deal to a wizard."

"That's it! Genetic Inheritance diseases are Muggle idiot's idea!" Pansy Parkinson said, her face flushed and spitting as she spoke.

The people present were all of Pure-blood; apart from the Parker family, which wasn't the most prestigious, the others all came from prominent families, including Parkinson.

Seeing Parkinson's saliva dripping through the air, Draco frowned and subtly moved a few steps away.

Good morning, children! It seems you've already changed your clothes.

Professor Sprout arrived, dressed in a green and yellow gardener's coat and heavy gardener's boots, which were covered with sticky mud after the rain. "You have a lot of work to do this semester. Time waits for no one. Let's begin!"

As she took out the gold key from her waist and opened the Greenhouse door, a gust of wind blew up from inside and outside the door due to the temperature difference.

The stench that had accumulated in the Greenhouse all summer wafted over everyone: the stench of fermenting and rotting fertilizer, the unique odor of blooming flowers, the stench of soil, mixed with the fresh scent of green plants and the subtle fragrance of normal flowers... all these fragrant and foul smells blended together to create an indescribable aroma.

Many of the little Witch turned green with rage.

A gentle breeze ruffled Professor Sprout's gray hair beneath her hat. The short, plump Witch closed her eyes slightly and took a deep breath.

"Oh! She seems to like this smell." Pansy Parkinson covered her nose with her hand in disgust.

Feeling the vibrant life force and the joyful emotions of the plants in the shed, Loren released his breath and slowly adapted to the complex scent.

The first Herbology Class wasn't too demanding, but it wasn't easy either. They were instructed to clear fallen leaves and petals from the nursery and loosen the soil around the plants. As usual, the young wizards split into pairs.

Loren and Hermione took their tools, carrying small shovels and tin buckets, and headed towards their assigned areas.

Shovel up fallen leaves, put them in buckets, and dump them into the Compost Pit...

Hermione quietly went about her work.

Loren couldn't stop talking. Except when he was carrying the tin bucket to empty the leaves, he kept chattering away. "The preferential treatment from the teaching reform is gone, we have more courses now, and you even chose all the electives..."

"In that case, it seems we'll miss out on the club's activities."

"No, you won't miss it, you have Time-Turner."

"Speaking of which, you can't use the Time-Turner to participate in club activities, Professor McGonagall gave it to you to use in class."

Loren muttered to himself for a while, but didn't get a response from Hermione, so he looked up in confusion.

The little Witch looked dazed, her eyes gleaming, lost in thought.

"Hey, hey!" Loren waved his hand in front of her eyes. "What are you thinking about?"

"Shh!"

Hermione wanted to put her finger to her lips, but gave up after glancing at her dirty gloves. She nervously looked around and whispered, "See that garden platform over there? Professor Sprout left some mature Mandrake with lots of leaves on them."

The Mandrake area to the right rear shows that the mature Mandrake have been reduced by half, indicating that they have already been harvested.

Mandrake is a cyclical plant; its medicinal properties are strongest in its first year of maturity, and continued cultivation will cause its medicinal properties to diminish. Older Mandrake may also develop depression, causing disturbances to other plants in the same area.

Professor Sprout used to cultivate a new batch of Mandrake every year, without keeping any from the previous year. This year's change was probably for emergency purposes, to avoid a repeat of last year's scenario, and to prevent a delay of more than half a year in cultivating Mandrake to save lives.

But none of this was the reason Hermione noticed this Mandrake...

Mandrake Leaf, Animagus Ritual.

Loren instantly understood Hermione's thoughts, and a smile involuntarily appeared on his face. He teased her with a grin, "Yesterday you said you would strictly follow Professor McGonagall's instructions and not let me see the Time-Turner, but today you want to steal Mandrake Leaf. Miss Granger, you are very disrespectful to Professor Sprout."

Hermione glanced around again, her face flushing slightly. "It wasn't stealing, it was taking. I just wanted to take a few leaves that were about to fall."

The Animagus we did last year hasn't yielded any results yet, and Hermione has no intention of leaving the Teaching Class, so she wants to prepare some leaves in advance for practice.

"Ha, take it?" Loren condemned this. "I'm different. I steal openly!"

And so, the two moved to the area where the Mandrake was.

The two were completely different; the little Witch moved cautiously and looked nervous, while Loren strode confidently, his expression even somewhat arrogant.

"What are you afraid of?" Loren chuckled and patted her, startling the little Witch who quickly looked towards Professor Sprout's location, afraid of being caught by the professor.

How dare he be so arrogant!

Hermione stared down at the round-toed gardener's boots at her feet, almost wanting to run away from this person.

Loren craned his neck, leisurely examining the Mandrake: "Besides us, only Neville is in the third year's Teaching Class. Just be natural, and no one will notice."

Looking at the nursery platform, the Mandrake at this stage are noticeably more lush and robust, and also more composed than during their adolescence when they are constantly howling. They are quietly in the soil, some slowly moving their roots, and some gently swaying their leaves.

From their expressions as they emerged from the soil, Loren saw a sense of peace.

Hermione reached out and pinched a leaf, giving it a gentle tug. The Mandrake just swayed slightly, showing no particular reaction.

They behaved so well that Hermione felt a little reluctant to pick them. She reached out to the branches of the Mandrake several times, but still couldn't pluck a leaf.

Seeing this, Loren swiftly reached out and plucked six yellowed leaves, then pulled Hermione away without looking back.

The Mandrake in the nursery didn't make a fuss; they just shook a few times and returned to their original state.

The Mandrake that used to be so troublesome has almost completely changed its appearance, and Hermione was still a little stunned when she returned to her original position.

"They're old..." Loren muttered to himself, and just as he was about to hand the leaf to Hermione, he suddenly stopped.

He pondered for a moment, then frowned and asked, "The Animagus Ritual has time requirements and is related to the sun and moon. If you use the Time-Turner while holding Mandrake in your mouth, will it affect the ritual?"

"I don't think so, do I?" Hermione hesitated, uttering one word at a time. She had no idea that the Time-Turner and the Animagus could conflict.

Loren retrieved the Mandrake Leaf: "Let's ask Professor McGonagall for clarification first."

Hermione blinked. "Oh."

Actually, Loren wasn't too worried, since Hermione would eventually abandon the Time-Turner, give up Divination and Muggle Studies, and return to a normal school life.

It's not too late to perform the Animagus Ritual later.

Loren and Hermione put the Mandrake back into the pendant, then continued shoveling the leaves, filling the bucket, and dumping them into the Compost Pit...

Lunchtime.

When Loren sat down at the Gryffindor table, he realized that the topic of Pure-blood and genetic diseases had become even more heated.

The long tables of the four houses were buzzing with conversation, and the young wizards were mainly divided into two viewpoints:

One type is Pure-blood, which has no hereditary diseases.

Staunch Pure-blood advocates believe that Muggle are more vulnerable to disease than wizards, who are more powerful and have more advanced medical Muggle. Therefore, the genetic diseases that plague Muggle are not applicable to wizards.

The second type is that the genetic disease of Pure-blood wizard is already very serious.

The young wizards believed that physical illnesses might not be obvious, but Pure-blood were shrouded in the shadow of mental illness.

Reclusive, irritable, paranoid, insane...

Gaunt, Black, Crabbe...

Many families have already perished, or are on the verge of extinction. Various forms of mental abnormality will eventually wipe out Pure-blood.

Amidst such discussions, Greengrass, who was rumored to have Blood Curse, naturally became the focus of everyone's attention.

Besides the new student Astoria Greengrass, the Greengrass Family also has a young Witch, Daphne Greengrass, who is attending Hogwarts.

Daphne, a staunch advocate of Pure-blood.

She enrolled in 1991, a classmate of Loren and others. Overshadowed by Loren, Hermione, Harry, Neville, and even Draco, this young Witch was practically invisible.

Although the Greengrass Pure-blood Families, their wealth and power are negligible, far inferior to those of many other families such as the Malfoy, Crabbe, Nott, and even the Parkinson.

The only thing Daphne is remembered for is that she was one of Pansy Parkinson's best friends, or rather, one of her sidekicks.

The young wizards from all four houses couldn't help but turn their gazes over, because a farce was unfolding at the Slytherin table.

Daphne was yelling at a young Slytherin Witch: "Claire! You filthy Half-blood who has defiled the bloodline! If you dare look at me like that again, I swear I'll gouge your eyes out!"

The little Witch Claire covered her face and ran away.

Losing her target, Daphne turned her angry gaze to her sister. If her sister hadn't tripped and fallen, she wouldn't have suffered such humiliation.

Following her gaze, Loren saw the new student at the center of the storm— Astoria.

She sat next to Draco. The little girl had long blonde hair and innocent blue eyes that met her sister's gaze. She awkwardly forced a smile, trying to please her sister, and her dimples were very obvious when she smiled.

Clearly, Daphne, who was in a fit of anger, wasn't having any of it. She gritted her teeth and growled, "Astoria!"