In his office, as Benjamin secretly shook his head over his student Anita, a voice tinged with teasing quietly drifted in from the doorway.
"Yo~ My dear junior, I could smell that fresh scent of 'pain' radiating off you from miles away! So, how did it feel to be battered by reality on your first time as an instructor?"
Like a shark that had caught the scent of blood, Viola sauntered in uninvited, her face wearing an utterly undisguised, downright gleeful smile.
Benjamin shot her a look and said irritably, "Senior, is your happiness always built on my 'pain'?"
"Of course not entirely. My happiness is built on everyone's pain!" Viola waved a hand dramatically, then eagerly began sharing.
"But speaking of that, it reminds me of my two precious students! Back when they discovered that Potions Department was nothing like they had imagined—romantic—but instead meant endless material processing, tedious ratio calculations, and the risk of exploding furnaces at every turn, the despair on their faces as they had no choice but to grit their teeth and press on—tsk, tsk, it gave me joy for such a long time!"
Her tone shifted as she looked at Benjamin with anticipation. "So, junior, the next time you teach that little one called Anita, you absolutely, absolutely have to let me know! I'll find a good seat and properly savor the pain and confusion pouring off her as she struggles in the ocean of tedious knowledge! Just thinking about it makes me happy!"
After saying that, without waiting for Benjamin to agree or refuse, she let out a string of "Hehehehe" laughter and turned to leave the office in satisfaction, as though she had come solely to harvest another wave of joy.
As Benjamin watched Viola's retreating figure, the trace of helplessness on