Potions Class

Adam rubbed his hands together in satisfaction as he left the Headmaster's Office.

After finishing the Coconut Ice, he had still been unable to resist running over to Fawkes and politely asking whether he could touch him. He had only asked with the mindset that there was no harm in trying, yet after staring at him for a while, Fawkes had actually nodded in agreement!

A Phoenix—though it should really have been translated as an immortal bird—had incredibly silky wing and tail feathers, while the down on its belly was incomparably soft. The sensation against his fingertips was simply intoxicating~

Unfortunately, since it was his first encounter, Adam did not dare go too far. Otherwise, he really would have wanted to pick Fawkes up and take a deep sniff!

But after emerging from his earlier state of bliss, Adam could not help thinking again.

There was still one question he had not asked while speaking with Professor Dumbledore: why had Nicolas Flamel trusted him so easily and entrusted something so important to him?

Could he really entrust the Sorcerer's Stone to a stranger—the descendant of a friend—merely because he was young?

But when Adam tried to steer the conversation in that direction, Professor Dumbledore had first thrown out the Fidelius Charm to draw his attention, then slipped away without giving him a chance to ask...

Could Professor Dumbledore really have some other connection to Nicolas Flamel?

There was no way to verify that for now, so Adam did not dwell on it for long. Once he returned to the dormitory, he tossed it to the back of his mind.

The next morning was Potions Class. When Adam took out his cauldron, Eugene beside him said nothing, but Klon, standing one place away, could not help himself.

"Wait, are you going to brew potions in the cauldron from yesterday...? You're not going to keep using it to cook food too, are you?"

Apparently imagining something, Klon's face turned green.

"I don't want to eat food made in a cauldron that's boiled Flobberworms..."

"Don't worry. Flobberworms would never be thrown directly into a cauldron. We usually use their mucus."

"Is that really the point?!"

Adam spread his hands.

"What's the problem? Scourgify can clean a cauldron very thoroughly... Besides, Flobberworm mucus is a common thickening agent in potions. Aren't you going to drink those potions too?"

"That's different!"

Klon shook his head desperately. Drinking potions was something one had no choice but to do when sick, whereas eating Adam's delicious food was for enjoyment.

How desperate would someone have to be to willingly eat something like that?

"This isn't the previous cauldron."

Eugene suddenly spoke.

Adam looked at him in surprise.

"How did you notice?"

The Cauldrons did indeed have markings to distinguish them, but the marks were on the bottoms. Other than that, these Cauldrons had been copied with Twin Card and should have been completely identical.

After thinking for a moment, Eugene said, "I guessed. You have high standards for quality of life, so you probably wouldn't skimp on something like this."

Even if Scourgify could clean the cauldron completely, the psychological effect would still affect one's appetite. Unless he had some particular fetish in that regard, someone like Adam, who cooked for himself whenever he disliked the school food, could not possibly begrudge buying even one cauldron.

"Wow~ Eugene, you're amazing!"

Adam applauded Eugene's cleverness, while Klon stared at Adam in shock.

"Then just now, you were...?"

"He was messing with you."

Bernard sighed and ruffled his partner's hair.

Potions Class required students to work in pairs. With five people in one dormitory, it had originally been difficult to divide them up, but Uther had somehow gotten friendly with students from a girls' dormitory and happened to pair up with the extra person from that room.

Bang—

The sound of the door suddenly being flung open silenced the somewhat noisy classroom. Professor Snape strode toward the lectern, the hem of his black robes billowing behind him like a swarm of bats following in a dark lord's footsteps.

Turning around, Snape adjusted his cloak and swept his gloomy eyes over every student. Each student he looked at shrank their head and became as meek as a quail—except for one exception.

Amid all those cowering gazes, one pair of eyes stood out: excited, faintly thrilled, worshipful, and tangled with many other complicated emotions. Snape, skilled in Legilimency, could not help narrowing his eyes as though he had suddenly seen something blinding.

Frowning slightly in discomfort, Professor Snape began taking attendance.

"Adam Reed."

Hm. He remembered that name now.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making. As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic."

Professor Snape's deliberately lowered voice echoed through the quiet classroom. He descended from beside the lectern and slowly paced among the students.

"I do not expect you will really understand the beauty of softly simmering Cauldrons, their white fumes rising and fragrant aromas drifting through the air. You will not truly understand the wondrous magic of liquids flowing into people's veins, enchanting the mind and clouding the will... I can teach you how to brew glory, bottle fame, and even stop death—but only if you are not the sort of witless fools I so often encounter."

"Mr. Reed."

Professor Snape had happened to walk behind Adam when he suddenly spoke. Such an abrupt address would usually startle a student, but Adam instead looked excited.

"Yes, Professor."

Meeting those increasingly excited eyes, Snape turned his gaze away in faint discomfort and walked toward the lectern as he spoke.

"How should I process a fresh Horned Slug?"

"Remove the internal organs, then steam it."

"Tell me the precautions for using Lionfish Spine."

"Lionfish Spine must be ground into powder before use, but its effectiveness rapidly dissipates after grinding. Therefore, it must be processed immediately before brewing a potion. Normally, it can only be stored whole, and direct sunlight should be avoided whenever possible..."

Because Professor Snape's question about precautions had been so broad, Adam had no choice but to list every point that required attention.

"That is enough."

Snape interrupted Adam after hearing material from third-year coursework.

"Mr. Reed, do you think you can learn well enough without attending class? First-year lessons are no longer enough for you, are they?"

"I know Potions is a discipline that requires precise operations, Professor, and I am very interested in it. But I also know that attempting practical work through self-study alone would be dangerous and foolish."

Adam felt that Professor Snape's eyes seemed to reveal a subtle hint of at least you know your limits. Of course, perhaps he had imagined it.

"So all I can do is commit the theoretical material to memory before formally studying this subject at school. I hope that during class, I can devote more attention to listening to the professor's instruction."

"..."

Professor Snape squinted at Adam for a while before suddenly asking, "If I wished to brew a bottle of Wit-Sharpening Potion, how many slices of Armadillo Liver would I need?"

"...I believe Wit-Sharpening Potion uses armadillo bile, Professor. Two pints are required."

Professor Snape offered no comment, merely letting out a breath through his nose. He then turned, picked up a book, and waved his wand at the blackboard without looking back.

"In fact, adding two and one-sixteenth pints will improve the effect of the Wit-Sharpening Potion, but two and one-eighth pints of armadillo bile will turn it into a bottle of deadly poison."

Adam's eyes lit up, and he opened his notebook to write that down.

Whether it was a more effective Wit-Sharpening Potion or a deadly poison, both were very useful!