Cleanup Work, Professor's Thorough Investigation

That afternoon, during the first-year Potions class, the news that two Slytherin girls had fallen ill one after another caused Hogwarts to erupt into total chaos.

According to the first-year students who were present in the class, if it hadn't been for Professor Snape's quick reflexes in casting a spell, those two girls might have plunged headfirst into a cauldron filled with boiling boil-cure potion.

Setting aside the miraculous question of how two girls could possibly squeeze into a single cauldron, the students of Hogwarts were always in the habit of exaggerating every fact they witnessed as much as possible.

In any case, once Madam Pomfrey confirmed that the symptoms of the two girls were nearly identical to those of Caitlin Rowle, they were immediately sent to St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries by the professors without a moment's hesitation.

At the same time, a palpable sense of panic spread rapidly throughout Hogwarts.

Students were whispering rumors, convinced that a terrifying, unprecedented infectious disease was ravaging Hogwarts, and no one knew who the next unlucky victim would be.

Under these circumstances, many students could no longer sit still; they sent letters home via owl one after another, begging their parents and families to come and take them away from the school.

At this moment, Scott was walking alone through the chaotic castle.

He knew the professors would soon step in to restore order to the current disorder in the school, but he had to take advantage of the chaos to do one thing: completely eliminate the hidden danger.

In a corridor leading to the castle dungeons, three worried Slytherin students hurried past.

"I've already written to my father! He'll definitely come to take me home as fast as he can!"

Draco Malfoy, his face covered by a dark green scarf, said loudly.

"My father will too!"

"And mine!"

His two lackeys immediately chimed in loudly.

They were Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe, two boys whose appearances bore a striking resemblance to trolls.

At this moment, their appearance was even more exaggerated than Malfoy's; dark green scarves were wrapped tightly around their large heads, revealing only eyes squeezed into slits by layers of fat.

All three Slytherin boys appeared incredibly panicked, and they did not notice that not far away, Scott, who was also walking with hurried steps, had completely vanished from sight after passing a thick stone pillar.

"Hurry up! Crabbe, Goyle!" Malfoy quickened his pace. "We must stay quietly in the Common Room from now on and wait for our fathers to come and get us."

The three boys began to run at full speed.

Hiding his form with the Disillusionment Charm, Scott followed them at a leisurely pace, heading deep into the dungeons until they finally arrived outside the Slytherin Common Room.

Scott leaned his back against the wall nearby, watching as the three boys shouted the password to open the gate.

By now, he had re-established his connection with the bat he had left in the dormitory of Travers last night, but that wasn't enough to command the bat to move.

After Malfoy and his two companions entered the Common Room, Scott gently pulled out his wand and gave it a small flick.

"Sensory Enhancement Charm."

With the help of the Sensory Enhancement Charm, Scott sensed the bat, which had been hanging in the folds of the bed curtains in that dormitory, begin to move.

It flapped its wings and took flight in the empty room, passing through the hidden owl passage in the ceiling until it flew all the way outside the Slytherin Common Room.

"Vanishing Spell."

Scott raised his wand and cast a Vanishing Spell at the bat, then immediately turned and left.

Under the influence of the Sensory Enhancement Charm, he had already sensed Snape's magical signature approaching.

Thanks to the intricate, labyrinthine passages within Hogwarts castle, Scott quickly ducked into a winding corridor in another part of the dungeon, avoiding any possibility of running into Snape.

However, when Scott finally returned to the Ravenclaw Common Room, he was caught red-handed by Professor Flitwick.

"Oh! Where have you been, Scott?"

Professor Flitwick looked somewhat haggard, the anxious expression on his face yet to fade, though he let out a sigh of relief upon seeing him.

"I'm sorry, Professor."

Seeing the state of Professor Flitwick, a wave of guilt welled up inside Scott.

"You shouldn't be running around at a time like this."

Flitwick scolded him a few times but did not press further into the question of where he had gone.

"Dumbledore has already taken this matter seriously, and the professors will be conducting a thorough investigation today. You all should stay in your dormitories and not go out; I have already notified the prefects." He gave a few more hurried instructions before leaving.

Scott could feel Professor Flitwick's trust in him, which caused the guilt in his heart to grow a little stronger.

But it was only guilt; he would not feel regret for what he had done.

Scott looked around; there weren't many people gathered in the Ravenclaw Common Room, as it was clear that most students had hidden themselves away in their dormitories.

He saw the couple, Dylan and Kayla.

Kayla was sitting on the sofa sobbing, while Dylan crouched in front of her, holding her hands.

"Don't worry, Kayla." Dylan comforted his girlfriend in a soft voice. "So far, only three people have shown symptoms; perhaps this isn't an infectious disease."

"No, it is an infectious disease, just like I said at noon!" Kayla was terrified; she had never known she possessed the talent for "prophecy."

Scott walked past the couple.

Of course, he wouldn't use a virus that would cause a widespread epidemic.

Taking the stairs behind the statue of the house founder, Rowena Ravenclaw, Scott returned to his dormitory.

He pushed open the door, and Milton immediately stood up to greet him. "You're back, Scott. I was worried sick, but Roger said there was no need to go looking for you."

Although Scott was long accustomed to Milton's sentimental nature, he was still taken aback by the sight of his reddened eyes.

"I'm fine, Milton, thank you." He offered his thanks in a dry tone.

"As long as you're okay."

Milton smiled, then sighed dejectedly, "With something like this happening, what will become of Hogwarts?"

"Don't you worry, Milton. Everything will be fine; our Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor Flitwick are perfectly capable of resolving these matters," Roger said.

He was lying on his bed with one leg crossed, flipping through a Quidditch magazine, and unlike Milton, he remained optimistic about the current situation.

Eddie, another member of the dormitory, was currently organizing his pile of bottled goods.

"I think this is a good thing," he said.

Facing the gazes gathered on him from the others, Eddie continued, "We all know those three girls were always very close. Regardless of the reason they collapsed, the identical symptoms reveal a lot."

Scott understood what he was trying to imply.

"You mean that as long as the professors put in the effort to thoroughly investigate the cause of their illness, the group of pure-blood young witches organized by Travers will be completely exposed to them."

"Exactly," Eddie said with a grin, "Then we won't have to waste our energy keeping an eye on a bunch of lower-year schoolgirls."