Before Potions Class

Dumbledore did not stop the cheering of the Hufflepuffs; instead, he turned around and said to Ilona:

"Professor Ilona, I am very sorry to interrupt your welcome reception. Shall we go back and continue? I am quite interested in the Indian wizarding customs you mentioned earlier."

Ilona smiled and replied:

"It is no trouble at all, Headmaster Dumbledore. In fact, I have already fallen in love with this great school!"

As Dumbledore and the many professors departed, the Hufflepuff students let themselves go completely, and the hot pot party lasted well into the night.

So much so that when students from the other three houses went to the Great Hall at Hogwarts for dinner, they found the Hufflepuff long table completely empty, leaving them all looking at each other in confusion and feeling quite out of place.

After the party ended, just as Wentworth had returned to his dormitory to rest, he heard a knock on the door from Cedric.

"Wentworth, you are going to Professor Snape's class tomorrow night, and you haven't had a single Potions lesson yet. Tonight, I will help you preview the material. Although you can't learn much in one night, at least it will give you some mental preparation."

Cedric said this to Wentworth as soon as he entered the room, clutching a stack of books. Although Wentworth was exhausted—after all, he had mixed dozens of different seasonings today and his hands were sore—he truly could not bear to refuse Cedric's kindness when he saw him holding those books.

To his surprise, not long after, Coke, the Hufflepuff prefect, also arrived, holding several books which he handed to Wentworth.

"Wentworth, these are the notes I've taken in Professor Snape's class over the years. They are all yours; I hope they will be of some help to you."

"You are the lucky star of our Hufflepuff. If you ever need anything in the future, don't be a stranger—remember to come find me!"

If Wentworth had initially chosen Hufflepuff out of fear that entering Gryffindor or Slytherin would bring him trouble later on, then after today, he had truly fallen in love with Hufflepuff. This house, which appeared the least in the original Harry Potter books, was loyal, honest, and lacked no courage; it truly began to occupy an important place in Wentworth's heart.

And so, Wentworth spent his second night at Hogwarts in the prep class Cedric had set up for him.

Fortunately, the next day was Monday, and Wentworth's first class at Hogwarts was History of Magic. As the only ghost teacher at Hogwarts, Professor Binns fully demonstrated the quality of an excellent teacher in the eyes of the students: he would absolutely never wake up a student who was sleeping.

Thus, Wentworth made good use of the morning to catch up on his sleep.

Because in the afternoon, the Hufflepuff first-years would be facing Snape's Potions class.

That afternoon, Wentworth, who had already become the backbone of the Hufflepuff freshmen, walked toward the Potions classroom surrounded by all his fellow first-years.

However, in the corridor, they happened to run into the Slytherin students, who were also first-years.

According to the class schedule for this semester, the first-year students of Slytherin and Hufflepuff would be attending Potions class together.

Similar to the Hufflepuff freshmen surrounding Wentworth, there was also a student among the Slytherin freshmen who was the center of attention: Cassandra.

At this moment, Cassandra was wearing dark green robes, her golden curls cascading down, walking with elegant steps at the very front of the Slytherins, and she happened to bump into Wentworth head-on.

"You're blocking my way!"

Cassandra looked at Wentworth and said with a frown.

Wentworth looked at the spacious corridor and couldn't help but scratch his head. If it were just him, perhaps he wouldn't argue with Cassandra and would just defer to "ladies first."

But now, he had so many Hufflepuff classmates behind him. If he stepped aside, it would be equivalent to Hufflepuff yielding the path to Slytherin, which was something Wentworth, who now truly considered himself a Hufflepuff, could not accept.

"Cassandra, it's such a wide corridor, let's just walk together!"

Cassandra, however, curled her lip in disdain and retorted:

"In your dreams!"

Just as the two sides were at a stalemate, a large number of footsteps echoed from the corridor behind them. Wentworth and Cassandra both looked back, and soon, Cassandra's expression turned ugly.

"Prefect Coke, what are you all doing here?"

Wentworth looked at Coke, who was leading many senior Hufflepuff students toward him, with a face full of surprise and asked curiously.

Coke first gave Wentworth a hug, then took the opportunity to block the path of Cassandra and her group without a trace, before saying:

"Of course, we're here to cheer you on!"

"Cheer me on?"

Wentworth was full of confusion.

"That's right. Don't forget, Snape is our Potions teacher too. I've been taking his class for five years, and I know his style very well."

"I came to remind you to be mentally prepared. No matter how he mocks you, just listen and don't take it to heart! Also, if he deducts points from Hufflepuff, don't take it seriously either; we're used to it anyway. Don't put yourself under any mental pressure!"

Listening to Coke continuously giving him instructions, Wentworth felt a warm current flow through his heart.

Afterward, escorted by the many senior Hufflepuff students and surrounded by all the Hufflepuff freshmen, Wentworth was the first to walk into Snape's Potions classroom.

However, just as Wentworth was about to enter the classroom, he looked back at Coke and the others. Everyone was watching him, giving Wentworth the illusion that he was walking toward the execution ground.

After Wentworth and the others were seated, Coke and the others finally left, and the Slytherin freshmen, led by Cassandra, walked into the classroom.

Cassandra's face looked very unpleasant as she walked straight to the spot directly opposite Wentworth and sat down.

"Wentworth, it seems I underestimated you. To think you could get so many seniors to stand up for you! But I will prove to you who the most outstanding freshman is, right here and right now!"

Hearing Cassandra's words, Wentworth knew she had misunderstood him and was about to explain that he hadn't asked Coke and the others to come, but at that moment, a low voice came from the entrance of the classroom.

"It seems you are slightly better than that bunch of idiots from Gryffindor this morning; at least there are no fools who couldn't find the classroom!"

"I hope your intelligence is also slightly better than theirs, and don't waste my potions!"

Wentworth looked back and saw Snape standing at the door of the Potions classroom, looking directly at him!