Snape's Weight Gain

The conversation with Professor McGonagall went very smoothly—a smoothness that Li Wei found quite comfortable.

"All right, that's all for today."

"Thank you for your help."

Li Wei bid Professor McGonagall farewell and left the deputy headmaster's office with his two assistants and Barton.

Unexpectedly, someone was already waiting there.

As the warmth and tea aroma of the office were shut out, a damp, cold wind suddenly blew in, carrying the mixed scent of aged stone walls and potion ingredients unique to Hogwarts Castle.

"I thought you would have died in some corner by now."

Li Wei stopped in his tracks and calmly turned toward the source of the voice.

Severus Snape was leaning against the stone wall, watching Li Wei with a pair of cold eyes.

His facial contours were no longer distinct; he looked somewhat portly and slack. Greasy black hair clung to the sides of his cheeks, and at his temples, a few strands of gray, clearly not caused by potion dust, could be glimpsed.

"Snape? You've gotten so old."

Li Wei looked at the once dashing Half-Blood Prince, who had now devolved into a greasy uncle one might see anywhere on the street. He frowned slightly—one of the few things he cared about was the possibility of becoming like that himself one day.

"Ah, such a keen observation, Li Wei.

Has your life of hiding and scurrying about honed your leisure to critique others?"

Snape took the opportunity to size Li Wei up, a mocking smile on his face. He spoke rapidly, his words spitting out like cannonballs, as if he had held them in his heart for a long time and had finally found a channel to express them.

"What, didn't you once loftily declare that you would devote all your energy to magic and had no time for our childish disputes?

Why are you now concerned with appearances?

Or perhaps, after failing to achieve further accomplishments in magic, you've had to reluctantly shift your focus elsewhere. To becoming a delicate pretty boy, for instance?"

"A good appearance can bring intangible power, how many times have I told you? It's because you're so slovenly that Lily wouldn't like you."

"Silence! How dare you mention that name!"

Snape's roar suddenly echoed down the corridor.

The next moment, he realized his lapse in composure. His expression changed abruptly, and he immediately turned to leave.

But before leaving, he couldn't help but turn back and gaze deeply at Li Wei. If you and I had joined forces back then, how could Potter have been so smug? How could Lily have fancied him?

However, he ultimately didn't voice these thoughts.

As soon as they met, he understood—Li Wei was still the same Li Wei, always using a poker face to disregard everything, holding no one in his heart, with only his own goals in his eyes.

Perhaps in the other's eyes, the only thing worth remembering about him was his once outstanding appearance.

And yet, this was what Snape cared about the least.

". Hmph!"

Snape waved his wizard robe displeasuredly and strode away quickly.

"Haven't seen him in so many years, and he's still as troublesome as ever. Judging by this, he's not going to blame me for not winning Lily over, is he?"

Li Wei watched Snape, who had suddenly appeared and then hurried away like a large bat, and calmly rolled his eyes.

He had already helped Snape avoid that most embarrassing public humiliation back then, so why was the man's personality still so twisted?

This was almost the only time Li Wei had ever interfered with the plot in all these years, and yet, even so, Snape still hadn't won Lily's affection.

"Professor, is this someone you used to know?"

Qiao Weili, as an observer, vaguely sensed that the professor named Snape seemed to have a considerable history with his teacher.

Jiamer frowned, staring in the direction Snape had left, and said nothing.

"Mm, he was a classmate of mine. We weren't particularly close; we didn't talk much. Never mind, don't pay him any mind, he's not important."

Li Wei's primary goal at the moment was to find a way to free himself from his heavy coursework as soon as possible.

Li Wei led the three of them to a vacant classroom on the first floor.

It was unclear how long it had been vacant. As Li Wei opened the door, a small amount of dust fell from above, and a thick layer of ash covered the floor.

At the back of the classroom, desks and chairs were scattered haphazardly, with broken books of unknown ages lying in some corners.

"Teacher, leave these things to us."

"It's fine, I'll be faster."

Li Wei slowly stirred his wand in front of him, and a vortex formed in the center of the classroom. After only three rotations, it transformed into a small tornado that reached the ceiling.

Dust, books, desks, chairs, and miscellaneous items—everything was swallowed whole, sorted by size.

"Whoosh!"

After swallowing all the items, the tornado suddenly dissipated, vanishing along with all the swallowed debris.

Only ten seconds had passed, and the entire classroom was spotless. It just looked a bit monotonous.

"You all prepare your own rooms."

Li Wei waved his wand again, directly using the Undetectable Extension Charm to expand the entire classroom tenfold. The windows of the originally enclosed classroom quickly sealed together, gradually transforming into a huge floor-to-ceiling window.

Qiao Weili cast a spell at the opportune moment, adding a reflection charm to the floor-to-ceiling windows. This way, only they could see the outside scenery, and the outside couldn't see in.

Jiamer cast a spell in sync, repainting the somewhat mottled white walls with a pristine white color.

The black dragonhide trunk opened again and suddenly caved inward—a large amount of mahogany furniture and the luggage of the two assistants were directly 'spat' out, and then moved to their ideal positions under magical control.

Soon, the entire classroom no longer looked like a classroom. Instead, it resembled a scholar's library.

Qiao Weili and Jiamer each chose rooms near Li Wei, while the house-elf Barton chose a spot in the corner of the classroom as his residence.

"I'll leave the greeting to you, Barton."

"Please leave it to me with confidence."

Barton, carrying the pre-purchased candies and snacks, disappeared with the sound of a firecracker explosion.

After handling everything, Li Wei turned around and found his two assistants standing together, silently looking at the scenery outside through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Their position corresponded to the Black Lake. Sunlight spilled onto the lake, reflecting golden light. A giant squid, unnervingly large, was lazily basking on the shore.

Li Wei, who had intended to study Fiendfyre immediately, saw this scene and was suddenly moved. He slowly walked behind the two of them.

"Speaking of which, you two never went to school, and even your general education was completed with private tutors—would you like to go out for a stroll?"

"We are merely interested in the places where Professor studied."

Jiamer said faintly, seemingly denying any curiosity about the new environment.

"Professor, you seem to be in a good mood?"

Qiao Weili was a little surprised—the Professor wasn't immediately engrossed in magic? It seemed this place truly held special significance for him.

This made him somewhat curious about Hogwarts as well.

"Mmm—I'm having some peculiar feelings right now—but I can't quite put my finger on them."

".Perhaps, deep down inside, I've always longed to return here."

Li Wei exhaled softly, past memories flooding his mind.

The surprise of receiving an owl's letter on his eleventh birthday, magic that only existed in fairy tales appearing before his eyes, the first time flying high in the sky.

Although the journey had been filled with much lonely and monotonous repetition, looking back now, it didn't feel bitter. Instead, it brought solace.

After all, it was those arduous experiences that had made him who he was today.

Otherwise, during the war, any high-ranking Death Eater could have killed him.

Frankly admitting his inner thoughts, Li Wei's gaze swept over his two assistants, reaching out towards the vast outdoors.

The two assistants sensed their teacher's unusual state and silently maintained their composure, refraining from any disturbance.

The three stood motionless like this, silently watching the outside for a long time.

Suddenly, Li Wei felt a long-lost, budding tremor from the depths of his heart.

He felt a calling.

This return might very well become some kind of turning point.

Li Wei came back to his senses thoughtfully and led his two assistants out of the classroom.

Hogwarts.

I'm back.