Reject?
Snape rolled his eyes and stared intently at him, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the armrest of the chair. He showed no anger, but simply asked calmly.
"Why?"
Because it's meaningless.
Silan shrugged. "This kind of thing is meaningless to me; it's just a waste of time."
Snape stared at him, gesturing for him to continue.
"If my opponent were an upperclassman, that would be somewhat interesting." Silan chuckled nonchalantly, "But second-year students... not to brag..."
He smiled, looked up, met Snape's gaze, and said without fear, "Professor, do you think any second-year student can match me?"
This statement was not humble at all; it even carried a jarring air of arrogance.
But Snape knew that Silan was telling the truth.
He had witnessed Silan riding a dragon to fight Quirrell last school year, and judging from his performance at the time, both his temperament and magical skill far surpassed those of his peers.
Such a friendly match was indeed unnecessary for him.
But... that's precisely why Snape sought him out.
"Gilderoy Lockhart ...I remember him."
Snape seemed to be smiling, but his expression was full of sarcasm. "He's from Ravenclaw. When I was in fifth grade, he had just started school."
"Hogwarts is a magic school. Wizards learn Spells, brew Potions, and fill their minds with that mysterious and vast knowledge... But what have they learned? Nothing more than playing with words and using grand pronouncements to deceive people."
"Those fools actually praised him highly."
Snape's words were practically a direct insult.
But he certainly deserves it.
Could Lockhart possibly be someone who could be easily fooled by a true Potions Master and Head of Slytherin?
"What is Lockhart anyway?" Snape said calmly, his face blurred by the firelight. "A complete idiot, a stupid piece of trash, daring to provoke me?"
Given Snape's pride, how could he tolerate a piece of trash like Lockhart provoking him?
If you want war, then let's fight!
Snape looked at Silan. "Even if it's a friendly match, I cannot allow myself to be insulted like this."
"Therefore, we can only win this match, we cannot afford to lose."
"Professor, I think the students all recognize your abilities and would never disrespect you because of one competition..." Silan said.
"Enough!"
Silan was about to say something polite when Snape suddenly interrupted him.
Snape stood up from his chair and looked at the Slytherin banner hanging on the wall.
"I don't care what they think, I only want absolute victory."
After saying that, Snape turned slightly to look at Silan, "It seems... this time it's my turn to prove my worth."
He returned to his chair and slowly sat down. "I still have half a bottle of Tonguefire Grass seeds here, you can have them all."
Good grief, so last time you only gave me half, just to lure me in, huh?
Silan inwardly curled his lip.
Snape clearly still had leverage. He asked meaningfully, "Tonguefire Grass seeds are scarce, and making Fire-Control Potion is no easy task. How many materials do you have to waste?"
Silan remained silent.
Snape was right.
Fire-Control Potion is a more complex Potions than Baruffio's Brain Elixir.
I've already failed several times in trying to learn how to Baruffio's Brain Elixir. If I just bury myself in research, I'll definitely waste some materials.
The problem was that there weren't many seeds of the Tonguefire Grass, so he had to separate some to plant.
But with Snape's guidance, the waste rate of materials would be minimized.
Silan was somewhat tempted.
Snape added, "The friendly matches don't start until a week later, so I can teach you some extra Spells in the meantime."
At this point, Snape suddenly remembered something and continued, "You should have already seen my... friend's textbook, right?"
"It contains a few interesting little Spells, which I can teach you."
At this point, Snape leaned back in his chair and asked again.
"Is a friendly match even necessary for you now?"
Silan originally didn't want to agree.
But... Professor Snape gave him far too much, and it was all exactly what he needed.
"I think there's no need to think about it anymore, Professor, I agree."
Silan nodded in agreement.
"If we lose..."
Snape's eyes turned cold and sharp.
"That's impossible, Professor." Silan's words carried a quiet, unquestionable certainty.
It's just a few second-year wizards. If I can't even handle this, I might as well break my wand and go pick up dragon dung with Ron.
Snape nodded slightly.
He didn't dislike Silan's arrogance and hubris in this matter.
"These are the remaining Tonguefire Grass seeds from last time." Snape handed half a bottle of Tonguefire Grass seeds to Silan. "You can go home now, but come see me tomorrow to meet your teammates."
Without saying a word, Silan took the seeds and left.
Snape walked out the door with him and went in the opposite direction.
It looks like they're going to conscript other able-bodied men.
"I wonder who my teammates will be..."
With that thought in mind, Silan made her way back to the Room of Requirement.
As soon as he entered, he saw Neville, Ron, and Hermione talking in the Rest Room.
Seeing Silan enter, Hermione quickly waved and greeted him.
"Silan, Snape is looking for you. Does he want you to join his team?"
Silan nodded. "Yes."
"I knew it!" Hermione exclaimed excitedly, clenching her fist and waving her hand. "Luckily, I guessed right."
Silan looked at her with some confusion.
What's wrong?
Ron, who was holding a cushion beside him, explained, "After you left, Lockhart divided us into groups for duels. Those two performed well, so Lockhart invited them to join his team."
"Because Hermione didn't want to be your enemy, she recommended me to Lockhart."
At this point, Ron threw down the cushion he was holding, picked up his new wand, waved it, and said excitedly, "Of course, I won too."
"Nobody asked you, Ron." Hermione glanced at him.
"So..." Silan, "Right now, in Lockhart's team, it's you and Neville?"
"That's right."
Neville scratched his head shyly and said sheepishly, "I don't know how I was chosen."
Ron patted Neville on the shoulder. "Be confident, Neville! Your Accio and Shield Charm are excellent, and you've even mastered the Leg-Locker Curse."
"Hehe." Neville chuckled twice, looking at Silan, "Silan taught me all of this, and I practiced it myself a bit more."
Silan looked around but didn't see Harry, so she asked, "Where did Harry go?"
Ron shrugged. "He left before the group duels. I don't know what he went on doing."
"Harry being drafted is definitely a done deal, I just don't know which team he'll be in," Silan thought to himself.