"Click! Click!"
Hurried footsteps echoed through the corridors of the Extraordinary Society of Potioneers. Miss Mary rushed up the stairs, through the corridor, and stopped only at the end.
Before entering to give her report, Miss Mary stood at the doorway, took several deep breaths to calm herself, then took a mirror from her pocket and tidied her appearance.
Master Charlemagne was a strict man.
After calming herself down outside the door, Miss Mary raised her hand and knocked.
"Please come in." A deep voice immediately came from inside.
Miss Mary pushed open the door, counted the grout lines on the floor, found the tile in the very center of the room, and stood precisely in the middle.
Master Charlemagne's office was simply and neatly furnished, spotless.
Most surprisingly, apart from the oil painting of a crucible hanging on the wall, there wasn't a single round object in the room.
This master seems to have a preference for square geometric shapes.
Roland Charlemagne let Miss Mary in without saying a word until he finished writing the line in his hand.
Looking at the neat and concise handwriting on the Parchment, Master Charlemagne smiled with pleasure, "What happened?"
Miss Mary exclaimed eagerly, "Master Snape is here!"
"What's the big deal? He comes several times a year." Master Charlemagne nodded in satisfaction as he saw that she was standing at the perfect symmetrical point, and carefully aligned the edges of a stack of Parchment with a ruler.
"Master Snape has brought a new Potions paper, an improved version of the Wolfsbane Potion. There's also a student here to register for the Potioneer qualification." Miss Mary finished speaking in one breath before daring to catch her breath.
An improved version of the Wolfsbane Potion?!
The news came like a bombshell, causing Charlemagne's hand to tremble and the stack of Parchment to fall apart.
Looking at the rumpled stack of Parchment, Charlemagne's eye twitched, and he closed his eyes in pain.
A waiter from the Extraordinary Society of Potioneers respectfully led Snape and Silan into a rather luxurious drawing room and quickly served them two cups of Black Tea.
"Please wait here for a moment, Master Charlemagne will be here shortly." After saying this, the waiter walked out of the reception room tremblingly.
Master Snape, alive!
After leaving the reception room, the earnest waiter immediately clenched his fist and cheered, "Working here was definitely worth it!"
For ordinary Potioneer, meeting Potions Master like Snape, renowned throughout the England Wizarding World, was a privilege they could only have here, and they were understandably excited.
Snape picked up his Black Tea, not rushing to drink it, but simply holding it in his hands. "Master Charlemagne is the current president of the Extraordinary Society of Potioneers. He is a man..."
At this point, Snape seemed unsure how to describe Charlemagne, paused for a moment, and continued, "He was known for his rigorous and meticulous approach to Potions, a style that extended into his life."
"Anyway, you'll see him soon..." Snape thought of Charlemagne and seemed to have some unpleasant memories, so he gave a general introduction.
Silan nodded thoughtfully.
This was the first time he had ever seen Professor Snape look so troubled towards someone, and his anticipation for Master Charlemagne grew even stronger.
After the two drank tea for a while, the door to the reception room was pushed open, and a tall, thin old wizard walked in.
Roland Charlemagne, probably in his sixties, still had thick, black hair that was meticulously styled, and his clothes were without a single wrinkle.
He was expressionless, with particularly sharp eyes that, when staring at someone, made them feel as if they were covered in frost.
Snape and Silan immediately stood up.
"Master Charlemagne..." Snape greeted him.
"Please wait a moment." Charlemagne waved his hand at him, looked at Silan with a serious expression, and put on his gloves.
Snape's lips twitched, but he remained silent in resignation.
Charlemagne bent down, straightened Silan's slightly crooked collar, and smoothed out the wrinkles on his clothes before revealing a relaxed and happy smile.
Silan looked at Snape blankly, wondering, "What's going on here?"
Snape fell silent in frustration.
But Charlemagne didn't let him off the hook either.
Seeing Snape's greasy hair, Charlemagne's eyes twitched painfully. He pulled a bottle of cleaning Potions from his pocket and tapped it with his wand. A drop of Potions flew from the small bottle and landed on Snape's head. With the help of Charlemagne's Spells, the Potions quickly took effect.
A strange scene unfolded in the reception room.
Snape, expressionless, had bubbles constantly rising from his head, while Charlemagne watched him with a look of amusement...
"Is this shampooing Professor Snape's hair?" Silan's expression gradually turned strange.
As expected of the president!
"They did something we couldn't do so easily!" Silan thought to herself.
Snape's long hair became clean and smooth in the blink of an eye under the effect of the cleansing Potions, and even gave off a faint, elegant fragrance.
Having done all this, Charlemagne seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and extended his hand to Snape: "Severus, I admire your meticulous yet bold Potions style. But your lifestyle is too casual, completely unlike what a Potions Master should be like."
"If you're going out, you should at least wash your hair."
Charlemagne handed Snape the bottle of cleansing Potions, saying calmly, "This is for you."
Silan couldn't help but look at him with admiration.
Of all the people he knew, only Charlemagne dared to treat Snape like that.
Snape retorted, "I don't think any Potions Master would brew Potions based on his appearance."
Charlemagne frowned and nodded, smoothing out the wrinkles in Snape 'Snape robes over his shoulder, clearly not listening.
"This is my student, Silan Prewett." Snape, unable to do anything about him, reluctantly changed the subject.
"Hmm." Charlemagne glanced at Silan, then looked away, seemingly unconcerned about him.
"Let's get down to business, Severus," Charlemagne said calmly, sitting down expressionlessly. "I heard you brought a new paper on Potions."
"An improved version of the Wolfsbane Potion." Snape took out the Wooden Box he carried with him and placed it in front of Charlemagne.
Upon seeing the manuscript in the Wooden Box, Charlemagne's calm gaze showed a hint of emotion.
Holding the thick manuscript in his hands, Charlemagne silently began to read it, the Parchment rustling as he turned the pages.
Charlemagne's expression, which had been expressionless, gradually showed a look of astonishment.
"Incredible," Charlemagne murmured to himself. "Sound logic, well-founded reasoning. I never imagined you could improve the Wolfsbane Potion to this extent."
Wolfsbane Potion is a very difficult-to-make high-grade Potions, and there are very few Potioneer who can prepare it. To innovate and improve it is even more difficult.
Snape truly deserves the title of Potions Master for improving the Wolfsbane Potion to this extent.
Snape glanced at Silan, a barely perceptible smile playing on his lips. He valued Silan as a student more than the paper itself.
Charlemagne carefully put the manuscript away, quickly summoned a staff member on duty, and instructed in a low, rapid voice, "Send this manuscript to the Review Committee and have them stop all their work and review this paper first."
Seeing how serious he was, the staff on duty were so frightened that they didn't dare to breathe, and hurriedly left with the manuscript in their hands.
"Severus, I knew I hadn't misjudged you." Charlemagne sat down again.
Whether sitting or standing, he maintains an extremely proper and upright posture, like a statue at all times.
"Besides the paper, there's one more thing I need to do," Snape said.
... Divider Line...
Author's note: Master Charlemagne's name has been changed to Roland Charlemagne.
Since he's called Master Charlemagne, then Charlemagne can only be his surname, so let's make a slight modification.