Trade

For some reason, looking into Bell's eyes, Snape really wanted to kill Bell with a Killing Curse.

However, he hasn't Death Eater for many years. Now, he wouldn't casually cast the Unforgivable Curses anymore.

Besides, he has more important plans to implement now, and he doesn't have time to think about these trivial matters.

Suppressing his discomfort, Snape scanned the classroom.

Since it was still early, there was no one else in the classroom besides him and Bell. He had to deal with Bell before the others arrived.

"Bell, I have a deal I'd like to discuss with you."

Snape forced a friendly smile onto his face.

"Exchange? What exchange?"

Bell looked at Snape's constipated-looking smile with a puzzled expression. He'd been behaving himself lately and hadn't managed to get his hands on any rare ingredients.

Wait a minute! Could it be that his genius sister has discovered some delicious ingredients and is deliberately keeping it a secret from him to surprise him?

Then Snape found out about this by accident, which is why he came to him to talk about a deal.

"I hope you can disguise yourself as a Slytherin student, participate in the Triwizard Tournament, and win the championship."

Snape said something that sounded very funny to Bell with a serious expression.

"What are you playing at..."

"Don't rush to refuse. If you help Slytherin House win the Triwizard Tournament, then I promise to pass on all my Potions knowledge to Shanna without reservation."

It must be said that although he was a bit foul-mouthed and always wore a bitter and resentful expression, as the head of Slytherin House, Snape had a deep affection for Slytherin House.

It's worth noting that before Harry enrolled, Slytherin had won the Hogwarts House Cup for several consecutive years.

Although the methods may not have been honorable, they were enough to show Snape's cold exterior but warm heart.

"...this..."

It must be said that Bell was indeed tempted after hearing the trade terms proposed by Snape.

The life's work of a Potion Master —this is something that money can't buy. For Shanna, who specializes in Potions, it's incredibly precious.

However, Bell wasn't interested in this so-called Triwizard Tournament to begin with, let alone impersonating someone else to participate.

After thinking for a while, Bell looked up at Snape.

Meeting the expectant gaze of the other person, Bell gritted his teeth and said:

"I refuse!"

"What!? Do you know how valuable all my Potions knowledge is? Do you know how many people crave my experience? Do you know how many detours Shanna could avoid if she received my careful guidance?"

Snape stared at Bell in disbelief. So this barbarian, who only knew Alchemy, was truly incapable of understanding the wonders of Potions?

God knows how long he considered it, and what kind of mental process he went through before finally making up his mind to use all his knowledge of Potions as a bargaining chip.

If it weren't for his deep admiration for Shanna and Harry's utterly incompetent nature, he would have refused to hand over his precious knowledge to anyone else, even at the cost of his life!

So now Bell has rejected his offer?

Is this still the same Bell who's obsessed with his sister?!

Could it be that after getting a girlfriend, Shanna's status in Bell's heart has plummeted?

Putting himself in others' shoes, Snape felt this possibility was very high...

"Of course, I know all of that."

Therefore, although I won't disguise myself as a Slytherin student to participate in the Triwizard Tournament, I still need your knowledge of Potions.

Bell said with a smile.

"Hmph! What a joke! What makes you think I'd hand over my knowledge to you for nothing?"

Snape laughed in fury. He had never seen such a naive person!

Want to get something for nothing? No way!

"Of course I wouldn't take your knowledge for nothing. I'd be embarrassed to accept it if you were willing to give it to me."

Bell said things with a grin that no one would believe.

After saying that, he reached into his pocket, fumbled around for a while, and then pulled out a pale gold piece of metal, which he handed to Snape.

"Take a look at this."

"What kind of junk is this?"

Despite saying no, Snape instinctively took the metal from Bell's hand.

He knew very well that Bell, that brat, was full of good stuff, possibly even more valuable than his own family fortune.

"Arcanite".

Bell said.

"Arcanite?"

The name was unfamiliar to Snape, causing him to frown.

Although as a Potion Master, he usually deals primarily with biological magical materials, he also has some knowledge of metallic minerals.

Looking at the pale golden metal in his hand, even Snape, who had little knowledge of Alchemy, could feel the metal's powerful magical conductivity.

It even has a stronger magical conductivity than the Mithril he had previously encountered.

Such a precious metal, there's no way he'd never heard of it before.

"That's right, I named it Arcanite."

With a slight upturn of his lips, Bell understood Snape's confusion.

"This metal does not exist on Earth, so it's normal that you haven't heard of it."

"Doesn't exist on Earth? What does that mean?"

Snape looked at Bell with suspicion.

"Literal meaning. This metal was mined from Mars, and currently, only my family has it in the Magical World."

"Mars? Are you kidding me?"

Snape was a man of the world, and he wouldn't be fooled by such childish nonsense.

"I'm not joking with you. If you don't believe me, you can ask my father for confirmation later. Don't forget to mention that I told you."

"...are you serious?"

After staring intently at Bell and scrutinizing him several times, Snape asked incredulously.

"Certainly."

"How... how did you get up there?"

That's Mars! Mars is so far away!

Snape felt his worldview was in danger of crumbling. The last time he felt this way was in Potions Class last year, when he first talked to Shanna about Potions.

Could it be that these siblings have some grudge against him? Why are they both targeting his values?

Upon hearing Snape's question, Bell smiled broadly and slowly replied:

"Trade Secret, no comment."

"..."

Taking a deep breath, Snape barely managed to suppress the urge to punch Bell's smug face. He also managed to suppress his shock at Arcanite's origins.

After calming himself down, Snape looked at Bell again and steered the conversation back on track.

"Even if this metal called Arcanite comes from Mars, even if it's incredibly precious, so what? You think you can exchange such a small piece of metal for all my Potions knowledge?"

Snape gave a cold laugh.

Wishful thinking!