Hogwarts: Starting as a Serpent Demon

Potions class continued, and Snape divided the students into pairs and instructed them on how to brew a simple potion to treat scabies.

Whether intentionally or not, Witt was grouped with Goyle by Snape.

This guy is a disaster.

If Witt isn't careful for even a moment, he'll mess things up.

She's a complete liability.

Several times, he almost caused Victor to be scolded by Snape.

Don't assume that Slytherins won't get scolded. If Slytherins make a mistake, Snape will scold them just the same way.

It just won't deduct points.

There will be no deliberate targeting.

The benefits are much better than those of other colleges.

Compared to Harry, Snape was really just looking for trouble. Every time the person at the next table made a mistake, Snape would yell at Harry, "Why didn't you help keep an eye on things? Are you proud to see your classmate make a mistake?"

Under this high-pressure policy of nitpicking, Neville, who was next to Harry, was caught in the crossfire and became so nervous that he lit a fire and added porcupine quills to the pot.

Witt noticed, but he did nothing.

They were too far apart for Neville to hear Vittor unless he yelled.

Given that Snape clearly still remembered what happened before, if Witt were to speak up rashly and disturb the other students, he would most likely get a scolding.

Even if Snape successfully prevented Neville from making a mistake, he might not necessarily earn points for him.

Snape had been loitering around him for half the day, looking for trouble, but hadn't found an opportunity yet.

Witte has no interest in or will not do things that offer no benefit and involve risks.

Silently watching Seamus help Neville leave the classroom.

Witt continued refining the potion, removing the crucible from the flame, reaching out to sense the temperature of the potion, adding the porcupine quills at the optimal point, and stirring clockwise five times.

The potion is ready.

Brewing potions involves the conversion of magical energy.

Through specific materials and rituals, the magical properties of the liquid in the crucible are altered, thus creating the potion.

Muggles cannot brew potions; only wizards can guide the transformation of magic within the cauldron.

Furthermore, actions such as turning clockwise, counterclockwise, or rotating several times, which have little impact on chemical reactions, have a significant impact on potion brewing.

Sometimes, turning the potion more than half a circle will greatly reduce its effectiveness.

Experienced potion masters can judge when to stop, or even modify some of the brewing steps, based on the subtle changes in the potion in the pot.

However, beginners are still advised to follow the instructions in the book.

In addition, there are no specific rules for brewing some high-level potions that can be copied verbatim; the brewer needs to rely on experience to make judgments.

Felix Felicis is such a magical potion that it requires constant monitoring and has a very long brewing time, taking up to six months.

For six months, the brewer had to judge when to rest and when to keep a close eye on the potion by observing the reaction in the crucible. Not only was their schedule completely disrupted, but a single mistake would mean starting all over again.

Therefore, Felix Felicis is truly priceless in the magical world. Potions Masters would never brew this stuff unless they needed it themselves or someone they had a good relationship with asked for it.

If they wanted to make money, they could have made money by brewing anything in six months, instead of having nothing better to do than brew Felix Felicis.

(PS: Felix Felicis simply increases luck. In a magical world where time can be manipulated, the future can be foreseen, and space can be stretched, Felix Felicis is one of the ultimate achievements of potions. If we were to explain the effects of Felix Felicis by functions such as increasing reaction speed, decisiveness, or intuition, then Felix Felicis would be a bit too much.)

As for the side effects of arrogance, when you're incredibly lucky and succeed at everything you do, anyone would become arrogant.

Chapter 24 Slughorn's Joy

As the potion was successfully brewed, pink smoke rose from the crucible in front of Vittoria, and the blue liquid was pure and clear.

Snape walked over, stared at the cauldron in front of Witt for two seconds, and then spoke.

"Perfect potion, Slytherin plus three points."

Although Snape didn't particularly like Witt, this year was a crucial juncture for Slytherin to achieve their seventh consecutive title, so Snape had no choice but to reluctantly give Witt points.

After sealing the potion, Witt's potion-making was completed, adding another item to his collection.

Looking at the potion in the pot, which could easily hold three bottles, Victor sighed regretfully. Just as he thought, no matter how many bottles a pot of potion yielded, it would only count as a small amount.

The score-boosting plan failed.

Witt calculated the cooking time and realized that if he worked without sleep, he could get a blue treasure chest in a day and a half.

Perhaps in the future, Witte could try brewing multiple potions at once to rack up achievements, but Witte isn't at that level yet.

After sealing the potion, Witt secretly kept a copy for himself, intending to send it to Slughorn.

This is the first potion he has ever truly concocted. He will buy some more materials later and, while grinding for achievements, concoct an even more perfect potion.

The two bottles of potion create a contrast, so Slughorn won't take the bait.

After Witt finished his homework, Snape never looked in his direction again.

Even with the simplest potion, only a few students can successfully brew it on the first try. Most students fail, but none of them suffer the same severe consequences as Neville.

It was the norm in the classroom to be scolded by Snape after a failure and then have to start the crafting process again.

When get out of class ended, Harry practically fled the classroom.

Even Quirrell's strong garlic smell couldn't have made Harry run that fast.

Witt packed his things and was about to leave when Snape suddenly called him back.

"Witt, you stay and clean the classroom."

"Yes, Professor."

Witt didn't ask why, since Snape wouldn't tell him anyway.

Half an hour later, all the classroom equipment was cleaned and looked brand new.

After examining the body, Snape not only failed to praise it, but spoke with disdain.

"You want to join my Potions Club? Do you think you're qualified, with just that boil-treating potion you just concocted?"

A trap; Snape is still digging one for him.

Witt raised his head and said calmly, "Professor, you and I both know that it was Mr. Lucius who wrote you the letter that allowed me to join the club."

“I can get Lucius to write you this letter; that’s the ticket.”

Snape paused for a moment, then said coldly, "Saturday afternoon, go down to the Slytherin common room. The password is Dragonblood."

He finished speaking and left without lingering for a moment.

Witt figured that even if he did go, he would just be an observer; Snape wouldn't teach him, much less introduce him to anyone else.

But that's enough.

Once you've crossed the threshold, the rest is up to you.

Moreover, Witt should thank Snape for keeping him here to clean the classroom.

In an inconspicuous corner of the Potions classroom, Victor quietly took out a small bag, weighed it in his hand, and a smile appeared on his lips.

If used sparingly, it can yield about four bottles of magic potion.

While cleaning the classroom, Witt discovered that most students had leftover raw materials for making medicine to treat boils on their desks.

He decisively categorized and secretly hid them, thus saving himself another sum of money.

Snape probably didn't care about these cheap items, since the Hogwarts Board of Governors would reimburse him anyway. He only checked some important teaching materials and didn't look at anything else.

This caused Vitbai a lot of worry, and he even had the Snake Demon keep a close watch on him to prevent him from being discovered.

"Let's go," Witt called from the Serpent Demon. "Back to concoct potions and try to secure Professor Slughorn's angel investment."

Compared to Snape, who didn't enjoy pleasure much, Slughorn was the real master of making money.

Snape was capable of making money, but he wasn't very interested in it. After Lily's death, Snape lost interest in living, let alone making money.

Slughorn enjoys pleasure, and pleasure requires money. Fortunately, he has the ability, motivation, and connections to make money.

Not only is he good at making money, but he also spends it lavishly.

They even gave away Felix Felicis as a classroom gift.

While Harry Potter may have played a part, it's enough to show how much money they're willing to spend.

Even the extra pay that Dumbledore gave him, which he considered not much, was still described by Slughorn as mere fluff.

He is good at making money and willing to spend it, and he is not petty. Slughorn can be described as the most perfect investor in Witt's mind, ranking as the number one priority target, on par with Dumbledore.

*

Slughorn's old house, the home of his late parents.

He used to only come here to rest during his holidays, but now it has become his permanent residence.

Even after retiring for so many years, Slughorn often misses his time teaching at Hogwarts.

He enjoys personally discovering geniuses, helping them grow, and earning their admiration and respect in return.

This would give him a genuine sense of satisfaction.

But now, many outstanding young people of the new generation in the magic world don't know him at all, and some haven't even heard of his name.

This deeply hurt Slughorn.

Slughorn had considered returning to Hogwarts, but the matter of Voldemort remained on his mind. Furthermore, Dumbledore's vague discovery of his conversation with Voldemort years ago only fueled Slughorn's fear.

He couldn't imagine what his life would be like if this were revealed.

Therefore, Slughorn decisively resigned back then and still doesn't dare to return to Hogwarts.

Fortunately, Voldemort had been dead for ten years, and Dumbledore seemed to have forgotten about it. A few days ago, he even came to visit him and recommended a young wizard with exceptional talent.

I also told him the embarrassing story of Snape being kicked by a bull.

Poor kid, Slughorn couldn't help but feel sorry for Witt after hearing this. He knew Snape's personality very well, having taught him for seven years.

Other professors might have just apologized and that would have been it, but Snape...