Snape, the Sunshine of Hogwarts

“I think the lunch break is over, it’s time to get back to work, sir.”

The lazy Ministry of Magic employee was startled awake by the noise. He put aside his newspaper, and when he saw who it was, a somewhat flustered expression appeared on his face.

"Professor Snape, what brings you to the Ministry of Magic?"

"Does the Ministry of Magic have a rule that prohibits Hogwarts faculty from entering?"

Severus jokingly handed over his wand.

"Hurry up and check according to the procedure, I still need to find someone."

The employee quickly took the wand and placed it on a strange-looking brass machine that resembled a single-pane balance.

Soon the machine vibrated and spat out a narrow sheet of parchment.

"Thirteen and a half inches long, birch wood, snake nerve core, everything is perfect, Professor." The clerk held the wand back to Severus with both hands.

Severus took it and glanced at a metal rod next to the clerk.

"Are no further tests needed?"

"Of course not for you. This isn't your first time at the Ministry of Magic. Who are you looking for this time? Do you need me to give you a heads-up?"

The employee asked proactively.

Severus simply waved his hand.

"I know where the Auror's office is, so you don't need to bother. If there's nothing else, then I'll say goodbye."

Goodbye, Professor.

Even after saying goodbye, the staff member's gaze remained fixed on Severus's departing figure.

He was still a little confused. When did Professor Severus Snape start speaking to others in such a polite manner?

After completing the routine checks, Severus, familiar with the area, led Harry in the elevator from the main hall on the eighth floor to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement on the second floor.

Before they even arrived, they encountered a middle-aged male wizard.

"Snape?" the wizard called out uncertainly.

Severus looked at him and smiled.

"Long time no see, Robaz."

In fact, although Severus's main job was Headmaster of Hogwarts, he had quite a few acquaintances in the Ministry of Magic, especially in the Auror office.

Ten years ago, Severus, then a Death Eater, had fought against many of the Aurors.

This has resulted in the current Auror office, where the younger Aurors are all his students, while the older Aurors have mostly been his rivals.

Like the Auror elite in front of him, who was on par with Kingsley—Gardwin Robards, who even personally participated in the trial of Severus.

Upon realizing that he had not mistaken the person for someone else, and that the drastically changed person in front of him was indeed the Severus Snape he knew, Robards' expression became wary.

What are you doing at the Ministry of Magic?

“I came to see Shakel. He consulted me yesterday about the poisoning case and said that if I was willing, I could help prepare an antidote for the victims.”

Upon hearing Severus's reply, Robaz looked him up and down, his wariness undiminished.

“Shakel has taken his men to find Libashu Polachi; he won’t be back until 3 p.m.

Severus looked up at the clock; there were only thirty minutes left until three in the afternoon.

"Can we wait here for him to come back?" he asked politely as always.

Robaz gave him a deep look, then said as he turned away.

"Come with me, I'll take you to the lounge."

On the way to the lounge, he remained silent the entire time. Harry could clearly sense that this wizard's respect for Severus was different from that of others; he was wary and resistant.

Soon, the two were led into a lounge next to the Auror's office, which had sofas and refreshments, making it a good place to wait.

“You know the rules. Two-thirds of the rooms in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement are secret rooms that outsiders cannot enter or leave at will. I hope you won’t make things difficult for me, Snape.”

Robaz reminded him in a threatening tone.

Severus raised an eyebrow and casually picked up a cookie from the coffee table.

"Of course, we'll definitely follow the rules, won't you agree, Dudley?"

Harry was intimidated by Robaz's unfriendly aura, and he nodded rapidly like a chicken pecking at rice.

After receiving assurances from the two men, Robaz turned and left to attend to his own case.

After he was completely gone, Harry asked in a low voice.

"Teacher, do you have a conflict with this gentleman?"

Severus said calmly.

“When I was young, I almost cut off his arm, the kind that couldn’t be reattached.”

Upon hearing this, Harry's eyes widened in shock. He finally understood why Robazs harbored such strong malice towards them.

"But he doesn't trust us, and not just because of that. But it doesn't matter, now your teacher is a proper good wizard, working under Dumbledore, he can't find fault with us."

Severus said casually.

Although Severus Snape was immediately recruited by Dumbledore after Voldemort lost power, many people still had serious doubts about Snape's true stance.

Some of these suspicions persist to this day, including those surrounding Robaz.

They always believed that Snape was an absolute villain, and that his so-called reformation and conversion were merely a means to avoid punishment.

But as Severus said, he now has Dumbledore protecting him and is Hogwarts' number one henchman.

Even if these people have grievances, there's nothing they can do about it.

Kingsley returned right on time.

At 3:02, the door to the lounge was knocked on and pushed open from the outside. The bald, dark-skinned Auror looked at Severus with a surprised expression.

"I didn't expect you to come today, Professor Snape!"

“Things went smoothly this morning, and I was also very interested in that potent Hellfire Elixir you mentioned, so I came here specifically for that,” Severus said, standing up.

"That's wonderful. With your help, the time needed to prepare the antidote should be reduced by a few more days."

Kingsley seemed unusually busy these past two days. He poured himself a cup of tea, drank it down in one gulp, and then said nothing more.

"We also happened to have invited Mr. Arseni Giger, and we were just about to go to the victim's side."

"When to set off?"

"The ministry has assigned someone to stand guard there. We need to wait for them to notify the victim's family in advance. We should get a reply in about ten minutes. But we can leave now and use the fireplace in the ministry to head to Bristol."

“Bristol?” Severus repeated the city name, which is located in southwest England.

"Yes, the victim wasn't an ordinary Muggle, but the daughter of a nobleman. They had an estate and a horse farm there."

As Kingsley spoke, he immediately began to act with swift and decisive action.

He led Severus and Harry to the Auror's office, where two Aurors, a Ministry of Magical Medicine Pharmacist, and another Potions Master, Arseni Giger, who had been invited, were waiting.

Upon seeing Severus, both the Ministry of Magic's pharmacist and Giggs stepped forward to greet him and express their admiration.

Putting everything else aside, Severus' potion-making skills are indeed among the best in the magical world today, and he is admired by many potion makers.

After a brief introduction, the hastily assembled antidote team did not linger. Led by Kingsley, they arrived at the fireplace in front of the Ministry of Magic.

Then, one person pinched a small amount of Floo Powder and began to line up to walk into the dark green flames.

Severus stayed behind with Harry, repeatedly emphasizing that Harry must pronounce the place name correctly before letting Harry sprinkle Floo Powder.

"Bardmington Estate in Bristol!"

Watching Harry disappear in the flames, and seeing that his pronunciation was perfect, Severus also went into the fireplace, heading towards the victim's house.

The green flames engulfed his figure, and the next second, Severus left the Ministry of Magic.

Chapter 20 Victim

"Do you really know how to use this?"

"Am I stupid? Am I an idiot? I haven't even graduated from Hogwarts?"

No, that's not what I meant.

The young man, whose face was abnormally pale, weakly explained under the tree.

At the top of the tree, a short, bespectacled wizard sat on a branch of the cedar tree, holding the alchemical telescope he had bought from Diagon Alley in front of his eyes, carefully observing the manor in the distance.

This telescope, crafted using a special alchemical process, was by no means cheap, costing the short wizard a considerable sum and putting him in a bad mood.

However, it is ultimately worth the price.

Even though they were more than two thousand meters away from the Duke's manor, they could still clearly see the extinguished fireplace in the living room through the window glass!

"They're coming today?" the young man asked anxiously.

“If they hadn’t come today, they wouldn’t have needed to go to those people yesterday.”

“Seriously, Elder,” the young man took a deep breath, “do you think we really should?”

However, the short wizard suddenly interrupted him at this moment.

"Shut up! They're here!"

The young man immediately shut his mouth tightly, as if it were sealed shut with thread.

“We were right, it’s Kingsley Shackle still leading the way.” The short wizard stared intently at the wizards who kept emerging from the fireplace flames. “His two henchmen are Chann Seewich and John Prout, and that useless apothecary from the Ministry of Magic.”

“Arsene Giger? They invited that idiot! If he comes, that's the best news, wait.”

"That boy is from Diagon Alley! What is he doing here!"

"Who?" the young man couldn't help but ask.

At that moment, the short wizard saw the last figure emerge from the fireplace flames, and he instinctively stopped breathing.

He quickly put away the expensive binoculars he had bought, and his short, stout body moved with the agility of a monkey, climbing down the cedar tree in no time.

The young man's already deathly pale face turned even paler, and he nervously swallowed.

"Who is it?"

"Snape! Severus Snape!" the short wizard uttered the name in a fit of rage.

The young man looked at him in horror.

"Didn't you say that he... he wouldn't agree to come?"

"Logically speaking, he rarely even leaves that castle! How could he possibly be interested in getting involved in something like this? Why did he come here?"

The short wizard was also pulling at his hair, completely baffled, and his face was extremely ugly.

But soon, he looked up at the young man again.

"We must make up our minds, Blood Nymph!"

The young man was extremely anxious and stammered.

"Things have already blown up big enough, we really, really need to..."

"You're the one who caused this mess! Now it's your turn to make a decision!" the short wizard said fiercely.

The air grew quiet, broken only by the young man's heavy breathing.

After a long while, his voice finally stopped stuttering.

"Okay, then let's do it. I promised. I promised."

Severus brushed the ashes off his robe and stepped out of the fireplace, which was clearly much more elaborate than those in an ordinary home.

Harry, who had arrived earlier, was looking up in amazement at the enormous, luxurious crystal chandelier hanging from the eight-meter-high ceiling.

As a noble manor, all the decorations here exude understated luxury and sophistication. Even the well-traveled Severus couldn't fully recognize the value of all the furniture.

Kingsley had already contacted the wizard who remained here, and he looked rather grim, as if he had heard some bad news.

"If they can really be cured by those Muggle doctors, then what are we for?"

At that moment, a middle-aged man dressed in a casual robe, with an elegant demeanor, walked into the reception room.