With the sound of shattering glass, a block of glowstone was suddenly tossed in through the iron bars.
The light shone upward across Maple's face from below, illuminating Kasenhis's equally conflicted expression.
"Professor, what are you doing here?" Maple asked in confusion.
Kasenhis shrugged. "School started today, and that's when I found out you'd been thrown into Azkaban. So I rushed over to rescue you. But now that I've seen your living conditions in prison, I feel like spending one more night here isn't exactly unbearable."
After all, Maple's crime was so mild by Azkaban standards that it was like SpongeBob arriving in an alternate-universe Bikini Bottom, only to find that world's Patrick demonstrating to that world's SpongeBob how a starfish eats.
As a result, Maple's cell wasn't just private, it was clean and tidy. It had a bed, a fireplace, a bathroom, a wardrobe, and even a small door that allowed her to leave the cell on her own. There was also a fishing rod and bucket nearby so she could go fishing to pass the time whenever she got bored...
"I feel like I wasted the trip. Seriously, do you even want to go back?" Kasenhis asked speechlessly.
"In principle, Professor, of course I want my freedom back. But the problem is that all I have to do is sleep one more night, and tomorrow morning I can leave legally. My father even got me a week off so I can rest and make up for my Christmas holiday. There's really no need to break out of prison at this point," Maple said awkwardly.
"Fine... Want me to help you fall asleep quickly?" Kasenhis sighed helplessly.
"An anvil?" Maple asked, scratching her head.
"No, no, of course not."
Kasenhis took out the knockout potion.
"Get into a comfortable position."
Maple looked extremely awkward. "On the bed? Right now? Aren't there still people outside?"
"Fuck this. You can stay here by yourself."
Kasenhis stiffly put the knockout potion away and immediately Ender Blinked back to Hogwarts.
"Wait... what? Huh?!"
...
Kasenhis moved quickly. By the time he returned to Hogwarts, the feast hadn't even officially started yet.
His seat, however, had shifted slightly.
He had no idea how Slughorn had managed it, but the man had moved Kasenhis's seat over beside his own, leaving Kasenhis pressed right up against him.
Snape, seated on Kasenhis's right, had also shifted over.
The two Potion Masters had very naturally boxed him in.
"So... what exactly are you two doing?" Kasenhis asked helplessly.
"Professor Kasenhis, I've already reprimanded Severus for failing to recognise greatness when it was right in front of him. Allowing you to waste your talent for Potions like this is nothing short of a disgrace to the entire field of Potions..."
Kasenhis ate while listening to Slughorn ramble endlessly beside him.
Although Slughorn had plenty of major and minor flaws, such as enjoying the sense of superiority he got from showing off in his own area of expertise in front of outsiders...
His willingness to admit when he was wrong and humbly ask questions was still quite admirable.
Kasenhis simply pulled out two brewing stands and handed one each to Snape and Slughorn, telling them to go study them themselves and stop bothering him while he ate.
"Uh... is there an instruction manual?" Slughorn asked.
"Didn't I just demonstrate it?" Kasenhis said, accidentally choking on the potato in his mouth. He quickly took the wineglass Slughorn handed him, washed down the mashed potato stuck in his throat, and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"At the time, I didn't know you could actually make something this impressive," Slughorn said somewhat sheepishly.
"You just put the ingredients into the little pot above the blaze rod. As for the details, figure them out yourselves. With your talent for Potions, shouldn't this be easy for you?" Kasenhis said before lowering his head and continuing to eat.
"I envy your digestion," Slughorn muttered.
"By the way, where's Green?" Snape asked quietly.
"When I got there, I used the knockout potion to put the guards down. Then I found out she was eating well and living comfortably. You could basically call it a holiday in a different place. And she said that all she had to do was sleep one more night, then tomorrow she could legally walk out after serving her sentence. There was absolutely no need to... break out of prison."
"Indeed." Snape nodded, picked up the brewing stand, and left the Great Hall, returning to his office to begin studying it.
The opening feast ended quickly. After all, this wasn't the start of a new school year, so there was no Sorting Ceremony to serve as entertainment. The young wizards ate faster than usual and returned to their common rooms early to rest.
Kasenhis also returned to his office, where he discovered that a young wizard had already been waiting for him.
"Orlant, let me guess. This is about Miss Green?"
"Uh, I really don't want to hear her name right now. I'm even considering finding an opportunity to assassinate her. Also, Professor, since you already know about this, could we change our lesson plan? I'm not particularly interested in enchanting," Orlant said, clutching his head.
"Why not? What do you want to learn?" Kasenhis asked without mentioning that he had secretly eavesdropped from the shadows that night.
For one thing, secretly following a student around in the middle of the night sounded rather perverted.
For another, if he admitted it, he would inevitably have to explain why he had been following them in the first place.
What was he supposed to say?
Because he suspected Maple was Voldemort?
And then he actually discovered that Maple really was Voldemort?
How was he supposed to explain something like that?
He couldn't.
"Thaumic Alchemy," Orlant said.
"No problem."
Kasenhis took out a blank notebook.
"Since you want to study Thaumic Alchemy, I assume you already have your own wand?"
"Of course, Professor."
Orlant pulled out his wand. At the tip was an exquisite metal cylinder.
"Have a look and figure out what your wand can do when combined with this blank notebook," Kasenhis said with a grin.
Orlant shook his head. "No need to figure it out, Professor. I already know!"
With that, he tapped the book with his wand.
The next moment, another Thaumonomicon appeared before the two of them.
...
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