Chapter 11: Two Choices

Wizard Sean had originally thought brewing potions was not too difficult, given its strict steps.

But the reality was far simpler than he imagined.

He knew to toss dried stinging nettles and ground snake fangs into the cauldron and simmer them together, then add porcupine quills after extinguishing the heat.

But this was only a brief description; once put into practice, problems arose at every turn.

How finely must the snake fangs be ground? How long after extinguishing the heat should the porcupine quills be added?

How much force should be used to stir? What arc should the stirring follow? When exactly should stirring occur?

The book recorded nothing about these questions, and Professor Snape had offered not a single word of explanation.

Wizard Sean suspected these were things wizards simply didn’t need to explain.

Perhaps there was an instinct—like the peculiar feeling he’d had when learning the Levitation Charm—that guided wizards naturally.

And because this was something everyone knew, or would quickly sense even without being taught,

no one bothered to teach it.

And Professor Snape likely hadn’t even noticed these issues.

Otherwise, as a master of potions, it was nearly impossible he hadn’t spotted them.

“But I’m clearly a failure, so these problems became my obstacles.”

Wizard Sean sighed inwardly,

and his guess was confirmed the next second when, following the book’s steps and whatever instinct he could muster,

the cauldron—in his “I knew it” and Jia Jia Siting’s puzzled gaze—

turned into blue potion.

“I remember, the Wart-Cure Potion isn’t this color.”

Jia Jia Siting scratched his head, doubtful of the result.

The cauldron bubbled steadily, the blue potion slowly thickening,

and Professor Snape’s expression grew just as foul.

“Idiots!”

He strode over, his robes slicing sharp arcs through the air,

“I suspect, beyond stirring and heat control, your material preparation is also severely flawed...”

Professor Snape waved his wand, and a stool appeared before him; he sat down with effortless grace,

his gaze locked firmly on the blue potion. After only a few seconds of observation, he sneered,

“Stupid choice of porcupine quills, troll-grade stinging nettles, and catastrophic snake fang selection—

you actually chose non-toxic fangs?! Two fools worthy of hanging on the wall!”

He roared without mercy, sweeping his wand to vanish the entire potion.

“You should be grateful your steps weren’t wrong—you’d have learned exactly what fools suffer in potion-making!”

His voice chilled like the dungeon’s icy wind.

“One point deducted—from each of you.”

Jia Jia Siting had sensed trouble the moment Snape appeared, but such a barrage of mockery still flushed his face red;

Wizard Sean’s wide eyes lost their luster, just as they had when practicing spells—he had not the faintest instinct for potion-brewing.

He could already guess his talent for potions.

Even after class ended, the young wizards dared not speak loudly; the shadow of Potions still loomed over everyone.

“Wizard Sean, don’t worry—we’ll earn back the lost points.”

Jia Jia Siting’s voice reached Wizard Sean’s ear, as if he were also trying to convince himself.

“Mm.”

Wizard Sean appeared dazed, but inside, his thoughts had settled.

If he stopped at every difficulty, obstacle, or mockery,

he wouldn’t have even learned the Levitation Charm.

His distraction came not from despair, but from chewing over Professor Snape’s words.

Failed heat control, improper stirring, flawed material selection...

These were the fundamentals of potion-making—and Wizard Sean’s problems.

Two paths now lay before him:

One was to brew potions blindly, like he had with spells, relying on luck to accumulate experience.

He dismissed this path the moment it appeared.

Potions were not like spells.

This was no safe branch of magic.

Preparing and brewing potions was dangerous and unpleasant; a single misstep could turn the mixture into toxic fumes.

Trying by chance was like gambling your fate against potions.

That left only the other path.

Understand this branch of magic as quickly as possible, solve every potential problem,

then gain proficiency through practice, earn titles, and raise his talent.

This path was far more complex and difficult, but clearly viable.

And once he succeeded once, his speed would accelerate dramatically.

“Solve one problem at a time—but quickly. Hogwarts has more than just this subject.”

Wizard Sean’s voice was audible only to himself.

The Great Hall’s tables overflowed with food:

roast turkey, sausages, buttered peas, meat gravy, cranberry sauce, Christmas pudding, turkey sandwiches, roasted crumpets...

A dazzling array.

His poor talent and Professor Snape’s biting tongue did nothing to dim Wizard Sean’s appetite.

Merlin’s beard... this was delicious.

Wizard Sean ate with swift, elegant efficiency.

For half a year, he had never eaten a full meal—not even at the Welcome Feast yesterday had he eaten more than seven-tenths.

The orphanage couldn’t afford to source enough food, so it often cut back.

As for how to cut back, Nurse Anna had once proposed the theory that a child needed only one meal a day.

Acid reflux in the middle of the night was unbearable,

and at his hungriest, Wizard Sean often eyed the stray dogs outside the orphanage as emergency rations.

“Hermione! Over here!”

Jia Jia Siting called out to Hermione, who was looking for a quiet corner to sit.

She quickly blushed and hurried over.

“You’re too loud!”

Hermione glared at Jia Jia Siting.

“Sorry, I was afraid you wouldn’t hear me.”

Jia Jia Siting’s dimples deepened.

“Our first class this afternoon is Herbology—I noticed it’s the most frequent class on the schedule...

I guessed it won’t be easy, so I memorized the textbook again, hoping it’ll help.

By the way, I heard you had Potions today...”

Hermione tilted her head, firing off a rapid stream of words.

“Herbology sounds wonderful—will you learn about magical plants? Like... as for Potions, I have to say...”

Jia Jia Siting listened carefully, and soon they were deep in discussion.

Their voices faded slowly in Wizard Sean’s mind as he pulled out his schedule, lost in thought.

【Wednesday morning: Herbology, Wednesday afternoon: Herbology, Friday afternoon: Herbology】

Indeed, the most frequent of all classes.

Hogwarts’ schedule must have purpose—Herbology’s heavy load must be necessary.

So why was that?

“...Catastrophic material selection... your material choices were almost certainly flawed...”

Wizard Sean sorted through Professor Snape’s words, and within seconds, he understood.

Herbology teaches wizards how to prepare materials—and material preparation is the first step in potion-making.

Therefore, it was clear: to learn potions, one must first learn Herbology.