Chapter 69: Stay

The corridor outside the greenhouse.

A lady in an evening gown tilted her head, curiously observing the three Hufflepuffs passing by.

“Would you like some gingerbread?”

Pistor suddenly pulled out several gingerbread squares wrapped in tin foil from his bag.

Bruce swiftly stepped ten meters away from him:

“Sometimes I think you have no sense of taste, Pistor. We’ve been handling crushed south ginger powder for three days—it’s made me feel nauseous, and yet you still eat gingerbread?”

“It’s fine.”

Leon calmly ate a piece.

“And that’s smell… idiot.”

Bruce suddenly went blank, then muttered:

“So I spent three days handling stinking south ginger powder with two people who can’t smell, while I suffered alone?!”

He seemed to remember something, his expression excited, his words tumbling out fast:

“What spell?”

“The Bubble-Head Charm.”

Leon’s expression remained unchanged.

“I said your heads looked swollen these past few days—Merlin, you two didn’t tell me, just let me suffer?!”

Bruce instantly jumped up.

But Leon and Pistor merely looked at him calmly:

“If you hadn’t put itching powder in our hats and inner…”

“Heh, don’t say it—I’m sorry.”

…

“It’s the usual pattern again—by the fourth week, the greenhouse is empty again.”

Bruce mentioned it as if by chance,

“But I can’t shake the feeling that someone’s coming back.”

He leaned in front of Leon, who was holding a book, and Pistor, who held a potted plant:

“Wanna make a bet?”

“No bet.”

Leon glanced at him.

“You’re scared?”

Bruce stuck his nose high in the air.

Knowing he’d be nagged all day if he refused, Leon sighed:

“What’s the wager?”

“I bet a Ravenclaw assistant will join the greenhouse after today.”

“The stake?”

“You do one thing for me during Hogsmeade weekend!”

“Deal.”

Watching Bruce leave with a triumphant “Aha!” and a beaming grin, Leon sighed again at Pistor.

“Looks like we’ve got another thing to do during Hogsmeade weekend…”

Pistor nodded, holding his potted plant, his simple smile growing heavier.

…

The air inside the greenhouse always carried the fresh scent of damp soil and plant sap.

Sunlight streamed through the crystal glass dome, casting a bright, soft glow evenly over every leaf.

Plump Professor Sprout was lecturing:

“Ginger is a pungent aromatic plant root, also used as an ingredient in magical potions,

not only for swelling-reducing salves, but frequently in intelligence-enhancing and beauty potions as well.

Other uses include making ginger salamander cookies and gingerbread.”

The young witches and wizards stared intently at Professor Sprout as she displayed all the ginger roots on the planting racks.

“Ginger salamander cookies come from this weird thing?”

Seán heard a Slytherin say.

The young witches and wizards followed Professor Sprout’s instructions to process the ginger roots, after which she immediately led them to another plant—

a shriveled, pearl-white bean, resembling an enlarged version of mistletoe berries.

“Well… who can tell me what this is?”

Professor Sprout smiled gently; the Slytherins and Ravenclaws flipped through their textbooks together.

The primary textbook consulted was Filida Spore’s “A Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi.”

Although this witch died in 1408, her “A Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi” remained one of Hogwarts’ textbooks as late as 1997.

If Seán remembered correctly, there was a portrait of her in the Headmaster’s office.

“So…”

Seeing several Ravenclaws glance toward one spot, Professor Sprout located Seán in the crowd.

Sleep bean. It has many magical properties and is also used in potion-making.

Note: ingesting the silver juice squeezed directly from the sleep bean erases memories.

Seán always felt this scene was strangely familiar.

Herbology class ended amid noise, and the greenhouse grew chaotic again.

Some soil had been spilled onto the paths; faint, uneven footprints could occasionally be seen.

Professor Sprout watched the young witches and wizards file out—normally, several Hufflepuffs would flood in at this hour,

but now the space was empty.

Just as an owl hooted overhead, a young witch had quietly slipped to the front of the professor’s wide skirt.

“Professor, can I stay and help?”

Seán held up a pair of gloves, his emerald eyes gleaming.

“Of course, my dear Green, remember? The greenhouse welcomes every child who loves nature.”

Professor Sprout’s smile was deeper than ever.

Some children simply can’t be sent away—they’re born to belong to nature.

“Come along, child. Let’s tidy the greenhouse, then you’ll learn to process south ginger.”

Professor Sprout remained enthusiastic.

Cleaning the greenhouse increases proficiency in Cleaning Charms; processing south ginger increases Herbology Knowledge proficiency.

So Seán was eager—and there was another reason:

South ginger powder is one of the ingredients for swelling-reducing potions; tonight, Seán planned to brew exactly that.

…

Hogwarts professors were known for their wealth, and if one were to rank the richest, Professor Snape would be a strong contender.

This was evident from his rare potion ingredients—like African tree snake skin and Gillyweed.

This was also part of why Seán studied Potions beyond his thirst for magical knowledge—it was the most profitable and fastest-returning avenue he could access.

Sometimes he wondered if Professor Snape’s robes carried an Undetectable Extension Charm—how else could he have endless Galleons?

Stable material resources ensured Seán’s magical studies remained steady, but Seán was always unstable,

like how he’d recently lost his notebook.

A normal student’s notebook lasted a whole term; his lasted no more than three weeks.

Learning herb processing was the necessary first step toward brewing better potions and accumulating wealth.

Think of it—there were so many potions and herbs; the top-tier ones, like Felix Felicis, could sell for hundreds of Galleons—and still be impossible to find.

So the interface kept refreshing:

【You processed one south ginger root to apprentice standard, proficiency +1】

【You processed one south ginger root to apprentice standard, proficiency +1】

…

As the sun dipped low, as Seán left the greenhouse, the interface refreshed again:

【Herbology Knowledge: Apprentice (59/900)】

【Advancement: Entry-level Herbology Knowledge unlocked—Entry-level Herbology Title available】

Through processing south ginger and other plants, Seán gained a total of 33 proficiency points.

Outside the greenhouse, as Seán walked down the corridor, three figures slowly emerged.