The Rune Mage Starting at Hogwarts

However, after a brief moment of surprise, Jemma said to Ridge, "Riz, I think you should know that we are only about 20% complete in the entire process of brewing the wolfsbane medicine. We are still a long way from completing the standard wolfsbane medicine brewing process."

"Although this honey candy does look very tempting, in potions, it's very dangerous to try to run before you can walk. I think you haven't forgotten how you practiced euphoria last year."

Penelope thought similarly.

This new material does sound very appealing.

But they are practicing these basic skills now, and it's impossible for them to spend too much time on improvement.

“I know what you’re worried about,” Ryze said, looking at the two senior students. “Talking about improvements before even starting the process does sound a bit far-fetched. When I was practicing with the 'Enjoyment Agent' last year, it was only because I had nearly a hundred batches of it that I was able to capture that spark of inspiration with sufficient proficiency.”

He paused for a moment, then pointed to the small bottle of fruit pulp in his hand: "But the truth is, even if we wanted to devote ourselves wholeheartedly to the improvement research now, we don't have that many materials to squander."

"Professor Sprout's second batch of fruit won't ripen until at least before Easter, and most of it has already been pre-ordered by Professor Snape. The small portion I have now probably won't even make a single pot of wolfsbane medicine."

“So my idea is that we don’t need to change the current rhythm,” Rez placed the glass bottle on the table. “Weekly basic training is still the focus. We just need to do some medicinal testing on this small amount of pulp.”

"If the drug test results are mediocre, we'll abandon this approach. But if its drug properties are indeed excellent, then we just need to spend some time studying which neutralizers it can replace."

"After the second batch of fruit ripens around Easter, we can use it for one or two more formal trials. This won't delay our practice progress much; on the contrary, it might give us a backup plan."

After hearing what Rez said, Gabriel was the first to express his agreement.

His basic skills were second to last among the six people present.

The student who came in last place was Rez, a first-year student.

He knew that if he were to follow the standard preparation method exactly, he would have a very difficult time producing a qualified wolfsbane medicine within six months.

So when he heard that there was a chance to reduce the difficulty of making honey candy, he felt that he had to seize the opportunity.

“The neutralizing agents mixed together are more troublesome to handle than explosive liquid. If we can reduce some of them, I think the difficulty of making it can be reduced by a factor of two. For the sake of this profit, I think we can spend more time on it.”

After Gabriel shared his views, Jemma thought about it seriously for a while, and finally nodded to Ryze.

“If it’s just a simple test of the drug’s effectiveness, that’s fine. Tell me about the treatment method Professor Snape used, and I’ll see if I can restore him.”

Chapter 161: Riz, who keeps bringing miracles

Rizz explained in detail the methods Snape had used. Although Jemma had never seen such a method before, the six of them were, after all, the most talented potion-wielding students at Hogwarts.

After several hours of discussion and research, Jema, the most skilled of the six, successfully replicated the method Snape used according to Ritz's instructions, and confirmed through experiments that this method could integrate the material into the potion into the crucible faster than the conventional method.

“It’s almost 15% more efficient than the usual method, and the stability of the potion has also improved... As expected of Professor Snape, his casual demonstrations are far superior to those in the textbooks,” Gemma exclaimed, then looked at Rhett, “But this time we also benefited from your expertise; this technique should be useful in the preparation of many potions.”

Despite Snape's apparent favoritism towards Slytherins both in and out of the classroom, he taught the same things in Potions class.

Only Jemma and those who had previously participated in the Potions Feast were occasionally given the chance to have a private stove at Snape's place.

This act of opening a small stove usually meant that Snape allowed them to stand by and watch his potion-making process while he was researching potions.

Moreover, Snape never stopped to explain in detail, relying more on the individual's understanding.

Even so, the things Snape, the Potions Master, occasionally revealed were always incredibly beneficial to them.

In other words, Snape's willingness to demonstrate this technique to Raz was partly a favor to Raz, and partly a sign of his respect for the Honey Fruit.

After several small-scale medicinal tests, the final results of this small sample of honey fruit completely exceeded those of the original product.

Ritz's description of the fruit was not an exaggeration at all; in fact, it could be said that Ritz underestimated it.

"Incredible... such a small amount of fruit pulp can actually suppress the toxicity of so many materials."

Penelope sighed as she calculated the complex potion formulas on the parchment.

"If we calculate based on this data, this honey fruit does indeed have the potential to replace the most expensive and most sensitive neutralizing agent in the medicine, reducing the difficulty of preparation."

“Conservatively speaking, this could reduce the workload by more than 10%,” Jema said, a strange light flashing in her eyes as she looked at the green fruit.

Reducing the amount of work by 10% reduces the difficulty of cooking by more than 10%.

If the chance of them successfully producing the wolfsbane medicine within six months was only about 50% before, now, with the addition of this honey fruit, the chance has probably increased to nearly 70%.

Before completing the medicinal tests on the honey fruit, she felt that Ritz was trying to learn to run before he could walk.

But after multiple tests and confirmations, she felt that this was not running at all, but rather that she had grown wings and taken off from the spot.

If they can ensure that the fruit ripens around Easter, they may not only be able to produce the wolfsbane medicine, but they may even have a chance to complete the improvement of the wolfsbane medicine in one go.

At that time, not only will they be able to pass Snape's test, but those of them who participated in the research and development will probably become famous in the wizarding world.

They even have a chance to receive a Merlin Medal.

Thinking this, her gaze fell on Ryze again.

This little wizard, who has been in school for half a year, has already shown her too many unimaginable "surprises".

At first, he was disliked by Snape, but in less than two months, he was able to catch up with their progress in potions.

When they were stuck on the bottleneck in brewing the wolfsbane medicine, the other party simply pulled out a completely new ingredient and completely won them over with its medicinal properties.

She felt that if the other party continued like this, by the time the potion-making speed-up began, even she would only be able to work as the other party's assistant.

However, if the other party can continue to perform more miracles later on, then even if I were to work as their assistant, it wouldn't seem so unacceptable.

......

After confirming the medicinal properties of the honey fruit, the members of the potions team seemed to have received a shot of adrenaline.

Over the next two weeks, not only did I become more diligent in practicing the brewing techniques, but the wolfsbane, aconite, and honey fruit used as raw materials in the greenhouse also received unprecedented meticulous care, and their growth is now very promising.

This thriving scene is naturally inseparable from Ritz's contribution.

To ensure there are enough ingredients before Easter, Raz has been spending as much time as possible with Neville in the greenhouse lately.

In the areas that he and Neville cared for, the plants were significantly more vigorous and grew faster than in other places.

This is the rune ability of "Your Labor Fruits". Basically, any plant he carefully cultivates can gain this buff, and he shared this connection with Na'vi, who usually spends the most time in the greenhouse.

Tonight, Ritz came over to prune the excess branches and leaves from the wolfsbane and aconite plants.

As he worked, he glanced at a shadowy spot in the corner of the greenhouse.

There were two red-haired figures peeking around suspiciously in that area.

“Fred, George, if you’re planning to play a prank in the greenhouse, you’d better do it another time. Don’t get me involved,” Raz said without looking up.

The two tufts of red hair swayed, and then Fred and George emerged from the shadows with grins on their faces.

They were holding quill pens and parchment in their hands.

Fred spread his hands, indicating that he had only brought paper and pen, no feces bomb, and no Barbour tubercle pus: "Why would we drag our dearest boss into this? Besides, we're not here to play pranks."

"On the contrary, we're here to learn, for our Wizard Auto Chess," George pointed to some dangerous plants at the other end of the greenhouse. "We designed a botanist profession, so we want to see what plants botanists use in battle, and to make the battle effects of those pieces more realistic, we also need to see firsthand how these plants fight."

Hearing the conversation between the two, Ryze stood up, grabbed two pairs of gloves from a nearby shelf, and threw them to the other person.

"There's no need to be sneaky about this. I'll take you there directly later, but before that, finish up the work here for me."

Chapter 162: Plant Affinity

“Riz, you’re really starting to act like a boss, ordering people around without any restraint,” Fred said, putting on his gloves and getting to work, while also being curious about what Riz was saying. “But judging from what you’re saying, you seem to have some influence with Professor Sprout now?”

“I’ve recently made some small contributions to the development of herbal medicine,” Rizzi said, tossing the cut branches into a basket. “So now Professor Sprout is taking a fairly good look at me and has given me a little help with some small cooking.”

“A negligible contribution,” George said to Fred with a wink, “I bet we’ll see our boss’s name in those academic journals next month. Maybe then we can add his pieces to our auto chess game.”

Although they didn't know about honey fruit, what they said was absolutely right.

Professor Sprout has been incredibly busy lately, not only teaching classes and tending to various plants, but also staying up late writing papers.

Because Madam Pomfrey raved about the restorative effects of the Honey Fruit, and Snape gave it a very high rating in his potion analysis, even Dumbledore came over to take a look.

The Hogwarts Board of Directors is now very interested in this and is just waiting for Sprout's thesis to be completed.

"Alright, you'll find out soon enough. Let's get back to work," Ryze said, pointing to the remaining wolfsbane and aconite, indicating that they should hurry up and finish the rest of the work.

Although the twins are usually mischievous, they are quite efficient when it comes to work.

Before long, the three of them finished the job.

Looking at the aconite that the three of them had processed, George was a little puzzled: "Is there something wrong with my intuition? Although the aconite we processed looks the same, it seems that the aconite that you processed, Ryze, looks more vibrant than the ones we processed?"

Fred also came over to compare them.

There is indeed no difference in appearance, but Reese does look more natural.

“I guess I’m more familiar with them. Actually, there’s not much difference,” Ryze casually replied, then stood up and patted the dirt off his clothes.

"Alright, the work here is done, let's go take a look at the materials now."

The three of them passed through greenhouse number one and arrived at the locked area inside the greenhouse.

The door lock is engraved with a danger warning, indicating that the plants inside are somewhat dangerous.

Rez opened the door with practiced ease and then walked ahead.

The air behind the door had a pungent, damp smell.

"Watch out, those are poison tentacles," Rizz quickly pulled Fred away from an attack by a poison tentacle with barbs hanging down from the shelf.

Fred had certainly heard of the dangers of the poison tentacles.

Those are highly dangerous plants that they only encounter in sixth grade; they automatically attack people who pass by.

If you are injured by its thorns, even if you receive timely treatment, you will have to stay in the hospital for at least a week.

Fred looked at Reiz with a strange expression: "I'm right behind you. You walked past it first, why didn't it react at all?"

“Maybe I look more harmless, or maybe they don’t like the smell of you,” Ryze said, then brushed aside the vine that was trying to probe further from behind.

After Rizzi brushed the poisonous tentacle vine away, it didn't launch another attack; instead, it remained safely on the shelf.

“This isn’t right, this is very wrong,” George asked, watching Reese’s actions. “You didn’t spray some kind of special plant affinity agent on yourself, did you?”

“After all, Professor Sprout was willing to give me a copy of the key here, so of course I have a way to deal with them,” Raz didn’t explain in detail. “In short, you guys hurry up and take notes, and if you want to see how they fight, stay away.”

After all, this plant affinity is an additional effect of your Labor Fruit rune.

Although the effect is not very strong and it cannot control these dangerous plants, it can at least prevent them from harming him on their own.

Similar constitutions are not common in the wizarding world, but there are still quite a few.

Newt Scamander, for example, has a magical affinity for animals, making it easier for him to form friendships with them.

It was precisely because of this plant affinity that Reese exhibited after completing the cultivation of the honey fruit that the busy Professor Sprout, after confirming it multiple times, finally felt comfortable giving Reese a copy of the key.

Ryze stepped back with the twins, then took a few apples from a basket in the distance and casually tossed them toward the center of the poisonous tentacle.

The vines that were originally tucked away on the trellis suddenly began to throb violently the moment the apple entered their attack range.

The barbs with barbs pierced the apple with precision.

Immediately afterwards, the venomous tentacles tightly wrapped around the apples, and with a crisp sound, the apples were instantly crushed into pieces. The venomous tentacles also quickly absorbed all the juice from the apples, leaving only the pulp to be thrown aside.

"This is the attack method of the poison tentacles. They are very agile and powerful when hunting, and their venom is extremely potent. If you are poisoned and entangled by them, you have almost no chance to escape. They will continuously drain your blood until all your blood is drained. If there is any drawback, it is that the attack range is not large, at most a little over a meter. This can be designed as a small-range poison attack in the game."

“That sounds really powerful,” Fred said, quickly noting down the shape and attack method of the poisonous tentacles on the parchment.

“So it was quite dangerous for you to sneak out here at night to gather materials. It’s only average here,” Rizz led the two deeper into the greenhouse, where the environment became even darker. “This is the Devil’s Web.”

A large clump of vines slowly wriggled around the trellis, and when they sensed someone approaching, they quickly surged toward Ryze and the others.

Ryze stepped forward and lightly touched a vine at the edge of the Devil's Net with his toes. Sensing Ryze's presence, the vine gently and amicably wrapped around Ryze's calf.

Then he turned to the twins: "You all know about the Devil's Web, right? You learn about its characteristics in first grade, and start cultivating it in third grade. It's considered one of the safest dangerous plants. However, the lessons in class will teach you to avoid the dangerous places where the Devil's Web is. Now, does anyone want to experience what it's like to be 'strangled' by the Devil's Web?"

Chapter 163: Let's talk about it after I get the Chocolate Frog card.

George and Fred certainly didn't back down.

Ryze had barely finished speaking when the two of them started arguing about who should go first.

“Then let me give it a try,” George said, shoving the parchment into Ridge’s hand with a look of grim determination. “If I don’t make it, remember to write on my tombstone that I was the braver twin.”

Fred, however, was not convinced.

"Come on, George, when it comes to guts, you haven't forgotten that I'm the older brother, have you?" Fred grabbed George's arm and pulled him back. "This kind of sacrifice for art is definitely something I should do."

George pushed back defiantly: "You were only born a few minutes before me, and when we first went to the Forbidden Forest, it was I who suggested it first!"

The two of them didn't seem to be facing any dangerous plant at all; rather, they were arguing about who had initiated each of their adventures over the years, as if they were fighting over some delicious food.

Rizz looked at the two clowns with a hint of helplessness.

“If you keep arguing, we won’t have enough time. I’m planning to get back before 10 p.m..”

"Did you hear that? The boss has spoken, so let's not discuss this anymore," George said, taking advantage of Fred's inattention, he darted into the range of the Devil's Net, winked at Fred and Reiz, "So the recording work is yours, Fred!"