Bring a fairy tale to Hogwarts!

Like the Slytherin common room, the Potions classroom is located in the basement of Hogwarts Castle.

Because of its proximity to the Black Lake, this place is much colder and more gloomy than the main castle building above, and there are far fewer candles placed next to the potions classroom, making it fit all the Muggles' fantasies about the dwelling of an evil wizard.

When Malfoy pushed open the door to the Potions classroom, a huge pile of bottles and jars containing animal organs came into view, making him involuntarily flinch.

But he did not leave because of this.

Draco Malfoy took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, and approached the door on the inside of the Potions Chamber. Just as he raised his hand to knock, he suddenly heard some faint voices coming from inside.

"...How many flowers do you want? I can't sell them all to you; I need to keep some for landscaping inside the house."

It was a voice he didn't recognize, vague, low, and sinister.

"Give me fifteen to start, I'll pay with an Obscurial. You should be interested." It was Snape, Malfoy recognized him.

"What is that?" the first voice asked again.

"This is something formed from a wizard who has been suppressed since childhood. If you enjoy studying souls and magic, it might be the perfect subject. I happen to have a way to buy one... but it's much more expensive than these flowers. You'll have to..."

Malfoy listened curiously for a while, but then heard nothing more. He pondered for a moment, concluding that Snape was probably making some kind of deal, so he simply knocked on the door to test the waters.

"Knock knock knock".

"……Come in."

Snape's cold, sticky voice came from inside.

When Malfoy pushed open the door and went in, he was not surprised to find that there was another person in the room.

It was Victor, the divination professor whose classes Malfoy had never attended. He was holding a flower in his hand that Malfoy didn't recognize; it was fluorescent blue and emitted a sweet fragrance that filled the entire room.

"Draco, what brings you here?"

Snape then turned to Draco, seemingly impatient, but his attitude was much better than when he treated other students, after all, he was one of their own from Slytherin.

Draco, trying to ignore the very noticeable Victor, complained to Snape:

"Headmaster, Harry Potter from Gryffindor has been illegally enrolled in their Quidditch team and given a flying broomstick—this is unfair! He's only a first-year student!"

"I said it before, you should address me as 'Professor' in the office."

"...I'm sorry, Professor."

After Draco apologized, Snape's cold expression softened somewhat, but he still spoke with a mocking tone:

"I've heard about Potter's situation. It's clear that Minerva placed too much hope in our savior. But unfortunately, I have no reason to make an exception for you."

"I can do what Porter does too," Draco said, disgruntled. "He just swooped down from the sky to catch a ball, and I can too—"

"And then break your neck? And have your mother come yelling at the school?"

Snape gave a cold "humph," clearly well aware of Draco's flying skills.

He had heard Draco’s boasts countless times when he passed the Slytherin table last week, as if he had spent his entire childhood playing with flying broomsticks—and these stories always ended with him narrowly escaping a Muggle helicopter.

Doesn't he, a close friend of the Malfoys, know whether these stories are true or not?

If Draco were to use Harry Potter's Quidditch skills, even if he were to be unharmed, Narcissa Malfoy would storm into Hogwarts tomorrow demanding to know who allowed her son to perform such a deadly act...

Snape flatly rejected Draco's request, even taking the opportunity to make a sarcastic remark, clearly dissatisfied with Draco's recent performance.

Victor watched the interaction between the two from the side, raising his eyebrows.

He hadn't expected Snape to have friends. He had assumed Snape, like most of the witches he knew, was the reclusive type.

Victor looked Malfoy up and down for a moment, then suddenly said to Snape:

"How is he?"

"What?"

Snape didn't react in time.

"A prophecy. I can make a prophecy for him. His future is clear, but it's also intertwined with yours..." Victor casually mentioned what Malfoy had heard before, "That's just the right value."

"...I thought I could choose the prophecies I traded for myself."

"You're overthinking it, Severus. Prophecies can't be that precise."

Victor said it casually, but only received a skeptical look from Snape—his first prophecy to Trelawney was extremely detailed.

Victor ignored his gaze.

Snape had just struck a deal with him for nightshade flowers; apparently, those flowers had considerable potion value and were said to be able to enhance the effects of certain poisons.

Victor wasn't initially very interested in this purely monetary transaction, but when Snape mentioned "Obscurials," his interest was piqued, and he naturally didn't mind going the extra mile—Obscurials seemed to be a special kind of living wizard that could be preserved.

Moreover, he was quite certain that there was still much more value to be discovered in Snape…

On the other side, Draco was still not quite understanding the change in the situation. He glanced suspiciously at Victor, who had recently become quite famous at the school, and then at his headmaster, Snape.

"What did you predict about me?" Malfoy asked. "Can I be better than Potter? That doesn't need a prophecy, does it? That foolish Potter has sided with the wrong people..."

"The truth may be quite the opposite, Mr. Malfoy," Victor said casually.

"what?"

Malfoy paused for a moment.

Foolish Potter chose the wrong side, or if it's the exact opposite... does that mean Potter didn't choose the wrong side, but he did?

Snape seemed to be still hesitating, but Victor had already stood up and placed one hand in front of Draco, causing Draco to subconsciously take two steps back.

The next second, Victor opened his hand, and a wisp of smoke inexplicably appeared in his palm.

The smoke, carrying scarlet specks of light, quickly spread throughout the room, gathering into a circle.

Just as Snape was about to question what it was, a muffled sound, like thunder, suddenly came from within the smoke, and a faint image seemed to appear in the center—

It seemed to be a dark, long hall, with several figures sitting inside, and the decorations had a vaguely retro feel.

The time for a decision has come.

"He's just a child!" another person suddenly roared. "How could he possibly complete such a task?"

[A child? He's no longer a child when his master gives the order; he's just a tool. If he fails, he's worthless—the world has no need for weakness.]

Let me do it! I can carry out the orders instead of putting this child at risk! This is my son—my only son—

The argument grew increasingly heated, and the figures in the smoke thrashed about uneasily, like some kind of trapped wild beast. But just as all the sounds reached their peak, a sharp and cold voice silenced everything:

【alright.】

Draco couldn't help but shudder upon hearing the voice.

The voice spoke slowly and deliberately:

[Malfoy's child... if he's still a child, it's Lucius's fault, not mine.]

He must go and bring me Dumbledore's life—this is not about ability, but about loyalty. If he fails, the honor of the Malfoy family will be buried...

"Enough! What is this?!"

Snape suddenly stood up, his face extremely pale, one hand covering his other arm as if there was something on it.

As he stood up, the black mist completely dissipated into the air.