The fire went out.
Ian wiped his nonexistent forehead sweat.
"Without me, this potion would have been ruined!"
Just as the torchbearer must carry a torch, the fire maker must prepare the fuel.
Mastering the fire is a skill.
Whether it's cooking ingredients or brewing magic potions, an excellent mastery of the fire is always crucial, it's an indispensable key element that determines success and failure, victory and defeat. In short, it's filled with responsibility and hardship, at least that's how Ian sees it. Moreover, his personal panel aligns with his worldview.
[Master of Potions (Level 2) 65/200]
Ian has actually always been attentive to every brewing step.
Practice leads to true knowledge.
How others view it doesn't matter; with over ten points of skill level growth, there's no need to say more, one can only say this has been a thoroughly exhilarating potion-making session!
"We're really great, the first ones to finish, and the quality looks quite good."
Ian didn't notice Snape not far away, a face on the verge of breaking his teeth, and began instructing Aurora on completing the final step of potion brewing.
"Mm, mm."
Following Ian's instructions, Aurora poured the potion into a container, looking at this bottle of good-quality Boil Potion, a satisfied smile appeared on her naturally cool face.
First attempt at brewing a potion with great success.
This is a sense of achievement.
"You're amazing! I even feel we're both future masters of magic potions!"
Ian continued providing emotional value.
Aurora's material handling and control during brewing were indeed outstanding, but Ian felt that his occasional guidance must have played a substantial role as well.
Commanding others in potion brewing.
How could that not count as a gift for potions?
"I wonder if we can take the potion back." Aurora seemed like a collector; she carefully placed her and Ian's work on the table.
At this moment.
Thinking more made him angrier, Snape, unable to come to terms with it, angrily marched over. He couldn't endure Ian Prince's desecration of the family's honor.
How could the Prince family produce such a fire-maker!
"Professor, look at our work! Give us a score!"
Ian felt the best piece of work in this class was his and Aurora's, but he didn't realize his proactive comment only added fuel to the fire.
"Slytherin gets five points, Ravenclaw loses one!" Snape, without a word, first calmed his emotions, then made a stiff justification for his actions.
"This potion is evidently the result of Miss Grindelwald's excellence, completed well, and if it weren't for your drag, I think the final quality would be somewhat better."
Snape didn't loudly proclaim, merely coldly reprimanded from beside the table.
"This is plainly the result of both of us." Ian naturally disagreed, how could his personal panel lie? He had deeply participated in this potion brewing process.
"Professor, I think Ian is right."
Aurora chimed in alongside, face full of agreement.
Seeing this outstanding student from his college actually siding with an outsider, Snape's forehead was about to twist up, his expression looked as if his molars were about to break.
As the two central figures agreed, Snape couldn't easily erupt, after all, under certain circumstances, he occasionally adhered to some reasoning.
"However, for this class assignment, I need two finished products." Fortunately, Snape's years of handling experience quickly led him to a solution.
"Ah?!"
The exclamation wasn't from Ian, nor Aurora, but instead the surrounding little wizards still struggling with potion brewing, each and every one of them wide-eyed and panicking.
"Professor, you didn't mention this earlier, I've been taking notes all along."
"Oh no, we only chose materials for one."
"We've already learned from just brewing one, why do we need to brew two?"
"How have you guys been learning? We couldn't even brew one here! Can someone teach me, how on earth do you make the green potion turn yellow?"
"My pee is yellow, can I sprinkle some in?"
...
The little wizard community erupted in wailing.
Snape, however, remained unperturbed.
He snorted coldly.
"Perhaps I didn't say before, but now I have... that's my requirement." Snape's offhand remark made Ian feel he'd met someone even less shameless than himself.
Including the Slytherin students, all little wizards felt uneasy, yet no one dared to make a scene, Ian also had no choice but to reluctantly submit to Snape's cunning authority.
"Aurora, we've stumbled upon a jerk, quickly get the materials, we have to brew another one." Ian sighed heavily, the German Girl next to him was about to get up at his words.
However.
Snape pressed her shoulder, forcing her back onto her seat.
"Miss Grindelwald has completed her assignment, now it's your turn." Snape stared at Ian fiercely, as if he were going to swallow Ian whole.
In all his years, he'd never seen such a sly little wizard! Damn Sorting Hat! Why wasn't this guy sorted into Slytherin!
"This is blatant targeting!"
Ian grumbled, but under the roof, how could he not bow down? He still went to the storage cabinet and selected another batch of ingredients for the Boil Potion.
"Snake fang, slug, hedgehog spine..."
Seeing the items Ian brought back, Snape said nothing, just frowned and stared at him. Ian had no choice but to grit his teeth and begin processing the snake fang.
Aurora wanted to light a fire.
Snape glared at her fiercely.
Aurora ignored it.
She started to arrange the fuel under the crucible.
The result of her actions was that Snape grabbed her by the back of her robe and pulled her aside.
"Ah?"
When lifted.
Her hand waved in mid-air.
The German Girl seemed to instinctively want to grab her magic wand.
But she restrained herself.
"Let him do it himself."
Snape didn't bother with other little wizards who hadn't finished yet, he stood firmly in front of Ian's table, determined to supervise from start to finish.
"Ka ka ka~"
Ian ground the snake fang into powder, added it to the crucible, and adjusted the fire himself. Ian found time to process the horned slug among the materials.
Calculating the time in his mind.
He waved the magic wand.
He added the processed horned slug to the crucible.
"This stuff is actually like simmering soup; it's all about the heat and stewing." Ian noticed the atmosphere was a bit tense, so he chose to emphasize the importance of fire.
This was a key point Snape himself had mentioned before.
Thus.
The angry Snape could only remain silent.
He watched Ian's operation intently, wanting to seize the chance to scold Ian good and hard—this little brat is simply the shame of the Prince family!
Biting his teeth.
Snape noticed that Ian's series of operations miraculously didn't have any neglect or mistakes. This made Hogwarts' big complainer, who had prepared a barrage of criticism, feel very frustrated.
"Continue!"
Snape was not willing to give up.
"What's going on?"
"Why is the headmaster lingering around Ravenclaw all the time?" Other little wizards looked over, especially those from Slytherin, who realized they've lost the affection of their own headmaster.
Some were puzzled.
Others stared at Ian and Snape, muttering something under their breath.
Seeing everyone looking over.
"It's not just the skill in simmering soup; actually, reducing is also very important, which involves stir-fry techniques." Ian was not one to remain silent.
While slightly lifting the crucible away from the flame, putting in two porcupines, and stirring clockwise 5 times, Ian also demonstrated his excellent trait of never withholding knowledge.
His explanation not only made the earnest Aurora nod in agreement.
The surrounding little wizards also pondered one by one, thinking Ian's explanation was more detailed compared to Snape's highbrow comments.
"Shut your vulgar mouth."
Snape finally couldn't hold it in.
"It's done, Professor."
Ian poured the finished potion into a container, the yellow-green liquid in the glass bottle bubbling lightly, with a color standard that couldn't be more standard, just like the description in the textbook.
Not perfect.
But absolutely flawless.
Snape just wanted to comment.
"So that's it! I've got it!"
"Me too!"
"Turns out my mom is also a Master of Magic Potions! Her cooking is delicious!"
...
The successive sounds.
Were like magical sounds piercing the ear.
Snape encountered the biggest challenge since he started teaching.