"When the time comes, we'll just put it in our heads, Professor McGonagall definitely won't catch us," Fred said with a hint of obvious guilt in his voice.
This kind of creative improvement made Ian's scalp tingle.
"Dumb Answering Assistant! Let it go to hell! Next year, let me come up with the ideas!" George threw the little ant back to Fred and demanded the rights to creativity with an indignant tone.
"Alright, alright, we still need to think about how to deal with this year's practical exams." Fred, feeling ashamed, chose to concede.
"Can you tell us what the second-year Defense Against the Dark Arts exam will cover?" As Ian approached, George hurriedly began probing Ian for exam hints. At Hogwarts, each course typically has only one professor, so the place for exams and the professor in charge of them are essentially the same.
"I'm just a first-year; how would I know the content for the second year?" Ian rolled his eyes, feeling that the two brothers were clearly grasping at straws.
"What if you happened to sneak a peek?"
George persisted in asking.
"Ian's right, George, he's just a first-year student. Not only is it impossible for him to know, but even those who've already taken the exams can't give us the answers. Each year, the professors prepare several types of exam content, so who knows if we'll face difficult or easy questions."
Although Fred was only one year ahead of Ian, his understanding of the final exams was more detailed than most third and even fourth-year little wizards. Perhaps this was related to him being in charge of the cheat strategy formulation this year, so he gathered lots of exam-related information.
"If only they let us transform some dung bombs, that'd be great."
George sighed heavily.
"Perhaps we could feign illness and avoid facing that terrifying Defense Against the Dark Arts professor," Fred offered a suggestion that made George's eyes light up.
They were evidently unaware that the administration of the Defense Against the Dark Arts class had been handed over to the old headmaster.
Ian also didn't plan to correct their perspectives because he suddenly had a brainwave, intending to pitch his rather useful creation for such situations to the twins.
"Would you like some Instant Escape Sugar? It's my latest product," Ian's face had undoubtedly grown thicker since the start of term.
This creation was actually a rip-off of a crafty idea the twins hadn't come up with yet.
"Instant Escape Sugar? That sounds incredible!" George was instantly captivated by Ian's pitch as he eagerly watched Ian take out a handful of candies.
There were gummies, hard candies, and even bubble gum varieties, showcasing Ian's efforts to cater to every little wizard's preferences, a crucial detail in marketing.
Of course, despite these candies differing in type, they still shared the same basic structure—the hallmark feature of Instant Escape Sugar was that they commonly came in two distinct colors.
The candies of these two colors had different functions: one induced the effect of "illness" while the other was used to alleviate this effect.
As for the specific colors, they varied depending on the illness being induced. For example, Sickly Sugar may be a combination of purple and orange, while Nosebleed Nougat may include a combination of red and another color.
"Oh my gosh, you're a genius! I completely concede to you from the previous incident! You're the most amazing inventor at Hogwarts!" Fred was utterly awed by the candies in hand, deeply impressed by their effects and creativity, unable to imagine there could be such a practical prank product.
"Look at others! Fred! How couldn't you come up with such an idea!" George began scolding his twin brother in exasperation.
"How do you know I wouldn't think of such an idea in a few years if Ian hadn't invented it!" Fred immediately instinctively retorted George.
Still unaware that he had inadvertently stumbled upon the truth, he enviously admired the little wizard, saying, "Why don't I have a brain as useful as yours!"
Even with Ian's thick skin, he felt a little embarrassed.
"Trust me, for big exam occasions like this, this chocolate candy works best." Ian quickly pulled out a green-and-blue chocolate candy from the pile.
He also incorporated his own creativity into it, and as for the part about plagiarizing the twins' idea... well, how could a "Prophet" be considered despicable?
"What's its effect?"
"Can it make us throw up blood? Hopefully dozens of pounds!"
George and Fred stared at the chocolate candy in Ian's hand, full of excitement and anticipation.
"It's called Smallpox Outbreak!"
Ian earnestly introduced the creative aspect he had added, and as the name suggests, this chocolate candy could make whoever consumes it exhibit all the symptoms of severe smallpox infection within thirty seconds.
"Uh? What's this illness?"
Both George and Fred were a bit surprised.
"Wait, I think dad mentioned it before."
Fred looked as if he were trying hard to recall.
"Anyway, it's very effective; it'll definitely exempt you from the exams, might even buy you early summer holidays." Ian placed two pieces of chocolate candy into the hands of George and Fred.