Snape had thought Dumbledore had merely given Harry Potter the privilege of taking a nighttime stroll around the castle.
What he hadn't expected was that there would be other privileges as well.
That previous flying lesson had actually been a prelude.
Professor McGonagall had actually bought a broom for that Potter cub.
This was practically encouraging Potter to go looking for trouble!
Snape was furious and went to Dumbledore to question him about it.
First-years weren't allowed to fly at school!
Where had Harry Potter gotten such a privilege?
Was Dumbledore not afraid of everyone else becoming dissatisfied?
It was just unfortunate that Dumbledore believed capable people should be given opportunities.
Now that Harry Potter had demonstrated his abilities, he was allowed to have a broomstick.
Snape sneered.
Darren could also fly very well, so why couldn't Darren have a broomstick too?
For that reason, he angrily applied for the same privilege for Darren.
"Since Harry Potter has it, then others can have it too!"
Looking at Dumbledore's helpless expression, Snape left the Headmaster's office in a relaxed mood.
But the moment he stepped outside, he suddenly wanted to slap himself.
Was he insane?
That little cub had absolutely no sense of restraint, and Harry Potter had already corrupted him.
He had applied for this privilege for the little cub.
What if the little cub flew around the castle on a broom tomorrow?
When the time came, the Dark Lord would notice him and would probably be very grateful for nature's gift!
Snape held the list of privileges he had applied for, almost nauseated enough that his hands trembled.
He really wanted to tear the piece of paper apart.
But for some reason, he took it back to his office instead.
Then he comforted himself.
At most, it was only an application form.
He hadn't actually given Darren that cub anything.
He kept the application because it had been ordered by the Headmaster. It was also his way of protesting Harry Potter's special privileges, and he couldn't afford to openly offend Dumbledore.
Yes.
That was it.
But…
He remembered the envy that had flashed across Darren's face when Harry Potter received the broom from McGonagall.
In the end, Snape silently ordered a broom for him.
Oh, well.
Hopefully, the little cub wouldn't fall off the broom.
Snape thought mockingly.
When that happened, he, the Potter family's old enemy, would definitely laugh for an entire year!
But he hadn't expected so many people to order brooms for that little cub.
There were dozens of them.
Potter could practically open a broom shop!
What caught Snape's attention most was an unmarked broom among them.
He suspected that it had been sent by the Dark Lord.
Although he had no evidence, he felt that the Dark Lord was perfectly capable of doing such a thing.
Perhaps there was a curse hidden in that broom.
As soon as Potter rode it and reached a certain height, the curse would activate and throw him off!
Snape thought darkly.
Fortunately, the Potter cub returned all the brooms.
At least he was smart enough to do that.
However, Snape later heard that, in order to make everyone happy, the little cub had stayed on the broom for an entire afternoon with a smile on his face.
Then he returned exhausted and immediately fell asleep.
It almost made Snape laugh.
Sure enough, the Potter cub was happiest when he was eating.
Unfortunately, that happiness didn't last for long.
Halloween arrived.
Quirrell even performed an instant fainting spell at the Halloween feast.
Snape felt that this fellow really had a talent for comedy.
However, he soon realized that his guess had been wrong.
He immediately hurried to the corridor on the fourth floor to check whether someone had tampered with the mechanism.
And then…
He heard the roar of a troll.
No way.
Dumbledore hadn't dealt with this troll yet?
Don't tell him—
Was he planning to use it to train the Potter cubs again?
Snape's expression darkened.
He rushed toward the underground bathroom.
As he ran, he couldn't help complaining inwardly.
Quirrell had actually put the troll in the bathroom?
Why hadn't he put it in the Great Hall?
Or better yet, why not put it directly into Harry Potter's dormitory?
When Harry Potter came in, the thing could simply eat the brat!
Just as Snape was letting his imagination run wild—
He heard a tremendous explosion.
The sound made him speed up again.
In an instant, he arrived beside the troll.
Then he saw Darren lying on top of Harry Potter, his face pale.
The troll was dead.
Had the cub died together with the troll?
Had Dumbledore deliberately wanted to kill the cub?
Or was this another one of Harry Potter's reckless pranks?
Snape didn't know why, but he almost wanted to draw his wand and point it at Harry Potter.
Why was Dumbledore testing the so-called savior?
And why was it the little cub who had to get hurt?
Seeing the worried expression on Harry Potter's face, Snape asked through clenched teeth,
"The famous Harry Potter also knows how to worry about someone else?"
Because of Harry Potter, did the cub have to nearly die before it was enough?
Fortunately, McGonagall soon received word that the cub was fine.
He had simply exhausted himself.
Dumbledore breathed a sigh of relief.
Harry Potter was happy too.
But Snape felt an indescribable resentment.
Resentment toward the person who had destroyed their family.
Resentment toward Dumbledore for failing to protect them.
Resentment toward Harry Potter, the so-called savior.
Why did he always have to drag other people into his troubles?
Snape said nothing.
After venting his anger, he finally felt somewhat better.
When he heard that Dumbledore had awarded the cub extra points, he silently cursed the fool again.
He hoped that, after waking up, the cub would remember this lesson!
...
The Quidditch match began.
Snape sat in the stands.
He discovered Quirrell casting a spell on Harry Potter's broom, trying to throw him off.
Childish.
Ridiculous.
In the wizarding world, even if someone fell off a broom, it wasn't necessarily a big deal.
At worst, Harry would lose the match.
Quirrell probably only wanted to incapacitate Harry Potter and then take advantage of the chaos while everyone investigated what had happened.
Snape almost wanted to give him that opportunity.
But then…
Seeing the cub jumping around anxiously, Snape decided to show him some mercy and help him.
Who would have thought that while he was saving the great Harry Potter, Granger would come over and set his robes on fire?
Fortunately, she happened to run into Quirrell as well.
Looking at Granger's suspicious gaze, and seeing her stare at him before returning to whisper something to Ron, Snape suddenly felt somewhat uneasy.
Would that little cub think he had really done it?
But he immediately dismissed the thought.
What if the little cub merely misunderstood him?
Was he really going to worry about that?
The opinion of a little cub—
What was there to care about?
Until that day, when he was bitten by Fang.
He limped along.
And then he heard—
"Professor Snape is actually very nice and gentle. He's definitely not a bad person!"
That little cub had actually said that about him behind his back?
Snape's eyes almost widened in shock.
He, Severus Snape—the most feared professor at Hogwarts, the professor everyone hated most—had actually been described by this little cub as gentle?
Of course, he also heard Harry Potter's malicious evaluation of him.
So he immediately walked over.
He stared at Harry Potter, waiting to deduct points.
It was just that he didn't seem embarrassed at all.
But—
"Reading? Deduct points!"