"Ron? What are you standing there for?" Hermione immediately kicked Ron. "Get to work and maintain order!"
"Leave two prefects behind to maintain order!" Hermione raised her wand.
She took charge of maintaining order.
"Professor Trelawney, I don't want to comfort you as a student speaking to a teacher, but if you keep shouting, it might cause a riot."
Hermione quickly went to Trelawney's side and reminded her.
Trelawney looked at Hermione with innocent, pitiful eyes. Her screams turned into sobs as she pulled out a handkerchief to wipe her tears.
The students around her stared at the Divination professor in horror. Her apocalyptic appearance made it seem as though Voldemort had suddenly appeared in the Great Hall.
"The other prefects, come with us. We need to get Professor McGonagall to the hospital wing," Hermione said loudly.
The senior prefects and other teachers finally came to their senses and hurriedly carried McGonagall to the hospital wing.
The chaos left everyone bewildered.
If Dumbledore were still alive, things would never have become like this.
Many students suddenly found themselves missing their former Headmaster.
"Potter." Slughorn put down his teacup and grabbed Harry's arm.
"Take me to Minerva's office," he said.
"Yes, yes, sir."
Harry exchanged a few glances with the Potions professor, then nodded. He led Slughorn and the others out of the Great Hall before they eventually parted ways.
McGonagall's office was not on their route.
A few minutes later, Professor McGonagall and several students were hurriedly brought to the hospital wing and placed on an empty bed.
"What's wrong with her?" Fleur asked, raising her wand to examine her.
A white halo swept across Professor McGonagall's face. It was a spell used to perform a preliminary examination for curses and poisons.
If black mist appeared, it would prove that a poison or curse was present.
Professor McGonagall was lying peacefully on the hospital bed, looking as though she were simply asleep.
"Professor McGonagall fainted without warning while she was speaking," Hermione said.
"Is that so?" Fleur frowned, feeling rather uneasy.
She had spent some time with this old lady during her vacation.
Fleur had considerable respect and affection for this seemingly stern but actually kind-hearted woman.
Whenever she had free time in the past, McGonagall would often ask her whether she was adapting to life at Hogwarts, showing that she genuinely cared about her.
"I don't know. At least from what I can tell, she simply fell asleep normally." A look of helplessness appeared on Fleur's fair face.
"Based on what the magic is showing so far, I haven't detected any curse or signs of poisoning," she said seriously.
"Of course you can't detect anything."
Slughorn's voice entered the ward before he even arrived.
Then his large belly pushed through the doorway first, followed by his entire body. The movement nearly tore open his waistcoat.
He was holding a glass in his left hand, examining it from every angle and shaking his head from time to time.
He took a deep breath beside the bonsai, his face briefly showing an expression of rapture. But in an instant, his expression changed to one of regret mixed with admiration.
He was also carrying a house-elf in his right hand.
Harry followed him inside, a look of hatred on his face.
"We've had very bad luck."
"Severus Snape is a traitor." Slughorn shrugged, his stomach jiggling involuntarily.
"If I'm not mistaken," he added.
"Minerva is not in immediate danger."
"Life-threatening?"
"I misspoke, but I won't say it again."
Slughorn gave an awkward laugh.
He put on a pair of gloves and raised the still-warm teacup in his hand.
He addressed the crowd.
"Snape is a true master of Potions."
"The 'poison' in Professor Minerva's body should be a modified variant of his 'Life and Death Water.'"
He picked up the still-warm teacup and smelled it.
"Purple spider plant, reddish stone powder, liquorice root…"
"The purple spider plant can neutralize the strong medicinal properties, but in fact, it prolongs their effects. The purpose of the red inkstone powder is unknown, but I never expected it could be used to balance the medicinal properties…"
The students stared blankly at him.
They had never even heard of these ingredients.
"A brilliant idea!"
Slughorn clenched his fist with the enthusiasm of a young man, the chandelier above illuminating his bald head.
"Sorry. It was a devilish idea."
He bowed slightly.
"Occupational hazard always kicks in."
"And this plant," he said to the students in front of him.
Its once-green leaves had now turned reddish, while the bright red flowers at their tips bloomed alluringly, swaying gracefully.
Even with the entire plant submerged in water, its intoxicating fragrance could still be smelled.
"The lampshade of the chandelier in Minerva's office was reduced to a thin layer of wood with spiderweb-like lines running through it. It must be a rare type of wood. I've seen it before, and it is said to accelerate blood circulation."
Everyone was completely confused.
"So, sir, what exactly is going on?" Ron couldn't help asking.
As a Gryffindor prefect, he was still somewhat impatient.
"Simply put, Snape used a clever method to secretly poison us through various channels, delaying the poison's effects and causing us to miss the best time for treatment, while also allowing him to escape."
"The Spirit Herb he gave Minerva was the catalyst that induced the reaction."
"He didn't poison me because he was afraid I would notice. Although I'm not as skilled as he is, I'm still an expert in this field."
"And this little elf."
"Recover quickly!"
"Fools! Idiots! How dare you treat your king like this!" the house-elf hurled filthy insults, appearing extremely arrogant.
"The Imperius Curse?"
Slughorn tapped the house-elf on the head.
The house-elf's eyes glazed over for a moment before it suddenly burst into tears.
"I'm a bad elf. I have insulted the dignity of house-elves and hurt my master. I should be fired."
According to the house-elf's values, being fired was a more painful disgrace than death.
"It's likely that it also poisoned the tea of several teachers," Slughorn said.
"It's not its fault," Hermione said with a pained expression.
She immediately drew her wand and cast a Stunning Spell, knocking out the little elf just as it was about to smash its head against the ground. Otherwise, it would have continued…
Although she wasn't the Head Girl, she had still come along.
Dumbledore had said countless times that Snape was one of the people he trusted most. Yet no one had expected him to do something like this.
"Can this poison be cured?" she asked.
"It's difficult."
"This is a modified 'poison,' and its nature cannot be understood using the principles of ordinary poisons."
"Snape's setup was extremely clever. He sacrificed the time it took for the drug to take effect, as well as some of its potency, in exchange for a much greater resistance to antidotes."
"I can only try my best," Slughorn sighed helplessly.
"And what about Professor Flitwick?"
"He's about the same."
He could only cast a few simple spells now, releasing them during the brief gaps between bouts of laughter.
That ear-splitting laughter was terrifying.
"It's better to suppress it than to guide it. If we try to suppress it forcefully, I suspect his throat will burst."
"The problem is very serious now," Slughorn suddenly said.
"Will their condition worsen?" Hermione asked urgently.
"No, that won't happen. I've already prepared two doses of a relief potion."
"However, for them to fully recover…"
The Potions professor looked troubled and said nothing more.
"Thank you for your help."
Hermione bit her lip. She could only bow slightly before quickly raising her head and continuing to ask:
"Then what was the serious problem you mentioned earlier?"
For a moment, she seemed almost like the Head Girl.
"You've suddenly lost three teachers," Slughorn said helplessly.