Quirinus Quirrell was the only one left in the office. He suddenly jumped up, clutching the back of his head with a ferocious expression.
Quirinus Quirrell gritted his teeth and cast his spell on the door before tearing off the cloth strip from his head.
"That's more like it," Voldemort chuckled hoarsely. "Do everything as I say…"
"Show her the Levicorpus, and then guide her little by little to learn this magic… Quirinus, I hope you can always be so obedient."
Quirinus Quirrell glanced at Voldemort in the mirror out of the corner of his eye, and the hideous face sent chills down his spine.
"Of course… my master!" Quirinus Quirrell said painfully, looking at the chocolate frog on the table. "I will obey your orders until you regain your power."
"That's great!" Voldemort's voice carried a hint of smugness. "Have you found a way to get past the obstacle behind that room, and that three-headed dog?"
"We've got a lead! Professor Sprout must have set up the Devil's Snare…" Quirinus Quirrell said with a tremble.
"As for the three-headed dog... I asked Professor Kettleburn... he didn't know how to deal with it..."
"Such a thing exists?" Voldemort murmured. "If even the professor of the Care of Magical Creatures class doesn't know how to get through Fluffy... then you should go find someone else!"
Quirinus Quirrell quickly asked, "Master... do you have an idea?"
"That gamekeeper, Rubeus Hagrid!" Voldemort's face showed a hint of disgust. "His head is filled with knowledge about magical creatures!"
"Try to get close to him! He's not very discreet; I reckon you can get him to reveal the weaknesses of Fluffy in just a few words! Yes! Do just that!"
"This…" Quirinus Quirrell looked troubled. "Master, you seem to know him very well… Do you have a good way to get closer to him?"
"His tastes are disgusting…" Voldemort said with a look of disgust. "I remember… he loved those huge, ugly magical creatures."
"First, find him a baby animal of XXXXX level, then get him some firewhisky, and he'll tell you everything!"
"Will it really work..." Quirinus Quirrell's voice was full of worry, "And animal cubs of the XXXXX level aren't cheap..."
"Quirinus, you seem to be disobeying me again?" Voldemort grinned maliciously. "I've already fed you the plan; can't you find a way to carry it out?"
"I...I understand!" Quirinus Quirrell quickly pleaded. "I will do my utmost to accomplish this!"
-------------------------------------
Sunday afternoon was the time for Snape's private lessons.
The office was rather empty that day; there were neither baskets of raw meat and blood to be processed nor bundles of herbs to be cleared away.
In the center of the office was a table with a crucible, weighing and processing equipment, and dozens of neatly arranged potion ingredients.
Vizette glanced at the potion ingredients on the table and immediately felt a sense of familiarity.
Snape sat to one side, raised his chin, and gestured towards the table. "Let's begin!"
Vizette nodded in understanding, walked to the cauldron, and carefully examined the potion ingredients on the table.
Snape did indeed make him differentiate the materials; his notes from that night were not in vain.
He recalled the potion recipe he had written down that night and kept the potion ingredients that were needed.
"The air is cold and the water is frigid!" He created a magical energy field and placed the materials he didn't need inside, without being careless at all.
After doing all this, Vizette returned to the cauldron and examined the potion ingredients on the table.
"Tell me their function!" Snape said, arms crossed, "and the specific methods of treatment."
"Okay!" Vizette replied.
He first held up a bunch of herbs and said unhurriedly, "Lavender needs to be made into a tincture. Chop up the lavender flowers and leaves and soak them in alcohol."
"The soaking time depends on the concentration. Generally, it needs to be soaked in a cool place for four to six weeks, and it needs to be shaken regularly to ensure full extraction."
"The flowers and leaves are extracted using a summoning spell, and then filtered three times to ensure no impurities remain. The tincture is then stored in a cool, dark place."
"Passing it through the filter three times is your doing," Snape said coldly. "A single summoning spell is enough to remove all impurities!"
"Yes, I still have a lot to learn, and my magic level needs improvement." Vizette responded skillfully, then picked up another jar covered by a black cloth.
"Moon dew nectar is honey that must be obtained at night, with the best time to collect it being a clear, full moon night. Direct sunlight should be avoided when using it..."
"Moonstone is best ground on a clear, full moon night to maximize its effectiveness..."
"Mugwort, the method for making an infusion is similar to that for tinctures, but it requires the use of morning dew..."
He presented all the materials in a very organized manner, during which Snape remained silent, except for the occasional tremor in his right knee.
Based on Vizette's understanding of Snape, as long as Snape didn't speak, it basically meant he was sure, so Vizette didn't pause.
"Rote memorization, that fits my impression of Ravenclaw," Snape said in a low voice, lowering his hand.
"You've come to understand this much, so those potion ingredients weren't wasted."
"But that's just the basics. Even a dark wizard, with enough training, can become a vault guard. If a potion master tries to imitate that, I suggest he change careers immediately."
Using trolls as a metaphor was very much in line with Snape's usual style, and Vizette didn't mind; he had already learned how to find the key points in these kinds of words.
"Professor Snape, may I please stop processing the materials?"
"Of course not! You've only successfully broken free from the troll; the materials still need to be processed." Snape remained expressionless.
"Soul Soothing Elixir, that's the name of the potion you drank at the school hospital. A high-level potion, its effect is to deeply soothe the mind and repair damage to the soul..."
Vizette's spirits lifted. What Snape was saying now was not just superficial textbook knowledge, but a deeper theory about potions.
He had actually heard this part of the theory before, but it was always mentioned in passing, and rarely was it explained in such a systematic way.
He tried to understand these words, and had a general concept of the deeper theory of potions—
Once a wizard truly understands potions, they can ensure that the final quality of the potion is not affected by the addition or absence of a certain ingredient, through techniques, understanding, or substitutions.
...
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