On the morning of the competition, while everyone was eating breakfast in the Great Hall, Sean noticed Hagrid whispering with Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall.
Sean found it strange. Those three rarely gathered together unless something serious had happened.
The Potions competition was being held on the Quidditch pitch, allowing all the students to watch the match in person.
Hogwarts' first contestant was Theo Wald, a sixth-year from Slytherin.
Since the participants for each event had been decided long ago, Theo had been training extensively for the Potions competition.
Snape had practically given him private tutoring.
And with Snape also being the Slytherin Head of House, Theo was under enormous pressure.
On the way to the Quidditch pitch, Sean ran into Hagrid.
"Hagrid, the competition's about to start. Aren't you going to watch?" Sean asked.
"I've got something to do," Hagrid replied. "Tell Theo good luck for me."
"Did something happen?" Sean asked casually. "I saw you talking with Professor McGonagall earlier."
"That's none of your business," Hagrid said quickly, changing the subject. "Go watch the competition. It's Slytherin's first event—you should cheer Theo on."
Sean kept his tone calm.
"Something happened in the Forbidden Forest, didn't it?"
"How did you know?" Hagrid stared at him in surprise.
"Just a guess. So what happened?" Sean pressed.
Earlier in the term, Hagrid had moved Fluffy into the Forbidden Forest.
At first, Sean had assumed it was because the three-headed dog had grown too big for the hut.
But after learning Mick's identity, Sean realized Fluffy had been guarding something.
And if Fluffy was in the forest, whatever he was guarding had to be there as well.
"Someone broke into the Forbidden Forest last night," Hagrid whispered. "The centaurs spotted them."
"Did they catch the person?"
Hagrid shook his head.
"I have to keep patrolling the forest. Don't tell anyone about this."
He made a silencing gesture.
Sean nodded thoughtfully.
"Could it actually be the Philosopher's Stone?" Sean wondered to himself. "Maybe they hid it in the forest first, then moved it into the castle next year because it wasn't safe?"
But he quickly dismissed the idea.
Hagrid retrieved the Philosopher's Stone from Gringotts during Harry's first year.
The timeline didn't match.
And based on what he had seen before, the object in the forest didn't resemble the Stone at all.
Still, Sean was certain of one thing.
Someone with bad intentions had infiltrated Hogwarts this term.
Mick was now cleared of suspicion.
Morisse was still under observation.
As for the three visiting teams—every one of them was a potential suspect.
Sneaking into the Forbidden Forest required considerable strength.
That meant the three professors and the older competitors were the most likely culprits.
When Sean arrived at the Quidditch pitch, the other four teammates were already there.
All four Heads of House were standing with them.
"Where have you been?" Snape asked coldly. "The match is about to start."
"Stomachache," Sean said awkwardly. "Had to visit the bathroom."
In the center of the pitch, four square worktables had been arranged.
Each was spaced ten meters apart.
Every station was equipped with a full set of potion-making tools.
At that moment, Barty Crouch entered the field.
To ensure fairness, Dumbledore had invited the Ministry official to serve as both judge and problem-setter.
This meant that no one except Barty Crouch knew what potion the competitors would need to brew.
In the stands, Cassius leaned toward Chris.
"Chris, do you know what the task is?"
"Please," Chris rolled her eyes. "Even if my grandfather is the judge, do you think he'd tell me?"
Ilvermorny had sent Dean Winchester, a sixth-year.
Uagadou's competitor was a fifth-year student.
Castelobruxo had also chosen a sixth-year.
Clearly, none of the schools wanted to lose points in the opening match.
Especially since the potion created in this round would determine whether it could be used in the fourth event.
After brief opening remarks from Dumbledore and the three visiting professors, Barty Crouch officially announced the challenge.
"The potion required for this competition… is the Magic Power Recovery Potion."
Sean's eyes widened slightly.
That one?
Last semester, Sean had obtained the recipe from Professor Sprout to shorten the time needed for natural magical recovery.
He had even stolen ingredients from Snape's storage room and brewed the potion himself.
"You will have one hour to complete the potion," Crouch continued. "Anyone who finishes successfully within that time earns one point. I will now distribute the ingredients."
He waved his wand.
Four cloth sacks flew in from outside the field and landed gently on the tables.
Each sack had a piece of parchment tied to it—the potion recipe.
"One hour is a little tight," Sean thought. "But Theo has far more experience with advanced potions than I do. He should manage."
Sean remembered that when he brewed eight bottles of the potion in the girls' bathroom, it had taken him three hours.
And that had been only his second time making an advanced potion.
"The first round begins now!"
Crouch raised his wand.
A firework shot into the sky.
As it burst overhead, all four contestants sprang into action.
Theo opened the sack and reached inside.
Immediately, he realized something was wrong.
"An Extension Charm bag!"
He pulled out a handful of dried nettle leaves.
But nettle leaves were not part of the Magic Power Recovery Potion.
Clearly, the bag contained many other ingredients meant to confuse the contestants.
To brew the potion, only six ingredients were needed.
But the bag held twelve.
And the extra ingredients were deliberately similar to the real ones.
"Powdered Red Fern Root, come to me!" Theo cast a Summoning Charm into the bag.
Normally, a Summoning Charm worked perfectly for objects the caster was familiar with.
Theo had certainly seen red ferns and used their powdered roots before.
Yet nothing happened.
Theo glanced at the other contestants.
They seemed to be facing the same problem.
"There's an Anti-Summoning Charm placed on the bags," Snape remarked quietly.
I see, Sean thought.
Theo cast Lumos.
The glowing light illuminated the interior of the sack, allowing him to inspect the ingredients manually.
Five minutes later, he finally selected the six correct materials.
But he didn't begin brewing immediately.
"What's he doing?" Zach asked anxiously. "Why isn't Theo starting?"
Sean also felt puzzled.
He glanced at Theo, then at the other competitors.
All of them had gathered their ingredients.
Yet none had begun brewing.
"What's going on?"
Sean studied Theo's table more carefully.
Suddenly, he understood.
"I know what they're doing."
"They're recalculating the potion formula."
"What do you mean?" Zach asked. "The recipe is right there."
"If they finish the potion within one hour, they earn one point," Sean said. "Don't you think that's too easy for sixth-years? I doubt any of them would fail such a basic task."
"They're deciding how many doses to make," Charlie explained from the side.
"Exactly," Sean nodded. "Theo could definitely brew two doses within an hour."
"So we'd still get the point," Penelope said, confused.
Sean looked at her.
"How many people are on our team?"
Penelope froze.
"The team has six members…"
Her eyes widened.
"Six people! He's considering making enough for all six teammates?!"
Her voice rose in surprise.
Zach suddenly understood as well.
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