As the days rolled on, Qin Yu's life at Hogwarts grew increasingly full and hectic.
Between regular classes, the occasional private session with Professor Snape, and the ever-demanding Quidditch practices, his schedule was already packed. On top of that, he still had to tackle the assignments from Professor Swinton—continuing his research into alchemical communication.
It was no easy feat. Fortunately, over the holiday, inspiration had struck, giving him a new direction: using mental alchemy to condense his spirit and extend the range of his communication. Thanks to his recent efforts, he could now connect with Snape's sword from ten meters away—a notable improvement from the mere two or three meters before.
Of course, that was still a far cry from what he aimed for. There was much work yet to do.
In short, Qin Yu was so busy that even his usual strolls around the castle with the little witch had become rare.
Since the start of term, Hermione's passion for magic had only intensified. She squeezed every drop of magical knowledge from Qin Yu's mind, absorbing it all with a hunger that made her progress astonishingly fast.
As for Harry Potter, daily taunts from a smug Malfoy had ignited a fierce academic rivalry between them. Harry was determined not to let Malfoy get the upper hand in magic.
Ron naturally stood by his best mate, doing his best to deflate Malfoy's arrogance.
But the tides didn't always turn in their favor. Both sides had their victories and defeats, with House points gained and lost in equal measure.
Their rivalry grew sharper by the day—each side convinced they were locked in a life-or-death struggle.
Of course, that was their perspective. To Qin Yu, it was just two groups of kids butting heads—a bit of harmless fun to watch.
One more thing of note: George and Fred had been in low spirits lately. Their venom stock wasn't selling as fast as they'd hoped.
Apparently, demand for Acromantula venom had dipped, and since they only offered the highest grade, customers weren't buying in bulk.
"Supply and demand never stay the same forever. Don't stress—fewer buyers now is just a phase. Give it a few days and demand might pick right back up," Qin Yu reassured the ever-ambitious twins.
"Sigh, nothing to do but wait."
"Hope you're right and sales pick up soon."
His words cheered them up a little, but not much. In the meantime, the twins kept experimenting with new feeding regimens for the Acromantulas, hoping to weather the "market cold snap."
…
As winter drew to a close and the ice began to thaw, the Black Lake remained only partially frozen. One evening at dinner in the Great Hall, Headmaster Dumbledore made a solemn announcement: students were strictly forbidden from walking on the lake's ice—the surface could no longer support their weight.
Sure enough, it wasn't long before someone fell through.
But it wasn't a student who ignored Dumbledore's warning. The unlucky soul was none other than Professor Quirrell.
According to a fifth-year Gryffindor eyewitness, he'd seen Professor Quirrell wandering toward the lake, muttering to himself and waving his arms.
"I reckon Professor Quirrell was so lost in thought about some Dark Arts Defense problem, he didn't even notice the Black Lake. By the time he realized, he'd already taken several steps onto the ice. He barely managed to draw his wand—before he could cast a spell, the ice just cracked—snap!—and down he went, right into the freezing water.
I saw him clutching his turban with one hand, flailing and splashing about. Poor bloke—it was almost tragic."
Despite all the "sympathy," the student's tone was unmistakably gleeful—he was clearly relishing the spectacle.
Qin Yu wasn't surprised. The witness happened to be a friend of George and Fred. Birds of a feather flock together, after all. The twins had once pranked Quirrell themselves, so it was no wonder their mate didn't care much for the professor either.
After his icy plunge, everyone noticed Quirrell acting even stranger than usual. He moved slowly and stiffly, and would sometimes shudder for no apparent reason.
Some speculated that the shock of falling into the lake had left him traumatized, both physically and mentally, and that he'd need time to recover.
Perhaps to prove them right, Professor Quirrell was back to "normal" within a week. He still wore his turban and stuttered, but his movements were no longer rigid, nor did he shiver unexpectedly.
…
"Qin, you were spot on—the venom is selling like mad now! The apothecary in Diagon Alley just ordered a whole pint at once!" George and Fred burst into the Gryffindor common room one evening, practically bouncing with excitement.
"Really? Did the shopkeeper say who bought it all?" Qin Yu asked, surprised.
He'd only been trying to cheer them up before, never expecting his offhand words to come true so quickly. Maybe he really was blessed by the god of luck.
"They said some big customer came in and bought every drop of venom they had."
"And the bloke said he might be back for more, so the shopkeeper dared to order a full pint from us."
The twins took turns explaining what they'd heard.
"One ounce is enough to last Snape half a year. Who could possibly need so much venom at once?" Qin Yu muttered, frowning.
"Who knows? Maybe there's a potion that uses loads of it."
"As long as someone's buying, why worry what they're using it for?"
George and Fred didn't seem bothered in the slightest.
"Hmm, fair enough," Qin Yu conceded, though he still felt uneasy.
A week later, the twins reported that the shop's pint of venom had sold out again—and the owner wanted to restock.
This time, Qin Yu's unease spiked. "Was it the same customer who bought most of it again?" he asked.
The twins nodded.
Then, to their surprise, Qin Yu gave them an unexpected suggestion:
"Tell the shopkeeper the venom supply is tight for now—he can only have one ounce."
"Why?"
"We've got loads in storage. Why not sell it?"
The twins were baffled.
"Trust me. I've got a bad feeling about this. Acromantula venom isn't just any old potion ingredient. If it falls into the wrong hands, it could cause serious trouble," Qin Yu said, keeping his reasons vague.
"Well, all right. One ounce it is."
"That's still enough to buy food for the spiders."
Though Qin Yu's warning sounded a bit dramatic, the Weasley twins trusted him. If Qin was this serious, they weren't about to argue.
Their cooperation satisfied Qin Yu, though he was still uneasy. For the next few days, he kept a close eye on a certain individual.
But that person's behavior remained perfectly ordinary.
Qin Yu couldn't help but wonder if he was just being paranoid. After all, in the "original timeline," venom had never been a big deal.
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