Quirrell didn't continue, glaring at Anton with puffed cheeks.
Anton spread his hands, propped his elbows on the desk, and rested his cheek on his hand, watching him faintly without a word.
Quirrell clenched his fists and punched the air.
"Fine, fine, I'll give it to you, I'll give it to you!" He trembled slightly as he carefully took out an exquisite little snuffbox from inside his wizard's robe.
It was a box for holding snuff, with a golden exterior, Victorian court-style silver-gilt decorations, and an emerald embedded on top. It looked extremely delicate.
He caressed it for a long time, then reluctantly placed the box on the desk, giving it one last, lingering look.
Finally, he closed his eyes with a sigh, forcing himself not to look at it.
"This is a product of ancient goblins. It has a permanently reinforced Undetectable Extension Charm and can hold things the size of two offices."
Anton's lips twitched, indicating he was amused.
He had seen Anna's suitcase, which contained a complete large-scale machinery factory, fifteen meters high and of unknown area.
He didn't even bother to glance at it.
He just continued to watch Quirrell faintly.
"You..." Quirrell was infuriated by his attitude, pointing at him with a trembling finger, "Do you even know what you're looking at? How precious is an alchemical item like this with a permanently reinforced charm!"
Anton's lips twitched, giving him a Mona Lisa smile.
"Shit!" Quirrell cursed angrily, pacing back and forth behind the desk. "If I hadn't already spent all my money, if it wasn't to recover..., if this wasn't the only treasure I have left..."
He looked at Anton coldly, his eyes filled with determination. "I'm giving you something, not based on what you want, but on what I have!"
Anton remained unmoved.
"Haha, haha." Quirrell was about to go mad with anger. He strode furiously to the cabinet and yanked the door open with force.
"Look, look, I have nothing left. I'm destitute now. I've invested everything!"
He pulled out a suitcase from inside, opened it, and shook it. A couple of outfits, chocolate, and other miscellaneous items fell out.
He then pulled out a huge burlap sack, slammed it on the floor, and the mouth of the sack burst open, sending Golden Galleons clattering all over the ground.
"Look, look, so much money, all exchanged with my life's savings, just for a dragon egg, just for a dragon egg!"
The golden light of the Galleons shimmered. He trembled, about to touch them, but finally turned his head and closed his eyes, pained and shaking. "Soon they won't be mine anymore!"
He then took out a glass jar from the cabinet and shook it. It was completely empty. He smashed it on the ground in a rage.
Crash~
The floor was covered in shards.
"I could have gone to the black market to buy some blood or potions to recover, but I'm at the end of my rope. I have to risk it in the Forbidden Forest!"
He walked over coldly, planting his hands on the armrests of Anton's chair, and stared down at Anton grimly. "You don't know what a desperate person will do! You definitely don't want to know!"
Anton pursed his lips.
This person was simply pathetic and pitiful.
He had given his all to resurrect Voldemort.
But Anton knew that once Dumbledore knew Voldemort had possessed Quirrell, the Philosopher's Stone was destined to be out of his reach.
The Philosopher's Stone was like bait, firmly hooking Voldemort and Quirrell.
And thinking deeper, whether the Mirror of Erised held the Philosopher's Stone or a pile of cockroaches was entirely up to Dumbledore's whim.
He was being played completely.
"Tsk." Anton let out an inscrutable sigh, reached out, picked up the snuffbox from the desk, and tucked it into his wizard's robe.
"I want to learn your spells, the one with the ropes and the fire lion."
"The Tether Charm and the Fire Manticore Charm? No problem!" Quirrell breathed a sigh of relief.
"Manticore?" Anton blinked.
"A magical creature that looks a lot like a lion." Quirrell shrugged, drew his wand and waved it. Everything on the floor floated back into the cabinet, and the glass jar reassembled itself from the shards.
An idea sparked in Anton's mind. After learning this spell, he must find an opportunity to see this magical creature and compare the magical images of the spell and the creature. Perhaps he would discover something.
"Come with me to the Forbidden Forest tonight. I need someone to keep watch for me. The centaurs seem to have heard something recently and often send patrols into the forest."
Anton toyed with his own wand. "I won't go to that dangerous place without a spell for self-protection."
"Damn it!" Quirrell was stunned. "You promised to help me!"
"That depends on how quickly you teach me these two spells, Professor."
Quirrell slammed his fist on the desk in anger. "The centaurs are under Hogwarts' protection. They won't give a student like you any trouble. Even if you get caught, they'll just think it's a bold student out for a night stroll!"
Anton just smiled, and smiled~
Quirrell gripped the edge of the desk so hard his fingers turned white and his veins bulged.
He said through gritted teeth, "Fine! I'll teach you now!"
See, both sides reached an agreement in a cordial and friendly atmosphere. How wonderful.
The Tether Charm was very ordinary.
It was a simplified summoning charm similar to a transfiguration spell like 'Avis', but much simpler to cast.
There were only two difficulties. Quirrell had magically integrated a spell from the magical item manufacturing process, the 'Hardening Charm'.
And a unique control technique.
He waved his wand.
Swoosh.
A rope shot out in front of him.
Clap, clap, clap. Quirrell clapped happily, a look of pleasant surprise on his face. "You're very talented, you learned it in one go. Next, let's learn the Fire Manticore Charm. Then we can hurry to the Forbidden Forest!"
Anton just looked at him silently. "The Tether Charm I cast can't turn corners, nor can it bind any object!"
Quirrell shrugged. "That requires you to practice slowly."
"The Tether Charm I cast can't turn corners, nor can it bind any object!" Anton repeated the words with a deadpan expression.
Quirrell gritted his teeth. "I know! You need to practice!"
"The Tether Charm I cast can't..."
"Alright!" Quirrell roared. "Alright, alright!"
His face twisted, and he paced around the office before finally turning back to stare coldly at Anton. "This is my exclusive secret. There's no way I'm teaching you. It's my trump card!"
"The Tether Charm I cast can't turn corners, nor can it bind any object!"
Pfft!
He could have coughed up blood!
Quirrell clenched his fists tightly, desperately wanting to draw his wand and hit this annoying kid with a Killing Curse!
Avada Kedavra! And the world would be at peace!
Oh~
Anton grinned and continued to stare at him. "The Tether Charm I cast can't turn corners, nor can it bind any object!"
"!!!"
"!!!"
The two remained at a stalemate in the office for a full half hour.
Finally, Quirrell let out a harsh breath. What could he do? He had already taught him this much, and even given away his most beloved treasure. What else could he do?
"To control the spell's effect, the secret is simple, you just need to..."
One lesson, another full half hour of talking!
Quirrell's mouth was dry from all the talking.
He thought it was over, but it wasn't!
"I need to say the incantation. That's strange, you don't have to!"
I'll endure it, he thought, gritting his teeth and enunciating each word, "That's a non-verbal spell. It requires practice!"
"I need to say the incantation. That's strange, you don't have to!"
"!!!"
"I need to say the incantation. That's strange, you don't have to!"
"Shit!" Quirrell roared and slammed the desk. He angrily drew his wand and pointed it viciously at Anton.
Anton just looked at him faintly.
"Fine." Quirrell tried his best to smile, but he didn't know if his expression looked more like crying. "Actually... actually... it's nothing, right? Haha, I'm your professor, it's only natural that I teach you, right?"
Anton smiled and nodded lightly.
"Very good." Quirrell's voice trembled slightly. "Then let's talk about the secret to casting the Tether Charm non-verbally."
The night outside the window grew dark.
Snap!
With a snap of his fingers, a rope suddenly appeared in front of Anton, binding one of the legs of a high-backed chair in the distance.
"You truly are a genius, Anthony." Quirrell was a bit resentful, but still exclaimed in amazement.
This was his signature move. Heaven knows how long he had spent perfecting it, but this annoying kid had learned it in one night. That wasn't easy.
He felt a bit resentful. Had he just taught it away like that?
He felt a bit lost, starting to wonder what on earth he was doing.
Finally, he looked up at the window. The night was pitch-black, you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. Perfect for going out to do bad things. Oh, right, he needed this kid to help him. This was just payment for risking his life. At least he had a helper.
It wasn't a total loss, right?
He could only comfort himself this way.
However, that voice, like a repeating mechanical incantation, sounded in his ear again, "I still can't cast it wandlessly!"
Pfft!
This time, he really did spit out a mouthful of blood.
The blood rolled in his throat, and strangely, there was a sweet aftertaste.
Quirrell's eyes widened as he stared at Anton, unable to hold back any longer, he roared, "That really requires practice. Don't even think about wandless casting without several years of effort!"
He shouted until his voice broke. He felt his throat was about to tear open, he felt a dull ache in his liver, he felt his entire brain was about to explode.
If this kid says one more word!
Just one!
He would definitely duel him today!
The kind to the death!
"Alright." Anton gazed at Quirrell and sighed with some reluctance. "I will practice hard, Professor."
Go to hell!
Who cares if you practice or not!
Quirrell clenched his fists, his nails digging viciously into his palms. He twisted his face into a forced smile. "Can we go to the Forbidden Forest now?"
Anton stared at Quirrell with wide, incredulous eyes. "You still haven't taught me the Fire Manticore Charm!"
To hell with your Fire Manticore Charm!
Quirrell was beyond furious. He waved his wand, and the office door flew open with force, slamming against the wall with a huge bang.
Bang!
The impact shook dust from the ceiling.
He viciously grabbed Anton by the collar and threw him out.
"Get out! I don't want to see you again! Ahhhhh~~~~"
Anton stumbled back a few steps before steadying himself, nearly bumping into someone.
He looked up. "Professor McGonagall, good evening."
McGonagall looked at Anton and Quirrell with a strange expression. "You two..."
Quirrell tried his best to smile. Really, with all the effort he could muster in his life, he smiled, a radiant smile.
"To... tomorrow... tomorrow night... I'll teach... teach you again."
"Okay." Anton was very well-behaved, with an identical radiant smile.
"Very good." Quirrell's face fell instantly. Bang, the office door slammed shut.
Only Anton and Professor McGonagall were left, staring at each other.