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Chapter 120: Uh... You Can't Do That
"A dozen roosters? Haha..."
Inside the Staff Room, the Alchemy Professor listened to William recount the morning's amusing events, a mischievous grin plastered on his face—which made Adams, who had been listening happily nearby, pull a long face.
"There's nothing abnormal about roosters."
"Exactly, whether it's a rooster or a hen, they're just ingredients."
"That's right, they're just some roosters, nothing really interesting about them."
Adams' calm replies were met with earnest agreement from his two colleagues—at least in terms of their demeanor, both William and Singeade had serious expressions.
"William!"
"Hmm, what's wrong, Adams, do you feel like you've been cursed?"
William, with a serious expression, pulled out a handful of amulets from his usual desk—these were teaching aids used in a previous class. After everyone had passed them around as a joke, a few of the props had been left here.
"Look, these are excellent amulets, good things that piles of Galleons couldn't buy. For old times' sake, pick one."
William's words were full of the regret that these priceless treasures were now being exchanged for mere gold coins.
"Give me one, I've been suffering from insomnia, headaches, and a dry nose lately..."
Singeade, looking very serious, leaned closer, picking and choosing from the pile of fakes like a tourist selecting souvenirs by the roadside.
And so, Adams stomped off, fuming.
But the matter wasn't over. Although William had no intention of continuing the joke, Singeade seemed to have become addicted to it. In less than half a day, he had even concocted several jokes.
Coincidentally, Hagrid's assistance was also well-timed. As he had said, these roosters were bought to make up for the previous poor hospitality.
At lunch, Hagrid entrusted a student to invite Professor Adams to eat chicken. The joke, which had finally died down, continued with this invitation—and after the student who had delivered the message left, William and Singeade huddled together and burst into laughter.
——
"How was lunch?"
"It was alright, Hagrid's cooking was a little better than I imagined—though only just a little."
Adams replied in a low voice. Although one shouldn't evaluate the host's cooking this way after receiving hospitality, Hufflepuff was, after all, the House with a bookshelf full of cookbooks in its Common Room.
Although Adams didn't rate Hagrid's cooking very highly, Hagrid seemed to feel that one chicken wasn't enough to make up for the previous poor hospitality.
In the evening, another student timidly entered the office to inform Professor Adams that Hagrid had prepared an extraordinary dinner for him.
"Dinner?"
The three professors exchanged glances, their faces filled with curiosity.
*'Who invites someone to meals day and night? Especially when it's just for a meal!'*
Although Adams was equally surprised by such an invitation, he politely asked the student to relay the message back that he would certainly be there on time.
"Adams, has Hagrid perhaps raised some strange magical creatures, the kind that eat herbs?"
William asked, filled with curiosity.
"Shut up, William. Hogwarts has no need for such magical creatures. Otherwise, I would take this matter all the way to Professor Dumbledore, and I wouldn't back down."
Adams' face was serious, giving off the impression that he'd fight anyone who dared to raise such a creature.
His stance made Singeade, who had been about to mock him, give up on his plan to continue teasing.
——
*'I woke up too late. Is it noon already?'*
On Wednesday morning, as William politely smiled back at the greeting students and drifted by inertia towards the Great Hall, he suddenly saw Singeade sitting there.
This discovery completely startled William awake, who had been drowsy from staying up too late preparing exam papers.
*'I just closed my eyes for a moment after the alarm clock rang. It wasn't that long, so how is it noon already?'*
He began to feel vexed now—he had no classes all day Wednesday. He could have spent it enjoying himself or reading books, but the time had been wasted in bed.
Although wasting time on things you enjoy isn't really wasting time, he was still burdened by a curse. How could he afford so much time to relax!
Just as William was reproaching himself, he suddenly noticed that the other professors at the table all looked astonished, as if a miracle had suddenly occurred today.
After glancing at the time, William instantly understood what had happened.
Professor Singeade, for the first time ever, had gotten up early and successfully made it to Hogwarts' breakfast.
Waking up so early clearly made the Alchemy Professor quite uncomfortable. In such a short time, William saw him yawn three or four times at the table.
*'What happened? Did Peeves sneak into his rooms and play a prank? Did he sleepwalk? Was he woken up by a student?'*
Countless thoughts flashed through William's mind—since the start of the school year, this was the first time he had seen Singeade at breakfast. This seemed even more incredible than the ill-fated rooster.
"Adams, you've eaten two of his chickens."
Professor Singeade, yawning and looking exhausted, taunted Adams.
"Singeade? Did you not get enough rest?"
Adams ignored the taunt, a look of concern on his face. Not just William, but Adams himself hadn't seen Singeade at the breakfast table in the morning for nearly five years.
"I'm fine, I just haven't slept yet."
Singeade wore an expression that said 'don't mind the details', his face a mix of two complex emotions—excitement and exhaustion.
*'Has he made some great discovery?'*
This thought was the first to surface in William's mind—alchemy was the most expensive and also the most profitable subject.
Although Singeade was considered young among the professors, and could even hang out with William, the new professor, his work experience far surpassed William and Adams combined.
While William's work experience was negligible, Singeade's was substantial—others accumulated it over time, but this Alchemy Professor relied entirely on overtime.
The term 'alchemy' refers to two things. First, its highest purpose: the creation of gold. And second, the fact that it burns through money as if gold were the raw material.
*'Did he create some legendary magical equipment, the kind that could be passed down for generations?'*
*'Discovered a new alchemical process?'*
*'Improved upon an existing alchemical method?'*
Although these achievements sounded outlandish, they weren't out of place for a professor at Hogwarts—aside from William, who was brought in as a substitute, which professor wasn't a top-tier expert in their field?
William's heart also began to pound with excitement. Although those achievements had nothing to do with him, he was still genuinely happy for Singeade at that moment.
*'Staying up all night for this, it's absolutely worth it!'*
William thought this, then looked at Professor Singeade with a gaze bordering on worship as he pulled out a piece of paper.
He smiled as he handed it to Adams, proudly gesturing for Adams to look.
William couldn't help but lean over for a peek. Although it was a bit rude, he genuinely wanted to know—what great discovery was it?
Then, both he and Adams were stunned.
On the paper—were a dozen or so concocted jokes.
To be precise, they were a dozen jokes about Adams.
(end of chapter)
"A dozen roosters? Haha..."
Inside the Staff Room, the Alchemy Professor listened to William recount the morning's amusing events, a mischievous grin plastered on his face—which made Adams, who had been listening happily nearby, pull a long face.
"There's nothing abnormal about roosters."
"Exactly, whether it's a rooster or a hen, they're just ingredients."
"That's right, they're just some roosters, nothing really interesting about them."
Adams' calm replies were met with earnest agreement from his two colleagues—at least in terms of their demeanor, both William and Singeade had serious expressions.
"William!"
"Hmm, what's wrong, Adams, do you feel like you've been cursed?"
William, with a serious expression, pulled out a handful of amulets from his usual desk—these were teaching aids used in a previous class. After everyone had passed them around as a joke, a few of the props had been left here.
"Look, these are excellent amulets, good things that piles of Galleons couldn't buy. For old times' sake, pick one."
William's words were full of the regret that these priceless treasures were now being exchanged for mere gold coins.
"Give me one, I've been suffering from insomnia, headaches, and a dry nose lately..."
Singeade, looking very serious, leaned closer, picking and choosing from the pile of fakes like a tourist selecting souvenirs by the roadside.
And so, Adams stomped off, fuming.
But the matter wasn't over. Although William had no intention of continuing the joke, Singeade seemed to have become addicted to it. In less than half a day, he had even concocted several jokes.
Coincidentally, Hagrid's assistance was also well-timed. As he had said, these roosters were bought to make up for the previous poor hospitality.
At lunch, Hagrid entrusted a student to invite Professor Adams to eat chicken. The joke, which had finally died down, continued with this invitation—and after the student who had delivered the message left, William and Singeade huddled together and burst into laughter.
——
"How was lunch?"
"It was alright, Hagrid's cooking was a little better than I imagined—though only just a little."
Adams replied in a low voice. Although one shouldn't evaluate the host's cooking this way after receiving hospitality, Hufflepuff was, after all, the House with a bookshelf full of cookbooks in its Common Room.
Although Adams didn't rate Hagrid's cooking very highly, Hagrid seemed to feel that one chicken wasn't enough to make up for the previous poor hospitality.
In the evening, another student timidly entered the office to inform Professor Adams that Hagrid had prepared an extraordinary dinner for him.
"Dinner?"
The three professors exchanged glances, their faces filled with curiosity.
*'Who invites someone to meals day and night? Especially when it's just for a meal!'*
Although Adams was equally surprised by such an invitation, he politely asked the student to relay the message back that he would certainly be there on time.
"Adams, has Hagrid perhaps raised some strange magical creatures, the kind that eat herbs?"
William asked, filled with curiosity.
"Shut up, William. Hogwarts has no need for such magical creatures. Otherwise, I would take this matter all the way to Professor Dumbledore, and I wouldn't back down."
Adams' face was serious, giving off the impression that he'd fight anyone who dared to raise such a creature.
His stance made Singeade, who had been about to mock him, give up on his plan to continue teasing.
——
*'I woke up too late. Is it noon already?'*
On Wednesday morning, as William politely smiled back at the greeting students and drifted by inertia towards the Great Hall, he suddenly saw Singeade sitting there.
This discovery completely startled William awake, who had been drowsy from staying up too late preparing exam papers.
*'I just closed my eyes for a moment after the alarm clock rang. It wasn't that long, so how is it noon already?'*
He began to feel vexed now—he had no classes all day Wednesday. He could have spent it enjoying himself or reading books, but the time had been wasted in bed.
Although wasting time on things you enjoy isn't really wasting time, he was still burdened by a curse. How could he afford so much time to relax!
Just as William was reproaching himself, he suddenly noticed that the other professors at the table all looked astonished, as if a miracle had suddenly occurred today.
After glancing at the time, William instantly understood what had happened.
Professor Singeade, for the first time ever, had gotten up early and successfully made it to Hogwarts' breakfast.
Waking up so early clearly made the Alchemy Professor quite uncomfortable. In such a short time, William saw him yawn three or four times at the table.
*'What happened? Did Peeves sneak into his rooms and play a prank? Did he sleepwalk? Was he woken up by a student?'*
Countless thoughts flashed through William's mind—since the start of the school year, this was the first time he had seen Singeade at breakfast. This seemed even more incredible than the ill-fated rooster.
"Adams, you've eaten two of his chickens."
Professor Singeade, yawning and looking exhausted, taunted Adams.
"Singeade? Did you not get enough rest?"
Adams ignored the taunt, a look of concern on his face. Not just William, but Adams himself hadn't seen Singeade at the breakfast table in the morning for nearly five years.
"I'm fine, I just haven't slept yet."
Singeade wore an expression that said 'don't mind the details', his face a mix of two complex emotions—excitement and exhaustion.
*'Has he made some great discovery?'*
This thought was the first to surface in William's mind—alchemy was the most expensive and also the most profitable subject.
Although Singeade was considered young among the professors, and could even hang out with William, the new professor, his work experience far surpassed William and Adams combined.
While William's work experience was negligible, Singeade's was substantial—others accumulated it over time, but this Alchemy Professor relied entirely on overtime.
The term 'alchemy' refers to two things. First, its highest purpose: the creation of gold. And second, the fact that it burns through money as if gold were the raw material.
*'Did he create some legendary magical equipment, the kind that could be passed down for generations?'*
*'Discovered a new alchemical process?'*
*'Improved upon an existing alchemical method?'*
Although these achievements sounded outlandish, they weren't out of place for a professor at Hogwarts—aside from William, who was brought in as a substitute, which professor wasn't a top-tier expert in their field?
William's heart also began to pound with excitement. Although those achievements had nothing to do with him, he was still genuinely happy for Singeade at that moment.
*'Staying up all night for this, it's absolutely worth it!'*
William thought this, then looked at Professor Singeade with a gaze bordering on worship as he pulled out a piece of paper.
He smiled as he handed it to Adams, proudly gesturing for Adams to look.
William couldn't help but lean over for a peek. Although it was a bit rude, he genuinely wanted to know—what great discovery was it?
Then, both he and Adams were stunned.
On the paper—were a dozen or so concocted jokes.
To be precise, they were a dozen jokes about Adams.
(end of chapter)
