Return of Salazar Slytherin

Malfoy, who had lost that Quidditch match, harbored deep resentment toward Harry. 

In his direct confrontation with Harry Potter, he had been completely reduced to a laughingstock, making him look like nothing more than a spoiled brat who had bought his way onto the team. 

Malfoy felt incredibly wronged—he had been selected for the Slytherin team first, and only then had he purchased broomsticks for his teammates! So why did everyone end up believing that his father had bought Nimbus 2001s for the whole team just to get him a spot?

The sequence was all wrong! 

But there was no helping it—in competitive sports, being bad was the ultimate sin. If he had managed to catch the Snitch in the match against Gryffindor, then even if he really had bribed his way onto the team, he would have still received countless praises. But unfortunately, he lost. Twice in a row. His reputation was utterly ruined. 

The young Draco Malfoy didn't understand this truth. He simply redirected his hatred onto Potter. In his mind, Potter was the one who bore the majority of the blame for his current humiliation. 

In the end, he decided to "get back" at Harry during Potions class. 

Causing trouble in Potions was obviously a risky move, but Malfoy was brimming with confidence—not for any particular reason other than the fact that he was Lucius Malfoy's son! His father's relationship with Professor Snape was as solid as a rock. 

To ordinary students, the Potions classroom was like a den of horrors, but to Malfoy, it felt like home. Though he wasn't particularly fond of the atmosphere, he knew that Snape was exceptionally lenient with him. 

Seizing the moment while Ron and Harry were distracted, Malfoy stealthily pulled out a string of Filibuster's Fireworks. 

Ironically, he had even gone through a middleman to purchase them from Fred Weasley.

With a swift tap of his wand, Malfoy ignited the firework.

The thumb-sized cracker began to hiss, spitting out sparks. Taking a deep breath, Malfoy used a Levitation Charm to smoothly guide the firework into Ron's cauldron, barely causing a ripple. 

Harry and Ron, too engrossed in their eavesdropping, completely failed to notice Malfoy's sneaky maneuver. By the time they realized something was wrong, Ron's cauldron had already exploded. 

The nearly completed Swelling Solution erupted like a small fountain, spraying out of the cauldron. 

Snape spun around sharply, lifting his robe and shielding himself with his sleeve as the potion surged toward him.

Rhys also reacted swiftly, drawing his wand and casting a Freezing Charm, instantly turning most of the splashing potion into tiny ice pellets. 

After freezing the sprayed liquid, Rhys conjured a barrier above Ron's cauldron, trapping the remaining potion within. 

Thanks to Rhys's quick response, the potion explosion barely caused any injuries—only Harry and Ron, who were closest to the cauldron, were affected, while the other students were hardly touched. 

"Idiots!" Snape's voice was filled with fury. He swiftly cleared the potion from his robes and stormed over to Harry and Ron's table. 

Harry, reacting quickly, pulled out the Deflating Draught he had brewed earlier. He first applied it to Ron, whose head and complexion now bore an uncanny resemblance to a pumpkin, before dabbing it onto his own arm, which had swollen to the size of a winter melon. 

Harry seemed to have a natural talent for Potions, and his antidote was remarkably effective. The results were nearly instantaneous—by the time Snape's wrath fully erupted, both Harry and Ron had almost returned to normal. 

With a flick of his wand, Snape cleared the spilled potion from Ron's table, making the ice pellets disappear along with it.

He stared directly into Ron's eyes, as if trying to peer into his very soul. 

Sitting diagonally behind Ron, Malfoy felt a pang of disappointment seeing how swiftly Rhys and the others had resolved the commotion. However, when he saw Ron being singled out by Professor Snape, his spirits lifted once more. 

But Malfoy's joy was short-lived. After just a few seconds of scrutinizing Ron, Snape swished his robes and turned away. 

"Five points from Gryffindor—for failing to take proper care of your cauldron." Snape's cold voice echoed through the Potions classroom. "Ten points to Slytherin. In the future, if a potion boils over, take note of Mr. Lint's example. A well-timed Freezing Charm can resolve most problems." 

Malfoy frowned. Was it Rhys's actions that had pleased Professor Snape? 

His instinct was correct. At the moment Ron's cauldron had exploded, Snape's heart had turned cold. But Rhys's spell had restarted its rhythm. 

After so many years of teaching, this was the first time Snape had encountered a student capable of covering for him—most of the other dunderheads considered it an achievement just to avoid blowing up their own cauldrons. 

"Like being trapped in a room with twenty trolls"—that was the most accurate description of Snape's usual teaching experience. This torment would continue until the fifth year, when the O.W.L.s exam would finally filter out those unfit for Potions. 

Teaching sixth- and seventh-year students was far easier. Snape's requirement was that only those who achieved an "Outstanding" in their O.W.L.s could continue in his N.E.W.T.-level class. At the very least, these students wouldn't make elementary mistakes.

Rhys Lint's excellence did not merely lie in his proficiency in brewing potions—though that was indeed impressive. Over the years, Snape had encountered quite a few students with exceptional potion-making skills. What made Rhys unique was his ability to react swiftly and appropriately to sudden accidents, handling them with a practiced ease as if he had dealt with hundreds, if not thousands, of similar incidents before. 

This surprised Snape. It brought back memories of Rhys's very first Potions class. That day, they had been brewing Boil-Curing Potion, and an accident had occurred. Even then, Rhys's reaction had been remarkably precise. 

Perhaps he truly had a talent for becoming a Potions professor..?

Proud as Snape was, he had to admit that Rhys possessed the most outstanding natural talent he had ever seen. 

Snape intended to let the incident slide without further discussion, but Rhys was unwilling to do so. 

He knew too much about Swelling Solution. This particular potion might turn out too diluted, it might "burn" during the concentration process, or it might fail to meet the desired potency due to improper ingredient preparation—but one thing it would never do was explode like this. 

As long as the correct ingredients were used, making it explode was nearly impossible. 

And since the ingredients had been provided by Snape himself, there was no chance of an issue there.

Rhys had also observed Ron's workstation—the materials were all in order, and based on the leftover ingredients, Ron's preparation steps had been correct. 

The most compelling piece of evidence, however, was Ron's head, now swollen to the size of a pumpkin.

This proved that Ron's Swelling Solution had been successfully brewed. 

Which meant that someone had tampered with it!

Rhys stood up and walked straight to Ron's cauldron, where he found a clump of black ash. 

The moment Rhys rose from his seat, he drew the attention of the entire classroom.

And when he fished out that suspicious object, the large Potions classroom fell completely silent.

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