Chapter 127: Mandrakes

Professor Sprout strode over and was immediately on high alert when she saw the students gathered in a tense standoff. "What are you all doing? Why aren't you in class yet?" she asked sternly as she frowned. Pansy wasted no time in tattling, "Professor, Grey used a curse on Draco, and now he can't speak!" Professor Sprout was shocked. She glanced at Malfoy, then frowned and asked Wade, "Did you do this, Mr. Grey?" Padma quickly raised her hand and loudly said, "Malfoy insulted other students first, Professor! Wade didn't do anything wrong." Pansy immediately argued back, "It was Michael who humiliated Draco first! He deserved it!" Padma shot back, "How did he humiliate him? He just asked Malfoy how he stays in touch with his parents, didn't he?" "Uh..." Pansy was momentarily stumped. Professor Sprout, who was growing irritated with the bickering between the two girls, randomly pointed at a student: "You, explain what happened, Gr—" Wait, Wade Grey is directly involved today. Professor Sprout awkwardly shifted her hand and pointed to Anthony Goldstein instead. "... Mr. Goldstein." Anthony hesitated for a second, then stepped forward and gave a neutral account of what had happened: "... In the end, Grey used a nonverbal spell to stop Malfoy from speaking. That's what happened." "A nonverbal spell?" Professor Sprout looked at Wade in surprise and her tone softened. Since class time had already begun, she quickly lifted the curse on Malfoy and said, "Regardless, insulting classmates or using spells on each other is wrong. I'm deducting five points from each of you... and three days of detention." Wade quietly accepted the punishment. Malfoy, on the other hand, looked indignant, but under the professor's stern gaze, he remained silent. Next to Wade, Michael watched Malfoy with a cold, steely expression. "Today, we'll be working in Greenhouse Three." Professor Sprout led the students to a greenhouse they had never visited before. As she opened the door, they saw hundreds of Mandrake seedlings inside. Half of them were still in their nursery pots, while the other half had already been transferred to larger flower pots. The greenhouse also had a long bench with over twenty pairs of earmuffs in various colors laid out on top. "Today, we will be repotting the Mandrakes. As you can see, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff completed half of the work during the first class. I expect your class to do just as well." Professor Sprout scanned the students and asked, "Now, who can tell me what is special about Mandrakes?" Several students raised their hands, and Professor Sprout randomly chose one to answer. Wade gazed at the greenish-purple seedlings with interest. Mandrakes are powerful restorative plants. In the original storyline, they were even used to restore those who had been petrified by the basilisk. Additionally, Mandrakes are an essential ingredient for practicing advanced Transfiguration—particularly the Animagus transformation. Repotting Mandrakes isn't easy, as their roots resemble ugly babies that scream and struggle when pulled out of the soil. Hearing their cry can make a person faint for several hours. Fully grown Mandrakes can be even more dangerous—their screams are lethal. Wearing his earmuffs, Wade dug a hole in a large flower pot ahead of time. He then quickly pulled out a Mandrake seedling and shoved it into the new pot, while Michael swiftly filled the soil back in. The baby with leaves growing from its head didn't even have time to stretch its arms before being buried under the soil. Their teamwork was efficient. After burying the third seedling, Michael glanced around and saw that many students were still struggling with their first Mandrake. The light green baby Mandrakes wriggled furiously in the students' hands, kicking their arms and legs, and even hitting with their tiny fists. It was like they were holding a large, squirming rat, unsure whether to let it go or pull it closer. Even with three or four students working together, they were all sweating profusely. Malfoy's group, in particular, was having a hard time. Crabbe and Goyle were far clumsier than everyone else, and after wrestling with one Mandrake for what felt like ages, they still couldn't control it. They nearly had their earmuffs yanked off in the process. Malfoy was furious, but since everyone was wearing earmuffs, no one could hear what he was shouting. Michael smirked sarcastically. ... To complete all the transplanting work, class ran over by more than ten minutes. As the exhausted students were leaving, Professor Sprout asked Malfoy and Wade to stay behind for a moment. "Mr. Malfoy, your detention starts tonight at nine. Go to the Entrance Hall and find Mr. Filch; he will tell you what you need to do," Professor Sprout said. Malfoy shot Wade a fierce glare before turning to leave. "Mr. Grey," Professor Sprout's tone softened as she addressed Wade, "I'm very pleased with your performance in class today." "Thank you, Professor," Wade responded softly. Professor Sprout smiled warmly and asked, "Have you already mastered nonverbal spells?" She wasn't trying to show favoritism, but in her eyes, the Slytherin students had been openly hostile toward Wade since last term. As for the reason... Well, that didn't really need to be explained. Slytherins targeting students from non-magical families never needed much of a reason. She was sure there had been direct, serious confrontations between both sides. All the teachers at the school were aware that one day last year, several first-year Slytherin students had gone to the hospital wing crying. After that, tensions between the two sides had somewhat eased... but it seemed Malfoy still held a grudge. Comparing the two, even setting aside house rivalry and just looking at their behavior, the professor couldn't help but favor Wade. "The difficulty of nonverbal spells is a bit high. I can only manage a few spells nonverbal right now," Wade humbly replied, then waved his wand. The earmuffs and trowels the students had left scattered on the racks floated back into their proper places, and the dust and manure covering the floor disappeared. His movements were so smooth and natural that there wasn't the slightest hint of difficulty. "Too much humility is arrogance, Mr. Grey," Professor Sprout said with a smile. "That was an excellent nonverbal spell. I'm going to award you ten points. And... well... your detention will also start at nine tonight, but in Greenhouse Two." "Understood, Professor," Wade replied. The two shared a knowing smile. This detention was more of a private lesson than a punishment. As they left the greenhouse together, Wade added, "Professor, once these Mandrakes have matured, would I be able to request a leaf?" "A leaf?" Professor Sprout quickly understood. "You want to practice becoming an Animagus?" "Yes," Wade answered without hesitation. "That's quite an advanced form of Transfiguration," Professor Sprout remarked. "Minerva must be very pleased with your Transfiguration grades, but I doubt she'd approve of you practicing Animagus transformation at your year level," she said. "Actually, I have a very skilled private tutor," Wade replied with a smile. "Could I ask you to keep it a secret for now? Animagus preparation can take a long time... and I'd prefer not to tell anyone until I'm certain I can succeed." Some people take years to complete their Animagus transformation, so starting now and succeeding by sixth or seventh year wouldn't be unusual. With that in mind, Professor Sprout agreed generously, "Of course. But you must promise me that the final step of the transformation is done under a teacher's supervision." "Yes, I won't be reckless," Wade assured her sincerely. He wanted to master the magic of transforming from human to animal, but he certainly didn't want to risk becoming a mindless beast. -------------------------------- ????????Please consider supporting this translation project by becoming a P@treon member!!! Your support is greatly appreciated! Available on my P@treon page for just $4!! Early access to the following translations:- ⭐Harry Potter: Becoming a Study God (HP:BSG)- +112 Chapters & 2 Chapters/Day ⭐MCU: Druid's Adventures (MCUDA)(⭐COMPLETE⭐) - Total Chapter 460 ⭐Famous Police Detective in Detective World (FPDDW)- +165 advance chapters ⭐Marvel: Little Genius (MLG) (⭐COMPLETE⭐) - Total Chapter 450 [email protected]/Lightreaper457 --------------------------------