"Young master, I'll head back now."
Nodding, Sean said to Aldridge, "Go ahead. And thank you for taking care of the children at the orphanage. They're our future team — they need to be well looked after and taught properly.
Also, I have an idea. When I achieve greater success in the future, I'll talk to Hogwarts about letting the children from the orphanage attend school there. Compared to the master-apprentice teaching at the orphanage, I think Hogwarts will give them a better education."
"But Master, that may not guarantee the children's loyalty. They—"
Sean waved his hand to stop him. "Loyalty isn't something you get just by controlling people. If we give them a bigger stage, a better future, and the warmth of a real home, they might choose loyalty themselves. And if any of them want to leave and try their luck elsewhere, let them go. When they're tired, they'll still have a home to come back to, right?"
Aldridge looked at Sean. For the first time, he couldn't find anything sly to say. For the first time, he truly felt — from the bottom of his heart — that leaving the Bulstrode family to follow Sean had been the right choice for him and the children.
"Of course, don't tell the children yet. Wait until it's confirmed. It wouldn't be right to make them happy for nothing."
The last time he visited the orphanage, Sean had heard some of the children's thoughts. Though the adult wizards didn't want them to say these things in front of Sean, they were just children — they couldn't hide everything. Sean knew very well that they longed to go to Hogwarts.
"Yes, Master."
Sean smiled at Aldridge, who was clearly not as calm as usual. He patted Aldridge's shoulder, then turned and walked toward Hogsmeade.
Aldridge watched Sean's figure from a distance, only turning away when Sean's silhouette disappeared into the snowflakes falling from the sky. Then Aldridge turned into a vortex and vanished on the spot.
When he had come here, it was snowing — but the snow wasn't that heavy.
Now, as he returned, Hogsmeade and Hogwarts in the distance were completely blanketed in white. From afar, Hogwarts looked like it was wrapped in silver — a rare sight.
Since he was already in Hogsmeade, Sean simply bought some things to take back — mostly candy.
When he walked out of Honeydukes, Sean suddenly remembered that there was a secret passage hidden inside the shop. But since he had signed the register when leaving, it would be hard to explain if he didn't sign in again when returning, so he decided not to explore it for now. Anyway, besides the passage in Honeydukes, there was also the one through the Hog's Head, so he could look into it next time.
After returning to Hogwarts, he handed out some of the sweets to a few first- and second-year Slytherin students who were eyeing him eagerly, then kept a small share for himself and left it on the table.
"You're back? Remember to take me with you next time. I haven't been to Hogsmeade yet."
Looking at Kulkan lying on his bed, Sean smiled and said, "I'll take you next time. This time I went to Gringotts in Diagon Alley to collect something. I had to Apparate, get through Gringotts' checks, and there's a dragon guarding it. Not exactly the best time to bring you along…"
"Wait—did you say there's a dragon in Gringotts?"
Kulkan, who'd been lounging lazily, instantly perked up. She raised her head, her red vertical pupils gleaming with hunger for dragon blood, dragon meat, dragon tendons, dragon bones—anything dragon.
"Next time, take me to Gringotts."
"No."
"You're cold, cruel, and completely unreasonable!"
Rolling his eyes at her, Sean shot back, "You're the one who's unreasonable."
Seeing Kulkan sulk and flop back on the bed, Sean sighed and added, "Alright. With any luck, there'll be something like a dragon showing up at Hogwarts next year. Worst case, I'll get you some then. If that doesn't work, I'll buy it."
Hearing that, Kulkan perked up at once. She fixed her bright eyes on Sean and said quickly, "Then I want it fresh. Like the Basilisk before—fresh."
"Fine, fine."
"I knew you were the best."
At dinner, Sean sat with Blaise and the others.
Blaise spent the whole time going on about this year's Quidditch matches. Sean, who wasn't all that interested in Quidditch, simply focused on his food.
After dinner, he said goodbye to Blaise and the rest, then went straight up to the third floor and slipped into the same unused classroom as before. Once inside, he used Scourgify to tidy up the room a bit.
It was seven o'clock.
Antonius drifted in through the door and settled right next to Sean. Smiling, he looked at Sean and asked, "Sean, last time we spoke about writing a letter to Nicolas Flamel, remember?"
Sean nodded. "Yes, Professor. I said before that maybe we could write to one of Nicolas Flamel's friends, and ask them to pass it along to him."
"Mmm… good. Then when the time comes, help me write that letter. If we can get a reply, that would be wonderful. If not, so be it."
"Alright. Should I take out the books now? I picked up quite a few today."
"No need for all of them. I know exactly which ones you have — and what's in them. Just take out Fundamentals of Alchemy: Svenmore's Annotations, Mysterious Alchemical Arrays, and Emerald Tablet: A Preliminary Study. Your foundations need strengthening and some refreshing. These three will help you most right now."
Hearing the titles, Sean quickly opened his Undetectable Extension Bag, found the three books, and laid them neatly on the desk.
Antonius looked at the books, his face softening with a hint of nostalgia. He lifted his hand, as if to touch them — though both of them knew he couldn't.
"I can still remember what it felt like to hold these books in my hands back then. I do miss it."
Pushing the moment aside, Antonius focused again. He flicked his hand and the books flew open by themselves. Then he rose, floated across the desk and up to the blackboard. He tapped it lightly, and lines of text and intricate alchemical arrays appeared across the board in neat rows.
"Now then, let's begin your proper lesson. Turn to page seven of Fundamentals of Alchemy: Svenmore's Annotations. We'll start with the foundations — the real core of alchemy. Since you already know a bit, I'll move quickly. If you lose focus, I'll be cross, so pay attention."