The troll remained levitating for quite some time.
When Murphy and the professors arrived, they were astounded to see the troll floating in mid-air.
Murphy healed Tom's leg using a repair charm, impressing Professor Flitwick with his skills.
After checking on the other young wizards and finding no serious injuries, the professors breathed a sigh of relief but then sternly reprimanded them.
When asked why they were there, Tom only mentioned his desire to challenge the troll, omitting the Devil's Snare incident, and the others kept silent about it too.
"How could you think you could take on a mountainous troll alone?" Professor McGonagall asked with a hint of reprimand.
"Oh, about that…" Murphy stepped in. "I'm afraid I bear some responsibility for this, Professor McGonagall."
"What? Professor Darkholme, did you encourage this boy to challenge the troll?" McGonagall was surprised.
"No, not that," Murphy said. "Recently, we've been trying to make a wand. Together with these youngsters, we made a pretty good one, which I gave to Lucas, hoping he would test its power."
"I think it's probably because of this that Lucas made this reckless decision."
"Oh." The professors turned their attention to the still-spinning, wailing troll in the corridor.
Quirrell, who had been sobbing alone on a toilet seat like a mischievous girl, kept glancing at the wands in the young wizards' hands.
Hey, hey, senior, your fox tail is showing!
Maintain your composure as an actor!
"This wand enabled the young wizards to perform such magic…" Flitwick marveled. "This is truly impressive craftsmanship, Murphy. I didn't know you were a master wandmaker."
"..."
Master wandmaker... Tsk.
"Perhaps it's just a coincidence…" Snape glanced at Murphy. "Darkholme has always been fond of meddling with those Muggle methods for his so-called 'research' since his school days. Though lacking in aesthetic, persistence can yield some results..."
Murphy gave Snape a look.
I really don't like hearing that.
Ever since school, this professor disliked him - not surprising, as Snape favored only his own house's students.
Murphy had once tried to persuade Snape to use beakers and pipettes for precise potion-making, only to be harshly mocked.
Things like "Muggle's inferior techniques," "Only students lacking intelligence would need such tools," "Don't think being different earns respect; it only brings ridicule," and so on...
In short, Snape felt that Murphy's innovations in potion-making were an affront to the beautiful art of potions.
To this, Murphy had only one response: "Muggle, Muggle... after being a wizard for so long, have you forgotten you're also the child of a Muggle?"
Snape's face turned ashen, his eyes glaring at Murphy with a murderous chill.
Murphy's face remained kindly smiling, but his frosty eyes met Snape's unflinchingly.
Damn it, back in school you were a professor, and I couldn't talk back.
Now you still want to mess with me?
Believe it or not, I'll fire you tomorrow?!
"Oh! Professor Darkholme!" McGonagall scolded Murphy with a glare, "And Professor Snape! What a scene in front of the students! Alright, you lot! What are you still doing here! Go on, get back. I'll report this matter to Professor Dumbledore."
The young wizards were sent away, discussing the recent events all the way.
"Professor Darkholme and Professor Snape don't seem to get along well," Tom said.
"Not just 'not well'," Ron said. "I think they almost wanted to kill each other."
"I always thought Professor Murphy was gentle, but I didn't expect him to get angry too," Hermione commented, her cheeks flushed. "He looks handsome when he's angry."
"Ugh…" Ron couldn't take it anymore. "I thought I could be friends with you, but let the troll eat me instead."
Friends...
Tom suddenly recalled Ron's earlier words.
Is this what friends are like?
He touched the corner of his mouth that involuntarily curled up.
Seems nice, actually.
"Let's make Galleon tokens," Tom suddenly suggested, as if remembering something.
"If there's any danger again, we can immediately inform each other."
...
Tom's proposal was unanimously agreed upon by the young wizards.
They quickly started brewing the "Thief's Blood" potion.
Murphy's potion recipe was different from most others, with detailed steps instead of vague instructions like "add a little water" or "simmer on medium heat."
For example, "Dissolve 3% concentration of Mandrake juice in a beaker, heat it to 65 degrees with an alcohol burner, and maintain this temperature for 10 minutes..."
Or, "Weigh 2 grams of unicorn horn powder on a balance, mix it with 5 milliliters of Flobberworm mucus and 10 milliliters of water to form a suspension..."
Or, "Adjust the height of the iron stand to align the funnel with the beaker, lean a glass rod against the filter paper, and slowly pour the solution along the rod into the funnel for filtration..."
The recipe's steps were so detailed it was nearly impossible to get them wrong.
However, even though the ingredients for Thief's Blood potion were common, as first-year students, they couldn't leave the school, so they had to acquire the materials during Potions class.
During the next Potions class, they took advantage of a moment when Neville messed up his potion and Snape was reprimanding him to sneak some materials.
They didn't need much, just enough to make four Galleon tokens, and their secret smuggling went unnoticed.
A few days later, the Galleon tokens were completed. Like walkie-talkies, they allowed communication with others by channeling magic, functioning like team megaphones in online games. With a range of 200 meters, chatting within the castle was no issue.
The four young wizards were thrilled. For the first two days, they were constantly in contact, chatting for another half hour in their respective dorms at night. The Galleon tokens gave them a real sense of being in a close-knit group.
Their strange behavior soon drew the attention of their classmates. Once the Seamus-Dean group successfully made their Galleon tokens, seeing them chatting happily with their friends at any time, other young wizards couldn't sit still.
It didn't matter if they didn't have Murphy's rewarded tokens; they could use their own Galleons. The recipe and ritual were public, after all.
Soon, Galleon tokens became a trend among Hogwarts students, with older students joining in.
The Weasley twins, sensing a business opportunity, started offering customization services. For a fee of two Sickles per token, they could make you a set of Galleon tokens within two days.
Within a week, the Weasley twins earned more than a dozen Galleons from this side business.
Meanwhile, Snape noticed a more than twofold increase in the use of Potions class materials.
After realizing the Galleon tokens were to blame, Snape, infuriated, threatened to punish any student caught stealing potion materials with detention, curbing this trend.
The popularity of Galleon tokens was such that they even made their way into Quidditch matches.
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