It had been some time since the last Alchemy gala, and almost all of Hogwarts was envious of the seventh-year Alchemy, which had made quite a splash.
However, behind this excitement, there were always some who noticed other things, like Harry.
He noticed that ever since they had gone to Professor Kaisen's office that day and learned that the true Dark Wizard hidden within Hogwarts was the timid Professor Quirrell.
Whenever Professor Kaisen and Professor Quirrell were in the same space, that strange scent of gunpowder always filled the air.
He didn't know why, maybe it was just his imagination.
"I always feel like Professor Kaisen is picking on Quirrell, constantly, whenever they are together," Harry whispered to his four friends in the Library.
"Of course, a powerful Wizard like Professor Kaisen, who despises evil, naturally wouldn't have a good attitude towards a Dark Wizard; that's perfectly normal," Neville chimed in.
"Everyone understands that, but I just feel that Professor Kaisen, an Alchemist, targeting Quirrell, a Dark Wizard, like that, what if one day Quirrell is pushed too far and tries to assassinate Professor Kaisen?" Hermione replied while writing her essay.
"Professor Kaisen is very powerful; he can make that Troll explode with just one move. Didn't you see it that day? It splattered all over the walls!" Neville immediately retorted when he heard Kaisen's combat power being underestimated.
"Of course, I'm not saying Professor Kaisen isn't powerful enough, but what if Professor Quirrell has even more sinister curses or Dark Arts?" Hermione countered.
"Uh, actually, Professor Kaisen also knows Dark Arts. When he was in Knockturn Alley before, he saved Hagrid from being entangled by Dark Wizards, and at that time, he used a skull magic to kill those three Dark Wizards," Harry added.
"That's not Dark Arts. How could Professor Kaisen use Dark Arts?"
"But it was a skull."
"That's still not Dark Arts."
Harry looked at the stubborn Neville and deflated; he didn't know how to refute him.
"Uh... I remember we were initially talking about Professor Kaisen picking on Quirrell, weren't we? How did we drift to Dark Arts?" Ron suddenly joined the group chat, asking somewhat bewildered.
"..."
"...."
"..."
Kaisen, one of the parties involved in the hushed argument in the Library, was completely unaware of it, but he could quickly answer their questions.
Because during lunch in the Great Hall, the moment Professor Quirrell finished eating and was about to leave, Kaisen also stood up at the same time.
The two of them bumped into each other squarely. Kaisen was fine, but Quirrell was directly knocked onto his backside.
In that instant, he finally broke. Not long ago, this well-dressed Professor Kaisen had been quite friendly to him in the Professors' lounge.
Why, ever since that Halloween, Kaisen seemed to have suddenly changed into a different person? It wasn't really a change of person; he was still friendly to other Professors, Little Wizards, even Hagrid and Filch.
Only towards himself...
Quirrell, seething with anger, pulled a handkerchief from his pocket with such speed that even Lord Voldemort behind his head didn't react in time.
"I want to duel you!"
Kaisen tilted his head and reached out to catch the slowly floating handkerchief.
"Name a time."
"Tonight, in the Great Hall! I will defeat you under everyone's witness!" Quirrell roared, and Lord Voldemort behind his head, uncharacteristically, did not stop him, seemingly happy to see it happen and wanting to use Quirrell to test the level of this rising Alchemy Professor.
"Not stuttering now? As you wish. When you set up the arena, remember to have someone come find me," Kaisen said casually, tucking the handkerchief into his pocket.
"Hmph! Dumbledore, I, I want to ask you to be the, the dueling, dueling witness for this," Quirrell reacted, quickly resumed his stutter, and looked eagerly at Dumbledore, who was drinking a glass of lemonade.
"Oh... In that case, of course, no problem," Dumbledore readily agreed.
"Great Hall, evening, before dinner. I'll be here... waiting for you here!" Quirrell said fiercely, his eyes red, looking at Kaisen.
"Mm-hmm."
Kaisen shrugged, as if completely ignoring Quirrell's strange shout. He was considering whether he should give Quirrell a small shock of good manners.
But in the end, he still didn't speak. After all, there were so many Little Wizards here, and it wouldn't be good if he taught them bad habits.
However, not cursing didn't mean there shouldn't be any action.
Kaisen, with lightning speed, like Mount Everest suddenly appearing in the world from below, raised a slender, straight middle finger.
Then Kaisen turned and left the Great Hall, satisfied.
The little interlude in the Great Hall quickly ended, and Quirrell, still fuming, rushed back to his Defense Against the Dark Arts office.
"I might have thought this day would come, but I didn't think it would come so fast, really," Neville mumbled indistinctly, still with half a piece of bread in his mouth.
"No, I have to go to Professor Kaisen's office!" Harry only thought for a brief two and a half seconds in his seat before quickly standing up and running towards the staircase at the side of the Great Hall.
"Hey, wait for us!" Neville quickly dropped the half-eaten bread, and Hermione, speechless, picked up Neville's forgotten Remembrall and the homework due that afternoon.
Finally, there was Ron, holding two fried chicken legs, claiming it was because he was afraid Professor Kaisen hadn't eaten enough and was bringing him a special meal.
If only the two chicken legs hadn't already been bitten twice by him.
...........
When the four Little Wizards arrived at Kaisen's office, they awkwardly discovered... the office was already packed, and even the outside was full of people; the entire corridor was filled with Little Wizards from third year and above.
The Little Wizards from the four houses had never been so united in one direction as they were here.
Ron even spotted his two twin brothers at the door.
"Professor Kaisen! Professor! If you just say the word, we guarantee that Quirrell won't be able to leave his office!" one of the twins shouted loudly.
"Professor! The twins are useless! Look at me, I know Dark Arts!"
"Professor Kaisen, I, I hand-crafted a great treasure with Alchemy, guaranteed to give Quirrell an amazing Alchemy shock!"
"Professor Kaisen....."
"Professor Kaisen!!!"
"...Uh... can we even squeeze in here?" Ron wiped his greasy mouth, his eye twitching uncontrollably as he spoke.