Fertilizing the Devil's Snare is almost the hardest lesson in the first-year Herbology Class.
Kael finds it easy, simply because he has experience in this area. Don't forget he's been taking care of Chomping Cabbage for several months.
Chomping Cabbage with teeth is much more dangerous than a Devil's Snare that only knows how to entangle. Any slight mistake, and Kael might have to go to the Hospital Wing for some Skele-Gro... or other Magic Potions.
After a period of hell mode, going back to simpler tasks naturally seems easy.
However, the others don't have this experience. When they first encountered the Devil's Snare, they were tortured by those tendrils, screaming wildly.
Some panicked immediately when the tendrils wrapped around them, completely forgetting Professor Sprout's instructions and instinctively started struggling.
If it weren't for Professor Sprout nearby, they're likely already wrapped up like a mummy.
Kael didn't stay idle either. When Professor Sprout couldn't keep up, he proactively stepped forward to help those young wizards entangled by the Devil's Snare to break free.
This move earned ten more points for Hufflepuff from Professor Sprout.
"Thank you, Kael."
Ryan shook his painfully constricted arm and said, "When I watched you do it earlier, I thought it was a simple task, but I didn't expect it to be so hard... I couldn't even get near it."
"Don't lose heart..."
Kael patted his shoulder and said, "Just watch out and avoid touching those tendrils."
"I'll try my best."
Ryan sighed and said, "It's a pity Professor Sprout doesn't allow using the Lighting Spell, or it would be much easier."
"You're overthinking it." Kael lightly shook his head.
Using the Lighting Spell would probably cause this young Devil's Snare to wilt instantly, making the lesson pointless.
If it were just digging a hole and fertilizing, even a three-year-old could do it well, so why take up class time to learn it?
"I was just saying."
Ryan changed direction and tried to reach out again.
At this time, Kael also looked elsewhere.
Others' performances were similar to Ryan, but there were exceptions.
Conna successfully completed the task and became the second young wizard to fertilize the Devil's Snare. Although she wasn't as skilled as Kael and paused many times in between, she did quite well overall, passing in one go.
There was also Gryffindor's Cormac McLaggen, though he was slower and only completed it halfway through the lesson.
After him, the Devil's Snare seemed tired, moving its tendrils noticeably slower, which gave the young wizards more opportunities.
By the end of class, more than half of the students had completed the task of fertilizing the Devil's Snare, but they were all sweaty and eager to rush back to the castle for a shower.
Professor Sprout lined them up in two rows, and once everyone was in place, she slowly opened the greenhouse door.
Sunlight instantly filled the entire greenhouse, and the Devil's Snare in the middle seemed greatly stimulated, freezing in place.
Standing intentionally at the back of the crowd, Kael's eyes lit up. While Professor Sprout wasn't looking, he quickly pulled out a small knife he had prepared and swiftly cut a small piece of root to tuck into his pocket.
Sunlight has a significant effect on the Devil's Snare; even when someone slashed it, it remained motionless.
Afterward, Kael acted as if nothing happened, leaving the greenhouse along with the others, even casually greeting Professor Sprout as he passed by.
"Goodbye, Professor."
"Goodbye, Kael," Professor Sprout smiled and waved, "I remember you like plants. Interested in raising a Puffapod?
By your next class, it can be repotted."
"I would love to, Professor."
Didn't expect an unexpected reward... Kael's mood improved even more.
After bidding farewell to Professor Sprout, he quickly headed towards the castle.
The Puffapod is a future concern; Kael planned to first deliver what's in his pocket to the Room of Requirement on the eighth floor.
The survival ability of vine plants like the Devil's Snare is very strong. As long as this segment of root is planted in the soil in time, it can survive and grow into a complete Devil's Snare.
As he was walking, a commotion suddenly came from not far away.
Kael looked up and saw many people running towards Hagrid's hut, including the young wizards who had just been in Herbology Class with him.
"What's happening, has Hagrid's secret of keeping a Three-Headed Dog been discovered?"
Kael frowned and joined the crowd.
Things were as he thought; Hagrid's secret of keeping a Three-Headed Dog had indeed been discovered, and someone had come to confront him.
Three Aurors from the Ministry of Magic were now standing at the doorstep of the hut, rudely pointing their wands at Hagrid and saying,
"We've received a report that you bought an unidentified Fantastic Beast in September."
One of the Aurors said, "Hand it over and come with us to the Ministry of Magic."
"I didn't!"
Hagrid said, his face red, "I just bought some anti-carnivorous slug potion that time!"
The Auror refused to relent, stating, "But someone saw you trading a Fantastic Beast."
"That's nonsense!"
Hagrid said frantically, "And you've already searched my room, haven't you? It's just me and Fang here!"
"Whether or not is not for you to decide; we can't just listen to your side of the story." The Auror said with narrowed eyes at Hagrid, "If you are truly innocent, the Ministry of Magic will naturally clear your name... What do you have to worry about?
Or is there some secret you fear exposing, and you dare not come with us to the Ministry of Magic?"
His aggressive demeanor infuriated the young wizards surrounding them.
Though they weren't familiar with Hagrid, they remembered that it was the big man who took them from the train station to the castle when they first arrived.
The students, especially the new ones, didn't care much about the Ministry of Magic; they just knew Hagrid was one of their own, so they naturally stood on his side.
Suddenly, a chorus of boos and yells erupted, demanding the Aurors leave Hogwarts at once.
A few savvy young wizards, knowing they couldn't handle the Ministry members, quickly ran back to the castle to seek reinforcement.
The Aurors also noticed the situation, exchanging glances before simultaneously raising their wands, seemingly intent on forcibly taking Hagrid away.
Before Kael could try to stop them, someone else stepped forward first.
"Don't dress your words up so nicely."
Professor Oren appeared suddenly behind the three Aurors, looking at them disdainfully and said, "Aren't you here because you only listened to someone else's one-sided story?"
...