: Everything is a routine

Chapter 61 It's all a setup

Looking at the intricate magical structure inside the box, and the giant monster that seemed to be sleeping soundly, Avada was a little unsure of what to say.

Voldemort... he's trying to drag him onto this pirate ship completely.

He did remember that during Halloween, Quirrell would release a giant monster to cover his tracks, and he had tried to sneak into the fourth-floor corridor to steal the Philosopher's Stone for the first time, but was stopped by Snape who was already on guard. He could only pretend that nothing had happened and followed Professor McGonagall and others to the crime scene.

But that time, since he had no accomplices, he could only pretend to panic and run to report the news after releasing the giant monster, and then try to break away from the teachers' group to sneak into the fourth floor—the flaws were too big after all.

With his own help this time, he only needed to sit calmly in his classroom seat and attend the banquet, then wait for the troll's roar to echo throughout the castle, causing everyone to fall into chaos, before "frantically" running to the fourth floor...

After looking at the magical effects on the cardboard box—"Powerful Protection," "Remote Activation," "Automatic Destruction," "Stimulate the Troll," and "Monitor Surroundings"—as well as the "Loud Voice" spell on the troll, Avada roughly guessed what he was up to.

Although his trip was destined to be in vain—firstly, the Philosopher's Stone was not in the corridor room at all, and secondly, he did not know how to deal with Fulvi, so he could not sneak in silently… but Avada Kedavra now had another handle in Voldemort's hands, at least that's what Voldemort thought.

Avada figured that Voldemort's plan was for him to panic upon learning that he had released the troll, then confront Quirrell. At that point, Voldemort could reveal his true identity as "Voldemort," telling him that he had been taught the Unforgivable Curse all along. Furthermore, he argued that Voldemort's act of releasing the troll would surely lead to his expulsion or even imprisonment in Azkaban if exposed.

Then, after giving him a beating, he would offer a sweet treat, telling himself that as long as he obediently followed him, he would wait until he obtained the magic stone, was fully resurrected, stormed into the castle, seized the bird's throne, and became the headmaster before appointing him as the vice-headmaster or something similar, thus making him completely submit to him.

"If it were a student who didn't know the original plot or that the box contained a troll, they would most likely have fallen for it." Avada sighed, "Luckily, it was me... no, no one else would have had the chance to pique his interest with their Imperius Curse paper and be personally taught by him."

"However, I can't break ties with Voldemort right now, and I can't let him notice anything unusual about me. It will take him a while to fully analyze his mental energy, so I have to do as he says..."

"Fortunately, trolls are the easiest to deal with among all the aggressive magical creatures. They have no special magic, no poison, and low magic resistance. They are all brute force and a stupid mind. Moreover, the troll in the box has not been enhanced except for its 'loud voice'... The situation is relatively easy to control, and there is no need to seek additional help. Besides, if I were to tell others now, it would be difficult to explain how I was able to see through the tight security and identify that it was a troll."

"But after this is over, I need to contact Dumbledore to avoid being manipulated by some means, lest I suffer another full-power Legilimency from Dumbledore..."

"And just in case, we must ensure that the trolls don't harm anyone. After all, Quirrell's original plan was for the trolls to kill Harry Potter."

"Hmph, let's hold back for now. It's all for the sake of completely sealing Voldemort away... for a greater good?"

"hiss……"

He rubbed his eyes wearily, put the small cardboard box in his pocket, and returned to Hufflepuff's common room. After retrieving a bunch of bottles and jars from his dormitory, he openly began mixing potions in the common room.

"What are you doing?"

Students who were chatting or reading nearby curiously came over and asked.

"Adjust the base of the living hell soup."

Avada rubbed his eyes again and yawned: "I haven't been sleeping well lately, so I'm planning to get a good night's sleep tonight."

"Aren't you afraid of feeling groggy all day after waking up? Tomorrow's the Halloween party, it'll be a shame if you don't have the energy to eat something good!"

"I'll just drink less. Besides, if I really don't feel energetic tomorrow, I can just come back and get some energy drinks. It won't take more than a few minutes."

"Then you'd better be careful, or you'll get scolded by Professor Snape like last semester."

"...You still remember this mess?"

……

So Avada arrived at class the next day in a daze, and unfortunately, the first class happened to be Potions class—and he was met with Snape's gloomy face.

"I remember telling you last semester not to overuse stimulants."

"Yes, Professor, so this time I didn't use any of it..."

"Looks like you've remembered what I said, that's good. But that doesn't mean you can come to my class without doing anything after drinking the Living Hell Soup base and then almost fall asleep. Hufflepuff minus one point."

Snape gave him a disapproving look, then turned back to the podium to concentrate on his lesson, only to feel even worse amidst a series of explosions and coughs shortly afterward.

"Well, at least he knows the recipe for the Living Hell Soup base, unlike that Potter who's as stupid as his father..."

"And that damn Quirrell, who knows what Dumbledore is really up to..."

As it turns out, even a Potions Master like Snape would have had a hard time noticing that Avada had long since broken free from the effects of the Living Hell Potion base with just a quick glance. His so-called drowsiness and fatigue were just a facade, mainly to deceive the Little Box's surveillance and the other Hufflepuffs. This made Avada very happy—his acting skills had improved considerably.

It seems that being around Voldemort really does improve acting skills quickly; this was true for him, for Snape, and for Lucius, Narcissa, and their group...

And so, maintaining his seemingly dazed state, he sat down in the Great Hall, which was already filled with jack-o'-lanterns and bats, and began to attend the Halloween dinner, occasionally glancing at the Gryffindor long table.

Hermione Granger was indeed not there.

It's unbelievable! Without my intervention, does the plot really not deviate at all?

While brooding, Avada casually grabbed a bat that had been transformed by a polymorph spell and placed it on Cedric's head: "It suits you perfectly, in every sense of the word."

Cedric: "?"

"Damn, I still can't get myself going. I really shouldn't have drunk that hellish potion yesterday." He scratched his hair in frustration, then stood up. "I need to go back to the dorm and mix some energizing potions, otherwise I won't be able to eat or joke around..."

"Don't drink too much, or you'll get scolded by Snape again." Cedric, with a bat on his head, made a joke without any restraint.

"...You can't get through, right?"

Avada rubbed his eyes, glanced at the teachers' seats again, and after receiving an encouraging smile from Quirrell, quickly left the hall and went into the corridor, turning to walk towards the underground classroom.

To be honest, he had considered making things simpler, just pretending to have a stomachache to go to the toilet and releasing the troll while he was at it. But then he thought, what if the Hufflepuffs remembered they were in the underground classroom after hearing the troll's voice and rushed down to save him like Harry and Ron did? Wouldn't that create chaos?

That's why he prepared a perfectly reasonable excuse to leave the Great Hall the night before, one that could fool everyone. As for how to reasonably reappear before the Hufflepuffs, that was even easier to handle.

Avada tiptoed to the floor where the underground classrooms were located and, sure enough, faintly heard a soft sobbing sound. He silently apologized, then took out the small cardboard box and placed it in an inconspicuous corner before turning and quickly walking towards the Hufflepuff common room.

Then, once he was completely out of the small cardboard box's sight, he quickly pulled out his wand, cast a spell on the sole of his shoe to erase sound and footprints, skillfully cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself, and silently returned to the underground classroom using professional stealth techniques, gripping his wand tightly and staring intently at the small cardboard box.

(End of this chapter)