Chapter 86: Devil’s Snare 

With the Auto-Cleaning Kit, Snape's detention became ridiculously easy.

That night, it only took George an hour to clean all the cauldrons in the potions classroom.

Besides, he used the kit discreetly. Although Filch, who was standing next to him, thought it was a little strange, he didn't notice anything wrong. He just thought that George had been put in detention so many times that he had become proficient.

Filch wasn't boasting, but if he was cleaning those cauldrons, half an hour would be enough.

So, after checking and confirming that there were no problems, he left with George.

George used this incident as a conversation starter.

The next morning, at the Gryffindor table, he talked about his findings from sneaking into the potions classroom, claiming that he had found a letter someone had written to Snape in a discarded cauldron, but it had been confiscated by Filch.

Although he didn't say it explicitly, the meaning behind his words was very clear: it was a love letter.

This made the little lions very excited.

They didn't care if it was true. As long as there was gossip, it was enough.

On the Hufflepuff side, Kyle was also happy.

But his happiness had nothing to do with Snape's gossip. It was because he had Herbology today.

Professor Sprout had announced in their last lesson that after they were done with rue, they would start learning about Devil's Snare.

There was no better news than that.

After breakfast, Kyle and the other students went to the greenhouse outside the castle. They would be having class with the Gryffindors.

"Why do you seem so excited?"

Kanna looked at Kyle and said, "The book says Devil's Snare is a very dangerous plant. Aren't you worried?"

"It's okay."

Kyle quickly put away his smile and said, "Actually, Devil's Snare just has a scary name. It's not that dangerous. As long as you know how to handle it, it will become even gentler than Puffapods."

"Exactly right."

At this moment, Professor Sprout suddenly came from behind them. She looked at Kyle with a smile, "Don't mind me. Continue with what you were saying."

"Okay."

Kyle cleared his throat and said, "According to 'Magical Vines,' Devil's Snare was once very popular. Many wizards would have one or two in their houses. Because they could keep rats and spiders away from underground storerooms.

But after the Ministry of Magic classified Devil's Snare as a dangerous plant and banned private cultivation, it gradually disappeared from wizarding homes."

"Even I couldn't have said it better." Professor Sprout said happily, "Five points for Hufflepuff."

"Just as Kyle said, Devil's Snare isn't as dangerous as its name suggests, but…"

She paused. Her expression became serious, "It's only safe if you understand it. If you know nothing about Devil's Snare, it can become very dangerous. It could even kill you."

After her speech, the young wizards became a lot quieter.

Professor Sprout nodded with satisfaction.

They were in greenhouse number two today.

When they entered, the first thing they noticed was that it was very dark. The roof and sides were completely covered. The only light source was two dim oil lamps.

Thankfully, the greenhouse wasn't very large. After they adjusted to the light, they could still see their surroundings.

Compared to greenhouse number one, the plants here were much more peculiar.

Besides the Devil's Snare on the tables, Kyle also saw Exploding Puffapods, as well as poisonous plants like Venomous Tentacula and Belladonna.

The only pity was that he didn't see any Mandrakes.

"This is Devil's Snare."

Professor Sprout stood behind a stool, pointing to a large spiderweb-like vine on the ground. "It's beautiful, isn't it? But it's also dangerous. Can anyone tell me why?"

Everyone looked at Kyle in unison. Their movements were incredibly synchronized.

"Devil's Snare can extend snake-like tendrils and entwine people who come close, causing injury or death." Kyle blurted out.

"Exactly right. Another five points for Hufflepuff." Professor Sprout pointed at the roots of the Devil's Snare, "Look, everyone. The Devil's Snare here is still very young."

Because it was dark, everyone leaned forward to get a better look. But they couldn't see anything special. They didn't know how Professor Sprout could tell it was "young."

It was almost two meters long.

Professor Sprout threw an empty flowerpot at the Devil's Snare.

The moment the flowerpot landed, it was tightly entangled by the Devil's Snare's tendrils. Then, with a "crack", it shattered into pieces.

The young wizards took a step back. They looked at Kyle and Professor Sprout as if they had seen a ghost.

This is not dangerous?

"Look at those tendrils. They're still light green. Mature Devil's Snare is dark green."

Professor Sprout quickly cleaned up the shards of the flowerpot and said calmly, "So, you won't die if you're entangled by it, but it won't be pleasant either."

"Now, can anyone tell me how to escape from a Devil's Snare attack?"

Everyone looked at Kyle again.

"Don't panic when you're entangled. When you completely relax your body and stop struggling, the Devil's Snare will let you go."

Kyle added, "Also, Devil's Snare hates light and fire. Sometimes, a simple Lumos Charm can break free from its grip."

Hearing this, Mickel next to him suddenly chuckled and proudly puffed out his chest.

Lumos Charm? He was good at that.

It's no exaggeration to say that out of all the young wizards here, nobody knew the Lumos Charm better than him.

"Exactly right. Another… three points for Hufflepuff."

"Today, we're going to learn how to fertilize Devil's Snare."

Professor Sprout took out a small wooden bucket and said, "Here are the tools and compost. You have to be very gentle when you're handling it. If you're caught, remember to relax your body.

Now, who would like to go first?"

Kyle, for the third time, felt gazes from all directions. And this time, Professor Sprout was also looking at him.

"I'll go."

Kyle stepped forward.

"Don't be nervous."

Kyle took the shovel Professor Sprout handed him and slowly reached for the roots of the Devil's Snare.

Everyone held their breath.

Kyle's hand was steady. He perfectly avoided every tendril of the Devil's Snare and successfully dug a small hole at the roots.

He then used tweezers to pick up a silver pellet the size of a soybean from the bucket of compost and placed it in the hole.

Finally, he covered it with soil. That was it.

As soon as Kyle pulled his hand out of the Devil's Snare, he heard Professor Sprout's voice.

"Ten points to Hufflepuff."

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