Chapter 20

Back in the Ravenclaw common room, Mike took the idle Franklin with him to find the little Hufflepuff who had the drinks.

Based on Mike's use during this time, he was surprised to find that this drink had a very significant effect on restoring mental energy. Drinking a cup of it after meditating would help him recover his mental energy faster, and even if he overused it, as long as it wasn't too excessive, it wouldn't affect his typical study and life the next day.

And there's one more crucial point: the drink is delicious!

Soon, they arrived at the Hufflepuff common room, which is different from all other houses as it doesn't have a door lock, allowing anyone to enter freely.

However, Hufflepuff has never had any accidents because of this, as their kitchen is next to the Hogwarts kitchen.

Hundreds, if not thousands, of house elves are in the Hogwarts kitchen. These creatures had been proliferating at Hogwarts for generations. This place was a haven for them, especially considering the near extinction they faced during the Goblin Rebellion.

The one who brought them here was the founder of Hufflepuff House, Helga Hufflepuff.

To repay the kindness of Miss Hufflepuff, these house elves had been guarding Hufflepuff House for all these years.

Therefore, the Hufflepuff common room doesn't need a door lock, as the house elves protect it 24/7. Their combat abilities are on par with adult wizards, so anyone with ill intentions must also deal with them.

Unfortunately, Mike is one of those with ill intentions. His purpose in finding the little Hufflepuff is to get the recipe for the drink, and he's even willing to use extreme methods for it.

Led by Franklin, Mike soon met the little wizard named Dolfan Carrow.

The Carrow family, one of the 28 pure-blood families, had a tradition of its members graduating from Hufflepuff House.

However, their allegiance to Dumbledore led to Voldemort's vengeance, decimating their core members. Dolfan was the sole young wizard from the Carrow family attending Hogwarts in his generation.

Mike wasn't surprised that a long-standing pure-blood family would possess a potion to restore mental strength. It seemed, though, that they didn't know the value of this potion and merely used it as a tasty drink.

For Mike, this was an undeniably serendipitous chance.

Dolfan was visibly startled when he saw Mike and Franklin and tried to turn around to escape, but Franklin caught him and brought him in front of Mike.

Mike looked at the skinny boy, who was a head shorter than himself, and said gently, "Dolfan, right? Thank you very much for the drink. It's absolutely the best drink I've ever had."

The boy in front of Mike seemed to relax a bit when he realized that Mike had no ill intentions. He said, "My mom made that. Of course, my mom's drinks are the best in the world."

It looked like Franklin had really scared Dolfan last time, as the boy's body was still trembling slightly.

"So, it was your mother who made it. I envy you for having a mother willing to make drinks for you. I've never met my mother; I'm an orphan," Mike said, observing a hint of sympathy in Dolfan's expression. "Do you have any more of that drink? I really do enjoy it. Or do you know how to make it? If you could share the recipe, I wouldn't need to come and ask you each time."

Hearing Mike say he would return for more, Dolfan was startled and quickly said, "I know, I know how to make it. My mom taught me. I'll tell you right now, it starts with orange juice..."

"Hold on, Dolfan," Mike interrupted the boy, who was counting the ingredients on his fingers. "Why don't you get a piece of paper and write it down? That would be much easier, wouldn't it?"

Upon hearing this, Dolfan hurried back to his dormitory to get paper and pen. He didn't want to see these two intimidating people again.

Mike turned to Franklin and whistled, smiling. He hadn't expected the kid to be so easy to fool.

Franklin, however, was bewildered and could only laugh foolishly at Mike, showing his eight large, shining white teeth. It had to be said that the guy had great teeth, each one sparkling white.

Mike grabbed the paper without a glance and shoved it into his pocket. He wasn't concerned about Dolfan deceiving him; you can run from him, but not from Hogwarts.

"Thank you, Dolf. From now on, you're my friend. If you need help with anything, feel free to ask me," Mike lightly patted Dolf's shoulder.

But Dolfan seemed indifferent and said superficially, "Thank you, but we have Cedric, a senior, to help us. You should go now."

"Cedric? The goody-two-shoes? I've heard of him, the star of Hufflepuff," Mike raised an eyebrow. "But are you sure he's willing to help you with everything? He's a well-known figure in your house, surrounded by young wizards every day. Can he help every single one of them? And if you get bullied, can he really fight back for you? I doubt it. He's a rule-abiding good student. But we're different. Whoever bullies my friend, I'll help them fight back. How about that? Doesn't that sound good?"

Hearing Mike's convincing words, Dolfan appeared to be somewhat swayed, showing a thoughtful expression.

Mike held back from saying more, confident that Dolfan would seek him out soon enough. He understood these kids' mindset; they valued loyalty above all. The concept of going to great lengths for a friend, which might seem far-fetched to adults, was exactly what drove these youngsters. With just a touch of persuasion, they could readily drawn to his cause.

Especially someone like Dolfan, a timid kid. After hearing Mike's words, if he were bullied again, he would definitely think of Mike first, not Cedric.

Even in its decline, the Carrow family must still have many valuable things. That's their heritage. Maybe he could get a lot more good stuff from Dolfan in the future.

With these thoughts, Mike and Franklin left the Hufflepuff common room, one in front of the other. But before they had gone far, a voice with the distinct timbre of a teenage boy in the throes of puberty reached their ears.

"You two, stop right there!"