Chapter 20: The First Step on the Prophet's Path to Immortality

If one were to say that to Voldemort, whose magical insight was deep enough to perceive Roger’s true strength, Roger was undoubtedly a “monster.”

But to the other ordinary students, Roger was simply an “oddity.”

Whenever anyone chatted with him, they felt a comfortable politeness and composure.

In class, he could swiftly cast nearly every spell successfully, demonstrating formidable skill with remarkable speed.

He never grew overly close or playful with anyone, maintaining a slight distance.

Always drifting on the fringes of the group, he was constantly reading and scribbling inscrutable content in his notebook, exuding an aura of a mysterious and slightly mad “prophet.”

To many ordinary students, Roger was an incredibly contradictory figure.

Yet one thing was certain:

No one dared to provoke him.

Especially after a few Slytherins—either having offended someone, being out of the loop, or simply clueless—tried to pick a fight and ended up transformed into “balloons” by Roger’s levitation charm, floating around him for hours, circling in humiliation.

Beyond his politeness, Roger was not afraid to take action.

After hearing from Harry Potter that Roger was “mysterious and powerful, and even a good person who protects his friends,” Quirrell was not satisfied. He sought more than these surface appearances; he wanted deeper secrets.

“I heard Roger is researching something related to immortality?” Quirrell asked casually.

Roger spoke of it as if it were as trivial as ordering fried chicken for dinner.

Either he didn’t think it needed to be kept secret, or he was deliberately dropping hints lightly.

Quirrell tried to probe Harry subtly.

“Yeah… something like that,” Harry answered calmly after some thought.

Having grown up in a Muggle family, Harry saw nothing wrong with seeking immortality.

In Muggle wizard lore, there were many old wizards who lived long lives. Even the collectible chocolate frog cards on the Hogwarts Express featured information about Headmaster Dumbledore.

He was over a hundred years old!

So, in Harry’s eyes, wizards were meant to live long lives, and wanting to live longer wasn’t strange.

“He even asked if I was interested, but I thought wizard’s chess was more fun.”

At Hogwarts, classes didn’t have fixed seating; students chose their seats freely.

Sometimes, Harry sat next to Roger in class.

At those times, he stole glances at Roger’s densely annotated notes, which gave Harry a chill down his spine.

Roger had thought Harry might be interested… Immortality was an incredibly long path, and eternal life was just the insignificant first step. Roger didn’t mind having companions on this difficult journey, but unfortunately, Harry declined.

“Did he ask Neville too?” Harry added uncertainly.

Quirrell nodded.

Enough. No need to ask further.

He had indeed overthought it.

This “prophet” was just a monster who had been obsessed with immortality since age eleven, not playing some riddle game with him.

Fully at ease, Quirrell gave Harry a meaningful look, then turned away.

From now on, most of his energy would be devoted to acquiring the Philosopher’s Stone.

As for Roger, he would keep only the barest watchful eye on him.

Yes, and if possible, it would be even better to eliminate Harry Potter on the side for his master.

…

In the wizarding world, prophecy was not mere idle chatter by seers; it possessed real power.

Once a prophecy was made, a ritual-like power arose, manifesting as what was called “fate.” If left unchanged or exacerbated, over time this force could play a terrifying role at crucial moments.

Whether forced or willing, there was no turning back now that he had boarded the Dark Lord’s ship.

Eliminating Harry Potter in his infancy might not only boost his status with his master but also prevent the Dark Lord from failing again at the hands of the chosen one, which could implicate him as well.

Professor Quirrell suppressed his chaotic, struggling heart, fully accepting the Dark Lord as his master. As he turned his back on Harry, a deep killing intent flickered in his eyes.

Behind his hood, Voldemort’s lips curled in a sneer.

No one knew at whom the scorn was directed.

“Sss!” Harry suddenly gasped.

“Harry, what’s wrong?” Ron hurriedly came closer, concerned by the noise.

Ron came from a large family with seven children and had often felt neglected and friendless in his youth.

He treasured his friendship with Harry deeply.

“Nothing, just a bit of a headache,” Harry said, feeling warmth from his friend’s concern. Even the sudden pain from the scar on his head seemed to ease.

Wait.

The last time his scar hurt was…

Harry looked around cautiously.

Sure enough, not far behind him stood Professor Snape in his dark robes, emanating a gloomy and repellent aura.

Though Harry disliked Snape, he would never show disrespect openly and didn’t think it wise to accuse a professor without evidence.

So Harry only changed his expression slightly, bowed respectfully to the Potions Master, then grabbed Ron’s sleeve and quickly walked away.

Snape said nothing the entire time, watching Harry like a bat lurking in the shadows.

Only after Quirrell’s figure disappeared from his peripheral vision, and Harry’s silhouette vanished from his sight, did Severus Snape withdraw his long-hidden, watchful gaze.

Turning, he headed in the direction Quirrell had gone.

.
.
.

Roger was unaware that a small incident related to him had just occurred in another corner of Hogwarts.

Even if he knew, he wouldn’t have cared.

At this moment, all his attention was focused on his new magical experiment.

After long theoretical design,

and numerous technical discussions with various professors, as well as verification with Transfiguration master Professor McGonagall,

the first practical step in his magic development towards immortality could finally begin!

“For these contingencies, the things I bought actually came in handy.”

Roger pulled from his suitcase a package about the height of a computer case but narrower.

“Mitsubishi blood collection needles.”

“Glass slides.”

Unwrapping the package, Roger organized the items.

“And this, the most crucial… a microscope!”

With everything prepared, Roger waved his wand.

“Let the miracle unfold… Transfiguration!”