Sabini was thrown out of the gathering.
Ernie and Harry personally did the honors.
The two of them were extremely enthusiastic about it.
While dragging him out, they even took the opportunity to mock him some more, making Sabini's already pale face turn even whiter.
That was an incredibly rare sight on Sabini's dark complexion.
And with Sabini gone, the atmosphere in the classroom quickly returned to its previous lively state.
Slughorn personally walked over to Link and apologized, "I'm sorry, Link. I never expected Sabini to do something like that."
"This isn't your fault, Professor Slughorn. There are too many guests here, there's no way you could judge every single person's character." Emily said with a smile.
"Besides, Sabini brought this on himself. No one could possibly blame you for his mistake."
Hearing that, Link also smiled and nodded in agreement.
The smile returned to Slughorn's face.
Looking at the radiant Emily, he nodded in satisfaction.
Since the school term had already been underway for quite a while, he had naturally taught both Link and Emily by now.
Both of them had displayed astonishing talent in Potions.
Though for Link, that was perfectly normal.
Even though Link's potion-making ability had already reached quasi-master level, compared to his other extraordinary accomplishments, his achievements in Potions actually seemed rather ordinary, almost inevitable.
If Link hadn't been good at Potions, that would've been what truly surprised Slughorn.
The one who genuinely caught Slughorn off guard was Emily.
Originally, he had only regarded Emily as little more than Link's accessory.
But Emily's skill in Potions was actually almost on par with Link's, and her talents in spells and other subjects were equally remarkable.
Without question, Emily was also a genius.
Unfortunately, Link's brilliance was simply too dazzling.
Standing beside a blazing sun like him, the light Emily should have shone with naturally ended up concealed.
"Come now!" Slughorn seemed to be in an exceptionally good mood. He took a glass of wine from a tray that floated over automatically and said, "Let me offer you all a toast!"
"We should be the ones to toast you."
Link said with a smile as he and Emily each picked up a glass as well.
"A-And me too..."
At some point, Hermione had also walked over holding a wine glass, timidly speaking to Link and Slughorn.
Not just her, Harry, Neville, and Ernie had gathered around too.
"Ha! Link, you should've seen the look on Sabini's face when we kicked him out. It was priceless!"
Ernie said excitedly. His personality was actually quite different from most Hufflepuffs. He loved stepping up and taking charge in situations like this.
But compared to Harry, Ernie still fell short.
Harry was already trembling with excitement, so worked up he could barely speak.
"He deserved it!"
Neville also raised his glass and chimed in, "That Sabini guy is stupid and rotten to the core!"
Hearing them say that, Link laughed as well.
"That's perfectly normal! His name's Sabini. If he didn't do stupid crap, how could he live up to that name?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Link burst out laughing.
Harry, Neville, and the others all looked confused.
None of them understood what was so funny about what Link had just said.
Only Emily laughed along with him.
But it wasn't merely out of politeness.
In truth, Emily had spent far too much time with Link.
So much time that the two of them had formed a kind of spiritual resonance.
Under the influence of that connection, even though she also didn't understand the joke, it didn't stop her from laughing wholeheartedly simply because she could feel Link's joy.
Amid the laughter and cheerful chatter, everyone raised their glasses together.
Link, Emily, and Slughorn all showed restraint, only taking small sips.
As wizards, it was better not to indulge too much in alcohol. It dulled both mental strength and magical power.
Besides, at a gathering like this, maintaining proper decorum was important.
But Hermione, Harry, and the others clearly didn't care about any of that. They drained their glasses of red wine in one gulp without hesitation.
Hermione gave Link and Emily a slight bow in gratitude.
After just one glass, a faint blush had already appeared on her face.
Whether it was from the alcohol or some other reason, no one knew.
As for Harry, Ernie, and Neville, they were staring eagerly at the crystal wine tower on the long table in the middle of the classroom.
If Hermione's toast had been to thank Link, then the three of them were simply a bunch of eager little drunkards.
They had always been curious about alcohol.
Now that they finally had a chance to drink openly and legally, how could they possibly let it pass?
Unfortunately for them, Slughorn clearly had no intention of indulging them.
Just as they were about to grab another drink, Slughorn loudly announced, "Alright, now that everyone has arrived, I should get to the important matter. The reason I invited all of you here today is…"
"Professor Slughorn, are you really sure everyone's here?", Link interrupted.
"Hm? Of course. I don't remember inviting anyone else.", Slughorn said in confusion.
But Link looked toward the tightly shut classroom door and said, "Not necessarily. It seems we've got another guest."
"Another guest?", Slughorn repeated with a frown.
And just as his words fell, Snape pushed open the classroom door and walked in.
"Severus? So it's you!" Slughorn said, beaming. "You've come to join our gathering too? Wonderful!"
"Yes, sorry for the intrusion, Professor Slughorn." Snape gave Slughorn a respectful bow before asking, "I saw Sabini on the way here. What happened to him?"
At those words, Slughorn's smile stiffened slightly.
He briefly explained what had happened.
Then he emphasized, "Being thrown out was entirely Sabini's own fault. No one else is to blame for that. Surely you understand, Severus!"
He had no choice but to say that.
As the former Head of Slytherin, Slughorn knew Slytherin culture all too well.
Slytherins were proud and tightly united.
And because of that, Slytherin Heads tended to favor their own students.
To put it simply, they were fiercely protective.
Extremely protective.
Slughorn couldn't guarantee Snape wouldn't stand up for Sabini.
And if Snape actually did that, this entire gathering would be completely ruined.
Yet to Slughorn's surprise, Snape merely nodded lightly and said, "He brought it on himself."
Slughorn stared at Snape in astonishment.
Harry and Ernie also looked as though they'd seen a ghost.
Because they suddenly realized something shocking.
Snape had actually washed his hair today?
The usual greasy feeling around him had faded considerably, making him look much cleaner and fresher.
Combined with the fact that Snape hadn't defended Sabini, the dislike Harry already felt less strongly toward Snape became even lighter.
He even gave Snape a sincere smile.
Snape's gaze happened to land on Harry at that exact moment.
Looking at Harry's smiling face, even his eyes filled with warmth, Snape seemed faintly moved for a brief moment, though in the end he still turned his head away as if nothing had happened.
"It's good that you think that way!"
Slughorn finally snapped out of his surprise and happily addressed everyone.
"Now then, since everyone truly is here, I can continue."
"The reason I held this gathering and invited all of you here today is because I have a purpose."
"I would like to invite all of you to join my club!"
"A club?" Harry asked suspiciously. "What kind of club?"
Harry hadn't spoken loudly, but Slughorn heard him perfectly clearly.
He looked awkwardly at Harry, unsure how to explain it.
After all, in Slughorn's mind, his club might not have been famous everywhere, but it should at least have been well known enough that it needed no introduction.
Yet somehow he'd actually run into a clueless kid like Harry, someone who knew absolutely nothing about his club.
That immediately put him in an awkward spot.
If he had to explain it himself, it would basically become self-praise. Far too embarrassing.
Just as Slughorn stood there at a loss, Ernie suddenly tugged Harry and whispered, "You seriously don't know? This is Professor Slughorn's Slug Club!"
"Slug... Club?"
"That's right, that's the name! Sure, the name might not sound very nice, but every member of this club is an outstanding figure in their field."
"There's not a single nobody among them! Like the owner of Honeydukes and the editor of the Daily Prophet! Being able to join this club is absolutely an honor for us!"
"And the club's whole philosophy is mutual assistance! Which means once we become members of the Slug Club, it's basically the same as gaining the friendship of all those important people!"
"No matter what trouble we run into in the future, we'll be able to get their help!"
Harry suddenly understood.
Now he realized that the so-called Slug Club was essentially a small-scale interest exchange organization.
Every member possessed outstanding ability and status in their respective field.
They gathered together under Slughorn's mediation, using the club to connect with one another and form networks for greater benefits.
To be honest, the existence of this club suited Slughorn's opportunistic personality perfectly.
And more importantly, even though Harry looked down on Slughorn, he had to admit the advantages of joining the Slug Club were enormous.
Just think about it. If this really worked out, how many benefits could it bring?
At the very least, the next time they visited Honeydukes, just mentioning they were members of the Slug Club might get them a discount or even free candy.
Employment issues, job opportunities, and all sorts of other problems could likely be solved through the club as well.
Just imagining it made Harry tempted.
Ernie and the other students were already flushed red with excitement.
Slughorn himself also burst into hearty laughter.
He gave Ernie an approving look, extremely satisfied with how quickly Ernie had rescued the situation.
Though Ernie still hadn't explained everything.
As the founder of the Slug Club, the fact that Slughorn had managed to maintain it for so many years was actually an incredibly difficult feat.
Not only did Slughorn need to stay in constant contact with all the members, he also had to carefully observe the difficulties they encountered, helping connect them with other members capable of solving those problems and building bridges between them.
Most importantly, he wasn't greedy.
That's right. Even though everyone thought he was extremely opportunistic, he truly wasn't greedy.
As the founder of the Slug Club, he could have used his network to gain even greater benefits for himself.
But he never did.
Even all the work he put into maintaining the Slug Club was done for free.
He never demanded any substantial material rewards from the members. Even when members voluntarily offered compensation after receiving help, he would only accept small, low-value gifts while refusing anything obviously too expensive.
In a sense, what he truly enjoyed was the feeling of being a respected mentor, standing above others, and accumulating favors.
Taking a deep breath, Slughorn patted Snape on the shoulder and said, "Oh, I almost forgot to mention it. Your Professor Snape is also a member of the club. Though back then he wasn't very sociable and rarely attended gatherings."
The moment Slughorn said that, the Slytherin students became even more excited.
Their admiration for Snape, their Head of House, was absolute.
And now they had the chance to join the very same organization as him.
That was practically a dream come true.
With that, the rest became much simpler.
With Snape's endorsement, everyone present officially joined the Slug Club.
Even Link and Emily were no exception.
And that pushed the atmosphere of the gathering to its absolute peak.
The excited crowd gathered together around the long white-clothed table in the center of the room, happily dancing along to the rhythm of the music.
Watching this scene, Slughorn's face bloomed into a sentimental smile.
To be honest, ever since he retired from Hogwarts, the Slug Club had effectively fallen into decline.
No new members had joined, while old members kept leaving for one reason or another.
But now, fresh blood had finally begun flowing through the Slug Club's dried-up veins once again.
And most importantly, among this new blood were two heavyweight figures, Link Flamel and Harry Potter.
With them joining, one could already foresee the Slug Club becoming the most dazzling organization in the entire British wizarding world once more.
"Professor Slughorn."
A familiar voice suddenly rang out.
Slughorn snapped back to attention and turned to see Harry looking at him with a conflicted expression.
"What is it, Harry? Why aren't you dancing with the others?"
Slughorn asked kindly.
Hearing that, Harry seemed to gather his courage before cautiously asking, "Professor, you once said my mother studied under you too. So... was she also a member of the Slug Club?"
"Of course. Without question. Lily was absolutely the second most talented student I've ever seen in my life."
"Someone as exceptional as her was naturally a member of the Slug Club! Incidentally, the most talented is Link. His talent has already gone beyond the limits of my understanding!"
"Oh, I see."
Harry sounded somewhat perfunctory in response to Slughorn's praise of Link. After a brief reply, he took a deep breath and continued, "Then... could you tell me more stories about my mother? You know, I really want to learn more about her..."
Perhaps remembering Harry's tragic past, Slughorn fell into a brief daze.
He reached out and gently patted Harry's head, saying sympathetically, "Poor child. Your mother Lily truly was incredibly gifted... Oh, sorry, I've probably said that far too many times already."
"You're probably sick of hearing it by now, aren't you? But you must understand, she simply left too deep an impression on me!"
"She was lively and clever, beautiful with just a little mischievous streak. Most importantly, unlike the typical Gryffindor troublemakers, while she did make mistakes, she was smart enough to know how to make up for them afterward."
"I still remember one time she cast a Slippery Jinx on the floor outside my office."
"The spell was so well done it hardly seemed like something a student could cast!"
"So when I walked by, I didn't notice it at all and fell flat on my back."
"I was furious at the time and swore I'd give the little brat who pulled the prank a whole year of detention."
"But guess what happened next?"
"Lily suddenly appeared."
"She very straightforwardly admitted her mistake, then handed me a huge cake, saying it was my birthday and that the whole thing had been done to wish me a happy birthday!"
"The problem was, I remembered my birthday perfectly well, and it definitely wasn't that day!"
"So what happened after that?" Harry asked, completely engrossed. "Did you actually give her a year of detention?"
"Of course not! I was angry, yes, but she was simply too adorable! Besides, her intentions were good, so I forgave her." Slughorn stared at Harry in exaggerated shock. "Do you really think I'm that kind of person?"
Harry hurriedly waved his hands, panicking.
Seeing that, Slughorn gave a sly smile and continued, "Even though it wasn't my birthday, we still ate the cake together and sang birthday songs. Mm, we had a wonderful time that day."
"But actually, I knew perfectly well your mother hadn't mistaken my birthday at all. The only reason she pranked me was because I'd punished your father to clean the trophy room earlier."
"Even that cake was bought because she herself liked eating it."
"Did you know?"
"That birthday cake supposedly meant for me was mostly eaten by your mother."
"Mm, she could really eat, yet somehow never gained weight. Quite strange, really!"
As he spoke, Slughorn mischievously winked at Harry.
Harry was amused too, laughing as he said, "So my parents were already together that early on? Their relationship really was great!"
"That's right, they really did have a good relationship. Which is also something I've never been able to understand." Slughorn sighed.
"Personally, I always thought she should've ended up marrying Severus and starting a family with him instead."
The moment those words came out, Harry's laughter stopped dead.
He stared at Slughorn in utter disbelief.
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