HP: Alchemy? Nah, It's Crafting

It seemed like the two of them were quite satisfied by the "Philosopher's Stone" in Dumbledore's hand.

After all, the "real Philosopher's Stone" and the "fake Philosopher's Stone" Kasenhis had created for him were nearly identical in appearance, color, and even the magical aura they emitted.

'What a terrifying talent!' Quirrell's gaze at Kasenhis was filled with astonishment.

"I need your help to design obstacles to protect this stone. However, we need to leave a way through—after all, I don't want the entire school in an uproar when it's time to retrieve the Philosopher's Stone," Dumbledore said with a smile.

"N-no, no problem, b-but I'm not ready. I haven't prepared anything!" Quirrell stammered nervously.

"It's fine, there's no rush just yet. Others can set up their parts first, of course, working from the inside out."

At that moment, Dumbledore snapped his fingers.

Chirp~ A wave of overwhelming fire engulfed everyone, and in the blink of an eye, they found themselves in a room.

In the center of the room stood a stone pedestal. Dumbledore placed the Philosopher's Stone on it.

"Please begin. Who wants to go first?" Dumbledore turned to look at everyone.

Kasenhis noticed that none of the other professors were speaking, so he shrugged. "I'll go."

"Professor Kasen, just to make sure you heard me clearly earlier, I'll reiterate: your designed obstacle must include a way for us to bypass it if needed," Dumbledore added.

"Ah... fine," Kasenhis, who really didn't listen carefully just now, gave up the idea of ​​burying TNT in Hogwarts.

Instead, he casually arranged some obsidian to create a concealed piston door, connecting it with a redstone circuit that he ran up a nearby wall.

Kasenhis set up an entire wall of levers, with a concealed dispenser at the top. 

Only one lever was connected to the piston door, while all the others were linked to the dispenser.

"Professor Snape, fill the dispenser with some harmless potions."

Snape nodded. "I assure you, it will make any intruder sleep for an entire day."

The other professors then set up their respective challenges: Snape's logical potion riddle, Professor McGonagall's oversized wizard's chess, the flying keys with a magical door, the Devil's Snare, and finally, Hagrid's enormous three-headed dog.

As Kasenhis walked through the sequence of obstacles from the inside out, he confirmed his suspicions: Hagrid's section was the most straightforwardly dangerous, clearly designed to eliminate intruders. The rest of the challenges were either laughably easy or had negligible consequences.

It's Hagrid.

How about saying he is sincere?

After all this was done, Kasen was about to return to the office and lie down. However, he was quietly summoned to Dumbledore's office.

"Kasen, that... piston door, is that what it's called?" Dumbledore asked, pulling out a large box of snacks from his drawer—every single one of them sweets.

"...Yes," Kasenhis replied with a nod.

"What's the correct way to open it?" Dumbledore took out a large box of snacks from the drawer, and they were all sweet.

The way Dumbledore paired his question with his actions made him look just like a little wizard holding a lot of snacks as a bribe, asking him for a random test topic in the next class.

"Well, actually I don't know. When I arranged the lines, I arranged them casually."

"..."

Dumbledore looked at Kayson with his sincere eyes.

"...Well, that magic circuit is the same as the red stone I used to make the fake magic stone for you. As long as the fake magic stone touches the magic circuit casually, the door will open." Kayson couldn't resist Dumbledore's weirdness.

"In this case, I also need a piece of red stone made by you." Dumbledore said.

"Who needs it? It's definitely not you. I remember you were able to Apparate inside Hogwarts."

"For Harry Potter."

"You really want an eleven-year-old kid to play Dragon Quest? That's extreme even for you," Kasenhis shot back immediately, not holding back.

"Harry is famous now, but he still needs real achievements. This will give him something real to his name, just like how you pass down your alchemical achievements to your students," Dumbledore explained.

"That's different! Besides, why does Harry need achievements? Why does he need more fame? For an eleven-year-old, those are burdens, not blessings. He can't handle all that pressure."

Dumbledore crossed his hands on his desk, pausing thoughtfully before responding. "This is tied to a prophecy—a prophecy made by Sybill Trelawney, our Divination professor."

"Ha! Although this is a magical world, I still have to say that it is really surprising that a wise man like you believes in prophecies." Kaysen said sarcastically.

"I don't place blind faith in prophecies, but I do respect them," Dumbledore replied calmly. "This is about whether we can truly destroy Tom—defeat Voldemort. I must account for every possibility and try every conceivable method to kill him."

"Voldemort's vitality is far too tenacious. Once, the entire wizarding world believed him to be dead, yet he reappeared—boldly, no less—on the back of Quirrell's head."

"I cannot afford a single mistake."

"So, even trusting in something as nebulous as a prophecy?"

"Even if it's a prophecy," Dumbledore affirmed with a nod.

"Here." Kasenhis conjured a thumb-sized redstone block into his hand and placed it on Dumbledore's desk. 

"You can find a chance to give it to Harry."

"No, I think it's better if you give it to him," Dumbledore said, pushing the redstone back toward Kasenhis. "By the way... tell him what it is like. Otherwise, he might end up holding this little thing and still be clueless in front of your piston door."

"Life is truly difficult," Kasenhis muttered, waving his hand to destroy the redstone block as he sighed.

"Oh, and if Quirrell asks you how to open that piston door, answer him in a way that's both subtle and ensures you won't remember telling him," Dumbledore added as an afterthought.

"Um...I got fuckedup the last time I drank. It seems that I am about to break the habit." Kasenhis lamented, pulling a pained expression.

"Life is short, enjoy yourself in the moment. There is nothing wrong with drinking. You just picked the wrong partner. I believe there are not many people who can drink as happily as Hagrid. If you managed to drink with him like that and were still alive, you are already a rare drinker." Dumbledore consoled.

"...That's right. Who can drink on an equal footing with a giant? I'm so awesome!"

Dumbledore calmed down Kayson's mental internal conflict with a few words, and watched him happily walk out of the Heademaster's office, heading towards Hagrid's hut to continue the fight with Hagrid.

Meanwhile, the fine wine Dumbledore had painstakingly unearthed from his old family stash would now have to wait until Kasenhis recovered from his next bout of drinking. 

What a pity, indeed.