Quick reminder that Sebastian Sallow is canonically not stupid ~đ
He taught himself all three unforgivable curses and has the willpower to use them at 15-16 years old
His notes in the Undercroft are in like six different languages so he's canonically a polyglot
Reads like a rabid scholar
Is able to teach another student with limited magical experience new spells like it's nothing, something only experienced wizards can technically do (including said unforgivables)
Is able to research and draw his own conclusions without any help, something most adults struggle with
Is smart enough to know what to say to manipulate people into doing his bidding (the only ones immune are people with a powerful moral compass or who are used to his nonsense)
Is touted as a 'master duellist' at only 15-16 and able to hold his own against goblins, trolls and dark wizards
Yes, his obsession with curing his twin blinded him to the problems that came with his delving into the dark arts, but the only thing Seb's lacking here is experience, something that can only be gained by living. His intelligence isn't lessened by the fact he's young and bull-headed - if anything, it only goes to show how smart he is that he's been able to get so far without any real problems until the Catacombs. If we don't turn him in, he's clearly remorseful and has learned from his experiences, something not many people are capable of doing. Most would just turn around and go 'not my fault, I had good intentions' but Seb sees what he did was wrong and too far by the end of it all. He's smart enough and mature enough to be able to learn from his mistakes, even if it was a bit too late.
