Chapter 241: No One Understands How to Teach Students
Time passed quietly, and the winds of change in the outside world did not affect the inner workings of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Before anyone knew it, a blanket of snow had already covered the entire school.
As the Christmas holidays at Hogwarts drew near, the school year was already halfway over.
On this day, the sky cleared and the snow stopped. The castle and the sprawling Forbidden Forest were tranquil, and even the cold wind died down. The young wizards ran out to play in the snow, a picture of peaceful harmony.
"I've always wondered why the weather at Hogwarts is different from the weather in Hogsmeade Village. Of course, I know the two places aren't right next to each other, but…"
Lockhart's expression was a little strange as he looked at Grindelwald. "I've started to have a curious suspicion—could it be that the weather at Hogwarts changes with Headmaster Dumbledore's mood?"
Grindelwald gave a knowing chuckle. "It has some influence. You know, keeping unpleasant emotions bottled up for a long time is not good. They have to find somewhere to go, don't they?"
Oh. Lockhart remembered very clearly that last year, it had been pouring rain for an entire year. Many people in the school had caught colds, and Madame Pomfrey had prepared a number of potions for them, causing many students' heads to smoke, looking like little chimneys during class. He knew very well that Dumbledore had been in a foul mood back then because he couldn't catch a single trace of Voldemort.
"That's how it is for the weak, those who are powerless to change the weather. They can only passively bear the influence of those of a higher status. In fact, most of the weak will simply attribute these influences to fate or luck, things they believe they cannot change."
Grindelwald shrugged. "The influence on the weather is just a minor problem. The greatest impact on ordinary people is when the powerful change the times."
Lockhart understood the hidden meaning in his words. He smiled gently and didn't continue the discussion. In any case, the busy Headmaster Dumbledore finally had some free time.
He had come to see Old Dumbledore this time to hand off the Dark Magical Creature he had acquired and let him worry about it.
"That Dark Magical Creature from the lift?"
After arriving at the office, he placed the snail shell on the desk, and Dumbledore immediately recognized it.
"Yes."
Lockhart began to explain the creature's purpose and use. "From my multiple experiments, its best effect is when it is placed in a lift. A wooden lift made by Transfiguration would also work. This is its 'body,' and you know, with a body, a soul's magical bloodline ability can be expressed."
Dumbledore and Grindelwald exchanged a look. They wanted to retort that they did not understand this theory about a 'soul's magical bloodline relying on a body to express itself.' Some people just liked to treat them, as Magic Masters, as if they were omniscient.
"It has two functions."
Lockhart spoke seriously, without noticing the two old men's little gestures. "First, it's an illegal Floo network."
"When used in the wizarding world, it will take you to an important Muggle institution. When used in the Muggle world, it will take you to the corresponding Ministry of Magic."
"I've tried it. Going to a Muggle institution, it sometimes takes you to an official conference hall, sometimes a military base, and sometimes a secret headquarters of a certain financial conglomerate."
"As for the Ministry of Magic, the Archives, the Department of Mysteries, the Minister's Office, the Auror Office, the Wizengamot Court—it can go to any of them."
Dumbledore's eyebrows shot up. He immediately realized the importance of the snail shell on the table. Illegal spatial travel was one thing, but from a magical perspective, to be able to directly ascertain the true situation of various regional powers was nothing short of a divine object.
In fact, this kind of 'social-side' magical ability was not uncommon in wizarding history; the most famous was the Magic Mirror in fairy tales and that classic question: Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?
This Dark Magical Creature, the 'Elevator Monster,' simply had a different question: Who is the most powerful person in this place, and where are they?
"The second function!"
Lockhart continued. "It can suppress a magical bloodline's expression. Unfortunately, it cannot inspire a Muggle to become a wizard; it can only make a wizard become a Muggle."
"This effect can allow a werewolf on the night of the full moon to step into it and walk out as a human, but their magical bloodline will be completely suppressed, turning them into a Muggle until the night of the full moon is over."
"However, I must warn you about one thing: I'm not sure about the state of the wolfsbane in the werewolf's body after they become a Muggle, nor if it's still infectious. This needs more practical verification."
"This unique magical bloodline suppression can also mend the misalignment between a wizard's soul, mind, and body caused by Magic. To put it simply, it can make a wizard who has suffered permanent damage from the Cruciatus Curse return to normal, albeit in a Muggle state."
"Yes, like the Longbottoms. They could use this, but I am not sure how often they would have to use it. That also needs to be verified."
Dumbledore listened in silence for a long time. He glanced at Grindelwald and saw the other wizard's mocking gaze. He took off his spectacles with a slight headache and massaged the bridge of his nose. "Gilderoy, you've given me a difficult problem."
To use it for the Order of the Phoenix, for Lupin, or for the Longbottoms? This was undoubtedly an extremely difficult choice.
"Ha!" Grindelwald laughed, a sound of pure glee. "For the greater good, of course, you should use it for the Order of the Phoenix. Right? Sometimes you have to abandon some people you care about, don't you? Surely you won't say it's a difficult choice now?"
Dumbledore pressed his lips together, his expression complex. He caressed the strange ring on his hand, and finally sighed, his ancient eyes filled with a murky dimness. "Sometimes when I look back on my life, I can't help but be tortured by past events, wondering if I made the wrong choices—"
With that, the gleeful Grindelwald was no longer gleeful.
"Actually, I've thought about this problem." Lockhart said with a smile, causing the two men to look at him. "Perhaps the Order of the Phoenix should have a fixed gathering place? If so, you could place this Dark Magical Creature there. Lupin could go there every month when he needs to, and the Longbottoms could also live there."
Grindelwald laughed. "Are you suggesting that the Longbottoms, who have been turned into Muggles, and Lupin, who appears on the night of the full moon, should guard such an important magical object for the Order of the Phoenix?"
"My boy, I don't need to make a prophecy to see a terrible future. The enemy will use all their strength to destroy this lift, and they'll kill the wizards who've lost their magical abilities while they're at it!"
Lockhart spread his hands. "It's the best solution I could come up with. It's just a suggestion."
Life was like that. There were always imperfect options that made people struggle and worry.
Ten days later, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry officially began its long holiday, a full two weeks. In fact, this holiday was a bit short; in Lockhart's past life, winter break had lasted for a full month.
He had been planning to take Percy to finalize the training ground for the 'Quidditch Duelling Tournament.' Many people were saying that this was a way to train a wizarding army, and Lockhart didn't shy away from it. A wizarding army it was. He didn't care what others said.
Because no one dared to say it to his face, let alone bring it up as a serious topic for discussion at the Ministry of Magic. He simply couldn't be bothered with the talk.
But before he could leave, Dumbledore came to him again.
"I have finalized the location of the Order of the Phoenix's headquarters. To ensure there are no mishaps, I hope you can come and help me place this Dark Magical Creature." Dumbledore handed the snail shell back to Lockhart.
Lockhart nodded, gesturing to Percy Weasley, who was politely waiting at the door. "Can I bring my apprentice to help?"
Dumbledore looked up at Percy and smiled. "I can see that under your guidance, this boy is heading down the right path."
Lockhart immediately looked smug. "Of course! No one understands how to teach students better than I do!"
Professor McGonagall, who was standing nearby, looked at Lockhart with a strange expression. She was used to his usual bragging and was too lazy to argue.
Besides…
The Hogwarts Express once again departed from the Hogsmeade Station, carrying the young wizards away. This time, however, many students were not on the train.
Crabbe and Goyle had already taken Professor Lockhart's flying car directly to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, accompanied by Professor Snape. The 'Elevator' Dark Magical Creature Lockhart had brought was only a temporary fix, not a true cure for the Longbottoms. The adventure for Professor Snape and Crabbe was far from over.
Goyle was now learning the 'Soul Bonfire' spell from Crabbe. This was a special 'senior-guiding-junior' tradition of Lockhart's 'Duelling Club.' This boy also had a unique talent.
Hermione and Draco were also not on the train. As Percy's assistants, they were part of the 'vanguard team' to inspect and negotiate for the 'Quidditch Duelling Tournament' training and competition venues Percy had previously selected. Hermione was responsible for the possible Muggle-related matters, and Draco for the wizarding ones.
They were also accompanied by Ron, Luna, and Pansy. Ron wanted to take his new companion, Hakimi, to the Muggle world to experience the other form of the Hakimi. Luna felt that the development of the 'Quidditch Duelling Tournament' was very newsworthy, and on her father Xenophilius Lovegood's suggestion, she was tagging along as a junior reporter for The Quibbler.
When Draco saw this, he thought, Well, Hermione has two helpers, and Crabbe and Goyle aren't here, so he brought Pansy along too. Pansy was the kind of girl whose eyes were only on Draco; she didn't care where they were going and just followed him along for the ride.
And then there were the Weasley twins, George and Fred. They had taken the investment Lockhart provided and planned to find more materials suitable for their prank inventions. This money wasn't easy to get. While Lockhart didn't strictly demand that they invent anything, he gave them a dozen suggestions for different directions after discussing them, each one presenting a significant challenge.
George and Fred sometimes thought that they might as well just quit school. If they weren't afraid their mother would beat them, they would have already dropped out to start their business. But with Professor Lockhart's requests, they were forced to face a terrible realization: they would have to keep studying, and they would have to search for a lot of information in the library.
With the current turbulent situation, Professor McGonagall had initially opposed Lockhart's holiday plans for these young wizards. However, after calling the students to inquire about the situation, she found out that this wasn't Professor Lockhart's arrangement at all—it was the students' own initiative!
This was far too extraordinary!
Professor McGonagall hadn't seen such self-motivation among students in a long time. She finally agreed after speaking with the students' parents.
Perhaps it was as Professor Lockhart said. Everyone had their own fairy tale adventure, and everyone had to walk their own magical path. He had guided these young wizards onto their paths, and from now on, their desire to continue would be unstoppable.
Where the heart points, Magic will naturally make a path.
This was Lockhart's theory. It might not be a universal truth, but it always seemed to fit the reality of the world.
During their time at school, Hagrid and Newt had already started raising various dangerous and powerful magical creatures.
During his time at school, Voldemort had already investigated his own origins, killed his Muggle father and framed his uncle, created his first Horcrux, and seduced the Grey Lady, Rowena Ravenclaw's daughter, to find the hiding place of Ravenclaw's Diadem in Albania.
During his time at school, Grindelwald had already started searching for the Hallows and was experimenting with various dangerous and powerful Dark Arts.
There were too many examples to count. But the interesting thing was this: wizards who showed such outstanding talent in their youth were undoubtedly the future big names in various fields, and the young wizards in Lockhart's Duelling Club seemed to be quite numerous. So many, in fact, it was like he was breeding them wholesale.
This left Professor McGonagall puzzled. Was this just a historical pattern, a new generation of geniuses emerging naturally with the dawn of a new era, or was Professor Lockhart truly that good at teaching?
"No one understands how to teach students better than I do!"—when she occasionally recalled Lockhart's bombastic words, she couldn't help but feel that perhaps he wasn't exaggerating after all.
.................
I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to those who support me on this journey. Your contribution make a real difference!
As a patron, you unlock:
Exclusive Access: Get advanced +90 chapters ahead of everyone else.
👉 Join now: P-a-treon/Chaos_God
(Just remove the- hyphen to access normally)
Thank You so much For your Support and for Reading!