stonecrandall Page 98
Page 98
While there was certainly an element of revenge involved, it was also part of his disguise as a double agent.
Even before the Philosopher's Stone incident last year, he and Dumbledore were already convinced that the Man of Varian would one day return.
With the sorting ceremony over, the banquet finally began.
It was at this moment that Professor Snape floated into the Great Hall like a giant bat, went straight to the faculty seats, and said something to Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall.
Soon, Dumbledore frowned and began to leave his seat, beckoning the two deans to leave with him.
Levin exchanged a glance with Hermione, who was sitting at the long table in Gryffindor. Levin gave her an OK sign, and the girl finally felt relieved.
It seems Harry and Ron have finally arrived at school.
At least, Hermione only needs to worry about her Gryffindor house grades.
Of course, as it turns out, even these worries were unnecessary.
Since the incident occurred before the start of the school term, Harry and Ron did not deduct points from Gryffindor's grade.
Soon, Hermione arrived. She was alone and, as always, got up early to review her lessons.
This directly led to Harry and Ron being hailed as heroes by the Gryffindor students when they returned.
The two were somewhat smug.
This is Hermione's complaint to Levin during breakfast the next morning.
"They're still celebrating, thinking it's something so glorious," the girl said angrily. "If this keeps up, I wouldn't be surprised at all if they actually get expelled!"
"Okay, don't be angry." Levin stuffed a piece of strawberry pudding into Hermione's mouth as she came over for a visit.
Hermione glared at her, then naturally ate it, completely unaware of the surprised looks from her classmates.
Living together during the summer vacation made many intimate actions between them become second nature.
Seeing that Hermione's emotions had calmed down a bit, Levin then said, "Gryffindor, that's how it is often. They just don't realize the seriousness of the problem before they act."
"So...this is wrong, and they should reflect deeply on their actions!"
Levin noticed that Hermione's expression when she said those words was exactly the same as Professor McGonagall's.
No wonder many students secretly call Hermione "Little Big Guy".
I wonder when someone will start calling Professor McGonagall "Big Hermione"?
Just as Hermione was feeling indignant, karma struck:
A deafening roar suddenly erupted from the Gryffindor dining table.
"...If they fire you for stealing the car, I wouldn't be surprised at all. Just wait and see how I deal with you then. You probably have no idea how your father and I felt when we found the car was gone..."
"...Last night I received a letter from Dumbledore. Your father was so ashamed he almost died. We raised you with so much care and love, and now you've done something like this. You and Harry almost lost your lives."
"...This is outrageous! Your father will be investigated at work, and it's all your fault. If you don't behave, we'll bring you back right now!"
The roaring finally stopped, but the effect was extraordinary, practically dominating the gossip for the next week.
The morning classes weren't difficult, especially for Levin, an exceptional student.
Whether it was Professor McGonagall asking them to turn beetles into buttons in the Transfiguration class,
It was during herbal medicine class that Ms. Sprout had them repot the mandrake.
He performed flawlessly as always, earning points for Ravenclaw.
This state even lasted into the afternoon's Defense Against the Dark Arts class.
Gilderoy Lockhart, a well-known bestselling author in the world of Yin magic, pulled off a major stunt in his very first lesson.
0???????
"I see you've all bought my complete works—great! I think we should start with a little quiz today. Don't be afraid—it's just to see how well you read and how much you've understood..."
After distributing the papers, Gidero returned to the podium and said, "You have thirty minutes. Now, everyone, begin!"
Levin looked helplessly at the test paper in front of him. The questions on it had nothing to do with Defense Against the Dark Arts. Instead, they seemed more like a test for joining a fan club.
1. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color?
2. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?
3. What do you think is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement to date?
And so on, filling three whole pages, with the last question being...
54. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's birthday? What would be his ideal birthday present?
Half an hour later, Lockhart collected the test papers and looked through them in front of the whole class.
"Tsk tsk—almost no one remembers that my favorite color is lilac. I mentioned it in 'A Year with the Snowman Xz.' A few classmates should reread 'Wandering with the Werewolf'—in Chapter Twelve of that book, I clearly stated that my ideal birthday present is for all people, whether they have magic or not, to live in harmony—but I..."
I wouldn't refuse a big bottle of Ogden Fire Whisky!
Halfway through the page, Lockhart suddenly screamed.
"Ah, finally a satisfactory answer sheet, full marks!"
His smile was full of surprise.
"What a handsome young man, just like me! Levin answered all my questions correctly! Excellent! Ten points for Ravenclaw! You can sit in a more front-row seat next time!"
Hermione stared in disbelief: You were the first one to look down on him, yet you secretly got a perfect score?
But for Levin, all the books stored in his mind could be accessed at any time, so answering these questions perfectly was not difficult.
Levin nodded reservedly to Lohart, as a way of thanking him for the extra points.
The reason he pulled this stunt, besides wanting to maintain his "perfect" record, was more importantly to pretend to be friendly towards Lockhart.
That way, it'll be easier to trick him into signing his autograph.
For the entire last year, Levin had been eyeing the restricted section of Hogwarts.
To enter the restricted area, a professor's signed permission is required.
It's not easy to find such a foolish and easily fooled person as a teacher, so he's bound to try and get as many autographs as possible.
Levin will have to rely on Lockhart for his trip to the restricted book section this school year.
However, Lockhart's antics in the classroom didn't stop there.
After the test, the other party actually pushed a huge cage covered with a black cloth into the classroom.
The strong smell of sulfur behind the cage made Levin feel terrible.
He actually brought this thing to the classroom! What was Lockhart thinking?!
Chapter 105 Hellish Demon
"Now be careful! My mission is to teach you how to defend against the most evil thing known in the magical world!"
Lockhart grabbed the black cloth with one hand and shouted in his exaggerated tone:
“You will face the most terrifying things in this classroom. But remember, as long as I am here, you will not be harmed. I only ask that you remain calm.”
“I must ask you not to scream,” Lockhart said in a low voice, “that will enrage them!”
The other students were stunned by Lockhart's performance.
It must be said that, aside from her good looks, Lockhart's acting skills are quite good.
He speaks with great emotion, his eyes and micro-expressions are very expressive, and with his rich body language, he is clearly a veteran actor!
Sometimes Levin couldn't help but sigh that the path to transcendence in this world was too narrow, causing many wizards to go astray.
If this were in the Dungeons & Dragons universe, someone like Lockhart could easily have become a bard; he might have achieved something truly greater then.
Instead of cheating and deceiving others by stealing their achievements, as is the case now.
The whole class held their breath.
“Well…see!” Lockhart grabbed the black cloth and ripped it off.
When the black cloth was lifted, the students all leaned back and gasped.
The air pressure in the entire classroom seemed to drop.
Under the black cloth was a huge iron cage, taller than a person.
Inside the cage were a group of humanoid creatures, about 20 to 30 centimeters in size, with long, narrow bat wings, brownish-red and brownish-green skin, and long ears.
“These are… Cornish elves?!” some young wizards from wizarding families exclaimed.
Hearing this name,
Most students gave a "that's it?" look.
Only Levin's face turned dark.
This isn't a Cornish elf at all; the color alone is wrong.
The Cornish elves are all dark blue, but the little fellow before me is reddish-brown and greenish-brown.
Most importantly, they have scorpion-like tails and their legs are not normal humanoid structures, but rather lizard-like recurved structures.
How could this be a fairy?
Lockhart was still explaining: "Don't be so sure, they could also be cunning little devils!"
What do you mean by "possible"? They're just little devils.
And it's not native to this world; it's just a mischievous little devil.
Rather, they are demons that truly originate from purgatory, from the lower planes!
They are truly malevolent and dangerous creatures capable of killing people.
They possess the sharp teeth and claws typical of predators.
It has a highly venomous tail hook.
It can also transform into various small animals.
In purgatory, they serve powerful demons, acting as servants, scouts, and so on.
These creatures are definitely not native to the Harry Potter world; they are most likely visitors from another world.
Levin couldn't understand why the harmless Cornish elves Lockhart brought in the original story had turned into these things.