Wade was silent for a moment before asking in return, "Even if Lockhart had stayed, what could we have possibly learned from him?"
"Uh..." Michael was momentarily at a loss for words.
"There is something!"
Padma, who was not far away, leaned over and fiddled with her hair as she said, "I think my acting skills have improved a lot recently—right, Harry?"
She even nodded toward another regular performer in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classes.
Unfortunately, with Hufflepuffs sitting in between, Harry didn't hear what Padma was saying. He gave a confused nod, perhaps just trying to greet her.
For some reason, this struck Padma as hilarious, and she burst into laughter, shaking so hard she could barely hold her fork.
"That's strange!" Michael whispered to Wade. "I thought Padma would be really upset about Lockhart being taken away!"
"Girls probably just liked Lockhart's looks, but Padma isn't blind to how much of an airhead he is. Her 'liking' wasn't real," Wade explained.
Michael nodded thoughtfully, then suddenly added, "Lockhart did teach us one thing, though—he made me realize what kind of person I don't want to become."
Hearing Michael's remark, Wade couldn't help glancing toward the staff table.
Such insight might have been exactly what Dumbledore wanted Harry to learn:
—Don't be vain. Don't become a slave to fame.
Yet Dumbledore wasn't present in the Great Hall again today. He had been unusually busy recently. Students sometimes caught glimpses of the headmaster striding briskly across the grounds, but he was rarely seen at meals.
Dumbledore surely knew about Lockhart's arrest, yet even so, he had not appeared.
…
On the way to class that afternoon, Wade and his friends saw a group of Gryffindors huddled together. Before long, they let out exclamations and cheers.
A magical firework was lit,and it zoomed off in all directions with loud whooshes and cackling noises. It shouted repeatedly in a strange, mocking voice:
"Lockhart's gone! Lockhart's gone!"
Students erupted in cheers.
Looking closely, Wade realized it was the Weasley twins and their friend Lee Jordan leading the celebration. Unfortunately, their party was cut short when an irate Professor McGonagall stormed over, sending the crowd scattering.
"There's nothing worth celebrating here! And I refuse to believe that Professor Lockhart is the kind of person they claim! The Ministry might very well have made a mistake!"
Lisa from Ravenclaw spoke angrily.
No one took her words seriously. Anthony frowned and said, "There are still four months until the holidays! I just want to know if the school can find us a new professor by then."
"A new professor? What if it's someone like Lockhart again?" Mandy said worriedly.
"Relax, how many people could possibly be worse than Lockhart?" Terry reassured her. "He even used his own novels as textbooks! My grandmother said she's never heard of anything so absurd!"
"The problem isn't who—it's whether there'll be anyone at all," Anthony said. "I've heard that finding a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for Hogwarts has always been difficult. No one has ever lasted more than a year."
"Many of the people who've taught this subject ended up in trouble. They say this class is cursed," Another student Kevin added with a mysterious tone.
"But if this goes on, I'm really worried I'll fail the final exams," Morag said gloomily.
After they settled into the classroom, she suddenly asked, "Wade, could you teach us?"
Everyone froze for a moment, and then turned to look at the two.
The more Morag thought about it, the more it seemed like a good idea. She continued to persuade, "I heard the professors say you've already self-studied up to an advanced level. If you were to teach us, it'd definitely be better than someone like Lockhart..."
Other students seemed interested as well, but before Wade could say anything, Michael snorted and loudly interrupted:
"Hey! Kevin just said this subject is cursed! Or do you think that as long as you get good grades, it doesn't matter if Wade gets cursed?"
"I—I didn't mean that!" Morag stammered, clearly forgetting about the curse entirely. She waved her hands hurriedly and said, "I just thought… if it was just occasional tutoring—"
"Impossible, there's no time. Wade's busy with alchemy research!" Michael said unhappily. "And you said he's just equivalent to an advanced level. If you want tutoring, why not ask actual upper-year students?"
Normally friendly and sociable, Michael had never spoken so curtly to his peers. Morag's face turned bright red, and she was at a loss for words.
Wade opened his mouth to say something, but Michael shook his head, stopping him.
The classroom went quiet, and the atmosphere grew awkward. When the Gryffindor students came in, they assumed the professor was already there and creeped to their seats on tiptoe.
Before long, Professor Flitwick arrived. Once he began the lesson, the mood lightened a bit.
Today, they were learning the Freezing Charm, a spell that immobilizes its target, somewhat similar to the Full Body-Bind Curse.
Wade and his friends from SSC had already mastered this spell long ago. They demonstrated it with ease, earning points for both their houses, much to Professor Flitwick's delight.
Professor Flitwick instructed the students to break into groups and begin practicing, but suddenly noticed a hand raised high in the air.
Naturally, the person raising her hand was Hermione.
"Miss Granger, do you have a question?" Professor Flitwick asked curiously.
"Professor, I'd like to know—do they have solid evidence for Professor Lockhart's charges?" Hermione stood up and asked.
"Er… That's not something I should be discussing with students..." Professor Flitwick replied uneasily.
The students, sensing there might be a story, all began to plead, "Please, Professor, tell us!"
"Well… you'll all read about it in the papers soon enough anyway…"
After a brief hesitation, Professor Flitwick shared what he knew.
"I've heard that someone gathered a large amount of evidence and reported Professor Lockhart—no, Gilderoy Lockhart—to the Ministry of Magic. While the Ministry officially says the matter is still under investigation, the facts are already clear."
"Then… could Professor Lockhart come back to teach?" Lisa asked hopefully.
Mentioning Lockhart soured Professor Flitwick's mood a little, but thinking of the man's eventual fate seemed to calm him.
"Of course not," he told his students. "He'll likely spend the rest of his life in Azkaban—or at least the next ten years."
"That serious?!" The students were stunned.
"Indeed." Professor Flitwick seized the opportunity to caution them.
"The consequences of abusing Oblivion Charm are severe. Some victims forgot how to live normal lives and tragically passed away. You must always be cautious when using magic."
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⭐Harry Potter: Becoming a Study God (HP:BSG)- +208 Chapters & 2 Chapters/Day
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