Hogwarts: Don't call me Wandmaker

Chapter 130 The Weasley Brothers' Gift
Lockhart seems to have truly become a responsible and dedicated professor. Even though he is terribly pale, he still insists on teaching his students.

Although it was still the same kind of ridiculous stage play as before, people became much more tolerant, thinking that given his current state, it was already quite an achievement to have done this.

Siren suspects that Lockhart may be connected to the escaped Riddle.

Besides his unusual return to Hogwarts, Tom Riddle once said that the diary first appeared at Hogwarts in Lockhart's office, but before he could communicate with him, it was stolen by Malfoy.

It's likely true that Malfoy stole the diary in that sentence, but whether Riddle communicated with Lockhart is uncertain.

Previously, Xiren also thought this statement was true, because he had tested Lockhart several times, and the other party's behavior was normal, not like he had communicated with the diary.

However, it seems that this idea was a bit hasty, and perhaps his previous reactions were all an act.

Lockhart was able to fool so many experienced wizards, so his acting skills must be extraordinary. Pretending to know nothing was too easy for him.

So Hillen borrowed the Marauder's Map from the Weasley brothers again and studied it carefully in the dormitory for a long time.

He found nothing.

Lockhart's routine was perfectly normal. His daily routine consisted of attending classes and, as before, making his presence felt at school. After dinner, he would return to his office to write replies to his admirers, not going to bed in the next room until the early hours of the morning.

This has been going on for several days in a row.

Let alone sneaking off to the secret room, he hardly ever went to the second floor of the school. He mostly lingered on the third floor and in places with many students, like the auditorium.

But this did not dispel Xiren's suspicions about him; on the contrary, it made her even more convinced that he was connected to Riddle.

Because the library and the school hospital on the second floor were the places with the most people at Hogwarts, before Lockhart was attacked, he often frequented these two places, talking to Mrs. Pince about some mysterious books that did not exist at all, or trying to teach Mrs. Pomfrey how to properly prepare hair growth potion.

Interestingly, Mrs. Pomfrey initially believed him, after all, Lockhart's thick blond hair was quite convincing. It wasn't until she tried making it herself that Mrs. Pomfrey realized that the so-called recipe was complete nonsense.

Her favorite cauldron exploded on the spot, shattering the glass of the school hospital. Before this, she had never made a mistake in concocting potions.

Madam Pomfrey was unaware that Lockhart had no idea about hair growth potions, and the formula was fake. His only goal was to use the name of Hogwarts Hospital to help promote his shampoo.

However, Lockhart later made things worse by removing Malfoy's leg bone. Before he could even express his thoughts, Madam Pomfrey forbade him from ever going near the school hospital again.

Lockhart refused to give up and continued to loiter around the area looking for an opportunity, until he almost died in Hogsmeade.

But after returning this time, Lockhart unusually stopped caring about the matter, and didn't go to the school hospital for several days, and rarely stayed on the second floor.

This behavior is completely opposite to Malfoy's seven visits a day back then; it seems more like he's deliberately covering something up.

Is it because I just returned to Hogwarts?

Or are they on guard against someone?
Siren thought it might be him, since that's how Malfoy was exposed. But it could also be Dumbledore.

If anyone had observed closely, they would have noticed that Dumbledore had been appearing at the castle much more frequently in recent days.

He used to only come to the auditorium to eat occasionally, but now Xilun can see him in the teachers' section every time he eats.

Last week he also went to watch a Quidditch match between Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw.

Siren didn't watch that game; he heard about it from Harry. Harry was quite pleased after watching it, thinking both teams were too weak. The game ended with a fairly enthusiastic cheer when Cedric finally caught the Golden Snitch.

Cedric Diggory, a fourth-year Hufflepuff boy, is also the team's Seeker, just like Harry. He is much more handsome than Harry and is considered a star player in the school with many supporters.

But that's not the point. The point is that Dumbledore rarely went to watch games.

Even if he were truly interested, the headmaster's office window directly faces the pitch, offering a much wider view; there's no need for him to make a special trip down there. Dumbledore last came to watch a match because Quirrell had cast a spell on Harry's broom; what brings him here this time?

Gilderoy Lockhart, that was the only answer Siren could think of.

In addition, Snape seems to be interacting with Lockhart more lately, and they are often seen standing together and talking in Siren.

Snape disliked talking to Lockhart the most, and every time Lockhart deliberately came to him, his face would turn as black as the bottom of Neville's cauldron.

In this situation, he obviously wouldn't take the initiative to go to Lockhart unless he had some other idea.

However, this means that even if Lockhart and Riddle are related, he probably won't act rashly in the short term.

Moreover, Siren felt that if Dumbledore and Snape's changes were all because of Lockhart, then it seemed that he didn't need to get involved in this matter.

So the next day, Celen found Fred and George and prepared to return the Marauder's Map to them.

But they didn't accept.

“After careful consideration, we’ve decided to give it to you,” Fred said with a smile.

"Give it to me?" Xilun asked in surprise, "Are you really willing to part with it?"

“It’s very hard to let him go.” George made a heart-wrenching gesture. “But we think you should need him more.”

"You're planning something, aren't you...?"

"It's still a big deal."

“Of course, we won’t ask.” Fred squinted and made a face. “Every generation of students who want to break the rules has their own secrets.”

“As members of the old generation, what we need to do is help you.” George put on a serious face and said in a deliberately solemn tone, “Just like Moonface, Wormtail, Bigfoot, and Prongs did.”

It was like seeing a ghost. His words even carried a sense of mission, making him sound like someone from the last century, even though they were only two years older than Xilun.

"Alright, thank you for the gift." Xiren unceremoniously took back the Marauder's Map and put it in his pocket in front of them.

A hint of reluctance still flashed across their faces.

“Anyway, we’ve already memorized all the secret passage locations,” George said, taking a deep breath. “Now we’re passing it on to you; we don’t need it anymore.”

“Well then, Celen,” Fred said, mimicking Percy’s tone, “you’d better watch yourself!”

"Just don't get caught." George blinked.

The two left the common room with smiles on their faces.

Xiren took out the Marauder's Map again and looked at it for a while. Actually, he didn't need it for the time being. Staring at the map was both boring and a waste of time, so he wanted to return it and focus on his own things.

Xiren had originally planned to ask Fred and George for help when needed, but he never expected that they would just give it to him directly.

“There’s no need to borrow any more.” Xilun smiled and turned back to his dormitory.

……

(End of this chapter)