Hogwarts: From Luna's House to Godhood Through Intense Competition

"Please come in!"

Dumbledore picked up his wand and gently waved it at the pile of documents that reached the ceiling.

Professor McGonagall appeared at the door, still wearing her familiar dark green robe, which was her favorite style.

All that remained beside Dumbledore were the corrected documents. "Minerva, good evening!"

"Albus, good evening!" Professor McGonagall stepped forward and handed over a letter with a blue stamp of crossed wands on it.

“It’s quite rare for them to send a letter at this time…” Dumbledore accepted the letter but did not open it; he simply placed it aside.

“This is the list of Hogwarts collaborators for this year.” He pushed the stack of documents toward Professor McGonagall. “As usual, review them and then submit them to the Board of Governors.”

Professor McGonagall nodded slightly, glanced through the documents briefly, and a hint of displeasure appeared on her face.

"Professor Lockhart's books are quite expensive, and the original scholarships are simply not enough."

Dumbledore rested his head on his hand and turned it from side to side. "Of course I know, that's why I wrote the application, and the Board of Trustees will approve another grant."

He tapped the table with a low murmur. "Minerva, I've been busy lately. From your perspective, what do you think of Professor Lockhart?"

A tea set appeared before Dumbledore, along with a plate of colorful macarons.

Professor McGonagall pressed her lips together even tighter, gazing at the steaming tea before slowly speaking: "Similar to my views before the start of the semester, I must say..."

"The position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor isn't really suitable for him." Her words were very conservative. "Professor Snape even asked me to inquire why he wasn't chosen."

“He asks you to ask me this question every year.” Dumbledore picked up a macaron and took a bite. “I feel like something’s missing these days since I haven’t heard that question.”

"As far as I know, apart from his poor performance in the first class, he seems to have continued to surprise his students in the subsequent classes."

Professor McGonagall glanced at the stack of documents again. "Albus, it seems you've been busy all afternoon. You didn't know he was up to something..."

"Fred and George... you know, the Weasley twins, they blew up the big iron cage and the elves flew out."

"The elves stole Lockhart's wand, and then they pointed it at...cough...pointed it at...cough cough cough!"

She coughed violently, a barely concealed smile playing on her lips.

"It seems I've missed something... well, something sad." A slight smile played on Dumbledore's lips. "Perhaps he needs some blood-replenishing medicine?"

"That was really out of line!" Professor McGonagall had excellent self-control and quickly stopped coughing.

It's unclear whether he was speaking to Lockhart or to himself.

She let out a soft breath and continued, "That was just a normal injury. Poppy healed it in just one second."

"Back to the main point! Given Fred and George's abilities, and their close relationship with Hufflepuff, I'm afraid that by tomorrow... this matter will have spread throughout Hogwarts."

"Albus, these past two years... especially this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, have really... you should understand what I mean. Could the mysterious man's curse be real?"

Dumbledore's expression turned serious. "That's something I can't be sure of, just like... I can't be sure whether Voldemort is really dead."

"What is certain is that the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor does indeed have its unique characteristics. After all, a new professor needs to be found every year, and even I would find it very difficult..."

"We paid too heavy a price in the years of fighting Voldemort. Now, there are not many wizards who can teach this course, and our choices are very limited."

Professor McGonagall nodded and sighed softly. "Of course I understand that."

Dumbledore continued, "Minerva, you should know that I am certain Voldemort will return."

Professor McGonagall nodded in agreement, "Of course!"

Dumbledore interlaced his fingers and leaned forward slightly. "I noticed Quirinus's strangeness and, through the Gringotts theft, confirmed my suspicions."

"Albania is Voldemort's hideout, and Quirinas just happens to be there. If I'm not mistaken, it's better to keep Voldemort under my nose than to refuse Quirrell."

“Having a goal is better than having no goal at all… I want to observe Voldemort, and I also want to try to help Quirinas. I must admit, without Vizet…”

He paused, his fingers clenched tightly together. "Without Vizette's help, we wouldn't have been able to uncover Quirinas's other side, and perhaps his fate would have been different."

“As for Professor Lockhart, the knowledge in those books is actually very useful.” Dumbledore waved his wand, and a copy of “Wandering with the Werewolf” flew to his side.

He opened the book and began to read it carefully. There were many annotations on it as well. "Minerva, have you read this book? The contents are very interesting."

"I once visited Professor Marlowe Foufon, a leading expert in werewolf research, for a certain reason. I went to Armenia with Professor Foufon..."

"Professor Fryant told me that he found a clue from the slightest clues: there is a wizard in Armenia who may have magic to free werewolves from their tragic fate."

"Werewolves?" Professor McGonagall adjusted her glasses. "Could the story in that book... be related to this Armenian wizard?"

“That’s right!” Dumbledore flipped to three-quarters of the way through “Wandering with the Werewolf” and pushed it toward Professor McGonagall.

"The Restoration Charm?" Professor McGonagall quickly grasped the key point.

Dumbledore nodded. "This magic does exist. It can temporarily weaken werewolves, making them easier to control, but it doesn't last long."

"This is an extremely niche magic. Due to its extreme difficulty in learning, it is almost facing extinction. Only a few people know this magic."

Chapter 87 Like a Thunderbird

“Since this is an extremely niche form of magic…” Professor McGonagall frowned, “Professor Lockhart…”

She flipped to the very front of "Wandering with Werewolves," and thought, "It's also Armenia? Could this story be..."

Dumbledore shrugged somewhat helplessly. "As far as I know, that's how it is!"

“Giddy Lockhart should be sent to Azkaban!” Professor McGonagall’s eyebrows shot up, and her tone became forceful.

“But we can’t do that.” Dumbledore shrugged. “The Armenian wizard has amnesia…”

He then waved his wand, summoning Lockhart's other works as well.

Seeing Dumbledore's actions, Professor McGonagall's eyes widened in disbelief. "Albus, you mean..."

“That’s right!” Dumbledore nodded. “Most of the experiences in these books have real people who actually lived through them.”

“I tried to find two of the eyewitnesses, only to discover that they had also lost their memories… Even I had difficulty finding them.”

Professor McGonagall pressed on, "Isn't there something we can do?"

Dumbledore exhaled, waved his wand, and sent the books back to their original positions.

He gave a mysterious smile, then turned to look at the box of peppermint licorice candies. "There's nothing we can do for now... but time will tell..."

Professor McGonagall composed herself and regained her composure. "Is this also why you let Lockhart... into the school?"

Dumbledore nodded. "If they can set aside their prejudices and demystify Lockhart himself, they will find what they are looking for in the book."

"Lockhart is still at Hogwarts. I believe that by spending time with him, the students will gradually learn how to distinguish truth from falsehood... and dare to challenge authority."

“Perhaps in this respect… Ravenclaw is doing a good job.” Professor McGonagall rubbed her temples. “I’ve noticed these past few days that they’ve started studying those books.”

"This isn't exactly unexpected news," Dumbledore nodded with satisfaction. "Hopefully Harry... understands something else."

“Oh, right!” Professor McGonagall remembered something. “What you told me at the end of last school year will begin this weekend.”

Dumbledore said with great interest, "Transfiguration magic... Animagus, a very interesting and ancient ritual magic. I wonder how much he can learn from it?"

"He's very talented in Transfiguration magic; his first Transfiguration lesson was a pleasant surprise." Professor McGonagall adjusted her glasses, her tone revealing satisfaction, a slight smile playing on her lips.

Dumbledore murmured, "Speaking of which... he also used transfiguration magic in Professor Lockhart's first Defense Against the Dark Arts class, and on a rather large scale?"

"In the past few days, the Gryffindor students have all wanted to learn how to make an iron cage..." Professor McGonagall's tone revealed a hint of helplessness.

"I've rarely seen them so enthusiastic before. Even their learning speed of this Transfiguration spell is much faster than their previous Transfiguration spells."

"After the spell is successfully cast, they will compare their cages to see whose is better and more similar to the cage that Vizette conjures..."

“It seems that Vizet, at least on the surface, only used Transfiguration magic in that lesson…” Dumbledore smiled, his slightly narrowed eyes revealing deep satisfaction.

He didn't say the other half of his sentence: if Vizette wanted to deal with those elves, there must be an easier way that wouldn't require the help of the other students.

But Vizette did not do that. He called on everyone to work together to face the sprites and, through their combined efforts, stopped the sprites from causing destruction.

Perhaps this is... the difference between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor?

Dumbledore thought so.

“Minerva, do you know about a magical creature in North America?” He picked up his teacup and took a sip. “They have a good relationship with Muggles and are even worshipped by the local indigenous people.”

“Of course I know,” Professor McGonagall nodded. “Thunderbird… perhaps Newt has a deeper impression of it than I do.”

"Cough cough cough..." Dumbledore coughed a few times before returning to the original topic, "When the Thunderbirds soar through the sky, they unconsciously bring rain."

“In Arizona, this kind of rainfall is very important, so it is especially revered by the locals. Of course, it doesn't just bring rain…”

"Thunderbird also possesses the talent of lightning. You really should go and see it. The lightning that Thunderbird releases is incredibly beautiful... It looks absolutely gorgeous!"

“But it’s a Thunderbird…” Professor McGonagall’s tone held a hint of regret, “It would have been better if it were a lion…”

Dumbledore gave a helpless smile and shook his head gently. Both Gryffindors fell silent at that moment.

“If things continue as they are, we’ll have to find a new professor again next year,” Professor McGonagall sighed, and then resumed her conversation.

"If we really can't find a suitable candidate, can we make an application to the Ministry of Magic? For example... to send an Auror?"

“That’s a bit difficult.” Dumbledore rubbed his temples. “At least for now, our Minister Fudge doesn’t seem to trust me that much.”

Professor McGonagall adjusted her glasses, her gaze sharpening. "Is it because of Wizengamor before summer vacation? You want to pass the Muggle Protection Act?"

"Perhaps..." Dumbledore said with a hint of helplessness. "After all, Fudge is very close to the pure-blood families. Once this decree is promulgated, it will be a disgrace to the pure-blood families."

"However, given my status as the 'Chief Wizard of Wisengam,' they couldn't directly refute me, so they had the drafters of the decree take action to find substantial evidence."

"I see!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed in realization. "No wonder Arthur led a group of Ministry of Magic staff to search Hogwarts during the summer holidays."