The mastermind behind Hogwarts

Chapter 312 Lockhart's First Lesson (Happy Chinese New Year!)

Lockhart pushed open the door and walked in, waving to the students, which caused quite a stir.

Lockhart wore a forget-me-not blue wizard's robe, with his shimmering gold hair topped with a purple wizard's hat, looking quite colorful, but much better than the "peacock" outfit he wore during the interview.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I'm sure you all know who I am, so I'll skip the self-introduction and just say a few words from the bottom of my heart."

The young wizards, who were ready to cheer and applaud, were stunned. Didn't all the new professors usually start with a self-introduction?

Then, give the students a rude awakening, finally envision the wonderful life of learning magic, and then begin the lesson.

For thousands of years, new professors have done it this way, except that Dumbledore's first lecture was said to be unique.

The little snakes and lion cubs exchanged a few curious glances. Lockhart took the opportunity to glance at Moriarty and saw that his eyes were full of encouragement, which gave him a boost of confidence.

"I noticed you all have textbooks," he said. "Please put your textbooks away. Today's lesson is a practical one—all my lessons are practical. All you need are your wands."

What I'm going to teach you is combat skills, the techniques for fighting against evil dark wizards and dangerous magical creatures!

Just like I've done countless times to dark wizards and magical creatures.

In his final, rhythmic speech, Lockhart couldn't resist adding a touch of self-aggrandizement.

No one thought it was inappropriate. The students quickly put their textbooks back into their bags, and some even shrunk their textbooks to take back and use as a desk cushion.

Jericho raised his hand and exclaimed, "I love the practical lessons! We all know that Professor Lockhart doesn't just rely on theory to deal with those dangerous magical creatures in the novels!"

The students nodded in agreement, both happy and interested.

Lilith focused her attention on the two floating cages and raised her hand to ask, "Professor, are the subjects for today's experiment inside the cages?"

Lockhart knew that Jericho and Lilith were both close to Moriarty, and could be considered his confidants in some ways. Their questions represented the young master's intentions!

Lockhart was touched, thinking that Moriarty had noticed his nervousness and had specially sent his men to remind him. With their preparation, he only needed to continue speaking.

Lockhart gave Moriarty a grateful look and then gave Lilith an affirmative answer: "Clever Slytherin, you guessed right. There are two magical creatures in the cage, and because of their special nature, I had to cover them with black cloths."

The students from both houses then noticed that each cage was covered with a black cloth, and the cages flew around under Lockhart's control to ensure that every student could see them.

Everyone had their sights set on the target of their guesses. Lockhart smiled and said slowly, "So, please guess who the magical creature inside is? There's a prize for the correct guess!"

A complete set of Lockhart's works, in a deluxe edition, flew up from the back of the classroom; the prize was obvious.

A little lion in the first row stood up excitedly and exclaimed, "A phoenix?"

The second one stood up, excitedly proclaiming, "The basilisk!"

"I think it must be a fire dragon!" the third person exclaimed.

Percy sighed and gave a wry smile. "Please think this through. The cage is so small, how could it possibly fit everyone?"

"Oh, that's Little Phoenix!"

"Little snake monster!"

"Little Charmander!"

Percy: "..."

The little snakes covered their mouths and chuckled. What were Gryffindor thinking?

Phoenix! Basilisk! Fire Dragon!

That's outrageous. Absolutely outrageous.

Jericho whispered to Moriarty, "If Professor Lockhart could bring us the phoenix, I, Jericho Branch, would eat both cages right here and now!"

Moriarty raised an eyebrow. Leon had gone to college, and Jericho was indeed getting more and more troublesome.

If he hadn't been so curious about what was in the two cages, he would have definitely turned the creatures in the cages into phoenixes and watched Jericho eat the cages!

"Gryffindors' imaginations are as rich as ever," Lockhart's smile widened. "Weasley, guess one."

Percy remembered Charlie telling him about the giant eight-eyed spiders in the Forbidden Forest, and guessed that Lockhart had gone to the Forbidden Forest to catch two small giant spiders for teaching purposes, so he said, "A juvenile giant eight-eyed spider?"

"Unfortunately, no." Lockhart shook his head and turned his gaze to the little snake.

"Hmm... vampires?" A little snake thought that given Lockhart's grudge against vampires, he might capture two vampires.

Lockhart smiled without saying a word. He had indeed considered using a vampire, but knowing that Moriarty had always hated these blood-sucking creatures, he gave up the idea.

Another small snake voiced its guess: "A ghoul?"

"Fire-ash snake?"

"Tree protector hunchback!"

"Slug?"

"Floppy caterpillar?"

After the lion cubs made their guesses, the snakes began to pay attention to the size of the cage, and their guesses became much more reliable.

However, this angered the girls. Lilith complained, "Ugh~ Can you guys stop being disgusting? The cage is so tall and narrow, it doesn't look like a four-legged animal or a multi-legged insect at all!"

"Yes, the more I look at it, the more it resembles a humanoid creature."

The girls nodded and echoed their agreement.

Inspired, the little snakes began a new round of guessing. This time, they all guessed it was a magical creature that could walk upright.

Jericho thought for a moment, then snapped his fingers, his eyes gleaming: "Little... sprite!"

Lockhart shuddered discreetly. "Don't try to trap me, kid! Diana and the young master have that kind of relationship, and she's the Elf Queen! How could I dare capture an elf!"

Keith, observing Lockhart's less-than-pleasant expression, cleverly remarked, "Little fairy!"

The little snakes were instantly swayed, chattering all at once, "Little devil!"

"Little imp!"

"Little dwarf!"

"Little devil!"

"Little Mermaid!"

"Little Giant!"

"Little werewolf!"

"Bigfoot!"

"She-devil!"

This is getting more and more outrageous. Lockhart quickly cast a pleading look at Moriarty.

After thinking for a moment, Moriarty guessed a magical creature and said calmly in a moderate voice, "A Boggart?"

Moriarty guessed Boggart because he found Lockhart's teaching style somewhat similar to Lupin's.

During Harry Potter's first Defense Against the Dark Arts class in his third year, Lupin brought a Boggart.

Upon hearing Moriarty's words, the classroom fell silent. The students all knew who Boggart was and thought it was possible.

Everyone looked at Lockhart, wondering if Moriarty had guessed correctly.

Lockhart smiled and shook his head. "Boggarts are too easy for you. In my curriculum, Boggarts are a first-year course."

Alright, ladies and gentlemen, let me reveal the answer.

You must understand, I have specially prepared high-quality prey for you, because only high-quality prey can train high-quality hunters.

Lockhart took out his wand and pointed it at the two cages. Everyone's attention was focused on the cages, and no one noticed that Lockhart gently closed his eyes.

Because the two creatures in the cage are capable of making a fool of themselves.

"Yugadimurleviosa".

The black cloth covering it spun away, revealing the magical creature inside!

The students all stood up with a jolt, and their expressions were miraculously identical, regardless of gender.

Its eyes shone brightly, and its face was adorned with twinkling hearts, so bright they were dazzling.

Her mouth was wide open, and a drop of saliva dripped from the corner of her lips, glistening and translucent.

His hands seemed to move uncontrollably, making an embracing motion, as if he wanted to hold the two magical creatures in the cage.

Their feet seemed to be wound up, and they had already jumped out of their seats and were running towards the cage!

Happy Chinese New Year! Xiaohong wishes all her family members a prosperous and auspicious Year of the Tiger.

(End of this chapter)