Hogwarts: I'm Harry's older cousin

Chapter 262, Section 260: Criteria for Assessing the Qualifications of Defense Against the Dark Arts Instructors

After finishing his daily morning exercise, Draco, feeling rather bored, wandered around the castle with his two henchmen, Crabbe and Goyle.

Hermione and Dudley were reading in the library, while Neville, Ron, and Harry were practicing spells in the Room of Requirement.

He didn't want to go anywhere today. He didn't want to study or practice spells. He had originally planned to rest all day and relax.

Well, for members of the discipline group, attending classes is a form of relaxation.

In a daze, he always felt that something was following him, as if someone was watching him.

But every time I looked back, I found nothing.

This puzzled him greatly.

However, he trusted his intuition and believed that something was indeed following him.

So he didn't linger and immediately ran to the library to ask Dudley for help.

Surprisingly, the moment he stepped into the library, the feeling of being watched disappeared.

"Draco, didn't you want to rest today?"

Dudley glanced at Draco and asked.

Draco thought for a moment and then told Dudley about his feeling. Dudley told him to be careful lately, as he might be being watched by someone or something, and to come find him immediately if he had that feeling again.

Who is targeting Draco?

That would naturally be Professor Moody. If that guy wanted to establish a persona of a traitor, Draco, Lucius's son, would be the best choice.

It allows him to vent his anger and also makes his "Moody" image more three-dimensional.

The self-study time ended quickly, and the fourth-year wizards began to arrive one after another in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. This was their fourth year at Hogwarts, where they met the stuttering Garlic Professor (Quirk), the Drama Professor dressed like a peacock (Lockhart), and the Perfect Professor who could transform (Lupin).

Today is the fourth professor to teach them defense against the dark magic.

I placed "Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Defense" on my desk early on, quietly waiting for the arrival of the infamous "Mad-Eye".

Many young wizards have already heard about Moody from their older classmates.

His teaching level is top-notch; there is almost no black magic he doesn't know, and his achievements in combating black magic are unparalleled.

To sum it up in one sentence—Professor Moody's class was absolutely awesome.

Immediately after the class, he gained a large following of young wizards who admired him.

Accompanied by Moody's distinctive thumping footsteps, the strange-looking and frightening old wizard appeared at the classroom door.

"Put these things away." The first thing Moody did upon entering the classroom was to point to the textbooks on the little wizard's desk and say in a gruff voice, as he walked to the podium with what appeared to be difficulty, leaning on his cane, and sat down.

"You don't need textbooks."

One sentence was enough to excite the young wizards below the stage.

They had heard similar words from the previous Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, who, although Professor Lupin also taught them the knowledge in the order of the dark magic creatures in the textbook, never used the textbook.

The two professors who used textbooks were Quirrell and Lockhart.

Whether or not a teacher uses a textbook has almost become the standard by which they evaluate whether a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor is qualified.

"Before I came here, I received a letter from your Professor Lupin introducing your progress in this course. You have already learned a lot about how to deal with dark magic creatures."

The young wizards whispered their agreement.

Professor Moody nodded, then changed the subject: "Not enough, far from enough! For three whole years you've only learned how to deal with dark magic creatures like Boggarts, Red Hats, Hinkpunk, Grindylow, Kaba, and werewolves."

"You're already in fourth grade, and your understanding of defense against the Dark Arts is so superficial! When I was your age, I was already learning how to deal with dark wizards!"

Based on age, Moody, Hagrid, and Tom are roughly from the same cohort.

That was the era of Grindelwald. He said that learning how to deal with dark wizards back then was, in a way, not wrong.

"I really want to know what you guys actually learned in the past two years?"

The young wizards looked at each other...

The defense against the dark arts professors for the first and second years, Quirrell and Lockhart, were also curious about what they had actually learned from them over the past two years.

If it weren't for the guidance of Professor Lupin and Mr. Dursley in their third year, their understanding of Defense Against the Dark Arts might still be limited to dealing with mischievous little curses like "Grin Hullah".

The young wizards below the stage were buzzing with discussion. Moody tapped the ground with his cane to quiet the classroom down.

"Defense Against the Dark Arts isn't just about dealing with dark magic creatures; it's also about learning how to counter dark magic spells!"

"I'm going to show you how wizards cast spells. I have a year to teach you how to deal with dark magic."

"Can anyone tell me what the best and most effective way to deal with dark magic is?"

Moody looked at the young wizards below the stage and asked.

Ron immediately raised his hand to answer when he heard that he knew the answer.

"It's a counter-curse, sir."

"Correct answer." Moody nodded in satisfaction. "Redhead, you're a Weasley, aren't you? Your father, Arthur, has done me a great favor."

A little embarrassed by Moody's praise, Ron said, "We already learned quite a bit of black magic anti-spells in our third year."

Then, as if remembering something, his expression paused.

Bonus points! What happened to the promised bonus points?

This is a rare opportunity for me to answer a question in class, so I'm getting extra points from the discipline group!

"I see."

Moody nodded, looking somewhat surprised. Lupin's letter hadn't mentioned this; it said that fifth graders (last year's fourth graders) hadn't learned anti-spells yet. How come fourth graders (last year's third graders) are learning them now? Did Lupin write the grade wrong?

"He also learned the Guardian Charm." Ron, who hadn't gained any points, added one more time, unwilling to give up.

Moody's face began to look somewhat unnatural.

Learning the Guardian Charm in third grade (now fourth grade)? Are you sure you're not kidding?

This is something that even sixth graders might not know how to teach.

There aren't many Aurors who know the Guardian Charm.

"Then you..."

Moody probed in an inquiring tone.

"I've basically learned them all."

The young wizards answered in unison that even if some of them couldn't summon a physical guardian deity, being able to use the white silk threads to deal with a single Dementor would be enough.

Moody's mind was a bit of a mess.

Wait a minute... Is this really fourth grade?

He originally wanted to say that the content they were learning wasn't in-depth enough, but now it's not a matter of insufficient depth.

It's not that the content they're learning is beyond the curriculum.

Who taught the Guardian Angel Spell to a third-grade student?

(End of this chapter)