A Certain Magical Hogwarts

Chapter 255 Lockhart's Exposure

What was supposed to be a transfiguration class turned into a performance class.

Many young wizards rushed over upon hearing the news, crowding the classroom.

"Very good." Professor Marchban clapped enthusiastically.

"Child, you are now the eighth registered legal Animagus of this century. Congratulations!"

"Then you should have this certificate too."

Marchban handed William a golden certificate.

The words "Most Promising Newcomer Award" were written in gilded lettering.

William paused for a moment, then accepted the fourth award he had received so far.

He had previously received the Order of Merlin and two "Outstanding Contribution to Hogwarts Awards".

"Don't be surprised, I'm the editor-in-chief of 'Today's Metamorphosis' magazine, but I won't be in this position for more than a few years before I hand it over to Minerva," Machiban laughed.

William took the certificate, but what he wanted to complain about wasn't the certificate itself, but rather... was it really just handed out like that?

Professor McGonagall was particularly excited when she brought it up, and William thought there would be some kind of important award ceremony.

Even if it's not as formal as the Order of Merlin, it should at least have some sense of ceremony, right?

This flimsy piece of paper was enough to dismiss him, giving William the impression of a third-rate workshop.

It's like he handed over the gold nugget he found on his land to the government, and they gave him five hundred yuan, then said in a thick local accent, "This is a banner from the government for you, fellow villager!"

Always feel something is not right.

Clearly, William was overthinking it.

"Today's Metamorphosis" is not an official magazine, but rather an authoritative academic journal.

The "Most Promising Newcomer Award" is also unofficial, intended only to encourage outstanding performances by young wizards in Transfiguration.

If Marchban hadn't known William, the certificate would have been sent directly by owl; there would have been no need for him to deliver it in person.

This award, aside from its honorary nature, does not involve any Galleons and does not hold any ceremony.

After all, their magazine takes a high-end academic approach, and its sales are far lower than the Daily Prophet. Where would they find the spare money to do anything fancy?

"With this award, the school will help you apply for the International Wizarding Youth Scholarship," Professor McGonagall said from the side.

Oh, William suddenly realized.

The Most Promising Newcomer Award is one of the certificates certified by the International Wizarding Federation, and with this honor, one can apply for international scholarships.

This scholarship was awarded by the International Federation of Wizards.

The Federation is an intergovernmental organization in the magical world, roughly equivalent to the United Nations in the Muggle world.

Think about it, what kind of value should the scholarship the federation gives you be?

It's no exaggeration to say that with this certificate, William could work in any department of the Ministry of Magic without needing to take an exam.

Most importantly, Dumbledore is the Grand Master of the International Confederation of Wizards.

Adhering to the principle of keeping the benefits within the family, William's scholarship level will undoubtedly be the highest.

This will be a considerable sum of money!

Therefore, as long as your grades are good enough, you not only don't need to spend any money to go to school, but you can even make a small profit when you graduate.

Dumbledore followed this path back then, winning every award he could get by the time he graduated.

Sometimes, influence is built up little by little in this way.

Dumbledore's role was to help William build influence.

"Let's take a picture. The next issue of 'Today's Metamorphosis' will publish your paper and the award you received," Machiban said, gesturing to a photographer next to him to take a picture.

"What's going on? What's going on?"

A voice suddenly came from the crowd, and Lockhart squeezed through the crowd and strode toward them, his turquoise robes fluttering behind him.

"Which newspaper is it? Who are they interviewing? I don't know!" Lockhart asked excitedly.

Lockhart walked into the classroom, hooked his arm around William's shoulder, and cheerfully exclaimed, "William, no need to ask! We meet again, William!"

"You told me during the summer that you didn't want to be interviewed by reporters, how about that?" Lockhart affectionately put his arm around William's shoulder.

"Seeing my picture all over the newspapers makes you jealous, doesn't it? That feeling of fame, doesn't it?" Lockhart said. "So you couldn't wait to hire reporters?"

"Come on, sir reporter," Lockhart said with a beaming smile, "a photo of two couldn't be better, we need to make the front page!"

"Who are you?" Professor Machiban asked impatiently.

"Excuse me, you don't recognize me? I am the famous wizard Lockhart."

Machiban shook her head, indicating that she did not recognize the flamboyant man and even felt a little disgusted.

She feels disgusted by effeminate men.

She preferred Dumbledore's type, he was more masculine!

Lockhart saw the certificate in William's hand, stared at its contents, and read: "For outstanding Animagus attainments..."

"Animagus... I'm familiar with this magic. In fact, I used it when I was dealing with Byron the Ghost," Lockhart boasted eagerly.

"So you're saying you're an illegal Animagus?" Professor Machiban squinted.

An illegal Animagus is a crime and requires imprisonment in Azkaban.

Although Lockhart didn't know what Animagus was, that didn't stop him from hearing the word "illegal".

He hesitated for a moment, looked at William, and asked:

"Which newspaper do they belong to?"

"Today's Metamorphosis"

"Transfiguration Today? Never heard of it. Looks like some tabloid." Lockhart straightened his back again.

He wasn't afraid as long as it wasn't a major newspaper.

A commotion arose from the crowd, all staring wide-eyed at Lockhart.

It's one thing for younger wizards not to know, but for a wizard of Lockhart's caliber to not even know "Transfiguration of the Day"?

William was also somewhat taken aback.

This is similar to graduating with a doctorate but not even knowing about CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure).

Could Lockhart's true identity actually be Dr. Lockhart?

Indeed, reality is far more fantastical than fiction!

Lockhart also felt that he might have made a serious, elementary mistake. He muttered a couple of things, made an excuse, and hurriedly left.

"Where did Albus find such an incompetent good-for-nothing..." Machiban's voice was particularly loud.

There was much discussion and many people were skeptical of Professor Lockhart's competence.

……

……

Soon, the magazine "Transfiguration Today" became a hit at Hogwarts.

Walking around campus, almost every young wizard had a copy in their hand.

At noon, Harry and Ron sat down at the Gryffindor table, with Hermione next to them, her "Transfiguration of the Day" spread out on a milk jug.

She was eating her meal while watching intently, occasionally picking up a pen to doodle.

"Hey Hermione, can you please stop carrying that magazine around like that!" Ron said impatiently. "Everywhere we go, we see people looking at it."

I really don't understand what's so interesting about it.

"That's because you don't understand it!" Hermione retorted sharply. "If you're at a high enough level, you'll find a lot of interesting content."

William's article, in particular, contained many thought-provoking methods that cannot be learned from textbooks.

"You and William study in the library every day, doesn't he teach you?" Harry asked, puzzled.

"That's different. William hasn't told me about such advanced topics yet, so I'm doing my own research beforehand."

His article is very profound; even Professor McGonagall praised it highly. It wouldn't hurt to take a look beforehand.

"That's because William wrote at the beginning of the article—'Thank you, Professor McGonagall, for teaching me Animagus,'" Ron said sourly. "If it were me, I would also highly praise that article."

Harry nudged Ron.

Ron said unhappily, "What's wrong? Did I say something wrong?!"

"Of course not! I'm simply recommending this article from an academic perspective, nothing else!" Professor McGonagall's voice rang out.

She stood behind Ron, clutching her textbook, her lips tightly pressed together, her expression icy.

"Ah!" Ron was so frightened that his scrotum went limp and he almost fell off the chair.

"Mr. Weasley, if I were you, I wouldn't speak ill of others behind their backs, especially not about my own headmaster!"

Professor McGonagall said angrily.

"I'm sorry, Professor, I'm not..."

Professor McGonagall interrupted sternly, "You two, go see Mr. Filch this Saturday! As punishment for stealing a car into the school!"

"What are we going to do, Professor?" Harry asked hastily.

"Go ask Mr. Filch yourself, I don't know either!"

Professor McGonagall finished speaking coldly and turned to leave.

She had originally intended to plead with Filch to reduce the punishment, but now it seems... best to forget about it.

……

……

(Thanks to the generous donor "饕餮妖道")

(End of this chapter)