As the group stepped into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, they were stunned by the sight before them—not because it was luxurious, but because the decor inside and out exuded a suffocating air of narcissism.
The walls around the classroom were densely covered with portraits of Gilderoy Lockhart in various sizes and poses.
In some, he held a wand while confronting a Werewolf; in others, he elegantly dodged a Banshee; and in still others, he simply displayed those flashing white teeth, keeping a watchful eye on every student in the classroom.
Directly above the podium hung an especially large portrait. In it, Lockhart wore what he clearly thought was a charming smile, holding a paintbrush and painting on a canvas—and the content of the canvas was, strikingly, another small portrait of himself!
"This... this is certainly narcissistic enough."
Edgar's mouth hung open. He searched his mind but could only find that one word to describe the scene before him.
Ring, ring—
The school bell rang right on time.
Almost at the very last second as the bell faded, the classroom door was thrust open. Gilderoy Lockhart walked in wearing a showy set of robes, his face beaming with a smile intended to enlighten all living beings.
"Ahem~" He cleared his throat and stood behind the podium, arms spread wide. "Now, allow me to officially introduce to you your new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, which is to say—myself!"
Clearly, he wanted to make up for the introduction segment that had been unexpectedly interrupted during the opening feast.
"Myself—Gilderoy Lockhart! Order of Merlin, Third Class recipient, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and—"
He paused deliberately and winked. "Five-time winner of The Wizarding Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award! But please, you must remember."
He lowered his voice, adopting the posture of someone sharing a secret. "I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by smiling at her!"
This long string of titles, plus the supplement, immediately caused many young Wizards and Witches below to burst into a flurry of excited applause and whispers.
Lynn watched this scene expressionlessly, subconsciously touching his own Order of Merlin, Third Class medal. He suddenly felt as if the value of this thing had been discounted.
Seeing that he had achieved the desired effect, Lockhart's smile grew even more brilliant. He decided to officially begin the "lesson."
"Ahem~ Now, the teaching officially begins!"
Then Lockhart pulled a large stack of test papers from under the desk.
"One for each person, don't scramble. I want to gain a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of your classroom preparation during the holidays."
As soon as he finished speaking, a "whooshing" sound of scrambling really did erupt in the classroom—mostly from the Witches who couldn't wait to be "understood" by Lockhart.
Lynn: "???"
He looked at this scene in disbelief. People were actually fighting for these?
Getting the test paper, Lynn looked down and began to read the questions:
What do you think is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement?
What is Gilderoy Lockhart's ambition?
What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color?
What do you think is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest weakness? (Hint: Striving too much for perfection?)
Gilderoy Lockhart believes the secret to success lies in?
...and so on and so forth. Three whole pages of parchment were filled with these kinds of questions.
Was there any necessary connection between this and Defense Against the Dark Arts?
Someone asked this question on Lynn's behalf.
A Ravenclaw boy; Lynn remembered his name seemed to be Terry Boot.
"Professor, may I ask how knowing this... personal information provides any specific help for us in learning to defend against the Dark Arts?"
Lynn looked at Terry with some surprise; there were still normal Wizards around.
"Excellent question!" Lockhart praised in a tone that suggested "you've hit the nail on the head," but his answer veered completely off track.
"This helps you better understand your excellent and experienced Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, establishing full trust, which is vital for teaching! You should know, during my career of adventures..."
"But, Professor..." Terry still wanted to argue.
"No buts!" Lockhart immediately pulled a long face and interrupted him, his tone brooking no argument. "Please sit down, Mr. Boot, or I shall have to exercise my professorial rights and consider deducting points from your house."
Terry could only sit down resentfully.
Lynn looked at the test paper in front of him, which was useless for anything except starting a fire. He curled his lip and quite bluntly didn't write a single word, handing in a completely blank sheet.
In Lynn's view, wasting ink on such a thing was a pure insult to his intelligence.
Time passed minute by minute, and the test papers were collected.
Lockhart sat at the podium and began to grade them one by one, occasionally making clicking sounds with his tongue, sighing in disappointment, or chuckling with satisfaction, completely forgetting that there was a group of students waiting for a lesson below.
"Professor! Are we not having a lecture this class?"
Lynn finally found it somewhat unbearable and asked in a raised voice. His time was precious, and he didn't want to waste it watching Lockhart's self-indulgence.
"Oh~ right!" Lockhart seemed to just remember. He waved his hand without looking up. "Everyone, please turn your textbook Travels with Trolls to Chapter One and begin reading aloud."
"Familiarizing yourselves with the words of a great adventurer is the first step to understanding his thoughts!"
Good grief, he's even too lazy to read it himself? Lynn felt his patience rapidly depleting.
An uneven and listless sound of reading echoed in the classroom.
Time flowed slowly.
Seeing that the class was almost over, Lockhart was still at the podium prattling on about the collected test papers:
"Oh, Merlin! Someone actually doesn't know that my ambition is to rid the world of evil?
...Good heavens, this student thinks I like green best? Clearly, purple suits me better... blah blah blah..."
Those narcissistic comments were like demonic music piercing his ears, constantly irritating Lynn's nerves.
Lynn felt that if he stayed any longer, he might not be able to resist hitting the podium with a Crucio.
Finally—
Bang!
Lynn stood up abruptly, his chair legs scraping against the floor with a piercing sound that instantly interrupted the reading in the classroom and Lockhart's monologue.
Everyone looked at him in surprise.
"Professor! I have some urgent business and must leave first!" Lynn said expressionlessly, his tone stiff.
Having said that, he didn't wait for Lockhart's permission or rebuttal. He grabbed his books and, under the stunned gazes of everyone, strode out of the classroom without looking back.
Instead of spending time here listening to an empty-headed fool brag about himself, he might as well go fishing by the Black Lake!
Even coming back empty-handed would be better than suffering mental pollution here!
Lynn thought indignantly as he walked quickly through the corridor.
It seemed that this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts class couldn't be counted on.
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