The slacker professor at Hogwarts

Chapter 346 The Clown

Chapter 346 The Clown

Draco's coolness lasted only a second.

He had just walked gracefully down from the stage through the sea of ​​flames and flowers. Yes, this was actually a downgraded version of the "Brilliant Fireworks Spell." Only he would use a high-end control spell to show off.

Before he had even completely stepped off the stage, Professor McGonagall called him back up.

"You have to wait until the song is over before you go down," Professor McGonagall said to him, trying not to laugh.

Oh~

Yes~

Now there's an added segment where the winning school plays their school song, which makes Draco a little embarrassed.

Of course, nothing could be more embarrassing than Krum walking away with his face covered. A lot of boos came from Durmstrang's corner in the audience, making him wish he were dead.

That's what fanatical worship is like.

When a celebrity can no longer maintain their brilliance, people are so angry that they want to throw stinky bombs at them.

"Thump~~"

The giant wielded a dragon bone hammer and struck the dragon skin drum with all his might, producing a deafening roar.

Fairies and elves danced in the air, their colorful petals fluttering in the wind.

Students and professors from Beauxbatons sang together, some initially looking embarrassed to sing in front of so many people, but then, as the music flowed, they all became immersed in the unique atmosphere.

Proud.

These are proud times for Beauxbatons.

This is the Snow Spring Praise of Beauxbatons!

"The snow-capped peaks of the Pyrenees gleam with silver light, and the springs murmur softly in the embrace of the goddess."

"The fragrance of lavender lingers in the corridors, and the rosy clouds adorn our silks with rainbows."

"Oh, Beauxbatons! A temple of wisdom!"

"Let thoughts soar freely like stardust! Weave the power of magic with elegance, and let the soul blossom in the light of truth!"

'

"In the audience seats."

Snape watched all this in silence, feeling inexplicably moved. In his past life, he had studied and taught at Hogwarts, but he rarely felt this kind of emotion as a member of a community.

It wasn't exactly thrilling, but it couldn't calm the boiling emotions within you.

It wasn't oppressive; it was full of order and freedom, and brimming with romance.

Even though his feelings for Hogwarts were so deep and complex, he had to admit that he liked Beauxbatons so much—a place that valued freedom and order, a place without bloodline bias, a place that promoted the power of students.

He began to feel a stirring within him of entering a new life, a yearning to be a part of Beauxbatons.

Maybe----

He will be featured in the campus singing segment of the next top three competition.

"What a stupid part!"

He tried hard to suppress his excitement and appear indifferent. "Gidero, why did you make everyone go up and sing!"

That looks so silly!

Lockhart did not answer.

Snape turned his head and was surprised to find the guy swaying slightly to the rhythm, as if he were completely immersed in the beautiful singing.

Yes.

Complete immersion!

Immerse yourself in the ocean of spirituality.

That was a dimension that was hard for others to imagine; of everyone present, only Sirius Black had ever personally experienced it.

There, the spirituality of each individual blossoms freely, and the individuals are filled with wonderful connections, forming a star-like collective. Within this order, spirituality is once again influenced by the spirituality of the individuals within the collective with whom it has a high degree of connection.

Spirituality is a very complex state.

As Lockhart told his students, the mind is what it is, and the spiritual image comes from the influence of the self, the collective environment, and the highly relevant individual spirituality.

It is constantly changing, especially the latter two, which drive the changes in the former.

Take Harry Potter, for example. Before starting school, he lived in the Muggle world, attended a Muggle school, and behaved very ordinaryly. His aunt and uncle always disliked him, and his cousin Dudley always bullied him with his gang.

After starting school, he became the savior, the most special one, arriving in a magical world where he made best friends with Ron and Hermione.

These complex current environments, relationships between individuals, and relationships with the collective all come together to form life experiences, and the bittersweet experiences of oneself within those experiences.

Thus, changes in the collective environment, changes in the influence of individuals highly correlated with one's own life experiences, and these changes drive changes within oneself.

This is the rhythm of life!

Its manifestation is spirituality!

It is constantly changing, and past spiritual states profoundly influence current spiritual states.

This is the time that is formed by the convergence of individual networks!

"Gidero~ Gidero? Gidero!"

Snape's voice grumbled hoarsely from the side, "I don't really like the singing part. Not going up makes me feel like an outsider, but going up makes me feel awkward! Can we cancel it next time?"

Lockhart put a finger to his lips. "Shh! Dude, if you know how to enjoy music, it's the free expression of your soul. Feel it!"

"A spiritual awakening?" Snape leaned back, not feeling it at all.

"Yes, I can feel it, they are so radiant." Lockhart reached out and waved his hand in front of him, as if touching something, and murmured softly with a dreamy look in his eyes, in an aria-like manner.

"The river of time flows on and on, each stream filled with the ups and downs of life, teeming with vitality, and the radiance of the spirit shines within it. I am searching—"

His hands moved like fish in a river.

"Searching for the most exciting part, that is the romance that belongs only to fairy tale adventures."

As he was speaking, his hand suddenly clenched, his eyes snapped open, and a smug smile appeared on his lips as he laughed triumphantly, "Got it!"

His eyes reflected a sea of ​​spirituality, and along the red line grasped by his palm, three Tom Riddles appeared!

One of them sat in the stands and chatted casually with his apprentice, Furong.

A shattered fragment crumbled and blurred within Harry Potter's mind, bit by bit.

There's one more!

Yes, there's another one in Azkaban!

"!!!" Snape's eyes widened as well. He felt Lockhart, who had just clenched his fist, suddenly disappear before his eyes.

It's a feeling.

Lockhart was right in front of him, but he felt like the other person wasn't there!

He looked around with some curiosity, and eventually saw some strange images reflected in Lockhart's pupils.

That was the canopy of the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts. Moving swiftly, we soon arrived at the rolling hills of the Scottish Highlands, and then at the surging ocean, where the tides and waves shimmered in the sunlight.

Soon, everything turned gloomy.

The ocean turned gloomy and dark, and a strong sense of unease permeated the air.

A figure, seemingly draped in a tattered cloak, swept past in front of my eyes. A tree trunk, which had drifted onto the sea at some unknown time, quickly lost its vitality, its leaves withered, and its petals fell.

Dark shadows loomed over the rocky island, where a massive, chilling castle stood.

Azkaban!

Snape's pupils contracted slightly.

He once feared this place; when the Dark Lord lost power, all the core Death Eaters were imprisoned here without trial.

Even though Dumbledore protected him, there were still long periods when he would wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat from nightmares.

Snape always felt a deep gratitude toward Dumbledore that no one else knew.

No wizard is unafraid of Azkaban. It is not a prison, but an abyss of dark power. Every wizard who enters comes out with magical damage, their soul and personality twisted.

Snape's expression suddenly tightened.

Because he saw Voldemort reflected in Lockhart's pupils!

"A time converter?"

Lockhart, translucent and pale like a pearl, flew out of Voldemort's wand and curiously examined the clock in Bella's hand.

"Lo--Lohart?" Bella looked at him nervously, instinctively placing the Time-Turner behind her and shifting her body to block Voldemort.

Voldemort used the Time-Turner to sneak into Azkaban while the Triwizard Tournament had everyone's attention.

Bella's cover was meaningless; Lockhart could only appear in this way because of Voldemort's presence, and Voldemort knew that.

After all, he was the one who invented this method of spiritual emergence!

He shoved Bella aside, his expression turning cold. "Gidero, are you here to stop me?"

"Stop them?" Lockhart was taken aback, looking around and seeing several people wearing Death Eater masks and black wizard robes following behind Voldemort, and behind them was a group of stiff-limbed, numb-faced people.

Lockhart finally focused his gaze on the bag carried by one of the Death Eaters. Although he couldn't see inside, he could vaguely smell the Compound Soup.

Oh~

understood.

"Are you here to rescue the Death Eaters imprisoned here?"

Voldemort looked at him warily. "Yes, Lockhart, I think we should maintain some decorum between us."

"Oh, of course." Lockhart smiled slightly and winked at one of the Death Eaters who was wearing a mask and a robe.

because----

That's Sirius!

Heh heh, Voldemort's journey to rescue the Death Eaters is probably not going to be so smooth.

His figure faded rapidly and eventually disappeared completely.

After a while, Bella asked Voldemort nervously, "He—he's gone?"

Voldemort nodded, his face grim.

Bella opened her mouth, wanting to ask the Dark Lord if there was any way to prevent Lockhart from appearing, or to drive him away once he appeared, but in the end she didn't ask.

Asking and then having no answer would be very awkward.

Voldemort was clearly also thinking about this problem.

He had a much wider field of vision than Bella, thanks to Lockhart using a method he invented himself, which allowed him to secretly peek into Lockhart's magical realm through the mysterious methods he was most familiar with.

Everyone has their own magical domain.

This is Voldemort's own philosophy.

He called it a magical world.

Every step a wizard takes in their exploration, every magical experience they have, is an exploration of this world.

For example, when he was young, he tried to expand the realm of dark power into his own magical world, and then easily demonstrated an extremely high level of skill in dark magic.

Voldemort's magical world always consisted only of himself.

In that world, there is no concept of heaven and earth or space; this is the basis for the flight spell.

In that world, some broken veins are withering away; these are the damaged Horcrux magic, belonging to the exploration of the Life Imprint realm.

Voldemort had heard Lockhart's story and also attended Dumbledore's Transfiguration Master Class.

So there's a vague idea that Dumbledore's magical world is a train station.

There was only Dumbledore there, but the difference was that visitors would arrive at the station at any time, and all of these visitors were, unsurprisingly, just passersby in Dumbledore's life.

So intimately connected with the outside world, yet so distant.

This is also the key reason why Dumbledore has always been unable to catch him for decades: Dumbledore's semi-open world is completely different from his isolated and closed world.

Voldemort believed that the magical world was his own.

But Lockhart's magical world before him completely overturned his understanding.

It was a fantastical world where vertical and horizontal lines intersected.

Horizontally lies a spiritual sea of ​​stars, where all living beings seem to exist in Lockhart's world, appearing in a spiritual form. Only Lockhart appears as a high god, looking down upon all of this.

Vertically, there is the pulse of time, within which the spiritual cosmos shifts and surges with life, making all living things in the world seem like axes.

Voldemort could read Bella's mind and the questions she was thinking about at that moment.

But he had no answer.

He knew he was powerless to stop Lockhart from appearing before him.

For Lockhart, he was actually right beside everyone he was connected with, looking down from the ocean of the spirit, interacting with them in this way, and appearing in the real world from a spiritual perspective at any time.

Voldemort's spying was not without its gains.

He discovered that Lockhart's world seemed very large, but was actually very small.

From a small group of people—Dumbledore, Grindelwald, Voldemort, Snape, Sirius Black, Umbridge—

Rita, Harry, Ron, Draco —

The vast majority of them were on the list Lockhart had engraved in his soul.

"this----"

"Is this your fairytale adventure world?"

Voldemort murmured, a faint smile playing on his lips. He had roughly figured out Lockhart's world.

That's where the interesting part comes from.

Voldemort never knew what Lockhart cared about or didn't care about, but now he had a clear understanding of that.

It's not the perspective of pure-blood families like those commonly discussed, such as pure-blood, half-blood, or Muggle, nor is it the perspective of Dumbledore from the British Wizarding World Center and the International Wizarding Federation, nor is it the perspective of Grindelwald from the perspective of wizards and Muggles.

It was a fun fairytale adventure, the scope of which vaguely included a number of people, many, but actually not that many.

In other words—

Lockhart wouldn't care if Voldemort wanted to do something in the magical worlds of Western Europe and America.

Oh, of course, there are some things to consider.

Lockhart is clearly expanding his sphere of adventure, from Beauxbatons School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and the Lemaître family in Western Europe, to the White Pepper plantation and corporations in America, and so on.

Beyond that lies the space where Voldemort can operate!

There's no need to worry about Lockhart coming over and messing things up!

Brilliant!

Voldemort soon began to feel uneasy.

As he and his followers brought some lowly wizards from obscure corners to the depths of Azkaban prison, fed them Polyjuice Potion, and prepared to quietly replace the Death Eaters and take them out, they arrived.

A violent noise shook the entire Azkaban castle.

Voldemort's expression changed drastically. He turned around abruptly and was shocked to find that one of his followers had appeared at the end of the corridor at some point.

The man casually tossed away his mask, revealing a face full of mocking smiles.

"Sirius Black!" Voldemort stared at him coldly.

Sirius chuckled, tossed a black blob at them, brandished his wand at it, and chanted, "Hilarious! Hilarious!"

bang~

Under the influence of the spell, the dark magical creature Boggart rapidly changed its form, eventually transforming into Voldemort wearing a clown mask. He sat on a unicycle, swaying from side to side as he tossed colorful balls into the air, emitting a brainless "hehehe" laugh.

Sirius Black, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, talked about many things that overturned the original knowledge framework and definitions during class.

One of the lessons was that the Patronus Charm wasn't the only way to deal with Dementors.

The Dementors greedily craved the scent of happiness, and happiness always seemed to appear on Boggarts who had been enchanted with the Curse of the Beast.

So what should you do if you can't cast a complex and advanced Patronus Charm when facing a Dementor?

The answer is to throw out a Boggart and then cast a funny spell that even a young wizard knows.

It's that simple!

Voldemort and his group clearly sensed it.

They were on their way to chase Sirius, but Boggart, now a clown, acted like bait, drawing the Dementors madly toward them.

In an instant, the passageway was blocked.

What's even worse is that this group of powerful wizards can't find a single one who can cast the Guardian Angel spell!

Thud~~~

Sirius was clearly doing more than just that; magical power surged as he continuously cast numerous spells in the distance.

"Damn it!" Voldemort's face darkened, and he viciously drew his wand, all traces of elegance vanishing.

bang~

The spatial tremor caused by Apparition was so loud that an Auror appeared on the Hogwarts Skybridge.

He quickly climbed onto the flying broom he was holding, raised the wand to his neck, and cast a spell with a loud voice.

It flew swiftly towards the stadium.

He shouted, "Azkaban! Something's happened in Azkaban!"

The crowd erupted in uproar.

From the stands, Dumbledore glanced strangely in Voldemort's direction, then asked Grindelwald, "Where's Tom?"

Grindelwald chuckled and nodded. "The younger generation is just so clumsy. They can't even handle such a small thing. We've already stopped interfering, but he still managed to do it like this."

"I think Tom wouldn't have succeeded even without us and Gilderoy!"

To be honest, Dumbledore suddenly agreed with this view.

Even with his intelligence restored, Tom still looks like a clown no matter how you look at him.

Tsk~