allendalepharm Chapter 226 The Sorrowful Elevator
Chapter 226 The Sorrowful Elevator
Chapter 226 The Sorrowful Elevator
Harry Potter and his fellow young wizards were obviously unaware of the turbulent events outside the school, and that a segment of the Muggle community was also targeting wizards, regarding witch hunts as merely a few boring entries in the dry history of magic.
They wouldn't even know that Voldemort had once been hiding in Hogwarts, and that Professor Lockhart had encountered him twice; danger was sometimes so close to them.
They were all well protected.
Then focus on improvement.
Lockhart, Grindelwald, Professor Kettleburn, Snape, and Lupin took turns instructing the young wizards in the Dueling Club, showing them how to win the flying combat competition planned by Percy.
As the games progressed, the young wizards moved from the Quidditch pitch to the Forbidden Forest, and the magic allowed in battle changed from marking spells to more practical spells.
Some students at the school were also allowed to participate in this fun competition, with the children from the Twenty-Eight Holy Pureblood Families being the most enthusiastic, perhaps with the support of some parents.
Hannah Abbott, Milison Burst, Marcus Flint, Daphne Greengrass and Astoria Greengrass, Ernie McMillan, Theodore Nott...
This movement is becoming a new trend of thought, and its influence is constantly expanding.
Interestingly, Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger are rapidly becoming Percy's right-hand men, while Harry is leading Ron and Neville in exploring more tactics, and the Weasley twins are beginning to consider the possibility of using prank items in the match...
There is no hierarchy of right or wrong; everyone begins to embark on their own magical path.
This has been a fruitful academic year.
This is true for Lockhart; he has brought about change for so many people, for better or for worse, and these changes are beginning to bear fruit.
After the initial theoretical framework was established, he himself began to explore the possibility of its application—the cultivation of black magic creatures.
Time just passed by day by day.
Sirius Black and Pettigrew were just too patient, so Lockhart had to call back his friends. He cared more about his friends' happiness than catching Pettigrew; guarding the Forbidden Forest every day wasn't a fun thing to do.
Life seemed to have calmed down.
Just when Lockhart thought the school year would go by so smoothly, the phoenix delivered a letter from Dumbledore.
Old Deng has encountered some problems in the field of dark magic creatures and needs his help.
An extremely bizarre problem involving dark magic creatures.
Lockhart didn't set off immediately; instead, he asked a few of his buddies if they had any answers.
"An elevator?" Lupin took Dumbledore's letter, frowned and pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't recall any cases of dark magical creatures arising in elevators."
Snape, however, had some ideas. "Could this be one of those dark magic creatures born in the new era that you were discussing with me before?"
His words drew everyone's attention. Seeing Lockhart deep in thought, Snape explained, "When a certain scenario widely creates negative emotions such as fear and anger in an individual's mind, dark magical creatures may emerge."
"This theory is the reverse of the situation that 'castle-type dark magic creatures are gradually dying out.' As more and more Muggle wizards appear, magic will appear in Muggle society, thus giving birth to dark magic creatures based on the characteristics of Muggle society."
Grindelwald squinted, pondering this intriguing statement, then clicked his tongue and muttered enigmatically, "A new era!"
Professor Kettleburn frowned. "I've always found the phenomenon of 'non-existence,' which resembles biological existence, to be extremely terrifying, and most wizards find it difficult to deal with it effectively."
Lohat nodded and took the letter from Lupin. "From the perspective of cultivating dark magic creatures, if 'non-existences' appear widely, the best way is to incorporate them into daily life. Eventually, they will evolve into magical creatures, which are byproducts of magical creatures."
His words were complicated, and Professor Kettleburn couldn't understand them.
"House-elves, born into lazy wizarding families, serve wizards and leave resolutely after receiving payment. They have now completely evolved into a biological state that is dependent on wizards' lives and has a population to continue."
Since his transmigration, Lockhart had dealt with several dark magic creature disasters, but this time, he was facing a situation where he had absolutely no idea what the creature was.
I have absolutely no confidence.
But regardless, Old Deng had something to ask of him, so he set off.
Lockhart habitually brought along his apprentices, Crabbe and Percy Weasley.
Percy had been feeling a bit guilty for not being able to help Lockhart during the previous holidays, so when he saw Professor Lockhart coming to see Crabbe, he immediately volunteered to go along, leaving the competition to Draco and Hermione.
You really want to improve, young man.
Lockhart smiled and did not refuse, urging them to head towards where Dumbledore was.
Paris, France.
A place that was almost burned down by Grindelwald's gas stove.
A building in the central business district of La Défense.
Upon reaching the base of the building, in a secluded spot unnoticed by others, the three broke free from the Disillusionment Charm. Percy and Crabbe, dressed in Muggle clothes, followed Lockhart into the building.
The winged demons flew above them, constantly releasing invisible mist that affected their memories and perceptions, allowing the three of them to reach the elevator undisturbed.
Upon reaching the elevator, Percy nimbly strode forward and pressed the button before Crabbe could. As he returned to Professor Lockhart's side to wait for the elevator to arrive, he gave Crabbe a smug look.
It must be said that these two young wizards, having followed Lockhart to Muggle society time and time again, have begun to become familiar with everything here.
Percy even knew the brands and performance specifications of various Muggle cars like the back of his hand, though he had no interest in them whatsoever, only because his father liked them.
That's just the kind of person he is; he always lives in the desires of others.
Soon, they arrived at the 27th floor. As soon as the elevator doors opened, they were shocked to see a group of people dressed as Muggle police officers shouting at them, "This place is not open. Please leave immediately."
They were told not to leave the elevator.
"Simon, they're wizards!" one of them shouted, and the 'Muggle police officers' immediately became alert and drew their wands.
"Let them come over; they must be experts Dumbledore invited!" someone shouted from afar.
After some negotiation, Lockhart learned that these people posing as police officers were actually Aurors from the French Ministry of Magic.
When Lockhart saw Dumbledore again, Dumbledore was in front of another elevator with a maintenance sign deep in the hallway, discussing something with a group of people.
After exchanging greetings, the French Ministry of Magic's Defense Against the Dark Arts expert explained the situation to Lockhart.
The latest novel is first published here!
"This floor was originally a company sponsored by the Julian Abbey..."
The man paused, looked up at Dumbledore and another rather dignified-looking middle-aged wizard, and after confirming that he could continue, he said, "We only learned during this investigation that all the company's employees are family members and blood relatives of Muggle wizards, and the company pays these people to work."
"They even cover the expenses of young wizards from childhood to adulthood, and have a great influence on many wizards."
"After we shut down the company, we discovered that their elevator was faulty; everyone who went in felt a very sad feeling..."
Lockhart listened to his story while pressing the elevator button.
He reached inside and felt around for a while, confirming that he didn't feel any sadness. Then he looked at the expert and asked, "You only feel sadness after you go in and wait for the elevator doors to close, right?"
The expert nodded. "Yes, it's not a gradual, radiating magical influence, but rather a scene-based one. That's why we determined it was caused by dark magic creatures."
"Right now it's just a minor issue, something that's saddening, but we don't know when it might suddenly have other consequences."
"This is a building where a large number of Muggles gather every day. It would be terrible if something really happened."
"..."
Lockhart waited for him to finish speaking before drawing his wand and looking at Dumbledore and the man who was presumably the French Minister of Magic. "I need to go in and experience it for myself."
Dumbledore nodded, beckoning a house-elf behind him to follow. It was none other than Mondodo, whom he had met at Nurmengard Castle. "If necessary, it will get you away quickly."
Lockhart did not refuse.
As the group entered the elevator and the doors closed, they noticed the elevator lights flicker and the air from the built-in air conditioner became somewhat chilly.
"You felt it, didn't you?"
Lockhart smiled at the two apprentices, "In the realm of dark magic creatures, if you encounter a candlestick, light bulb, or torch whose flame flickers but doesn't go out immediately, you can consider it as a dark magic creature with a spiritual tendency, such as elves, ghosts, evil spirits, and so on."
"Adding the cold and damp atmosphere, we can further narrow down the scope and remove the option of elves."
He gestured to Mondodo, who was disguised as a child wearing a hat, to press the button, and then signaled the two apprentices to turn their wands into trumpet shapes and press them against the elevator to listen for any possible sounds.
Lockhart once taught Harry Potter this spell, called the Whisper of the Ear Charm. (Chapter 130)
It later began to spread among the students.
After a pause, Lockhart raised an eyebrow, put away his wand, and pointed at the two apprentices, "Can you hear a strange grinding sound? Although mechanical operation inevitably produces grinding sounds, the sound you're hearing now has an unsettling quality that resonates deep within you..."
"I heard it!" Percy exclaimed excitedly.
Crabbe didn't speak; he just listened intently, a deep sadness gradually spreading across his face, and tears welling up in his eyes.
Just then, Lockhart grabbed Crabbe's shoulder and ripped him off the elevator.
Hey~
The elevator doors opened, and a group of people walked in.
Once they reached the ground floor, Lockhart and his group took the elevator back up to the 27th floor.
"My initial assessment is that it's related to an evil god, involving emotional manipulation..." Lockhart rattled off a bunch of academic terms, but seeing that the wizards around him didn't seem to understand, he simply gave the answer directly, "I need to know if this company has ever held an evil god ritual."
The French Minister of Magic exclaimed in shock, "An evil god priest?!?"
Lohat nodded. "That would be best; it's the least dangerous possibility. If it's not a priestess of an evil god, then that would be truly terrible."
"!!!"
(End of this chapter)