Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 172, Section 171: Image Shattered - Lockhart and Hogwarts Landmarks
The empty ink bottles that had been scattered everywhere seemed to return to their original positions in mid-air, as if time had reversed, and the ink that had been spilled back into the bottles.

The Restoration Charm is one of the most commonly used spells in the entire magical world. However, the more widespread a spell is, the more it tests one's attention to detail when casting it. The more things that need to be restored, and the more fragmented they are, the more difficult it becomes to restore them.

Therefore, even though Harry performed the spellcasting action perfectly according to what Professor Flitwick had taught him, it was still very difficult for the students—unlike those spells that they had only heard were powerful but had no real understanding of, the Restoration Charm was something that everyone had learned and tried.

But it is only through personal experience that one can truly understand how difficult it was for Harry to restore the entire classroom to its original state.

He crawled out from under the desk and saw the little elf who had just beaten them into running away in fear now wriggling around on the ground like a caterpillar, looking even more ridiculous. The torn book in front of him had also been restored to its original state, so that all those Galleons wouldn't have been wasted. He didn't know who started it, but soon, applause rang out in the classroom.

"That's awesome, Professor Potter!" Seamus shouted. "We need heroes like you!"

“Ahem! You did a great job, Harry.” Lockhart, who had somehow crawled out from under the table, quickly tidied his messy hair. “Yes, just like I told you, that’s how house-elves should be treated.”

Completely ignoring the students' shocked and disdainful looks, Lockhart flashed a bright smile. He wanted to pat Harry on the back, but stopped when he noticed Harry's warning look. Without feeling embarrassed at all, Lockhart looked at the students below.

"I think you all know now, right? Just how wicked these little devils are, and how much destruction they can cause."

This time, even those who hated or despised Lockhart's earlier behavior couldn't deny his words... Well, in fact, in many people's eyes, being bullied by a group of elves who weren't even as tall as their calves and having to hide under a desk was a really embarrassing thing.

"Really?" Ron muttered in a moderate voice, "But Harry seemed to be handling it pretty easily."

"Lockhart's wand is flying in!" To be honest, I was even a little impressed by Lockhart's thick skin. Harry waved his wand and cast the Summoning Charm, then handed the wand that had flown in through the window to Lockhart. "Don't lose your wand again next time, Professor Lockhart."

As soon as Harry finished speaking, the students began to chuckle, especially the boys, who were delighted to see Lockhart embarrassed.

“Oh, thank you, Harry,” Lockhart said with a bright smile as he took the wand. “I was just about to use the Summoning Charm to retrieve it. You’re very helpful.”

"As the professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts, I must say your performance was much better than I expected, Harry, but it was still a little short—yes, you may not want to hear me say this, but you—"

"Down with a thud!" Harry didn't cast the spell on Lockhart, of course. He simply interrupted Lockhart and called out to the students, "This is the spell I just cast. The spell is simple: Descendo. You need to swing your wands and slide them down quickly, symbolizing an object falling."

Lockhart's smile froze as he watched Harry ignore him and begin imparting knowledge to the students.

Meanwhile, the students on the other side were very cooperative. They took out their wands and practiced the trajectory of their wand swings and the pronunciation of spells in mid-air, following Harry's instructions.

Many people have also turned their attention to the little elves that are still tumbling on the table or the floor... They want revenge.

“…Note that normally this spell can only be used on one target at a time, allowing you to drop a target of your choice from a height.” Harry picked up a book from the table next to him and demonstrated, “Like this—it hits the ground with a thud.”

The book he tossed into the air crashed heavily onto the table, but no one felt sorry for Lockhart's photograph.

“But Professor Potter,” Parvati raised his hand and asked, “if I remember correctly, didn’t you just cast a spell that sent all the elves to their deaths?”

“This is an advanced part of spells,” Harry patiently replied. “You need to actively lock onto more targets, which will consume more of your mental energy and attention, and of course, magic. I don’t recommend that you try this during the learning phase, as the magic consumed by locking onto multiple targets at once will increase exponentially.”

"I see."

A chorus of voices suddenly realizing something.

The harmonious scene before him made Lockhart grit his teeth. What was this? Why was Potter acting like a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor?
"...Given that you asked a good question, Parvati, Gryffindor gets five points."

'He even went so far as to award Gryffindor points in my class without my permission!!'

Unable to contain his inner rage, Lockhart maintained a smile on his face, but behind that smile, his eyes were already red—this was the kind of sight that should be on him!

He casually dealt with the mischievous sprites, winning the students' admiration and cheers, then taught them a spell, and finally got extra points... It's just a landing spell! I can do that too!! I just didn't think of it just now!!
That damn Potter!!!
The way Lockhart addressed Harry had changed from something admirable to something hateful, and now it was something utterly despicable. In a corner that Lockhart himself didn't even notice, a shadow was gradually creeping over his mind.

And Harry—without even needing to use Astral View—knew Lockhart must be furious.

But who cares?
It was already quite remarkable that he didn't beat up Lockhart, a good-for-nothing who had neither professional ethics nor ability, and who came to the school to mislead students. After all, that was the responsibility of the principal and vice-principal, and Professor McGonagall's responsibility.

The moment the bell rang, Lockhart left the classroom as if he had been freed, while behind him, the students cheered as if they had won a victory, shouting Harry's name.

"...This is my first and last time attending Lockhart's class." Harry shook his head as he walked out of the crowd with his friends. "I'd rather spend this time fixing the house. My professor's office isn't even finished yet."

“You’re right, Harry,” Ron agreed. “Could we skip his class too? I can’t even imagine what it would be like without your Defense Against the Dark Arts class.”

“Uh, maybe like last week’s class, we’ll have to read from the textbook?” Neville thought for a moment and said, “Professor Lockhart’s adventure stories or something.”

“That’s a nightmare,” Ron’s face darkened instantly. “I’d rather break my leg than hear those stories. Who knows if what he said is true or false—by the way, Hermione, you should have nothing to say now, right?” Ron looked at Hermione excitedly, feeling like he had won on the intellectual high ground.

Hermione, biting her lip, didn't really refute anything... she just quickened her pace and left without even saying goodbye.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Ron called out—there was no answer, only the sight of Hermione disappearing down the corridor.

“She should be fine. She probably just needs some private space to calm down.” Harry stopped Ron and Neville from following them and said after thinking for a moment, “Let’s go to Hagrid’s place first. I wonder if he’s awake yet.”

Harry had clearly seen Hermione's ears turn red when she walked quickly past him.

Hmm... let her be alone for a while first.

....................................

Two weeks, fourteen days, minus the four weekend days when there are no classes, only ten days are left.

But it didn't even take ten days for Lockhart's facade of erudition, intelligence, magical prowess, and courage to crumble.

Yes, some female students still refused to believe that Lockhart was an incompetent good-for-nothing. They said that Professor Lockhart had only recently become a professor and hadn't yet transitioned from his former adventurer identity. They also said that Professor Lockhart hadn't been in good condition these past few days... In fact, Lockhart himself claimed this, and many people tend to believe it when they witness things firsthand.

After all, the professors at Hogwarts are indeed highly respected, and Lockhart even holds the title of professor.

But many students believed they had seen through the professor's disguise—especially with Harry, the new professor, standing in the castle as a foil.

Lockhart is much older than Harry.

After lunch at the restaurant that day, Harry handed the incriminating evidence against Lockhart to Professor McGonagall and watched with satisfaction as the enraged Professor McGonagall took Lockhart away on the spot.

Although Hogwarts changes its Defense Against the Dark Arts professor every year, Lockhart is the one who makes the biggest blunder the fastest among all the professors who are replaced every year. It's responsible for the students that he exposed it early.

If all else fails, Snape can substitute for the class. Even Harry knows that his mother's friend really wants to be the professor of this course. In order not to hurt his mother's soul, Harry will not agree to Snape actually becoming the professor of this course, but it would be nice to substitute for the class occasionally for fun.

While inwardly thanking Lockhart for drawing Professor McGonagall's attention away from him, Harry focused his main energy on the Shaman class and the office.

Since it's a completely new course, it should look like a new course.

The productivity brought about by magic is astonishing; this power, which is almost like the power to make one's wishes come true, often accomplishes many miraculous things.

For example, the Hogwarts students woke up to find many strange buildings next to the castle... to be precise, it was near the game keeper's cabin, on the edge of the forest, close to the Black Lake.

When the first child who woke up early glanced out the window of the castle as he passed by, he stood frozen as if struck by lightning, and didn't respond even when his friends called him several times.

"Irving? Irving??!!"

"Quiet down, bro!" The boy finally moved his mouth, swallowed the bread in his mouth, and pointed to the view outside the window, saying, "Look, what's that?!"

In the direction he pointed, a huge totem was standing on the earth.

After a year of observation, the Hogwarts students had a thorough understanding of the totems flaunted by those lucky enough to become shamans. They understood the reasoning behind it, but—why was that totem so big?!

It was even much larger than the entire Gryffindor Tower, as thick as two or even three towers combined together, though its height was about the same as the highest point of the castle.

Like a colossal statue reaching for the sky, with a pair of thick and huge bull horns extending to both sides from the highest point of the totem—it requires no further thought; even a first-year student could guess that this totem was definitely a masterpiece created by the professor who taught the shamanic priest class.

The huge totem that appeared overnight on the edge of the castle still looks rough and needs more careful carving. Its surface has not yet been painted, and there are no specific patterns or elemental runes.

It looks like a rough tree with its bark stripped off, but anyone who sees this totem at first glance will be awestruck by its enormous and rugged beauty.

"Merlin's pantyhose..." Owen was trembling with excitement. "Hurry, let's get over there! I need to get a closer look!!"

"I swear, this totem will definitely be recorded in Hogwarts' history—just like the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty for Muggles, it will become Hogwarts' biggest and most prominent symbol!!"

No one could sleep in that morning. The students who had first discovered the giant totem went crazy, rushing back to their dorms to wake up those still sleeping—or rushing into other people's dorms and shaking them awake.

When the group of students who first discovered the giant totem rushed out of the castle gate, the night sky hadn't even completely faded yet. They ran wildly towards the direction of the totem, and as they crossed the last hill that blocked their view, they saw an exquisite wooden house sitting below the totem.

(End of this chapter)