Hogwarts: Who made her a professor?

Chapter 453: Sudden Change in Art Style

Although Belvina's mind was racing, and she wished she could pluck all of Dumbledore's beard off, she still stood up naturally and responded to the students' applause with grace and poise.

Of course, not all students welcomed Belvina back to school.

When she was a professor of Muggle Studies, she acted very close to Muggles and even put forward the fallacy of learning from Muggles.

While serving as the Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, she arrested the Death Eater Corban Yaxley and issued orders to summon pure-blood wizards.

Both on and off campus, Belvina's behavior was unpopular with pure-blood supremacists, and many pure-blood wizards regarded her as a shameful traitor.

Compared to the sparse applause at the Slytherin table, the applause from Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff was much more enthusiastic, especially from those students who had taken Muggle Studies.

Belvina was never one to simply read from a textbook. Her Muggle studies courses primarily consisted of showing videos, supplemented by anecdotes, and each class ended with a Q&A session.

At first, the students were not used to Belvina's teaching style, but after a period of adjustment, they gradually came to like her unique style, which was different from other professors.

Now, Belvina has jumped from Muggle Studies to Defense Against the Dark Arts, from an elective to a required course, and the students are eagerly anticipating her new performance, hoping she will bring a refreshing new take on Defense Against the Dark Arts.

As the opening banquet ended, the students who walked out of the auditorium were still enthusiastically discussing the changes to Defense Against the Dark Arts, and they couldn't wait to start class.

However, while the students were full of anticipation for the class, their Defense Against the Dark Arts professor was not only unprepared for the lesson, but also struggled to adapt to the change in his role.

As Belvina left the Great Hall, she habitually headed towards the fifth floor, where the Muggle Studies classroom was located. However, when she reached the fourth floor, she suddenly realized that she was no longer the professor of Muggle Studies.

So, Belvina, who had gone the wrong way, slunk downstairs and went to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, which felt both strange and familiar.

Belvina didn't sleep well that night, so much so that she lingered in bed for a long time before reluctantly getting up to wash and get ready the next morning.

On the first day of Hogwarts' official opening, the weather was still not good. The sunlight was weak, the sky was gray, and the ceiling of the Great Hall was shrouded in gloom.

Hundreds of owls fluttered into the auditorium through the high windows, dropping letters and packages everywhere, and also making a mess of water droplets. A few unlucky people even got their hair wet from the owls.

At the long table in Gryffindor, Ron stuffed bread haphazardly into his mouth while glancing at the timetable he had just received.

"Our first lesson is Defense Against the Dark Arts!" Ron mumbled as he swallowed his bread with difficulty. "I don't want to duel with anyone in class anymore."

Upon hearing this, Harry picked up his timetable, but he wasn't happy at all.

"Why do we have so many classes today!" Ron exclaimed, realizing the problem too. "Two Defense Against the Dark Arts classes, two Potions classes, two Divination classes, and two History of Magic classes!"

Harry sighed. Snape, Trelawney, and Professor Binns—all three professors' classes were crammed into the same day. Harry felt a sense of despair, as if life would never get better.

Compared to the groaning Ron and the dazed Harry, Hermione seemed much calmer; her schedule was far more hellish than theirs.

The composed Hermione calmly unfolded the rain-soaked Daily Prophet and quickly skimmed through its contents.

After a while, Hermione opened the equally damp Moon newspaper again and quickly browsed through the contents of each page.

"The Ministry of Magic has issued a final summons to Lucius Malfoy," Hermione said. "According to Rita Skeeter, this is the Ministry's ultimatum."

Ron, his grief and anger turning into a hunger, mumbled, "If you ask me, the Ministry of Magic should arrest Malfoy right now. All those warnings and ultimatums are just a waste of effort."

Harry strongly agreed with Ron's opinion and hoped that the Ministry of Magic would arrest Malfoy and the others as soon as possible to prevent them from causing trouble in the shadows.

"You two had better hurry up and eat, don't delay any longer." Hermione put away the two damp newspapers. "If you look at the timetable again, you'll find that the first class starts earlier."

9

At Hermione's prompting, Harry and Ron quickly grabbed their timetables, and sure enough, the first class started half an hour earlier than scheduled.

The two brothers immediately abandoned their schedules and began to demonstrate to those around them what it meant to wolf down their food.

Not only Harry and Ron, but all the students whose first class was Defense Against the Dark Arts were speeding up their eating, as no one wanted to be late for the first class on the first day of school.

Soon, a group of fifth-grade students rushed out of the auditorium, some of them still in their mouths.

In the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, Belvina sat by the window as usual, her arms crossed and resting on the windowsill, staring blankly out the window.

The sky outside the window grew increasingly dark, and the chilly autumn rain continued to fall. At times like this, one should be lying in bed and sleeping in, rather than getting up to teach students.

Of course, the students wouldn't dare to be late for their first class on the first day of school, and Belvina certainly wouldn't dare to skip work and sleep in on the first day of school either.

When the sound of hurried footsteps appeared in the corridor outside the classroom, the energetic and reluctant workers finally snapped out of their daze.

Although class started half an hour earlier, the students were not unhappy. They walked into the classroom chatting and laughing, and some even greeted Belvina.

Anyone who has ever taken Muggle Studies knows that Belvina is not strict about classroom discipline and is usually a very easy-going professor.

As class time approached, the chatting students gradually quieted down.

Belvina, standing by the window, stood up and slowly walked onto the podium, looking down at the students who were about to take the 0.WL exam.

"Before we begin the class, please allow me to apologize. Due to personal reasons, all my classes are scheduled for the first period in the morning and 8 p.m. in the evening."

As she spoke, Belvina bowed to the students in the classroom.

In order to balance school teaching and the work of the Department of Law Enforcement, the Defense Against the Dark Arts course in the new school year has been incredibly demanding, with students working from dawn till dusk.

When Defense Against the Dark Arts is the first lesson of the day, it starts half an hour earlier; when it is the last lesson of the day, it starts at 8 p.m.

The students in the classroom whispered among themselves. Although they had to get up early and work late, no one felt there was anything wrong with the arrangement; it was just a matter of getting up a little earlier.

As for the classes scheduled for 8 p.m., the students didn't care at all. Astronomy classes were even later than Defense Against the Dark Arts classes, and they didn't complain about it.

Moreover, Belvina has a special status; she is not only a professor at Hogwarts, but also the Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

My Defense Against the Dark Arts was personally taught by the Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement; just thinking about it is exhilarating.

"Alright, let's begin class," Belvina said seriously. "Good morning, students."

The students in the classroom were stunned for a moment, especially those who had taken the Muggle Studies course. The sudden seriousness of Belvina made them feel a little uncomfortable.

"Students, because of the nonsense caused by some people, the teaching of this course has been intermittent and unsystematic," Belvina said with great distress. "Including myself, you have already had five teachers, and you are only in fifth grade this year."

In the five years since I enrolled, I have had five different Defense Against the Dark Arts professors, not including Snape, who taught in my place.

Instantly, the harsh reality of the scene, where men fell silent and women wept, brought the students in the classroom to a standstill. They were reminded of those two troublemakers from their lower grades.

"I didn't want to discourage you in the very first lesson, or to put you under such pressure starting your 0.WL year," Belvina continued. "But your magical abilities are far from what 0.WL should be at!"

The students became even more silent, bewildered by Professor Black's sudden change in style, and the upcoming level exams added to their pressure.

"Mr. Potter!"

"what?"

Harry gave a blank reply.

Congratulations on winning the Triwizard Tournament last academic year.

Faced with Belvina's congratulations, Harry was just as bewildered as Louis XVI in 1793.

"Mr. Champion, are you confident you can get a 0 in the 0.WL exam next summer?" Belvina said. "Look me in the eyes and answer me!"

"No—no—no, I mean—" Harry stammered, "I—I don't have confidence, Professor Betty Black."

The boy who survived a near-death experience, the Triwizard Tournament champion, Harry Potter was stunned by Belvina's sudden question. He seemed to be possessed by Quirrell, and spoke haltingly.

"And you?" Belvina looked at everyone. "Who's confident they can get a 0 on the exam?"

Even Harry Potter, the Triwizard Tournament champion, started stuttering, and Hermione Granger, the top student in her grade, was playing the ostrich. The others were even less likely to say they were confident.

More than the crucial graded exams, students are now concerned about why Professor Blake's demeanor has changed so drastically. Where did the kind, witty, and humorous Professor Blake go?!