Ancient Wizards Return to Hogwarts...

Chapter 129 Hoping Lockhart can shoulder the responsibility of teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Following the stream upstream, Rice and Daphne soon arrived at the outside of the white villa.

As soon as the two reached the door, a young woman's voice came from inside the house: "Dad, Dad, my sister is back with that boy!"

The person who called out was Daphne's younger sister, Astoria. She had been staring blankly out the bedroom window, so she immediately saw her sister returning home with Rice.

Upon hearing her sister's voice, Daphne pursed her lips and muttered under her breath, "It's not like I haven't told her my name before. It's so annoying!"

Astoria's shout roused the "sleeping" house, and Mr. Henry, Mrs. Greengrass, and their house-elves all came to the living room on the first floor of the villa, waiting to meet Rice, whom Daphne had mentioned many times in her letters.

As early as in his letters to his daughter, Mr. Henry knew that Rice was no ordinary child. He possessed a great deal of ancient and mysterious knowledge and held many precious and rare treasures—precious to Mr. Henry. Even more astonishingly, if his daughter's speculation was true, the wizard before him, who looked like a little boy, possessed unfathomable power.

As for why Rice was willing to extend goodwill to his daughter, Mr. Henry believed his surname deserved at least half the credit. If he truly was a descendant of Slytherin, as his daughter claimed, then the two families could be considered old friends, though their relationship dates back a thousand years…

Unlike Mr. Henry, Mrs. Greengrass and Astoria were simply curious about the name Daphne often mentioned.

Rice looked good and gave them a good first impression.

"Please sit down. Bean, go brew a pot of tea and bring some desserts," Mr. Henry instructed his house-elf.

"Yes, ma'am!" The little elf snapped his fingers and disappeared, only to return shortly after, dragging a huge silver plate with him.

"Treat this place as your own home, stay as long as you like," Mr. Henry said warmly.

Rice smiled and nodded, then chatted with the Greengrass family.

While chatting, he also took the time to observe the surrounding environment and furnishings. Unsurprisingly, the manor was still the same manor, but the layout from a thousand years ago had completely disappeared, and almost no trace of the past remained—it was now a completely new residence.

And so Rice settled down at Greengrass Estate, where she stayed for most of the summer.

He lived a very comfortable and pleasant life here. Daphne, who knew his tastes and preferences very well, could always provide him with the most suitable food and desserts, which greatly improved Rice's quality of life here.

At the end of July, Hogwarts sent an owl as usual, delivering a list of the textbooks needed for the following year.

Daphne opened the letter, read two lines, and then frowned: "The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for next semester is very likely a fan of Gilderoy Lockhart; there are a whopping seven of his books in next semester's Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook!"

This is quite outrageous news, because Lockhart's books cost five Galleons each, and buying all seven would cost a whopping thirty-five Galleons, almost equivalent to a month's salary for an average employee of the Ministry of Magic.

Rice frowned as well. Thanks to Mrs. Greengrass, he had read almost all of Lockhart's works. How to put it? From a novelistic perspective, they were quite good, but clearly not suitable as teaching materials. Those books that taught convenient life hacks and tricks, such as *Giddro Lockhart's Guide to Getting Rid of House Pests*, were well-written, but they weren't on the list.

The new professor is making students spend so much money on textbooks—is it just to boost Lockhart's popularity? But Lockhart's books are already number one on the bestseller list!

Rice couldn't understand it.

Mr. Henry, who was reading the Daily Prophet, gave a mysterious smile.

"I do know a little inside information about your Defense Against the Dark Arts professor next semester!"

Daphne looked up abruptly. She believed her father when he said he had inside information. After all, she knew her father held a certain position in the magical world.

"Daddy, tell me!" Daphne immediately switched to her sweetheart mode and started to whine to Mr. Henry, hoping to get some inside information from him.

Mr. Henry coughed twice, giving a signal, and Daphne very obediently ran behind him and began to massage his back.

After a while, once Mr. Henry had enjoyed himself enough, he slowly revealed the truth.

"Look!" He shook the newspaper, revealing the headline.

At his book signing, Gilderoy Lockhart announced that he will become the next Defense Against the Dark Arts professor from "The Boy Who Lived".

The accompanying photo shows Gilderoy Lockhart with a bright smile and Harry with an expression that looks like he's constipated.

Daphne: ?!

She exclaimed in shock, "What kind of inside information is this? Isn't this something you could find out just by glancing at the newspaper?!"

"Why would you give your dad a back massage if you didn't say that?"

"Ouch! That hurts!!!"

Daphne pinched the soft flesh on her father's waist as punishment for his suspense.

Rice, standing nearby, glanced at Lockhart in the newspaper and nodded silently: If a firsthand witness to the events were to teach, then using the novel as teaching material wouldn't be a bad idea. He could elaborate on the parts of the novel that were only briefly mentioned for literary purposes, and at the same time, he could use the novel's engaging elements to spark students' interest in learning. Lockhart was indeed a very good choice of professor; Dumbledore's choice this time was excellent.

Rice nodded. This year's professor finally looks like a professor!

He had read Lockhart's books, and he admitted that, based on the stories recorded in them, the guy was a decent adventurer—provided that these were adventures he had personally experienced.

"I hope Mr. Lockhart can shoulder the heavy responsibility of being the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts," Mr. Henry chuckled. "After all, it's a cursed position!"

"What curse?" Rice asked curiously.

Seeing that Rice didn't understand, Henry told him about the feud between the mysterious man and the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

"Oh?" After hearing Mr. Henry's explanation, Rice was quite surprised: There really is such a curse in the world?

It really opened his eyes.

Just as he was about to ask for more details, the doorbell rang at the Greengrass house.

"I'm sorry, I have an appointment with guests today." Mr. Henry hurriedly stood up and went outside the manor to greet his guests.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The second update is here. Goodnight everyone. The next chapter will be at the same time as usual—midnight!

(End of this chapter)