Ancient Wizards Return to Hogwarts...

Chapter 157 Dumbledore's Guarantee

The curly-haired old man squinted at Fudge behind the podium and said in a flat tone, "Yes, someone like Cornelius can become Minister for Magic. Voldemort used to cause them so much trouble—British wizards don't even dare to call him by his name. Wizards have really fallen."

"Grindelwald from decades ago made me think that wizards were about to rise again, but I never expected that he would be the last vestige of the magical world." The old man shook his head, looking quite disdainful of modern wizards.

"It's a good thing that the four founders are all dead. It's unbelievable that just four people could bring about Ragnarok. If they were alive today, our plans would be as unrealistic as a mirage in the sand or a castle in the air." This time it was the witch who spoke. She briefly imagined what it would be like if the founders were still alive, and then felt a chill run down her spine.

If they were still alive, the organization's plans would have been virtually impossible to achieve.

"What are you thinking?" The male sorcerer in hemp robes glanced at the female sorcerer with disdain. "Who can live for a thousand years? Relax, Vigo (Virgo). The power of the Secret Order is greater than you think. Even if those four old geezers were to come back to life, they would just be a bunch of remnants of the old era. They might not even be able to withstand a single arrow from me."

Rice, who had been hiding to the side and listening to their entire conversation, remained expressionless. Often, arrogance and ignorance are like inseparable twins; the appearance of one is not far from the other.

Kids don't understand, but a spanking will teach them a lesson.

The witch named Vigo and the curly-haired old man beside her frowned upon hearing their companion's words: "Sagittarius is always so confident, even overconfident. He lacks the most basic respect for the ancient wizards."

More importantly, if you're so disparaging of the four founders of Hogwarts, what about the gods they killed? So he cleared his throat, signaling his companions to shut up and quietly observe the ceremony below the stage.

Seeing that the three had stopped communicating, Rice also lost interest in watching the experiment taking place on the field.

The experiment had already begun, and under Fudge's orders, Lupin and another werewolf were brought to the center of the field.

Although both were volunteers, they were bound by dense chains and had extremely heavy shackles on their feet—the Ministry of Magic's assessment of them was clearly inconsistent with their status as volunteers.

Of course, the wizards present didn't see anything wrong with it: the other party was a werewolf, so it was always necessary to add more protection.

Mr. Henry and Lockhart are ready.

Today, Mr. Henry wore a black wizard's robe with silver-green patterns embroidered on the cuffs, symbolizing Slytherin House, and a Greengrass coat of arms pinned to his chest. Lockhart, on the other hand, wore a forget-me-not-patterned robe and carefully styled his hair.

He was terrified inside, but he didn't show it at all; he could even manage to force out what he thought was a charming smile.

Snape entered the arena carrying two goblets and poured the potions from them into the mouths of the two werewolves. He even asked Lockhart if he needed any potions.

Lockhart hesitated for a moment, but ultimately accepted Snape's help—he had been studying the Restoration Charm that Henry had published in the Daily Prophet over the past few days, and he felt that with the help of the Wolfsbane Slow-Release Potion, he should be able to handle it.

The sun slowly sank below the horizon, and the moon gradually rose into the night sky.

Under the moonlight, Lupin and another werewolf began to transform, but the effects of the potion were immediately apparent. After the two wizards in the arena turned into two wolves, their eyes rolled back and they both fainted.

Instantly, the audience stood up in unison, creating a tremendous commotion: everyone was amazed by the potion's effects.

Even if the subsequent restoration spell to human form had no effect, the invention of this wolfsbane slow-release potion was already groundbreaking. With this potion, werewolves could remain harmless on the night of the full moon, which was great news for wizards.

Henry Greengrass gestured for Lockhart to enter, then stood in front of the wolf Lupin had transformed into, drew his wand, and cast the Restoration Charm on him.

Under the influence of the spell, Lupin's thick hair gradually disappeared, and his limbs slowly transformed into human form. After about a minute, Lupin returned to human form.

Even under the moonlight, he did not transform.

A cheer erupted from the stadium.

Next, thousands of eyes were fixed on Lockhart, making him feel uneasy. He steeled himself, gripped his wand tightly, and then, mimicking the wolf on the ground, cast the Restoration Charm.

Nothing happened.

Lockhart froze completely, mechanically waving his wand, attempting to use the Restoration Charm a second and third time.

Although wizards are all atheists, Lockhart would still choose to pray to Lady Luck if given the choice.

Unfortunately, even if the ethereal gods did indeed favor Lockhart, the one who smiled upon him was not the goddess of fortune, but the god of mischief.

Lockhart's spell took effect, and the wolf on the ground suddenly opened its eyes.

Lockhart: !

Rice in the stands was also dumbfounded: This was too outrageous! The effect of his wolfsbane slow-release medicine could actually be dispelled by a curse?!

The wolf, awakened by a spell that even Lockhart himself couldn't explain, immediately locked onto the nearest human, Lockhart.

It bared its fangs, leaped up, and lunged straight for Lockhart's throat.

The next moment, it was bound tightly by several ropes that appeared out of nowhere and slammed heavily to the ground.

Dumbledore, who appeared in the center of the arena, glanced at Lockhart, then flicked his wand—

"Watch closely, this is how you use the Restoration Charm!"

The werewolf, who had been writhing and struggling on the ground, suddenly stiffened, and then its fur gradually disappeared, eventually returning it to the timid and submissive appearance of a Ministry of Magic employee.

The audience in the stands finally realized what was happening. They applauded Dumbledore while giving Lockhart strange looks.

From this day forward, Lockhart's fame will spread throughout the wizarding world, in the very way he least wanted it.

Lockhart fell straight to the ground, but no one cared what he was doing anymore, because Dumbledore spoke.

After casting an amplification spell on himself, Dumbledore announced loudly, "Ladies and gentlemen, we have now proven that the Restoration Charm provided by Mr. Henry is effective!"

Thunderous applause erupted in the stadium, but Dumbledore's next action made everyone instinctively stop what they were doing: he reached out and deliberately scraped his hand hard against Lupin's teeth, and blood flowed from the back of his thin hand.

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!

Fun illustrations for each chapter—If Harry Potter were the Bellatrix of early 20th-century Japanese manga.

(End of this chapter)