Ancient Wizards Return to Hogwarts...

Chapter 540 Godric: Need me to lend you some courage? Salazar

Looking at the chicken-snake-bone in his hand, which was broken into several pieces, Godric raised an eyebrow.

"I swear to God, I really didn't use much strength."

Rice sighed.

Is this interference from the forces of fate? Rice didn't have much research on this and couldn't explain it either.

A failed divination can be interpreted in any way, entirely depending on the diviner's intention—after all, there's always a 50% chance of guessing correctly.

"So you should at least tell me why, right? Why do you suddenly want to do a fortune telling?"

"It's about Helga..." Rice told Godric about the prophecy Trelawney made during the divination class.

After hearing his old friend's words, Godric couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"You rushed here in such a hurry just for this?" Godric slammed his hand on the table. "This is really... really surprising."

"Godric, I think this matter needs to be taken seriously, Cassandra of Troy—"

"Hey, that's different!" Godric waved his hand dismissively, indicating to Salazar, "Don't give me that crap."

"Think about it, when you were doing divination, you were identified as Les Lint, not Salazar Slytherin, and Sybil didn't know your true identity. I've heard that she's most likely after your apprentice, that little girl named Daphne. Don't be so paranoid."

Rice frowned.

Godric's words did nothing to dispel his doubts; on the contrary, they made him even more worried.

The behavior of the three old friends perfectly corresponds to "making the correct prediction, but no one believes it"? As for himself, who believed in the prediction, he was subconsciously excluded by Rice.

However, Godric hadn't finished speaking.

"And," Godric's expression turned serious, "even if it were true, so what? Is there anyone in the world who lives forever? Everyone dies, sooner or later."

Rice's mind stirred slightly.

"Salazar, you don't actually think you're one of those false gods, do you?" Godric scoffed. "Even though they respect us and fear us, we are still human, wizards."

Godric felt that if his old friend had any strange ideas because of Zeus's humility, he should correct his thinking with his fists.

Rice glanced at Godric and thought he was the least qualified person to say such things, and himself the second least qualified.

Rowena is now a special kind of ghost, while Helga is purely human. Before her reincarnation, Helga consumed a meteorite from the starry sky, so she should be classified as a demigod; after reincarnation, she will definitely be a normal human.

Godric possesses the highest "divinity" among the four, as Loki modified his body, granting it immortality and other divine qualities.

"Don't pursue immortality; that's unrealistic. Those false gods will die anyway, won't they?"

"I never pursued these things. On the contrary, I actively embraced death! I'm just... a little reluctant to let go." Rice couldn't help but correct Godric's fallacy.

"Well, I just wanted to say that Helga is quite old, and it's normal for her to die. As for what she chooses to do, I think we should respect her decision," Godric said, expressing his true feelings.

Godric was also reluctant to see Helga leave them, but he preferred to respect his old friend's wishes.

It would be quite easy for these few people to survive.

There are several existing methods to prolong life: the Philosopher's Stone, Salazar's potion of rejuvenation, and Rowena's ghost transformation technique—all are means to extend lifespan. However, if Helga is unwilling to use them, then there's nothing that can be done.

Rice sighed after hearing Godric's words.

"What's with the sigh!" Godric glared at Rice. "You're becoming so fussy—Salazar, do you need a little courage from me?"

"Get out." Rice's response was brief and forceful.

"Hahaha!" Godric burst into another hearty laugh.

After laughing, he said seriously, "Even if Helga chooses to embrace the Underworld, it's not like we can't visit her. We can just invade the Underworld again! They've come to the mortal world so many times already, it's time for us to visit them."

"Indeed," Rice nodded in agreement.

It has been too long since they last entered the underworld; the evil spirits there have probably forgotten their names.

If Helga truly chooses to embrace death, then they can simply visit her in the underworld in the future.

After a long talk with Godric, Rice felt that the depression he had felt from hearing the prophecy had dissipated.

At that moment, he and Godric both sensed someone stepping into the principal's office area.

A few seconds later, the office door was pushed open, and Athena walked straight in.

When Athena saw Rice sitting opposite Godric, she was taken aback for a moment, then asked herself somewhat awkwardly if she had come at the wrong time.

"You could at least knock before you open the door..." Godric couldn't help but complain. "Don't any of you have the habit of knocking?! Salazar, you're the same!"

Rice frowned.

"You have the wrong name, Headmaster of Gryffindor. I am Rais Lint."

Athena rolled her eyes: Can we stop this childish role-playing game?

Maybe the other idiots at school can't figure out your true identity, but you think it's an insult to my intelligence that I can't—I'm Athena, not Ares or Aphrodite.

However, Rice remained engrossed in this "little game." He didn't care whether Athena knew the truth or not; as long as the surface layer of parchment remained intact, that was all that mattered.

After forcibly suppressing the urge to beat Salazar, Godric reluctantly said, "Les Lint, from now on you must knock before entering my office! For your impolite behavior, Slytherin will lose five points."

After deducting some points from Slytherin, Godric suddenly felt refreshed, as if he had taken a hot bath.

Is this the power of a school principal? It doesn't seem so bad after all!

Godric felt terrible whenever he thought about being forced into the principal's position, but he didn't feel so bad when he realized he could openly deduct points from Salazar.

"Yes, Principal." Rice's face shone with a holy light. "I assure you, from now on I will always knock before entering the Principal's office—"

—And loudly announce the password to the principal's office.

"Ha, ha—there's really no need to take it so seriously. Alright, Professor Athena, what brings you here?" Godric quickly changed the subject.

Athena silently observed the two's exchange. Although she was confused and didn't understand what they were up to, she forcibly suppressed her emotions after hearing Godric's question and instead spoke about her own needs.

"Headmaster, I hope the school can allow me to recruit graduate students. I think it is also very necessary to study Defense Against the Dark Arts in depth."

Rice frowned.

What is the deeper meaning behind Athena's actions? Could it be that she wants to take this opportunity to expand her influence among wizards and promote the belief in the Greek gods?

Rhys had always been wary of Athena, the goddess. After all, she came from Mount Olympus, and he had to be careful in his attitude towards her.

"Why do you suddenly have this need?" Godric was also curious, not understanding why Athena suddenly wanted to recruit graduate students.

Athena was silent for a moment, then awkwardly admitted that the academic pressure at Hogwarts was somewhat beyond her expectations.

Rice: ...

Godric: ...

Both of them were rendered silent by Athena's answer.

"You are the goddess of wisdom, war, and art, how come you can't even teach a simple dark magic defense spell properly?" Rice directly voiced his inner confusion.

In Rice's view, since the title includes "wisdom" and "warfare," the person must be very intelligent and physically strong. So why would they feel so much pressure teaching?

Godric sat to one side and nodded repeatedly, indicating that this was also the question he wanted to ask.

After Rice asked the question, Athena's face turned red at a visible speed.

"There's no other way. I used to just give blessings directly. With one blessing, even a mortal could gain great power," she said dryly. "But Hogwarts obviously doesn't allow me to do that, which involves a blind spot in my knowledge."

What she didn't mention was that corporal punishment was forbidden at Hogwarts. Or rather, it couldn't be done in public, and solitary confinement required a valid reason. This was completely different from the teaching methods on Mount Olympus.

The Spartan educational model was actually quite popular among the gods. But the problem remained: if Athena chose to use this model, she would definitely be summoned for a talk by Hogwarts.

Frustrated on both sides, Athena had no choice but to start studying magic from scratch and then teach her students. As a teacher, she only understood what she was going to teach a day earlier than her students.

At the same time, she also had to answer the students' stupid questions in class. Sometimes she really wished she could crack open the skulls of those dumb students and pour all the knowledge in her head into them.

As a result, Athena was naturally exhausted and felt that she needed a few graduate students to help her with her classes—just like the professor next door who called himself White.

After listening to Athena's words, Godric felt that what she said made a lot of sense.

"Then how about..."

"No way." Rice interrupted Godric directly, forcefully rejecting Athena's application.

Athena's ears turned even redder. She took several deep breaths, constantly reminding herself that the person in front of her was a powerful being on par with the Father God, and that she must not offend him.

When she recalled the power of the Father God, the strange emotions in her heart vanished—she didn't even dare to admit that the emotion was anger.

"Please allow me to know the reason, and I am willing to make corrections." She adopted a very humble attitude.

"I'm not targeting you," Rice said, uttering a pointless remark.

In fact, he was targeting Athena, who was of divine origin, and she had not yet gained his trust.

"I just think that since you can't even handle the basic version of Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts, you're not qualified to recruit graduate students yet. If you are qualified in the future, we'll contact you automatically without you having to apply."

Rice's meaning is simple: he's afraid you'll mislead the younger generation.

If you can't even manage a first-year wizard, how are you going to manage a graduate student?

Athena thought Salazar's words made a lot of sense, but she really needed one or two graduate students. Otherwise, she felt she might become the first god in the world to die of anger.

"Please be lenient. If you are worried about the students' future, I am willing to give them my strongest blessing."

"This is not a matter of bestowing blessings." Rice looked at Athena very seriously and told her that wizards prefer to improve their strength through their own learning.

The principle of relying on oneself is worse than relying on gods. Rice also cannot accept that the new generation of wizards are obsessed with the blessings of the gods; that would be forcing growth.

Blessing can enhance a person's power in the short term, but in the long run, this behavior is extremely harmful. True sorcerers capable of defeating gods cannot be created through blessings—except for the Hindu gods.

Before admitting Athena, Godric repeatedly emphasized that she must never bestow blessings upon Hogwarts students. If discovered, the ensuing uproar would not be resolved with a simple expulsion; it would cost blood, even lives.

Athena was somewhat disappointed, but there was nothing she could do.

One of the founders explicitly rejected her proposal, indicating that she definitely could not recruit graduate students.

"However, it's true that you mentioned a lot of work pressure." Rice changed the subject, offering Athena new hope. "How about we get you another teaching assistant?"

Athena's eyes lit up.

"That's wonderful! Please arrange it quickly, I can't wait!"

Watching Athena's overjoyed expression at receiving a teaching assistant position, Rice narrowed his eyes: How much of her current personality is genuine? Or is she just putting on an act for us?

His distrust of the gods was ingrained in his very being. Logically and emotionally, he found it hard to believe that the renowned Greek goddess Athena possessed a personality similar to Godric's.

After suppressing her emotions, Rice recommended Daphne Greengrass to Athena as a teaching assistant.

"I think she can help you relieve a lot of the pressure." Rice's words were not unfounded; Daphne had helped him with his homework since he was a child, and had developed a great skill in it.

Rice thought being a teaching assistant would be easy for her. More importantly, it was like planting a thorn in Athena's side.

"Oh? Flame Fist? Very good, I hope you can inform her soon."

Athena had no objection to this.

As she was about to leave, Godric called her back.

"How do you Greeks divine?"

It seems that Godric hasn't completely given up on the idea of ​​doing another divination.

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.

Update delivered, goodnight everyone~

(End of this chapter)