Hogwarts: Me? Fight Voldemort?

Chapter 118 What audacity! How dare they question Professor Lockhart!

"Welcome! Welcome to my class!" Gilderoy Lockhart's robes had been changed to red, which suited his flamboyant personality perfectly.

Another iron cage was placed on his desk, but this one was larger than the birdcage that contained the Cornish elves in the first class, and the magical creatures this time were much fiercer than the Cornish elves from the previous class.

Lockhart didn't keep them in suspense and directly lifted the black cloth covering the iron cage, causing an uproar among the young wizards in the audience, because inside the cage was a groundhog the size of a medium-sized dog.

This is a magical animal that lives in the UK. It looks like a large ferret, but it has a very special ability: it can talk.

"Bastard! Fool! Filthy thing!"

The mink in the cage scratched at the cage, speaking in a human voice, constantly cursing the little wizard outside the cage with all sorts of filthy phrases.

Gilderoy Lohart chuckled as he introduced, "The groundhog is a fierce and magical animal. Its most distinctive feature is that it can swear, but its intelligence is insufficient for true communication."

I made this very clear in *Wandering with Werewolves*! Now, let's see who can subdue this ferocious creature!

At this moment, Jimmy stood up and called out, "Professor Lockhart, could you demonstrate first?"

Lockhart now is like Quirrell last semester; she's unlikely to do anything at school that would damage her reputation.

With the presence of professors at the school and Dumbledore, he could act more boldly.

Lockhart is actually quite wealthy...

When Gilderoy Lockhart saw that it was Jimmy, he was very pleased and immediately said, "Oh, of course, no problem, Jimmy. It seems you've learned even more from your seniors."

He then opened the cage and let the mink rush towards him. Lockhart simply pointed at it with his finger, and the mink fainted on the ground.

Jimmy was not satisfied and said again, "Professor Lockhart, why don't you use a wand? Shouldn't you teach your students how to use wands and chant spells to ward off danger?"

Lockhart's expression stiffened for a moment, but he still drew his cherry wood wand from his waist. "Alright, alright, I'll demonstrate again!"

The groundhog suddenly woke up, and under the expectant gaze of the students, Gilderoy Lockhart waved his wand and chanted a spell at the groundhog that pounced on him, "Faint down."

Without any spellcasting light, the weasel collapsed once again without warning.

But from Jimmy's perspective, it wasn't like that at all. Lockhart didn't use his wand to cast a spell; he just swung it around randomly. The groundhog was stunned by another force.

"Alright, I've finished my demonstration. Now, who wants to try it out?" Lockhart put away his wand, clearly satisfied with his lesson.

The students eagerly raised their hands, but Jimmy spoke up again, deliberately asking, "Professor Lockhart, you haven't taught the students how to deal with this yet? What should we do if we lose our wands? Where do weeds appear? What are their habits? What should we do if we get scratched by them?"

Lockhart was also a very thick-skinned person. Even though he couldn't answer many of the questions Jimmy asked, he could still think of ways to deal with them. "It's good to be eager to learn, but we only have one class period."

You can learn this knowledge after class, but in class, everyone must know how to deal with these dangerous creatures!

After saying that, Lockhart ignored Jimmy and casually pointed to someone with their hand raised high, "Mr. Finley, you're the first one! Come on up!"

The students took turns going to the open space in front to cast spells on the groundhog that was being held in place; this was a typical day in the Defense Against the Dark Arts class.

It might be fun enough for young wizards, but they learn very little.

On Saturday, Rita Skeeter's reply arrived, in which she agreed to publish the damaging information about Lockhart.

The following day, an article titled "Gidero Lockhart: Joker or Thief? Unveiling the Legendary Bestselling Author's Biggest Secret" appeared in the Daily Prophet.

This report is practically an open admission that Lockhart used the Oblivion Charm to plagiarize other people's experiences and write them into stories, directly listing all of Gilderoy Lockhart's past experiences.

For example, craving attention from others while in school, and failing to do so after trying various methods...

I wrote 800 Valentine's Day cards for myself on Valentine's Day, which resulted in owl droppings falling into my oatmeal, so I had to skip breakfast.

They had their names engraved in 20-foot-long letters on the Quidditch pitch and projected their portraits into the sky like the Black Magic Mark.

This article thoroughly exposes Lockhart, satirizing his various boasts in order to gain attention.

Before graduating, he created the Philosopher's Stone, led the English Quidditch team to victory in the World Cup, became the youngest Minister of Magic, and founded the school newspaper with his own portrait printed on it.

Rita Skeeter's writing style, which fills a page with the foolish things Gilderoy Lockhart did at school to gain attention, allows the audience to fully appreciate the extent of Gilderoy Lockhart's folly.

Not only that, but it also wrote in a rather suggestive way: How did an ordinary person who had accomplished nothing after graduation and worked as a memory eraser for a long time suddenly become enlightened and become a so-called adventure master?

Isn't it because they were so eager for attention that they resorted to crooked and unethical means?

As soon as the article was published, Lockhart's fans were in an uproar, with some even wanting to find Rita Skeeter and kill her!

The situation was far from peaceful outside the school, and it wasn't peaceful inside either. Many of Lockhart's little fans surrounded Gilderoy Lockhart in the auditorium, indignantly expressing their belief in Lockhart and that Rita Skeeter should be imprisoned in Azkaban, and so on...

"These are just baseless speculations from jealous people. Listen, the professional certifications of the Order of Merlin and the Anti-Dark Magic League are enough to shatter all lies!"

Gilderoy Lockhart was also terrified by the article; it had spread so widely that its impact was impossible to eliminate.

Lockhart knew that everything said above was true, but he couldn't admit it. If he were exposed, all his achievements would vanish.

The little witches chimed in, saying they were going to cause trouble for Rita Skeeter, and the situation briefly spiraled out of control.

The mastermind behind all this was elegantly sipping his milk. Then he put down his wine glass, got up, and walked toward Lockhart.

"How dare you question Professor Lockhart!!!"

A loud shout from outside the circle silenced the entire auditorium.

The little witches turned around and saw Jimmy looking furious. Although they were puzzled, they quickly made way for him.

Even Lockhart, who was surrounded in the center, was startled by the roar and looked at Jimmy in surprise. When did Jimmy become his fan?

Jimmy, looking utterly heartbroken and exasperated, pointed at each of the little witches surrounding Gilderoy Lockhart, "Why aren't you going to confront that rumor-monger, to refute those who question Professor Lockhart with solid evidence? Instead, you're all gathered here—do you think Professor Lockhart will be brought down by a mere rumor?!"

Professor Lockhart is a man who can even defeat werewolves! Even dark wizards, Death Eaters, and sorcerers are nothing more than rats and bugs in Professor Lockhart's eyes!

He didn't take those people seriously at all; he was a true hero who hated evil!

When you were accusing Professor Lockhart of spreading rumors, did you ever consider that it was your own lack of firm faith in Professor Lockhart that led you to gather here seeking confirmation from him?!

Are you even true Lockhart fans?

His words grew louder and more forceful with each utterance, like clanging hammer blows striking the hearts of all the little witches present who considered themselves fans of Gilderoy Lockhart.

Chapter 119 One fan is worth ten haters

The surrounding little witches were rendered speechless by the barrage of insults, and a sense of shame silently crept into their hearts.

Lockhart, standing in the middle of the crowd, was dumbfounded by the praise. Although it sounded good, something just felt off.

Jimmy unleashed his power again, pointing at the little witch in front of him and saying, "As fans of Professor Lockhart, what you should do now is write letters to refute those dissenting voices, preferably to the Daily Prophet."

Those newspapers that engage in baseless smear campaigns and publish false reports are a cancer on the wizarding world!

He turned around, cupped his hands in greeting to Lockhart, and said, “Our Professor Lockhart has seen all kinds of storms. He can easily laugh off some of the doubts he’s facing, but we can’t!”

"Shouldn't fans strive to uphold Professor Lockhart's image?" This statement is truly thought-provoking.

what?

Lockhart felt the pleasure of being flattered, a supreme enjoyment that only a monarch could experience!

He once dreamed of becoming the Minister of Magic, a big shot surrounded by followers. Later, he became a bestselling author and adventurer, accumulating many loyal fans, but he never experienced that feeling!

Jimmy is such a smooth talker!

The little witches were increasingly convinced that Jimmy was right; they couldn't find any fault with him. They had come to Professor Lockhart precisely because they had doubts in their hearts.

That's really inexcusable! They've seen Professor Lockhart's abilities clearly during class all this time!

"Yes! I'm going to write to the Daily Prophet! How dare they publish such false information! Report them, report them to the Ministry of Magic!" a little witch shouted.

"And that bitch Rita Skeeter! How dare she insult our Professor Lockhart! It's outrageous!"

Jimmy continued to fan the flames, waving his arms and fists, his eyes glazed over like a mad artist, "They simply don't respect us GLfans at all!"

"GLfans?" a little witch asked, puzzled. "What's that?"

"Gilderoy Lockhart's fans all together make up GLfans! You should be proud to be a GLfan!"

The scene completely became Jimmy's stage, with Lockhart acting like a mascot, just smiling and leaving the rest to Jimmy, who had thought a lot about it.

"We must fight back now. We must use the facts we have seen to powerfully refute those dissenting voices. Letters of questioning and whistleblowing are not enough!"

We also need to form a support group for Professor Lockhart, just in case someone tries to discredit our professor again!

GLfans must unite!

"Yay! GLfans is established!" A girl who had been bribed by Jimmy with a photo of herself with Lockhart's autograph immediately started cheering.

Although the others didn't understand what had actually happened, they still cheered along with them.

"You just write the letters, leave the rest to me!" Jimmy pointed ahead as if the battlefield were right there.

Led by that girl, the girls who were originally surrounding Lockhart stopped eating and immediately returned to their dormitory to get paper and pen, preparing to write letters to the Daily Prophet and the Ministry of Magic.

The noise in the auditorium gradually faded away as the girls left. The people left in the auditorium, whether students or professors, all felt that something was wrong, but they couldn't quite put their finger on it.

George and Fred exchanged a glance and immediately understood what fun thing Jimmy was planning!

"Professor Lockhart!"

After shooing away a group of Lockhart's female admirers, Jimmy turned to the ethereal Lockhart and assured him, "Don't worry, Professor Lockhart, we will absolutely not let your reputation be damaged in the slightest!"

Every night I reflect on the professor's teachings, which are thought-provoking and like a clearing of the clouds, guiding me onto a broad and promising path to the future!

To destroy a person, you must first make them mad!

Jimmy wasn't a vengeful person, but Lockhart's tricks were truly effective against him, making them impossible to guard against.

Even if Lockhart didn't harbor any extreme malice towards him, he wasn't going to let him go. He had to make him spit out all the wealth he had swallowed with the Oblivion Curse over the years and send it to Azkaban!

He was destined to drive the development and progress of the magical world in the future, so he called taking these ill-gotten gains "from the people and using them for the people"!

“Very good! Jimmy, I’m glad you understand. I’ve only done what a professor and a third-class Sergeant Merlin should do: contribute to the wizarding community with knowledge!”

Gilderoy Lockhart was overjoyed; his eyes, nose, and mouth all curved upwards, and his row of white teeth were all smiling.

"By the way, that GLfans you mentioned earlier... it's great, I think it's really good!"

"Professor Lockhart thinks it's good, that's for sure!" Jimmy clasped his hands together and said with delight, "Professor, you must support the establishment of our GLfans support group! Actually, I already have an idea."

He pulled out a pre-prepared proposal from his pocket and handed it to Lockhart. This proposal was like a Pandora's box, waiting for Lockhart to open it.

The concept of "cheering" originated in Japan in the 1980s and is an interactive behavior that uses celebrities as a medium to hold events.

This concept was still novel to Muggles, and its development and response methods were far less mature and aggressive than they would be in later generations.

What kind of grand occasions hasn't Jimmy from the future seen?