Hogwarts doesn't need a savior

Looking at the senior's back and seeing Boyce chasing after her excitedly, Cedric sighed helplessly and amusedly and caught up with her.

"The professor isn't here today, so we're going to give him a surprise! Everyone, come together!"

He was responded to by the crowd's excited shouts and the flashes of spells.

This was an unsupervised "final test" and also the most brutal contest in the past half month.

Unknown to everyone, there is a special audience.

Or a "spontaneous examiner".

In this regard, a certain old man with a crooked nose is already familiar with it and appears to be particularly professional.

-----------------

London Underground, Ministry of Magic, Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

Lynn, who had set a time early, accepted the invitation and met Percy and Andrew with completely different expressions in the director's office.

And then there was Brian, who had no expression on his face but just kept making eye contact.

Percy's face was flushed with excitement after experiencing all the routine clerical duties.

Not only did he follow his father to complete the trivial and arduous work of the Office for the Prohibition of the Misuse of Muggle Objects, but he also understood Lynn's warnings for the first time in practice.

【Power is not only an honor, but also a responsibility that needs to be borne. 】

He understood his father and found the path that suits him.

His concentration, efficiency and self-discipline are the qualities most needed in this department known for its rigor and pressure. They also won the usually strict Amelia's praise and high evaluation.

But Andrew beside him had a grim look on his face.

His application for Auror was ruthlessly rejected by Brian.

Brian's reason was simple. When he was on a dangerous mission to hunt down dark wizards and faced a real life crisis, this usually impeccable top student did not satisfy him.

Not only did he fail to perform to his usual level, he even held the team back.

"Crossing the barrier of life and death is the core of being an Auror, and it is also the bottom line that cannot be negotiated. Perhaps he should be a striker, or a civilian official, which is more suitable for him."

This was the judgment made by Brian, and it dealt a heavy blow to Andrew. He turned pale and didn't say a word for a long time until he returned to Hogwarts.

Lynn knew his old friend's character well, and also knew Andrew very well. Seeing this, he could only send Percy away first and take the distraught Andrew back to the office.

After drinking a cup of hot tea, he saw a faint mist in the other person's eyes.

As the heir of the famous Travers family, such an outcome did cause him great frustration and shock, seriously damaging his self-esteem and self-confidence, and was somewhat unacceptable to the usually calm little wizard.

"Andrew, I know you're in a bad mood right now. Maybe it would be better if you vent moderately." Lynn comforted him.

"Professor, I don't understand why I can't do it." Andrew choked, "I can obviously do better, but I just..." He couldn't go on.

"I understand you." Lin En patted his back, his voice was unusually gentle, "Life and death are topics that cannot be avoided. It's hard to overcome that kind of horror. It's not your fault."

"I'm not a coward, professor." Andrew's eyes dimmed.

"Of course I know you're not a coward, and you're an excellent wizard." Lynn gently stroked Andrew's black hair, which was the same as his own, and said, "I believe the door to the Auror position is not closed to you. You still have time and opportunities. Even if you take a step back, Bones has seen your achievements and abilities. Other positions in the Law Enforcement Department are not bad either."

"But I don't understand why it is like this." Andrew was in pain and struggling. He scratched his hair anxiously, and without waiting for Lynn to speak, he rushed out of the office, walked past the huge crowd, and disappeared at the end of the corridor.

Soon, Doris led everyone over and looked at Lynn in surprise.

"Professor, Andrew, what's going on?"

Chapter 103 Special Contribution Award

The first week of school was calm.

The little wizards returned to school with holiday stories, unfinished homework, and shocking setbacks.

This is also the norm.

Professor McGonagall, who knew the little wizard's style well, specifically reminded him of the key points of the first week of teaching - focus on homework and review thoroughly.

The little wizards who were let go were in great pain, but those who stayed in school generally performed well.

Especially the dozen or so little wizards who received special training with Lin En.

In the final battle with the basilisk puppet, although everyone was covered in dust and dirt, the young wizards finally defeated this powerful enemy with the help of Doris's improved fire spell.

Inspired by this, they showed excellent learning state at the beginning of the school year, forming a huge contrast with their classmates.

The rare exceptions among the holdovers were Harry and Ron.

During this holiday, the two of them were so busy that they didn't even touch upon studying. They even had to cram for their homework - under Hermione's reluctant guidance.

It is worth mentioning that Lockhart continued his pre-holiday performance and even demonstrated several difficult magic tricks in the advanced class.

This made many young wizards who had once stopped being his fans return to support him.

But his complexion became increasingly uglier, his signature smile had almost completely disappeared, there was always a faint bluish-black color on his face, and sometimes he would become uncontrollably irritable.

He had also lost a lot of weight, and was obviously much thinner than before Christmas. Even his robe looked loose.

Such an abnormality naturally attracted attention, and Harry and Ron's suspicious eyes never left theirs.

On the other side, Andrew was in a similar situation to Lockhart.

After returning from the Ministry of Magic, his dream of becoming an Auror was shattered and he became extremely depressed, even showing signs of being unable to recover.

Not only was he absent-minded in the Magic and Ancient Magic classes, his other subjects didn't improve either, and he seemed to be completely broken.

For the past week, Lin En always wanted to talk to him, but he never found an opportunity. Every time, before he could open his mouth, this young man with a strong self-esteem would turn around and leave silently.

He didn't even attend the Stargazers Club meetings in New York.

This situation not only made Lynn anxious, but also made her friends worried, including Doris.

As Lynn's assistant, looking at the beaming Percy, the smart girl had already guessed something.

She cared a lot about Andrew, this somewhat gloomy prefect who was one of her few friends in the academy.

She wanted to find out the truth, but neither Lynn nor Andrew himself said anything.

After several attempts, even the great improvement in the fire spell and the joy of leading the defeat of the basilisk puppet had mostly dissipated.

-----------------

Let’s put Andrew’s matter aside for now. On the other side, Hermione also became busy and nervous.

In the previous half month, she had been busy with special training with Lin En during the day and teaching her friends what she had learned at night.

The task of investigating the Chamber of Secrets and the Heir naturally fell on Harry and Ron.

To her surprise, these two usually unreliable friends did not let her down this time and brought her valuable information at the beginning of the school year - from Ginny.

With the encouragement of her good friend Luna, Ginny overcame her fear and told Harry and her brother about the diary.

And Harry himself, also met Dobby again one night, and heard the word "dark magic items" from his mouth.

Diary, Tom Riddle, Chamber of Secrets, Basilisk, dark magic items...several key words connect the clues.

Ron gave the most important information: the trophy room, Tom Riddle's Special Contribution Award.

It's just that he can't remember the time.

Hermione acted decisively and sneaked into the display room with her two friends under the cover of night and found the medal, which was once again covered in dust, in the corner.

【Tom Riddle, Slytherin Prefect】

[For heroic and selfless actions that saved the school from great loss, I am awarded the Hogwarts Special Contribution Award]

"So vague." Harry saw the problem at a glance. Compared with other special contribution awards, Tom Riddle's introduction was simple and vague.

"Like he's hiding something," said Ron.

Looking at the medal, he always thought of Percy.

"It was fifty years ago..." Hermione lowered her head in silence, thoughts surging in her mind, "To avoid huge losses to the school, someone was killed in the Chamber of Secrets... I know... Woo!"

"bang"

The tightly closed door of the showroom suddenly opened, and Mr. Filch, the castle's caretaker, walked in slowly with an oil lamp.

Ron was horrified. He covered Hermione's mouth with his hand, pulled her and Harry into a corner, and hurriedly put on the invisibility cloak to avoid being discovered by the nervous doorman.

Through the invisibility cloak that was as thin as a gauze scarf, the three people who escaped the disaster secretly looked at Filch.

He was obviously not in a good mood.

Ever since Mrs. Norris was murdered, he has been in a bad mood and punishes students every day for various reasons.

Today is no exception.

Looking at the various honors in the showroom, his face became even uglier, filled with envy, jealousy, and a lot of resentment.

He just took a routine look and turned away, cursing under his breath.

"Filch is pitiful too. He's in Hogwarts, but he has no magical powers." Harry sighed as he thought of Halloween.

"Never mind Filch," interrupted Ron. "Hermione, what do you know?" He was usually reckless, but now he was at his calmest.

"I know what happened fifty years ago, Ron." Hermione's eyes were full of excitement. "Tom Riddle must have been related to the opening of the Chamber of Secrets fifty years ago, and he is in Hogwarts this time. Maybe he is the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets!"

"You mean he used this diary to open the Chamber of Secrets?" Harry frowned.

"No, I understand. He controlled wizards like Ginny to open the Chamber of Secrets." Ron suppressed anger in his eyes. "I knew this guy was a bad guy! I must beat him to death!"

"But... the diary is missing, where could he have gone? And where is the Chamber of Secrets?" Hermione said. "Ginny doesn't know either."

The three of them looked at each other at the same time and blurted out the answer.

"Lockhart!"

In their excitement, Harry and Ron stood up suddenly and bumped into the cabinet.

The trophies and medals inside were shaking, and the three people were so scared that they quickly reached out their hands to steady them.

Filch hadn't gone far yet. If he were discovered, the consequences would be disastrous.

After a while of chaos, the trio who held the cabinet and the medals finally breathed a sigh of relief, sweating profusely, and smiled at each other.

After a long investigation, they saw light.

"As long as we find Lockhart's weakness, he and Tom Riddle will be finished!" Ron clenched his fists and looked at Hermione, "Eh? What are you holding in your arms?"

"It was about to fall, so I just held it." Hermione was about to put it back into the cabinet, but suddenly she was stunned.

In the dim light, she saw the densely packed small words.

Lynn Eric, Head Boy 1980-1981

[In the spring of 1981, he thwarted the Death Eaters' infiltration plan. During the night patrol, he cooperated with the professor to capture a total of Death Eaters who infiltrated the school. He also cracked the spy case of Scott Campbell, the then Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. He was awarded the Hogwarts Special Contribution Award]

"This is... Professor Eric?"

Three little heads gathered together, full of surprise.

Chapter 104 Flaw

"You mean to say that you suspect that Professor Lockhart's mind was controlled by some dark magic item, which is why he behaves so abnormally, and that the dark magic item that controlled him was the real culprit that opened the Chamber of Secrets?"

In the office, looking at the anxious trio, Lin En's expression relaxed slightly, and he waved his wand to give each of them a glass of pumpkin juice.

"Yes, Lockhart is in a very bad state." Ron was the first to speak. "We all know that he is a idiot, and he has obviously had some health problems recently."

"This is not a reason to investigate a professor." Lin En rubbed his brows and said tiredly, "The information you provided is mostly speculation, without reliable evidence."

"Professor, we..." Harry swallowed his words halfway through. He couldn't betray his best friend's sister.

But without Ginny's information, a crucial piece of the clues that had already been formed would be lost.

This is a dead end unless there is new information.

Hermione didn't want to give up. She straightened her hair and said, "You know there is a monster in the school now. We must find it as soon as possible, otherwise every student may be hurt. I would like to ask you for help. Help us find out the truth, just like eleven years ago."

"You actually know what happened eleven years ago?" Lin En was a little surprised.

Ron said quickly, "I saw it when I was in detention. It's in the trophy room."