Chapter 112
The Second Week of December
Ethan and the others filled out the application for leaving school issued by Professor Flitwick.
During this period, Ethan also tried to find Hufflepuff's secret room and Gryffindor's secret room, but there were really no clues.
However, because Ethan had captured the basilisk, there were no attacks, and the popularity of Slytherin's secret room was also decreasing.
Not many people are discussing this issue now, and the various amulets that were popular some time ago have been discarded everywhere.
On the contrary, everyone is now immersed in the joy of the upcoming Christmas, which means a two-week holiday.
Ethan has also made plans for this holiday.
Cassandra's father, Amos Vole, applied for the second-level badge of the Merlin for Ethan. The awarding ceremony will be held on Christmas Eve, and Ethan will definitely be present at that time.
The reason for choosing this period is that the two products, Baruffio's Brain Elixir and Wizard Communication tool, will officially launch during the Christmas holiday after negotiations.
Ethan, the youngest recipient of the Merlin Badge, is being awarded at this time, which has become a hot topic and has stirred the European market.
This wave of topics is just right for advertising the two products, and the wizard mailbox is also a very suitable product for Christmas, which could be given as a gift to friends and family far away.
After class at noon, Ethan and his group came to the auditorium to prepare for dinner as usual.
Just after passing through the lobby, they found that the bulletin board was surrounded by young wizards.
Seeing this, Terry hurriedly grabbed a second-year student from Ravenclaw.
"Godwin, what happened in front?"
Terry loves to go where there is excitement.
"The school is going to start a duel club. The first event will be held tonight. If you are interested, you can go and take a look."
"A duel club? I haven't heard of it, but it sounds pretty good. I just don't know who is holding it. I'll go and check it out."
Terry's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he hurriedly squeezed toward the notice board.
Is a duel club still being held?
In the original book, Lockhart should have applied for it under the pretext of teaching spells to fight against attackers, with the actual purpose being to show off and attract fans.
But now his appeal has nearly broken, and many fans have joined the anti-Lockhart side.
The main reason is that his fans are losing ground; it's really that Lockhart is not doing well and can't provide any help. Instead, various situations of him being embarrassed continue to occur, causing a large number of fans to turn against him.
Now that there are no more attacks and his fans are almost defeated, why apply for this duel club?
He just met with Lockhart two days ago, delivered his customized alchemical props, and also collected the balance of 20,000 gold galleons.
During the transaction, Ethan had hoped Lockhart would use his superb Obliviate charm to cheat the cheaters, allowing him to reverse the robbery and take all the gold galleons and alchemical items away from him.
Unexpectedly, Lockhart actually traded honestly and did not make any small moves during the entire process, which was a bit inconsistent with his personality.
Now it seems that Lockhart is holding back and wants to rely on the alchemical items provided by Ethan to show off again in order to achieve the purpose of restoring his reputation.
That's why he traded honestly and didn't dare to cause any trouble.
After the transaction was completed, Ethan's gold galleons reached more than 90,000, most of which were contributed by Lucius Malfoy, who also gave a Erumpent horn.
Now the only material needed for the magic blood is the eggs of the runespoor. However, Dennis got the news that the members of their Thress, who were preparing to catch Occamy, unexpectedly captured a runespoor recently, and it was a pregnant one.
Dennis has communicated with them. When the eggs are laid, five can be shipped over. The main reason is that the runespoor' snake eggs are not in high demand in the market; only five can be shipped, but this number is enough for Ethan.
According to the news, the eggs will be laid in the next few days. After returning from Christmas, the goods will definitely arrive.
Ethan is not worried about this; it will be fine as long as it is brewed before the summer vacation.
"Ethan, the duel club will be held in the auditorium at 8 o'clock tonight. Are you coming?"
Terry ran over excitedly to report the news.
"Of course, why wouldn't I come?"
As for the duel club, he wonders if he can earn an achievement after defeating other young wizards.
"Yes, you will definitely participate with your strength."
More than a year ago, he beat five senior Slytherins. How long had Ethan been in school at that time?
Now, it is estimated that he could even beat seventh graders. It is normal to have this strength to show off.
However, within the time of lunch, the news of the opening of the dueling club at Hogwarts had spread to everyone, and during the break, many young wizards discussed this issue.
Many young wizards even started to argue about which professor was the strongest in Hogwarts.
Dumbledore, as the headmaster, was naturally excluded.
Among them, Slytherin and Gryffindor were fighting again. Ethan had seen several conflicts of varying sizes. Many young wizards from Ravenclaw also joined in and supported Professor Flitwick.
At around seven o'clock in the evening, Ethan, Cassandra, and others came out of the Ravenclaw tower together, preparing to go to the auditorium to participate in the duel club.
Now, except for going to the Room of Requirement when he needs to practise magic, Ethan spends a lot of time in the Ravenclaw secret room, which is quite convenient for coming and going.
And there is an extremely rich body of knowledge within it that cannot be mastered in a short time. The space is vast, with all kinds of tools available, making research quite convenient.
For those from the other houses like Cassandra and Hermione, Ethan can also bring them along when they enter the first floor of the tower.
Now, Ravenclaw's private room has almost become the second base for Ethan and the others.
In Ravenclaw's room, the primary focus of their research is still on magic similar to the mirror space, which is the special dimension Ethan was pulled into during the assessment.
There are also related records in Ravenclaw's secret room, but this was a very advanced magic even in their time, and it is not easy to learn. Fortunately, Ethan has already discovered some methods.
The book Nibelungen given by Lucius Malfoy seems to have some connection to this magic. Ethan has recently taken it out for study.
When they arrived at the auditorium, it was almost eight o'clock. The long dining table had disappeared, and a gilded stage had appeared along the front wall.
Hundreds of candles floated in the air, illuminating the entire auditorium, while the ceiling once again turned black, resembling velvet.
Almost all of the hundreds of young wizards in the school were present, each holding their wands and excitedly sharing something with their companions, excitement clear on their faces.
"Ethan, we think Professor Flitwick will be hosting the duelling club this time. What do you think?"
Harry walked over from the other side with Ron, Neville, Seamus, and a group of Gryffindors, all with excited expressions.
Although Harry and the others believed that Professor McGonagall was the most capable professor at Hogwarts, the experienced Professor Flitwick seemed the more likely candidate to host the club.
"I don't think so. Take a look!"
Ethan pointed to Lockhart, who had stepped to the centre of the stage.
At this moment, Lockhart was dressed in a purple robe, his hair neatly styled, and a bright smile on his face. Behind him stood Snape in a black robe, his greasy hair contrasting sharply with Lockhart.
The two formed a stark contrast.
"No, why him?"
Looking where Ethan pointed, Harry immediately put on a look of dread.
Last time, he'd been tricked by Lockhart, who constantly pestered him. Even worse, in the dormitory, Ron had become Lockhart's unwitting supporter.
Harry had no fondness for Lockhart and was extremely doubtful of his abilities.
In fact, as long as it wasn't Lockhart, Harry could accept anyone.
"Well, too late. He's already here."
"By the way, Ron, why do you seem so tired lately?"
Ron had lost weight recently, his face pale with thick dark circles under his eyes, looking as if he were suffering from extreme exhaustion.
Was Tom draining him so much?
Ethan had been waiting for an opportunity to use a Polyjuice Potion to disguise himself, steal Voldemort's diary from Ron, or knock him out and take the diary, then cast an Obliviate Spell to erase his memory.
The Exorcism Spell left Ethan interested in Voldemort's main soul. It should have returned to the Albanian forest by now. The other soul fragment—the one in the diary—had developed its own intelligence.
Though not as powerful as the main soul, it could still be useful after some training.
But up until now, Ethan hadn't found the right moment to seize the diary.
The day after Ethan captured the basilisk, he saw on the Marauder's Map that Ron had left Gryffindor Tower once to visit the Ravenclaw Chamber. Since then, Ron rarely ventured out of the dormitory at night, and Hagrid stayed put as well.
During the day, the school was full of young wizards, making it difficult for Ethan to act.
Ron was probably scared by the events surrounding the basilisk and the looting of the Chamber of Secrets, and he must have thought that both the Chamber and his connection to it had been discovered. This made him much more cautious.
"I've been suffering from insomnia lately. I can't sleep at night."
"Harry, we should go. It's already starting."
Ron pulled Harry into the crowd, a look of unease on his face.
It was easy to fool Harry, but someone as sharp as Ethan wasn't so easily deceived. Ron didn't dare face Ethan alone anymore. What if Ethan discovered the diary and stole it?
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