Chapter 36: Lockhart's Three Strengths

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After the Transfiguration class, he didn't head straight for lunch. Instead, he spent a full hour chasing after Professor McGonagall, asking a slew of questions about transfiguration before leaving, still unsatisfied.

You have to understand, every professor teaches several grade levels and is always busy. If he didn't find the right moment to ask his questions, he might not get another chance.

In the afternoon, it was time for Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Gilderoy Lockhart, dressed in a lavender robe, flamboyantly strutted into the classroom and stood at the podium.

"I, Gilderoy Lockhart, recipient of the Order of Merlin, Third Class; honorary member of the Dark Force Defense League; five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award—but I don't boast about that. After all, it wasn't a smile that drove away the Wailing Banshee!"

His attempt at humor left the boys exchanging confused glances, while the girls were all captivated, eagerly applauding.

"This guy sure is handsome," George thought as he looked at the wizard who had earned a slew of honors through trickery and deceit. He had to admit, Lockhart's popularity among witches of all ages wasn't just because of his writing.

More importantly, it was his good looks and shameless personality.

Though this guy didn't have much real talent, George knew that Lockhart could still be useful to him.

After all, George had summed up three things Lockhart excelled at:

First, his grading was lenient. As long as you knew how to please him, he wouldn't be as strict as the other professors. He'd hand out good marks like candy.

Second, he had the power. Only professors could issue permission slips to access the restricted section of the library. If George played his cards right, he could get a note from Lockhart.

Third, his mastery of the Memory Charm. While Lockhart was terrible at most spells, he was as good as top-level wizards when it came to memory-erasing magic. If George could learn this spell from him, it would be incredibly useful in the Marvel world.

For these reasons, George decided not to slack off in this class.

"I see you all bought my entire collection of books. Excellent.

So, let's begin with a little quiz today.

Don't worry—it's just to see how much you've read and how much you've absorbed…"

After his self-introduction, Lockhart pulled out a stack of papers and handed them out to the young witches and wizards.

"You have thirty minutes. Start now!"

George picked up the quiz and saw that all the questions were about Lockhart himself. He quickly had his Marvel counterpart pull up answers on the computer.

After becoming the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Lockhart had replaced all the textbooks for every year with his own seven volumes.

Naturally, George had bought them, too, as well as the previous first-year textbook, The Dark Arts: A Guide to Self-Defense.

He had read all seven of Lockhart's books. Aside from the self-promotion, many of the magical experiences described were real events from skilled wizards.

The only problem was that Lockhart had stolen these experiences and used his Memory Charm to make the wizards forget.

Half an hour later, Lockhart began collecting the quizzes and started reviewing them right at the podium.

Most of the quizzes had very few correct answers. Even the girls who adored him could only answer about half the questions correctly—until he reached George's quiz.

"Oh, who is this… George! I remember you. Yesterday morning, you said you'd help Slytherin win back the House Cup. Very good, really good.

Not only do you know my favorite color, but you also know my ideal birthday gift and my grand, noble aspirations."

"You... actually got all the questions right! Twenty points, Slytherin gets twenty points!"

As Lockhart graded George's paper, the smile on his face never faded. Over the past two days of teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts, aside from a second-year Gryffindor girl named Hermione who got most of the questions right, hardly anyone had answered more than half.

But now, a student had answered every single question correctly. And it was none other than the recently famous Slytherin first-year. This filled Lockhart's vanity to the brim.

"Professor, I find your books filled with many magical experiences worth studying in depth. I've read them multiple times, and now they're deeply ingrained in my mind," George said, raising his hand.

This remark clearly pleased Lockhart. Beaming with satisfaction, he approached George, laughing heartily.

"Don't worry, as long as you continue to work hard, with a magical talent nearly on par with mine, one day you too will achieve the kind of success I have. I have high hopes for you."

"Success would certainly be thanks to your guidance, Professor. I've always been one to appreciate those who help me," George replied, a knowing smile playing on his lips. Lockhart's eyes gleamed, and his gaze toward George grew even friendlier.

"Alright, next, we'll be reading from my book Wandering with Werewolves. It contains many accounts about ghouls. I'll be asking random questions, and those who answer correctly will earn points."

By the end of the class, George had earned Slytherin another ten points, bringing his personal contribution to ninety points in just two days, giving Slytherin an early lead in the race for the House Cup.

After class, George wasn't finished with Lockhart just yet.

"Professor, I have some questions about magic I'd like to ask you."

"No problem. Since we're two of a kind, I'll carve out some of my precious time after class for a private lesson," Lockhart said, winking at George.

From George's actions the previous morning and his current performance, Lockhart could tell that George was just like him—driven by a desire for fame.

But Lockhart didn't dislike George for it. George had made it clear that they could benefit from each other. The more famous George became, the more Lockhart's own reputation would grow. And, unlike Lockhart, George seemed to have real talent.

George was a promising asset, much like Harry, and someone Lockhart could gather into his circle early on.

"Professor, I'm particularly interested in the Memory Charm. I wonder if you could…"

Seeing that Lockhart was willing, George wasted no time getting to the point.

At first, Lockhart had intended to brush George off with vague answers, feeling a bit guilty. But when he realized George was asking about the Memory Charm—the one spell he was truly skilled at—he straightened up, puffing out his chest, and replied without a care:

"The Memory Charm? That's my least worst spell. Though I suppose I'm still a tad better at it than those Ministry of Magic Obliviators."

The Obliviators worked in the Ministry of Magic's Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes. Their primary job was to erase the memories of Muggles who had witnessed magic and to repair any structures damaged by magical mishaps.

As a result, Obliviators were some of the most skilled Memory and Repair Charm users in the wizarding world.

(End of Chapter)