Chapter 117: No More Barriers
The next morning, the whole world seemed to be afflicted by an owl disaster, with countless postal owls delivering newspapers and magazines across the sky.
The unexpected incident at the British Ministry of Magic exploded like a depth charge, completely igniting public opinion throughout the global wizarding society.
There were discussions about the Ministry's system, arguments about whether magical powerhouses resided more in the Ministry or in magic schools, and debates about whether werewolves should be cared for or all rounded up and executed...
Reporter Rita Skeeter should have felt triumphant, as she had played a huge role in this.
It was she who persuaded Fudge and Umbridge to host Lockhart's book signing at the Ministry, pushing Lockhart to widespread fame, step by step building up hype for this event. It was also she who was the first to interview the captured werewolf's wife—it was her, her, all her.
But ultimately, regarding the most important newspaper about the Ministry of Magic attack, the highest sales surprisingly went to the Quibbler, which she had always disdained!
The reason was simply that Xenophilius Lovegood (Luna's father), the editor of the Quibbler, happened to be standing near Minister Fudge at the time, happened to be so startled by the werewolf that he fell to the ground, and happened to be holding a magical camera. Well, at least Rita thought so.
Anyway, no matter what the coincidence, Lovegood captured a photo that was destined to leave a profound mark on the history of wizarding media.
A photo of Lockhart standing out, elegantly waving his wand at the charging werewolf, while the Ministry's useless officials were powerless.
Behind Lockhart were the panicked Minister for Magic Fudge, the despairing Head of the Auror Office Scrimgeour, the agonizingly wailing Corban Yaxley on the ground, the anxious Aurors, ordinary people from various places who came for the book signing, and young wizards like the Savior Harry Potter—Gilderoy Lockhart!
He simply stood there, blocking everyone behind him, elegantly and lightly waving his wand, utterly fearless in the face of that absurdly muscular, dragon-like werewolf.
He is our great hero!
He is the most famous magical master of our time!
He is the Savior of the Savior!
He...
...is the most deserving superstar of this era!
Superstar, superstar, we all love you!
And so, Lockhart reached the pinnacle of his fame, completely fulfilling his life's aspiration, enough to rest in peace.
So, "Lockhart" died.
In Lockhart's office at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, when he returned from the noisy society to this quiet corner for solitude, he was surprised to find a rare calm in his mind.
The clamor from the memories was still there, but it was like the bustling street sounds outside a house, easily ignored if one didn't pay close attention.
It was only then that Lockhart realized why he couldn't fully condense his thoughts to cast spells effectively. It was actually the original self's complete memories—the emotions, will, desires, and everything else that triggered the magic to instinctively interfere with him.
This interference was silent, difficult to detect.
But now, as he thoroughly digested the original self's memories and these influences were removed, he realized that a complete mind would not be significantly affected by external memories.
He sat quietly by the window in his dark office, accompanied by his companions. In a trance, he seemed to see a vague, ethereal curtain.
That curtain seemed to have existed since ancient times, swaying with the breath of life, and a pale figure appeared there at some unknown point.
"Thank you~" The figure's face was filled with a brilliant smile. "Managing reputation has always been my pursuit. What you have achieved is what I've dreamed of. I have no more regrets; it's time to embark on a new journey."
Lockhart smiled at him, nodding. "Thank you too, for giving me the opportunity to come to this wonderfully magical world."
The figure bowed slightly, elegantly retreating slowly, moving back into the curtain, and completely disappeared.
The life of the original self had completely ended; it was time for a grand exit.
But the life of the new Lockhart had just begun.
From then on, with no more barriers and feeling completely at ease, Lockhart began to feel the magic within him bubbling, rapidly transforming.
This transformation was comprehensive, most notably affecting his body.
The relationship between body and soul in the magical world was extremely subtle; it was not merely a simple vessel. Voldemort's serpentine facial features were the most obvious example.
Now, Lockhart was also undergoing such a change.
His expression shifted, and he gently waved at the moon outside the window. Instantly, a patch of moonlight was summoned, spilling more intensely into the office, slightly brightening the room.
He walked to the full-length mirror and carefully examined himself.
It was familiar, the skin he had seen so often since transmigrating, yet it was beginning to look subtly different, a difference occurring in every minute detail, as if being fine-tuned.
Yes, his body was responding to the influence of this magic, becoming more aligned with the state of his own mind.
Perhaps, this was the so-called "appearance is born from the heart."
After the "original story" was no longer the "original story," "Lockhart" was no longer "Lockhart."
He was gradually becoming his own person, not the original Lockhart, nor his past self whose mindset was completely different from now.
But appearance was merely superficial; he was more concerned with the state of his soul.
Lockhart gently closed his eyes, shaking his wand, allowing himself to sink into a deeper level of self-perception.
He seemed to see himself inside a house, perhaps a "mind-room"? The name didn't matter. He could see the figures outside the window.
Those were the original self and the memories he had stolen, clamoring and shouting outside the window, but now they required attentive listening to be heard clearly.
And within this house, there were four additional presences.
One was the Patronus horse, and one was the wild werewolf. They were like extra branches growing from his own mind, yet also seemed to be one with him, without clear distinctions.
There was also a shimmering, viscous, plasma-like silver light mass, similar to an Obscurus state. This was the ultimate good of the 16-year-old Tom's Patronus power, which was maintaining a certain balance of Voldemort's curse on the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, subtly linking with him.
The last one was something Lockhart hadn't expected.
The Vengenes fairy.
Oh, he realized. At the time, he had asked the Vengenes fairy if she wanted to live in his heart.
He had always thought the Vengenes fairy was parasitically living in his body in some unique state, but he never expected she had truly lived inside his body.
With a clear mind, Lockhart suddenly felt his own spirituality.
It was a state very difficult to describe in words.
Under the spiritual glow, thoughts bubbled up like foam in a boiling pot.
And so, he suddenly had a very subtle realization.
His journey since transmigrating had been somewhat forced.
Specifically, the "fairy tale romance" magical path, under his insistence, had the "fairy tale," but the "romance" was gradually disappearing.
He seemed to be falling into the same state as Hermione, treating magic as a tool.
It shouldn't be like this. Magic is everything; it is in all aspects of life. He should pursue the truth of life, and then, under the influence of magic, fairy tales would naturally arrive.
He benefited from the original self's understanding of "fairy tale romance," and he also accepted the original self's limitations in this regard.
And now, the influence of the original self was gone.
"Yes, thank you for bringing me to this world of wonder and magic."
Lockhart murmured, "I will truly appreciate its beauty."
Tom!
Your uncle is back!
That spell you invented earlier, Uncle has new inspiration. Perhaps we should discuss it again.
Hogwarts after the Christmas holidays was lively. Professors began preparing for the "House Cup" in the next half of the year, which was Professor Lockhart's proposed fairy tale adventure chapter, "The Chamber of Secrets at Hogwarts."
This was a very interesting endeavor, and the professors were all willing to invest their energy in participating.
In fact, some professors had done something similar last year.
In that obstacle course game, Hagrid provided the three-headed dog Fluffy, Professor Quirrell provided the troll, Professor Sprout provided the Devil's Snare, Professor Flitwick provided the flying keys, Professor McGonagall provided the Wizard's Chess, Professor Snape provided the potion fire, and Professor Dumbledore provided the Mirror of Erised.
Everyone actually felt that the experience was not entirely satisfying, as there were only three young wizards who played the game—Harry, Hermione, and Ron.
This time, however, it was aimed at students throughout the school.
The original cast was back in action!
The only difference was that the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor had changed from Professor Quirrell to Professor Lockhart and Assistant Professor Kettleburn.
Hmm, everyone liked this idea very much and proposed too many imaginative concepts, except for one particular spoilsport.
—Severus Snape.
"I must remind you all," he surveyed the excited, chattering professors, "everyone's teaching workload is heavy, and students' academic pressure is also significant. You and the students may not have enough time to play such games with our Professor Lockhart."
This was reality.
For example, Harry Potter, this child's talent was actually quite good, performing well in every subject. But even so, to squeeze out time for Quidditch practice and Professor Lockhart's "Duelling Club," he often had to just get by with his homework.
If Harry was like this, other students who were not as good as Harry were even more distressed; finishing homework was already so difficult that it consumed almost all their time.
Magic schools were like this. Wizards received only seven years of training in their lifetime, and the school had to increasingly encroach on the young wizards' time.
Like this Christmas holiday, which lasted a full three weeks, every course assigned a large amount of homework.
Snape's words were like a bucket of cold water poured down, and the originally lively conference room immediately fell silent. Everyone looked at each other, not knowing what to say for a moment.
Old Dumbledore was too busy to participate in such childish games, so the professors all looked at Professor McGonagall, the Deputy Headmistress, hoping she would say something.
Professor McGonagall, however, looked at Lockhart, as he was the chief planner of this event.
"Professor Snape makes a lot of sense," Lockhart said with a smile. "So, professors, I have a suggestion..."
"Perhaps you could, like me, integrate part of your course assignments into this adventure? Observing students' grasp of knowledge in practical application—I think there's nothing more intuitive than that."
As he spoke, he looked at Snape. "For example, you could poison students in a challenge, with a swelling potion or something, and then prepare all the ingredients for the antidote nearby, letting them brew it themselves to cure themselves?"
"I think that would be more interesting than them writing several feet of essays? At least you wouldn't have to read some headache-inducing or even copied-wrong homework?"
Snape was clearly tempted, narrowing his eyes and a slight curve to his lips, perhaps imagining some amusing scenarios.
"Wow~ What a good idea!" Professor Flitwick clearly loved this method, excitedly waving his tiny arms. "I can set up a tightly locked door in the adventure scenario. Young wizards who can't use the unlocking charm won't even be able to get in!"
This was an essential spell for first-year wizards to master. If they couldn't even cast this spell, there was indeed no need for them to participate in the adventure.
Professor Kettleburn, the old wizard eager to escape his increasingly tedious Care of Magical Creatures class, particularly liked this arrangement. Listening to everyone's discussion, his eyes lit up, and he looked excitedly at the group, "Can I put a fire dragon in the adventure scenario?"
"I have good relationships with many dragon breeders; they would definitely be happy to provide a fire dragon for the young wizards."
You want the young wizards to die!
Everyone struggled to maintain their composure.
But Lockhart smiled and nodded. "Perhaps it could be placed in an adventure scenario for older students. We could place a pile of stone statues in the fire dragon's cave, useful for the young wizards to fight the fire dragon, thereby training their Transfiguration abilities?"
Upon hearing this, Professor McGonagall also became intrigued.
Stones in action?!!!
Oh~
There was truly nothing more interesting than this!
Agreed!
Must absolutely, vehemently agree!
To be honest, a fire dragon might not even be the most dangerous thing in an adventure scenario. Professor Sprout could casually bring out some venomous tentacles, Devil's Snare, or similar plants, any of which would be terrifying.
Or perhaps Hagrid's little darlings, or even those bizarre magical creatures bred in serious violation of the "Prohibition of Animal Breeding Experiments" decree—they were truly more exaggerated one after another.
Anyway, it was a unanimous vote!
With the drastic reduction in homework from now on, surely the young wizards would all be looking forward to it, right?
.....
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