Chapter 121: The Mechanism of the Wizarding World
The accident at the fairy tale adventure training ground was, to Lockhart, an insignificant minor matter.
He had been teaching at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for half a year, and in these six months, he had continuously explored the practical application of "fairy tale romantic adventures." He understood too well the gap in ability between young wizards.
Consider the exaggerated and outrageous magical abilities of powerhouses like Dumbledore, Grindelwald, Voldemort, and Nicolas Flamel—casually casting a spell could destroy a city, and living for centuries until they grew tired of it, simply giving up on refining the Philosopher's Stone...
Then look at the large number of ordinary wizards in the Ministry of Magic, many of whom couldn't even cast a Shield Charm, or were perhaps even worse.
The difference between people is sometimes greater than the difference between humans and pigs.
Magic, like mathematics in his previous life, has always been a game for a select few.
Acknowledging this reality of disparities, and knowing that the differences in talent and potential among young wizards would be enormous, would make one indifferent to certain aspects of teaching.
Not like Snape, who constantly swore in class.
Is getting anxious about such things useful? No, it's not. Respect everyone's destiny. What a professor can do is to try their best to enable those destined for mediocrity to master more skills that might change their lives in the future. That's all.
As Lockhart once told Hermione when she came to seek advice: Sometimes we have to acknowledge the limits of our own abilities and luck. Becoming a follower of a hero or a dark lord is also a good choice.
Fairy tale adventure drills are an opportunity for talented young wizards to shine and enter the optimal state for magic to blossom. Why aren't they also an opportunity for less talented young wizards to improve themselves?
As a writer, he knew perfectly well how to assemble an adventure team, allowing even ordinarily talented young wizards to bask in the glow of the "protagonists."
The opportunity was given; those young wizards just needed the courage to take a chance, bravely follow the team forward, and seek their own magical path. Perhaps magic would give them infinite possibilities.
If they shrank back out of fear, stopping there, then there was nothing more to say.
Professor Lockhart neither forced nor criticized.
He offered comfort to the young wizards with his most perfect and charming smile, but that was the extent of it.
Having done what he could, he chose to invest his limited energy into his own magical path, continuing to bravely forge ahead.
Lockhart discovered something very peculiar.
His companions—the Little Goldie (Patronus), the Vengeance Fairy, the Boggart, and even the newly added Sack-Hood—did not fear his "Mind Cleansing Charm."
This was a very important discovery, because the Vengeance Fairy he had placed in the adventure scenario, due to being unable to dodge in time, got a few drops of the Patronus-infused rain on it, letting out a mournful wail and hiding, and was still listless.
Such a situation, in the Headmaster's office last time, Dumbledore had marveled at how these Dark magical creatures were unharmed by the Patronus horse and could even interact intimately with it, something he had never seen before.
At the time, Lockhart subconsciously thought it was because his magic was unique.
Only now did he realize that this wasn't the case; what was unique were his companions.
For this, he specifically conducted an experiment, selecting a Boggart from the Dark magical creatures provided by the Wizarding Examinations Authority and releasing this spell on it inside the storybook.
Good heavens, the Mind Cleansing Charm, having become more proficient with repeated casting, almost killed that Boggart!
What did this mean?
A wizarding version of "when one attains the Dao, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven"?
Oh, Lockhart certainly had an idea. He had previously discussed the difference between magical creatures and magical beasts with the Duelling Club students, mentioning the idea that magical creatures, by participating in "wizarding life" and even further, "wizarding fairy tale adventures," began to exhibit the biological characteristics of magical beasts.
This idea, wasn't it precisely the reason he arranged fairy tale adventure drills for young wizards, allowing ordinarily talented young wizards to adventure alongside excellent ones?
Lockhart quickly rummaged through his memories, searching for possible corroborating evidence.
And he actually found it!
Dumbledore's Army, formed by the Savior Harry Potter!
The young wizards in this club, by practicing magic with Harry Potter, experienced an improvement in their learning that was far more significant than what they gained from studying with professors.
The most obvious case was the Patronus Charm.
This spell, one of the oldest few remaining in modern wizarding society, was extremely difficult to master. The average wizard could only release a silvery light, and only a few could conjure a full-bodied Patronus.
But Dumbledore's Army was that miraculous; almost every young wizard in it could conjure a full-bodied Patronus.
As for things like the Shield Charm, they were simply the most basic operations.
Such an astonishing achievement, if one didn't understand magic so well, one might directly conclude that Harry Potter was the most amazing educationalist of his time, with a greater ability to cultivate students than Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, Professor Flitwick, and all the other Hogwarts professors—he achieved what professors couldn't.
But Lockhart understood magic, knowing that the power of magic came from the mind. And Harry hadn't shown any particular aptitude for discerning others' minds, so how could he possibly tailor his teaching to each individual's characteristics to help them unleash their potential?
Adventure!
Lockhart had his own judgment. This was the benefit of adventuring with a "hero." Side characters, in order to keep up with the pace of the fairy tale, began to defy their initially poor or ordinary talent settings, experiencing rapid leaps in strength.
It was like a fairy tale turning into reality!
In this world with magical power, was it truly operating like this?
This discovery led him to ponder Grindelwald's Saints, Dumbledore's teams formed against the Saints, and Voldemort's Death Eaters, and Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix formed against the Death Eaters.
And even other clubs, organizations, or small groups.
For example, the Marauders group: Peter Pettigrew was a hanger-on, a weakling, but if compared individually to the new generation, his strength was incredibly formidable.
Following the protagonist into a fairy tale adventure...
Lockhart figured all this out, and an absurd idea inexplicably popped into his mind: should he sign up for the Order of the Phoenix, or even use an alias to infiltrate the Death Eaters, to ride a wave of protagonist-led opportunities?
Brilliant!
After deeply pondering the mechanisms of the wizarding world, he saw power-ups everywhere, waiting for him to experience.
As the saying goes, if your heart is set on something, act on it. He began to plan and ponder the feasibility of this matter.
Joining the Order of the Phoenix should be relatively easy. After all, old Dumbledore was well aware that he had completely sided against Voldemort.
He had good relationships with Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, Mad-Eye Moody, Mundungus Fletcher, and others in the Order of the Phoenix, as well as future members like Harry and Hermione.
The Death Eaters side would be much harder.
Firstly, having died once, and with many Death Eaters claiming to have been forced into service to avoid conviction, Voldemort wasn't particularly trusting of his followers' loyalty, and certainly wouldn't trust newly recruited, unknown underlings.
Secondly, he also didn't want to humbly do murderous things for Voldemort. He needed to have more qualities that Voldemort would value and respect. If he went in with the advantage of his great social influence, that would be fine, but using an alias wouldn't achieve that.
Hiss... wait!
Lockhart suddenly thought of a particularly good entry point!
Corban Yaxley!
What if he used the identity of Corban Yaxley, the veteran Death Eater's body?
Just like Barty Crouch Jr. impersonated Order of the Phoenix member Mad-Eye Moody and went to teach at Dumbledore's Hogwarts for an entire school year...
My goodness!
This path was actually feasible!
It perfectly fit his "life thief" method!
This matter would clearly require slow and steady planning. It wouldn't be easy to find an opportunity to strike at Corban Yaxley.
But no matter how difficult, it couldn't be harder than the Forest Witch or Dumbledore's friend. He would always find an opportunity!
Lockhart rubbed his chin, chuckling to himself.
Exciting!
This kind of play was simply too exciting!
It was the passionate life he yearned for; it couldn't be more interesting!
.....
For 90 advanced chapters:
p_treon.com/Chaos_God
Thank you so much for your support and for reading