Chapter 49: The Silent Witch Falls Silent
It was Miss Lovegood!
Lyra's interest was piqued immediately. She knew Hogwarts had four Houses, each with its own characteristics.
But which House will Miss Lovegood be in? Lyra instinctively felt she might be in Ravenclaw... After all, Miss Lovegood was probably the most perceptive and intelligent person she had ever met.
Certainly much smarter than Lyra herself...
"Ravenclaw!"
Almost instantly, the Sorting Hat shouted out the House where Luna belonged.
Just as I thought!
Lyra smiled smugly under her mask: I know my friend pretty well.
Lyra paid no attention to the subsequent students, as she didn't know any of them.
Soon, the last student was sorted. Dumbledore tapped his goblet lightly and said, "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen."
As Dumbledore spoke, the slightly noisy Great Hall quieted down again.
"Before we begin our banquet... I would like to introduce two new professors who have joined us this year due to curriculum changes."
Why are you introducing us right away... Don't you need to say some opening remarks to warm up the crowd, Dumbledore?
Lyra, who wasn't ready yet, nervously gripped her cuffs.
"One of them is..."
"Ah, Headmaster Dumbledore, may I introduce myself?" Suddenly, the blond-haired Mr. Lockhart, sitting next to Dumbledore, spoke up.
He stood up slowly and flashed a brilliant smile at Dumbledore.
"Oh, of course." Dumbledore paused for a moment, then nodded with a smile and sat down.
Lyra noticed that the stern professor sitting on his other side seemed a bit displeased... But Mr. Lockhart was truly amazing.
To request to speak proactively on such an occasion...
"Future stars of the wizarding world! Good evening!" Lockhart clasped his hands in front of him and said in a resonant voice, "I believe many of you know my name, correct?"
"Mr. Lockhart! It's Mr. Lockhart!"
Lyra saw a few bold students in the audience shouting his name.
"Ah, I hear your enthusiastic voices." Lockhart nodded with satisfaction. "That's right, I am Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defence League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award."
"Of course! Of course! I didn't come here to show off these things." He used a dazzling smile as a punctuation mark, and after a brief silence, his expression turned serious.
"I came here to teach you ladies and gentlemen how to face the most dangerous! Most terrifying! Dark Arts!"
"Of course, if there are any fans of mine... you are welcome to find me after class for a chat."
"Ahem." Just as Lyra was listening with relish, the stern woman next to Dumbledore coughed and said, "Professor Lockhart..."
"Please try to be concise."
"Ah! Of course, Professor McGonagall." Lockhart smiled lightly at the woman and even winked.
"Ugh."
Lyra seemed to hear retching sounds from a few young wizards in the audience; they seemed to be Gryffindor boys.
But more students were looking at Lockhart with adoration.
Mr. Lockhart is amazing!
Lyra was starting to admire Lockhart a bit too. Although she didn't understand most of what he just said, being able to speak fluently in front of so many people was already impressive.
I could never do that...
Having had his fun interrupted by Professor McGonagall, Lockhart shrugged lightly, said a few more casual words, and ended it all with a charming smile.
Then... silence.
Lyra pressed her lips together and looked at Dumbledore.
Aren't you supposed to introduce me... and then I just stand up and nod?
Only someone like Mr. Lockhart can introduce himself!
Dumbledore seemed to see Lyra's gaze. He cleared his throat lightly and said, "Thank you for your self-introduction, Professor Lockhart."
"Now, let me introduce our other Defense Against the Dark Arts professor."
"Miss Lyra Hamilton." Dumbledore nodded gently as he spoke.
Scrape.
Lyra stood up slowly, her body trembling slightly. She could feel the eyes of everyone in the hall on her, so she chose to close her eyes and nod slightly.
Then she sat down as if relieved of a heavy burden.
This was definitely not a good self-introduction... especially with Mr. Lockhart's excellent introduction preceding it.
But at least she succeeded... She didn't knock over her chair due to nervousness, or trip because of fear... It was much better than her self-introduction at Durmstrang.
"She will be responsible for the first to fourth-year classes." Dumbledore's words elicited a sigh of disappointment from a large group of young wizards.
They seemed to prefer Mr. Lockhart... Which made sense. One was a weirdo wearing a mask who didn't even speak... the other was a famous wizard adventurer and author.
even Lyra knew who to choose... But this was good. If they didn't have high hopes for her, they wouldn't be too disappointed. Lyra didn't think she would be a good teacher...
"Do not be sad, everyone." Dumbledore seemed to sense everyone's disappointment. He smiled lightly and said, "Miss Hamilton is an exceptionally outstanding witch."
"She is definitely no less capable than Professor Lockhart."
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Dumbledore! What are you doing! Lyra shot a glare at Dumbledore, wishing she could use a Killing Curse on the old man right then and there.
Don't talk nonsense!
How can a... a freeloader like me compare to an outstanding wizard like Mr. Lockhart?
Don't... don't overhype me!
Lyra could already see the surprised expressions on the faces of the young wizards below.
"That's the first time Professor Dumbledore has said that," Hagrid whispered from the side. "He thinks very highly of yeh!"
"N... No..." Lyra tried to tell Hagrid tremulously that she was just a socially anxious wreck...
But just as she opened her mouth, Hagrid continued on his own, "I know yeh're amazing too, Miss Hamilton."
"Professor Dumbledore told me yeh've mastered non-verbal casting for all spells, right?" Hagrid lowered his voice slightly. "That's an incredible achievement!"
What kind of achievement is that! It was just to graduate!
It's not even as impressive as Mr. Lockhart's Most Charming Smile Award... he won that five times!
"Miss Hamilton has mastered non-verbal casting for all spells?" Hagrid's attempt at lowering his voice didn't seem very effective. The short professor sitting next to him turned his head and looked at Lyra in surprise.
"I recall only one person achieving that... Wait!" The professor seemed to realize something and said in astonishment, "You're that Miss Hamilton from Durmstrang, aren't you?"
No! I'm not! Hagrid! You guy! Why are you just like Dumbledore!
Lyra was so embarrassed she couldn't say a word. She could only nod stiffly in response to the short professor.
"I am Filius Flitwick," the short professor introduced himself after seeing Lyra nod. "I heard your story when I was younger."
"I even hoped to compete against you in the Wizarding Dueling Championship," Flitwick said in a squeaky voice. "I heard you were the Durmstrang dueling champion for two consecutive years."
"It's wonderful that you're teaching this course," the short professor lowered his head and whispered. "It seems our students can finally have a proper year of Defense Against the Dark Arts."
"Ah... ha... haha..."
Letting out a stiff laugh, Lyra really wanted to plug her ears with her wand so she wouldn't hear these embarrassing words.