Lockhart beamed at Ted with an expression that was equal parts exhaustion and glee.
"What a bright young man! Just like myself! Student Ted, full marks! Out of the entire class, only you correctly answered Lockhart's greatest ideal—world peace! And this... and this... 20 points to Ravenclaw!"
Lockhart was thoroughly impressed. "This lad is very promising! Keep up the good work!"
In the back of Ted's mind, something stirred.
------------------------------
Ding! Quest triggered:
[Easy Points Jackpot! (Green)]
Lockhart's generosity with points was almost criminal. It would be a shame not to take advantage of it.
Objective: Earn 100 bonus points from Professor Lockhart.
Reward: 300 experience points, random card.
------------------------------
Ted nearly laughed out loud. Lockhart was just handing out points like candy.
Yesterday, Ted had prevented a cauldron explosion, and Professor Flitwick had only given him 20 points.
Today, one piece of parchment got him the same reward!
As if house points were infinite!
Sitting beside him, Hermione's eyes went wide, and her brows furrowed deeply.
'We agreed to dislike this fraud together! And you're actually doing his homework?!'
Ever since she had witnessed Lockhart's self-important boasting in Diagon Alley, Hermione had harbored nothing but disdain for him.
She had barely even skimmed the textbooks he had authored.
Consequently, she had missed a few answers.
But Ted?
Ted had aced the test!
The reason was simple: Ted actually read the books.
Lockhart might be a fraud, but the information in the books was surprisingly useful.
He had collected these stories from real wizards who had genuinely accomplished great things.
It was knowledge worth absorbing.
Besides, Lockhart had a rare talent—he was exceptional at deceiving skilled witches and wizards.
He had outmaneuvered some of the most powerful spellcasters in the world and never been caught.
That alone was impressive.
With Ted in the room, the conversation never faltered.
Lockhart basked in the attention, and for the first time, his class felt less like a disaster and more like a friendly gathering.
By the end of the lesson, Ted had racked up 30 additional house points.
Lockhart was practically glowing, so delighted he nearly declared Ted his personal protégé on the spot.
"Hogwarts is so much better than home!" Lockhart mused to himself.
"Ted is bright, charming, and he appreciates true greatness! What a student!"
A wild thought even crossed his mind:
'If only Ted had been the Boy Who Lived! Imagine the prestige! The master and the protégé, the greatest icons the wizarding world had ever seen! Instead, it's Longbottom, that bumbling oaf, squandering the glory...'
After class, Lockhart patted Ted's shoulder warmly.
"Drop by my office whenever you're free! If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask. After all, I am a man of influence!"
With that, he flashed them his dazzling, toothy grin—so bright it could blind a troll—and strutted out of the room.
The moment he was gone, Hermione, Harley, and the others turned on Ted, looking at him as if he had just betrayed the entire wizarding world.
Harley, ever the blunt one, jumped forward.
"Ted, why are you flattering that fraud?! He's a walking advertisement for himself!"
Jerry crossed his arms. "Wait—you don't actually admire him, do you?"
Hermione's tone was sharp. "Alright, spill it. What's your game? What are you planning?"
She squinted at him suspiciously.
'Ted wouldn't waste time buttering up a liar unless he had a reason.'
Ted smirked.
'Sharp as always, Hermione.'
Leaning in, he whispered, "I don't admire frauds. I just collect house points. Lockhart's an easy mark—if we play along, we can milk him."
Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"
Ted grinned. "Like permission slips for the Restricted Section."
Hermione's eyes lit up like a Lumos spell at full power.
The others exchanged glances, their skepticism turning into consideration.
"Points and resctricted book access?" Jerry muttered. "Maybe this isn't so bad after all..."
Ted raised his hands. "See? No need to thank me all at once."
Hermione, however, wasn't entirely convinced yet.
She crossed her arms, tilting her head. "You keep calling him a fraud. Do you have proof?"
Despite her personal dislike of Lockhart, she still found the stories in his books fascinating.
If Ted was right, then that meant all of Lockhart's grand adventures were just... fiction.
Ted nodded. "Oh, I have proof."
The others leaned in.
"I compared a lot of sources. The methods Lockhart describes for dealing with magical creatures?
They check out. Some are even innovative. But when I looked up those incidents, I found something interesting..." Ted's smirk widened.
"Every one of those adventures? They actually happened—but someone else was the hero. Lockhart just... borrowed them."
Jerry's jaw dropped. "You checked the news archives?"
Ted nodded.
"Every major event in his books was covered in wizarding newspapers at some point. And each time, the real hero's name was conveniently erased from history. He's a fraud, through and through."
The group was stunned into silence.
"So... all those stories..." Hermione muttered, a little dazed.
"Not his," Ted confirmed. "Lockhart's only real talent is memory charms. He finds real heroes, steals their stories, and makes everyone forget who actually did the work."
Harley's face split into a grin. "What if we go to Dumbledore and expose him? Imagine watching him squirm!"
The others perked up, clearly eager.
But Ted quickly shook his head. "We shouldn't concern ourselves with exposing Lockhart. If Dumbledore hired him, he must have his reasons."
Hermione frowned. "Like what?"
Ted shrugged. "Maybe he wanted us to have a real-life lesson in spotting frauds. Think of him as a walking cautionary tale."
Hermione's eyes widened. "You don't think... you don't think he's like Quirrell, do you?"
The group went silent, the memory of last year's Defense professor—who had literally hosted Voldemort on the back of his head—still fresh in their minds.
Everyone remembered the fear of being dominated by Voldemort's reign.
Ted quickly interjected, "Of course not! Something like that couldn't possibly happen again and again. I just think that Dumbledore probably knows a bit more about Lockhart than he lets on. After all, Lockhart's been right under his nose for years."
Harley's eyes gleamed with excitement. "So, you're saying Dumbledore hired Lockhart for a reason? That he has a plan?"
Ron groaned. "Ugh, more plans! People who are always planning things give me a headache. Just—please don't let me be part of it."
Hermione frowned, arms crossed. "So what, we just ignore it? Let him keep taking credit for other wizards' accomplishments?"
She hated injustice. The idea of letting a fraud like Lockhart go unpunished made her stomach turn.
Ted sighed, trying to ease her frustration. "Hermione, justice requires power. If we want to make things right, we need to get stronger first. Our priority should be studying."
Hermione pursed her lips but eventually nodded in understanding.
Neville hesitantly raised his hand, as if they were still in class. "Uh, guys? What if... what if they just really couldn't find anyone else to take the Defense Against the Dark Arts job?"
Everyone turned to stare at him.
Neville had a point.
A tiny magical society with barely thirty thousand people—and a position that seemed cursed to chew up and spit out a new professor every year?
It was probably a hard sell.
Maybe Hogwarts really couldn't find anyone else!
The next morning, before the sun had even finished stretching across the horizon, Ted was already up, seated in the Ravenclaw common room, flipping through his notebook.
He had been experimenting with a new spell ever since the term started.
His journal was filled with pages of magical theory—scribbled predictions, diagrams of spell structures, and notes on incantation attempts.
It had all started when he saw Ron's Howler explode on the first day of school.
The enchantment intrigued him.
The idea of a magical letter that could roar with the sender's voice seemed like it had a lot of untapped potential.
If he could replicate the effect and refine it, perhaps he could create a way to magically record his own voice while enhancing it with different magical effects.
And then there was the issue of defense.
At the time, he had considered stepping in to spare Ron the embarrassment of the Howler's public scolding.
But he had realized something frustrating—he had no good way of stopping it.
It wasn't like he could just fireball a Howler in the middle of the Great Hall.
Sound-based magic was tricky.
Muffling Charms and Muffliato existed, but Howlers were loud enough to fill entire halls.
Just plugging his own ears wouldn't cut it.
So, he had an idea.
If he combined the Muffling Charm with a Bubble-Head Charm...
He might be able to develop a new kind of magic.
And now, after a few days of trial and error, it was finally taking shape.
"Anzu, don't move~" Ted grinned mischievously.
The raven sitting nearby ruffled his feathers.
'Why do I feel like this is about to be my problem?'
"Silencing Bubble!" Ted cast the spell, his wand drawing a circular motion in the air.
A translucent, shimmering bubble formed around Anzu, encasing him as though he were inside a floating water droplet.
Anzu blinked.
Then, realizing what had happened, he flapped his wings in alarm—but the bubble moved with him, keeping him sealed inside.
"Caw?! What the Fawk?!" Anzu squawked—but no sound came out.
Ted's face split into a triumphant grin. "Ha! It works!"
Anzu, now in full panic mode, twisted mid-air and shot forward at breakneck speed.
His wings blurred as he outpaced the bubble's movement, slipping right through it as if breaking through the surface of water.
"CAW CAW!—YOU CAN'T CONTAIN ME!" Anzu cawed victoriously, zooming across the room like an escaped convict.
Ted sighed. "Alright, alright. I'll tweak it. No need to gloat."
With that, he packed up his things and headed out for his morning run just as the sun finally peeked over the horizon.
At that moment, a familiar chime echoed in his head:
-------------------------
Ding! Skill magic upgrade detected! Your custom spell is now Level 4!
-------------------------
Ted blinked.
His research into spell creation had actually increased his general spellcasting level?
And with his wand's bonuses, he was already at Level 5...
That meant he could finally start deciphering some of the old research materials hidden in Ravenclaw's secret study rooms.
Of course, only the simplest parts for now. But it was a start.
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Word count: 1733
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