Without a doubt, Professor Gilderoy Lockhart was a handsome man with elegant demeanor.
At this moment on the train platform, he stood out among the crowd like a brilliant star.
The sinister and terrifying Professor Snape had frightened many young witches to tears, their eyes were red-rimmed with tears threatening to spill over.
Some with more fragile psychological states had even burst into outright sobs.
In this situation, Professor Lockhart fully displayed his affinity.
In the cold night, his smile was like warm spring sunshine—warm and charming.
He bent down slightly, speaking in gentle, soothing tones to comfort the little witches, occasionally patting their shoulders and offering handkerchiefs.
Those little witches, who had been sobbing moments before, immediately broke into smiles after his coaxing.
They looked at Professor Lockhart with eyes full of worship and adoration, as if he were a world-saving hero.
Not only the young witches, but even many young wizards fell for his charm.
Being good-looking really was useful!
Moreover, he spoke so pleasantly.
When it came to providing emotional value, both men and women had the same attitude.
In such circumstances, Professor Lockhart was busily gaining fans, quickly gathering a group of admirers.
"Harry, when Mr. Weasley and Malfoy were fighting, was Ginny there?"
Just then, Hermione suddenly asked.
"She was with George and Fred at the time, and we were all nearby. Why?"
Harry scratched his head, looking puzzled at Hermione.
Hermione didn't answer, only furrowing her brow, her gaze becoming increasingly serious.
Looking at Ginny, she felt something was off.
How to put it?
Everyone was showing nervousness in this situation, especially the first-year students who had just entered Hogwarts this year.
But...
Hermione's brow furrowed tightly, her eyes fixed intently on Ginny in the distance.
This little girl seemed to be showing excessive nervousness.
She stood in line with the other first-year students, her hands unconsciously clutching at her robes, her body trembling slightly, with a trace of panic in her eyes.
However, Professor McGonagall's truth detector showed no reaction to this, and Professor Snape's Sneakoscope gave no unusual signals either.
Only then did Hermione breathe a silent sigh of relief, thinking perhaps she was overthinking.
Afterward, she glanced at Professor Lockhart, who was surrounded by a group of little witches, and a flash of envy crossed her eyes.
Those little witches clustered around Professor Lockhart, chattering like a flock of happy birds had their faces beaming with blissful smiles.
Professor Lockhart, surrounded in their midst, wore a brilliant smile, and amazingly, even in the night, his teeth still gleamed, naturally inspiring a sense of affinity.
Hermione opened her mouth but then closed it helplessly.
She knew that at this moment she definitely couldn't squeeze in, so she could only sigh silently.
"Finally, it's about to end!"
Ron looked at the last few Hufflepuff students in line and let out a long breath, his shoulders relaxing.
Hufflepuff had the most students, like a surging sea of people, but the inspection speed was surprisingly fast.
Only one item from the entire house had attracted the attention of Professor Snape's Sneakoscope, and that was actually a gift from a Slytherin student.
This made Professor Snape's face as black as the bottom of a pot.
His hand gripping the Sneakoscope trembled slightly, and his gaze toward Slytherin house became increasingly dark.
The little snakes fell silent under his gaze, trembling with fear.
'Professor, please don't look at us like that—we're on the same side!
Harry Potter is over there, go find him!'
In fact, when Snape inspected Harry, he was indeed more thorough than with the others.
Unfortunately, this was completely useless.
Harry was as pure as Lily.
When the last few Hufflepuff students finished their inspection, Professor McGonagall glanced at Dumbledore and nodded to him.
All the young wizards had been inspected, and they hadn't found the kind of dark magical object that the house-elf Dobby had mentioned—something "capable of costing Mr. Harry Potter his life."
Professor McGonagall was clear in her mind. it seemed the house-elf's disappearance had ultimately made Lucius Malfoy more cautious, and he hadn't dared to attempt such a risky scheme again.
This also proved that Dumbledore was right—Lucius Malfoy's loyalty to Voldemort was questionable.
Even if he truly still wanted to take action, such a large-scale operation should have made him understand Hogwarts' determination, and there shouldn't be any further moves afterward.
Seeing that storm clouds were gathering and a heavy rain was inevitable, Professor McGonagall immediately said to Sherlock with a stern expression.
"Mr. Holmes, the inspection is finished. Now please return to your own group!"
Sherlock had no objections to this. Through the recent inspection, he had indeed gained considerable insight.
Naturally, he returned to Harry, Hermione, and Ron's side with satisfaction.
"Sherlock, when did you slip away just now?"
As soon as Sherlock returned, Hermione immediately approached him with questions.
Meanwhile, Professor Snape also walked up to Gilderoy Lockhart, who was surrounded by a group of witches, and said to him with a cold expression.
"Professor Lockhart! Please put away your smile. The inspection is over, and we need to return to the castle!"
If McGonagall's attitude toward Sherlock could be called cold, then Snape's attitude toward Lockhart could be described as gritting his teeth.
The little witches swept by his gaze all fell silent, retreating like a tide, leaving only the helpless Lockhart.
"What a pity, Severus, I think you've frightened them."
Watching his fans leave under Professor Snape's intimidation, Lockhart flashed a brilliant smile at Professor Snape.
"I think you should be more tolerant of our young wizards."
It must be said that in terms of appearance alone, Gilderoy Lockhart was indeed worthy of his five "Most Charming Smile" awards.
At this moment, he stood out among all the wizards, and just by standing there, he naturally inspired a sense of warmth and affinity.
Unfortunately, this approach seemed to have no effect on Snape.
"First, don't call me Severus. Our relationship isn't good enough for that level of familiarity."
Snape practically squeezed these words through gritted teeth.
"Second, don't flash that smile at me like that. I'm afraid I won't be able to eat dinner later!"
After saying this, he turned and left decisively, leaving the thoroughly embarrassed Professor Lockhart standing there alone.
"Let's go, Gilderoy. As Severus said, we still have many things to attend to."
At this point, Dumbledore walked up to Lockhart's side and offered him a word of comfort.
"Thank you for your understanding, Albus."
Hearing how Lockhart addressed him, Dumbledore frowned slightly, though he didn't forbid Lockhart from using his first name as Snape had done.
Professor Flitwick and Professor Sprout walked directly past Lockhart, acting as if they didn't see him at all.
Both were extremely annoyed.
Today's matter only required the four House heads to come, but Lockhart had insisted that as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, he could be helpful in such situations, forcibly tagging along with them.
But after arriving here, instead of doing his job, he had been showing off his charm among a group of witches... oh, and wizards too.
It was simply disgusting.
They really didn't understand why Dumbledore had invited him to serve as this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.
Perhaps it was because of that curse, making it impossible to find a suitable candidate.
Only Professor McGonagall, as Deputy Headmistress, knew the real reason.
After Quirrell left last year, Hogwarts' Defense Against the Dark Arts position was vacant once again.
This seemed to confirm that rumor once more—the position was cursed, and no one could stay for more than a year.
Under these circumstances, Dumbledore had actively sought out Gilderoy Lockhart.
In fact, Lockhart hadn't been enthusiastic about it initially, as he was in the rising phase of his career.
In this situation, Dumbledore played his trump card.
He hinted to Lockhart that once he became the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, he would be able to teach the second-year student Harry Potter.
As the teacher of the "Savior of the Wizarding World," the "Boy Who Lived," and the "Nemesis of the Dark Lord," with proper marketing, Lockhart could gain higher popularity than doing anything else.
Marketing was precisely Lockhart's strength.
Ultimately, his desire for fame overcame caution, and Gilderoy Lockhart accepted the position.
"I don't understand."
Professor McGonagall actually had quite a few objections to Dumbledore's approach, and even her accent had changed.
"What do you think the students can learn from this vain, glory-seeking fraud?"
"Minerva, I think they can learn many things from a teacher. for example, what kind of things not to do, what kind of person not to become."
Such an explanation naturally couldn't satisfy the always rigorous Professor McGonagall.
However, she helplessly discovered that aside from Lockhart, no one else had applied for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position.
If not him, then who?
For professors other than Dumbledore and McGonagall, Lockhart's arrival was even more incomprehensible.
Especially old professors like Flitwick and Sprout.
Although Lockhart had achieved considerable success later, they still remembered what kind of person Lockhart had been at school.
He was clearly smarter than most of his classmates and possessed decent talent—he would have achieved results if he had been willing to work hard.
But he had chosen to spend more energy seeking others' attention instead.
Under these circumstances, they naturally wouldn't give Lockhart a warm reception.
With the professors' departure, the students were also guided onto the path to Hogwarts.
For students who had already reached second year, they no longer needed to cross the Black Lake by boat as they had the previous year, but instead rode in carriages with the third through seventh-year students to the castle.
So, Hagrid only greeted Sherlock, Harry, and the others before taking the first-year students down another path.
Outside the station at this moment, over a hundred horseless carriages were waiting for them.
According to the older students, these carriages transported all students above first year to the castle every year.
"I'm really glad we don't have to ferry across the lake in this weather. The first-years are really in for it!"
The sky had already begun to rain, and Ron grumbled, "How about we take this one? It looks more solid than the others."
"I think these carriages must be enchanted, which is why they can move on their own."
Hermione was observing these horseless carriages when, hearing Ron's words, she couldn't help but say.
"Ron, your sister also has to ferry across the lake. Can't you show a little brotherly concern?"
Ron also felt that what he'd said was indeed inappropriate, but he still couldn't help muttering quietly.
"She can take care of herself... Sherlock, what's wrong with you?"
Seeing Sherlock standing still without moving, Ron couldn't help but ask.
"Are you sure these carriages can move on their own because they're enchanted?"
"I'm not sure, but isn't that what Hermione said?"
Ron spread his hands and looked at Hermione, indicating he was just along for the ride—if there were questions, ask the academic star.
Hermione furrowed her brow. "I'm not sure either, but aside from this reason, there doesn't seem to be any other explanation, does there?"
"Right, carriages that can move without horses pulling them can only be enchanted, can't they?"
Harry agreed.
"Without horses pulling them..."
Sherlock's gaze swept over everyone present, his eyes showing a hint of understanding.
"Get in the carriage!"
He turned back to take another deep look at these carriages, then was the first to climb into the nearest one.
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