To be honest, this information did catch Tver off guard.
It wasn't that he had never considered the possibility that Voldemort was creating Inferi to cause destruction. It was just that, after thinking it through carefully, he had realized that such behavior was completely unnecessary.
At present, Voldemort's only real opponents were Dumbledore and Tver. No matter the circumstances of a battle between them, Giant Inferi would never be able to make any meaningful difference.
So what exactly were the Inferi for?
To put it bluntly, as long as Dumbledore and Tver were still alive, even if Voldemort somehow found a chance to destroy Hogwarts, he still would not gain anything from it.
So what Tver had been thinking about all along was what method Voldemort intended to use against Dumbledore and himself.
Judging Voldemort's actions from that perspective led to only two possible conclusions. Either Voldemort had truly gone mad and was acting out of sheer destructive impulse, or he was still hiding some deeper purpose.
That was also why neither Tver nor Dumbledore had made many moves so far.
When you cannot guess what cards your enemy is holding, waiting for him to play first is the most helpless option, and also the most effective.
"You can keep watching what Voldemort is doing..." Tver hesitated slightly. What Harry was "seeing" now was the only intelligence they had.
"But I still hope you'll practice Occlumency properly. Don't resist it. I can assure you, Snape may not be very friendly, but he really is the best person to teach you."
Tver himself had not actually spent much time learning Occlumency. To put it in an annoyingly self-satisfied way, he had basically mastered it in one leap through pure talent, nothing like Snape, who had learned it step by step in the proper way.
So he could use it just fine, but teaching it was another matter. "Isn't Occlumency easy as long as you have a brain? Why can't you ever learn it?" would probably drive Harry mad enough to cough up blood...
Harry pressed his lips together and lowered his head in silence, as if there were suddenly something fascinating on Tver's desk.
Come to think of it, quite a few professors had given him private lessons before. If he had to pick the best one, he might have a hard time choosing between Professor Fawley and Professor Lupin.
But if he had to pick the worst, he would choose Snape without a second thought.
One look at him, and Tver knew exactly what he was thinking.
"Back to the Auror question. I don't care for Umbridge's methods, but I have to tell you, if your O.W.L. results don't meet the standard, there's nothing I can do to let you into the sixth-year advanced class as an exception."
"No problem!" At that, Harry immediately brightened.
"My marks look bad right now only because Umbridge's tests are all complete rubbish."
"But usually, I... uh, we secretly practice magic in the Room of Requirement, especially the stuff that'll show up on the exams!"
Only after saying it did his excitement fade a little, and he realized that what he was describing did not exactly comply with the current rules.
Fortunately, Umbridge had already been driven off by the professor. Otherwise, he would have ended up exposing D.A., the Defense Association, through the loose tongue of its own leader...
Tver immediately recalled that part of the situation.
Because they were dissatisfied with Umbridge's teaching methods, even some students who did not agree with Harry's views on Voldemort had still joined D.A., since its main purpose was simply practical magic training.
But all his recent work outside the school had made him somewhat overlook what Harry and the others had been doing.
Seeing the professor show interest, Harry relaxed quite a bit.
"It's mostly thanks to the notes you left for Neville. We used the things in them to help everyone strengthen their basics."
"Then we practiced the exam requirements one by one, based on what Hermione worked out. It's been really effective!"
Tver immediately understood.
Neville's notes had originally been compiled by Tver to help him make up for his weak foundation, and they basically covered every aspect of spellcasting.
You could say that Tver had not only listed nearly every mistake students were likely to make, but had also included a great many practice methods for correcting them.
As for the other students, Tver obviously could not personally guide every last detail for them the way he had with Neville.
So D.A. activities had ended up filling in exactly the parts his teaching could not fully cover. For the students, especially compared to Umbridge's almost completely useless classes this year, that kind of practice was especially important.
After thinking about it for a moment, Tver suddenly felt that D.A. might actually be worth keeping around.
But that was for later. Coming back to the present, he looked at the smug Harry.
"It's a good idea. But Umbridge probably wouldn't allow you to keep doing that, would she?"
"That's why we do it in secret." Harry winked slyly, grinning even more proudly.
The D.A. meetings were one of the very few sources of enjoyment he had this school year. Of course, if Professor Fawley came back to teach them instead, that would make him even happier.
"Looks like you've thought it through pretty well." Tver nodded in satisfaction. The students were really getting easier and easier to worry about.
"I can't say much about your other classes, but your Charms, Herbology, and Transfiguration are all very good. The only real concern is Potions..."
"Hmm..." Tver pondered for a moment.
Harry's marks were actually quite decent, but compared to Snape's exceptionally strict standard for the advanced class, the gap was obvious.
"Let's talk about your other questions about being an Auror..."
Before he could finish, the next visitor outside the office began knocking impatiently.
"Tver, I know you're back at Hogwarts. There's something I want to talk to you about!"
Tver raised an eyebrow in surprise.
That voice was unmistakably Babajide's.
Creak.
As soon as the door opened, Tver saw Draco looking a little helpless and Babajide with his lips pressed tightly together.
This was already the second time.
Draco shot the man beside him a displeased glance.
He had the distinct feeling that these back-to-back uninvited interruptions would make the professor think he was not doing his job properly.
"Professor, this gentleman calling himself Babajide insisted on knocking while you were... receiving a guest."
"It's fine. He's a friend of mine."
Looking at the worried expression on Babajide's face, Tver felt as if the man's complexion had darkened to the point of charcoal.
"Sorry, Harry..."
"It's fine. I already learned quite a lot."
Harry pursed his lips. He had still wanted to ask the professor about the Auror aptitude and personality tests, but since the professor had said so, he could hardly stay and linger.
"Draco, tell the ones whose turn hasn't come yet to come back this afternoon," Tver instructed as he poured pumpkin juice.
Judging by the look on Babajide's face, Tver probably would not even have time to eat a single biscuit this morning.