The Professor

As a fifth-year student admitted suddenly, Cyberlina felt she wasn't suited to ride the Thestral-drawn carriages to school with the older students, much less arrive at Hogwarts by boat with the first-year little sprouts.

The current Headmaster seemed to have forgotten about this matter as well, not arranging how she should enter the school. However, the lack of a formal way to enter the school was no obstacle for someone who had thoroughly figured out Hogwarts many years ago and was a professional night wanderer.

After purchasing a large bag of candies she'd never seen before at Honeydukes, Cyberlina walked into the secret passage, eating them somewhat ungracefully while under the effect of a Confundus Charm. Emerging from the One-Eyed Witch Statue, she casually greeted the various portraits as if she hadn't left in decades.

It wasn't until Headmaster Black's exaggerated mumbling that Dumbledore realized he hadn't told Cyberlina how to arrive at Hogwarts as a new student—he hadn't meant to.

He simply hadn't considered Cyberlina a student and had directly overlooked that she still needed to enter Hogwarts in a student-like manner—even though her method of arrival was hardly student-like.

Dumbledore couldn't understand, couldn't she just walk in through the main school gates?

The old Gryffindor subconsciously glanced at the Sorting Hat, which emitted an indignant fury at being questioned.

Thus, the Headmaster, for the first time in a long while before the feast, came to the Great Hall and found Cyberlina sitting in a corner on the second floor. He then asked her his question indirectly.

At that moment, Cyberlina was frowning at a series of books she had just bought according to the list, which she found hard to call textbooks. Hearing Dumbledore's question, she paused and responded by posing a new question: "Can't the British wizarding world find a White Wizard who knows dark magic anymore?"

Dumbledore's gaze shifted to the books in Cyberlina's hands—oh, Travels with Trolls.

"You might not be aware, but professors for this position always have this or that problem, so it's not easy to find wizards willing to come, and..." Facing this truly learned and meticulous former professor, he chose to reveal his purpose for inviting Gilderoy Lockhart partially: "And the wizarding world isn't as stable as it appears on the surface. Some professors' choices can't be based solely on ability."

Cyberlina looked up at Dumbledore, her tone slightly raised: "Albus, have you lost confidence in your teaching abilities?"

While Cyberlina's words weren't exactly impolite, they were certainly less courteous than her usual demeanor. Dumbledore looked down at the girl with a gentle smile before him, inexplicably feeling as if he had returned to the time when he stood before her desk and was lectured by her.

In fact—if one understood the deeper meaning of Cyberlina's words, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a lecture now.

Dumbledore truly didn't understand how Cyberlina's mind worked. Though her combined age might not even be as much as his, she always saw through everything with ease and could quickly think of many other things.

He sighed softly, defending himself: "Some people are destined not to grow through conventional education."

"But forcing growth like pulling up seedlings isn't quite right either." Cyberlina closed the book in her hands, and after her hand brushed over it, the book vanished into thin air on her lap. "Besides, seedlings need to compete and improve together. If a forest only has one good tree, no matter how big or good it is, it can't block the wind and sand."

Cyberlina stood up, looked Dumbledore in the eye, and smiled: "You are the Headmaster now, the professor of the entire school, Albus."

Dumbledore remained silent, merely listening.

But Cyberlina didn't seem to have any intention of dwelling on this topic further. She answered the question Dumbledore had initially asked her—

"I didn't mean to use the secret passage." The girl shrugged helplessly, then took out a handful of candy from her outer robe pocket and offered it to Dumbledore. "I used to return to school via Floo Flame; I don't have the habit of coming through the main entrance at all."

"Oh, oh..." Dumbledore was taken aback, then awkwardly but somewhat skillfully accepted the candy. "I almost forgot, Hogwarts did have Floo Flame a long time ago." He looked closely at the candy, and a glimmer of surprise that had sprung up in his heart slowly subsided—unsurprisingly, they were the least sweet of the new candies from Honeydukes in recent years.

"Ah, it was so convenient back then."

"But not very friendly for student safety."

"That's true."

The two chatted as they walked into the Great Hall and sat at the students' long tables, discussing the changes in Hogwarts and the wizarding world over the years.

Although Cyberlina's own affairs were well hidden by various parties, she was far from low-key during her years at Hogwarts. The ghosts and portraits of Hogwarts remembered her vividly, so the old professors who had taught at Hogwarts for many years knew something about her affairs, more or less.

Dumbledore had already prepared them for Cyberlina's return, so they had long since gotten over their surprise. Thus, when they arrived at the Great Hall one after another and Dumbledore introduced them to Cyberlina, they all appeared relatively calm—oh, no, there was one person who let out a surprised exclamation, the only professor who had ever taught Cyberlina, Cuthbert Binns.

"Oh, oh! Cyberlina! Incredible, you really haven't turned into a ghost."

"You finally remember my name, Professor Binns." Cyberlina stood up and bowed slightly to Professor Binns.

"I've always remembered your name." Professor Binns pouted. "I should have even mentioned your name in class, but—"

"Professor Binns!" Dumbledore interrupted him. "I think the students will be arriving soon; we shouldn't stand here chatting."

Professor Binns glanced towards the Great Hall entrance and immediately said "Oh," twice, then floated towards the professors' area.

Cyberlina glanced at Dumbledore and found him winking mischievously at her. It was clear he hadn't interrupted Professor Binns out of consideration for her, so she followed his gaze towards the entrance and saw Professor Snape, looking even more somber than a few days ago, and—in stark contrast to him—a blond man with an exaggerated smile.

There was no need for Dumbledore to introduce him; just by looking at his foolish expression, which was identical to the cover of that so-called textbook, Cyberlina knew his identity—the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Gilderoy Lockhart.

It was obvious that Lockhart hadn't been forewarned by Dumbledore. His gaze towards Cyberlina was full of scrutiny and confusion.

After all, as far as he knew, he was the only newly appointed professor this year, yet he hadn't received a particularly warm welcome from the other professors at the pre-term staff meeting. However, the strange woman in the old-fashioned long dress and robes was standing among the professors, as if being surrounded.

Lockhart didn't understand the atmosphere. He didn't remember such a famous witch in the wizarding world.

"Oh, this beautiful lady." But Lockhart knew his strengths. He strode forward, displaying his enthusiasm and his best smile. "I believe you recognize me, don't you? I am the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor invited by Headmaster Dumbledore this year. May I ask who you are...?"

"A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lockhart." Cyberlina curtsied, not skimping on any standard etiquette. Though it might seem outdated, it was certainly not uncomfortable. "I am Sekerei, sir. Cyberlina Sekerei."

However, Dumbledore, standing beside them, noticed something unusual in Cyberlina's perfect curtsy—her smile was too bright.

He wouldn't assume it was her way of expressing friendliness.

As expected, while Lockhart was pondering the somewhat familiar name, Cyberlina spoke with her signature friendly smile: "I really enjoyed your book, Travels with Trolls. There was a part in it—very interesting." Cyberlina straightened up, clasped her hands in front of her abdomen, and smiled sweetly. "I thought I was getting old and had forgotten I had met you before, but judging by your reaction now, it seems we are indeed meeting for the first time."

Lockhart's smile froze. Snape let out a short snort. Professor McGonagall cleared her throat twice, signaled to Dumbledore, and then walked out of the Great Hall—older students were already passing by the window towards the Great Hall, and she needed to greet them. Dumbledore followed her, as he needed to return to his office to retrieve the Sorting Hat—he truly hadn't expected to chat with Cyberlina for so long.

The other professors exchanged glances and then, with great tacit understanding, walked towards the staff table. Among them, Professor Filius Flitwick, as he walked, turned his head several times to look at Lockhart, who was forcing a smile, with a complex expression.

Seeing that students were already entering the Great Hall, Cyberlina greeted Snape and then walked to one side of the hall, standing straight and conjuring a book to read. Lockhart's speculative gaze followed her, and he was stunned to find that the book was indeed Travels with Trolls, with his beaming smile on the cover staring back at him.

"He really knows how to tell a story, Mr. Lockhart." Cyberlina commented without looking up.

Lockhart twitched his lips, then finally put on his meticulously chosen robes and went to the staff table.

Cyberlina's position wasn't exactly hidden, but the students entering seemed not to see her, not even casting a glance her way. Instead, they kept looking at Lockhart on the staff table.

Lockhart tilted his head up, smiling at the students. While feeling smug, he kept pondering Cyberlina's name, but it was unsolvable. He was certain he hadn't written that name in any of his books, so why had this witch said that?

Cyberlina hadn't lied; she genuinely thought Lockhart's writing style was good and his stories were well-crafted—but only when it came to storytelling.

Decades ago, there was a powerful witch who had single-handedly destroyed several troll habitats. I visited her during my student days. By then, she was already white-haired and frail, stooping as she brewed me a cup of tea. I thanked her with a smile, and I suppose my smile was too friendly and radiant; she kept praising me, and I could only humbly accept. But undeniably, her acknowledgment did add a great deal of confidence and courage to my future journey, even though I didn't quite agree with her overly violent methods.

Cyberlina flipped to this page again, the words causing her smile to grow wider.

How interesting.

Even more interesting was that it seemed she had indeed been specifically asked about trolls by a student. It was just that Ominis's health wasn't great at the time, and she was swamped with worries. Her patience with students was limited, so she merely shared a few small tips for defeating trolls and quickly sent the student away, failing to remember their name.

But it certainly couldn't have been this young Mr. Lockhart.

Judging by the series she'd casually flipped through, she could discern the different thought processes of the protagonists in those stories, concluding that the character Lockhart portrayed as himself in the stories wasn't actually him. So why hadn't the person whose stories he'd stolen come forward to refute him?

Was it bribery or coercion?

Or perhaps—they were no longer able to come forward?

So, this Mr. Lockhart actually had some skill?

Cyberlina looked up at the foolishly smiling Lockhart and finally shook her head.

Feeling Cyberlina's scrutinizing gaze, Lockhart broke out in a sweat. He vowed that after the banquet, he would definitely! He would definitely reread Travels with Trolls, which had been in his peripheral vision the entire time! He needed to see where he had made a mistake!