After teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts to the four Houses of the third and fourth years in succession that morning, Lin Du felt a kind of exhaustion unlike the fatigue he experienced when researching magic.
This exhaustion came from having to constantly adjust his approach and expend patience when facing a group of students with wildly varying skill levels, most of whom had weak foundations.
Naturally, there was no shortage of homework.
Whether it was Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff or the Gryffindors and Slytherins who had class later, he assigned what could only be called disastrous tasks—
Copy the key points of casting Impedimenta twenty times; prepare a report on the principles behind Immobilus; and copy out and memorize detailed information on ten common Dark creatures, from Cornish Pixies to Red Caps, twenty times as well. He also announced that there would be random inspections in the second week.
The classroom was immediately filled with cries of despair.
Gryffindor and Slytherin in particular performed even more chaotically when faced with pixies that had transformed into test papers, forcing Lin Du to temporarily shelve the Monthly Exam he had originally intended to announce—
He was worried that dropping such a bombshell too early would directly crush the fragile nerves of those poor young wizards.
After finishing half a day of teaching, Lin Du left the classroom and headed toward the Great Hall, intending to enjoy a belated lunch.
The shadow on his shoulder stirred slightly, and Chao Feng poked out his jade-horned head. His amber eyes rolled about, filled with undisguised disdain.
"Tut, tut," he said contemptuously. "Tell me, has Hogwarts lowered its admissions standards these days? Look at those little trolls from today. A few lowly Cornish Pixies had them running around like headless chickens, and they could barely hold their wands!"
Lin Du did not slow his pace. His expression remained calm; he had long grown accustomed to Chao Feng's sharp tongue.
"With such a large student body, uneven quality is normal. Most of them truly lack effective guidance and practical awareness."
"Lack awareness? I'd say they lack brains!" Chao Feng refused to let it go.
"That Ravenclaw who shouted 'Vera Verto' at a pixie, trying to turn it into a cup? And the one whose ears got tugged, then could only shriek like a goblin?"
"Not everyone was that incompetent," Lin Du countered mildly, several figures appearing in his mind.
"Crivat and Boot from Ravenclaw reacted reasonably well and used their basic spells properly. And Cedric Diggory from Hufflepuff..."
When he mentioned that name, Lin Du's tone carried rare approval.
"Oh? That black-haired kid?" Chao Feng tilted his head as he recalled. "He was somewhat interesting. He froze them quite quickly and gave those little things no chance to show off."
"It was not merely speed," Lin Du corrected. "He was calm, his judgment was precise, and he understood that in chaos, one must first eliminate the most threatening targets. He has the potential to become an outstanding wizard."
"Potential?" Chao Feng snorted and scratched the jade horn on his head with a claw.
"What use is potential? Who knows whether he can withstand your Red Caps and Hinkypunks later on? Don't let him be the first to wet himself in fright. That would make the ten House points and the position of study representative you gave him a complete waste."
"That is why they need practice." Lin Du gazed calmly at the light and noise spilling from the Great Hall doors at the end of the corridor. "A great deal of practice that comes close to reality. Cedric and everyone else alike. Talent needs guidance, and cowardice needs tempering. Hogwarts does not lack promising seeds; what it lacks is the pressure and methods to help them break through the soil."
"Hmph, that sounds nice. Don't you just want to save yourself some trouble and find someone to help grade that mountain of homework capable of drowning a man?" Chao Feng exposed him with a single jab, then lazily shrank back into the shadows, leaving behind one final mutter:
"Do as you please. It's not me being put through the wringer, anyway. Let's just hope your 'good seedlings' do not wither too early under your 'careful cultivation'..."
Ignoring the teasing, Lin Du reached out and pushed open the Great Hall's heavy doors.
The scent of food and the roar of conversation washed over him. The arrival of this new professor made several long tables near the entrance fall silent for a moment, and countless gazes focused on him once again, carrying emotions even more complicated than before—
His fierce reputation and strictness had clearly spread throughout the castle along with those twenty-copy assignments and the practical combat drills in class.
Lin Du had just stepped into the entrance hall when a deep voice came from the side.
"Looks like your first class... was quite lively, Professor Lin."
Severus Snape seemed to emerge from the shadow of the wall, standing several steps away with his hands tucked into the sleeves of his black robes.
His tone revealed neither pleasure nor anger, but his black eyes were sharply assessing Lin Du.
"Necessary chaos is better than fatal peace, Professor Snape," Lin Du replied calmly. "At least they now know that wands are not decorations."
The corner of Snape's mouth seemed to twitch. "The direction is correct. Better than that useless Quirrell."
He paused, finally voicing the question that had been interrupted during their last patrol.
"But I still do not understand. With your abilities, even if the Ministry of Magic recruited you, your future would be better than staying here to discipline a group of little trolls. Why choose Hogwarts of all places? It does not seem like your style."
Lin Du saw no reason to hide it and answered frankly, "Headmaster Dumbledore promised that, as long as I took this position, he would allow me to continue my Dark Magic research within the framework of Hogwarts."
The muscles in Snape's face instantly tightened, as though he had heard something utterly absurd.
"Dumbledore... allowed it? He personally agreed to let you research those things at Hogwarts?"
Meeting Snape's gaze, so sharp it nearly seemed capable of piercing him, Lin Du did not understand why the other man was so agitated, but he nodded firmly nonetheless.
"Yes. It is part of the agreement. He believes that conducting research in a controlled environment is safer than leaving me to explore on my own outside."
Snape was clearly on the verge of losing his mind with anger.
Seeing his unusual expression, Lin Du finally realized, belatedly, that something was off. He frowned slightly and asked, "Professor Snape? Are you... all right? Your complexion does not look very good."
That question, asked out of basic courtesy, lightly punctured the calm Snape had been struggling to maintain.
He drew in a sharp breath and practically ground out several words through clenched teeth. "I... am fine."
Without waiting for Lin Du to react, he abruptly turned away. His black robes billowed violently with the sudden movement, raising an icy gust.
Lin Du stood where he was, watching Snape's retreating figure, which was almost fleeing. His frown deepened.
He could clearly sense the intense, suppressed anger in Snape, along with... some indescribable sense of loss?
"Did I say something wrong?" he murmured to himself, feeling genuine confusion for the first time over something unrelated to magic.
Just then, a burst of barely suppressed laughter came from the shadow on his shoulder.
"Pfft... Hahahahaha!" Chao Feng finally could not hold it in any longer. He shook with laughter on Lin Du's shoulder, his jade horns trembling. "You blockhead! You still can't see it? He's so jealous he's about to go mad!"
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