The Little Fanboy Came Up with the Detective Club Idea / Hermione Doesn't Need to Change Herself or Settle

Otherwise, he wouldn't have immediately decided to steal Lucius's wand after realizing his attempt to extract information had failed.

Having been forcibly fused with a fragment of Voldemort's soul by Salazar, Harry also gained some of Voldemort's memories of creating the Diary Horcrux. Therefore, in his analysis, the sweaty fingerprints remaining on the diary should not be mistaken for stains and removed.

Magic is essentially a kind of idealistic power; it is certain that what it knows exists, while what it does not know is likely to be regarded as nothing.

Therefore, for Voldemort and his Horcrux, the sweaty fingerprints that would still adhere to their hands even after washing them thoroughly could not be considered pollution or damage.

Therefore, even if this former Horcrux possessed a certain degree of self-cleaning ability, capable of absorbing or removing stains, it could never erase fingerprints that 'did not exist' for it.

Magic is indeed often more powerful and wondrous than science, but that doesn't mean it's without flaws.

Harry, however, was able to use science to exploit the loopholes in the magic and successfully uncover the hidden clues!

(P. S. Here's a simple explanation of how silver nitrate solution is used to test fingerprints. It's actually based on a high school chemistry equation: NaCl + AgNO3 = NaNO3 + AgCl↓;)

Sweat fingerprints contain sodium chloride, which reacts with silver nitrate to form an insoluble white precipitate of silver chloride. Silver chloride is unstable and gradually decomposes under light, eventually becoming a brownish-black fingerprint that can show color.

As for the question of whether or not fingerprints can be left on Horcrux, there's no need to worry too much about it. The purpose of this section is simply to express the view that 'both science and magic have their flaws'.

Given the protagonist's character, it's inevitable that he'll use scientific methods to exploit loopholes in magic, but this doesn't mean he denies that magic is more convenient than science. That's all.

Chapter 197 The idea for the Detective Society was proposed by a little fanboy.

"This is incredible! It's unbelievable that I'm actually taking pictures of Harry's fingerprints?!"

Colin pressed the shutter button repeatedly as Harry requested, his masked mouth uttering indistinct gasps of amazement. As a wizard of ordinary origin, he was utterly astonished by Harry's skill.

At this moment, in his eyes, Harry, who was dealing with Lucius's wand fingerprints with Hermione, looked exactly like a seasoned detective!

If he added a pipe and a cane, he might look even more like one.

"Colin, it's done here, come over and take a picture."

"Okay~" the little fanboy replied happily, running and skipping over.

If Harry really is a detective, then what about myself?

Could she become a valuable assistant to the detective?

"Very good, now we have the wand's fingerprints."

Harry was completely unaware of Colin's inner turmoil, as he was currently immersed in the joy of discovering the complete chain of evidence.

Using the same method to treat Lucius's wand, Harry indeed found a series of clear handprints on the wand.

With that, the fingerprints on the diary and the wand were all obtained; all that remained was the final confirmation and comparison.

"Luna Lovegood, could you help me with a comparison? I need to find the fingerprints on this diary that match the wand." Harry finally approached Luna Lovegood, earnestly requesting her help. "After Colin develops the photos, I also need you to mark the fingerprints on the evidence against the marks in the photos."

Since the matter involves the Wizarding World, if Harry were to submit the results to the police for examination himself, it could very likely lead to a series of troubles, including filing a case, investigation, and taking statements.

Therefore, the only one who can help Harry right now is the insightful Luna Lovegood.

If she can produce a definitive fingerprint comparison result, Harry can use that as evidence to ask Dumbledore for help, which might bring Lucius to justice!

Of course, Harry knew that this was only one possibility...

"This isn't a very difficult task, but I don't think you'll necessarily get the results you want."

This time, however, Luna Lovegood didn't immediately agree to Harry's request as usual; instead, she poured cold water on his enthusiasm.

"Hey, can't you say something nice at a time like this?" Hermione glared at him in displeasure.

"I don't know if what I'm saying is good or bad, I'm just telling Harry about what might happen in advance." Luna Lovegood didn't think there was anything wrong with what she said. "It's like the traces left by maggots crawling over something; others might not believe it, just like...you don't believe in the existence of the Crumple-Horned Snorkack."

"What did you say?"

Luna Lovegood was implying that Harry's efforts were futile and that those who needed evidence wouldn't accept it, a point Hermione could certainly understand.

That's precisely why she got angry.

Because she was also a wizard from an ordinary background, she readily accepted this kind of real-world evidence.

Moreover, she would never allow anyone to belittle Harry's efforts!

Even if this person is Luna Lovegood!

"Um... can I say a few words?" Colin suddenly interjected timidly, "I don't think we need to argue about this. Isn't it a happy thing to be able to find the key clues to the case ourselves?"

"Hmph!" Hermione snorted in dissatisfaction upon hearing Colin's words, but she was no longer as hostile as before.

A thoughtful look flashed in Luna Lovegood's eyes, as if she were reflecting on her earlier words.

Sometimes, outsiders trying to mediate a fight only add fuel to the fire; but other times, such as when it's a good-natured young man like Colin trying to break up the fight, even if the person is angry, everyone will still give him some face.

"Anyway... I'm really happy right now!" Seeing that the two women seemed to have temporarily stopped arguing, Colin continued, "I'm very grateful to Harry for inviting me, and everyone's collaboration just now was really smooth and enjoyable. It felt... just like Detective Society in a novel or TV series!"

In Britain, detective stories are undoubtedly a perennially popular genre, enjoyed by almost everyone from the elderly to children, with detective figures such as Sherlock Holmes being household names.

Colin is a big fan of detective stories, so you can imagine how excited he was when he found himself helping his idol Harry investigate cases.

Especially after he learned that Harry was investigating the mastermind behind the Chamber of Secrets, the real culprit who petrified him, he felt even more strongly that he couldn't stay out of it!

Therefore, Colin really didn't want any conflicts to arise among the team that had just started working together.

"Colin is right. Finding evidence is always a good thing, so there's really no need for us to argue about it."

Harry spoke up to stop the two girls' argument, and he stepped forward and took Hermione's hand to calm the still indignant academic girl.

After that, Harry looked at Luna Lovegood with utmost seriousness.

"I admit... Luna Lovegood, you might be right, but I'm going to try it no matter what!"

At this moment, Harry's attitude was absolutely resolute!

In his previous life, he was a forensic doctor, and fingerprints are the only type of evidence in court that does not require corroboration, making them arguably the most authoritative evidence in the forensic process.

Therefore, even though Harry knew that submitting evidence that ordinary people would use in the Wizarding World would likely encounter many problems, he still had to take this step!

Because this is his way of giving an account of his past self and the profession he has always been engaged in!

It would certainly be a happy thing if Lucius Malfoy could be punished as he deserved it.

But even if the plan ultimately failed, Harry felt there was no need to dwell on it too much.

This will give him a clearer understanding of the rules of the game within the upper echelons of the Wizarding World's political circles.

"I'll help you! I'll help you clearly identify these fingerprints!"

Luna Lovegood seemed to read something in Harry's eyes, knowing that he was determined to do this no matter what, so she readily agreed to the request that she had originally thought was futile.

"Thank you so much!" Harry thanked Luna Lovegood gratefully, then looked at the other two in the room. "I'm also very grateful to Hermione and Colin. Thank you for spending the whole afternoon going crazy with me. Also, I think Colin's Detective Society is actually quite interesting!"

Actually, if you think about it carefully, the four people in the house now are enough to run a complete Detective Society.

Harry was in charge of evidence gathering and forensic examination; Hermione handled fact-finding and data collection; Colin provided assistance and took photographs; and Luna Lovegood, besides comparing evidence details, could also rely on intuition to guess the suspect...

The four of them take on odd jobs in their spare time, which is a good way to relax and have fun.

Who knows, they might even uncover many secrets of Hogwarts' past, like the Chamber!

Chapter 198 Hermione Doesn't Need to Force Herself to Change

To be honest, Harry felt like he'd been acting a little strange lately.

He had always been a little puzzled as to why he was so enthusiastic about such a troublesome task as substituting for first-graders.

It can't be because Luna Lovegood is in the class, can it...?

His ultimate goal as a student was simply to pass, but he never imagined that he would become so dedicated to his profession after becoming a teacher.

Defense Against the Dark Arts —this course seems to possess a special magic, always unconsciously drawing Harry in and turning him into a devoted, hardworking ox in an instant.

The consequence of this was that, after the Chamber of Secrets incident was completely over, Harry not only didn't get any peace and quiet, but actually became even busier.

Preparing lesson plans for the Black Organization courses takes up a lot of his time, and he also has to teach classes himself. Most importantly, he has to take care of the Fantastic Beasts in the box. Basically, he wishes he could split every second in half every day, and he hardly has any time to be alone with Hermione.

Recently, Harry has generously taken on a lot of night patrol duties for Filch, ostensibly so that Filch can have a proper... uh, date with Madam Pince.

But in reality...

Hogwarts was completely silent at night. At this time, most people would be asleep, and only those with ulterior motives would continue to wander the corridors.

"My dear, Mrs. Norris, please don't yell right now~"

Using his Invisibility Cloak, Harry carefully wrapped Mrs. Norris up. After confirming that Filch wouldn't be back anytime soon, he took her and cautiously made his way to the Seventh Floor like a thief.

Hermione was waiting at the door of the Room of Requirement, holding Crookshanks.

The ginger-colored male cat seemed a bit agitated at the moment, and its four bow-legged legs were kicking frantically.

As for Harry, Mrs. Norris was already impatiently sticking her butt out...

"Meow!" *2

"Well... let's go inside first."

Before they could even greet each other, the two cats started meowing. Harry had no choice but to go into the Room of Requirement with Hermione.

Mmm, a room piled high with clutter at night, an embarrassed boy and girl, and a lifelike cat video in front of them...

"I think I must be crazy to be watching Crookshanks and Mrs. Norris here so late at night... Anyway, it's all your fault!"

The academically gifted girl rolled her eyes at the person sitting next to her, and seeing that he was actually watching with great interest, she couldn't help but pinch him hard on the waist.

Hmph, if this guy hadn't fed those two cats some Basilisk meat last time, things wouldn't have turned out like this!

Of course, Hermione herself did not object to the fact that Mrs. Norris could be her mother at Crookshanks; in fact, she was even a little proud of it.

It's like a pig you've raised with great care finally stealing someone else's cabbage.

When making this analogy, the academically gifted girl clearly overlooked one fact... she herself is just an ordinary person.

"Hey, can you go a little easier on them?" Harry complained with a pained expression. "It's really not my fault. I was just trying to be nice and give them an extra meal. Who would have thought it would end up like this?"

Crookshanks and Mrs. Norris are not young cats, and perhaps because they have been suppressing their feelings for a long time, their behavior when they are in heat is exceptionally intense.

According to Hermione, Crookshanks became extremely irritable after returning home that day, not only yelling loudly but also making a mess of the dorm room.

Hermione had to use a lot of effort to subdue it and calm it down temporarily.

Mrs. Norris was in a similar state, practically dying if she didn't do something. Besides, in addition to comforting Mrs. Norris, Harry also had to be constantly on guard against Filch discovering anything amiss, which really exhausted him.

Moreover, these two cats cannot be separated for too long. Given their current state, unless Mrs. Norris successfully conceives, these two cats will absolutely not stop.

Consequently, their masters were forced to constantly find new ways to meet in secret.

From abandoned classrooms to suitcases and now the Room of Requirement, they've basically explored every possible place on Hogwarts that couples might use for clandestine trysts.

"But I think it's actually quite good this way," Harry said naturally, taking Hermione's hand. "Thanks to these two impatient little ones, we can have more time together. And once the kittens are born, we can take care of them together."

No matter their age, couples in love always want to be together. Just look at Filch's behavior to see that.

Harry was no exception, and he was actually quite grateful to the two cats, at least they were an excuse for Harry to ask Hermione out at night.

Otherwise, if he just tells her, "I miss you, let's go out and have an affair tonight," Hermione will most likely leave him starving all night.

"Mmm~" Hermione responded softly, resting her head on Harry's shoulder.

"Hermione..."

Harry's expression faltered slightly; to be honest, he felt Hermione had been acting a bit strange lately.

Especially when they were alone together, Hermione seemed to become a little too quiet.

It's not that Harry dislikes Hermione's gentle and tender nature, it's just that it's too far removed from her usual image.

If Miss Granger weren't arrogant and condescending, would she still be herself?

Moreover, Hermione has recently started wearing light makeup more often when going out, which would have been absolutely impossible before.

So... um?

"This smell is... Occamy Egg?"

The girl's sweet fragrance surrounded Harry, but as Harry savored it, he suddenly smelled a peculiar scent at the back of her hair, almost identical to the one he had smelled on the Occamy Egg.

"Hermione, you actually took Lockhart's shampoo, didn't you?"