Fifty points from Slytherin

Ultimately, it was a matter of mindset.

If they only intended to become ordinary wizards after graduation, there was nothing wrong with that way of thinking.

But students who took Defense Against Dark Magic were very likely to choose dangerous professions after graduation.

Sometimes, another way of thinking could save their lives at a critical moment.

Since Wood had been the first to break through the door, he naturally entered the classroom first.

Some students were dissatisfied, but they said nothing.

The moment Wood entered the classroom, he discovered that the door behind him had suddenly closed.

He was in complete darkness.

Douglas, who had entered with him, had suddenly disappeared as well.

He hurriedly drew his wand. "Lumos!"

By the spell's light, he discovered that he was beside a lake.

Looking around, he saw water everywhere except for the spot where he stood.

He shone his wandlight toward the bottom of the lake.

He immediately saw more than a dozen corpses on the lakebed, and his legs went weak with fright.

He hurriedly backed up several steps.

"Inferi! The professor really did get hold of Inferi!"

At the same time, he felt somewhat excited.

The textbook had spelled out the weaknesses of Inferi very clearly.

They had no life, no souls, and no thoughts, and they feared fire and light.

What he needed to consider now was how to lure the Inferi up.

Wood shone his wand around and discovered a hemp rope beneath the lake's surface, stretching to the opposite shore.

Steeling himself, he reached out and grabbed the rope, then pulled quickly. He discovered a small boat emerging from the mist on the other side of the lake, moving in the direction he was pulling.

At the same time, as an excellent Quidditch Keeper, he also noticed that when the boat started moving,

the Inferi on the lakebed began swimming slowly toward him as well.

Wood was both startled and delighted.

He held his wand in one hand and pulled the rope with the other.

He was ready to attack at any moment.

Soon, he saw the Inferius closest to him leap out of the water first.

With his quick reflexes, Wood immediately dropped the rope in his hand.

He swung his wand and shouted,

"Incendio!"

A powerful jet of flame immediately burst from his wand, heading straight for the lake's surface in an attempt to form a protective ring of fire.

But our Mr. Wood had clearly forgotten that, apart from certain powerful fire spells,

other flames were still subject to the normal restraints of nature.

For instance, he had instinctively fired his flames at the surface of the lake.

But apart from the poor hemp rope catching fire,

the flames everywhere else went out with a series of hisses.

At that moment, the Seventh Year students observing and grading from their hiding place added another comment to their little notebooks.

Douglas, who was with them, watched Wood react quickly and cast the Fire-Making Spell again.

This time, it went straight toward the Inferi.

But when the Inferi sensed the flames coming, they dived straight into the water.

He sighed softly.

"Fortunately, he's a sixth-year. If he were in Seventh Year, I'd definitely make him repeat the year."

"When we don't have powerful magic to rely on, we should choose the most suitable spell for our circumstances."

The Slytherin student in Seventh Year taking notes gave Wood a contemptuous look, then said proudly,

"I learned a fire spell passed down in my family from my father. It's very suitable for situations like this.

"Ordinary wizarding families don't have the resources for private instruction that we Pure-blood families do."

Douglas gave him a cold look.

"The Fiendfyre Curse is hardly some excellent family spell. The last person who tried to make the Fiendfyre Curse a family spell ended up with his entire family dying in the flames!"

Douglas's words made the Slytherin student's expression freeze.

After repelling two successive waves of Inferi, Wood ultimately failed the challenge.

Douglas gave him a P without hesitation.

After restoring the scene, he had the students recharge the Inferi, then let the next person in to continue the challenge.

In fact, the Inferi on the lakebed were not real Inferi, but Fake Inferi Douglas had created using Transfiguration and a few combined spells.

He had also considered getting a real Inferius for the students to see.

Unfortunately, Professor McGonagall had firmly opposed bringing anything so dangerous and inhumane into Hogwarts.

Dealing with those Fake Inferi was actually very simple: all it took was an extra-large Lumos.

It would illuminate the entire lake completely.

Then the Inferi would not surface.

Unfortunately, the wizarding world's spellcasting habits always carried a certain inertia, or perhaps tradition.

When facing Inferi, most people were accustomed to using the Fire-Making Spell, which was more offensive and gave them a sense of security.

Yet they often overlooked the fact that Inferi were creatures that feared light.

After Wood came out, he did not tell everyone what it was really like inside.

After all, Douglas had said during the previous lesson

that whoever came first would become the class representative.

Although he felt that, as captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team, he was already very busy and had no time to be a class representative,

he still hoped that the class representative would come from his own house.

By the end of the lesson, not a single person had thought of using light against the Inferi.

Everyone foolishly used the Fire-Making Spell when they went in.

The one named Dolohov even cast a Fiendfyre Curse that went out of control.

Fortunately, Douglas reacted quickly and extinguished the Fiendfyre Curse with a direct Finite Incantatem.

Looking at Dolohov, whose own Fiendfyre had singed his hair into curls,

Douglas deducted fifty points from Slytherin without hesitation.

He ordered Dolohov to write a five-foot-long account of his misconduct and submit it to his Head of House, Professor Snape.

He also had to copy the Hogwarts school rules two hundred times.

"Dolohov, I hope you understand how serious a mistake you've made. I'm doing all this for your own good.

"If that out-of-control Fiendfyre Curse hadn't been stopped, this classroom wouldn't have been the only thing destroyed.

"Who knows how many Hogwarts students might even have died in the flames.

"Hmph! Don't give me that disdainful look. You should know that, besides me, there were several Slytherin students in Seventh Year in the classroom..."

Douglas looked at the fear showing in the eyes of the lawless fellow before him. He finally knew what it meant to be afraid.

After all, when the Fiendfyre Curse had gone out of control, it had truly terrified those other students in Seventh Year.

Bullying had always existed at Hogwarts.

It was especially severe within Slytherin: bloodline, year, and strength

could all become reasons for them to bully others.

Douglas was not going to meddle. Of course, he also did not think that, as a young Muggle-born professor,

his words would carry much weight with Slytherin once they left the Defense Against Dark Magic class.

Unless he used violence.

The end of the lesson soon arrived.

The Gryffindor students left the basement corridor with their arms around one another's shoulders.

Just as Douglas was about to leave, he suddenly spotted Professor Snape standing to one side of the corridor, looking coldly in his direction.

Douglas rubbed his nose.

Well, I've spotted a colleague. I ought to offer a friendly greeting.

"Hi! Professor Snape, I've hardly seen you this week! How have you been?"

Snape glanced at Douglas without speaking.

Then he spoke coldly to Dolohov, who was still standing at the sixth-year classroom door.

"Mr. Dolohov, do I need to invite you over?"

Watching from the side, Douglas could not help mentally smacking his lips.

Look at that. Now that's the presence a teacher should have. Do I need to invite you over?

I couldn't pull that off. No way. Too cold!

Once Dolohov had walked over on trembling legs, he stood obediently before Snape.

Snape gave a cold snort, then said to Douglas,

"Professor Holmes, I heard all those arrangements you made just now...

"Fifty points! Heh, quite right to deduct them!"

Hearing Snape's tone, Douglas's heart jolted.

Was he about to stand up for his own?