svetikya Chapter 70: Professor Quirrell Appears
Chapter 70: Professor Quirrell Appears
Chapter 70 "Professor Quirrell" Makes His Debut (Second update of 10,000 words per day, one more update at 6 PM)
Professor Quirrell showed no signs of injury; in fact, his gaze was sharper than when they first met in the Great Hall.
The first-year students were all stunned by the new professor.
They had assumed that the professor, having been defeated by Slack Anguis, would show a hint of embarrassment and annoyance on his face.
Just look at Professor Quirrell now —
"Because today's class rescheduling was temporary, I won't blame you for not bringing your books, but my class doesn't require books right now either."
Professor Quirrell said coldly, as if the people sitting in the audience were not first-year students, but a group of hungry Death Eaters.
Before the students could react, his gaze swept across the crowd and settled on Harry Potter.
"Oh, the famous savior, Harry Potter," Professor Quirrell pronounced Harry's name slowly and deliberately, as if casting a curse, "can you tell us what the fundamental principles of Defense Against the Dark Arts are?"
Harry was suddenly called out and stood up in surprise.
It felt somewhat familiar, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Moreover, although he had flipped through the textbooks in advance during the summer vacation, how could he be someone who memorized the concepts in the books?
Then, a sickeningly cold laugh echoed through the classroom.
"Mr. Potter, although you defeated the Mystic, you shouldn't be so arrogant as to have never even opened a book."
Professor Quirrell paused slightly, a hint of anger flashing in his eyes.
"Your arrogance will only ruin the people you care about, understand?"
I don't understand!
Harry stubbornly raised his head, meeting Professor Quirrell's gaze without flinching.
He wasn't afraid of this professor back in the Forbidden Forest, so he certainly wouldn't back down in front of everyone now.
Harry retorted.
"No matter how arrogant I am, I would never abandon my friends and run away," Harry declared defiantly. "If I'm going to die, I'll die with my friends. I would never beg for mercy!"
Are you talking about me, Harry?
Ron's face flushed crimson upon hearing this. He knew Harry hadn't meant it, but he still felt incredibly ashamed.
Professor Quirrell, standing on the podium, froze for a moment and abruptly turned around.
He felt as if his heart had been pierced by that groveling and begging phrase.
I didn't go to Lily, but went to Dumbledore, because I had no idea where Lily was—
Her home was protected by the Curse of Loyalty!
Harry, you don't understand anything at all!
"Ten points deducted from Gryffindor for your rudeness, Harry Potter!" Professor Quirrell uttered his usual phrase. "Now sit down!"
He turned around and looked at the increasingly angry Harry, staring intently into Harry's green eyes. He felt a pang of heartache, yet also a bittersweet feeling.
It was a wonderful feeling, and Professor Quirrell wanted to watch a little longer.
The classroom fell silent for a moment, as if someone had cast a silent spell.
After an unknown amount of time, Professor Quirrell sighed softly, raised his wand again, and made his words appear on the blackboard.
"The fundamental principle of Defense Against the Dark Arts is to deal with attacks by dark magic while ensuring one's own safety."
"But before that, we need to know what black magic is."
"This is something you will spend your whole life learning. Any carelessness could cost you your life."
The floating chalk wrote down Professor Quirrell's words one by one, and the young wizards sitting in the history of magic classroom all picked up their quills and wrote down what the grumpy professor had said.
"Potter, what is Dark Magic?"
At that very moment, Professor Quirrell asked another question.
Harry clenched his right fist, now somewhat regretting listening to Ron and sitting in the back of the classroom.
He wanted to rush up right now and give that annoying Professor Quirrell a good whack.
He doesn't even know the concept of Defense Against the Dark Arts, so how could he know what dark magic is?
In a flash, Harry suddenly realized the answer.
"The magic Voldemort used to kill my parents was dark magic!"
Upon hearing this, Professor Quirrell visibly flew into a rage, waving his wand so that Harry sat down abruptly.
"Never, ever say that name, Harry!" Professor Quirrell spoke again. "Gryffindor loses ten points because of Harry Potter's recklessness and ignorance."
When Harry sat down again, he finally understood who Professor Quirrell resembled.
"Professor Quirrell is practically Professor Snape's twin brother—" Ron muttered to himself.
"Five more points deducted from Gryffindor, Mr. Ron Weasley. Don't whisper in my class."
In just three sentences, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor Quirrell deducted twenty-five points from Gryffindor's grades.
The Gryffindors are now suddenly having some regrets.
They now hoped even more than the Slytherins that Professor Quirrell would be defeated by Slyck Anguill, preferably killed by a curse from Slyck Anguill!
One Snape was enough to give them trouble, but then came Professor Quirrell, who was even more perverted than Professor Snape.
Professor Quirrell didn't care about any of that; his eyes darted around and landed on Orochimaru.
Orochimaru didn't seem to find anything wrong with it; instead, he smiled slightly at him.
Although he was already well aware of Orochimaru's calm demeanor, the leisurely and composed manner Orochimaru displayed today still amazed him.
"Mr. Slack Anguis, there are rumors circulating on campus that you beat me. What do you think of the truth of that?"
Professor Quirrell looked down at Orochimaru, seemingly hoping for the same outcome as Harry had.
Orochimaru simply raised his head calmly and then sniffed lightly.
The bloody smell of Professor Quirrell —
It was much milder than that night.
Why does he act like a clerical worker who hasn't killed many people?
"Professor, have you ever killed anyone?" Orochimaru asked casually, "Whether in a duel or while traveling."
Professor Quirrell did not get the answer he wanted, and his face visibly darkened.
"Is the matter of taking life something you, a first-year wizard, are qualified to discuss?"
Professor Quirrell's tone turned even colder.
The Slytherins were all worried for Slyke Anguius.
It was because their Slytherin classmates had offended Professor Quirrell. After all, how could such a cold and arrogant person tolerate being the subject of rumors?
"Professor, killing doesn't discriminate based on age," Orochimaru calmly replied. "It's an act of violence by the powerful against the powerless. We can only fight back; passively accepting it will only lead to death."
Please stop talking —
The Slytherins all turned to look at Orochimaru, trying to quiet down the Slytherin who had been the center of attention yesterday.
Didn't he see that Professor Quirrell's expression was becoming increasingly tense, soon to resemble that of their Headmaster, Professor Snape?
"Well said, Slytherin gets a perfect score."
Professor Quirrell's abrupt change of topic surprised the Slytherins.
"The act of killing will never change because of the academy you belong to, the people you cherish, or the things you desire. It all depends on the power you possess."
Professor Quirrell wasn't just sighing; he was reminiscing, and even his tone became somber.
"Don't be like Mr. Potter, thinking that courage alone can rewrite everything. Study hard and listen carefully in my class, and that will change the outcome when you face danger."
Professor Quirrell, upon seeing the students looking up at him, suddenly became angry.
"What are you waiting for? Write down what I said!"
Swish swish————
In an instant, the classroom was filled with the sound of quill pens moving.
Ron Weasley, while taking notes, winked at Harry and gestured with his mouth as if to speak silently—
"Professor Quirrell is definitely Snape's twin brother; they're exactly alike in every way!"
"Stop winking, Ron Weasley."
Professor Quirrell's words followed Harry like a shadow, as if his eyes were glued to Harry.
"Gryffindor loses another five points!"
Under the shock of a series of deductions, the young wizards dared not look up, and the quills they held almost slipped out of their grasp.
Professor Quirrell was quite pleased with the sight, and his tone became tooth-ache-inducing again.
"I used to be a teacher of Muggle Studies at Hogwarts, and I only took over this Defense Against the Dark Arts class this year."
Professor Quirrell said slowly, as if afraid someone hadn't heard him clearly: "So I know better than anyone how cruel the killing nature of humans is, and that has nothing to do with whether or not someone is a wizard."
At this point, Professor Quirrell glared fiercely at Orochimaru.
"Never, ever let your guard down!"
After he finished speaking, he casually drew the image of a witch screaming in agony on the blackboard with his wand.
"This is one of the three unforgivable curses, called the Cruciatus Curse. It is one of the most powerful forms of dark magic, so you must be very careful when you encounter it in the future."
This content is completely outside the textbook!
Upon hearing this, Orochimaru slowly raised his head and looked at Professor Quirrell with curiosity.
"In addition to the three unforgivable curses, there is also the Imperishable Curse that manipulates a person's will and the Killing Curse that directly ends life."
"When a dark wizard uses these spells, your best option is to hide where he can't see you, and get as far away as possible, understand?"
After Professor Quirrell finished speaking, he cleared his throat.
For the rest of the class, no one thought about the duel between Slack Anguill and Professor Quirrell anymore.
Because this man, who was born in Ravenclaw and had served as a professor of Muggle studies, was an extremely learned defense-against-the-dark master.
His definition of black magic is accurate and apt.
"Dark magic, in essence, is something unpredictable and indestructible. It's like a monster's head that keeps regenerating, growing a new head the moment you let your guard down, and biting down on your neck."
"Compared to wizards who use dark magic, dark magic creatures are much weaker. Although they are cunning, they are still traceable, provided that you understand their weaknesses."
"Take trolls, for example. They're simple-minded monsters with big limbs. They're a bit like one of our classmates, so you can defeat them using your intelligence, not recklessness, understand, Potter?"
Is this never going to end?
Harry lowered his head, feeling that Defense Against the Dark Arts was even more agonizing than Potions.
What tormented him even more was that all the history of magic classes were two consecutive sessions, totaling two hours of lectures.
This means he has to endure another full hour of torture.
Harry couldn't help but pray that time would pass faster when he thought about it.
Professor Quirrell, standing on the podium, had no intention of letting the first-year students off the hook. He spoke in a light tone, like a runner finally reaching the finish line.
"Next is the Q&A session. You can ask me anything, and I'll answer it. If no one asks any questions, we'll take a ten-minute break."
Professor Quirrell glanced at the students and said expectantly.
Unfortunately, no one wanted to stay with this terrifying professor any longer, and even the Slytherins hoped they could finally catch their breath.
But just then, someone made a move.
One hand is raised high.
"Hermione Granger?"
"Yes, Professor, I have a question!" Hermione Granger asked slyly, "Can ghosts get sick?"