A Professor of Magic at Hogwarts

Chapter 123: The Scarlet Hat

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"You want us to deal with this thing? What if we get hurt?" said a young wizard with platinum blonde hair.

"And who might you be?"

"Draco, Draco Malfoy," he drawled, emphasizing his last name.

Bellby just nodded. "I've heard of the Malfoy family. Don't worry, I'll be watching from the sidelines." He added, "And if you do get injured, don't fret, the injuries caused by the Scarlet Hat are quite manageable."

He glanced at the small wizards below who were silent as mice. "I've brewed a batch of healing potions specifically, rare gems in the market...”

Draco looked at the new professor with a pallid face, clearly uncomfortable with Bellby's somewhat calculating expression.

"The Scarlet Hat is swift in its hunting, it changes direction abruptly, rolls to avoid the prey's counterattacks. We can use Expulsion Hex against it. Similarly, Petrification Curse, Freezing Charm, Leg-Locking Curse, Jelly-Legs Jinx, Tickling Hex, and Disarming Charm are all effective. Apart from Dark Magic, I have no specific requests."

"Young wizards, show me your skills!" Bellby said passionately.

"Professor, can we use the Disarming Charm?" a young wizard asked.

Bellby looked at him strangely. "If you know how, certainly. But that's not a spell you should be mastering at your age..."

"Professor, I learned it in dueling class," the wizard with light brown hair said confidently.

Other wizards took a couple of steps back. Nawi Longbottom and Siemo Finigan, also known as the two great accident-makers in the classroom, were renowned for accidents in Potions and Charms classes respectively—what bizarre mistakes his spells might produce was a mystery, even Professor Flitwick couldn't unravel.

"Very well, and you are Siemo Finigan, I presume? Step forward."

Bellby opened the cage, subtly using a Softening Charm to soften the Scarlet Hat's nails.

Amidst the eager anticipation of the young wizards, Siemo loudly pronounced the incantation of the Disarming Charm—

"Deprive of thy weapon!"

"Hiss!"

Siemo's wand emitted a muffled sound, like the distant rumble of winter thunder. A series of sparks shot out from the tip of his wand, accompanied by black smoke, spraying wildly.

The young wizards quickly huddled in the corner, and Siemo's wand came to a stop, but his sparks had ignited the red hair on the Scarlet Hat's head.

Bellby quickly shouted, "Clear waters like springs," extinguishing the flames. He turned to Siemo. "Uh... not quite a successful attempt, your Disarming Charm isn't proficient— in actual combat, you'll find using unfamiliar spells against danger is quite foolish. Can you do any other spells? The Leg-Locking Curse? Excellent, but try it on the table first..."

This time, fortunately, no problems arose, and Siemo successfully repelled the Scarlet Hat using the Leg-Locking Curse.

Of course, this might be because the Scarlet Hat dared not come close, with most of its red fur burned.

Bellby wiped his brow on the side.

Next, the young wizards formed a queue and, guided by Bellby, took turns challenging.

As Bellby didn't forbid them from using self-learned minor curses, the collective strength of the young wizards took a step forward. Those at the forefront stumbled and fumbled through the task...

Deane Thomas's Jelly-Legs Jinx caused the Scarlet Hat to stumble and collapse, rendering it completely limp;

Draco Malfoy's Tickling Hex made the Scarlet Hat burst into uncontrollable laughter;

Pansy Parkinson's Expulsion Hex forced the Scarlet Hat to retreat repeatedly, unable to approach;

Hermione Granger's Freezing Charm froze the Scarlet Hat in place, only its small eyes darting around;

Ron's Petrification Curse immobilized the Scarlet Hat's legs, turning it into a stone-like form on the ground;

Harry's Disarming Charm sent the Scarlet Hat flying far away, unable to recover for a while;

Midway through, the two Scarlet Hats seemed unwilling to attack anymore. However, when Bellby produced a vial of deep red, blood-like potion and pointed at the young wizards, they became excited.

Subsequently, the young wizards were hit hard—

The Scarlet Hats displayed remarkable aggression and adept hunting techniques in the subsequent tests. They agilely changed directions with their forelimbs, emitting threatening noises with their mouths, causing hesitation in the young wizards facing them.

For the young wizards, once they hesitated or became timid, their performance faltered.

For instance, Neville Longbottom, after several failed attempts at spellcasting, began to run around the classroom, earning laughter from Slytherin students. Soon, he was cornered, and the Scarlet Hat used its softened nails to continuously scratch his thighs—

"Counterattack! Neville Longbottom, you need to counterattack, in whatever way you can," Professor Bellby shouted loudly from the side.

Summoning courage, Neville grabbed the Scarlet Hat's claw and flung it away.

The young wizards watched as the small Scarlet Hat flew through the air, traversing half the classroom, only to be caught by Bellby using a Levitation Charm.

Neville seemed to have opened up new possibilities for them.

"Very good! Do you see? The Scarlet Hat isn't that formidable... When you're cornered, instead of fearing and retreating, it's better to fight back with all your might."

Crabbe, who was big and burly, wanted to replicate this process. He attempted a direct punch, hoping to knock down the Scarlet Hat decisively. However, the Scarlet Hat skillfully evaded and ended up tripping him from behind—

The Scarlet Hat leaped onto Crabbe's chest, attempting to claw at his face and eyes.

"What did I say? Don't cower, summon your courage... Scarlet Hats aren't superior in physical endurance; their strength lies in surprise attacks and agility," Professor Bellby encouraged.

But Crabbe let out an exaggerated scream until Bellby used a spell to pull the Scarlet Hat away, at which point Crabbe continued to shout.

Draco couldn't help but pat him and said, "Don't talk nonsense, you don't have any injuries on your face!"

...

When the lesson came to an end, Bellby breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he had foreseen the situation and preemptively cast a spell to soften the Scarlet Hat's nails. Otherwise, half of the young wizards might have been knocked down.

Although he could indeed heal them, it wouldn't sound good if he knocked down a bunch of students in the first lesson.

Addressing the young wizards, he summed up the class: "How many of you noticed that the Scarlet Hat's nails were softened with a spell?"

A few hands were raised.

"That shouldn't be, really shouldn't be..." Bellby shook his head. "All the young wizards after Longbottom should have realized it; he doesn't have a single scratch on him!"

The young wizards began to feel embarrassed, but at the time, they genuinely hadn't noticed.

"Observation of details, assessment of the situation—these are things you need to think seriously about... Well, for your assignment, write a paper of at least eight inches discussing your gains and losses from this class."

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