pertwk Chapter 127 Sorting Clerk Speaks of Betrayal
Chapter 127 Sorting Clerk Speaks of Betrayal
Chapter 128 Sorting Clerk Speaks of Betrayal
Harry walked to the side door and saw Lockhart, the embroidered pillow, and felt quite strange.
He asked suspiciously, "Professor Dumbledore dismissed you from your post long ago, so why are you causing trouble here again?"
"No, no, no, strictly speaking, it should be called a job transfer."
Lockhart stomped his numb foot, leaned closer to Harry, and said with a smile, "I'm now the assistant professor for Defense Against the Dark Arts."
As she spoke, she grabbed Harry's sleeve and forcefully pulled him into the side door. Inside the room was a mirror stand with a rhombus design, piled high with rouge, face powder, and rouge and cinnabar, resembling a peddler's carrying pole.
Lockhart, holding a pair of gold scissors in his left hand and a jade comb in his right, said proudly, "You're the star of the night, Harry. Professor Dumbledore specifically asked me to help you with your makeup."
Then, winking and saying, "Once I've finished dressing you up, if Mr. Colin is willing to take your picture, I dare say you'll definitely win the Most Charming Smile Award from Wizarding Weekly."
Harry was enraged and swung his hand out, but with a clang, the golden scissors flew out.
Harry glared and shouted, "What kind of makeup is this! Do you think I'm some kind of courtesan selling my smile in a brothel?!"
"I, Harry, rely on my fists and my loyalty to make a living. I would never stoop to such vulgar and shady dealings!"
Lockhart's face flushed red and then turned pale after being reprimanded. He wanted to fight back, but feared Harry would draw his knife; he wanted to give up, but feared he would miss the task Dumbledore had assigned him. He was caught in a dilemma, pacing around like an ant on a hot pan.
He hesitated for a long time before finally managing a forced smile and saying, "Alright, then changing my clothes is fine, isn't it?"
"It's just matching some different styles, it doesn't count as dressing up or makeup."
Harry pondered for a moment before nodding and saying, "In that case, I'll do as you say this time."
The flower blooms at two ends, each telling its own story.
Meanwhile, Ron and Hermione followed the crowd toward the Great Hall, whispering amongst themselves.
"Hermione, how do you think Professor Dumbledore will have Harry resolve the conflict between Slytherin and the other houses? Will he have a snake dance with Miss Nagini?"
Hermione looked disgusted. "Oh, that's a bit too scary."
"Actually, I'm more worried about what other people will do than what Harry is going to do in a little while—you see."
She pointed quietly ahead, and Ron looked in the direction she was pointing. He saw Colin arguing heatedly with a Ravenclaw student, with a few onlookers around them.
"Harry would never keep a snake as a pet! He already has an owl named Snow White!"
"The school rules don't say students can only bring one pet!"
"It couldn't possibly be a snake! If it is, I'm transferring to Slytherin today!"
Upon hearing this, five or six students around cheered in unison.
Ron clicked his tongue and said, "That's really fanatical."
"These students are way too crazy," Hermione sighed. "They seem to only accept the Harry they've imagined."
"Do you remember what Salazar's pure-blood doctrine originally looked like? And what does pure-blood doctrine mean now?"
The two entered the hall while talking and took their seats.
The new wizards gathered in front of the Sorting Hat, each one eager and impatient to perform the old custom of throwing the hat.
Once everyone had arrived, Dumbledore slowly stepped onto the stage, waved his wand, and cast an amplification spell, his voice booming like a bell that resounded in all directions.
"The new school year has begun, and now it's time for the much-anticipated college sorting ceremony."
"However, there should be some new changes in the new school year, so at this year's Sorting Ceremony, I specially invited Harry Potter, the outstanding student who saved Hogwarts twice, to assist with the Sorting."
Upon hearing this, the students below the stage immediately erupted in cheers, which quickly turned into thunderous applause.
Dumbledore smiled and raised his hand, and with a loud bang, the vermilion doors of the Great Hall swung open.
What a scarred man! He was dressed in a wizard's robe embroidered with clouds, bordered in red, green, and indigo. In his right hand he held a demon-slaying staff, and in his left hand he wore a black glove, gripping the hilt of a knife tightly, exuding an imposing aura.
A ten-foot-long azure-scaled python coiled beside him, its scales rippled like waves in the wind, its tongue spitting out more forcefully than a spear, and the hissing sound it made made one's soul tremble and one's spirit shake.
Upon seeing the azure-scaled python, the cheers that erupted were quickly silenced, and thousands of eyes were fixed on it.
Even the Slytherin students looked at each other, unsure whether to applaud or boo.
Looking at the professors' table, Lupin seemed lost in thought, Snape's face was as cold as frost, while Flitwick stared intently at the serpent, wishing he could immediately transform it into an eagle and perch on his shoulder.
Harry strode onto the platform, clasped his hands in greeting, and proclaimed loudly, "I am Harry Potter, and I have come today to sort you into your houses!"
The group of freshmen on the side of the stage, each with a sword at their waist, were all young heroes who had come here because of its reputation. How could they dare to say a single word of dissent?
Just as the room fell silent, Dumbledore smiled and said, "Harry, let's begin the sorting."
"Wait a moment!"
Suddenly, a loud shout rang out from the Gryffindor table, and Colin jumped up, crying out indignantly, "Harry, why did you keep a snake as a pet?"
As soon as he said this, hundreds of eyes in the audience were fixed on Harry, eager to hear his explanation.
Hermione had a bad feeling and quickly took out the Death Journal and a quill from her robes, intending to teach Harry how to avoid this disaster.
Dumbledore was afraid that Harry might say something inappropriate without thinking.
Just as I was about to smooth things over, Harry shouted loudly:
"Of course, we must clear the way for Slytherin and give them a good shout-out!"
Upon hearing this, Dumbledore felt as if he had been doused with cold water on a sweltering summer day; his head throbbed with pain, and he felt as if he were about to collapse. Snape smirked, took a potion bottle from his pocket, and tossed it to Dumbledore. Dumbledore caught it, shakily swallowed half of it, and only then did he regain his composure.
Hermione's expression froze for a moment, then she quickly picked up her pen and made a few horizontal strokes on the book before writing furiously.
These words pierced Colin's ears like a thousand arrows, turning his face ashen, and he wanted nothing more than to crush the camera in his hand.
"Have you forgotten what happened last year? Those Slytherins have been hoping we'd all be killed by the heir to the Chamber of Secrets!"
Hermione was taken aback again. Was the question so pointed?
She quickly lowered her hair and made another round of corrections.
Harry laughed at his question, "That scoundrel can't even speak Parsley, what right does he have to call himself the heir?"
"You all received guidance in my secret chamber and witnessed the Parseltongue; you should know that I am the successor chosen by Master Salazar!"
"Of all the hundreds and thousands of students in Slytherin House, who is more worthy to carry on the Slytherin tradition than I? The one I recognize today is the true Slytherin!!"
Harry's voice boomed like thunder, echoing endlessly through the walls. As if under a silencing spell, no one uttered a sound.
Ron clenched his teeth so tightly that he couldn't help but gasp for breath and jabbed Hermione three times with his elbows.
"Did you hear that? Harry's gone completely mad, he's trying to create a new Slytherin!"
(End of this chapter)