Hogwarts Card System Chapter 157

Chapter 158: There’s a Traitor Among Us~

It’s gone!

The diary was stolen!

Ted wanted to check the scene for traces, but found that everything had been destroyed.

Dean and Seamus, a pair of good friends, were the first to discover the dormitory had been ransacked.

The two, worried about bumping into Neville, went back to the dorm together to get some things, only to find the door open and pillows, bedding, books, and various items scattered all over the floor.

They immediately cried out and then went to check what had been lost.

Later, other Gryffindor boys also ran over to watch the commotion, and the scene was left with almost no valuable evidence.

But after they checked, they found that nothing of theirs was missing.

So, only Neville lost a diary he had picked up a few days ago?

Ted and a grim-faced Neville left, with many students behind them whispering, suspecting that Neville might have been behind it.

You can’t expect young wizards of this age to have independent thinking skills.

Even when they grow up, they might not necessarily become wiser.

Let it be, no time to bother with them.

The two stopped in a corridor, and Neville asked with a troubled expression, “Ted, who do you think it could be?”

Ted smiled, “In any case, it’s a Gryffindor student.”

“A Gryffindor student?” Neville was surprised by Ted’s words.

“Yes! After all, no one else knows your password, so they can’t get into your common room.”

“This…”

Even if it was a Gryffindor student, there were over sixty students across six grades in the school—girls could enter the boys’ dorm, but who could it be?

Ted, meanwhile, was wondering if it was still Ginny?!

Ginny had indeed acted abnormally at the start of the school year, being sick for a long time.

But in the past two months, she had become healthy and lively.

Through Luna, Ted had subtly probed and learned a lot about Ginny’s condition, which was completely different from the original story.

Perhaps things had changed!

So what exactly had changed? And who had the diary now?

This was truly troublesome.

Ted instructed Neville not to tell his friends about the diary and Hagrid for now, to wait and see if the diary could be found.

This wait lasted more than ten days, with no clues.

Ted also secretly observed some Gryffindor students, especially Ginny.

No abnormalities, at least not on the surface.

He couldn’t probe their minds without any evidence; that would be crossing the line.

He wouldn’t get off easy then.

Besides, he didn’t even have a suspect!

Thus, time came to February 14th.

Early in the morning, the entire castle felt restless. The older students were buzzing with excitement, their eyes gleaming in twos and threes.

Upon asking, it was discovered, “Ah, it’s Valentine’s Day!” Then, no problem!

I’ll just take out the magical dummy I got last year and practice a bit~

Originally, everyone thought that Valentine’s Day had nothing to do with the younger students. But Professor Lockhart clearly didn’t think so.

He had been a professor at the school for half a year, and what had he gained? No fame, almost ruined his reputation.

The entire Duelling Club, right? It was a mess, and Professor McGonagall and Flitwick had to take turns supporting it.

Finally, Lockhart, after much painful reflection, decided he needed to cause a stir and gain fame in his area of expertise.

And Valentine’s Day was the best opportunity!

Who understood Valentine’s Day better than the handsome and charming Lockhart?!

Just you wait~

So, as everyone was eating breakfast in the Great Hall, a pair of ugly little dwarves arrived, with wings on their backs, clutching tiny harps, and looking sullen—like a cross between a goblin and a Redcap.

They were so ugly, they were like ugly knocking on ugly’s door, ugly to the extreme. One look made you frown, ruining your appetite for lunch.

Then Lockhart made a dazzling entrance, first flashing a charming smile, and then began his grand Valentine’s Day plan!

“Students, to celebrate the annual, heartwarming Valentine’s Day, I have invited these little angels of love to help convey affection~ Don’t be shy, don’t be coy, love must be spoken loudly! I hope you like them~”

Like them? Like your ancestors for eight generations!

Good heavens, these ugly little dwarves started bustling about, scurrying everywhere. You could see them in corridors, classrooms, and even common rooms.

They didn’t care what you were doing, whether you were in class or eating. They’d just push open the door, strum their harps that sounded like they were for a funeral, and start singing from a little piece of paper!

That’s right, someone would write a little note to their beloved, and these little dwarves would then sing and play.

It felt even worse than having Chinese rap!

Ted and his friends were in Transfiguration class when a little dwarf burst through the door.

“Who’s Ted?”

“Ted Epiphany? Not here?”

All the students looked at Ted, who thought to himself: Oh no!

The little dwarf was also good at reading faces, and amidst the gazes, he spotted Ted: “Ha, it’s you!”

He jumped directly in front of Ted, and across the table, began to sing and play.

“Oh, my beloved youth~ youth, youth~ I love your dashing face~ face, face~”

Ted’s hairs stood on end; it felt like listening to a chainsaw sawing wood at a lumber mill!

As the sound rang out, Ron’s face was twitching, and he was trembling all over.

Harley laughed so hard she held her stomach and rolled under the table.

Neville’s eyes were vacant, unable to think anymore.

Jerry’s two rat ears turned and pressed tightly against his head; he was so embarrassed he had “airplane ears.”

Hermione’s little face was puffed up with anger!

Ted’s scalp tingled: No, I must stop him!

He was about to reach out and give him a non-verbal, Modified Ice Ray of Ice Finger.

But Professor McGonagall, who was teaching, had already lost her temper!

Although she was annoyed at being interrupted, she had wanted to hear what kind of “love letters” the girls had written to Ted. She never expected it to be so horrifying!

“OUT!” the lioness roared.

Professor McGonagall flicked her wand, and a chair transformed into a hound that pounced on the little dwarf.

The little dwarf let out a yelp and scurried out the door, abandoning his harp and losing his wings, with the hound chasing after him!

That was being polite. It was said that one dwarf broke into the Potions classroom in the dungeons. Before he could even finish one line of a song, Snape knocked him out with a spell and hung him on the dungeon wall as a statue for two hours!

Later, these dwarves refused to continue and found Lockhart, with a clear central message: the professors at this school are too impolite~ we need a raise!

This matter mostly ended by the afternoon, as the dwarves’ singing was indeed unbearable.

Although the young wizards in the school still yearned for budding romance, dear, this was not love.

This was torture!

It could break up couples who were already together.

During lunch, many students were quietly cursing these dwarves, and by extension, Lockhart.

Jerry even gave a precise evaluation: the higher a monkey climbs, the clearer its red backside is revealed.

Perhaps they were so tormented by Lockhart and his seven dwarves.

As the saying goes, one longs for dawn in the middle of the night, and spring in the depths of winter. If one wishes for Ted to come, the Great Hall will sing with spring.

In the afternoon, in the corridors and classrooms, many young wizards stared wide-eyed at Ted.

Ted thought to himself: What are you doing? Just say it, why are you staring at me?!

Then someone asked, “Ted, aren’t you going to sing?”

“Exactly! Why are you so well-behaved today!” said Harley.

Hermione also looked at Ted, her face full of expectation: “Sing a song~”

“Yes, yes, let everyone cleanse their ears. Our ears were almost killed by those dwarves. They’re still ringing!” Jerry said with an exaggerated expression.

“Sing one, sing one,” Neville also egged him on.

“Alright then, let’s wait until dinner~” Ted agreed.

Because the mission had arrived:

“Ding~ Mission triggered: [Singing Valentine’s Day (Green)]

Originally, you didn’t want to steal the spotlight, but Lockhart has caused too much trouble this year, and everyone hopes you can bring back the proper Valentine’s Day atmosphere. It can’t go on like this~

Goal: Showcase your singing talent and let everyone have a happy holiday.

Reward: 250 experience points, card [Heart-Thumping Fireworks (Green)].

No choice, it’s hard to refuse their kindness~”

Ted hadn’t done anything before because no mission had been triggered, and he wondered if there were no more holiday missions.

If it weren’t for the mission, Ted would definitely not sing; he couldn’t be taken advantage of!

He didn’t expect a mission to be triggered by the students’ unanimous invitation.

The conditions for triggering this mission were truly hard to understand!

So what should he sing tonight?

No one knew who spread the word, but by dinner time, the news that Ted was going to sing was common knowledge.

In the evening, the young wizards arrived early and in full force, like a concert, sitting down well in advance.

This scared the house-elves in the kitchen, who worried if dinner was early and if they would be able to serve the food in time.

After a simple feast, Ted took out his beloved old guitar.

“Ahem~” He casually cast a Sonorus charm on himself.

“Students, today is Valentine’s Day. To liven up the atmosphere, I plan to sing a song, and I hope you all enjoy it~”

With that, he waved his wand, and the two rows of long tables in the middle slid to the sides, clearing a large area in the center of the Great Hall.

He raised his wand again, and something like a disco ball flew out and hung on the transparent ceiling.

Colorful lights spun and cast down, instantly setting the mood.

“Wow~~~” The young wizards cheered and applauded.

Ted’s two magical gestures were effortless and quite impressive. Even average fifth-year students couldn’t do this.

[Celebrity (Green)]

Spell Card

Use: + 2 Charisma, lasts 30 minutes.

Cooldown: 12 hours.

Use it! Charisma 9 points!

Ted strummed the strings: “A song, ‘Under a Violet Moon,’ for all of you~”

“Dancing to the feel of the drum

Leave this world behind

We’ll have a drink and toast to ourselves

Under a violet moon

Tudor Rose with her hair in curls

Will make you turn and stare

Try to steal a kiss at the bridge

Under a Violet Moon

Raise your hats and your glasses too

We will dance the whole night through

We’re going back to a time we knew

…”

(End of this chapter)