ALL NOVEL Chapter 76: Promotion to Professor
News that Harry and his friends had been admitted to the hospital wing spread rapidly throughout the school. What shocked the students even more was that the trio had been injured while trying to stop Professor Quirrell from stealing the school's treasures!
In less than a day, there were already no fewer than ten different theories about the incident, the most widely circulated involving Professor Fawley. It was rumored that Professor Quirrell, dissatisfied and envious of how well-liked Fawley was among the students due to his superior teaching, hatched a bizarre plan—to steal Fawley's lecture notes.
Realizing Quirrell's nefarious intentions, the brave trio stood up to him, willing to endure injury to protect their professor's notes.
As a result, the students' admiration for the trio soared, and gifts piled up on their hospital beds. By the time Tver came to visit, there was hardly any room left for more presents.
"I just ran into George and the others in the hallway," Tver mentioned as he entered. "They were carrying three toilet seats, apparently to give to you."
Tver looked around for a place to set down his gift but, finding no space, simply handed out Pixie chocolates to the trio. Of course, there was also a new badge for Ron.
"What's this?" Ron asked, his mouth agape.
Tver blinked. "It's a badge for our hero."
At those words, Ron's eyes moistened slightly. He gripped the badge so tightly that its edges dug into his flesh, but he felt no pain; it seemed to imbue him with boundless strength.
Harry, grinning foolishly, tore open his chocolate and shared half with Ron, who, infected by the mood, also started to laugh.
However, unlike the carefree Harry and Ron, Hermione stared blankly at her chocolate, lost in thought.
"Professor, may I ask you a question?" she suddenly said.
Tver, surprised, turned to look at her. "What is it?"
Hermione hesitated for a long moment before lifting her head resolutely and asking in a firm tone, "It was you who really wanted to steal the Philosopher's Stone, wasn't it?"
Upon hearing this, Harry and Ron simultaneously stopped their actions, chocolate-filled mouths agape in shock.
Tver smiled easily.
"How did you figure that out?"
Without hesitation, Hermione clearly laid out all her deductions. "Just by looking at the results, one can see many details.
First, when Quirrell spoke with you, there was no hint of coercion; instead, it seemed he was intimidated by you as if he was the one being coerced. You used the word 'hero' and managed to save Harry, which shows you had control over the situation there. Maybe you were there the whole time, waiting for Quirrell to get the Philosopher's Stone for you.
The key point is, that last night, Harry and the others heard two loud noises, but I only heard the second one. This suggests the first noise occurred inside their minds, similar to a spell you've used before, intended to panic them but prevent them from encountering other professors."
"I..."
"Don't bother denying it," Hermione interjected, her face suddenly flushing, "I... I know every spell you've ever used!"
Tver patted her shoulder reassuringly.
"Well done, I thought my plan was meticulous, but you spotted so many flaws. I must say, you are the cleverest little witch I have ever met, Hermione."
Hermione blushed and stuttered, "Please don't say that, I just like reading books, I'm not as brave as Ron and Harry. On the contrary, if it weren't for you saving Harry at the end, I wouldn't have figured these things out."
Harry and Ron were speechless, humbly deferring to each other, but they were eager to learn more about Professor Fawley's plans.
"Why did you want to steal the Philosopher's Stone? For immortality?" Harry asked.
"Or for gold?" Ron chimed in.
"Neither," Tver smiled, shaking his head, "It's not something you need to worry about. Just know that I indeed wanted to obtain the Philosopher's Stone."
"But," Harry glanced cautiously around the infirmary before whispering, "now that things are like this, can you still get the Stone?"
"Do you want us to help? I'm really good at that chess game!" Ron added in a conspiratorial whisper.
Hermione rolled her eyes at their antics, "If the professor is here openly, it means that Headmaster Dumbledore already knows about this!"
Nodding, Tver looked relieved. "Yes, so while I appreciate your willingness to help, I must remind you to refrain from breaking school rules."
"And, Headmaster Dumbledore has already given me the Philosopher's Stone," he pulled the red stone from his pocket, "there's no need to steal it anymore."
"What about Nicolas Flamel?"
"Can you make the Elixir of Life?"
"Or produce gold?!"
The trio looked at the Philosopher's Stone in amazement, suddenly standing up from their beds, each asking a question reflective of their personalities.
"Let Headmaster Dumbledore explain Nicolas Flamel's situation to you. As for the Philosopher's Stone, I haven't learned how to use it, and I don't want immortality or gold."
According to the badge's feedback, even with the curse eroding him, if he could gather all four founders, he could live for at least two hundred years. By that time, he'd be an old man with no teeth left, long tired of life.
Harry and Ron lay back down, disappointed, while Hermione lowered her head sadly. She had already realized the fate that awaited the Flamels.
"Death, for some, is akin to a peaceful sleep, and what we must offer is respect," Tver whispered to her.
"Now, eat your chocolate. You and Harry were under my sleeping spell, though I controlled it quite well. However, please forgive my arrogance, my magical power seems to have been a bit too strong." After saying this, as if under a spell, Harry and Hermione both yawned widely.
Originally, a simple sleeping spell should have been easy to lift with a counter-curse. However, due to Tver's powerful spell and the pair's weak resistance to magic, they were left with lingering drowsiness.
Interestingly, after such an ordeal, Ron turned out to be the most seriously injured, though he had no lasting effects and could be discharged from the hospital after just a day's rest.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted outside the door.
"Let us in, Percy! I know they've woken up!"
"The issue is, you need to put those filthy toilet seats down!"
Percy's roar drowned out the twins' rebuttals, clear even to those inside the infirmary.
After a minute, the three of them entered the room, bustling and noisy, with the twins' hands now empty.
"Uh, Professor," Percy immediately switched to a more serious mode, ignoring the twins pinching his face, "we didn't know you were here."
"No need to be formal, but it's time for me to leave."
Percy suddenly stopped Tver, "Wait, Professor—"
"What is it?" Tver looked at him curiously. The young wizards sure had a lot of questions these days.
"Well, our previous Defense Against the Dark Arts professors usually only teach for a year, so, what are your plans moving forward?"
Unlike the first-year trio who were still a bit confused, Percy and his peers were well aware of the course's history and looked at Tver reluctantly.
"Don't worry, I have no plans to leave Hogwarts for at least a few years," Tver replied with a smile.
"Whoohoo!" The twins let out a cheer that echoed through the entire hospital ward, even drawing Madam Pomfrey's attention.
"This is a hospital, please keep it down!"
Percy took the opportunity to press down on his twin brothers' heads, "Sorry, we'll be careful."
Once Madam Pomfrey walked away, he turned to Tver again.
"Professor, do you know what happened to Professor Quirrell?"
"Quirrell? Well, he certainly won't have the opportunity to teach you anymore."
Tver knew that Quirrell was beyond repair...
Although they often joked that having Quirrell was like having no professor at all, Percy still felt a pang of loss.
"So, are we going to study on our own as in previous years?"
"Not at all. I will temporarily take over Quirrell's position, responsible for all the school's Defense Against the Dark Arts—"
"Whoohoo!" Percy, like the twins, couldn't help but cheer loudly.
"I need to tell everyone about this!"
Excited, he cheered as he sprinted towards the door.
"Wait, Percy, weren't we supposed to be visiting little Ron?!" George yelled.
"Who cares—!"