Is it such a serious matter?

If Voldemort hadn't made such a fuss, the situation would have been quite serious indeed.

"I'll let Minerva talk to him." Dumbledore paused for a moment, then nodded. "This matter is indeed a bit excessive."

Harry's expression was serious. "My suggestion is to expel him and use this as an excuse to get him out of here. Then replace him with a professor who is at least qualified for the Defense Against the Dark Arts class."

"Harry, I also hope to have a better professor." Dumbledore looked embarrassed. "Hogwarts professor is indeed a good position, but Defense Against the Dark Arts is not one of them. He is the only one who applied for it this year."

It's not that he wants to use Lockhart, it's that he can only use Lockhart.

"And even if he leaves, that thing will still remain at Hogwarts."

Harry tutted.

Only one person applied for the job? Was it because of the curse?

That damn bald, smooth-nosed old Tom.

"It's more than that." He shook his head and didn't continue the topic of expulsion. "Lockhart is a brainless troll, but Voldemort is not."

Dumbledore responded with a sigh, "Are you saying that someone else might have that thing?"

"Oh, yes, love makes you blind."

"Perhaps the little witch trapped in the swamp of love will risk her life for him."

"It seems that you have been blind before. I am actually very curious about your feelings. Is she very beautiful?" Harry thought thoughtfully, "You are still unwilling to get married even though you are over a hundred years old."

Dumbledore seemed not to have heard what Harry said. He snapped his fingers, summoned the elves, and asked them to search the student dormitories again.

The topic was brought up naturally.

They walked down to the basement level and knocked on Snape's office door.

Not long after, Snape, with greasy long hair and a black robe that never changed, came out: "Dumbledore, and Potter."

"You came to see me so late, have you finally figured it out and want to heal your brain?"

Dumbledore shook his head and said softly, "Severus, I am here to check your office. I don't know where Voldemort's dark magic items are now."

Snape's face suddenly changed, as if two pounds of feces were roughly stuffed into his mouth. His facial features were distorted, his eyes were disgusting, and his body was shaking with anger. He took out his wand and said, "Albus, you are still doubting..."

Harry was surprised, but he didn't ask.

"No, this is Mr. Potter's suggestion." Dumbledore waved his hand, interrupted and comforted him, "He suspected it was Lockhart, but I am the headmaster and cannot just check one professor."

Snape softened a little: "Mr. Potter really made a clever suggestion."

"Come in."

They went into the house.

Dumbledore had just taken out his wand.

"What do you know!" Snape lowered his voice and spoke to Dumbledore, but his eyes fell on Harry.

Harry shrugged, "If it's related to my mother, I don't think you should avoid me."

Snape flicked his sleeves without even looking at him.

Dumbledore waved his wand and carefully checked everything in the office. He listened to Snape's words, and a single drawer flew out, covered with a thick white mist, and only he could see what was inside.

Wait until everything is back in place.

"Are you relieved now?" Snape sneered.

Dumbledore said, "Forgive me, Severus. I trust you, very much, but I am still the headmaster of Hogwarts after all."

"What's going on now?" Snape sat down and waved his wand, and two chairs flew behind them. "Could it be that we found nothing?"

Dumbledore nodded. "Harry and I both doubt Lockhart."

“But he’s really too normal.”

"That's not normal at all," Harry retorted. "Sneaky and shifty."

"From a magical perspective, he is normal." Dumbledore paused and said more appropriately, "There is nothing unusual."

"Just like an ordinary person without any magic skills," Harry added.

"I've always suspected he was a Squib." Snape shook his head and sneered, "Since he doesn't have that, has he been to the Chamber of Secrets? Perhaps he will go back there."

"I'm waiting for news from the elf." Dumbledore snapped his fingers. "If the students still don't have any information, I think I'll have to go with Harry to check it out."

The Chamber of Secrets is not open to the house-elves.

They cannot move freely between the Chamber of Secrets like they can between Hogwarts.

More than half an hour later.

The elf reappeared in front of Dumbledore, with a fresh, burnt burn on his forehead. "Principal Dumbledore, we still haven't found the book you asked for."

"Is Professor Lockhart out?" asked Harry.

The elf shook his head, "No, Professor Lockhart's office door was always locked. He didn't come out, nor did he come out of the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom."

"Is a Confusion Charm possible?" Harry looked at Dumbledore.

Dumbledore waved the wand in his hand: "Don't worry, I have set up a spell just now. I will be able to sense it if he leaves."

That is to say...

He did not, as Harry and Dumbledore had guessed, take advantage of the time when he was checking on other professors to secretly give the thing to other people.

Lockhart becomes less of a suspect?

The three of them got up and hurried to the secret room.

Just like the first time I came back, it was empty.

There was no basilisk, no book, not even a trace of something new.

"Severus." Dumbledore called affectionately as they walked out of the Chamber of Secrets.

"I know." Snape said with great disgust. "I will keep an eye on Lockhart for you, but perhaps it would be better for you to leave him to Professor Flitwick."

He paused, then continued, "Lockhart's head must have been filled with at least a hundred owl droppings. He's been trying to set up a dueling club recently and has been bothering me every day."

Dumbledore seemed to remember something funny and chuckled, "At least there are only a hundred of them, right? Filius can't do that. He wants to use a de-aging spell on Lockhart, make him go back to Hogwarts and educate him again. Of course, he will send him to another college for education."

Snape sneered.

Harry was a little confused. What was owl poop? A joke similar to bezoars?

"Lockhart was a jerk when he was little," Dumbledore continued with a smile, "that is the most vivid memory I have of becoming headmaster."

"On Valentine's Day, he got eight hundred owls from somewhere and sent love letters to himself. It was a terrible breakfast."

"Severus hadn't graduated yet, and he suffered along with us."

Snape snorted through gritted teeth.

"Thanks, he's just my professor." Harry thought of that scene and felt more sick than eating two pounds of ghosts.

Until the end of the holiday, there were no further attacks on students.

Lockhart was a quiet man - of course, this was not the case with Snape, who was very noisy and came to discuss the Dueling Club every day.

How to design the stage and what kind of cool way to appear on stage.

He even hinted that Snape could have a show with him so that he could win thoroughly, but Snape took out his wand and refused with gritted teeth.

Snape complained to Dumbledore more than once that he would rather believe that the Dark Lord would choose to possess a troll than such a stupid creature.

The little wizards were not very free.

They could only stay in the common room every day, and meals were delivered on time by the elves. The good thing was that they could order dishes. In the past few days, Ron had eaten everything from Iceland to Cyprus.

Ginny came back the day before school started.

St. Mungo's checked her inside and out and found that the forgetfulness spell only made her a little mentally dazed, which would be fine after a month or two of rest. There were no other side effects.

As for the Imperius Curse...

It is one of the Unforgivable Curses and St. Mungo's cannot detect it, so it can only be physically isolated.

The holiday is over.

The little wizards who had just returned to the castle received an extremely explosive New Year's gift - Hogwarts has become more unsafe, and another person was attacked during the Christmas holidays.

This made the little wizards regret getting on the train.

Isn't it good to be at home?

Hermione listened to Ron's exaggerated description, blinking blankly, and grabbed Harry's hand: "So, we haven't caught the dark magic item of that... mysterious person yet?"