Harry Potter: From Muggle Cousin to Conceptual Wizard

Chapter 314 Snape's Reflections! A New Dueling Plan!

During his school days, when Snape was in fifth grade, James bullied him by hanging him upside down in the air with magic to mock him. Lily discovered this and rescued him.

However, due to long-standing differences in their beliefs and the severe blow to his self-esteem from being embarrassed in front of his beloved, he became enraged and cursed Lily without thinking.

Moreover, he used the most vile term for Mudbloods, 'Mudblood,' to insult Lily.

From then on, Lily was completely disappointed in him and stopped defending him in front of her friends, no matter how much he apologized later.

Although the events and nature of today's incident are quite different from what happened before, if I ask myself honestly, he was just as unreasonable and just as unable to control his temper, taking it out on others.

He seems to be the same as before, with no fundamental changes.

At this moment, Snape recalled a sarcastic remark Dudley made to him during Potions class in the first week of the school year when he attacked him without warning.

"If Voldemort hadn't intended to kill Aunt Lily, you'd probably still be the Dark Lord's right-hand man!"

Yes! If Lily were still alive, he would never realize that there was anything wrong with him joining the Death Eaters for power, siding with Voldemort, and discriminating against Muggle wizards with those pure-bloods.

If Lily were still alive, his identity and situation would be very different now.

in case……

"How long are you going to stay lost in thought?"

Dalison's cold words interrupted Snape's recollection and thoughts.

Snape's dazed eyes slowly focused, only to hear Dudley's reprimand.

"Professor Snape, you're talking nonsense about wizard duels? If this were a battlefield, the time you were in a daze just now would have been enough for you to die dozens of times over!"

Dudley saw that Snape was showing signs of reflection, so his words were no longer cryptic but rather direct and sarcastic.

"I……"

Snape spoke up, unusually wanting to soften his stance, to tactfully admit his mistake, and to gloss over the matter.

Keda Li is not giving him a chance to speak.

"Professor Snape, let me ask you this: have you ever audited any of Professor Lockhart's previous classes? Have you ever surveyed the students who have taken Professor Lockhart's classes?"

From a fair and objective perspective, would you dare say that Professor Lockhart's theoretical lectures had no merit?

You secretly mocked Professor Lockhart, spread rumors against him, and today you repeatedly pressured Professor Lockhart to prove himself. Is this out of public interest or personal desire?

Do you dare answer these questions directly?

Dudley used his signature tactic, firing off a barrage of questions that struck at the heart of the matter.

Actually, the answers to these questions are now obvious.

Everyone in the classroom, whether students or professors, could tell right from wrong.

At this moment, Dudley's barrage of questions made him seem like everyone's 'mouth substitute'.

After Dudley finished asking his question, he and the others waited for Snape's reply.

But Snape hesitated and remained silent for a while, causing the atmosphere in the classroom to freeze again.

Just as Professor Moody was getting a little impatient and was about to step forward again.

Snape, his face drooping, reluctantly began to speak:

“In this matter… my actions were indeed ill-considered, Professor Lockhart, I am… sorry.”

Snape apologized; it seems the sun has risen in the west.

Everyone who knew Snape's personality stared wide-eyed.

Little did they know that when Snape apologized, he hadn't taken Lockhart seriously at all.

He was thinking about whether things would have been different if he hadn't insulted Lily or apologized immediately.

This idea was very subtle, hidden under the powerful cover of Occlumency, and not revealed much in his expression.

No one could believe that the proud, aloof, and imposing old bat would ever bow his head and admit his mistakes.

Even Dudley himself was somewhat surprised; he had thought Snape would simply walk away and leave the classroom.

Unexpectedly, the death of one's beloved could be so devastating to someone so obsessed with love, to the point that it contradicts their long-held personality and persona.

Dudley didn't even mention Lily directly, but subtly reminded Snape to reflect, yet it still achieved such a remarkable effect.

He couldn't quite imagine what Snape would be like after Aunt Lily's resurrection.

However, this is not something we should be considering right now.

Dudley turned and gave Lockhart a wink, signaling him to stop while he was ahead and end the conflict.

Lockhart seemed to have misunderstood, or perhaps, seeing Snape compromise and back down, a flash of inspiration struck him, and a bolder idea came to mind.

Lockhart cleared his throat and said:

“Professor Snape, I accept your apology, but the duel you just mentioned is not out of the question.”

Upon hearing this, Dali frowned.

He glanced at Lockhart sideways, his eyes seeming to say: The sun is shining, the rain has stopped, do you think you're invincible again?

But the next moment, Dudley realized he had misunderstood Lockhart.

Lockhart wasn't getting carried away or overestimating his abilities; rather, he was taking a roundabout approach, devising a crooked method to alleviate his research pressure.

Because Lockhart continued almost without pausing:

"However, the duel I'm talking about isn't the traditional wizard duel where you fight with wands and spells in a ring, but a more meaningful duel."

Lockhart's words piqued the curiosity of the students and professors in the classroom.

Then, he smiled and scanned the entire room before fixing his gaze on Snape, revealing his thoughts:

"Neville Longbottom, a first-year student at Gryffindor, is someone all of you professors should know."

I don't know if everyone noticed, but based on my knowledge of spells, I can conclude that this little wizard named Neville has a severe case of the aftereffects of the Oblivion Curse.

That's why he appears so slow and forgetful.

As a professor who cares about his students, I was deeply concerned about Neville's condition.

I swear I will research and develop magic to cure the aftereffects of the Forgetfulness Curse and help Neville regain his health.

But I also know deeply that one person's strength is limited, and to cure Navi as soon as possible, we need the strength of more people!

I cannot selfishly keep this news to myself, conduct research alone, and then make a name for myself when I have accomplished something great; that would go against my original intention of saving lives.

I have heard that Professor Snape has made extraordinary achievements in the fields of potions and spells, therefore I wish to duel with you to see who can be the first to develop a cure for Neville.

Other professors are welcome to participate if they are willing to help.

Traditional wizard duels are too discordant; it's much more meaningful to compete in healing and saving lives.

I wonder if Professor Snape and the other professors would be willing to take on this challenge?