It must be said that Remus John Lupin was truly exceptional.
With his outstanding abilities, he managed to complete two years' worth of curriculum with Sherlock and the others in just one school year.
There was no helping it—the holes left by the previous two Defense Against the Dark Arts professors were simply too enormous.
The first, Professor Quirrell, only knew how to teach by the book and had absolutely no practical content at all.
The second, Professor Lockhart, was somewhat better. At least he had taught everyone some useful spells.
The problem was that each lesson only lasted five minutes, with the remaining time entirely devoted to rehearsing stage plays.
Yet even so, he was still better than Quirrell from the first year.
It wasn't until Professor Lupin's arrival that everything changed.
"I don't want to discourage anyone, but I still need to tell you the truth," Professor Lupin said, surveying the classroom as he spoke slowly. "Even though we've worked hard to catch up on the curriculum, you're still not proficient enough at countering spells—nowhere near enough.
For fourth-years like yourselves, we need to face more challenging content that's closer to real threats.
Of course, safety and control remain the top priorities for teaching." Professor Lupin noticed some of the young wizards' expressions and added this clarification.
Next, his gaze swept across the copies of The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection on everyone's desks—this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook, as he said slowly, "I do recommend everyone read this book carefully, but not in class. Put them away for now. You won't need them today."
Hearing this, the students put their books in their bags, each showing excited expressions.
Sure enough, surprising practical lessons were Professor Lupin's standard format!
"Please follow me, everyone."
Just like the first lesson last year, Professor Lupin led everyone out of the classroom and down the corridor.
Just after turning the corner, they ran into Peeves floating in midair.
Seeing the queue behind Professor Lupin, the mischievous grin on his face froze for a moment.
Ever since Professor Lupin had quietly taught him a lesson last year, Peeves had finally learned his lesson.
He stuck out his tongue, made a face at Lupin, then whooshed into a side corridor, never daring to block the way and provoke them as he used to.
Soon they arrived at that familiar staff office.
It was here last year that they first encountered a Boggart.
"Last school year, you successfully dealt with quite a few magical creatures. While each had its own dangers, most followed clear instincts and patterns. However, real threats extend far beyond these magical creatures."
Professor Lupin stood in the center of the office, his voice particularly clear in the spacious room, though his expression gradually became serious. "The wizarding world contains some extremely powerful, malevolent Dark magic. These spells are always far more terrifying than these magical creatures, or even Dark magical creatures."
Hearing Professor Lupin say this, the students' hearts rose to their throats.
Sherlock and Hermione inconspicuously exchanged a glance.
Harry looked confused, but this time Ron's reaction was faster than Harry's. He couldn't help but whisper, "He's not going to teach us those illegal Dark curses, is he?"
He didn't say the name, but Sherlock and Hermione understood what he meant—the three Unforgivable Curses.
Hermione frowned thoughtfully, then whispered in rebuttal, "No, Professor Lupin isn't that radical. He emphasizes gradual progression and safety."
If Professor Lupin really did this, it would completely break his character.
She instinctively glanced at Sherlock, who nodded slightly.
Professor Lupin seemed to hear their whispers. His gentle gaze passed over Ron with a hint of a smile. "Don't be nervous, Ron. According to Ministry of Magic regulations, I should indeed teach you counter-curses against various offensive spells. However, before you advance to sixth year, I will not demonstrate to you nor allow anyone to demonstrate to you—those curses that are explicitly prohibited by law and are utterly evil."
"But!"
The young wizards had just breathed a sigh of relief when Professor Lupin's tone shifted, his expression becoming unusually grave. "Understanding darkness and being vigilant against darkness is the first step in learning to resist it. Some curses, though not classified as Unforgivable, can be just as destructive and cause just as much pain and chaos when used properly—especially when the caster harbors malicious intent.
Today, I intend to start with the most basic offensive and defensive combat."
Hearing this, the young wizards became excited immediately.
"Excellent! We can finally have real combat!"
"I knew it would be like this!"
"Is it like the Dueling Club?"
Professor Lupin waited a moment for the commotion in the classroom to subside, then raised his hand to signal for quiet.
Next, he waved his wand, and four glowing circles about five meters in diameter immediately appeared on the open space in the center of the staff lounge.
"Since we're all aware of the deficiencies in spell combat, let's start with the most basic offensive and defensive practice today."
He walked to the center of the area, and golden light burst from his wand tip, instantly raising semi-transparent magical barriers at the edge of each dueling circle. "The protective barriers will absorb spell energy that exceeds the safety threshold, ensuring no one gets hurt. But please remember—this is not a reason to abandon caution! Losing control of a spell and hitting the barrier will also count as failure.
So please stay focused and control your magic.
Remember my requirement: all attackers are only allowed to use the Disarming Charm."
The young wizards nodded one after another. They were all too familiar with this spell, and many were already instinctively gripping their wands in their pockets.
"As for defenders, you may only use the Shield Charm—"
Lupin raised his voice to suppress the commotion. "I know that in your second year, Professor Lockhart already taught you to use the Shield Charm. However, judging from last year's teaching situation, you're not yet proficient enough with the Shield Charm. Even in calm conditions, you can't achieve a hundred percent success rate."
His gaze swept over the eager students, and Neville immediately lowered his head.
Professor Lupin smiled slightly. "Remember, our goal is not to defeat the opponent. At this stage, what's most important is observing the spell's trajectory, feeling the impact's force, and training your instinctive response to cast the Shield Charm instantly! I hope you'll be able to use defensive spells at will, anytime, anywhere."
As the grouping was completed, four groups of students stepped into the barrier circles.
The four groups were: Sherlock versus Neville, Harry versus Seamus, Hermione versus Parvati, and Ron versus Dean.
"The outcome of wizard duels often depends on who can raise their wand faster—" Lupin's voice penetrated the barriers. "Now, begin! Watch your rhythm!"
As soon as he finished speaking, four red lights lit up almost simultaneously inside the barriers, shooting out in a crisscross pattern.
Harry seemed particularly talented with the Disarming Charm. As soon as the words "Expelliarmus" left his lips, Seamus's wand flew out of his hand with a whoosh.
Hermione as the defender stood firm as a mountain. When Parvati's red light hit her shield, it didn't even create a ripple.
Though Dean managed to raise his barrier in time, Ron's spell hit it so hard that red sparks flew everywhere, the barrier humming as if it might shatter at any moment.
Facing his fencing instructor, Neville completely lost his composure. His spells either went wide and hit the barrier with a dull thud, or fell limply in front of Sherlock—useless even though Sherlock hadn't cast any defensive spell.
Lupin immediately stepped forward and pressed his shoulder. "Deep breath, Neville. Don't wave your wand randomly. Raise your wrist angle another half inch, yes, just like that."
After a while, once Seamus finally managed to successfully use the Shield Charm to defend against Harry's attack, Professor Lupin called a halt.
"Now, switch offensive and defensive roles!"
The situation was much the same as before. Seamus's Disarming Charm had just been cast when Harry's Shield Charm steadily blocked it.
Hermione's Disarming Charm successfully made Parvati surrender her wand.
Ron and Dean continued battling fiercely, evenly matched.
As for Sherlock, he naturally and without question confiscated Neville's wand.
However, this time, Neville, who was responsible for defense, naturally had no way to make his spells veer off toward the magical barrier that Professor Lupin had created.
After this round of offensive and defensive exchanges ended, Professor Lupin began to increase the intensity for the young wizards.
His wand pointed at the ceiling, and the four dueling circles suddenly merged into two areas.
"Now, four-person melee! The rules remain the same, but you must simultaneously deal with spells coming from multiple directions!"
Sherlock, Neville, Ron, and Dean formed one group.
This time, the situation immediately became chaotic.
First, Ron, that sneaky player, tried to ambush Sherlock, only to have his wand knocked away by Dean's Impediment Jinx.
"Attack Sherlock first! Let's team up against Sherlock!" Ron, having lost his wand, jumped around frantically inside the barrier, shouting at the top of his lungs, but no one paid him any attention.
Because by this time, Sherlock had already disarmed Dean.
Neville, meanwhile, crouched on the ground with a terrified expression, trying to use this method to dodge spells.
Seeing this, Lupin couldn't help but feel somewhat helpless.
He waved his wand and directly constructed a magical barrier in front of Neville. "Stand up, Neville. Fear weakens the power of spells, remember your courage when facing the Boggart last year!"
"Ron, Dean, pick up your wands and attack again!"
"Sherlock, watch your positioning, don't let all three surround you at once... Well, never mind, suit yourself."
The reason Professor Lupin said this was because the three facing Sherlock had all learned from their first experience and really started teaming up to deal with Sherlock first, just as Ron had suggested.
They adjusted their positions, trying to surround Sherlock from three directions.
The result was that Sherlock raised his hand and first disarmed Ron.
By this time, Dean's Disarming Charm had successfully been cast, but it had already been blocked by Sherlock's Shield Charm.
As for Neville, at this point he hadn't even realized what was happening.
In the next several rounds, the process was almost identical.
Sherlock faced three opponents alone and easily won each time.
On the other battlefield, Harry and Hermione first formed a brief alliance, working together to eliminate Seamus and Parvati, then had a one-on-one duel.
"This isn't fair, Hermione!" Parvati said, hands on her hips, shouting indignantly. "Why didn't you team up with me first to deal with the two boys?"
"Sorry, but even if I had, the result wouldn't have changed," Hermione said apologetically but firmly. "In that case, you two would still have been eliminated first."
"You..." Parvati puffed out her cheeks in frustration but couldn't find words to refute.
Under Professor Lupin's on-site guidance, the young wizards divided into two groups for melee combat all made rapid progress.
After the four-person melees ended, Professor Lupin selected eight students who hadn't participated yet and repeated the offensive-defensive exercises.
Throughout this process, Professor Lupin continued to provide corrections based on each person's performance.
After these eight finished their paired duels and four-person melee, today's practical lesson came to an end.
"Professor, we haven't had our turn yet!"
Hearing the class bell ring and seeing the little lions who had already participated all sweaty but bright-eyed, the little lions who hadn't yet had their turn began clamoring.
Some couldn't help but call out, "Can't we extend the time a bit?"
"That's right, the next class is History of Magic anyway. It won't matter if we're a bit late!"
"Why not tell Professor Binns and just take over his class too!"
"That won't do—it's not a good habit to run over into the next period."
Lupin waved his wand to dissolve the barriers. Hearing the little lions' suggestions, he smiled slightly. "Don't worry, everyone. In the coming period, our course content will continue with this. And I'll teach you new offensive and defensive spells."
Hearing this, everyone finally quieted down, disappointment replaced by anticipation on their faces.
"Remember, today's focus isn't about who wins or loses."
Professor Lupin wiped his wand while summarizing.
"What's most important is for you to personally experience three points: First, defense always takes priority. Successfully blocking ten spells is more valuable than hitting your opponent once.
Second, control is more important than power. Neville's final Shield Charm, though weak, was precise, more suitable for real combat needs than Ron's out-of-control Impediment Jinx.
Third, tactics are crucial. Harry and Hermione's brief alliance in the melee, and the coordinated strategy of Ron, Neville, and Dean, these are worth learning from for everyone."
He looked at the young wizards' thoughtful expressions, a hint of comfort flashing in his eyes as he smiled warmly.
"Remember, training is only a means, not an end. What we ultimately need to learn is how to protect ourselves and others in the face of real danger."
After Professor Lupin dismissed the class, as soon as the little lions left the classroom, various discussions immediately burst forth like floodwater breaking through a dam.
Most students excitedly discussed everyone's performance. "Three against one and still got counter-killed? Are you serious?"
"Are you kidding? That's the Lion King. You'd lose too!"
"Fair point... I suppose..."
"And, and, the Chosen One truly lives up to his name—look, even Hermione wasn't Harry's match!"
"It's so wonderful that Professor Lupin can continue as our teacher!"
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