With Penelope's scream, the secrecy of their conversation was shattered.
The whole hall buzzed with students whispering to each other, some even pointing fingers at Tewell.
Despite prefects trying to maintain order, they couldn't stop the students from discussing him.
"I never expected the new professor to come from Durmstrang!"
"He's only eighteen, just three years older than me!"
"It should be normal for the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor to know some dark magic, right?"
"How can he teach us defense if he doesn't know dark magic?"
"Too bad Professor Tewell only teaches first to third years, I wonder if I can stay back just to attend his classes."
Even with Tewell's thick skin, he couldn't withstand such discussions from the students.
He decided to leave and head to the classroom where he would teach soon.
His first class of the day was with the third years, both Gryffindor and Ravenclaw together.
The classroom had no extra decorations, just a teacher's desk and some tables and chairs arranged at the front.
There was a large empty space left behind, waiting for Tewell's arrangement.
...
When George and Fred Weasley arrived at the classroom, it was already filled with their classmates for the joint lesson.
"You see what you did? Giving the Fainting Fancies to Wood got us chased for a whole half-hour!" Fred nudged George with his shoulder, displeased.
"Don't worry, we haven't started the class officially yet," George said mischievously, raising his eyebrows.
"If you two don't come in now, I'll mark you absent," Tewell said, waving the parchment in his hand, which contained the list of students for the class.
Most of the names on it were shimmering with gold light, except theirs.
George and Fred finally realized and hurried into the classroom. But the moment they entered, several golden letters appeared above each of their heads.
It was their names. A layer of golden light emanated from these letters, resembling little birds flying out of their heads and returning to Tewell's parchment in his hand.
The names on the parchment then lit up with a golden glow. However, their names above their heads didn't disappear, making it convenient for Tewell to remember their names.
"Awesome!" Fred's eyes gleamed. "Professor, I want to learn this!" George looked at Tewell with anticipation, and Fred nodded beside him.
It was a simple name magic, of course, with a bit of soul application. Tewell tucked away the parchment with a standard wicked grin. "Trust me, even if you've done enough forbidden things, Dumbledore wouldn't be pleased to see you learning this."
The students present suddenly felt a chill. Considering the information circulating in the hall today, the friendly Professor Tewell seemed less innocent than his appearance suggested. Instead, recalling the two previous annual professors who left due to teaching dark arts, they felt that Professor Tewell might end up in Azkaban by the end of the year.
So, as soon as George sat down, he couldn't wait to ask, "Professor Tewell, I heard you're this year's graduate from Durmstrang, is that true?"
Tewell canceled the magic he set up at the door without looking back and replied, "Mr. Weasley, remember to raise your hand next time you have a question." Then he turned around to face the students with the same question. "Yes, I indeed come from that school."
The classroom erupted into chatter. "Professor, do you really study dark magic there?" "Will you teach us dark magic?"
"Is the symbol of that man always present in Durmstrang?" The students clamored to ask Tewell one question after another, some even stood up directly and shouted loudly.
"Quiet!" Tewell's voice wasn't loud, but to the students' ears, it sounded like it resonated through their souls. As his voice faded, the students were left stunned by its impact. After a moment of calm, they were surprised to find that they, along with the words spoken by their classmates, couldn't be heard!
Are we deaf?!
Just as they panicked, Tewell's voice rang out again. "You're not deaf. This is a small punishment for you. Remember to raise your hand before speaking." Seeing the students breathe a sigh of relief, he chuckled. "Besides, Gryffindor and Ravenclaw each lose ten points."
Fred quickly raised his hand and found that speaking had sound again only after Tewell nodded. "Professor, we don't even have any points now, how will you deduct them?"
The students chuckled with their hands over their mouths.
"Indeed, it's a problem. Let's keep track. One point deducted per day until your house points are sufficient to deduct," Tewell said, causing the smile on the students' faces to disappear instantly.
"About Durmstrang, I don't want to introduce too much in class. You only need to know one thing: studying dark magic doesn't mean we are dark wizards," Tewell explained, feeling it necessary to clarify. He still wanted to be a teacher who was "loved" by students.
"As for Grindelwald," he paused, waiting for the students to be drawn in by the name. "His symbol is indeed still present at the school, but his ideology is like the pure-blood ideology at Hogwarts, having many followers everywhere."
"This doesn't mean that all students support his ideas, especially since there are many students in the school who have lost loved ones because of Grindelwald. They've given a harsh lesson to students who thought it was cool to spread that symbol."
"So in my opinion, Durmstrang has simply replaced dark magic defense with dark magic research. Apart from that, there isn't much difference between the two schools."
A male student named Roger Davis raised his hand. "Professor Tewell, I heard that Durmstrang doesn't accept Muggle-born students, is that true?"
"You're right, Mr. Davis, because in our view, Muggle-born students find it difficult to resist the temptation of dark magic."
"Only when parents also provide magical guidance to students can they understand the true nature of dark magic."
Seeing another student raise their hand, but not wanting to turn this class into a Durmstrang seminar, Tewell intervened.
"Alright, you can ask me about Durmstrang later. We're officially starting our first class, and it's my first class as well."
"Speaking of which, I thought you would be more excited about this."
"So, who wants to tell me what we need to learn in Defense Against the Dark Arts?"
The question was too easy; even George could answer it effortlessly. "We need to learn how to use magic to protect ourselves from dark creatures and dark magic, and also learn offensive and defensive spells."
"That's right. So, at the beginning of this class, I need to assess your grasp of magic."
Tewell clapped his hands together, grabbing the attention of all the students. "The quickest way is through combat, a fight between you and me." His lips curled into a smile, his eyes twinkling with delight.
The students widened their eyes in shock, their pupils shaking like an earthquake, mouths gaping open.
"Don't worry, I won't kill you."