No one had any objections.
It should be said that even if there were objections, no one dared to voice them here, in front of Grindelwald.
No one knew why Grindelwald would appear at Hogwarts, nor did anyone know why Dumbledore would allow such a thing to happen.
Facts speak louder than words.
"Ah, Dark Arts ~ mysterious, powerful, eerie, and unfathomable," Grindelwald praised, beginning his narration.
"No one has not yearned to step into it, to attempt to walk through that great door, and then leave without a trace, like a quiet, elegant wanderer in the night rain."
His tone was calm, like the first cotton rain falling in spring, quickly soothing the previously frightened crowd.
He strolled in front of the desks, his gaze sweeping over the Little Wizards, his hand resting on Neville's shoulder, just like an old Professor.
Neville flinched in fright.
"Someone here has definitely researched the Dark Arts," he suddenly said.
The Little Wizards turned their heads in surprise, looking at the people next to them.
Many also turned their gaze to Howl.
"No, no, no, besides him," Grindelwald chuckled, "Is there anyone willing to share with me?"
His gaze quickly swept over a few older students in the back row.
No one raised a hand.
"Then let me tell you," Grindelwald nodded indifferently, "The Three Unforgivable Curses, do any of you know them?"
"Killing Curse, Crucio, Imperio," Harry quickly raised his hand and answered. In this class, even Hermione had no desire to raise her hand.
"Excellent, it seems you have studied quite deeply. I'm very curious if you have actually tried it."
"Sorry, I haven't. I still have a bit of reverence and self-awareness," Harry said.
"Tsk," Grindelwald chuckled, "Every fellow who considers himself self-aware always prides himself on it, until he falls into the abyss, and only then does he realize his ignorance."
Harry subtly inhaled.
He couldn't refute it.
A moment later, he nodded solemnly.
"Thank you for the warning, Professor."
Was he unknowingly getting carried away?!
"Don't overthink it, at least you know these things are not to be touched," Grindelwald smiled, "The rest of you, you don't have that basic sense of reverence. Right, those fellows who secretly experimented with the Unforgivable Curses on gnomes and hags."
Grindelwald looked at the children with unchanging gazes, a slight chuckle in his heart.
"That power to take and give life, that sense of power, is truly intoxicating, isn't it?"
Saying that, he leaned against the podium: "Some of you must think I'm talking nonsense, but are the Three Unforgivable Curses really that unattainable?
No, they are not. The reason they are called Unforgivable Curses is precisely because their threshold is extremely low, but their harm is far greater than other Dark Arts.
'Avada Kedavra'—who doesn't know how to pronounce that? With just a light incantation, a soul can be expelled from the present world."
Saying that, Grindelwald took out a small cage from behind the podium.
Inside were small, brown-skinned goblins, like rats in the Wizarding World; few people had any affection for these human-like creatures.
"Come and see," Grindelwald raised a hideous smile, then grabbed a goblin and picked up a wand from an unknown source.
The goblin squeaked and squealed, trying to break free from his hand.
"Quiet!" Grindelwald suddenly roared, startling the Little Wizards.
However, the next moment, something incredible happened: the goblin seemed to have truly quieted down.
Then, Grindelwald placed it on the table.
"Alright, you can go die," he said casually.
Then, the goblin looked around blankly.
"How do you want this beast to die?" Grindelwald looked at the Little Wizards with a smile.
"No, no, no," he suddenly shook his head again, then focused his gaze on the goblin and waved his wand.
Then, a Transfiguration was suddenly cast, and the goblin was quickly enlarged, then transformed into the appearance of a very handsome boy with black hair, black eyes, and a somewhat pale face.
Behind, Marcus's face instantly turned horrified.
He knew this person.
Tom Riddle.
The person he had seen in that notebook.
He was smiling gently at this moment, his face calm and unperturbed.
"Alright, twist your own neck," Grindelwald nodded with satisfaction.
The next moment, in the eyes of these children, this gentle big boy, smiling like that, raised his hands to his head, and then suddenly twisted.
Crack! —
At the same time, there was the gentle tapping of Howl's wand on the ground.
There were no screams, no panic; all that should have appeared was quickly resolved by Howl.
Grindelwald shook his head, feeling a bit bored.
He hoped it would be more chaotic; he wanted to hear the panic and screams of these little ones after being frightened, and preferably more scolding.
Then, he would turn what they were unwilling to witness, the death of a handsome boy next door, back into an ugly, low-level goblin.
He wanted these young rascals to constantly feel their hearts burning with anxiety, like hell, due to the changing standards of death and morality.
This was what he hoped to see.
What a pity...
Mu En Jones, this fellow, merely wanted to use this scene of "humans being tormented by Imperio" to make these little ones think more about the relationship between Dark Arts and life.
The Little Wizards exchanged shocked glances. The sudden eruption of fear and panic had been swept away by Howl earlier, but as the scene replayed in their minds, new feelings of unbearable horror and dread quickly took root like weeds.
"How about it, isn't a scene like this much better than one of your teachers just talking nonsense?" Grindelwald smiled, "You'd best not imagine in your minds—how terrifying it would be if that were you just now."
It was fine when he didn't say it, but once he did...
An unknown chill quickly swept through the entire classroom.
"So, what is the price?" Grindelwald then asked, "I so casually murdered this person. Does anyone know what price I have to pay?"
"Price?" Marcus murmured.
"Of course there's a price. As a spell that can be cast so simply, no one would think there's no price, right?" Grindelwald looked down at them with an expression like he was looking at idiots.
"Any Dark Arts come with a price—without exception. For spells that are easy to cast yet achieve extremely evil purposes, the price to be paid is even more hidden and cruel.
You all know that I have achieved considerable success in this path, but I can genuinely tell you a fact: if I had another chance, I would rather choose more troublesome methods to achieve my goals than to choose Dark Arts for the sake of directness and violence."
"You are all too young, with enough curiosity about the world, and even more so, a rebellious spirit towards things strictly forbidden in dogmas. The more you are told not to do something, the more you want to do it.
When no price is paid for a while, you think the so-called rules are just nonsense. But you don't know that this is the terrifying aspect of Dark Arts; its price is hidden deep within your soul.
Waiting for you to relax your guard, it will bloom with a scent sweeter than honey. It tempts you, and it urges you. When you fall into its trap, and look back, there's no way out.
Even standing still becomes a luxury."
The decay and despondency in his words came so quickly, so intensely.
Many of the Little Wizards below couldn't help but think—this was Grindelwald, known in folk tales as the previous Dark Lord, the one who brought terror to all of Europe.
Now, in this small classroom, like a dying old man, he was recounting such things to them.
"Do you want to see my soul?" Grindelwald quickly changed his tone again, so unexpectedly.
"Soul? Can it be seen?" Hedlund asked in confusion, "That's a bit too fantastical, isn't it?"
Many people, upon hearing him say this, felt even more that it was just nonsense.
"I can try to project it. You need to be careful not to be scared by it," Grindelwald smiled, "But before that, I think your Professor can show you what a healthy soul looks like first."
Immediately, the children's gazes focused on Howl.
"What is this? This is your class," Howl smiled helplessly, "And the state of my soul isn't quite normal either."
"Oh, then it's even more worth showing, isn't it?" Grindelwald became more excited, his tone involuntarily carrying that hint of seduction again.
He was deliberately inciting these children.
"I don't mind," Howl shook his head helplessly, signaling Grindelwald to retract his little tricks.
"However, you should show yours first."
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