Hogwarts: I will not become the Dark Lord

Inside Snape's office, Malfoy and his two cronies, Goyle and Crabbe, stood nervously in a corner. Moody was recounting the events that had just transpired in the entrance hall to Snape.

"Severus, I'll be watching you closely. I haven't forgotten your past!" Moody (Barty Crouch Jr.) said menacingly, his words laced with threat and warning.

Snape's brow furrowed. After Moody departed, his attention shifted to the three Malfoys, his eyes filled with displeasure and interrogation.

"What exactly happened? Where did the newspaper come from? I wasn't aware you had a habit of reading newspapers," Snape glared at Malfoy.

"Headmaster, Goyle gave it to me..." Malfoy seemed somewhat innocent and aggrieved. "I only read what was on the newspaper."

Upon hearing this, Snape turned his gaze of astonishment to Goyle.

"You can read newspapers?"

Snape's tone was filled with disbelief, leaving Goyle speechless, unsure how to respond.

"Enough," finally, Snape's patience seemed to have run out. His expression grew even more gloomy. "For the time being, the three of you better behave yourselves! Now, get out of my office!"

Upon hearing this, the three Malfoys quickly responded and retreated, secretly rejoicing. They hadn't expected Headmaster Snape to not punish them at all. He truly lived up to his title as their Slytherin Head!

Over the next two days, life at the school was uneventful. Although Malfoy and Harry still maintained a subtle hostility, fortunately, both restrained their impulses, preventing any further disturbances.

"It's unbelievable. Malfoy escaped punishment, while Neville was sentenced to detention by Professor Snape without any mercy, just for accidentally ruining six cauldrons," Ron complained indignantly, his tone full of dissatisfaction with this unfair treatment.

During today's Potions class, Neville's cauldron was once again ruined by him. Clearly, Professor Snape's severity and vindictiveness had increased during the summer. He unhesitatingly issued Neville a detention.

Neville had to face an arduous task—dissecting a large bucket of horned toads. When he returned, he was pale and on the verge of a mental breakdown.

"Have you ever considered why Professor Snape is always so harsh?" Ron turned to Harry, while Hermione patiently taught Neville Scouring Charms, helping Neville remove the remaining toad innards from his fingernails.

"Snape targeting us is nothing new," Harry responded, a hint of helplessness in his eyes. "Perhaps he is sticking up for Malfoy, especially since Professor Moody taught him a lesson last time."

"Furthermore," Harry continued, "it's well known that Professor Snape has always wanted to become the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, but fortunately, Dumbledore has never allowed him to get his wish. Otherwise, if Snape were our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, I can't even imagine it. I'm almost certain he would use me to experiment with dark magic in class!"

After finishing breakfast on Thursday morning, Slytherin's first Defense Against the Dark Arts class of the semester finally arrived, while Harry and his friends would have to wait until the afternoon.

Jerry said goodbye to Hermione and entered the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, choosing an empty seat and taking out his textbook to wait for class to begin. The surrounding Slytherin students were unusually quiet today.

Soon, Moody's signature heavy footsteps echoed from the end of the corridor. He slowly entered the classroom, his figure still as peculiar and frightening as ever, the claw-like wooden prosthetic inadvertently showing from under his robes.

"Put those books away," Moody's voice was deep and powerful. He leaned on his staff and slowly moved to sit in front of the podium. "You won't need those useless textbooks in my class."

Hearing Moody's words, the students put away their "Dark Arts: A Guide to Self-Defense".

Moody then took out a roster, gently shaking his head to temporarily move his long, grizzled hair away from his scarred and slightly distorted face, and began calling roll. Moody's normal eye slowly moved down the list, while his blue magical eye, like a sharp searchlight, scrutinized each student who responded.

"Good," after the name of the last student was answered, Moody continued, "Before the start of the semester, I received a letter from Professor Lupin, which detailed your learning progress and situation."

"You have accumulated a certain amount of basic knowledge in the field of resisting magical creatures, such as how to deal with a Boggart's transformation, a Red Cap's deception, a Hinkypunk's misdirection, a Grindylow's lurking, a Kappa's attack, and even the threat of a werewolf. You are all aware of these, aren't you?" Moody's gaze swept across the entire class, and he received a unanimous nod of confirmation.

"However, your knowledge reserve in resisting the spells and strategies of dark wizards is far from sufficient," Moody's tone became serious. "Therefore, for the next year, we will dedicate ourselves to studying these crucial contents in depth."

As soon as these words came out, ripples suddenly appeared in the originally silent Slytherin student group. The students whispered to each other, and the classroom was filled with noise.

"Quiet! All of you be quiet!" Moody suddenly raised his voice, and the sound seemed to be an irresistible force, instantly calming all the noise. "Our time is precious and limited. I am only temporarily teaching at Hogwarts for one year at Dumbledore's request. Afterwards, I will return to my peaceful retirement life."

"Now, let's get back to the topic."

"Spells, this term contains ever-changing forms and immeasurable magic. According to the strict regulations of the Ministry of Magic, my duty is to teach you all kinds of counter-curses to ensure the dangers you will face in the future."

"However, I don't think it's enough to just stop there. Generally speaking, I should wait until you are in the sixth grade and more mentally mature before showing you the true face of those illegal Dark Arts curses. But in my opinion, the sooner you understand the threats and horrors of dark magic, the better."

"In battle, if a dark wizard decides to cast those forbidden curses on you, they will never notify you in advance, nor will they proceed in any fair or polite manner. Their actions will come suddenly like a storm, so we must always be vigilant and prepared."

Speaking of this, Moody's eyes became sharp. He looked around the classroom and asked a testing question: "Then, who can tell me, according to wizarding law, which curses are subject to the most severe sanctions?"

This question hung in the air. Although the students had answers in their hearts, they hesitated to speak easily due to the weight and taboo of the three Unforgivable Curses.

"What's wrong? Aren't you Slytherin students all pure-bloods? Don't you even know this question?" Moody's brow furrowed slightly, his tone tinged with disappointment. "Didn't your parents tell you about the three Unforgivable Curses?"

"You, yes, you kid," Moody's sharp eyes scanned the classroom and finally pointed to Malfoy, who was looking around. "Don't you know the Imperius Curse? Didn't your father Lucius tell you about the Imperius Curse?"

"It seems... it seems there is such a curse..." Malfoy said timidly.

"Hmph, truly pathetic!" Moody glanced at Malfoy disdainfully, then waved his hand gently, signaling him to sit down.