Chapter 98: Cat-girl Hermione! The Real Pleasure of Petting a Cat!
He watched the two imposters clumsily walk over to the sofa and sit down.
"Where did you two sneak off to eat this time?" Draco put down the newspaper, his tone impatient.
"We..." Harry (Crabbe) got stuck.
"Forget it." Draco didn't bother listening to them make things up and picked up the newspaper again, mentioning it casually, "Look at this, it's hilarious."
He showed them a page of the newspaper. It was about Arthur Weasley being fined fifty Galleons for enchanting a Muggle car.
"The weasley family, a disgrace to pure-blood Wizards." Draco's tone was contemptuous and mocking.
"Dirt poor with a bunch of kids, and now they're spending money to study those filthy Muggle things."
"I dare say the Malfoy Family's House-elf lives more decently than they do."
Ron (Goyle)'s breathing grew heavy, and Goyle's fat face turned purple.
Insulting his father and family right in front of him! He almost jumped up to punch him.
Harry (Crabbe) held his hand down firmly under the table, winking desperately.
Draco saw everything, and the curve of his lips widened.
This was exactly the effect he wanted. To humiliate you while you could only endure it and even pretend to agree.
"Draco," Harry (Crabbe) found an opportunity and asked, mimicking Crabbe's clumsy tone.
"Do you know... about the Chamber of Secrets and the heir?"
"You mean that idiot Potter?" Draco sneered, tossing the newspaper aside.
"I've said before, I wish it were him, but unfortunately, it's not. My father said that when the Chamber of Secretswas opened fifty years ago, a mudblood was killed."
"This time, I wonder how many the heir plans to finish off."
He picked up his cranberry juice and took a sip.
"Of course, I don't know who the heir is."
Draco put down the cup, his eyes becoming quite interesting as he stared into their eyes, saying each word deliberately.
"How would I know something like that?"
"But, if I did know who he was..." He leaned back into the sofa, crossing his arms over his chest, looking at them with an appreciative gaze.
"I would certainly do my best to give him a hand."
Harry's heart sank. It seemed they wouldn't get anything out of him.
Just then, his cheeks began to itch.
He saw the weasley family freckles rapidly appearing on the face of Ron (Goyle) opposite him!
And his own hair was changing from a buzz cut back to messy black hair.
The Potion was wearing off!
"We... we should go!" Ron (Goyle) stood up in a panic.
"Hmm?" Draco pretended to just notice something was wrong, frowning with a look of disgust, "What's wrong with you two today? You're acting strange."
He waved his hand as if shooing away flies.
"Get out, don't be an eyesore here."
Harry and Ron felt as if they had been granted a grand pardon and fled the Slytherin Common Room without looking back.
Watching their panicked retreats, Draco finally chuckled softly.
He stood up and stretched.
The game of teasing mice was over.
Now, it was time to check on another... little cat caught in a trap.
He leisurely walked out of the Dungeons and headed toward the girls bathroom on the second floor.
Meanwhile, Harry and Ron rushed back to the abandoned girls bathroom on the second floor as if running for their lives.
"Hermione! We're back!" Ron shouted, out of breath.
Their only answer was a cat-like crying sound coming from the stall at the end of the corridor.
"Hermione?" Harry asked tentatively.
The crying paused for a moment, then became louder.
"Ugh... don't come over!"
The voice was high and thin, completely out of tune.
"She looks terrible, her face is covered in fur, and she has a tail!" Moaning Myrtle floated out gloatingly, "He-he-he..."
Harry and Ron looked at each other, full of confusion.
Just then, Filch's dragging footsteps and the ghostly meowing of Madam Norris approached from the distance.
"Go, quickly!" Harry whispered urgently.
The two didn't dare stay longer; they took one last worried look at the closed stall and quickly slipped away from the other end.
Just as they left, the bathroom door was pushed open by a slender hand.
Draco Malfoy walked in.
With a flick of his wand, the door locked silently.
He walked up to the stall where the crying was coming from and tapped the door with his knuckles.
"Granger."
"It's me."
The crying inside stopped abruptly.
A few seconds later, the door creaked open just a crack.
Draco pushed the door open and entered.
He saw Hermione Granger curled up in the corner.
Her cheeks and the tip of her nose were covered in a fine layer of brown fur.
Her amber eyes, washed with tears, looked exactly like a cat's.
On top of her head, a pair of furry pointed ears were twitching uneasily.
Beneath the hem of her robes, a long brown tail nervously swept the floor.
Clearly, she had mistaken cat hair for someone else's hair.
"Don't... don't look at me!"
Seeing him, Hermione let out a scream and covered her face tightly with her hands.
"Draco... please... I'm so ugly..." The despair in her voice was almost overflowing.
There was no mockery on Draco's face.
In his grey-blue eyes, there was instead a focus like that of finding prey.
He stepped into the narrow stall and closed the door behind him, trapping the two of them completely in this small space.
Then, he crouched down in front of Hermione.
"Ugly?"
He uttered the word and reached out, pulling her hands away from her face with no room for refusal.
Hermione was forced to look up, her strange and somewhat pitiful face fully exposed to him.
"No," Draco's voice was very soft, "Very cute."
His fingertips slowly and tentatively touched the slightly trembling cat ears.
"!"
Hermione trembled all over as an unfamiliar heat exploded from the base of her ears, coursing through her entire body.
An uncontrollable short whimper escaped her throat.
"Whimper..."
Hearing this sound, Draco's gaze darkened.
He knew now that the cat's ears were a sensitive spot.
His fingers began to trace circles at the soft base of the ears, neither too light nor too heavy.
Hermione's cheeks quickly flushed, burning hot. Her body went weak, and her breathing became erratic.
The stimulation that made her too ashamed to speak left her mind blank, causing her to forget even to resist.
"There, stop crying."
Draco finally withdrew his hand and took a small crystal bottle from his pocket, which contained a shimmering blue liquid.
"Drink it." He tilted Hermione's chin up and brought the mouth of the bottle to her lips.
His gaze swept over the cat ears, his voice low.
"Although... I really like the way you look right now."
"But I'd rather not see you cry."
In a mix of shame, emotion, and confusion, Hermioneobediently opened her mouth and drank the Potion.
The effect was rapid.
The fur on her face faded, and the ears and tail retracted.
Just at the moment she returned to normal and let out a sigh of relief.
Draco suddenly reached out, scooped her up from the ground, turned, and placed her heavily on the cold sink.
"Ah!" Hermione gasped, instinctively wrapping her arms around his neck.
This posture forced her to sit astride him.
"Draco... you..."
Before she could finish, Draco's face loomed closer.
He didn't kiss her.
He just pressed his forehead against hers, their noses almost touching.
He stared into her panicked eyes, his voice husky, carrying a command that brooked no argument.
Wait, "Hermione Granger."
"Now, you are mine."
He clamped one hand tightly around her waist, cutting off all her exits.
His other hand reached up again to touch her newly normalized ears.
His fingers gently kneaded her soft auricles with the exact same motion as before.
"Whimper..."
Hermione went limp again, leaning powerlessly into his embrace.
The cat ears were gone, but the sensitivity etched into her nerves remained.
She felt as if she had truly become a kitten whose vital spots were held by her master, completely weak and only able to let out shameful soft hums as he pleased.
Chapter 99: The diary's Whisper! Ginny's Breakdown!
The lights in the Hospital Wing were always so pale.
Madam Pomfrey eventually attributed Hermione's symptoms to "sequelae of a Potion accident" and ordered her to remain under observation.
Until those non-existent "feline magic residues" were completely cleared.
The Christmas holidays ended in this monotonous ward.
Draco became a regular visitor to the Hospital Wing, appearing at Hermione's bedside every day without fail, bringing the latest class notes.
"Granger."
Hearing his voice, a sickly flush appeared on Hermione's pale face. Her eyes instinctively dodged his gaze, yet she couldn't hide a trace of dependency.
"In today's Potion Class, Snape talked about an improved recipe for the Calming Draught. I've highlighted the key points for you."
Draco spread out the parchment and sat naturally on the edge of the bed. This distance was so intimate that a patient with Dragon Pox in the next bed cast a strange look their way.
He explained the notes, his fingertips moving across the parchment, occasionally "accidentally" brushing against the back of Hermione's hand.
With every touch, Hermione's body would tense up.
That feeling of being completely controlled in the bathroom had already been etched into her physical instincts.
She wanted to pull her hand away, but her body froze in place, allowing that heart-pounding sensation to surge from the point of contact through her entire body.
Draco enjoyed this process very much.
He was like a very patient beast tamer, using precise tenderness and perfectly timed offenses to constantly deepen his brand on her.
He would peel apples for her, using a small fruit knife to peel a single, unbroken spiral of skin.
He would read the tedious Ancient Runes for Beginnersto her, his low voice making those symbols sound pleasant.
He would even, when Madam Pomfrey's back was turned, condense a small ball of warm magic at his fingertips and gently press it against Hermione's temple.
"Don't frown, Granger, you're too tense."
That warm current seeped into her skin, strangely smoothing out her nerves that were tight with anxiety, more effective than any sedative.
She began to crave his arrival, crave his voice, crave the warmth of his fingertips.
Draco knew very well that Hermione, this chess piece, was now completely welded to his board.
The holidays ended, students returned to school one after another, and Hogwarts Castle became noisy once again.
But amidst this clamor, one figure was out of place.
Ginny Weasley.
She looked completely withered, her face frighteningly pale, and that hair which should have been as red as fire was now dull and lifeless.
She walked down the corridor with a hunched back and vacant eyes, her oversized old robes swaying on her as if she might be blown over by the wind at any moment.
She clutched a stack of books tightly in her arms; they were her only support.
Draco saw her in the second-floor corridor.
He narrowed his eyes.
It was time to pull in the net for the final catch.
He had originally been leading Crabbe and Goyle to the Potions classroom, but now he suddenly turned, heading straight for Ginny's path.
Ginny kept her head down, her mind filled with those gentle and seductive words from the diary.
Tom said he understood all her pain.
Tom said he would help her... *Thud!*
A dull sound of impact.
Draco's figure only swayed slightly, but Ginny was knocked flat onto her backside.
The books in her arms scattered all over the floor with a clatter.
Among them, a hardbound diary with a pure black cover was particularly conspicuous.
"Don't you have eyes when you walk, Weasley?" Draco's voice carried an innate sense of distance.
Surrounding students stopped in their tracks, looking over curiously.
Ginny was terrified. Ignoring the pain, she scrambled to reach for the books on the ground, especially that diary.
That was her secret, her everything!
An expensive dragon-hide boot, however, stepped beside the diary first, blocking her hand.
Draco bent down and picked up the black diary.
The moment his fingertips touched the cover.
[Warning! High concentration of soul fragmentsdetected! Target: Tom Riddle (Remnant Soul)!]
[Soul Activity: 89%! Approaching the threshold of materialization!]
[Passively absorbing Host's negative emotions: Resentment, fear, jealousy...]
The system interface flashed red lights rapidly.
Draco's face remained impassive, but he sneered inwardly.
Very good, Tom, your tail is about to be exposed.
"Your thing." He held the diary and handed it toward Ginny, who was sitting on the ground.
Ginny reached out a trembling hand to take it.
At the instant their fingertips touched, Draco's gaze suddenly became profound.
[Legilimency!]
Invisible mental power instantly pierced into Ginny's defenseless mind.
Chaotic images came rushing in.
[Image 1: Under the covers, the girl cries to the diary, saying Harry Potter never looks at her.]
[Image 2: Words appear on the diary: "I will make him notice you."]
[Image 3: In a corner of the corridor, the girl kills a rooster with a spell, her face a mix of satisfaction and fear.]
[Image 4: Bloody words appear on the wall; the girl looks at her hands covered in red liquid, her whole body shaking.]
[Image 5: She cries to the diary: "I don't want to do this anymore! Harry will hate me!"]
[Image 6: The diary responds: "No, he won't. You are innocent; it's others who are wrong."]
So that was it; what she feared most was savior she had a crush on discovering the truth.
Draco withdrew his mental power; the entire process took less than a second.
He looked at Ginny's pupils, which were dilated with fear, and suddenly leaned down, putting his mouth to her ear.
His voice was extremely low, wrapped in a trace of magicas it was sent into Ginny's ear.
"Your secret is safe."
Ginny's body instantly froze.
"Tom... asked me to look after you."
Draco's breath brushed against her earlobe.
"He said you've been a bit disobedient lately."
"Don't worry, as long as you're good, savior won't know that it was you who opened the Chamber of Secrets and attacked those mudbloods and the Squib's cat."
These few sentences were more terrifying than any dark curse, exploding in Ginny's mind.
How... how did he know?
Tom? He knows Tom?
He's the person Tom sent to watch me!
Ginny's final line of psychological defense completely shattered.
She looked up at Draco's handsome face so close to her own; that faint smile made her more terrified than the eyes of a Basilisk.
"Ah!"
She let out a short gasp, snatched the diary, scrambled to her feet, and rushed into the crowd without looking back, stumbling as she fled.
Draco slowly straightened up, watching her frantic retreating figure, the corners of his mouth curling into a genuine arc.
He raised his right thumb and gently rubbed it.
When he picked up the diary just now, an extremely well-hidden mental power mark had been imprinted on the cover.
Now, even if it ran to the ends of the earth, it couldn't escape his perception.
"Let's go," he said to Crabbe and Goyle, who were still dazed. "A boring farce."
Crabbe asked in a thick voice, "Draco, what did you say to her? She was scared out of her wits."
Draco glanced at him and didn't answer.
The cage was prepared, and the bait had been swallowed.
Now, he just had to wait for a good opportunity to throw this crazed rat, along with the poisoned cheese it stole, in front of another, even stupider rat.
Chapter 100: The Toad Love Poem! The Complete Record of Harry Potter's Social Death!
Hogwarts on Valentine's Day was a pink disaster.
Gilderoy Lockhart, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, had turned the Great Hall into a cheap candy tin, with pink streamers and heart-shaped confetti everywhere.
The cloyingly sweet perfume scent in the air was enough to give anyone a headache.
Draco Malfoy frowned the moment he stepped into the Great Hall.
"My eyes and nose have both been hit by a nasty curse," he whispered to Pansy Parkinson.
Pansy waved her hand in disgust. "Lockhart's taste is beyond redemption."
Worse was yet to come.
Lockhart announced he had hired a team of 'Cupids' to deliver messages, and then a group of dwarves with tiny golden wings and holding harps rushed in.
The dwarves had ferocious faces and burly builds, looking more like underground boxing ring thugs than gods of love.
Blaise Zabini groaned, "Merlin, I'd rather go pick a fight with a Troll."
The entire breakfast period was anything but peaceful.
The irritable dwarves charged around, dragging students from their seats and singing nauseating love songs in their rough, grating voices.
Draco continued eating with elegant composure, with Crabbe and Goyle acting like two walls, blocking any dwarf that tried to get close.
His gaze, however, was sweeping over the Gryffindortable.
Harry Potter was desperately trying to shrink behind Ron Weasley, looking like a frightened groundhog.
A tiny smirk tugged at the corner of Draco's mouth.
Don't worry, Potter. Today's star is you.
Breakfast ended, and students grumbled their way toward their classrooms.
Harry thought he'd escaped the worst and was walking through the corridor with Ron, books in hand, heading to Charms Class.
Suddenly, a dark figure darted from the crowd and, with agility belying its stature, latched onto Harry's leg like a vise.
"Got you! Harry Potter!"
The dwarf wore a fanatical expression, its arms like iron clamps.
Harry stumbled, his face flushing bright red. "Let go of me!"
"No!" the dwarf roared. "I have a musical Valentine from Miss Ginny Weasley that must be delivered publicly!"
Ginny Weasley!
Ron's face turned green; Harry wished he could vanish on the spot.
Students in the corridor immediately formed a circle to watch the spectacle, with whistles and jeers already rising from the Slytherin side.
"Ooh! savior's love song!"
"The weasley family's youngest daughter? Not a bad choice!"
Humiliated and furious, Harry wanted to draw his wand, but there were too many people.
"I don't want to hear it!"
"You must!"
The dwarf cleared its throat and began to sing in a voice like fingernails scraping a blackboard:
"His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad,"
Pfft!
The crowd erupted into uproarious laughter.
"A toad? Hahahaha!"
"Merlin's beard! That's a fresh metaphor!"
Draco leaned against a wall nearby, arms crossed, enjoying the spectacle.
He commented to Pansy and Blaise beside him, his voice just loud enough to carry:
"Remarkable literary talent."
"It seems our Savior's charm transcends species."
His words only amplified the surrounding laughter.
The dwarf was still bellowing:
"His hair is as dark as a blackboard, I wish he were mine, the hero who conquered the Dark Lord!"
Harry's face was hot enough to fry an egg; he had never been so mortified in his life.
He struggled desperately, and his book bag strap snapped with a crack.
"Harry, I'll help you!" Ron finally snapped out of it and rushed forward to pull the dwarf away.
Just then.
A thought flashed through Draco's mind, his eyes flickering slightly.
A Nonverbal Spell. A Trip Jinx.
Ron, charging forward, stumbled as his foot twisted, lost his balance completely, and slammed straight into Harryand the dwarf.
Thud!
The scene descended into complete chaos.
Ron knocked Harry over, and Harry's already damaged book bag split open completely, spilling books, parchment, quills, and a bottle of ink all over the floor.
Harry was drenched in black ink, a picture of utter disarray.
Amidst this chaos, a black diary slid out from the pile of books.
It glided past the debris and ink, coming to a silent stop right by Draco's feet.
Draco's gaze locked onto it, sensing the familiar, stirring dark magic.
On the other side of the crowd, Ginny Weasley watched with a deathly pale face. When she saw the diary, all color drained from her cheeks, and she looked as if she were about to charge over desperately.
Draco wouldn't give her that chance.
Just as Ginny started pushing through the crowd, Draco's foot, seemingly casually, flicked forward.
The diary traced an arc through the air, neatly avoiding the mess on the floor, and landed stably right beside Harry's hand as he was frantically trying to gather his things.
"Hey, Potter!"
Draco shouted loudly, his tone carrying a note of impatient 'helpfulness'.
"You dropped something! Pick it up quick if you don't want it trampled!"
Harry's mind was a blank, his only thought to flee the scene.
Hearing the voice, he grabbed the books and the diarynear his hand without even looking and stuffed them into his arms.
He didn't notice at all that this diary wasn't his.
"Let's get out of here!"
Harry pulled the equally disheveled Ron to his feet, and amidst the crowd's jeers and the dwarf's "toad" serenade, they fled the scene as if running for their lives.
Draco watched them disappear around the corridor corner, the mockery on his face slowly transforming into a profound smile.
[Ding!]
[Key plot item 'Tom Riddle's diary' has been successfully transferred to key plot character 'Harry Potter'!]
['The Birth of the heir' subsequent plotline activated!]
[Congratulations, Host, for completing the key maneuver'Shifting the Blame'! Reward obtained: Slight improvement in magic control precision!]
Satisfied, Draco turned and said to Pansy, who was still laughing:
"Let's go. Don't let this farce make us late for class."
...When Harry escaped back to the Gryffindor Common Room, he felt as if he'd been skinned alive.
He irritably ran his hands through his hair and threw his ruined book bag onto a table.
Ink had soaked through most of his textbooks. Sighing, he began pulling things out.
Then, he pulled out that black diary.
Harry froze. He was certain he didn't own a diary like this.
The cover was worn black leather with no writing on it. He opened it; all the pages were blank.
On the first page, written in faded ink, was a name: T.M. Riddle.
Who was this?
As he pondered, a drop of ink from the leaky bottle dripped right onto a blank page of the diary.
Something magical happened. The ink didn't spread; it was absorbed directly into the page and vanished.
Harry's eyes widened.
This was definitely a magical object.
Ever since the 'Parseltongue' incident, Harry had felt isolated.
He desperately needed someone to confide in, a friend who wouldn't look at him with strange eyes.
Perhaps... this diary could be that?
He found a quill, dipped it in ink, and tentatively wrote a line:
"Hello?"
The ink was absorbed. A few seconds later, another line of elegant handwriting appeared.
"Hello, I am Tom Riddle."
Harry's heart pounded. He eagerly wrote back: "Who are you?"
"A memory forgotten within these pages."
Chapter 101: Panic Grips the School, the Malfoy PatriarchMakes a Dramatic Entrance!
Harry felt he had found a kindred spirit.
Tom was clever, witty, and understanding.
When Harry complained about being ostracized for speaking Parseltongue, Tom wrote.
"Parseltongue is a rare gift. They fear you out of jealousy and ignorance."
When Harry mentioned being an orphan, Tom wrote.
"I understand you, Harry. I grew up in a Muggleorphanage too. They will never understand us."
Harry poured his heart out to Tom without reservation.
"Tom, do you know what happened with the Chamber of Secrets fifty years ago?" Harry finally asked the crucial question.
"Of course," Tom's handwriting appeared. "A student died. The school almost closed."
"Do you know who opened it?"
"I do. But I cannot tell you, because that person still works at Hogwarts. Dumbledore would not believe a diary."
"But they are still attacking students now!" Harry wrote urgently.
"...Alright, Harry. I won't tell you. I'll let you see for yourself."
"Are you ready?"
Before Harry could answer, a tremendous force pulled at him from the diary. His body twisted and stretched, the world spinning.
The next second, he found himself standing in an unfamiliar office at Hogwarts.
Meanwhile, Draco was leaning on the sofa in the Slytherin Common Room. On the system interface before him, the same scene was playing from a 'Director's Perspective'.
[Playing Mental Synchronization Footage of target 'Harry Potter'...]
[Memory Source: Tom Riddle (Fragmented Soul)]
[System Analysis: This memory fragment has been edited and tampered with. Authenticity: 27%. Emotional Manipulation Tendency: Extremely High.]
Draco watched the screen where the young, handsome Tom Riddle was leading the Professors towards a storage room.
"It's him, Professors!" Riddle declared righteously, pointing at the door.
The door was opened. A young Hagrid was crouched before a wooden crate containing a Multi-Eyed Little Spider.
"No! Aragog hasn't done anything wrong!" Hagrid tried to protect his pet.
But Riddle merely gave a cold wave of his wand, and the crate exploded.
The memory ended there.
Harry was flung back to reality, gasping for breath, his face a mask of shock.
It was Hagrid! He opened the Chamber! His monster killed someone!
Riddle had shown the 'truth', and Harry believed it completely.
Draco almost laughed out loud.
What clumsy editing. Riddle had cut out all the segments unfavorable to himself, leaving only the 'ironclad evidence' framing Hagrid.
And savior, unsurprisingly, accepted it all.
"His intelligence is truly concerning."
Draco shook his head and closed the system interface.
The next morning's Potion Class, the dungeon classroom was as cold and damp as ever.
Snape was explaining the recipe, but Harry was distracted, his mind full of Hagrid and spiders.
One of his best friends... was actually a murderer?
Just as he was lost in these thoughts, Draco Malfoy raised his hand.
Snape stopped and asked in his oily voice, "Malfoy?"
"Professor," Draco stood up, his posture elegant. "I have a small question regarding the nature of magic."
Snape raised an eyebrow impatiently.
Draco's gaze swept over Harry as if by accident before returning to Snape.
"I've read that certain powerful magic can create memories indistinguishable from reality."
"My question is, if a person becomes completely immersed in a fabricated memory, could they make erroneous judgments because of it, even defending a lie as if it were the truth?"
His voice echoed in the classroom.
Hermione looked thoughtful. Ron looked utterly confused.
Harry, however, jolted his head up as if he'd been stepped on.
Fabricated memories? Defending lies? He thought Dracowas mocking the story of Hagrid's expulsion!
"That's not a lie!" Harry roared, standing up and glaring angrily at Draco. "Hagrid is innocent! He was framed!"
He didn't realize at all that what he was defending at that moment was the lie meticulously woven by Tom Riddle.
A deathly silence fell over the classroom.
Snape's face turned as black as a cauldron.
"Potter, shouting in my class. Ten points from Gryffindor!"
"And for your thoughtless impulsiveness, Detention for a week!"
Draco slowly sat back down, an innocent smile on his face.
So pitiful.
Counting the money for the person who just sold you out.
Tom Riddle would probably be moved to tears by your stupidity, wouldn't he, savior?
The farce of Harry defending Hagrid was merely an insignificant prelude.
A few days later, the real panic descended.
Another attack.
This time, there were two victims.
Hufflepuff's Justin Finch-Fletchley, and Gryffindor's ghost, Nearly Headless Nick.
The two were found collapsed in a third-floor corridor, their bodies rigid.
Justin's eyes were full of terror, while Nick was pitch black, floating motionless in mid-air.
Even the ghosts were affected!
Fear exploded throughout the Castle.
Howlers from parents flooded the Principal's office. Many rushed directly to Hogsmeade to take their children home.
The Ministry of Magic could no longer sit still.
Late at night, on the edge of the Forbidden Forest, Hagrid's hut.
Harry and Ron, wrapped in the invisibility cloak, were huddled in a corner of the hut.
It was Hermione.
Before she was Petrified, she had already guessed the monster was a Basilisk, moving through the pipes.
They had found a page about Basilisks and a small mirror clutched in her stiffened hand.
Harry finally understood he had been deceived by Tom Riddle's diary.
He was rushing to ask Hagrid about the truth from fifty years ago, but he hadn't expected to run into unexpected visitors.
The hut door was knocked.
Hagrid opened the door, his face pale.
Three people stood outside.
At the front was the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, wearing a pinstriped cloak, his bowler hat almost crushed from being wrung in his hands.
Behind him was Dumbledore, his expression grave.
The last person... Harry's breath caught.
Platinum blond hair, grey-blue eyes, a silver snake-headed cane.
Lucius Malfoy. Draco's father.
"Good evening, Hagrid," Fudge's voice was dry.
"Things are bad, Hagrid. Another attack. The pressure is too great. The Ministry... must do something."
Hagrid wrung his hands nervously. "I didn't do it, Minister! You know I didn't!"
"I'm not saying I think you did," Fudge avoided his gaze. "But your record... you know. As a precautionary measure, I have to take you in."
"Take me in? Where?" Hagrid's voice trembled.
Fudge's lips moved, forcing out a word: "Azkaban."
Under the invisibility cloak, Harry gasped.
Azkaban!
"Fudge, you're mad!" Dumbledore spoke, his voice calm yet weighty. "Taking Hagrid to Azkaban makes no sense."
"For Merlin's sake, Dumbledore!" Fudge shrieked. "I must be seen to be doing something!"
As they argued, an elegant, icy voice interjected.
"I'm afraid you will soon have no authority to dictate to the Minister, Dumbledore."
Lucius Malfoy stepped out from behind Fudge, a scroll of parchment unfurled in his hand.
"What is this, Lucius?" Dumbledore asked.
"A Suspension Order," Lucius displayed the parchment bearing the signatures of the twelve school governor.
"We are unanimously of the opinion that you have lost control of the school's situation. Until you find the attacker, we believe you should step aside temporarily."
Chapter 102: Dumbledore Dismissed! A Single Sentence Makes the Strongest White Wizard Roll Out of School!
The light in Dumbledore's blue eyes extinguished for the first time.
He looked calmly at Lucius: "Is that so? Yet I believe that expelling the Headmaster immediately after the attacks will solve nothing."
"Moreover, if all twelve members of the Board of Governors wish for me to leave, they will come and tell me themselves."
A sudden commotion erupted outside the door, and Hagrid's hound, Fang, began barking wildly.
"Hide!" Hagrid growled towards the corner.
A triumphant smile appeared on Lucius Malfoy's face.
"The Governors who signed are right outside. They merely prefer not to discuss this matter in your friend's... humble abode."
He tapped Hagrid with his snake-headed cane.
"As for him, Fudge, take him away. This is the collective decision of the Board of Governors."
Fudge, as if granted a great reprieve, immediately shot a meaningful look at the Aurors behind him.
Hagrid tried to struggle, but Dumbledore pressed a hand on his shoulder.
"If both the Ministry of Magic and the Board of Governorshave decided, Hagrid, I cannot keep you."
Dumbledore suddenly turned towards the direction where Harry and the others were hiding, his voice not loud, but clear.
"But some words will remain. If anyone wishes to seek the truth, they need only... follow the spiders."
"And, as long as there are those within the school who remain loyal to me, I have not truly left."
Having said that, he calmly followed the Aurors and walked out of the hut with Hagrid.
Harry and Ron, hidden in the corner, felt a chill run through their bodies.
It was all over.
Hagrid had been taken, and Dumbledore had been driven out.
Hogwarts had lost its strongest protector.
Meanwhile, in the Slytherin Dungeon.
Draco leaned back on his exclusive black leather sofa, the firelight from the fireplace illuminating his profile.
The system interface before him was broadcasting everything happening inside Hagrid's hut in real-time.
[Ding!]
[Key plot node 'Transfer of Power' has been triggered!]
[Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore has been suspended!]
[Hogwarts Gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid has been taken into custody!]
[Host's father, 'Lucius Malfoy,' has perfectly demonstrated the family's influence. Family fortune has increased!]
Draco looked at the screen, at his father's elegant and domineering posture, and nodded with satisfaction.
This was a true Malfoy.
Using the most dignified methods to accomplish the most underhanded deeds.
The moment Dumbledore's figure vanished, Draco felt the magical aura of the entire Castle shift.
That ever-present protective force was dissipating.
Replacing it was an air of chaos and freedom.
Draco stood up and stretched.
The old fox was gone.
Now, this vast playground had no more administrator.
It was time to establish new rules of the game.
Professor McGonagall was appointed Acting Headmistress in this crisis, but the piles of Howlers in her office left her overwhelmed, with no energy to spare for student discipline.
This gave Draco a perfect opportunity.
"Starting today," Draco announced to everyone in the Slytherin Common Room, "we will take over discipline in the Castle."
His voice was not loud, yet no one dared question it.
"Pansy, Blaise, you will each lead a patrol."
"After curfew, any non-Slytherin student found in the corridors loses fifty points immediately, and report them to Filch."
"Yes, Draco!" Pansy's eyes shone with fervor.
"The same goes for daytime," Draco scanned the room. "I authorize you to deduct points from any student for 'misconduct.'"
A lower-year student whispered, "Draco, what counts as 'misconduct'?"
The corner of Draco's mouth lifted.
"For example, an ungraceful walking posture, five points."
"Loud noise disturbing Slytherin students' thoughts, ten points."
"Failing to give way when they see us, or a disrespectful look, twenty points."
"In short, anyone I dislike is guilty of misconduct. Understood?"
"Understood!"
The entire Common Room erupted with an excited response. A carnival targeting Gryffindor officially began.
The corridors of Hogwarts became Slytherin's hunting grounds.
"Weasley!" Pansy, with several other girls, blocked Ron.
She elegantly placed the tip of her brand-new dragonhide boot on Ron's old textbook, which had fallen to the floor, and slowly ground it.
"Your book is dirtying the corridor, damaging Hogwarts' image. Gryffindor, twenty points!"
"Longbottom!" Blaise stopped Neville. "The way you walk puts me in a bad mood. Gryffindor, ten points!"
The rubies in the Gryffindor hourglass vanished rapidly. In three days, over three hundred points were lost, putting them directly at the bottom.
Slytherin's points, with Snape's favoritism, soared.
Draco also instructed Pansy to spread new rumors:
"The heir only attacks those with impure blood."
"Slytherin is the safest."
"mudbloods and half-bloods, if you don't want to be petrified, leave the school yourselves."
Panic spread. Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw students began avoiding Gryffindors.
Especially Harry Potter.
As he walked down the corridor, students around him parted like the Red Sea before Moses.
The halo of savior had completely vanished, replaced by the title of 'jinx.'
Once, Harry was surrounded by a group of Slytherins again.
"Well, if it isn't savior."
"Potter, didn't go to set any snakes on people today?"
"Stay away from him! Be careful, a single glare from him might turn you to stone!"
Harry's face turned pale, his hand gripping his wand tightly, yet he dared not move.
Not far away, Draco Malfoy stood watching coldly with several prefects.
If Harry struck first, a charge of 'assaulting a fellow student' could land him a month's worth of detentions.
No one dared to help him.
Harry could only lower his head and awkwardly push his way out of the crowd amidst the jeers. He felt more alone than he ever had on Privet Drive.
Night, in the Slytherin Common Room.
Draco rested with his eyes closed. The resentment, anger, and fear from the entire Hogwarts were being continuously absorbed by the system and converted into his power.
[Ding! Detected that the Host has successfully created a 'Slytherin Supremacy' campus atmosphere and taken control of campus order!]
[Congratulations, Host, on achieving the special achievement 'Hogwarts Tyrant' (Beginner)!]
[Reward obtained: Aura of Oppression (Passive)! You can exert continuous mental pressure on targets with lower magical power than you!]
Draco felt his mental power become incredibly dense. He opened his eyes and casually glanced at a Slytherin first-year nearby who was whispering.
The first-year stiffened, his face instantly turning deathly pale, his legs giving way as he almost knelt on the floor.
Draco withdrew his gaze, very satisfied.
Pansy Parkinson knelt on the floor beside the sofa, her slender fingers massaging his shoulders with gentle movements.
"Draco, you're truly amazing," her voice trembled with admiration.
"Now everyone fears us. This feeling... is wonderful."
Draco didn't speak, enjoying this absolute obedience.
Hagrid's words, 'follow the spiders,' would eventually lead Harry and the others to their deaths.
He had already monitored the massive Acromantula nest deep in the Forbidden Forest.
"Hurry up, Potter."
"I've already prepared your dinner."
Chapter 103: The Death-Seeking Duo! Harry and RonAlmost Become Spider Droppings!
"Follow the spiders."
Hagrid's words were the only clue Harry and Ron had.
With Dumbledore suspended and Hagrid taken away, it seemed they were the only ones in all of Hogwarts still investigating the truth.
They noticed that the spiders in the Castle were going crazy.
One by one, row by row, they crawled out through the cracks in the windows like refugees, swarming toward the Forbidden Forest.
"They're afraid of something," Harry whispered.
Ron's face was pale; these things were what he feared most. But for Hagrid's sake, he could only grit his teeth and nod.
That night, the two boys and a dog, draped in the invisibility cloak, slipped into the pitch-black Forbidden Forest.
The Forbidden Forest at night was like a giant beast waiting to devour someone. Cold wind poured through the gaps in the canopy, carrying the howls of unknown creatures.
"Harry, how much further do we have to go?" Ron's voice trembled. "The spiders here... they're getting bigger and bigger."
A black spider the size of a casserole pot scurried past his feet, making him nearly jump out of his skin.
They followed the stream of spiders and eventually reached a hollow.
The air here was thick with the stench of rotting meat.
All the small spiders circled around this hollow, not daring to take a single step inside.
The ground began to vibrate slightly.
"Click, click..."
The dense sound of limbs rubbing together echoed from all directions, and countless pairs of glowing eyes lit up in the darkness.
The next second, hundreds of hound-sized giant spiders crawled out from burrows and behind trees, surrounding them so tightly that not a drop of water could leak through.
"Oh... oh god..." Ron could barely stay on his feet.
Hagrid's hound, Fang, gave a mournful howl and turned to run, only to be stuck in place by a spiderweb falling from the sky.
A leading giant spider spoke in a human voice: "Aragogwants to see you."
Meanwhile, in front of the fireplace in the Slytherin Common Room.
Draco leaned back into a soft sofa, a Magic Map that only he could see suspended in the air before him.
On the map, the two red dots representing Harry and Ronhad been completely swallowed by dense clusters of glowing dots representing dangerous creatures.
He could even clearly sense the fearful emotions skyrocketing from the two red dots.
[Target 'Harry Potter', 'Ron Weasley' fear values have reached their peak.]
[Negative emotion energy harvesting in progress...]
Draco picked up the hot cocoa brought by a House-elfand took a slow sip.
He could "hear" the conversation over there.
Aragog, the king of spiders—an Acromantula as large as a small elephant—said to Harry in an aging voice.
"I am not the monster in the Chamber of Secrets. That girl was found by me in Hagrid's cupboard... Hagrid is innocent."
"Then what exactly is that monster?" Harry asked urgently.
"The natural enemy of us spiders. We never speak its name, never look into its eyes. It... is hidden right in the Castle."
Harry and Ron had just breathed a sigh of relief when Aragog's tone suddenly shifted.
"Hagrid does not allow me to harm humans. But you were not sent by him. My children... are hungry."
"Goodbye, friend of humans."
The spider swarm grew restless, their hideous chelicerae raised high, making a death-knell "click-clack" sound.
"Run!"
Their souls nearly scared out of them, the two turned and bolted.
A giant spider pounced on Ron, its Fangs aimed at his neck.
Harry was also covered by a large web, unable to move.
At this desperate moment.
"Vroom—"
Blinding headlights tore through the darkness, accompanied by the roar of an engine, as a sky-blue flying Ford car came charging in.
The weasley family's magic car!
It knocked aside a dozen giant spiders, and the doors popped open automatically.
"Get in!" Harry roared.
The two scrambled into the car on all fours.
The flying car fishtailed, smashing a path through the blood, and carrying the two boys and a dog, it soared into the sky, escaping the spider swarm's encirclement.
Draco watched the glowing dot representing the flying car recede on the map and gave a yawn.
"How pathetic."
He waved a hand to close the map and went to bed.
The next morning, in the Great Hall.
Harry and Ron appeared at the dining table with dark circles under their eyes, spider silk and rotten leaves still clinging to their clothes, and their faces deathly pale.
As soon as they sat down, Malfoy's characteristic, slow-paced mockery drifted over from the Slytherin table.
"Do you smell that?" Draco wiped the corner of his mouth with a napkin and said to Pansy and Zabini beside him.
"A mixture of rotting leaves, monster saliva, and cheap car exhaust."
He pointedly glanced toward the Gryffindor table.
"It's quite the appetite killer. I've heard there are always some fools who love to barge into places they shouldn't, always thinking they're heroes."
"But that's fine, maybe one day they'll become some monster's droppings, which would be a contribution to purifying Hogwarts."
A burst of laughter erupted from the Slytherin table.
Harry and Ron's faces turned the color of pig's liver, and their fists were clenched tight, yet they couldn't say a single word.
Because what Malfoy said was the truth.
Hermione had already been discharged from the hospital wing; she looked at her two friends worriedly, just about to speak.
A gaze fell upon her, cold as ice.
She looked up and met Draco's grey-blue eyes. There was no warmth in that look, only a warning.
Hermione's heart tightened, and she immediately looked down, not daring to look at Harry and the others again.
Draco withdrew his gaze with satisfaction.
Everything was going according to his script.
The information Harry and Ron brought back was crucial: "Spider's natural enemy," "cannot look into its eyes," "hidden in the Castle."
Hermione's brilliant mind began to race.
Under Draco's "warning," she didn't dare discuss it openly with Harry and the others anymore, so she could only secretly slip into the Library.
Combining the fact that Harry was a Parseltongue, she frantically consulted ancient texts on serpentine magical creatures.
Finally, in a forbidden book called "Most Evil Magic," she found the answer.
A Basilisk!
A giant snake hatched from a rooster's egg; its gaze is lethal, its Fangs are fatal, its natural enemy is the rooster's crow, and it can move through pipes.
All the clues matched!
Hermione trembled with excitement; she tore out that page and clutched it in her hand as she rushed out.
She had to tell Harry immediately!
She even thought of a way to deal with the Basilisk using a mirror.
She pulled a small mirror out of her pocket, planning to give it to Harry later.
As she ran around a corridor corner, a figure blocked her path.
Draco Malfoy.
He was leaning against the wall, as if he were specifically waiting for her.
"Granger," he said flatly, "in such a hurry, are you trying to save the world again?"
Hermione instinctively hid the page in her hand behind her back.
"Draco... I..."
His gaze fell on her clenched fist, and he let out a sigh.
"I warned you, Hermione," he said, stepping forward and closing in on her, "don't get involved in this."
"But Harry is in danger!"
"Harry Potter again!" Draco's tone grew cold.
"Can't you think for yourself for once instead of that Scarhead? You're a Muggle-born!"
"You're the primary target for that thing! I don't want you to go to your death, understand?"
Hermione's heart was in turmoil.
"I... I'm just going to warn them to be careful," she whispered.
With that, she bypassed Draco and stubbornly ran forward.
Draco watched her retreating back, the emotions in his grey-blue eyes difficult to discern.
Foolish, kind, and stubborn.
He shook his head and didn't stop her again. Some lessons must be experienced firsthand to be truly unforgettable.
He turned, cast a Disillusionment Charm, and his figure vanished into the air, silently following her.
Chapter 104: Lockhart is Scared Witless! The Chamber of Secrets Door Opens!
Hermione ran quickly, her mind only on finding Harry as soon as possible.
At the next corner, she habitually raised her small mirror, poking it out to observe the path ahead.
The mirror's surface reflected the scene of the corridor.
Then, Hermione's footsteps came to a halt.
Her pupils contracted sharply in the mirror's reflection.
A pair of enormous, yellow eyes gleaming with a deadly light stared back at her through the mirror.
A massive serpent covered in green scales poked its head out from a pipe on the wall.
A Basilisk!
Hermione's mind went blank, and she even forgot to breathe.
The Basilisk opened its maw wide, preparing to pounce.
At that moment, an invisible surge of magic erupted from the shadows behind Hermione.
Draco made his move.
The magic acted precisely on the mirror, tilting it by a minuscule angle.
Simultaneously, a resilient Shield Charm enveloped Hermione's entire body.
The Basilisk's killing gaze was reflected by the mirror toward the ceiling, scorching a charred mark into it.
The petrifying magic transmitted through the mirror was greatly weakened after piercing through the Shield Charm.
"Ah..."
Hermione let out a short cry of surprise, her body instantly stiffening.
The mirror and that page from the book slipped from her hands, and she fell over rigidly.
She was petrified. But still alive.
The Basilisk flicked its tongue in confusion, preparing to move forward and deliver a finishing bite with its venomous fangs.
"Sss—"
A purer, more authoritative voice in Parseltongue rang out from the shadows.
"Get back."
The Basilisk's massive body shuddered violently; it felt an absolute suppression originating from its very bloodline within that voice.
Not daring to disobey, it immediately retreated back into the pipe.
Draco deactivated the Disillusionment Charm and stepped out.
After confirming that Hermione was only petrified, he breathed a sigh of relief.
From the distance came the sound of students' footsteps and laughter.
The show was about to begin.
The calmness on his face vanished instantly, replaced by shock, disbelief, and... suppressed fury.
A group of Ravenclaw students had just turned the corner when they saw this terrifying scene.
The petrified Hermione lay on the floor, while the Prince of Slytherin, Draco Malfoy, was rushing to her side.
"Hermione!"
He let out a hoarse roar.
Under everyone's horrified gazes, he spun around abruptly and punched the adjacent stone wall with all his might!
"Bang!"
Stone fragments flew everywhere as the hard wall was smashed into a shallow pit by his fist, which contained the power of dragons blood.
"heir!" Draco roared at the empty corridor, "How dare you touch my person!"
"I don't care who you are, I swear, you will pay for this!"
His performance was impeccable.
Harry and Ron, who had hurried over, were also completely stunned by the scene.
Draco... was furious over Hermione's attack? To the point of injuring his own hand?
The heir... really wasn't him?
After all, who would be so ruthless toward their "rumored girlfriend"?
At this moment, Draco used his perfect acting to clear himself of his final suspicions.
And he crafted a brand-new image for himself: a deep-feeling and powerful protector.
The atmosphere in the Gryffindor Common Room was so heavy it felt like it could be wrung out like water.
Professor McGonagall stood before the crowd, her usually ramrod-straight back slightly hunched, her face pale, and even her lips trembling.
She announced in a voice so hoarse it seemed on the verge of breaking:
"Another student... has been taken by the monster."
"She has been... taken into the Chamber of Secrets."
There was a deathly silence in the room.
"Who is it?" a student asked in a trembling voice.
Professor McGonagall's gaze moved across the crowd and landed on the boys of the weasley family.
Ron's heart sank heavily.
"This time," Professor McGonagall's voice was strained, "the school must be closed. The Hogwarts Express will arrive tomorrow morning to take you all home."
Almost at the same time, in the third-floor corridor.
Filch, the caretaker, discovered a new message written in blood on the wall, larger than any before it, a vivid and eye-stabbing crimson.
"Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever."
The news spread through the Castle like wildfire.
"The one taken was Ginny! Ginny Weasley is missing!"
When that name reached his ears, Ron's brain ceased to function.
Ginny... his little sister... "No..." He rushed out of the Common Room, distraught, with Harry following close behind.
They saw the line of blood and, near the corner of the wall, one of Ginny's dropped shoes.
Ron's legs gave out, and he slid down against the wall, a suppressed sob escaping his throat.
Harry was also struck as if by a lightning bolt.
It was he who had picked up that diary.
It was he who, after communicating with Riddle, had carelessly tossed the diary in the dormitory, giving Ginnythe chance to take it.
It was he who had harmed Ginny!
"We have to do something!" Harry grabbed Ron's shoulders, his voice shaking.
"Do what?" Ron looked up in despair. "Dumbledore is gone, and Hagrid is gone too..."
"There's still one more!" A spark of light flashed in Harry's eyes. "Lockhart! Hasn't he bragged about how many monsters he's defeated? He must have a way!"
Like drowning men clutching at a straw, the two of them rushed toward the Defense Against the Dark Arts office like madmen.
On the other side, in the staff room, the teachers were also in a state of chaos.
"Action must be taken!" Professor Flitwick squeaked.
Snape sat to the side with a cold face, not saying a word.
"There is one person who knows what to do."
Professor McGonagall's gaze was fixed on the man in the corner, who was wearing ornate robes but looked paler than anyone else.
Gilderoy Lockhart.
"Gilderoy," Professor McGonagall's tone brooked no refusal, "it's time for you to show your stuff. Haven't you always said you knew where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets was?"
The color drained completely from Lockhart's face, and he broke into a cold sweat.
"I... I was only speculating..."
"Excellent!" Professor Flitwick clapped his hands. "Then off you go! We'll support you!"
Lockhart looked at the "go and die quickly" expressions of all his colleagues and knew he couldn't keep up the act. He made an excuse about needing to prepare in his office and fled.
He wasn't going to any Chamber of Secrets! He was going to pack his bags immediately and slip away amidst the chaos!
He had just burst into his office, and there hadn't even been time to lock the door.
"Bang!"
The door was kicked open, and Harry and Ron, holding their wands and looking ferocious, blocked the doorway.
"Professor Lockhart," Harry's voice was devoid of any warmth, "we've come to 'escort' you to save Ginny."
"What... what do you want to do?" Lockhart retreated in terror.
"Didn't you write all those books?" Ron pressed forward menacingly. "Now, prove it to us!"
"Try to run, and we'll tell The Daily Prophet everything you've done!"
Lockhart was in utter despair.
He was forced by two second-year Wizards, at wand-point, toward that path of death he had bragged about countless times.
Slytherin Dungeon.
Draco Malfoy changed into a set of black tactical gear suitable for action and hid a dagger engraved with Runic runes in his sleeve.
On his system interface, the light representing Ginny had already overlapped with the one representing Tom Riddle.
[Warning! Target 'Tom Riddle' is performing the final life force absorption!]
[Manifestation Countdown: 29 minutes 47 seconds.]
Chapter 105: The weasley family's youngest daughter has been dragged into the Chamber of Secrets!
"Pansy."
Draco spoke toward the shadows.
Pansy Parkinson's figure appeared immediately, kneeling on one knee.
"Draco, please give your orders."
"Watch the door. Before I return, no one is allowed to leave the Common Room even a single step."
"For those who disobey, you know the consequences."
"As you command, my master." Pansy's eyes held unmasked fanaticism.
Draco said no more, turning to walk out of the Dungeons.
A foolish hero, a cowardly fraud, a desperate brother.
All the actors are in place.
The stage is the girls bathroom on the second floor, where Moaning Myrtle resides.
The show begins.
The girls bathroom on the second floor was cold and damp.
Moaning Myrtle floated over. "Oh, Harry, have you come to chat with me again?"
"Myrtle," Harry went straight to the point, "how did you die?"
Myrtle's mood immediately plummeted. "I was just crying in a stall... I heard a boy saying strange things outside... I opened the door to tell him to get lost, and then... I died."
"Did you see his face?"
"No, I only saw a pair of very large, yellow eyes, right there by that tap."
She pointed to a discarded tap among a row of sinks.
On the side of the tap was carved a tiny snake.
This was it!
"Open up!" Harry said to the other two.
Ron and Lockhart tried for a long while, but the tap wouldn't budge.
"No, Harry," Ron reminded him, "you have to use that language."
Harry took a deep breath and walked to the tap.
He recalled that cold hissing sound coming from deep within his throat.
"*Hiss—Open—Hiss—*"
A series of sounds he didn't even understand himself were uttered.
The tiny carved snake glowed faintly, and the sink slowly receded and sank into the floor, revealing the entrance to a pitch-black pipe.
"I... I think I'd better not go." Lockhart looked at the bottomless hole, his legs turning weak.
"You must go!" Ron jabbed his wand hard against Lockhart's back.
The three had no choice but to jump into the pipe one by one.
The inside of the pipe was wet and slippery with a steep incline; they fell rapidly through the darkness and were finally tossed into a tunnel filled with a foul stench.
Beneath their feet, they stepped on countless tiny animal bones.
"Lumos."
The light from the tip of Harry's wand illuminated the way ahead.
A massive snakeskin lay on the ground, stretching into the darkness like an underground river shimmering with an eerie light.
Its diameter was large enough to swallow an adult whole.
Seeing this, Lockhart's sanity completely snapped.
Following these two boys down there was definitely a dead end!
He suddenly turned and snatched the broken wand held together with tape from Ron's hand.
"The game is over, boys!"
A twisted look of triumph appeared on Lockhart's face.
"I'll write a new book, saying you both went insane upon seeing Ginny's corpse, and that I heroically defeated the monster but failed to save you!"
"To make the story believable, I'm afraid I have to... sorry!"
He raised the wand and pointed it at Harry and Ron.
"Obliviate!"
Ron's broken wand simply couldn't withstand such a spell.
A burst of blue light shot out, but it curved in mid-air and struck the caster himself!
"Boom—!"
The spell backfired, the violent explosion making the tunnel hum and causing rocks and dirt to shower down from the ceiling.
The blue light engulfed Lockhart. The light in his eyes went out, his expression became vacant, and he fell straight backward.
The explosion directly triggered a cave-in.
Countless boulders fell, separating Harry from Ron and the unconscious Lockhart.
"Ron!" Harry shouted from the other side.
"I'm fine, Harry!" Ron's voice came from behind the pile of rocks. "But I'm blocked! Rocks are falling everywhere here, you go on! Go save Ginny!"
Harry looked at the thick wall of stone, knowing he couldn't move it on his own.
Time waited for no one.
Gritting his teeth, he turned and walked alone toward the depths of the dark tunnel.
His figure was small, but there was no turning back.
Behind him, in a gap in the collapsed stone wall.
The air distorted slightly, and Draco Malfoy's figure silently passed through the rock pile.
The high-level Disillusionment Charm allowed him to blend into his surroundings.
Under the [Presence Concealment] skill, he made not a sound, nor was there even a trace of magical fluctuation.
He was like a true ghost, following Harry Potter at a distance.
Watching Lockhart's self-destructive farce, Draco felt nothing but disdain.
Trash is trash, after all.
Looking at Harry's "lone hero" silhouette, he found it even more ridiculous.
You are just the chosen key to open the final treasure chest.
Now, the key has been inserted into the lock.
It's time for the hunter behind to prepare for the harvest.
Harry passed through the snakeskin tunnel and arrived at a massive circular stone door.
Seven intertwined stone snakes were carved on the door.
Harry commanded the stone door again in Parseltongue.
The stone door slowly opened, revealing the true face of the Chamber of Secrets.
It was a magnificent underground hall.
Stone pillars rose from the ground, with hideous snake statues coiled around them, disappearing into the darkness overhead.
The entire hall was illuminated by an eerie green light.
At the end of the hall stood a statue nearly as tall as the ceiling.
Salazar Slytherin.
Ancient, majestic, looking down upon all living things.
Draco followed behind, and as he looked at this architecture, he felt a flicker of respect for this ancestor for the first time.
To hide such a grand architectural feat beneath Hogwarts.
It was just a pity that his descendant, Tom Riddle, used this legacy in such a crude and wasteful way.
Draco's gaze went past Harry's back and toward the foot of the giant statue.
He could feel two forces of magic intertwining there.
One was the flickering flame of Ginny Weasley's life.
The other was Tom Riddle's increasingly solid soul power, filled with greed... The stone path was slippery, the channels on both sides were bottomless, and the air was thick with a stale, fishy stench.
Harry stepped onto the slimy ground, walking step by step toward the massive statue of Salazar.
Then, he saw it.
On the stone floor at the foot of the statue lay a small figure, her red and black Gryffindor robes particularly striking.
"Ginny!"
Harry rushed over, his knees hitting the ground hard.
He reached out; Ginny's cheeks and hands were terrifyingly cold, and there was no rise and fall in her chest.
She wasn't breathing.
"Don't worry, she's not quite dead yet."
A clear voice came from the shadows of the statue, possessing the distinctive clarity of a youth yet tinged with a chill.
Harry looked up sharply.
A tall, black-haired boy stepped out, appearing sixteen or seventeen years old, with a handsome face.
He was twirling a wand in his hand—it was Harry's own.
"Tom? Tom Riddle?" Harry's voice trembled.
The boy nodded with a smile.
"It's me."
"Did you bring her here? Save her, quickly! We have to get out of here!" Harry shouted.
"She can't leave," Riddle's smile was somewhat twisted.
"She's too weak. She wrote all her secrets, fears, and her soul into the diary."
Harry's heart sank. "What do you mean?"
"Ginny Weasley opened the Chamber of Secrets, released the Basilisk, and wrote the warnings in blood on the walls."
Riddle's tone of voice was flat, as if he were stating something that had nothing to do with him.
"But that wasn't her intention. It was me, forcing her to do it through this diary."
He kicked the black diary on the ground.
"You see, the weaker Ginny gets, the stronger I become."
Riddle's originally translucent outline was becoming solid at a pace visible to the naked eye.
"Soon, I'll be able to leave this diary completely and return to this world. As for Ginny... she's just a necessary sacrifice."