One class period later, the Gryffindors were so angry that their eyes turned red.
Slytherin got a huge boost, but as for Argus himself, he wished they'd whip up a Polyjuice Potion for him.
Even Hermione couldn't stand it anymore.
Fortunately, Harry and Ron weren't there, otherwise, Gryffindor probably would have been driven really crazy by Snape.
After class, Argus led the Slytherin students to the next classroom.
They were afraid that Gryffindor would get carried away and start fighting Slytherin again.
In the blink of an eye, three days passed.
During this time, Argus met Ginny several times.
It was clear that Ginny looked disappointed.
Her red hair hung listlessly on her head.
She was always alone.
Argus knew that it wasn't long before she was controlled by Voldemort.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere in Slytherin and Gryffindor became increasingly tense.
You could often see people from both houses talking sarcastically at the Gryffindor long table.
If it weren't for Argus and Percy holding things back, the two houses would have already started fighting.
Unfortunately, Argus could keep Slytherin in check, but Percy couldn't keep Gryffindor in check.
On the one hand, Gryffindor students were indeed more stubborn than those of the other houses, and they were more difficult to manage.
On the other hand, the difference between Percy's status as prefect and Argus's status as head boy was too great.
One was forcibly assigned by the house, while the other had conquered the entire house through his own strength.
It was easy to tell at a glance whose orders were easier to follow.
Putting aside the tense atmosphere between the two houses, Argus felt that he was living quite comfortably.
After class each day, he went to the library, and occasionally he went to the Room of Requirement to practice his spells.
In the evenings, he would sneak around the forbidden book section with the Illusion Spell, looking for some forbidden books that suited him.
When he got back, he'd go find a house-elf for a midnight snack.
Life was extremely pleasant.
Another week passed.
On a weekend morning, Argus arrived at the Great Hall and immediately spotted two disheveled young wizards.
The two of them wolfed down their food at the table, as if they hadn't had a proper meal in years.
With the two of them as the center, no one dared to approach within ten meters.
"These are... Harry and Ron?"
Argus almost didn't recognize them.
After ten days apart, the two seemed to have changed completely, having lost a lot of weight.
They were covered in dirt, and their hair was stuck together in clumps.
He then remembered what Vinda had said in her letter yesterday.
Thanks to Dumbledore's efforts, Harry and Ron were released, while Arthur was less fortunate; although he wasn't imprisoned in Azkaban, he was stripped of his position as head of his department.
If it weren't for the fact that their department had no one else, he probably wouldn't even have been able to keep his position at the Ministry of Magic.
A moment later, Professor McGonagall walked in from outside the doors.
Her eyebrows furrowed tightly at the strong smell emanating from Harry and Ron.
She took out her wand and pointed it at the two of them.
"Scourgify!"
The spell flowed along Harry and Ron's bodies, and under Professor McGonagall's control, it cleaned up the stench from the entire hall in one go.
"Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley."
"As your head of house, I have to remind you."
"You've missed too many classes recently. If you don't want to repeat a year, you'd better find a classmate to help you catch up."
As she spoke, she glanced at Argus, then looked at Hermione at the Ravenclaw table, as if she had thought of something.
The meaning was clear: you can choose between these two top students, or don't blame me if you fail the final exam.
"There's one more thing. Starting tonight, you will be facing a month-long detention."
The two, who had been engrossed in their food, finally looked up upon hearing this.
"But don't worry, this detention is not a patrol of the Forbidden Forest. Professor Lockhart will be in charge of Mr. Potter's detention."
"Mr. Weasley's detention will be managed by Professor Sprout."
"Did you understand?"
"I... I understand!"
Before they could even swallow what was in their mouths, they stammered their answers with puffed-out cheeks.
Professor McGonagall was also helpless about this, and waved her hand, indicating that the two should continue eating.
"It seems Harry and Ron suffered a lot in the trial room, otherwise they wouldn't have ended up like this."
"It's amazing that Fudge had such courage!"
"I wonder how heartbroken Dumbledore would be if he saw this!"
Argus thought to himself, but showed no sign of it on his face. He finished his breakfast and began his studies according to the plan he had made the night before.
...
Evening.
Lockhart's office.
"Harry, Harry, Harry..."
Lockhart sat at his desk, humming Harry's name in a strange, sing-song voice.
Harry felt a chill run down his spine.
Lockhart, however, had a very high opinion of himself.
The two most prominent students in the second year were Argus and Harry.
Facing Argus, he always felt a sense of unease, as if he had been seen through.
But for Harry, it was pure bragging.
"Harry, think about it, what could be a better punishment than helping me reply to that fan mail?"
"No." Harry didn't deny it.
Compared to his best buddy Ron, who was struggling to tend to plants with Professor Sprout, he was having a wonderful time.
Lockhart was even more pleased with himself for getting the answer he wanted.
He adopted a teacherly demeanor towards Harry.
"Harry, fame is an unreliable friend; celebrities are defined by their actions."
"Remember this sentence."
After a year of living at Hogwarts, Harry wholeheartedly agreed with this statement.
Just as he was about to say something, a muffled voice came to his ear.
"Come on, come on..."
Come to me!
"What did you say, Professor?" Harry thought Lockhart was speaking and looked up to ask.
"What do you mean, say what?"
Lockhart looked completely bewildered, not understanding what Harry meant at all.
This made Harry even more confused.
Didn't you hear someone talking just now?
"What are you saying, Harry?"
Lockhart was a little scared, and his eyes unconsciously darted around.
He forced a smile: "I think you're probably a little sleepy, right?"
"No wonder! Look at the time! Four hours have passed!"
"Happy times always pass too quickly. I think you should go back to your dormitory."
"Alright, Professor, I'll head back now." Harry had something on his mind and didn't press the matter further.
He strode out of the Defense Against the Dark Arts office.
Meanwhile, Argus, who had just come out of the library, was walking towards his dormitory.
As he approached a passageway, a strong smell of blood caught his attention.
Around the corner, there were two lines of bloody words written on the wall.
"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened!"
"Enemies of the Heir, beware!"
Argus cursed inwardly.
What bad luck!
How come I always run into all sorts of weird stuff?!
Just as he was about to run away, he looked up and saw Harry and Ron arriving at another corner.
Seeing the blood-red words above their heads, the fear in their eyes was clearly visible.
Argus's mouth twitched.
"Damn it! What a coincidence!"
"There wasn't even time to use the Disillusionment Charm!"
"Now that's bad, there's no way to run away!"
…
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