By the time they left Hagrid's hut, the sky had turned completely dark. Ron had finally stopped regurgitating slugs, although his face was still a bit pale. Hermione's emotions had also settled down considerably.
"Thank you, Rove." Before returning to the common room, Hermione whispered again. "And, please thank Susan for me."
"I will." Rove nodded with a smile. "Remember, an Elven Princess needs not bow her head to Orcs."
For the next few days, discussions about the brawl remained heated in the school. Rove's "Gandalf Combo"—blind first, then knee strike—became a move that lower-year students from Hufflepuff and Gryffindor scrambled to imitate.
Saturday night, amidst dreary wind and rain. Harry had to go to Lockhart's office to help him answer fan mail, Ron went to the Trophy Room to polish trophies, and Rove arrived punctually at Filch's archive room.
"Come in, Baggins." Filch held a dim oil lamp, Mrs. Norris winding around his ankles. "Professor McGonagall said you're to help me organize files... Hmph, don't think this will be easy work."
Hundreds of metal filing cabinets were squeezed into the narrow archive room, stuffed with centuries of Hogwarts disciplinary records.
"The crimes of every troublemaker are recorded here."
"Your task is to re-file these scattered records by year and surname. If there is any mistake..." He bared his uneven yellow teeth. "I will show you what true pain is."
Rove looked at the mountains of parchment, not with fear, but with a flash of excitement in his eyes.
"These are not just files, Mr. Filch." Rove said solemnly. "This is the sediment of history, a record of humanity's struggle against its own dark side. I will compile them into volumes, just as the librarians of Minas Tirith organized the King's chronicles."
Filch paused, clearly not expecting such a response. He looked at Rove suspiciously: "Cut the chatter. Get to work!"
For the next four hours, only the sound of turning parchment could be heard in the archive room.
Rove worked with extraordinary dedication. He didn't just file; he re-labeled every folder in extremely neat, archaic calligraphy. For particularly egregious violations, he even drew tiny "Orc" or "Eye of Sauron" symbols next to them as warnings.
Filch had intended to find fault, but when he picked up the first file Rove had organized, he couldn't find a single thing wrong. The cabinet, originally a mess, was now so orderly it felt unfamiliar to him.
"Hmph... passable," Filch muttered. Though he didn't want to admit it, this was indeed the most efficient student worker he had ever seen. "Alright, time's up. Get out."
Rove dusted off his hands: "May the dust here cover the sins, and may the light guide the lost lambs. Goodnight, Watchman."
Filch watched Rove's retreating back and couldn't help shivering: "Lunatic..."
---
After leaving the archive room, Rove didn't go straight back to his dorm but went directly to the door of Lockhart's office. Calculating the time, Harry's detention should be over too.
Just as he reached the corridor corner, he saw Harry stumbling out, looking exhausted and dazed.
"Harry!" Rove went to meet him.
"Oh, Rove..." Harry rubbed his wrist, his voice weak. "You have no idea... four whole hours... he was teaching me how to reply to fans... and kept bragging about his teeth..."
"Beware the Wormtongue." Rove supported Harry. "Your mental state doesn't look good. Did he plant any hypnotic suggestions?"
"No... just too tired." Harry sighed.
The two walked side-by-side into the pitch-black corridor, heading for Gryffindor Tower.
Just then, a voice emerged.
"Rip... tear... kill..."
The voice seemed to seep out of the stone cracks in the walls, yet also sounded like it was ringing directly in the depths of the mind.
Harry stopped abruptly, looking around in terror.
"Did you hear that?"
Rove stopped too.
> [Warning: Black Speech Fluctuation Detected]
> [Source: Unknown (Walls / Wraith World)]
> [Decoding Failed... Only Dark Creatures or Ring-bearers can fully understand]
Red ripples flashed on Rove's System interface. He heard a vague hissing sound, like a giant snake flickering its tongue by his ear, but he couldn't understand the specific content.
"That voice..." Harry's face was pale, staring at the ceiling. "It said... it's hungry... it wants to kill..."
Rove spun around, grabbing Harry's shoulders with both hands.
Under the System filter, Harry's eyes seemed covered by a layer of grey haze.
"Look at me! Harry!" Rove roared.
"What?" Harry was startled.
"Don't listen to it!" Rove shook Harry vigorously. "That is the whisper of Sauron! He is tempting you! He is trying to control your mind!"
"No... Rove, I don't want to listen!" Harry struggled. "It's inside the walls! Something is moving!"
"That is an hallucination! An hallucination created by the Ring!" Rove was relentless, even raising his hand to give Harry a Physical Sobriety Slap (considering the Gondorian Headbutt was too heavy, he held back). "Focus! Think of happy things! Like... like your broomstick! Or Ron's silly face!"
Harry was dizzy from the shaking: "Rove! Stop! I really heard it! It went upstairs!"
Harry broke free from Rove's grip and ran toward the stairs.
"Damn it! The Ring-bearer is out of control!"
Rove cursed and followed closely behind.
"Hold on, Harry! I won't let you degenerate into Gollum!"
The two sprinted through the corridor, running all the way to the second floor. Harry suddenly stopped, panting heavily as he pointed ahead.
"Look!"
Under the torchlight, a line of writing on the wall was glowing.
THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.
And hanging from the torch bracket beneath the writing was a stiff kitty—Filch's Mrs. Norris.
> [Warning: Victim Discovered]
> [Status: Petrified]
> [Suspected Killer: Medusa / Prehistoric Beast / Gaze of Sauron]
Rove walked over slowly and touched the cat's stiff tail.
"No blood."
"This is no ordinary killing. This is some ancient Dark Magic."
Just then, the bell rang, and the formerly silent corridor filled with the noise of voices. Seconds later, hundreds of students poured into the corridor, then fell equally silent.
Draco Malfoy squeezed to the front. His eyes lit up immediately upon seeing the cat.
"'Enemies of the Heir, Beware! You'll be next, Mudbloods!"
Rove whipped his head around, his eyes locking deadly onto Malfoy.
"Looks like that hit wasn't enough to teach you to shut up, Malfoy."
"Do you want to test if your nose can catch my fist?"
Malfoy retreated a step in fear, covering his nose.
Just then, Filch screamed and rushed over.
"My cat! My cat! Who did this?" His bulging eyes fixed on Harry. "You! You killed my cat!"
"Calm down, Watchman." Rove stepped in front of Harry. "Harry has been with me the whole time. Besides, the cat isn't dead. It just... saw something it shouldn't have seen."
Rove looked up at the blood-red writing on the wall. The warning box on the System interface turned redder and redder.
> [Main Quest Update: Shadow of the Chamber]
> [Objective: Uncover the Ancient Evil within the Castle]
> [Current Clues: Black Speech Whispers, Petrified Guard, Heir of Slytherin]
> [Warning: The war has begun.]