https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-88-The-Entrance-to-the-Chamber-of-Secrets/13456759/
Chapter 89: Tom Riddle's Plot
Chapter 89: Tom Riddle's Plot
In the teachers' common room, Professor Mcgonagall was organizing the task of evacuating the students from the school.
Dumbledore had already left the school, and no one knew where he had gone.
So, the management of the castle now fell to Professor Mcgonagall.
"The students may have left, but the patrols within the castle must continue. Professor Sprout, you and Filch will lead the students to the station. I, Professor Flitwick, Professor Snape, and Sherlock will conduct a thorough search of the castle."
Just as she was speaking, the door to the common room was suddenly pushed open from the outside.
All the professors turned to see Harry, who was panting heavily, standing at the door. Snape's brow furrowed.
"You should be packing your things to leave the school. What are you doing here, Potter?"
Harry ignored Snape's reprimand, took a deep breath, and quickly said,
"Neville is missing, Professor!"
Instantly, the entire common room fell into a dead silence!
Before they could say anything, Harry continued, gasping for breath,
"I also know where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is!"
At that moment, all the professors stood up!
They stared at Harry with wide eyes, and Professor Mcgonagall's body trembled with excitement.
"You know!"
"It's in the first-floor Myrtle's Bathroom! The monster in the Chamber of Secrets is a Basilisk! It moves through the castle's pipes!"
Sherlock was also profoundly shocked. Dumbledore had indeed made the right bet!
He was the quickest to recover and spoke rapidly.
"Organize the immediate evacuation of the students. Have them board the train. Once all the students have left the castle, we will search for the Chamber of Secrets!"
Professor Mcgonagall, now back to her senses, heard Sherlock's words and immediately made the necessary arrangements.
"Professor Sprout and Filch, you two find the prefects and organize the students and other staff to head to the station. Remember, don't let the train leave until we give the all-clear. Professor Flitwick, Severus, and Sherlock, we'll head to the bathroom first!"
With her words, the professors sprang into action.
Harry and Ron followed Sherlock and the four most powerful professors of Hogwarts to the bathroom.
Initially, Professor Mcgonagall was reluctant to bring them along, but Harry explained that he had the Parselmouth ability and might be able to help. She eventually agreed.
Upon arriving at Myrtle's Bathroom, Sherlock and the others began a thorough search of the room.
They soon made a discovery!
Flitwick pointed to a small copper tap on one of the sinks and called the professors over.
There was a tiny snake etched into the side of the tap.
"This tap never works", Myrtle, floating nearby, said sorrowfully, confirming the tap's significance.
Sherlock stared at the small snake carved into the tap and called Harry over.
"Use your Parselmouth ability. Say something to this tap."
Harry fixed his gaze on the carved snake, trying to imagine it as a real one. He visualized the flickering candlelight making the snake move.
"Open."
The harsh hiss escaped his lips, and in the next moment, the tap emitted a blinding white light and began to spin rapidly.
Then, the sink started to move, and they watched as it slowly disappeared from view, revealing a large, thick pipe large enough for a person to crawl through.
The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets was open!
Every professor present was thrilled, and Harry and Ron cheered with excitement.
But Sherlock and the others knew that opening the Chamber of Secrets was just the beginning. They still had a tough battle ahead!
"We need to fetch Rooster first. Rooster's crowing is the best weapon against the Basilisk!" Professor Mcgonagall said calmly.
Then, Flitwick and Sherlock went to the Hogwarts greenhouse to catch Rooster.
After Sherlock revealed that the monster in the Chamber of Secrets was likely a Basilisk, even though Hagrid's Roosters had all been strangled, Dumbledore had specially instructed Hagrid to buy more from outside and keep them in separate enclosures.
Several Roosters were being kept in an abandoned greenhouse managed by Professor Sprout.
Soon, Sherlock and Flitwick brought Rooster over. They waited until all Hogwarts students had been organized and evacuated before they entered the Chamber of Secrets.
Harry and Ron were ordered to wait outside, while Professor Mcgonagall stood guard.
Professor Flitwick, a former dueling champion and small in stature, carried Rooster and was the first to crawl into the Chamber of Secrets.
Sherlock and Snape followed closely behind, entering the Chamber of Secrets one by one.
They crawled downward for a long time, as if descending several miles underground, before finally emerging into a spacious underground chamber.
"This must be beneath the Black Lake", Professor Flitwick said, looking at the dark, slimy walls.
"Lumos."
The sound of three spells rang out as the professors simultaneously cast the Lumos spell, illuminating the Chamber of Secrets as bright as day.
They realized they were in an even larger tunnel that continued forward.
The three of them stomped on the damp ground, making a loud noise.
Rooster in Professor Flitwick's arms clucked, "Cluck, cluck, cluck", until they turned a corner and discovered a massive snake skin!
"This must be what the snake shed", Snape muttered. "A nearly thousand-year-old snake skin is an extremely valuable potion ingredient."
"Once we kill the snake, you'll get an even better one. Don't get too attached to this one. Let's keep moving", Sherlock said.
They continued forward until they reached the end of the tunnel, where a solid wall stood, engraved with two intertwined snakes. Their eyes were set with large, sparkling green gems.
Sherlock looked at the snakes on the wall, his brow furrowed.
"We need to bring Harry here."
Snape shook his head coldly.
"No, I remember the pronunciation."
Then, he faced the wall, his throat moving, and emitted the same hissing sound Harry had used at the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets.
The two snakes separated, and the stone wall split down the middle, slowly sliding apart and disappearing.
Professor Flitwick praised excitedly.
"Excellent job, Severus!"
Sherlock also looked at Snape in surprise, impressed by his unexpected talent for languages.
After the door was opened, the three of them moved even more cautiously.
This time, they truly entered the Chamber of Secrets of Slytherin.
The Chamber, roughly half the size of the Great Hall, contained numerous stone pillars carved with coiling snakes, towering to support the ceiling that vanished into the darkness above. The greenish, eerie mist that filled the room cast long, sinister shadows.
Sherlock, Flitwick, and Snape stood before the massive statue.
It was an aged, monkey-like face with a sparse, long beard that almost reached the hem of the stone-carved Wizard Robes, and two large, gray feet planted on the smooth floor of the room.
"Salazar Slytherin", Snape whispered the name of the statue.
But apart from the stone pillars and the statue, the Chamber of Secrets was empty.
Sherlock and the others searched the Chamber of Secrets for a long time before discovering a line of text etched on the base of Slytherin's statue.
"Slytherin's glory will endure with this castle! Even if his Chamber of Secrets is no longer a secret."
Flitwick's face darkened.
"He's fled, taking Longbottom with him!"
Snape's expression was also grim, and while Sherlock's face was equally troubled, he seemed to be deep in thought.
After another thorough search revealed nothing, the three returned to the bathroom.
Professor Mcgonagall, along with Harry and Ron, had been waiting there.
Upon learning that Slytherin's heir and the Basilisk were no longer in the Chamber of Secrets and that Neville had disappeared with them, she looked dazed and almost fell to the ground.
"How can I explain this to the Longbottoms? How can I face their parents?"
Sherlock and the others were silent, and Harry and Ron were particularly distraught.
They had hoped that finding the Chamber of Secrets would resolve everything, that Hogwarts wouldn't be closed, and that Neville could be saved.
But the outcome was far from what they had expected.
Professor Mcgonagall quickly regained her composure, took a deep breath, and said,
"Sherlock, take Harry and the others to the common room to pack their belongings and send them on the train."
Since leaving the Chamber of Secrets, Sherlock had been frowning.
It seemed Dumbledore's plan had failed. Tom was more cunning than he had anticipated, but something still felt off.
Regardless, the safest course of action was to send the students away and conduct a thorough search of the castle.
Harry and Ron followed Sherlock toward the Gryffindor Common Room, their spirits low, and neither spoke a word.
Suddenly, a thought struck Harry as he looked at Sherlock.
He grabbed Sherlock's arm, his voice trembling.
"Professor, do you think we can find Neville and the diary before we leave on the train?"
Sherlock and Ron were both taken aback, but Ron quickly understood what Harry was planning.
His eyes sparkled with excitement, and he looked at Sherlock with intense anticipation.
Sherlock sighed and shook his head.
"The chances are slim. Leave the castle's matters to the professors. You two must go home today and wait for news. Once everything is resolved, Dumbledore will inform you to return to school."
Harry and Ron's eyes widened with surprise and hope!
They nearly jumped for joy, and Sherlock looked at them curiously, unsure why such a response would make them so elated.
Harry and Ron exchanged a glance, seeing hope in each other's eyes.
They followed Sherlock to the tower where the Gryffindor Common Room was located.
The common room was unguarded by the Fat Lady, as all the students had already boarded the train, except for Harry and Ron.
They climbed through the portrait hole and, upon entering the common room, saw a pale boy lying on one of the sofas!
"Neville!" Harry and Ron exclaimed.
Sherlock's eyebrows furrowed, and he pursed his lips, slowly drawing his wand.
He had noticed a tall, dark-haired boy with a blurry, ghost-like form sitting in a chair by the fireplace.
The portrait hole of the Gryffindor Common Room slammed shut with a loud bang!
Tom Riddle looked at them, a smug smile on his face.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
