"Sneak attack on Christmas Eve!" said Professor McGonagall angrily, "don't let me find that vile, nasty bastard! He better pray he doesn't hit me, or I'll turn him and that monster's head into a mess. Come together."

The professors' speculation is already close to the truth, but the closest to the truth is the trio of saviors who are not being watched.

Chapter 84 The Discovery of the Savior

The "savior effect" is a very interesting thing.

Whether in literature or in reality) messiahs are often not the most

The power is not the smartest J character, but at the most appropriate time, and then he becomes the savior.

Similarly, just under Dumbledore, the savior found a lot of clues, far away.

It may well be that an insignificant little place does the right thing in the right place

The intentional or unintentional guidance of Snape and Lockhart was unfortunately far from what Dumbledore expected.

But on Christmas Eve, in a short time when no one's attention was on the trio, Harry and the three discovered all the secrets of the Chamber of Secrets, which must be said to be a speechless coincidence.

Ginny Weasley did not go back to the bathroom after attacking Lockhart, but went straight back to Gryffindor Tower. The basilisk followed the pipe and sneaked back into the secret room below the bathroom from other positions.

After all, the castle of Hogwarts was built in the 10th century AD, so originally its toilet was a narrow secret passage leading directly to the cliffs outside. This structure is simple and easy to maintain, as long as you clear the hole when the **** sticks to it.

But the problem is that this kind of structure has great security risks. At that time, there were several murders in the castle toilets on the British princes and nobles. Finally, it was found that an assassin had put poison on a long cork. The tip of the spear came in through the hole under the toilet, and stabbed the nobles in their chrysanthemums with poisonous spears while they were going to the toilet.

—The Malfoys, who have been intermarrying with the Muggle upper class and are also Hogwarts school directors, took the initiative to mention that the toilets at Hogwarts should also be remodeled and replaced with a built-in plumbing system, otherwise it would be very difficult. There may be enemies taking advantage of this hidden danger to sneak in.

No kidding, there was an episode in the British comedy "Mr. Bean" in which an agent Bean sneaked in secretly through a secret passage in the castle, only to find out that the secret passage was a **** passage, and Mr. Bean ended up covered in shit.

Although the play is a comedy, the details cannot be underestimated. There were indeed some pipes in the early British castles for excrement and urine to pass through, but in order to prevent blockages, the secret passages were a bit wide, so wide that assassins could also pass through them.

After listening to Malfoy's words, the headmaster of Hogwarts thought it was the same, so he opened up several rooms inside the castle as toilets, and then stored the excrement directly in the large room under the toilet, and used the Vanishing Spell to deal with it regularly. .

But this also has a problem - that is the bearing capacity of the floor.

In 084, in Petersburg Castle, the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI was gathering with a group of nobles from all over the world. As a result, because the floor could not bear so many heavily armed fat people walking and jumping on it, it suddenly cracked. more than 60 people drowned in the septic tank below the room.

At that time, there was no "secrecy law" in the wizarding world, and the information between Muggles and wizards was still exchanged. The United Kingdom was ruled by the Plantagenet Dynasty, and the territory included the mainland, Normandy and Aquitaine.

So after the incident reached Henry II, the British upper echelons began to renovate their own castles while gloating over the misfortune.

The same is true of Hogwarts Castle. After collective deliberation, the successor headmaster and deans finally decided to move the location of the septic tank and the toilet a little further away.

The consequence of this move is that there are many more pipes in Hogwarts Castle.

For the next few hundred years, Hogwarts has been undergoing small-scale renovations, and until later Muggle designers were invited to make a major renovation, the pipes inside Hogwarts have become dense.

And what's even more terrifying is that because of the Traceless Stretching Spell, you still have these pipes.

It is impossible to judge its width from the outside volume. By the end of the 20th century, even the principal may not know how many pipes there are inside the school.

The Basilisk roams through these pipes effortlessly—as an intelligent being, it knew the location of these pipes as early as over a thousand years in the process of preying on mice. The Gaunts got the blueprints, and he wasn't as familiar with the pipes as this snake.

So Voldemort made a mistake - he didn't watch the basilisk go back to the back room, but let it slip back directly from the HVAC next to Lockhart's office, avoiding the portrait and walking along the path for people to walk. Secret Road returned to the Gryffindor lounge.

He's going to hide for a while

Although the "monster in the secret room is a snake" will surely be known to everyone after the attack fails, but Voldemort is confident that no one but him will be able to find the secret room.

So you might as well lie dormant for a while, and then come out to make waves after the basilisk sheds its skin and takes all of Ginny's life force.

After returning to the lounge, he let go of the control of Ginny's consciousness, letting her lie on the chair by the fireplace, making her think she was just asleep, and then transferring her consciousness back to his diary.

However, just as Ginny stared blankly at the smoky marks on her body and went upstairs to wash up, there was movement in a corner of the common room.

Harry Potter lifted the invisibility cloak covering him, stood up, and at the same time revealed Ron and Hermione behind him.

"It's unbelievable...it's Ginny." Harry's tone was full of surprise, "but she's looking dazed now."

"It can't be her!" Ron knelt feebly on the ground, his eyes full of pleading, "I know better, she's always been a good child... You see, she doesn't even remember what happened just now."

Hermione pulled him up: "None of us said it was her own.

, Ron, but we have to figure out what's going on. "

Just now, after getting the message back from Malfoy, the three returned to the bathroom full of joy, ready to go back to the cubicle to retrieve their original clothes.

However, a large pile of water marks dragged on the ground told them that it was not easy.

They bent down and looked closely, and found that the trailing trail was actually a broken faucet in the bathroom, and there was actually a snake on the faucet.

Hermione was the first to react - the pipe, the Slytherin, the enigmatic voice, Harry's Parseltongue, the water on the floor when Mrs Norris was attacked...

After reacting, they immediately realized that since the monster has just been dispatched, someone will be attacked immediately.

At Hermione's suggestion, the three put on Harry's invisibility cloak and moved to Gryffindor's lounge little by little, only to hear an explosion halfway along the way.

The little lions were also bold, knowing that someone was attacked, but they still ran towards the place of the accident, only to meet Ginny Weasley.

Watching a giant snake burrow into the pipe under Ginny's orders, the three of them must be false if they say they are not surprised - and Ginny's words are incomprehensible to the other two except Harry.

Next, in order to figure it out, they quietly followed Ginny all the way back to the Gryffindor lounge, so the above scene happened. And Voldemort is probably also because the diary consumes too much magic power, and the Invisibility Cloak, which is one of the Deathly Hallows, is quite powerful. They didn't find the three of them behind.

Although the truth was discovered, the saviors did not feel relieved, but were caught in a dilemma - what should they do next?

Chapter 85: Meeting with Master Newt

The most tangled question for the three of them now is, should this matter be reported to the principal?

If they report it directly to the school, it goes without saying that Ginny will definitely be expelled no matter what the school does with the snake in the end (they don't know about the diary yet), then their actions are no different from whistleblowing.

As Ron's best friend, and out of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's gratitude, Harry didn't plan to do this, and "protecting his friend's sister" and "repaying the Weasleys" were his priorities. far above the school rules.

This is the difference between the Lion faction and the Snake faction. They often believe that justice lies in their simple concepts, and the pursuit of outcome justice is far higher than procedural justice. As for the rules, especially the bad habits of Mangdong", the lions have always been disliked to abide by them.

Hermione was also a little hesitant - although she was once more Ravenclaw than Gryffindor in her first year, since the troll incident, she'd been flipped on a switch and became less disciplined. .

Facing the Ginny incident at this time, although her first reaction was to report to the school, another thought immediately killed her in her mind.

"We have to find a way to prove..." She seemed a little hesitant, and her voice lowered a lot, "We have to find the culprit, so as to prove that Ginny did not attack others through her own will, it is best to kill the snake. "

"Kill that snake?" Both of them were taken aback.

Hermione said succinctly: "Make up for the faults. As long as we find out who confuses Ginny, and we kill the culprit, the school will not hold us accountable, and maybe there will be awards... just like last year."

Harry was a little nervous: "Just us? Can it be done?"

"Why can't we do it?" Hermione asked back, "We already know that our enemy is a snake, and it is a snake that can live in a secret room for a thousand years. Check the information and know how to deal with it. To be honest Yeah, I think it's harder to ask Ginny about people or things she's been in contact with lately than this." Harry and Ron exchanged glances.

"Looks like that's all it takes."

Although he knew that the goblins were extorting, but after being attacked, Lockhart came to Gringotts for the first time, bought it at a high price... and rented the things he ordered.

After bargaining, Lockhart finally paid 3,000 gold Galleons for it. Even with his net worth, it is hard to say that it doesn't hurt, because this is more than the payment for his first book.

In the smile of Ragno's treachery, Lockhart kindly pointed him to the location of the funeral home, and earnestly suggested that the other party go to book a pit early, so as not to find a suitable wooden coffin for cremation. Say goodbye.

The trip to Gringotts did not delay Lockhart for too long, and he went to the Whiz Harder Book Company next to hand in the draft of the first three chapters that had been reviewed and revised by his mother.

Mr. Harder also gave Lockhart an update on their promotion: and invited him to stay for lunch, but Lockhart declined because he had a more important person to meet.

That man is Mr. Newt Scamander, a "former" employee of the Ministry of Magic's Department of Magical Creatures' Office of Beasts, recipient of the Order of Merlin, Second Class, and a legend of the First Wizarding War.

Although everyone is used to calling him Newt, he is actually the same name as the Dana who developed the theory of universal gravitation, called Newtn (Newtn), after omitting the last two letters, he is called Newt (Newt)

This legendary figure is now 95 years old and has long since retired at home. Although his brother Theseus did not die on the battlefield against Grindelwald, he died at the hands of the Death Eaters headed by Voldemort. People feel sad.

But if Master Rowling is not lying or remembering wrongly, then Master Newt lived to at least 2017, which is 120 years old.

Newt and Dumbledore had a close friendship - no secret in the wizarding world, and that may have been the reason why he never got promoted to Director in his lifetime.

But he didn't really care, because he was a little social and just wanted to be with animals.

He published Fantastic Creatures and Where to Find Them, contributed to the Werewolf Registry and the Fantastic Creatures Prohibition Act, and was awarded the Order of Merlin 2nd Class for his service to the conservation of Fantastic Creatures.

Although he is now retired, his personal friendship with Dumbledore has not broken, and his love for magical creatures has not broken. In the movie, when the hippogriff Buckbeak was about to be executed, Harry Potter had also seen Newt in the headmaster's room on the Marauder's map, and believed that he should have come to discuss this with Dumbledore.

So when Lockhart talked about wanting to find someone to consult about the Basilisk, it was not without reason that Dumbledore introduced him to Newt.

He Apparated to a certain village in rural Dorset, England, sorted out his clothes, and then walked to Mr. Scamander's house.

As a belated Christmas present, Lockhart brought a few packs of Muggle-world cat food with him, and he didn't know if the cat raccoon liked it.

In the warm afternoon sun and breeze, Master Newt received him kindly. The old man looked pretty tough, and his wife looked pretty good too. The two were sitting outside in the sun together before Lockhart's visit, and teasing the cat in his arms.

"Hello, Mr Lockhart, the headmaster has already told me... oh, cat food... Frankly, I'm not a big fan of this stuff. Muggles put too much bait in it to make cats hungry. It's very easy for animals to overeat, and some of them are harmful to animals, so I'd rather mix cat food myself."

Although Lockhart was a guest, Mr. Newt spoke without any scruples. He still said whatever came to his mind. If he hadn't known that he was a sincere person, Lockhart would not have been very happy.

"I see." Lockhart didn't seem to be angry at all, "Actually, this is the first time I've bought this kind of thing. When I keep an owl, I always give him what I eat, and occasionally he himself will go out to hunt mice. …”

Hearing that Lockhart used "he" instead of "it" to refer to his owl, Newt Scamander nodded lightly, as if to approve Lockhart's qualifications to talk to him.

It's just that the box of his words can't be closed as soon as it is opened:

"Also, I also read your book... I have to say, the way you deal with werewolves and vampires is too rude, and the way you deal with Wan Lun's female ghosts is not very appropriate..."

0 seedlings, I don't remember these things at all. Lockhart said heartily.

Fortunately, the old lady's appearance relieved Lockhart's embarrassment: "Newt, don't say this while chatting!"

"Oh... Okay! I just read those books, and I have some thoughts in my heart that I have to say." Old Man Newt shrugged.

Then, he finally got to the point: "Are you here to ask about the Basilisk? I've already heard Dumbledore say that you found one at Hogwarts? Didn't you attack it?"

Lockhart spread his hands, and revealed a helpless look: "We don't want to attack it, but so far, it has always been attacking the teachers and students of our school, then

Is a brutal guy.

Newt shook his head, as if to disagree with Lockhart.

"I'm afraid it's not magical creatures who are cruel to people, but me who is also a human being.

them.

P.S. "Under Xiaozhi, refuse to travel! 》

It is impossible to travel. It is a lot of trouble to travel, and you have to go to so many cities, isn't it to increase their GDP, so it's better to lie at home!

"It was really like this at first, but who knew that these guys didn't know how to fight!!"

Tactical leader, breeder of the father of the dragon family, the strongest underworld, the strongest champion in history, the leader of Pokémon, the strongest harem king... Ash!

"I said that I originally posted the video just to raise the price of Carp King, do you believe it?" Xiao Zhi said helplessly, covering his face.

(Online battles are the main focus, practical battles are less, and the introduction is weak, please see the text)

Chapter 86 Old Urchin

Seeing Lockhart's questioning gaze, Newt took the initiative to explain:

"It's been entrenched in the Hogwarts pipeline for over a thousand years, and if it's going to attack people, it's long since known how many people it's attacked, but these two injuries recently and fifty years ago have people, right?"

"That's true," Lockhart thought for a moment, then admitted honestly.

"That's really a pity." Newt Scamander sighed: "Maybe it's not meant to hurt people, it's just being used. Slytherin must have warned it not to let it see people and be banned. A thousand years in the pipeline, it's so lonely, and I meet a Parseltongue that can talk to it again, and if it's me, I'll get over it right away..."

Lockhart suddenly felt different: "Don't you want to... pardon it?"

Newt shook his head repeatedly: "No, no, that's not what I meant. Anyway, it has now learned how to attack people, just like a beast that has tasted human flesh, no matter how it was lured at first, but now It has already begun to regard humans as prey, so it must not stay."

"You scared me." Lockhart was relieved.

Newt looked like she was missing something: "I'm just a little regretful, if I had been more curious when I was in school and found the secret room, maybe I wouldn't let that **** take the snake with me. Deviated."

Lockhart didn't react for a while, and it took a moment for his mind to stop before he realized that "that bastard" meant Voldemort.

Just as between Grindelwald and Dumbledore, Newt chose not to take sides, so when Dumbledore fought Voldemort, he also chose not to help.

Although they don't help each other, it doesn't mean that Newt likes Voldemort, who abused animals, drove dark creatures to fight in the first war, and fought for the resurrection.

The act of killing unicorns for blood angered Newt, who would never have been polite to Voldemort if he could.

"About the basilisk, Newt said to Lockhart: Actually I suggest you solve the problem in the easiest way."

Find a female snake, leave an egg for it, and then make it... harmless. "

Lockhart decided to ignore the words of Master Newt. He wanted to make the basilisk go extinct immediately, how could he take the initiative to contribute to its reproduction.

But he was interested in the "easy way".

"I would like to hear the details." He revealed an eager expression.

"Learn to croak," Newt told him.

Lockhart: ?