Hogwarts: Don't call me Wandmaker

Chapter 145 Passing
Siren had intended to go back with Professor McGonagall, but he was sent back after taking only two steps.

Although he repeatedly insisted that he was not injured, Professor McGonagall refused to let him return to the common room and insisted that he stay there.

“Professor Flitwick said you were almost drenched in Basilisk blood, and that’s no joke!” Professor McGonagall said with a serious expression. “Moreover, it’s not appropriate for more people to know about this before we’ve thoroughly investigated it, lest some people use the Chamber of Secrets as a new adventure venue.”

Professor McGonagall left after she finished speaking, and instructed Mrs. Pomfrey not to let Siron go back.

Siron was somewhat surprised. He knew that the "some people" Professor McGonagall mentioned were actually Fred and George. When they first enrolled, they frequently visited the Forbidden Forest and certainly wouldn't miss out on a place like the Chamber of Secrets.

What puzzled Siren was something else: Professor Flitwick had been at the Quidditch pitch the whole time, so how did he manage to get the message out to Professor McGonagall?
Two-way mirrors, owls, or do the professors have other ways to communicate with each other?

But regardless of which one it was, Professor McGonagall knew it, and after she said that, Mrs. Pomfrey couldn't possibly let Siron leave.

Siren could only walk to the empty bed next to Ron and sit down.

But that’s fine too.

While Madam Pomfrey was preparing the potion, Siren hurriedly asked, "What happened? How did you end up like this?"

“Don’t even mention it.” Ron stared blankly at the ceiling. “This afternoon, we found the entrance to the secret room…”

"Wait a minute," Xilun quickly interrupted him, "Are you sure this is the entrance to the secret chamber?"

“There’s a washroom on the second floor,” Ron said. “Myrtle, the crybaby, lives in there.”

It really is the entrance to a secret room...

"How did you find it?" Xiren asked curiously.

“You reminded us.” Ron glanced at Siron. “You said Dumbledore sealed the entrance with magic, and later we overheard Nick the Headless and the Fat Monk talking. They mentioned that Peeves couldn’t get into Myrtle’s bathroom.”

“At that moment, we immediately realized that perhaps that was the entrance to the secret room.”

Siren frowned; wasn't this too much of a coincidence? However, he didn't interrupt Ron and continued, "And then?"

“Tell me about the basilisk first,” Ron asked anxiously. “I heard from Professor McGonagall that you rode Cerberus to attack the basilisk, is that true?”

“It’s fake,” Celen said. “How could I possibly be a match for the Basilisk? It was Hagrid and Ruwei who worked together to cut the Basilisk into three pieces.”

It is indeed in three segments. The one on the left was bitten by the basilisk and has little strength, so it only played a supporting role.

"That's good, that's good." Ron breathed a long sigh of relief.

"Now you can tell me, what happened after you found the secret room?"

“It was Hermione. She discovered that Lockhart was talking to a letter, and the letter was responding to him in a completely unfamiliar voice,” Ron said. “She also overheard that Lockhart and that person were planning to open the Chamber of Secrets and release the monster inside when Dumbledore left the school.”

“That makes sense; this kind of thing can only be done when Dumbledore isn’t around.” Sirius nodded. “But how did you get into the restroom?”

“It was Lockhart again.” Ron’s voice became a little soft, as if he had said too much in one breath. “We followed him to the second-floor bathroom and saw that he had cut his hand with a knife and left blood on the door.”

"Smearing blood on the door... what does that mean?"

"It seemed to be some kind of ancient ritual. The voice in the letter said that the magic was broken by using a wizard's blood. Then many colorful lines appeared on the bathroom door, and it was quickly opened a crack, just big enough for Lockhart to go in."

“But I don’t think it’s that simple,” Ron suddenly said seriously. “After that, Lockhart became extremely weak, and he needed both hands to hold the rooster…”

"Wait, what did you say?" Siren was taken aback. "Lohart is holding a rooster?"

“Yeah, Lockhart’s been carrying a rooster ever since he came out of his office.” Ron blinked. “What, didn’t I mention that?”

"Absolutely not."

“It’s not important. Lockhart tripped and fell as soon as he entered the secret room, crushing the rooster.” Ron waved his hand and muttered under his breath, “I really don’t know why he did that.”

As for why Lockhart brought a rooster to the secret room, Siron thought he might know the truth.

Lockhart must have researched the Basilisk and knew very well that the crowing of a rooster was deadly to it, which is why he brought this secret weapon with him.

No wonder he felt confident he could deal with the basilisk; it wasn't magic, but the rooster. Lockhart didn't need to do anything; simply making the rooster crow would instantly solve the basilisk problem.

It's likely that Hagrid's rooster wasn't taken by a vampire, but stolen by Lockhart.

That idiot!

Xilun thought through gritted teeth.

It was because he stole a rooster that Hagrid felt the place was unsafe, so he moved the other roosters and mink to another location.

Moreover, Siron didn't know where that place was, which caused him to wander around the cabin for a long time. Even after Luwei ran out, he still couldn't find the rooster.

But then again, after being possessed by Tom Riddle's soul, would the basilisk really still be afraid of the rooster's crow?
If he was afraid, why would Riddle let Lockhart take the rooster to the secret room... Oh right, Lockhart later crushed the rooster to death himself.

Thinking about it carefully, it's quite strange. Even if Lockhart is stupid, he shouldn't be so stupid as to not be able to keep an eye on a rooster.

At this moment, Madam Pomfrey arrived and gave Siron and Ron each a bottle of orange-red potion.

Xilun knew this; it was a vitality tonic used to replenish physical strength and nutrition. He had drunk it before when he had a mandrake leaf in his mouth.

Besides the vitality tonic, there was also a bottle of bright blue potion. Siron didn't know what it was, but Madam Pomfrey handed it to him, and he drank it.

It tastes pretty good, with a subtle raspberry flavor.

But the next bottle of brown potion didn't look so friendly.

Fortunately, this was for Ron to drink, not for Siron.

Their conversation paused for a moment, until Ron frowned and forced the brown potion down her throat, at which point Pomfrey left again with the empty cup.

The two continued their previous conversation.

Ron took a while to recover, and after the taste of the potion in his mouth had faded a bit, he began to boast about what had happened on the second floor.

“You’d never guess how the Chamber of Secrets was opened,” he said. “The moment we touched the tap, four animals appeared in front of us: a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake. Hermione said it was Headmaster Dumbledore’s doing because these four animals correspond to the four houses of Hogwarts.”

"Harry was facing a snake, and he made a hissing sound. Then a pipe suddenly opened."

"Harry later said that he wanted us to open the bathroom door and escape, but somehow, he made that hissing sound when he opened his mouth."

"Later, Professor McGonagall told us that Harry actually spoke Parseltongue, and that hissing sound was exactly how to open the Chamber of Secrets."

Ron got more and more excited as he talked, adding that he was captured because he decided to stay behind and let Harry and Hermione go get reinforcements.

However, based on what Siren knew about him, there was probably a lot of exaggeration involved, or perhaps Ron accidentally exposed himself, forcing Harry and Hermione to run away.

By then, Riddle should have already merged with the basilisk, and the process must have been far from pleasant, so it's normal that they would make sounds.

The basilisk then began to chase them, but because the magic on the bathroom door had not been completely dispelled, the basilisk could not get out and had no choice but to use the pipe.

No wonder the basilisk broke through the foyer wall and encountered him and Hagrid... Once you put it all together, it suddenly makes sense.

Xiren wanted to ask more questions, but when she turned her head, she saw that Ron had already fallen asleep, his head slumped over, looking like he wanted to continue chatting.

He was sleeping soundly, a faint smile on his lips, and even the tilted head didn't make him feel uncomfortable at all.

At the same time, he also felt sleepy, his mind became hazy, as if he were lying on a soft sofa.

This feeling… Xiren knew what the bright blue potion they had just drunk was: the Dreamless Sleeping Potion. A potion gentler than the Water of Life and Death, yet capable of quickly inducing a peaceful sleep in its drinker…

Just as he thought of this, Xilun had already fallen into a deep sleep.

……

(End of this chapter)