A magical journey that begins at Hogwarts

“I know,” Aaron said nonchalantly. “But that’s for ordinary people. I’m the kind of person who attended twenty-nine tutoring classes during the holidays. Five elective courses are really nothing to me.”

"This is different."

Each elective course has a fixed time slot, and there are sometimes two or even three classes offered at the same time. Therefore, logically, each student can choose a maximum of three elective courses.

“That’s you guys.” Aaron pointed to his eyes. “I’m very confident I can keep up with every course.”

Draco paused for a moment, then shook his head with a wry smile. "Why am I worrying about this? I completely forgot you have a photographic memory!"

Aaron shrugged, but there was something he didn't say.

By the next semester, he should have mastered the magic of the Thought Form. With his main body and clones combined, there's no reason he wouldn't be able to pass a few elective courses.

What courses did you sign up for?

“I can’t compare to you.” Draco chuckled self-deprecatingly, then pushed his schedule in front of Aaron. “I’m just a mortal, and I can only learn in a mortal way.”

Aaron glanced at it briefly: divination, protecting magical creatures, and ancient runes.

"Not bad, decent, and shows good self-awareness."

“Many people make this choice; I bet no one in the entire school would do what you did.”

"maybe!"

......

The first Quidditch match of the semester was Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff, and Wood insisted that the team train every day, even on rainy days.

The intense training gave the Gryffindor team a lot of confidence, and they were even confident that they could compete with Slytherin, not to mention the Hufflepuff team, which was weaker than them to begin with.

However, the day before the match, Harry saw a flustered Neville Longbottom right after training. "Harry, I don't know who did it, but you'd better come and see for yourself."

Harry's good mood vanished instantly as he pushed open the dormitory door.

His suitcase was opened, his clothes were scattered everywhere, the drawers were pulled open, and everything was dumped out. Even worse, his bed sheets and blankets were also brutally torn off.

Anyone who didn't know the situation would probably think he was robbed, and not just for money, but for his sexual assault.

Ron walked in and, seeing the utterly chaotic scene, gaped in astonishment. "What happened here?"

“I don’t know.” Harry said as he made up his sheets and blankets, and then picked up the things on the floor one by one and put them into his trunk.

"It looks like someone is looking for something?"

Harry paused for a moment, then carefully checked his bedside table and found that a black diary was missing, causing his heart to sink slightly.

"He's found it; Tom Riddle's diary is missing."

"what?"

The two exchanged a glance, then immediately left the dormitory and went to the common room, where they found Hermione reading a book.

“Something’s happened, Hermione,” Harry said, slightly out of breath. “Riddle’s diary has been stolen.”

Hermione was surprised for a moment, but then calmed down. "It must be someone from Gryffindor. Outsiders don't know our password unless the person who did it wasn't a student."

I think we need to get this message out to Aaron as soon as possible.

“It’s already dark, so we can’t leave the common room.”

"Let's do it tomorrow. He should be there during the Quidditch match."

Upon hearing this, Hermione and Ron nodded in agreement.

The next day, after breakfast, Wood enthusiastically invited the Gryffindor players to the locker room and briefly explained the tactics from the blackboard.

"This time we're going to play our style, and Hufflepuff is no match for us."

We are stronger, faster, and smarter.

As eleven o'clock approached, Harry picked up his Nimbus 2000, changed into his red robes in the dressing room, and prepared to go.

Meanwhile, Hermione and Ron found Aaron, who was sitting in the stands like everyone else, ready to watch the game, with a dragon cub wrapped in a green scarf in his arms.

“It’s been a long time since we found you,” Ron said as he walked over. “We have something urgent to tell you.”

"Have you found any new leads?"

“This… I don’t know if it counts as a clue,” Hermione said gravely. “It’s Harry’s, no, Tom Riddle’s diary that’s been stolen.”

Upon hearing this, Aaron immediately stood up. "Walter...when?"

"It must have been yesterday, in Harry's dormitory."

"It was stolen in the dorm? Then it must have been Gryffindor who did it."

"I think so."

"Think about it carefully, which Gryffindor knows that Harry has such a diary?"

Hermione and Ron exchanged bewildered glances; they really didn't know the answer.

Aaron could tell from their expressions that he couldn't count on them, so he sighed and said helplessly, "Let's ask Harry again! Maybe we'll make some progress."

Hermione realized what she meant and was immediately shocked. "You mean the Gryffindor who stole the diary is suspicious?"

“It’s highly likely. No one would bother stealing an ordinary diary for no reason, but a diary containing clues about the Chamber of Secrets from fifty years ago is different, especially for Hogwarts now,” Aaron said meaningfully. “This person is probably Slytherin’s heir. He knows there’s something recorded in the diary, but he can’t decipher it himself, so…”

"That's why I thought of destroying the diary," Hermione chimed in. "That makes sense!"

He probably knew that ordinary methods wouldn't destroy it, so he threw it into the weeping myrtle's washroom, intending to flush it down the drain and bury the secret of the secret room forever, but he didn't succeed.

Later, he unexpectedly discovered that Harry had obtained the diary, and fearing that Harry would uncover its secret, he seized the opportunity to steal it.

"Haha!" Ron laughed gleefully. "This heir is really pathetic. He doesn't know that there are no clues in the diary at all. He's destined to have wasted his time."

“To be honest, Ron, sometimes I really admire you.” Aaron looked at him seriously and said, “The heir to Slytherin, the culprit behind several attacks, is in Gryffindor. He can even easily sneak into Harry’s dormitory and steal his diary without being discovered.”

"A ticking time bomb is living right next to you, and you can still laugh."

Ron's expression froze, and he couldn't help but swallow. So, Gryffindor was the most dangerous one after all!

Hermione's expression was also quite unpleasant. While there are some pure-bloods in Gryffindor, she is a Muggle and may already be on the heir's kill list.

"Hopefully Harry still remembers who found this diary."

"Don't get too excited," Aaron said, throwing cold water on Hermione's enthusiasm. "This is all just speculation; there might be other reasons!"

“Even if the person who stole the diary isn’t the heir to Slytherin, they must be related to the heir in some way,” Hermione said confidently.

“What you said makes a lot of sense, but we need to find him before we can draw any conclusions.” Halfway through his sentence, Aaron suddenly heard something, and his lips twitched involuntarily. “This is bad.”

"What's wrong?" Ron asked, puzzled.

Aaron pointed to Abbe, who was standing on the floor in a wary pose, and said, "It told me that after several months, the heir of Slytherin has released the Basilisk again."

Chapter 181 New Attack, Martial Law Declared

"What?" Hermione exclaimed in shock, cautiously glancing around as if afraid she would see a pair of enormous eyeballs at any moment.

"No need to be so nervous." Aaron smiled nonchalantly and said calmly, "Ninety-nine percent of the people at Hogwarts are here, including powerful professors and the unfathomable Dumbledore. You could say there's nowhere safer than here."

Hermione instinctively breathed a sigh of relief, but then it dawned on her, "If the basilisk's target isn't here, then that means..."

“The castle.” Ron turned to look at Hogwarts Castle, swallowing hard. “We have to stop it quickly, or students will die.”

How to stop it?

"Just the three of us little guys?" Aaron retorted. "I don't want to say it, but unfortunately, we can't be of much help. If we go there, we'll just be food for the basilisk."

Even if Dumbledore were called upon, they couldn't catch up; the basilisk kills faster than any spell.

"So that means there's nothing we can do?" Hermione said anxiously.

“You can say that.

I've experienced this feeling of powerlessness several times already.

Until we find the Chamber of Secrets, all we can do is pray that the student targeted by the Basilisk is merely making indirect eye contact with it. Aaron shrugged helplessly, then looked at Hermione. "It's best not to go out alone until this is over. Staying with Harry and Ron, two purebloods, will give you a certain level of safety."

Even if you have to go out alone, you must carry a mirror with you, because...a mirror can prevent you from making direct eye contact with the basilisk.

Hermione nodded blankly, feeling a mix of despair and a secret thrill, since it was at least a form of concern.

"Wait a minute!" Aaron paused slightly. "Something's not right!"

“Something’s not right?” Ron asked.

"What a coincidence, it's really too much of a coincidence."

The diary was stolen yesterday, and today the door to the secret room has been opened again.

"You mean there's something wrong with Riddle's diary?" Hermione asked nervously. "Could you be overthinking it? Harry found it so long ago and it's been fine as before, hasn't it?"

“That’s right.” Ron nodded in agreement. “Perhaps the Slytherin heir thought that having obtained the diary would eliminate any worries, and couldn’t wait to test the Basilisk’s power.”

"I hope I'm overthinking it," Aaron said in a deep voice. "Otherwise, the locked-room mystery will be far more complicated."

At that moment, a huge cheer erupted from the stadium as the Gryffindor team, dressed in red, and the Hufflepuff team, dressed in yellow, simultaneously took to the skies above the stadium.

The match is about to begin, and the fourteen players are all warming up.

Ms. Horror released the Runaway Ball and the Golden Snitch. Just as she was about to throw the Quaffle to officially start the game, Professor McGonagall hurriedly ran to the center of the field.

"I regret to inform you that the competition has been cancelled." Professor McGonagall held a large microphone, her voice tinged with a hint of fear and unease. "Please return to your respective common rooms. The academy officials will provide you with more information. Please leave as soon as possible."

"They've probably discovered the attack," Aaron sighed. "An attack has occurred again at the start of the new semester, and this time the school might not be able to contain it."

"Then let's..."

Hermione wanted to say something more, but Aaron interrupted her, "Let's see what the school decides first. There's only so much we can do. It's already a miracle if we can protect ourselves."

If it really comes to the point where we have no choice but to close Hogwarts, then let's confront Dumbledore!

Safety first; I really don't want to push the other party to the brink of destruction unless absolutely necessary.

“The professors will understand,” Ron said.

Hermione added, "Everyone will understand."

Aaron noticed the determination on their faces and was somewhat bewildered, wanting to laugh but unable to.

These two have completely misunderstood. Understanding is not important, but Hogwarts absolutely cannot be closed.

By signing in at the magic school, he can save himself so many years of hard work!