The person is at Hogwarts, but the system is in Middle-earth!

"It didn't stop!" Harry suddenly grabbed Rowe's arm. "That sound...it's moving! It's going upstairs!"

Luo Wei glanced at the new, still-dripping blood-stained writing on the wall.

"It seems that the 'Dark Heir' is not satisfied with mere intimidation."

"It's searching for prey. Now that it's making noise again, it's entered hunting mode. The hunt has begun."

"We have to stop it!" Harry said urgently, the feeling of being drawn by murderous intent making him feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Not stop," Rowe corrected, "it's intercept. All personnel, listen up, maintain silence, Level One combat readiness! This will be an encounter battle, possibly even an ambush."

Although Ron and Hermione had no idea what "Level One Combat Readiness" meant, they instinctively held their breath and followed Rowe and Harry up the stairs to the second floor.

The second-floor corridor was eerily quiet. Apart from their hurried footsteps, the only sounds were the wind and rain pounding against the windows.

Suddenly, Luo Wei stopped abruptly, raised his left hand and clenched his fist, signaling to stop moving forward.

"What's wrong?" Ron asked anxiously, his teeth chattering. "Did...did you see something?"

"Look at the ground," Rowe said, pointing to the ground in a low voice. "Nature's warning."

In the torchlight on the corridor walls, a group of small, dark creatures moved across the floor. They were spiders. Hundreds, even thousands, of spiders were lined up in a frantic queue, desperately trying to squeeze through the cracks in the window.

[Mass biological migration detected]

[Type: Dark Forest Spider]

[Status: Extreme panic/Escape from predator]

[WARNING: High-level predators are nearby]

[Note: Even these creatures that feed on fear have now become fear itself.]

"The spider is running away."

"In Middle-earth, there is only one explanation. An older, more malevolent force has awakened, and even these dark offspring feel a tremor deep within their souls. Just as the orcs fled from the Balrog."

"I've never seen a spider like this before..." Hermione's voice trembled as she took a step back, clearly suffering from trypophobia, especially of spiders. "They don't usually come in groups unless... unless their nests are destroyed."

"It's nearby," Harry suddenly clutched his forehead in pain, his voice growing clearer, "I hear it... hungry... so hungry... tearing... killing..."

"It's over there around the corner!"

Lowe quickly pulled a small mirror from his pocket, illuminated the mirror with the light from the tip of his wand, and then cautiously peered out from the corner of the wall.

"This is a basic tactic for fighting Medusa or the petrified lizard," Rowe explained in a low voice. "Never look directly into the unknown with your naked eye. Mirror reflections may impair your vision, but they can save your life."

However, the mirror was empty, with only a dark, long corridor visible.

"Safe?" Ron peeked out and breathed a sigh of relief.

"No," Rowe narrowed his eyes and gripped his wand tighter, "something's not right. It's too quiet. Even the wind has disappeared."

Just then, a soft shutter sound came from deep within the corridor.

"Click."

Then, Harry heard the voice scream: "Tear you apart!"

[WARNING: Deadly Gaze Locked!]

[Judgment: Instant kill attack!]

"Get down!"

Lowe reacted almost instinctively. His body moved faster than his brain, and he lunged forward, lunging at a small figure in the middle of the corridor.

That's Colin Crevey.

The first-year student was holding up his big camera, looking blankly at Luo Wei who suddenly rushed out.

"How..."

Before Colin could even speak, Rowe tackled him to the ground with tremendous force. The impact was as if a charging wild boar had crashed into him.

"Bang!"

Just as the two men fell to the ground, the camera in Colin's hand exploded with a loud bang. A burnt smell instantly filled the air, and the camera lens seemed to melt from the intense heat, billowing out thick black smoke.

"Close your eyes! Don't look up!" Rowe pressed Colin's head down to the floor, while his other hand waved his wand wildly, spilling a handful of lime powder from his sleeve.

"Break away! Yoda's flames! Break away!"

Lowe roared, and his wand burst forth with a blinding light—actually an overloaded version of the Illumination Charm.

A blinding white light instantly filled the entire corridor, dispelling all shadows.

In the light, Harry seemed to see a huge, thick shadow flash across the ceiling.

"hiss!"

The sound let out an angry hiss and quickly faded into the depths of the pipe.

"It's gone..." Harry gasped, leaning against the wall. "It's gone. It didn't like that light."

Only after confirming that the sound had completely disappeared did Lowe release Colin, who was nearly suffocating.

"Cough cough... Senior Baggins?" Colin scrambled to his feet, still clutching the smoking camera. "What happened? I just wanted to take some Halloween photos... Why did you tackle me?"

"You almost became part of the photo, rookie." Rowe stood up and picked up the broken camera with a serious expression.

The camera lens was completely shattered, and the film inside had burned into a black charcoal mass. The plastic casing was melting and emitting a foul odor.

[Item: Destroyed Engineering Device]

[Cause of damage: Looking directly at the Demon Eye]

[Damage Detection: Fatal (Blocked)]

[Note: This poor mechanical device bore the curse of petrification in place of its owner.]

Rowe looked at the destroyed camera and let out a long sigh. If Colin had actually pressed the shutter and seen what was in the viewfinder, there would be a cold stone statue lying on the ground now.

"What...what happened?" Hermione and Ron ran over, their faces turning pale when they saw the smoking camera. "What happened to this camera? It looks like it was struck by lightning."

“A sniper shot,” Rowe said coldly, “or rather, a failed hunt. The camera took his life. Some force traveled through the lens and burned the film, like an overloaded circuit.”

Just then, hurried footsteps came from the end of the corridor.

"Here! The sound and bright light are coming from here!"

Filch rushed over carrying an oil lamp, followed closely by Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and Snape. Clearly, Rowe's brightened version of the Illumination Charm had caught their attention.

"It's you again!" Filch exclaimed upon seeing Harry and Rowe. "I knew it! You're always causing trouble! Look at this! The hallway is a mess! And there's this burnt smell!"

"Argus, be quiet." Dumbledore strode forward, walking straight up to Rowe and his gaze fell on the camera in Rowe's hand.

"What happened, Baggins?" Dumbledore's blue eyes stared at Rowe.

"A skirmish, Professor." Rowe straightened his back. "We tracked that voice here. We found Mr. Crevy in extreme danger. That...thing, is trying to attack him."

He handed the still-smoking camera to Dumbledore.

Dumbledore took the camera and opened the back cover. A pungent odor wafted out.

Professor McGonagall gasped and covered her mouth. "Merlin! What kind of spell caused this? It looks like it exploded from the inside."

“It’s not a spell, Minerva.” Dumbledore looked at the charred roll of film with a grave expression. “No spell can destroy an object from the inside like this. This is some kind of extremely powerful evil force.”

"It melted the lens," Rowe added, "because the lens was trying to capture its image. It's like if you tried to look directly into Sauron's eyes, your soul would be burned. The laws of physics fail before a higher dark being."

Snape narrowed his eyes and walked up from behind, looking at the trembling Colin: "Mr. Creevey, what did you see?"

"I...I didn't see anything, sir," Colin stammered, his face pale with fright and tears welling in his eyes. "I just heard some strange noises and tried to raise my camera...and then Senior Baggins tackled me. And then the camera exploded. I swear I didn't play with fire!"

"This is the evidence we've been looking for."

Rowe pointed to the spiders on the ground. "And these too. The spiders are fleeing. They sensed the presence of a predator. When an elephant enters the forest, the ants are always the first to know."

Dumbledore watched the spiders desperately squeezing into the cracks in the wall and nodded thoughtfully. His expression grew even more serious.

"It seems," Dumbledore said softly, "that the legend of the Chamber of Secrets...is more than just a legend."

He turned around, looked at the pale-faced students in front of him, and his eyes showed a hint of approval.

"You all did very well tonight, especially you, Baggins. Your reaction may have saved Mr. Creevey's life. Hufflepuff +20," Dumbledore said. "Now, for your safety, I advise you to return to your respective common rooms immediately. Do not linger in the corridors except for classes and meals. The danger is no longer just in the writing on the walls."

"But Professor," Harry couldn't help but ask, still trying to recall the enormous shadow, "what was that thing? It felt so familiar..."

Dumbledore did not answer directly. He walked to the window and looked at the dark night sky outside, as if a pair of eyes were watching the castle from there.

"That's what I want to know too, Harry."

"But whatever it is, it's here now."