Dumbledore wasn't very confident either.
Professor McGonagall was right. Despite the Hogwarts staff's diligent searches over the generations, they never found the so-called Chamber of Secrets.
The Chamber was opened fifty years ago, resulting in the tragic death of a young Ravenclaw witch, Myrtle, now known as Moaning Myrtle. Hagrid had been blamed for keeping Aragog, an eight-eyed spider, something that made Dumbledore feel sorry for him to this day.
Now, the Chamber of Secrets had been opened once again.
Dumbledore stood up and left the lounge. After Professor McGonagall instructed Percy to take care of the Gryffindor students, she hurriedly went to find the other professors.
Dumbledore walked alone in the corridor, his eyes scanning the surrounding walls as he pondered.
"The pipes... the basilisk hiding in the pipes..."
"Slytherin's heir..."
Dumbledore felt a glimmer of relief. The two trolls had attacked ghosts instead of students, leaving him a chance to solve the problem without causing further panic.
If any students had been harmed, the board of directors would have stormed into Hogwarts by now with orders for his dismissal.
"Dumbledore!"
His thoughts were abruptly interrupted by Professor McGonagall's panicked voice.
"Minerva? What's wrong?"
Dumbledore sensed that something terrible had happened.
"Filch... Filch is missing! There's a broken oil lamp around the corner near the library. It's Filch's..."
Professor McGonagall's face was pale, her whole body trembling with fear.
Dumbledore didn't speak. His grave expression said it all as he quickly rushed to the corner near the library.
There, on the floor, lay a broken oil lamp. Judging by the solidified traces of lamp oil, it had fallen around midnight the previous night.
"The mark appears!"
Dumbledore cast a spell, and messy footprints appeared on the ground, some of which clearly belonged to Filch.
The trail stopped abruptly near the oil lamp.
"If nothing else, something happened to Filch," Dumbledore murmured.
Snape, Flitwick, and Nagini, who had arrived after hearing the news, stood in silence, their expressions grim. They had a vague idea of what had transpired.
Fortunately, the young wizards had been ordered to stay in their common rooms, so no one else knew about it yet.
Nagini sighed helplessly. "We agreed the basilisk wouldn't attack the students... but Filch isn't a student. Technically, the basilisk didn't break the agreement."
She glanced around, her eyes betraying a hint of regret. "I even secretly sent it a lot of beef last night."
No one spoke. Although most professors didn't particularly like Filch, he was still a member of the Hogwarts community. His disappearance left everyone feeling uneasy.
"If the basilisk isn't found... Hogwarts must be closed," Professor McGonagall said, her eyes closed in silent prayer.
Dumbledore's eyes sharpened as he turned to Snape. "Severus, the Chamber of Secrets wouldn't be opened without reason. We need to start with the legend. Slytherin's heir wouldn't come from another house, so please, go to the Slytherin common room and have a chat with the students."
Snape, a master of Legilimency, nodded. If Slytherin's heir was truly hiding in Slytherin House, he should be able to find some clues.
"Minerva," Dumbledore continued, "work with the other professors to set up magical barriers in the bathrooms, toilets, abandoned classrooms, and passageways. If the basilisk appears again, I want to know immediately."
Professor McGonagall nodded and exchanged glances with the other professors.
Dumbledore sighed, looking at the broken oil lamp on the ground. "As for me... I have to deal with the school board. Filch's disappearance can't be hidden, or Hogwarts' reputation will be ruined."
"Dumbledore," Professor McGonagall interjected, "don't forget Harry. He's a Parselmouth."
Dumbledore pondered this for a moment before nodding. "You're right. Have Harry come to my office this afternoon. I'll have a good chat with him. Alright, let's get moving."
With that, the professors dispersed, each with a heavy heart, ready to take on their assigned tasks in the hopes of protecting their beloved school.
Hearing what Harry said, Professor McGonagall couldn't argue further. She and the other professors were busy setting up magical barriers. Snape was heading to the Slytherin common room to see if he could find any clues about the heir.
Dumbledore, meanwhile, left the castle to meet with the school governors.
After learning about the events at Hogwarts, most of the governors expressed concern. Only Lucius Malfoy appeared surprised upon hearing the news. Dumbledore gave him a long, scrutinizing look. Lucius seemed a bit off, which instinctively raised Dumbledore's suspicions.
Lucius had lost his position as the chairman of the school board the last time he was overthrown. If the Chamber of Secrets incident was orchestrated by him for revenge, it wouldn't be impossible.
But Dumbledore couldn't figure out how Lucius had done it.
And if Lucius wasn't involved, why did he show such an expression?
Dumbledore kept his doubts to himself and planned to return to Hogwarts to oversee the situation.
While Dumbledore was dealing with the school governors, Snape left the Slytherin common room. As soon as he was gone, the Slytherin students couldn't help but start discussing.
"I think something must have happened!" Malfoy declared, lounging on the largest sofa in the common room with a smug look on his face.
"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened! The Chamber of Secrets is real, I knew it was. My father told me... Fifty years ago, the Chamber of Secrets was opened once, and I heard that a student died!"
As a descendant of the Malfoy family, Draco held a high status in Slytherin House, and many students were afraid to provoke him because of his family connections.
Just now, Snape had focused on questioning Malfoy. As for Artel, Snape only asked him a couple of questions, knowing that Artel, being Muggle-born, couldn't possibly be Slytherin's heir.
Seeing everyone looking at him, Malfoy's expression became even more complacent. He took a bite of a pastry and continued:
"Professor Snape must have been looking for the Slytherin heir! Too bad it wasn't me...if it were me...those Muggles..."
As he spoke, Malfoy noticed Artel looking at him with a half-smile.
"Cough cough... If it were me, this kind of thing wouldn't happen. I wouldn't open the Chamber of Secrets!"
Malfoy's sudden change in attitude made the other students burst into laughter, while some looked at Artel thoughtfully, surprise evident on their faces.
Especially Pansy Parkinson, who sat with her two roommates, gazing at Artel with a hint of admiration.
The prefect interrupted their thoughts, his voice low and filled with fear:
"Anyway, something must have happened, or Professor Snape wouldn't have forbidden us from leaving the common room... I think, maybe someone has died..."
....
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