The distant voice echoed repeatedly through the Chamber of Secrets, gradually growing louder under the influence of magic. Rhys realized that the spell he had set up years ago had been triggered.
According to his design, whenever someone used Parseltongue within the castle, the enchantments on the castle walls would relay the sound layer by layer down to the Chamber of Secrets.
There, under the effect of an amplification charm, the voice would grow louder until it eventually awakened his basilisk.
The basilisk would then follow the commands of the Parseltongue speaker, as Rhys had instructed.
Even though he quickly understood what was happening, Rhys couldn't help but feel the absurdity of the situation: didn't he know better than anyone whether Slytherin had an heir or not? Did someone really think that just speaking Parseltongue made them the heir?
Who was parading around, using his name to deceive people?
Aside from the absurdity, Rhys was furious. According to his design, this system was only meant to be activated in the event of a life-or-death crisis at Hogwarts.
Whoever was up there, if they knew Parseltongue could awaken the basilisk, they surely knew the conditions required to do so. Yet they had chosen to summon the basilisk while Hogwarts was at peace!
This filled Rhys with rage. This was no prank—awakening the basilisk was incredibly dangerous. One direct look at its eyes, and it would be fatal!
He couldn't help but think of the fabricated lies of the Gaunt family. Could some fool really be planning to cleanse the school?
As Rhys stood there, filled with anger and disbelief, the sound of slithering also began emanating from the mouth of the statue.
The increasingly loud voice from above acted like an alarm, waking the sleeping basilisk.
Rhys noticed the changes in the statue and immediately waved his hand.
"Tsk"
Instantly, the voice echoing in the Chamber of Secrets disappeared.
At the same time, the statue's mouth, which had started to open, closed once more.
"Go back to sleep!" Rhys's voice, full of anger, echoed through the Chamber.
The basilisk, having been abruptly awakened, felt a bit confused. It didn't understand what was happening outside—there were now two "masters" issuing commands. One wanted it to climb up, while the other wanted it to go back to sleep.
Given its own preference, the basilisk was more inclined to follow the second command.
What made it even better was that the master who gave the second command had higher authority.
So, happily, it coiled itself up, ready to return to sleep.
Then it received another command.
Rhys: "On second thought, don't sleep yet. Go up, find the source of the voice!"
Basilisk: "..."
Silently, it adjusted its posture and started slithering through the complex network of pipes, heading towards the upper levels of the castle. What else could it do? The master's command was absolute; it didn't even have the right to complain.
A burst of magic shot forth, attaching itself to the basilisk, following it as it moved toward the source of the Parseltongue voice.
The basilisk slithered through the dark, narrow pipes, eventually arriving directly beneath the source of the voice. Now, only a layer of floor and a single pipe separated the basilisk from the person issuing commands.
Sensing it had reached its destination, the basilisk began hissing loudly, trying to understand who was commanding it.
"Hiss~ Who are you~"
"I, the heir of Slytherin, order you to obey my commands!"
Hearing the basilisk's response, the person outside clearly felt a sense of satisfaction and began issuing orders, instructing the basilisk to follow their commands.
"I refuse."
The basilisk bluntly rejected the command.
According to the basilisk's logic, since the original master had returned, the authority of this new "master" had naturally been revoked.
"?"
"You must be joking!" The voice outside sounded shocked and furious. "Are you defying the orders of the great Slytherin?"
The basilisk couldn't be bothered with the voice anymore. Having been roused from its slumber, it was feeling hungry and decided to hunt some rats in the pipes.
While small, rats were plentiful, and in large numbers, they provided enough sustenance to maintain the basilisk's energy.
Hogwarts had an intricate underground system, yet it rarely had any issues with rodents.
The basilisk, kept by Slytherin in the depths, played a significant role in keeping the population down. Every time it woke from its long sleep, the rats would suffer a near-total eradication.
"Hey!"
Noticing the basilisk ignoring its commands, the voice outside became frantic. It started changing tactics, trying to reassert control over the creature, but the basilisk chose to focus on its rat hunt, only occasionally hissing half-heartedly in response.
The voice outside was confused.
Decades ago, the basilisk had obeyed it without question, so why wasn't it following orders now?
Was it because the girl it had possessed lacked the bloodline of the great Slytherin?
It felt like it had figured out the answer.
While the basilisk played along with the voice, Rhys was making his way to the surface as quickly as possible.
The magic he left with the basilisk acted as a beacon, helping him track its location.
Soon, Rhys arrived near the source.
He could sense that the magic attached to the basilisk was only separated from him by a wall. However, the corridor he found himself in was completely empty, with no one in sight.
"Where is that person?" Rhys directly asked the basilisk.
"hISS~ Over there~"
The basilisk pointed Rhys in the right direction.
Following the creature's guidance, Rhys quickly walked to the corner of the corridor, where he saw someone unexpected.
It was a small girl with fiery red hair, wearing an ill-fitting old robe.
Her skin was pale, her frame thin, and she had a pair of brown eyes.
Despite her young age, her striking features were already evident, hinting at a beauty that rivaled even Daphne's, perhaps surpassing it. However, the weariness on her face, her haggard expression, and the dark circles around her eyes marred that beauty.
Rhys didn't need to ask her name or delve into her memories; the red hair alone told him she was from the Weasley family.
And in this generation, there was only one Weasley girl.
Rhys had seen her during the Sorting Ceremony and knew her name—Ginevra.
"Ginevra Molly Weasley, why are you here?" Rhys asked, narrowing his eyes. He had already sensed something unusual about the girl.
Ginny seemed startled by Rhys' questioning, hesitating for a moment before replying, "Just call me Ginny."
"Alright, Ginny Weasley, why are you here?" Rhys pressed, now almost certain that this small girl was the one who had used Parseltongue.
But this was too strange—how could a Weasley use Parseltongue?
Parseltongue, though it could be learned later in life, was primarily tied to bloodline. If a wizard's ancestors hadn't possessed the ability, it was nearly impossible for them to naturally acquire it.
And as far as Rhys knew, the Weasley family, even a thousand years ago, had no connection to Parseltongue.
Could it be that their bloodline had somehow mixed with another wizarding family?
Or perhaps it had something to do with the "little secret" she was carrying?
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