Inside Moaning Myrtle's girls' bathroom, Harry Potter pointed his wand at Gilderoy Lockhart.
"Wuuu wuuu wuuu… Huh? Who's there?"
Moaning Myrtle was once again crying meaninglessly, adding to the eerie atmosphere of the bathroom—but she quickly noticed the two who had entered.
"Hello! Harry, what brings you here?"
In an instant, Moaning Myrtle transformed from weeping ghost to bashful girl. Clearly, she had a soft spot for Harry Potter.
"I want to know… how did you die?"
Harry Potter felt this was the only place where he could find the final answer. If Myrtle was the student who died fifty years ago, she should know the truth. Only the dead could provide the answers now.
"It was truly terrifying. Everything happened right here, in this bathroom stall. Oliver Hornby had made fun of my glasses, so I hid here and was crying… then I suddenly heard someone come in. Who was it? I don't know. I was upset, but that person said something strange—it sounded like a foreign language. I immediately realized it was a boy's voice. I was about to open the door and tell him to leave, and then… I died. The last thing I remember is seeing a pair of enormous yellow eyes, right there in that sink."
Moaning Myrtle began chattering on and on, recounting every detail before her death. In fifty years, Harry Potter was the first person who ever wanted to know all this. Maybe he could help her uncover the murderer—so she spoke with particular care.
Harry Potter listened intently. Gilderoy Lockhart also listened seriously, then looked at Harry's wand pointed at him and took a step back. Hmm! Being threatened with a wand was definitely unpleasant. Still, Gilderoy Lockhart didn't try to escape—he was also waiting for the answer. As he looked in the direction Harry was pointing his wand, Lockhart began to understand Regulus Black's assessment of Harry Potter.
Only when Myrtle pointed toward the sink did Gilderoy Lockhart finally step forward again, letting Harry's wand point directly at him, pretending to be utterly helpless.
"Don't think about running."
Harry gave his wand a flick, as if he could strike at any moment—then abruptly lowered it and started inspecting the sink carefully.
Lockhart was dumbfounded by Harry's behavior. Seriously? That works? As the Chosen One, this boy sure had nerves of steel.
Harry tested the sink's controls carefully, discovering that no water came from the tap. On closer inspection, he noticed a serpent-shaped engraving on the faucet. He thought for a moment, then tried speaking in Parseltongue: "Sss… open!"
The eight-sided sink, which had appeared perfectly sealed, began to separate automatically. The marked section of the sink sank down, revealing a large pipe behind it. Clearly, this was where Moaning Myrtle had seen the creature from the Chamber of Secrets that killed her.
"Amazing, Harry, well done! Now I can relax. Looks like you don't need me here."
Gilderoy Lockhart, who had been completely ignored while standing behind Harry, suddenly let out a voice of admiration. Yes, he'd had countless chances to escape, but Regulus Black's script hadn't called for that. He was supposed to go down first—to scout the way for Harry Potter.
"We do need you. You're going first."
Harry finally responded, stopping Lockhart just as he tried to sneak away after stepping forward. How can someone be so shameless? He's a disgrace to professors everywhere.
"What's in it for me if I go down first?"
Gilderoy Lockhart—an adult—was pushed by a kid and acted like he couldn't keep his footing, stopping right at the entrance. He began haggling with Harry like a child.
"It's better than me going first."
Harry hadn't expected Lockhart to be so weak. With just one push, he sent him stumbling back. Since he was already standing at the entrance, he might as well go down and scout ahead. Sometimes, you had to be ruthless.
"But… if that's how it is, don't you want to go first? Ahhhhhh! It's really filthy down here!"
Lockhart adjusted his posture, but still had to grumble a few more lines—just waiting for Harry to lose patience. Unfortunately for him, Harry was even less patient than expected and gave him a solid kick to the rear. Professor Lockhart went tumbling down, shouting all the way.
After Lockhart disappeared into the chute, Harry looked down and noticed that runes had appeared all over the inside of the passage.
Originally, the tunnel walls had no markings. These runes only appeared after Lockhart fell. But hearing him complain from below about how dirty the floor was, it was clear the runes hadn't harmed him.
"Alright! It's time for me to go down."
Harry Potter bid farewell to Moaning Myrtle. He was about to head into the Chamber of Secrets—perhaps to face the monster within.
"Oh! Harry, if you die down there, you're more than welcome to share my bathroom."
Moaning Myrtle, true to her ghostly nature, said things that always sounded unsettling. Was that a prophecy, or some form of comfort?
"Thanks, Myrtle."
Though Harry felt awkward, he still responded politely. Like hell I want to die. There's no way I'm sharing a bathroom with you!He screamed internally, but kept a courteous expression on his face.
Then, Harry jumped down. The runes on the tunnel walls began to glow. If Lockhart had activated these runes when he came down, then Harry's arrival seemed to deactivate them again.
The runes shimmered with a silvery light, forming fine threads that all poured into Harry Potter's mind.
As soon as Harry emerged from the tunnel, he was startled by the sight of countless rat skeletons scattered across the floor. He quickly gathered his wits and pointed his wand at Gilderoy Lockhart. At that moment, silver threads began to flicker in Harry's eyes—a sight that Lockhart found extremely eerie.
"Come on. Follow me."
Harry instructed Lockhart and began walking deeper into the cavern.
Not long after, Harry suddenly stopped in an open area, as though he'd spotted something on the ground.
"This is a shed snakeskin. This snake must be about sixty feet long!"
Harry gestured as he spoke, cautiously stepping around the invisible snakeskin on the floor.
Lockhart's expression changed. Clearly, Harry was under the influence of some kind of illusion. But was this part of Regulus Black's script?
Originally, Lockhart was supposed to fake unconsciousness here, steal Ron's wand, and cast the "Obliviate" charm. However, because Ron's wand was broken, the spell would backfire and erase Lockhart's own memory—landing him in St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.
But Regulus Black's script included no instructions for what to do after coming down. What Lockhart did from this point on was entirely up to him.
In truth, Regulus Black wanted to observe how Lockhart would act. After all, Lockhart had never admitted to being a senior officer in the Department of Magical Intelligence. If he wasn't, he would likely act as foolishly as he did in the original story. But if he was, then his behavior would align with what Regulus Black anticipated—pretending to be an idiot while secretly protecting Harry Potter.
To that end, Regulus Black had deliberately left Ron's wand at the spot with the snakeskin.
"Whose wand is this?"
Lockhart picked up the wand, making Harry tense for a moment. But then he remembered that Ron's wand had a history of backfiring—so he wasn't too worried about Lockhart using it against him.
"We'd better hurry and save them. I've got a bad feeling about Ron's condition."
Holding Ron's wand, Lockhart suddenly seemed to grow brave, taking the lead and heading deeper into the chamber.
"To be a coward or a hero—even if only for a few minutes—Gilderoy Lockhart! The time has come to show your true nature."
Within Ron's wand, Regulus Black had left behind a sliver of consciousness—his personal message to Gilderoy Lockhart.
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