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Chapter 118 - Chapter 119: The Watcher

The next day, it was still the Christmas holidays.

Dudley's day was extremely leisurely, spent petting his cat and reading a book in the common room. Since many people had gone home for the holidays, Dudley managed to grab the soft, comfortable chair near the fireplace, enjoying the roaring flames in the hearth. The warm atmosphere made everything peaceful and wonderful.

Ron was also carefree, playing various games, as if what happened last night had not affected him at all.

Only Harry had a rather ordinary day. On one hand, he was worried about damaging the mirror last night; on the other hand, he was also somewhat melancholic because he could no longer see his parents' smiles.

This feeling was like just having obtained a cherished item only to lose it immediately, casting a shadow over his originally happy Christmas.

As the holidays were about to end, Harry couldn't resist. One late night, he put on the Invisibility Cloak and returned to that classroom to check. To his disappointment, that magical mirror had simply disappeared, leaving no trace behind.

Looking at where the mirror originally stood, Harry felt an emptiness in his heart.

Returning to the dormitory, Harry took off the Invisibility Cloak and threw himself onto his bed.

"Did you go see that mirror?" Dudley asked. When Harry left, he had noticed but said nothing, nor did he stop him.

"That mirror is gone," Harry said.

"Mm, the school probably found that the mirror cracked on its own and then just dealt with it," Dudley said casually. "Also, you should do things like this less in the future. Even if you're wearing an Invisibility Cloak, there's still a chance you could be discovered."

"I've read detective novels before. They say the murderer usually returns to the scene of the crime to check the scene they left behind. I didn't believe it before, but now I do."

Harry sat up abruptly. "I never took off the Invisibility Cloak the whole time. I shouldn't have been discovered, right?" Harry said nervously.

"Then it should be fine," Dudley glanced at Harry and said.

In reality, Dudley had already guessed that the mirror was placed there for Harry to discover. Only in this way could Harry come into contact with the Mirror of Erised beforehand and know how to use it. Thus, Professor Dumbledore could hide the Philosopher's Stone in the mirror yet give Harry a chance to obtain it.

Otherwise, how could it be so coincidental that Harry found the mirror the day after receiving the Invisibility Cloak from Dumbledore? Wasn't this prepared by Dumbledore?

This old man's schemes run deep.

"That's good then," Harry said somewhat distractedly.

However, after this incident, he had completely given up hope. The happiness that mirror brought him was ultimately illusory. Now that it was certain it would never appear again, Harry was able to let go of the obsession in his heart.

After the holidays ended, everyone returned to school. The originally deserted Hogwarts became lively again.

And the matter of the mirror, it seemed no one ever knew about it. When it appeared and when it disappeared, no one seemed to care.

Besides attending classes, Dudley, as an Interrogator, would still wander around the school from time to time. Over this long period, Dudley had actually discovered many of Hogwarts' secrets, even several secret passages.

However, he wasn't in a hurry to explore them. Instead, he kept these places in mind, planning to explore them one by one when he had the chance in the future. In the current situation, it was better for him to be a bit more discreet.

One day in mid-January.

"Dudley, Hagrid invited us to his hut. Do you have time this afternoon?" Harry asked.

"You guys go ahead. I have something to do today," Dudley said.

"What is it? Did Professor Dumbledore give you another mission?" Ron asked.

Generally, Dudley rarely had anything to do, except when Professor Dumbledore looked for him. He had never missed a trip to Hagrid's hut before.

"It's something else. Remember to say hi to Hagrid for me. Also, if you want someone else to go with you, you can take Hermione," Dudley reminded them.

"Hermione, she probably wouldn't want to go to Hagrid's hut," Ron said with some hesitation.

"How do you know if you haven't tried?" Dudley laughed.

"Alright, we'll ask her later," Harry said.

At the end of the Christmas holidays, Hermione had brought them many gifts. This time it was a good opportunity to take Hermione to Hagrid's for a visit.

After Harry and his friends left, Dudley went to the corridor on the left side of the fourth floor of Hogwarts. This place was not far from the forbidden area on the right side. Opposite that corridor stood a statue in armor.

The armor was made of steel, but due to its age, many parts were rusted and covered with a thick layer of dust.

"Scourgify!"

"Reparo!"

Dudley took out his wand and chanted at the statue.

Whoosh.

A light flashed, and the dust on the armor was immediately cleaned away. At the same time, some damaged parts were repaired to a certain extent. However, this kind of thing obviously couldn't be completely fixed with just one spell. There were still many damaged areas with a dull luster.

Then, Dudley took out the prepared tools and began to polish the armor.

After a short while.

"What are you doing?" The caretaker, Filch, appeared behind Dudley at some point, looking at him with a dark expression.

"I'm polishing the armor on the statue," Dudley said without hesitation.

Filch's mouth twitched. Of course, he could see what Dudley was doing; he was asking why Dudley was doing it.

"Why are you polishing this armor?"

"Mr. Filch, I feel the armor on this statue needs a polish. There shouldn't be any problem, right? Of course, if you think there's a problem, you can go tell Professor Dumbledore. But I think, as Hogwarts' Interrogator, I can even break school rules to a certain extent. Polishing armor doesn't count as breaking school rules, does it?" Dudley said while continuing to polish the armor.

Filch glared at Dudley, his eyes almost spitting fire, but in the end, he just snorted and left. Because he knew he really couldn't do anything to Dudley.

He had caught Dudley breaking school rules before, such as wandering outside late at night instead of sleeping, but when he reported these things to Professor Dumbledore, the answer was always not to bother with what Dudley was doing.

This made Filch feel very hurt, but there was nothing he could do. Dudley's authority in some respects was even greater than his as a caretaker, and this was all permitted by Professor Dumbledore.

An hour later, when Dudley saw that the polished armor could clearly reflect his face, he left with satisfaction.

In the dormitory, Dudley took out the Mirror of Erised and infused it with spiritual power. The next moment, a slightly blurry image appeared in his vision.

The corridor on the right side of the fourth floor.

"This way, everything is under my control." Looking at the clear image in the mirror, Dudley's lips curved into a slight smile.

It was almost the end of the term. If Quirrell was going to cause trouble, it should be soon. Otherwise, not only would he himself lose patience, but Dumbledore's act would probably not last much longer either.

Dudley had no intention of getting involved, but he had to grasp the specific situation. Once he discovered Quirrell making a move, he would immediately take Harry and run.

(TL NOTE: Unfortunately, my LOTR: Playing Minecraft in Middle-earth book was mistakenly flagged as spam on Webnovel and removed. I'll re-upload it under a different title by tomorrow at the latest. Thank you for your patience!)

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