Compared to the chaos and noise of the outside world, the commotion here was clearly on another level.
It was just that the commotion here came quickly and went even more quickly.
Once everything had quieted down, Hermione leisurely wiped her fingertips.
As she put on her outer robe, she spoke to the person on the bed without looking back: "Get some rest. The war meeting isn't over yet; I'm heading over first."
The moment the door closed, Hermione could still be heard muttering something under her breath.
"That really was stress-relieving..."
Lia lay quietly on the bed, her muscles still twitching uncontrollably. That bright red ribbon had been retied around her fair, slender ankle by Hermione after the intense battle.
Lia's gaze was unfocused, staring blankly at the carved ceiling.
The walls were a grid woven of magic and rules, and the air flowed with colorful dust particles emitted from people's emotions. The fierce arguments downstairs were merely a series of soul vibrations to her ears—clear in meaning, yet causing no ripples.
She could "see" the golden light on Professor McGonagall, woven from responsibility and the desire to protect, as heavy as a mountain range.
She could "see" the ball of black fire burning for revenge in Sirius's heart, a flame that would never be extinguished.
She could "see" the ancient, powerful, and gentle maternal protection magic left by Lily Potter on Harry, like a form-fitting suit of armor radiating warm light.
She could even "see" the only touch of gentle light within the bottomless darkness of Snape's soul in the corner—an elegant and sorrowful silver doe.
She was like a deity high upon a throne, looking down at the joys and sorrows being staged in the mortal world. Everything complex and multifaceted was simplified in her eyes into the most basic lines and colors.
She was very calm.
Until... a new "scent" intruded upon her range of perception.
It was an extremely faint yet incomparably pure aura of decay.
It was different from all the previous Horcruxes.
The previous Horcruxes were dead objects, solidified malice.
But this one... was alive.
It was moving.
Like a cold, slimy maggot, it cautiously crawled along the ancient drainage pipes at the lowest level of the Castle, inching upward and deeper into the interior.
Lia's gaze instantly focused.
Those sky-blue eyes pierced through layers of obstacles, locking onto the massive creature winding its way through the dark, damp pipes.
Coiled within its body was a nauseating soul fragment, sharing the same origin as Lord Voldemort himself.
The last one.
As long as she "ate" it, this war that made Hermione fearful, exhausted, and brought her to tears could finally end.
Hermione would be safe.
Lia's body instinctively tensed.
The hunting instinct of an apex predator, originating from the deepest part of the Nine-Lived Cat Demon's soul, woke up once more after a brief silence.
Her fingertips curled slightly, as if she could already feel the sensation of tearing open a prey's throat.
She was about to move.
She would tear it apart and devour it.
Then... her gaze fell upon her own ankle.
That bright red ribbon was tied there quietly.
It was so soft and slender that Lia didn't even need to use any power; a gentle tug would be enough to snap it.
But she didn't.
She had promised.
"I won't leave."
This was her promise.
Lia's body slowly relaxed.
The cold killing intent that had just flared up receded reluctantly, like a tide going out.
She lay back down, closed her eyes, and buried her head in the quilt that carried a suggestive scent, trying to wrap herself in the lingering warmth Hermione had left behind.
It was as if everything that had just happened had never occurred.
However, her "Spirit Vision," which transcended physical senses, remained deathly locked onto the giant snake that was continuing deeper into the pipes.
It was moving.
Deeper and deeper.
It was approaching a direction Lia found somewhat familiar—the entrance to a massive underground space filled with the scent of serpents.
That was the Basilisk's lair.
Once it slipped inside and hid in that Chamber of Secrets, whose entrance even Dumbledore had spent decades to find, it would be difficult for them to locate it again.
The war would not be able to end.
In Lia's perception, time was infinitely stretched and slowed.
One second.
Two seconds.
Ten seconds.
The war meeting in the Great Hall downstairs was still ongoing.
Sirius and Snape had started another round of verbal sparring over some tactical detail.
Professor McGonagall rubbed her temples tiredly, trying to maintain order.
Everything in the outside world had turned into slowly flowing background noise.
In Lia's world, only two things remained.
One was the bright red ribbon tied to her ankle, like a burning flame.
It was like a warm hand holding her firmly, preventing her from completely drifting into that cold, indifferent divine void.
The other was the giant snake deep beneath the Castle, constantly moving.
Its slimy body rubbed against the ancient stone pipes, making a "hissing" sound that echoed directly in Lia's soul.
Lia's fingertips curled unconsciously, creating a few shallow wrinkles on the soft bedsheets.
In her mind, two equally clear and important wills were engaged in a silent internal struggle.
Kill that snake.
The benefits would be immense.
If she snapped the ribbon and left the room, even for just a minute, what kind of expression would Hermione make when she returned and found out?
No.
What if... what if I can... resolve everything "before" Hermione comes back?
If I go over, kill that snake, eat that soul, and then immediately come back and tie the ribbon...
If I'm fast enough... so fast that Hermione won't notice at all?
Hermione probably wouldn't find out, right?
Plan successful!
The corners of her mouth, without her even realizing it, curled up into a very slight arc, carrying a hint of a successful prank.
In those sky-blue eyes, there was no longer any struggle or hesitation.
She looked at the ceiling as if she had already pierced through it to see the giant snake about to reach its destination.
The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets.
It was about to hide inside.
Deep within Lia's azure pupils, that touch of divine indifference was replaced by a beast-like restlessness.
Her finger hooked onto the bright red ribbon on her ankle and gave it a gentle tug.
—Now is the time!
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