Chapter 159 The Monster's Identity, the Basilisk
After hearing Aaron's clue, Hagrid was surprised but still shook his head, "I'm sorry, I don't know."
"Are you kidding me?
No one at Hogwarts knows more about magical creatures than you."
"That's true, but..." Hagrid hesitated for a moment, then said somewhat sheepishly, "That's only relative.
I'm very familiar with the magical creatures in the Forbidden Forest, but the Magical World is vast, and the types of magical creatures are countless, far too many for just one Forbidden Forest to contain.
For a simple example, there are no Dragons, Thunderbirds, Phoenixes, or Qilins in the Forbidden Forest.
I've been a gamekeeper for nearly fifty years, and my knowledge is only a little wider than this forest, but even so, I'm considered an expert in the field of magical creatures."
Aaron pondered, then sighed regretfully, "I thought I'd find something here!"
"Hagrid, you were a victim fifty years ago, I need you to tell me any clues you know.
Don't try to fob me off, you definitely know something."
Hagrid's eyes flickered, his face a little flustered, and he chuckled, "I really might not know anything."
Seeing his reaction, Aaron immediately had his answer.
He stepped forward, clapped him on the shoulder, and looked directly into Hagrid's eyes, "Hagrid, in my heart, you are the most honest and kind Wizard.
You're unwilling to tell me, and you must have your own difficulties, but the Chamber of Secrets has been opened again.
Last time a student died, and this time, no one knows how many will die; the consequences are severe.
However, we can completely stop all of this before a tragedy occurs, or at least minimize the damage.
So, for Hogwarts, I believe you know what to do."
Hagrid swallowed, and after a long silence, he finally spoke, "Actually, I don't know much either."
A smile bloomed on Aaron's face as he calmly picked up the teacup from the table, "It's alright, tell me whatever you know."
"The monster in the Chamber of Secrets must be the Acromantula's natural enemy, not just possibly."
Hagrid stammered, "Aragog told me this.
He's an Acromantula I raised, a fifty-year-old one."
Pfft!
Aaron spat a mouthful of tea onto Hagrid's face, leaving a large stain on his thick beard.
"What did you say?" Aaron stood up in shock, speechless as he looked at Hagrid, who was bowing his head silently like a child who had done something wrong.
He used to raise a Cerberus, which was understandable, as it was needed to guard the trapdoor and was kept chained.
Raising a Dragon was also harmless, at least Norbert was sent away by Dumbledore before he grew up.
But this time it's an Acromantula! A ferocious carnivorous animal with extremely potent venom, a fifty-year-old Acromantula must be as big as a small mountain.
"Don't tell me this Acromantula is at Hogwarts."
"He's in the Forbidden Forest!" Hagrid said weakly, "But don't worry, Aragog listens to me very well, and he hasn't harmed humans all these years.
And Dumbledore also knows of his existence, so I think... things aren't that serious."
Hearing this, Aaron slowly sat back down.
Principal Dumbledore is still very reliable; if he knows, it means Aragog's danger isn't that great.
"Alright! I can reluctantly believe you.
Did Aragog tell you anything else?"
"No, I've asked him many times, but he's afraid to say the name of that creature," Hagrid said, "Every time I can feel it, he's very scared."
"At least it's one clue confirmed," Aaron murmured, not too disappointed, "What else do you know?"
Hagrid shook his head, "Nothing else."
"Think carefully, don't miss any details, it could be key to solving the case."
Hagrid frowned at this, sitting quietly and recalling events from fifty years ago, "Oh, right, the student who died back then was from Ravenclaw, I think her name was Myrtle, and she died in the restroom."
Aaron's mouth twitched violently at the news.
He even admired his own luck; he had found both the victim and the pseudo-heir from fifty years ago.
"Anything else?"
Hagrid paused slightly, "That's all, really nothing else."
"Alright!" Aaron smiled faintly, "Although the clues you've provided aren't currently helpful, thank you anyway, Hagrid.
One more thing, try to keep my visit confidential."
"But Dumbledore?"
"Do you think our Principal, the wise and brilliant Albus Dumbledore, wouldn't have thought of what I said?
But until the Chamber of Secrets is found, he can't say anything, otherwise, it could cause panic."
Hagrid suddenly understood, "Yes, he must know, he must know."
Leaving Hagrid's Hut, Aaron went directly to the Library.
There must be records of that monster here, but finding its information among the dense sea of books would certainly not be easy.
"Madam Pince, can you find me a book about magical creatures?"
"Which one do you want?
Can you be more specific? A title would be best," Madam Pince said, "If there's no title, it'll be difficult; there are at least dozens of such books in the Library."
Aaron couldn't help but click his tongue, "Whatever! Just bring me ten to look at first."
"Ten?"
"Twenty is fine too, you know my talent, I never forget anything I read.
If you don't mind the trouble, thirty is also fine; in short, the more detailed, the better, I don't want to miss any magical creature."
"You might have to wait a bit longer for me."
Madam Pince raised an eyebrow, then pulled out her wand and walked towards a bookshelf not far away.
About ten minutes later, Madam Pince came around a corner, a stack of books floating behind her, one by one spread out on a row of empty tables.
Aaron stared at the wall of books piled on the table, completely dumbfounded.
What the hell is going on, where are the dozens of books she mentioned? This must have had a zero added to the end!
"Everything you asked for is here, but the quantity is a bit more than I expected.
After all, as you know, not every book is specifically about magical creatures; some books might only mention a few things vaguely, or even treat them as myths and legends, just passing remarks.
It's only for you; for anyone else, I wouldn't take out so many.
Oh, and there are also some records in the Restricted Section, but I don't have the authority to lend those books to you, even if I wanted to."
"Thank you, Madam Pince, you've gone to a lot of trouble."
Aaron forced a smile, grabbed a few books, and walked to a desk, his back looking particularly desolate.
Even with photographic memory, trying to find answers in hundreds, or even more, books was purely physical labor.
But once he started checking, he found things much simpler than he'd imagined; he had initially expected it to take a month or so to find the answer, but the records in the books were particularly simple, and with the help of the index, he could instantly find the sections on magical creatures.
In just one afternoon, the wall of books was completely taken down by him.
He had thought he'd have to read them one by one, but he didn't expect the process to be as simple as looking up a dictionary.
To avoid omissions, he roughly flipped through every book, and after multiple comparisons, he finally confirmed the answer in three particularly old-looking books.
Basilisk.
A snake-like magical creature that can live for hundreds of years, it has a varied diet and eats everything, but spiders are its favorite.
It possesses deadly fangs, and its gaze can cause death; anyone caught in its gaze will die instantly.
Reading this, Aaron frowned deeply; his second task was to kill the monster in the Chamber of Secrets, which meant he would eventually have to confront the Basilisk.
The danger of the Basilisk goes without saying; the magicthat can kill with a single glance is terrifying, but it's somewhat exaggerated.
At least for truly powerful Wizards, the lethality would be somewhat reduced, otherwise Salazar Slytherin wouldn't have kept it.
What if he accidentally got himself killed?
The shrewd, self-preserving, and profit-driven Slytherinwould absolutely not keep a ticking time bomb by his side.
But even so, the Basilisk's gaze was not something a mere Magician like him could directly face.
"Maybe I should try using a mirror," Aaron thought to himself; according to legend, Perseus killed Medusa by reflecting her gaze with a bronze shield.
But then he suddenly remembered Madam Norris, who had been petrified, and immediately dismissed that suicidal idea.
Madam Norris didn't die; she was petrified.
This meant she hadn't looked directly into the Basilisk's eyes; considering the water stains at the scene, she might have indirectly seen the Basilisk's eyes through a reflection, and was lucky enough to survive.
Looking directly into its gaze means death, and even indirectly seeing its gaze will cause petrification; this is too difficult to deal with!
Bang!
Aaron closed the book, looked at the setting sun outside the window, and let out a long breath.
To kill that Basilisk alone, he would still need to plan carefully, but even if he called Dumbledore, or added a few Professors... he would still need to plan carefully.
After all, he hasn't found the Chamber of Secrets yet, and the situation is one of the enemy being hidden and him being exposed.
Moreover, Slytherin's heir is still at Hogwarts, and he is definitely not someone to be trifled with; everything must be done discreetly before his identity is confirmed, otherwise, it's easy to be caught out like an early bird.
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Madam Pinceasked, "I guess you did."
"Yes, Madam Pince, I just feel my brain is a bit overwhelmed right now," Aaron said, "Could you please help me register this book? I haven't finished reading it.
It might contain knowledge I need, so I'd like to borrow it for a while."
"Of course," Madam Pince smiled, "I'll let you borrow it for a month, that should be enough time for you to memorize the whole book."
"Isn't that too long?"
Madam Pince shook her head, "You take good care of books, I trust you won't let it get damaged."
"Of course, I promise."