Chapter 190: Horcrux?
Aaron raised an eyebrow, making a strange sound.
Unlike the gloomy Parseltongue, Dragon Tongue was much deeper, but it was not something ordinary people could understand.
Although Abe was reluctant, its master told it not to waste its energy, so it could only grudgingly fly in front of Aaron.
"Tom Riddle set up this barrier over a month ago; it's not that easy to break.
However, you're not unable to help me. Just wait for my summons." Aaron patted its head meaningfully.
Train soldiers for a thousand days, use them for an hour. He had specifically learned summoning magic circles for this very day.
"Aaron, what was that sound you just made?" Harry asked curiously. "That definitely wasn't Parseltongue."
"Dragon Tongue," Professor McGonagall said, somewhat surprised. "That is the language of dragons. The Wizarding World hasn't had a Dragon Speaker in at least a thousand years. No wonder you can keep a dragon by your side."
"You're overthinking it, Professor." Aaron shook his head. "I only learned Dragon Tongue after becoming Abe's master.
Something magical might happen to my dragon cub later, so please let nature take its course, but also be careful to protect it."
After speaking, Aaron entered the barrier.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione exchanged glances and also rushed towards the barrier. The Professors couldn't stop them.
"What the f—!"
Seeing this, Aaron's eye twitched incessantly, and his heart was filled with thunderous thoughts.
"Are you three sick?
Do you have to court death? Isn't living well enough?"
"You need help," Hermione said as a matter of course. "We just want to make up for our mistakes. We should have that right."
"Potter, come out quickly." Professor McGonagall was anxious outside. "You won't be able to help even if you go in."
"Professors, don't worry, we definitely won't be a burden," Harry vowed.
"My sister's life hangs in the balance. I can't just wait outside."
"You three get out now, or you'll be expelled!"
"It's no use, Professor." Aaron spread his hands helplessly. "This barrier allows entry but not exit. They can't leave even if they want to."
"What?" Professor McGonagall stumbled back a few steps, as if most of her strength had been drained. If Professor Sprout hadn't supported her in time, she might have collapsed onto the floor.
"Truly worthy of Gryffindor," Professor Snape said sarcastically, then looked at Aaron. "Though I don't want to add to your pressure, protect these three idiots."
"I can only say I'll do my best." Aaron didn't dare make any guarantees, because these three were truly not easy to handle. He'd be grateful if they didn't drag him down.
Professor Snape's expression froze. "Then protect yourself."
"That, I will do with all my might."
The four passed through a narrow passage and descended a ladder into the actual Chamber of Secrets.
The Chamber of Secrets was vast, and the light within it was not particularly dim; visibility was quite good.
On both the left and right sides, there was a row of gigantic serpent pillars, submerged in a pool, supporting the high ceiling, adding a strange touch to the water-filled room.
Aaron watched Harry, Ron, and Hermione draw their wands, cautious and on high alert, walking forward step by step, feeling a bit amused and exasperated.
"The Basilisk isn't here, no need to be so nervous."
"How do you know?" Ron retorted. "It could be behind any of those pillars, ready to launch a surprise attack at any moment. It's always good to be careful."
Aaron's mouth twitched as he explained, "My hearing is more than ten times better than yours. The Basilisk is so large; its movements can't escape my ears."
"But you should still take out your wand!" Hermione said. "What if you're caught off guard?"
Aaron:...Do I also have to tell you that I'm proficient in wandless casting?
When the group reached the end of the Chamber of Secrets, a massive statue appeared before them, pressed against the dark wall.
It was an old, wizened Wizard, with sparse, even balding hair, and a long beard that almost dragged to the hem of his Wizard's robe, even more exaggerated than Dumbledore's.
He looked somewhat gloomy but was full of majesty.
"Salazar Slytherin, the founder of Slytherin House." Aaron performed a simple Wizard's bow. "This should be his appearance in his old age, but he still gives off an incredibly wise feeling."
"Ginny!" Ron quickly ran to the foot of the giant statue, where a red-haired girl lay on the cold floor.
"Ginny, please don't die, don't die." Harry threw his wand aside and helped Ginny up.
Her body wasn't stiff, unlike others who had been petrified, but her face was completely devoid of color, and her body was extremely cold, almost indistinguishable from a dead person.
"Ginny, please wake up!" Ron pleaded, shaking her twice. "Open your eyes and look at me, please."
"Is she still alive?" Hermione asked worriedly.
"She's still alive." Aaron checked Ginny's breath, which was incredibly faint and intermittent, but undoubtedly present. "However, her condition is very poor, extremely poor. She's barely clinging to life.
To be precise, her life has entered a countdown, perhaps a few hours, perhaps ten minutes, or if it's worse, a few minutes."
"Can you save her?" Ron looked at Aaron eagerly. "I know you can save her. You have that Potion."
"Whether she's saved or not isn't up to me," Aaron said meaningfully, then looked at a black diary not far away. "I'm already here, so you should come out, shouldn't you?
Tom Riddle, a descendant of Salazar Slytherin, shouldn't be a coward!"
Clap! Clap! Clap!
The sound of applause rang out, and a tall, dark-haired boy emerged from the shadows, though his outline was somewhat blurry.
The moment the figure appeared, Aaron heard the system's voice in his mind, "Congratulations, Host, you have triggered a new system mission."
Destroy Lord Voldemort's Horcrux:
Completing the mission rewards 1200 magic points. There is no penalty for mission failure. Does the Host accept?
"What the f—…"
Looking at this new mission panel, Aaron felt completely numb.
Why is it Lord Voldemort? Does this old immortal have to be so persistent?
By the way, what is a Horcrux? Is it in this Chamber of Secrets? Could it be... that diary.
Just as Aaron's thoughts were churning, the figure gradually approached, forcing him to retract his attention.
"It looks like you're not in good shape."
"Only temporarily." Riddle picked up Harry's wand and fiddled with it for a while. "First time meeting you, Aaron Gaius.
You are the person I most wanted to meet at Hogwarts, besides Harry Potter. I knew you would come, and even faster than I expected."
Aaron chuckled. "Actually, you don't need to think so highly of me. I'm just a small fry; there are plenty of people at Hogwarts more powerful than me."
"That's being too modest, Gaius." Riddle smiled meaningfully. "It took me five years to find the Chamber of Secrets, but you took even less time.
And you were able to deduce the existence of the Basiliskfrom a series of attacks, and even deduce me as the mastermind. That's more remarkable than anyone else at Hogwarts."
"Mainly good luck, good luck," Aaron said modestly.
"Luck?" Riddle sounded as if he had heard a funny joke and burst into laughter. "Gaius, you and I are the same kind of people.
Both Slytherins, both knowing the importance of hiding our true abilities, both willing to do whatever it takes to achieve our goals. Do people like us believe in luck?
Ah... no, luck is still worth believing in.
If it weren't for my good luck of being found by Harry Potter, I might not have known there was a Slytherin like you at school, quietly uncovering so much that even I was startled.
I knew I had to avoid you before my plan was complete, otherwise, once you found a flaw, all my efforts would be in vain."
Upon hearing this, Aaron's resentment towards Harry Pottergrew a few more points.
One could only say that even the wisest make mistakes. Who would have thought Harry Potter would sell him out so easily!
"What did you do to Ginny?" Ron asked, his eyes red.
"She won't wake up. Her life will probably end in half an hour."
"You did all this?" Harry asked incredulously. "But why? Even for Salazar's cause, Ginny is pure-blood."
"This has nothing to do with being pure-blood. She can only be considered unlucky.
To gain new life, I needed a sacrifice, a brand new life, even a soul.
Of course, I also paid a considerable price for it."
Riddle's eyes were full of greed, but his voice was filled with both self-satisfaction and disdain.
"It was so tedious, listening to an eleven-year-old girl talk about those childish worries.
But I patiently answered her every word, acting particularly understanding.
After I had confused her, she easily opened her soul to me, which was exactly what I needed most.
I devoured fear and secrets from the depths of her heart, growing stronger and stronger."
"But after a while, she also started to suspect you, otherwise she wouldn't have thrown away the diary," Hermione said calmly.
"Of course, anyone who discovers they've lost many memory fragments and are connected to several attack incidents would instinctively be afraid.
To be honest, I had already considered finding a new host at that time, but what made me happiest was that Harry Potterfound this diary.
Ginny told me about your thrilling and fascinating past. You are definitely the person I most wanted to meet." Riddlegazed at the lightning-shaped scar on Harry's forehead, letting out a shrill, maniacal laugh. "I originally wanted to understand you as much as possible, and had many questions to ask you, but you gave me a huge surprise. I truly didn't expect that besides Dumbledore, there would actually be someone else at Hogwarts who could pose a threat to me.
Out of caution, I had to bide my time and accumulate strength in the shadows.
But after Ginny Weasley discovered the diary was in your hands, to prevent her secrets from being known by you, she stole the diary.
Do you know how excited I was when I saw her again? You were difficult to deal with, but a little girl is uncommonly easy to deceive.
I used her to release the Basilisk again, attacked a Ravenclaw, and forced Dumbledore away.
After devouring most of her life, I learned from her soul that she was going to turn me over to Mr. Gaius. There was nothing I could do. I could only emerge from the diary in this form prematurely, control her to write a suicide note, and then wait for you all here.
She also struggled desperately, crying and making a fuss, but it was all in vain."
"You deserve to die," Ron yelled angrily, gritting his teeth and pointing his wand at him. "Expelliarmus."
Green light moved back and forth in the dilapidated wand, finally shooting from the tip under Ron's expectant gaze.
But Riddle didn't even utter a spell, merely flicking his wand to rebound the spell, and Ron's wand flew out of his hand.