The Hogwarts Emerald

Chapter 233 Spiders in the Castle
The protagonists of these two attacks, Mrs. Norris and Colin Creevey, were both petrified, and Dumbledore said that this kind of petrification was an extremely advanced black magic that was not something a student could do. Therefore, the only thing that could petrify Mrs. Norris and Colin Creevey was the legendary monster in the Chamber of Secrets.

When it comes to the ability to petrify people, Ida naturally thinks of the snake-haired monster Medusa. Among the many monsters (myths and legends) that have the ability to petrify people, Medusa may be the most famous.

According to legend, Medusa has a pair of petrifying eyes, and anyone who sees her will be turned to stone.

Medusa is a snake-haired demon in ancient Greek mythology, one of the three Gorgon sisters. She was beheaded by Perseus, and the blood dripping from her head fell into the desert and turned into ferocious venomous snakes.

Perseus presented Medusa's head to Athena, who then embedded it in the center of the Aegis.

But Medusa only exists in ancient myths and legends. There can't be a Gorgon in Hogwarts. Even if there is one, she will not submit to that old monkey of Slytherin, and she will not be willing to live in a secret room without sunlight.

Ada hopes that she can find some clues at the crime scene to profile the monster in the secret room and define a range, so that she can find the monster that can petrify people among the many magical animals or dark creatures.

But Professor McGonagall didn't tell Ada the exact location. There were so many stairs in the castle that she couldn't possibly look for them one by one. Besides, the staircase where the crime happened would be passed by other students, and even if there was something there, it would have been destroyed by the students unintentionally.

But Professor McGonagall is Professor McGonagall. She was afraid that Ada would get stuck in a dead end, so she used the dumbest method and directly conducted a carpet search of the castle. At this time, it was better for Ada not to run around in the castle, so she told Ada some of the situation at the scene.

For example, Colin Creevey went to visit Harry, and he also brought his favorite camera with him.

Colin was a photography enthusiast who carried his camera wherever he went, including the night he was attacked. When Colin was found petrified, his movements were frozen at the moment he raised his camera to take a picture.

But Colin was unable to take a picture of the murderer or the monster. Not to mention a picture, the entire camera was destroyed, and the inside of the camera and the film were melted.

Time has unknowingly entered December, and Hogwarts is once again covered in silver and white, but this year there are no bustling students on the playground.

The students were in no mood to play around; they just hoped to be able to leave school during the holidays or for the murderer to be brought to justice as soon as possible.

There was still some time before the Christmas holidays, and although there had been no further attacks by Colin Creevey, the corridors were still deserted. Everyone was hiding in their dormitories, as if only there could they feel safe, and every time they left the dormitories to go to class, they would go in groups.

After a potion class, all the students except Ada quickly left the dungeon, and Ada was left alone by Snape. This was the first time she was left alone by Snape this school year.

Perhaps because of the double blow of the Quidditch Cup and the House Cup, Snape has never looked for Ada this school year, nor has he ever caused trouble for Ada in class.

Of course, this is just Ada's own guess, without any evidence. How could Professor Snape be such a stingy person? Absolutely not.

After all the students in the classroom left, Snape started by asking a few random questions. He asked, "Why are you wearing glasses? Have you seen too many things you shouldn't have seen, or have you been wandering around at night again?"

Ada adjusted her glasses pretentiously and said, "I did see some things I shouldn't have seen. The greasy hair polluted my eyes, so I had to wear glasses to protect them."

"Do you want me to give you another set of toiletries for Christmas this year? How about that bird egg shampoo produced by Lockhart?" As if feeling unsatisfied, Ada added another sentence.

Snape's sallow complexion turned darker. After hearing the name of shampoo and Lockhart, his face was so dark that ink could drip out. In order not to get even more angry, Snape could only end the conversation as soon as possible. He directly stated the purpose of keeping Ada. He asked, "Some materials are missing from my private storage room, the horns of a bicorn and the skin of an African boomslang. Are you planning to prepare a polyjuice potion recently?"

Polyjuice Potion, an extremely complex potion that takes a long time to prepare, can transform the person who takes it into another person, exactly the same.

"No, why would I prepare something so unpalatable?" Ada said, "Besides, you should have the answer in your heart."

In Ada's opinion, this potion was nothing special except that it was time-consuming and hard to drink. Moreover, she was right. Snape already had the answer in his mind, and the potion professor just came to her to confirm the answer.

However, Snape hoped that these two materials were taken away by Ada.

Ada had long been able to prepare the Polyjuice Potion independently, and could ensure that she would not be poisoned, and she had enough self-protection ability. But Snape had no idea whether that person could achieve the same level as Ada.

"You'd better behave yourself and don't wander around the castle." Snape decided to end the conversation between the two. He continued, "If I find out, you'll stay in the dungeon for the rest of your life, accompanied by the crucible!"

The Potions Master was not the first person to warn Ada; both Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore had given similar warnings after the attack.

"Don't wander around the castle", "Put away your curiosity", "Focus more on studying", Ada was tired of hearing these warnings or concerns, and her ears were almost callused.

Ada left the dungeon soon. Snape did not keep her after class, nor did he put her in detention for her disrespect. In the current situation of the school, putting students in detention was a terrible choice.

It was only afternoon, and Snape did not let Ada return to the common room alone. Instead, he asked the house-elf Winnie to take Ada back. It was even more impossible for him to let Ada be confined in the dungeon at night.

Letting the house elves accompany her is a perfect solution. This way, Ada can be protected and not be left alone, and she can also be watched and allowed to return to Gryffindor Tower. It is a perfect solution that kills two birds with one stone.

On the way back, Ada chatted with the elf Winnie. She also asked the elf some questions about the secret room, but Winnie couldn't give her an answer or provide her with any useful clues.

In the next few days, Ada was still at a loss. Not only did she fail to find any new clues, but she was also entangled in some trivial matters.

As early as last year, Li Jordan raised a bag spider as a pet. Recently, the bag spider has become a little abnormal. It always wants to escape from the box that contains it, or curls up as if it is dead.

Li Qiaodan was very confused. He didn't know what happened to his pet. In order to find out what happened to his pet, Li Qiaodan mobilized his friends to help him find a solution.

So, Ada, who had just left the library, had no choice but to return to the library and help Lee Jordan find out the habits of spiders.

But after helping out, Ada suddenly discovered a strange phenomenon. She hadn't seen spiders in the castle for a long time. The spiders that had been lurking in the corners of the castle seemed to have fled the castle overnight.

(End of this chapter)