Hogwarts: This professor is too Muggle.

Chapter 148 Charge and Stun Spell
Hermione's eyes suddenly widened: "Why... why are there so many people here?"

In addition to the outstanding students in the middle and upper grades, the drama club also had a group of lower grade students. Hermione had taken classes with many of them, including Seamus and Dean from Gryffindor, Justin and Ernie, and even Luna from the first grade.

This is the secret room where the basilisk is hiding. Why did Ron call them here? Shouldn't he go find those professors?

"Don't worry, your Professor Lockhart is here, you are safe!"

Lockhart could not hear any Parseltongue. He only saw a strange but safe chamber of secrets. There were no ferocious and dangerous monsters, let alone the legendary basilisk. He could not help but grin. The legendary adventurer had a new story in Hogwarts.

"It's a very hidden secret room. It looks like it's been through a lot of renovations. Few people have ever set foot here. The wide and empty space and dim lighting make it look scary, but other than that, it's nothing special. I've experienced caves in Albania that are deeper and darker than this."

Lockhart maintained the demeanor of a professor and adventurer, his smile worthy of a magazine award, but his incessant self-aggrandizement was tiresome, and Harry just wanted him to shut up.

Lockhart noticed Harry's gaze and felt that he was just trying to show off. Harry and Hermione suddenly stopped, and the chattering drama club students around them also quieted down. The sound coming from the direction of the statue was particularly clear.

"Shh, keep quiet!" Harry whispered, staring straight at the head of the Slytherin statue. The skinny monkey-like face opened its mouth, which widened and opened wider, revealing a dark hole.

"What is that? Is there something hidden inside?" Lockhart was a little surprised.

Something moved inside the statue's mouth.

This time he felt a fishy breeze rising in the secret room, as if a monster had opened its bloody mouth and was peering at this place in the darkness. The petrified myrtle was blown up and down by the fishy wind.

Some young wizards felt they couldn't breathe, panic and fear fermented in silence, and they vaguely sensed that something was sliding upwards from the depths of the statue.

Undisguised malice enveloped the crowd, as if to devour them.

Lockhart swallowed hard, wondering if it was really a basilisk. He patted Harry on the shoulder and said, "You are more familiar with this place. Go ahead and take a look."

"You're a professor, and you're letting your students explore the way!"

Hermione shouted in a trembling voice: "It's a basilisk, everyone close your eyes!"

As soon as the words fell, the friction sound quickly approached, and two bright yellow snake eyes lit up on the shoulders of the Slytherin statue. The sound of scales scraping across the floor became clearer and clearer, rustling, and occasionally there were bumping sounds. The snake's tongue stretched out and hissed, and the fishy smell became stronger.

Something was crawling towards them, as if trying to embrace them.

"Basilisk!"

Seamus and Dean screamed, but kept their eyes tightly closed and dared not open them.

"Run outside! Run outside!" Hermione's shouts echoed in the Chamber of Secrets.

Amid the shouts, the burly basilisk was already approaching. Everyone closed their eyes and turned around to run back. They could not see anything but heard Lockhart scream, followed by the dull thud of flesh hitting a pillar, just like the night at the Duelling Club when Lockhart, cursed, fell to the ground and this time could not get up.

[fainted to the ground]

The sound of chanting was like thunder, it was Cedric!

Even with their eyes closed, students who were close could see a hazy red light passing by. The spell did not work, but the basilisk let out an angry hiss. This action seemed to dispel the panic in the students' hearts, and some of them opened their eyes.

Percy's face was illuminated by the red light, and his eye twitched.

"Spread out and hide behind the pillars. Don't look the basilisk in the eye." He followed closely behind, waving his wand, his voice trembling and a little flustered.

Judging the approximate direction of the basilisk based on the sound, senior students from each college opened their eyes and avoided the basilisk's sight, leading their classmates to hide behind the stone pillars.

Behind the stone pillar that served as a makeshift shelter, Harry and Hermione looked back. In the half minute they hurriedly faced the basilisk, no one except Lockhart seemed to be injured, which made them feel a little relieved.

"I've read in a book that basilisks, like dragons, have scales that can reduce the power of spells, but they can't withstand dozens of stunning spells. As long as we repeat the spell, defeating the basilisk is just a matter of time. That's what the Romanian breeders do, right, Ron?"

Hermione poked the person next to her. Charlie from the Weasley family was a dragon keeper, and Ron should have heard of this.

The stiff touch made Hermione stunned for a moment: "Ron?!"

Ron stood straight behind the stone pillar, his whole body stiff, half of his head sticking out, his eyes wide open, a look of fear still frozen on his face. He was caught off guard and looked into the eyes of the basilisk.

"Ron!" Harry's voice trembled a little. He looked at Ron's lifeless eyes and pale face without a trace of blood. He no longer had the liveliness and vitality of the past.

Like a lifelike sculpture.

Harry's expression was a little dull, a cold chill enveloped his whole body, and his mind was blank.

"He's not dead yet, his heart is still beating!"

Hermione's voice trembled slightly, waking him from his sorrow.

Behind the other pillars, Percy and Cedric's teams had each lost members, and they too had noticed that the students who had locked eyes with the basilisk were merely frozen in place, showing signs of life.

"Percy, Roger, take cover! The basilisk's gaze can petrify, but it's not fatal. Let's take turns casting stunning spells and try not to make eye contact with the basilisk."

Cedric shouted in a deep voice.

[fainted to the ground]

More than a dozen spells rang out in unison, dense spells were fired from behind the stone pillars, attacking the basilisk from two directions. The members of the drama club had no professional combat training and only developed some tacit understanding during rehearsals. Although they understood Cedric's arrangements, they did not know how to attack alternately.

When they all showed their heads and waved their wands, the Ravenclaw students led by Roger Davis happened to meet the Basilisk's gaze. After the spell was cast, the group froze in place.

Harry and the others also saw the true face of the basilisk from the side. Its body was dark green, and its dark scales were stained with dim colors. It seemed to be thicker than the trunk of an oak tree. Its head was flat, and its sharp fangs shone with a cold light.

The basilisk was huge, and almost all the stunning spells hit it. Some covered its head and abdomen, making its movements slower, some fell on its back, and some of the spells fell on its scales and quietly melted away, like water splashing on stone.

"The stun spell works, attack its head!" Cedric continued to command.

Low incantations echoed in the secret room, and the stench in the air became increasingly strong. Another volley of stunning spells was fired, and the behemoth roared angrily, swung its thick iron tail, and pounced towards this side slowly and fiercely.

Harry felt the floor of the Chamber of Secrets tremble slightly and his face turned pale. "No, the Stunning Spell can't stop the basilisk. At this rate, it will crawl in front of us before it loses consciousness. Then Ron will be in real danger."

"What should we do?" Hermione whispered, "We can't just hide here and cast spells. Someone has to go up and restrain the basilisk...but it's too dangerous."

"Someone has to take the risk..."

A man suddenly jumped out of the pillar and charged towards the basilisk.

It's Neville!
Everyone stared at the figure and stood there in a daze for a moment.

The fat man, eyes tightly shut, charged forward blindly and recklessly. His comical movements carried an unexpected kind of bravery. When he felt he was close enough to the basilisk, he turned and hid in a nearby stone pillar, groping his way away. The basilisk began to change direction, moving towards Neville.

[fainted to the ground]

Cedric seized the opportunity and organized a new volley.

Dense red light penetrated the basilisk's body. The stunning spell failed to make it unconscious, but the impact force successfully angered it. Its sturdy body twisted in the smoke and dust, constantly approaching the tiny student.

Neville was not good at sports and was not very agile, so he soon tripped over himself and fell heavily to the floor.

He climbed up and opened his eyes, trying to recognize the terrain, but he met two yellow eyeballs. His body froze in place and he was swept away by the tail.

The second-in-command of the drama club fell to the ground without a sound.

Harry and Hermione were stunned, and the members of the drama club were silent. Neville usually didn't talk much and had little presence, but he was extremely reliable in handling affairs, and this time was no exception.

Between two rows of coiled stone pillars, the basilisk raised its head and roared at the students behind it. It broke the stone pillars as it surged forward, and the huge figure became blurred in the air, but even more oppressive.

"hiss……"

The basilisk attacked them again, its fangs making people shudder.

[fainted to the ground]

Cedric's voice rang out again, and he waved his wand and ran between the stone pillars.

Like Neville, he used himself as bait to attract the basilisk's attention, buying time for others and giving them a chance to attack.

The students hiding behind the stone pillars stretched out their wands, and the stunning spell shot towards the basilisk like a meteor shower, covering it with dense red light.

Years of Quidditch training allowed Cedric to last longer, giving the students an extra opportunity to fire a volley. About three minutes later, the basilisk's tail swept past Cedric. He was not petrified, but his bones cracked and blood flowed from his mouth and nose.

Such a basilisk makes people despair.

[fainted to the ground]

The brilliant red light lit up again, and this time it was Harry who was just as agile as before, and at the same time he cast a Stunning Spell with all his magic power.

The red light bombarded the basilisk's head, and the painful basilisk looked down at the tiny human.

As if forming some kind of unspoken tacit understanding, in the next half hour, students continued to run out of the shelter, circling with the basilisk at a safe distance, buying opportunities for the rest of the students.

First the senior Gryffindors, then the other senior students, and finally even Marcus from Slytherin rushed out.

The sound of chanting spells echoed in the secret room, and the red light symbolizing courage lasted for a long time.

[fainted to the ground]

Hermione cast the Stunning Spell for the 27th time and was about to retreat behind the stone pillar when she suddenly noticed a detail: the basilisk's raised head shook slightly, its movements seemed to slow down, its tongue, which had been constantly extending and protruding, drooped weakly, its body stopped in place, and its pair of bright yellow eyes gradually became unfocused.

The huge snake body fell to the ground with a loud bang, raising dust and shaking the entire floor.

Sobbing could be heard in the secret room.

Only a group of middle and lower grade students were left behind the stone pillar. The tense strings in the little witches' heads snapped and they could no longer hold on. Some of them sat down helplessly, while others hugged their classmates, their shoulders shaking constantly.

Hermione resisted the urge to sleep against the wall and walked towards the basilisk, suppressing her fear. "Come on, help me gather the wounded."

Two people stepped out from behind a stone pillar not far away, their voices trembling: "We're here to help."

Marietta and Qiu Zhang, the girls from Ravenclaw, were protected at the back during the first two volleys. After Neville rushed out, they joined the volley and have persisted until now.

Those who still had the strength rushed out, bypassed the unconscious basilisk, and moved out those who were knocked away by the basilisk. This row of people lay in a neat row, and the petrified students behind the cover stood in a neat row. Fortunately, they were all still alive.

For wizards, broken bones all over the body are only minor injuries. As long as they don't die on the spot, Madam Pomfrey can save them.

The students who survived the disaster looked at each other, with traces of dried tears on their cheeks, while others had smiles on their faces, exhaled a long breath, and completely relaxed.

"What a fantastic adventure! I can't help but applaud you guys!"

Gilderoy Lockhart's voice suddenly came from behind them.

Lockhart stood up somewhat awkwardly, dusted himself off, and put on his signature smile, revealing his sparkling teeth.

"Lockhart...Professor." The students stared at the professor blankly.

"But your adventure ends here, children!"

He said cheerfully, "Now, Professor Lockhart will complete the story. I will bring the basilisk to the school and tell them that I was too late. Although I succeeded in subduing the basilisk, I failed to save these people. You have lost your minds due to the dark magic left by Slytherin."

"What do you mean?"

Marietta asked blankly.

"Oh, dear, what I mean is that I will erase your memories and write this thrilling story into my new book, turning it into the experience of the legendary adventurer Lockhart."

Lockhart seemed very patient, and faced with several exhausted young wizards, he couldn't help showing off.

Hermione angrily demanded, "Is that how you stole those legendary experiences? You're a fake liar!"

"Don't say that, my dear child. Readers would rather see a handsome me than an ugly old American wizard who saved a village from the plague of werewolves. And the witch who expelled the Wanlun ghost, she was a cleft-lipped..."

Lockhart shook his head, a smug look on his face. "And my job isn't easy either. I have to track down these people, ask them how they did it, and cast a Memory Charm on them to make sure they completely forget everything without arousing suspicion from those around them. The requirements for the Memory Charm are very high. If there's anything I can be proud of, it's this."

Hermione glanced at Qiu Zhang beside her, and they both quietly reached for their wands in their pockets.

"I originally thought I'd never come into contact with them again, but because of the shadow mirror incident, I had to go back to them and trick them into handing over their memories. This time it was much easier, as I was right there at the story's location."

Lockhart pointed his wand at them. "I advise you not to do anything stupid, understand? A group of exhausted students cannot defeat a professor."

The two girls froze in place.

"Now, say goodbye to your memories."

(End of this chapter)