Hogwarts' Golden Glory

The runes shimmered with a ghostly blue light in the air, weaving together like a spider web to form an invisible barrier.

"Of course it needs to be restricted," Kane said, turning to Dumbledore.

"A triple silencing spell, an anti-spy barrier, and a confusion spell. Even if Voldemort himself were standing outside the door, he wouldn't be able to hear the conversation outside."

"An impressive combination of spells," Dumbledore murmured, his gaze sweeping over the flowing runes on the wall.

"Especially this improved version of 'blocking one's ears and hearing,' I guess it's based on page 394 of 'Advanced Magic Theory'?"

Kane's lips curled into a slight smile: "Page 397, Headmaster. I've improved the rune sequence."

"You want to know about the attackers, right? I have a way. Professor, please disappear for a moment."

Kane held up the diary, and Dumbledore instantly understood.

"Ready? I'm about to begin."

Dumbledore nodded, waved his wand lightly, and he and Fawkes vanished into thin air.

Kane took a deep breath, took a large, eight-eyed giant spider from the glass jar, and placed it near the diary.

Kane then lifted the restriction on the diary.

As soon as the spider touched the leather surface, it was immediately attracted by an invisible force, and its body shriveled up at a visible speed.

Suddenly, the pages of the diary moved on their own without any wind, and the yellowed paper gleamed with an eerie sheen.

Kane calmly turned to the title page, watching the dark green lettering slowly emerge:

"You've kept me waiting again, Kane."

The handwriting was elegant and fluid, tinged with a deliberate air of grievance. Kane picked up a quill and dipped it in the specially made silver ink:

"Sorry, Tom. There's been some trouble at school lately, so we have to be careful."

The ink smudged in the diary for a moment, then quickly replied:

What could be more important than our research? Shall we continue with the ancient runes today? Or do you want to learn that flight spell?

Kane glanced at Dumbledore's location and continued writing:

"Actually, something strange happened at the school. A student was petrified, right there in the second-floor corridor."

This time, the diary reacted noticeably differently.

The ink splattered violently on the paper, making the writing somewhat messy.

[Petrochemicals? Please elaborate.]

Kane paused deliberately for a few seconds, pretending to think:

"A first-year student named Colin Crevey. He was out at night and was spotted with a camera, as if he was about to take a picture of something. The strangest thing was that he was also clutching a picture of Harry in his hand."

The handwriting in the diary suddenly became extremely neat, almost as if each stroke had appeared individually:

"Kane, this is serious. A similar incident happened in Hogwarts' history; fifty years ago, a girl died because of it."

Kane raised an eyebrow and continued to guide the conversation:

"I heard it's a monster Hagrid released?"

The diary hesitated for a few seconds, because he hadn't expected Kane to know about this, before replying:

That's right! Rubeus Hagrid, the half-giant. He kept an eight-eyed spider in his castle. But Kane...

The handwriting suddenly became mysterious:

That's just the surface. The truth is much more complex. Would you like to see the real situation at the time?

Kane feigned hesitation:

"Is this...safe?"

"Of course it's safe for you, after all, you're quite strong." The diary was practically "coaxing" you; "Just a light touch on this line..."

Kane's fingertips hovered above the paper, a hint of alertness flashing in his grey-blue eyes.

He subtly gestured with his other hand to the invisible Dumbledore, signaling that he was ready, and then gently touched the shimmering text.

In an instant, the diary spewed out a jet of black mist, which condensed in the air to form a moving image of memory—

Young Tom Riddle stood before Dumbledore, his expression earnest: "Professor, I've discovered the truth. It was Hagrid; he kept a monster in the castle."

The scene shifts to Hagrid's hut, where young Riddle holds a wand, a dead rooster lies on the ground, and Hagrid, his face streaked with tears, is being led away by officials from the Ministry of Magic.

After his memory faded, Kane feigned shock: "So Hagrid really is the killer? But what about this attack? He's still at school!"

The diary replied urgently:

[He's the one who did it. He opened the Chamber of Secrets from Slytherin. An ancient creature slumbers there, and he was the one who caused the attack!]

Kane feigned sudden realization:

"You mean... a basilisk?"

The handwriting in the diary paused noticeably, seemingly surprised by Kane's vast knowledge:

"...You're very clever, Kane. Yes, Basilisk. But controlling it requires special skill, not just simple parsleying."

Kane continued to set the bait:

"So who's controlling the basilisk now? And why did Colin sneak out?"

The diary cleverly avoided the first question:

Perhaps that child discovered something. Kane, you need to be careful. As a descendant of Slytherin, you could also become a target. But...

The handwriting suddenly became incredibly alluring:

If you want to know how to protect yourself, or even control the basilisk, I can teach you. Just give me a little more energy...

Kane pretended to think, then wrote:

"That's enough for today, Tom. You look tired. We'll continue tomorrow."

The diary immediately protested:

"I don't need rest! Kane, the situation is urgent—"

"No, you need to." Kane firmly closed the diary, while drawing a complex rune in the air with his wand.

A silvery-blue light enveloped the entire diary, temporarily sealing it away.

The air in the room rippled again as Dumbledore dispelled his invisibility.

The old headmaster's expression was unusually serious: "He's more dangerous than I thought. That memory was carefully chosen, completely distorting the truth."

Kane nodded, took a crystal bottle from the bedside table containing silver memory threads: "I extracted all the content of our previous conversations. You can take a look..."

Kane knew that Dumbledore would definitely have something to say about his previous mention of the diary.

So you might as well take the initiative.

Dumbledore took the crystal bottle and held it up to his half-moon spectacles to examine it closely: "Typical Tom-style trick. Half-truths are the hardest to detect."

He turned to Kane, "You did a good job and didn't arouse his suspicion. But be careful of his manipulation."

Kane locked the diary in an ebony box protected by multiple layers of magic.

"He was so eager for energy that he overlooked too many weaknesses."

A cold glint flashed in his grey-blue eyes. "For example, in my memory, the girl died in the girls' restroom on the second floor. And Colin was in the second-floor corridor."

Dumbledore stroked his beard thoughtfully. "What did you guess?"

"I'm sure," Kane said confidently, then walked to the desk and unfolded a map of Hogwarts. "The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is most likely near the girls' restrooms."