The mastermind behind Hogwarts

Chapter 19 Slytherin Dungeon

Dumbledore turned his head and spoke to a teacher with greasy black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin.

Moriarty knew that he was Severus Snape, and although he couldn't hear what they were talking about, it was somehow related to Slytherin House.

In just one dinner, Moriarty had found out that Slytherin had become stronger than ever in recent years, and winning the House Cup for three consecutive years was not just something to talk about.

Students like William and Leon, who are almost comparable to adult wizards, are rare in other houses, with only Gryffindor producing Bill Weasley as a comparable example.

However, there are a few students in the third and fourth grades who should not be underestimated.

Moriarty glanced at Gemma, the upperclassman who was talking to Lilith, Charlie Weasley next to Percy, and Tonks at the Hufflepuff table—the girl who had interrupted Dumbledore.

Moriarty knew that Dumbledore had an Order of the Phoenix, and that Charlie and Tonks were both members of the Order of the Phoenix after graduation.

Therefore, Moriarty believed that Leon should first find out what Bill was doing, because Dumbledore would not entrust a Slytherin with something that Bill had not finished.

In fact, it was not Leon who caught Moriarty's attention, but Bill.

I thought Hogwarts in 1988 would be peaceful, but now it seems there are undercurrents.

A plan gradually took shape. Moriarty remained outwardly calm, but as he ate the last piece of pudding, all the food on the table disappeared.

Dumbledore stood up, mentioned a few points to note, and led everyone in singing the school song.

It turned out that not everyone could sing the school song as freely as Fred Weasley and George Weasley; the students couldn't really let loose and just hummed along in a low voice.

Dumbledore's voice was the loudest, but then he heard another loud voice. Dumbledore looked toward the Slytherin table and saw Moriarty standing tall and singing the school song in an ancient tune that sounded inspiring.

When the first young wizard began to sing along with Moriarty, he shuddered, but soon his eyes lit up and his face was filled with a sacred and inviolable expression.

The students joined in the singing, their pores opening up like warriors about to go into battle, throwing themselves into the grand chorus.

After the school song was sung, Dumbledore's applause lasted for a long time.

"Music is far more captivating than anything we do here!" Dumbledore seemed eager to sing it again. "Young Moriarty, what melody did you sing with?"

"It's a war song created by medieval wizards to combat the goblin wars. It has no name, sir." Seeing Dumbledore's somewhat disappointed expression, Moriarty smiled faintly. "However, I can write down the score and send it to you."

"That's perfect," Dumbledore nodded. "It's bedtime now. Everyone, go back to your quarters."

A loud boom echoed through the auditorium, and the students stood up and began to return to their dormitories with their respective prefects.

The first-year Gryffindor lion cubs made a commotion, while the first-year Slytherin snake cubs remained quiet and graceful, preparing to follow Leon to the Slytherin common room.

"Prefect William always led us back," Gemma said to Moriarty before leaving. "This year, Prefect Leon volunteered for the job. I think he's a bit obsessed; he's too eager to show off."

"Hmph," came Lilith's disdainful snort from behind Moriarty: "For nearly half a century, the Mincherm family has been suppressed by other purebloods."

Because Minister Harold Mintham was a tough minister who tried to curb the rise of the Dark Lord but failed, the Mintham family suffered the Dark Lord's revenge.

Now Leon is their family's only hope, but I don't have high hopes for him. What kind of achievements can a guy who only knows how to show off in front of girls accomplish? Maybe he'll challenge a giant to prove himself? Ha, don't be ridiculous."

Upon hearing Leon's background, Moriarty felt that Leon would be easier to control.

They walked for a while, and the floating ladder beneath their feet moved. The little snakes quickly moved to another section of the floating ladder.

Leon warned, "Be careful of these magical staircases. They not only float in mid-air, but they also move and rotate. If you can't accurately remember all the staircases, you'll be sent to a place no one knows."

Moriarty remembered his staff and, on a whim, gently tapped the floating ladder with the end of it. After a loud "click," all the floating ladders stopped moving.

Jericho tentatively jumped onto the floating platform that had been moved earlier, then jumped back.

"That's awesome, Mr. Moriarty! How did you do that?"

"I think this is because the floating staircase cannot defy the Slytherin Staff," Moriarty said thoughtfully. So it seems that the staff can also uncover other secrets in Hogwarts?

The little snakes surrounded Moriarty, all wanting to get a closer look at the staff. For centuries, the staircases of Hogwarts had been rotating and moving every day, but now Moriarty had stopped them!

Lilith said with deep regret, "I should have brought the Gryffindor sword back—maybe if I had just held on a little longer, I could have brought it back."

Leon felt ignored, his expression shifting several times before he finally said with a forced smile, "Young Mr. Moriarty did a good job. It's a pity I'm not a professor, otherwise I would definitely add ten points to the academy's score. Can we leave now?"

The fixed floating ladder saved the snakes a lot of time. After passing through the last section of the floating ladder, Moriarty did not forget to restore the mobility of the floating ladder.

The little snakes soon arrived at a room that resembled a basement, with a thick stone wall at the top.

"There is a stone door hidden inside the stone wall, and behind the stone door is our common lounge."

A strange smile appeared on Leon's face. "Of course, that's the common name across the four houses, but we prefer to call it the Slytherin Dungeon internally."

It's located at the bottom of the lake, and we can often see octopuses in the lake through the windows. If you're lucky, you might even see mermaids.

Leon took a few steps toward the stone wall, then said without turning his head, "Glory!"

With a click, the stone wall turned, revealing the entire common room to the little snakes.

The walls were made of black marble, the turquoise ceiling and chandeliers shimmered with light, the ceiling was carved from crystal, and the floor was covered with a snow-white carpet.

The sofas and armchairs in the room were arranged around a large fireplace, along with an exquisite fireplace mantel, luxurious furniture, scattered murals and candlesticks, which attracted the little snakes' attention.

"Never forget your password, lose your password, or reveal your password! Because no Slytherin will befriend a fool who does any of these stupid things."

Leon's sternness pulled the freshmen back to their senses. He scanned them and spoke without a trace of emotion.

"Perhaps you are excited about the Sorting Ceremony, but Slytherin doesn't need excitement. What it needs is calmness, focus, and ambition."

The little snakes listened solemnly to Leon's words, and even Lilith didn't make a sound; after all, she was a Slytherin.

Leon watched the little snakes' reaction with satisfaction, but his words were merciless: "From the moment you entered Slytherin, you should have abandoned your childhood fantasies. You are no longer children."

Many people say that a Slytherin will stop at nothing to achieve his goals, and I don't think that's wrong or shameful.

We are not those reckless lions. Only by having a clear purpose can we find the shortcut to success. Only by finding our goal can we strike like a venomous snake and kill with one blow.

There are too many famous wizards in history who came from Slytherin House, such as Merlin—I think you should have heard of him—if not, just keep him in mind!

Although students from other houses rarely mention this, I can assure you that Merlin attended Slytherin.

Jericho raised his hand: "I'm sorry, Prefect Leon, but according to research, Merlin was active before the four founders of Hogwarts were even born. How could Merlin possibly have attended Hogwarts?"

"Very well, so you're Jericho Blanche from America, right? You've learned to ask questions!" Leon looked like a venomous snake. "Why don't you ask Mr. Moriarty about this? Perhaps he, having inherited Slytherin Castle, has firsthand information."

Moriarty saw the sinister smile flash across Leon's face, but instead of arguing with him, he calmly picked up his staff and waved it at the stone wall, whereupon a line of ancient, dark green characters appeared.

"What is this?" Lilith asked. "What kind of writing is this? And... what does it mean?"

"In ancient Rune, it means time." Moriarty snapped his fingers, and with a "click," the dark green text turned into English.

Moriarty said to Jericho, "There is no doubt that Merlin did attend Slytherin, but there is also no doubt about the discrepancy in time that you mentioned."

The discrepancy in time had once caught the attention of Salazar's ancestor, who investigated Merlin's origins, but nothing came of it.

I found the last entry about Merlin in his diary; it contained only two words: "Time."

"Does that mean Merlin traveled through time?" Jericho asked, looking like he was watching an American sci-fi blockbuster.

Moriarty patted him on the shoulder: "I don't think so, but it does involve time magic."

"Time magic?" Lilith asked curiously.

Seeing Moriarty take center stage again, Leon felt his established authority crumble and interrupted the snakes' conversation: "Why aren't you all asleep yet?"

Less than ten minutes later, the snakes found their dormitory, four to a room. Jericho wasn't very happy about this, but when he found out that his roommate was Moriarty, he was wide awake.

Not only Jericho, but several other snakes were also awake, and they all gathered around Moriarty and sat him down on the sofa in the common room.

"Actually, I came to Hogwarts because of Mr. Moriarty," Jericho said, scratching his head and smiling somewhat embarrassedly. "My father heard that the descendants of Slytherin would be attending Hogwarts this year, so he went against everyone's wishes and sent me here."

"In that case, I assure you you won't be disappointed." Moriarty accepted Jericho's friendship.

Lilith walked over: "If Leon knew you were from the Blanche family, he would definitely regret treating you so sarcastically earlier."

"Oh, there's nothing to say about that," Jericho said without a hint of pride. "The only difference between the Blanche wizards and other wizards is their slightly better talent for riding brooms. I can't wait to take my flying lesson."

Lilith's eyes flashed: "Mr. Moriarty is also a flying genius, isn't he?"

"I've only tried flying on a broomstick once, and it was really exciting," Moriarty admitted. However, when it comes to flying, his ancestor Salazar was an expert, and the second spell he left behind was a modified version of the flying spell.

The group chatted for a while longer, then said goodnight to each other and went back to their dorms to sleep.

(End of this chapter)