The mastermind behind Hogwarts

Chapter 56: The Story of the Previous Slytherin Heir (Please Read On!)

Moriarty walked out of the castle, followed by a large group of Slytherin snakes. To his left were the older snakes, led by William and Leon, and to his right were the younger snakes, led by Lilith, Marcus, and Jericho.

Following behind the little snakes was the Everlasting Shining Fan Club, led by Tonks and Gemma, composed of girls from the four academies.

Then come most of the boys from Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw.

Several hundred people escorted Moriarty to the lawn outside the castle, where he stopped.

"Snapped!"

A small patch of grass directly in front of Moriarty suddenly sank in, forming a small square hole, which Moriarty then stuck into.

Moriarty looked up at the sun; it wasn't noon yet. He leaned on his staff and waited quietly, his expression becoming serious and earnest.

The students, though bewildered, quickly tensed up and adopted Moriarty's serious demeanor, creating a solemn atmosphere.

Just then, Bill arrived with Dumbledore. Old Dumbledore was dressed in magnificent clothes. He never wore gold or silver, but today he wore a deep red knight's coat with rubies and gold trim!

Behind him followed Professor Stanford, Professor McGonagall, and...

All the teachers of Hogwarts had arrived! As if attending a grand ball, each of them was dressed in formal attire and robes, walking step by step out of the oak gates of the castle and coming before Moriarty.

Bill quietly walked into the group of lion cubs. He went to the principal's office and found the professors there, discussing what clothes to wear.

The students cheered and applauded, but at the same time, they couldn't help but wonder: What day is it today?

Some students with sharp eyes noticed that Dumbledore and the professors were holding a silver card, and they began to guess that Mr. Moriarty had not only invited the students, but also the headmaster and professors!

Sure enough, Dumbledore walked up to Moriarty and said cheerfully, "Good afternoon, Moriarty."

He waved the card in his hand: "Congratulations on solving the mystery of the secret room. What pleases me even more is that you've invited us to the secret room."

Moriarty's expression remained serious: "Headmaster Dumbledore, although the Chamber of Secrets was built by Salazar, since it was constructed at Hogwarts, Hogwarts students and professors are entitled to enter it!"

Dumbledore nodded in satisfaction, but Professor Snape stepped forward and said in his usual tone, "It is common knowledge that the Slytherin Chamber of Secrets belongs to the Slytherin heir. Legend has it that the Slytherin heir will release the monster from the Chamber of Secrets to purify the school!"

Does Mr. Slytherin think we're all Parsleyans like you?

Or do you think that thousand-year-old serpent monster can eat its fill every day and won't eat these young wizards?

"You yourself said it's just a legend, and that's precisely why I want to clarify things for our ancestor Salazar!"

Moriarty spoke in a low voice, showing no courtesy to Stanislavski just because Stanislavski was his dean; he kept his personal feelings separate from business.

"As for the Slytherin successor you mentioned? That's right!"

The one who was wrong was the previous Slytherin heir. He was terribly wrong; he misunderstood the true meaning of the Chamber of Secrets!

He used Slytherin's guise to manipulate Shiva and clear the way for his evil ambitions!

Yes, he unleashed the Basilisk, which killed Myrtle! And then framed Rupert Hagrid for it!

Moriarty paused here, looking up at the sky to his right, where Peeves was leading a large group of ghosts flying by, including the weeping Myrtle.

However, it didn't cry today; instead, in front of the entire school, it affirmed Moriarty's statement.

Moriarty then looked to his left, where Hagrid approached, carrying a pink fan. He said, "Mr. Moriarty is telling the truth. I was framed by that man. Aragog has never harmed anyone; he's a lovely little fellow..."

Seeing Hagrid going on and on about the eight-eyed giant spider, Moriarty urged, "Get to the point! This concerns whether you can regain your right to use your wand."

"Oh, oh..." Hagrid touched his umbrella, then said, "That man framed me. I almost got sentenced to Azkaban. They broke my wand... I mean, I'm innocent..."

This time, it was Dumbledore who interrupted him: "Alright, Hagrid, who is this 'that person' you're talking about? What's his name?"

Hagrid and Myrtle exchanged a glance, and Hagrid said, "Let Mr. Moriarty speak."

Moriarty picked up the thread: "Let me continue with the story of the last Slytherin heir, who, after not falsely accusing Hagrid, suddenly became the recipient of the school's Special Merit Award—if any student is punished by Filch by having to wipe the trophy, you'll see his name!"

The dozen or so Gryffindor students gasped in shock. They were all mischievous children, and they had indeed seen a name when they were punished by wiping the trophy!

"Tom Riddle?" Charlie asked tentatively.

"Tom Riddle!" Moriarty waved his cedarwood wand, and a line of dark green letters appeared. As the letters were scrambled and rearranged, they formed the sentence "I am Voldemort!"

The students were horrified, and many screamed! Moriarty seemed to see a glint of smugness in Dumbledore's eyes?

Ignoring him, Moriarty shouted, "That's right, believe what you see with your own eyes, Tom Riddle is the future Voldemort! As the heir to Slytherin, he harmed and framed his classmates!"

This was absolutely not Salazar's intention! A true Slytherin heir would not harm a wizard—whether he is a half-blood or a Muggle!

"So, what was the real reason Salazar left the Chamber of Secrets? And who is the true heir to Slytherin?" Dumbledore asked at the opportune moment.

"Good question. I'll keep the first question a secret for now; please come with me into the Chamber of Secrets to discuss it. But I can tell you the second question now!" Moriarty surveyed the crowd and said calmly, "We are all heirs of Slytherin!"

The crowd instantly became noisy, and all sorts of comments whizzed into Moriarty's ears like bullets!

The loudest sounds came from the little snakes' cries and noises!

William and Leon exchanged a glance; they too were now somewhat suspicious of Moriarty, and subtly took a step back.

Only Lilith, Jericho, and Marcus steadfastly remained by Moriarty's side.

"Quiet!" Moriarty conjured a large snake with his cedar wand and covered his head, saying loudly, "Look at the Slytherin house symbol, it's a snake! And look at the Hogwarts school symbol, what is it?"

It's a classic badge! It consists of the four house animals—the lion, the eagle, the badger, and the snake—encircling the initial "H" of Hogwarts!

Slytherin is an integral part of Hogwarts, so why can't the heir to Slytherin be a student from another house?

We all know that Salazar Slytherin was a great wizard! Since he founded Hogwarts, would he really slaughter the students at the school?

Think about it, our professors have all sorts of characteristics, but even if they have fiery tempers, which professor would want to kill their own student?

Not to mention Salazar Slytherin, one of the Big Four! He only hopes that we—his students—will become better and stronger!

Believe me, if every student in the school were a Slytherin heir, Salazar would probably be laughing in his sleep!

The students quieted down. Moriarty's words were worth considering, because if the secret chamber really was as the legend said, opening it would purify the school.

So why doesn't Salazar do it himself? Even at his advanced age, Salazar is still better than a basilisk!

Some might say Salazar was stopped by the other three, but that's as if Salazar was determined to kill some Muggle-born wizard and the three could stop him!

With a few minutes to go, Moriarty placed his hands on the top of his staff and spoke in Parseltongue: "Glory to Slytherin, the lion roars in the valley, the eaglet receives the legacy of a thousand years, and the benevolent Hufflepuff is the foundation of all things. Speak to me, the Four!"

Everyone stared at Moriarty in astonishment, hearing the hissing sounds coming from his mouth. People looked around in a panic, fearing that the basilisk monster would fly out.

But the sky was clear, there were no basilisks, no disasters, only a trophy flying by!

"In my capacity as the current head of the Slytherin family, I hereby declare the Tom Riddle Award for Special Contributions to the School invalid and void!"

Moriarty aimed his cedarwood wand at the trophy in the air, and a simple Ice Blast shattered the trophy!

"Three days later, I will also, as a descendant of Slytherin, clarify the Chamber of Secrets tragedy of fifty years ago to the British magical community and restore your reputations." Moriarty glanced at Hagrid and Moaning Myrtle, then fixed his gaze on Professor Randy, and smiled meaningfully.

"Professor Randy, during my inspection of the castle, I discovered that Voldemort used the Slytherin family's curse to place a strange curse on the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. As long as Voldemort is alive, the curse will continue!"

Professor Randy, if you don't want to die a violent death, please contact me privately before summer vacation.

(End of this chapter)