A certain Hogwarts professor of runes.

With a series of crackling sounds as fireworks were painstakingly pulled out of the hall, the banquet officially began.

As headmaster, Dumbledore led everyone in singing several cheerful Christmas carols, then announced with a smile, "Eat your fill and fill your bellies."

Various kinds of food suddenly appeared, including roast turkey, small sausages, braised meat, pork chops, kidney pies, peas with butter, baked flatbread, and so on, which was exceptionally plentiful.

The young wizards huddled together, their forks scraping across the table, leaving trails of afterimages.

Felix also put aside his worries and enjoyed the meal.

Hagrid recommended a special eggnog made by Hogwarts to him. Felix tasted it and found it to be sweet and sour with a mild alcohol content. He then drank a few more glasses.

Lockhart, standing to the side, shook his head, his wavy hair trembling.

Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore spoke in hushed tones, occasionally letting out a chuckle.

After eating until they were about 70% full, everyone finally had time to chat, and a buzzing sound echoed in the hall. Felix picked up a piece of raisin pudding with his fork, stuffed it into his mouth, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw his assistant leading two young wizards tiptoe out of the hall.

Interesting, are they planning to do something?

On the other side, Hermione held up two pieces of chocolate cake and announced her plan, "I put ordinary sedatives in these. You just need to make sure Crabbe and Goyle find them—they'll definitely eat them. Once they're asleep, pluck a few hairs from their heads and hide them in the broom cabinet."

Ron and Harry exchanged bewildered glances, realizing the plan was riddled with flaws. Ron asked her, "And you, Hermione?"

“I already have mine! Remember the Duel Club? Milison and I wrestled, and I fought back fiercely… Anyway, I got her hair.”

Hermione left to check on the Polyjuice Potion, leaving Harry and Ron to complete the task.

"To be honest, I think it's unlikely to happen," Ron said with a worried look.

Harry didn't have much hope either.

But they could only huddle in the shadows, staring intently at the entrance to the auditorium.

After a while, a somewhat bored Harry asked Ron in a low voice, "When are you planning to ask Professor McGonagall for leave?"

“The sooner the better,” Ron said without hesitation. “I can’t wait to get a new wand. Professor Hyp is so thoughtful!”

Felix simply and directly gave him seven Galleons and a note that briefly read, "I noticed your wand is damaged. I suggest you buy a new one, otherwise you won't be able to participate in the Duel Class next semester. Also: consider this a reward for your courage."

Harry received a copy of "The Duel Manual," one of the reference books Felix used when writing his Duel Course textbook.

Therefore, the two also learned that Professor Hyp had taken over Lockhart's dueling club, and they discussed it privately, expressing their high expectations for his classes.

"I just hope the new Dueling class won't have any trace of Snape," Harry said hopefully.

The dinner had been going on for over an hour, and the young wizards were leaving one after another. Felix was still talking to Professor Flitwick about the magic manuscript he had given him. "That ancient magic is very interesting. It's somewhat like a combination of the shrinking spell and the enlarging spell."

Professor Flitwick said, "It is said that these two curses evolved from it. I do see some similarities, but it could also be a coincidence."

The two agreed on a timeframe, planning to conduct a detailed academic discussion after Felix had completed his research for a while.

Amidst the lively and bustling atmosphere, Felix's first Christmas dinner as a professor at Hogwarts came to an end.

Chapter 73 Coercion

On Christmas Eve, the hustle and bustle subsided into silence, and the night enveloped Hogwarts Castle like a curtain.

In the ancient magic office, Felix habitually opened his diary and began to converse with the young Dark Lord inside.

For the past two days, he had been trying to steer the conversation toward Salazar Slytherin, but the topic had been steered away from him.

Tonight, Felix decides to take a different approach; he needs to carefully set a trap so that the young Dark Lord will walk right into it.

Therefore, he reread many psychology books.

“Something quite sensational happened today,” Felix wrote.

"What is it?" the diary asked with great interest. He had been quite troubled lately because after each conversation, the shrewd professor would lock him up, which completely cut him off from any information about the outside world.

"The attack on the Chamber of Secrets in Slytherin has been reported, and people are talking about it. Some have suggested disbanding Slytherin House and stripping Salazar Slytherin of all his honors."

Felix felt like a giant spider, meticulously weaving its web.

A string of illegible, flamboyant handwriting immediately appeared in the diary: "Laughable remarks, utterly absurd! Who is it? Is it Dumbledore? He has always been prejudiced against wizards from Slytherin."

Felix smirked and wrote with a wicked grin: “Not him, but a woman named Rita Skeeter, who is known for making up rumors about people.”

The name "Rita Skeeter" flashed across the diary, looking messy and menacing—he seemed determined to memorize the name.

In his diary, young Tom Riddle was indeed furious. He couldn't help but wonder if the wizarding world had become so corrupt.

After a long pause, the diary finally pressed on, "And then? The Ministry of Magic certainly won't agree to such an absurd proposal!"

"Of course not, but this matter has sparked a great deal of discussion at Hogwarts, and many young wizards have a very negative opinion of Salazar Slytherin."

The diary couldn't help but write, "Salazar Slytherin is the greatest of the four! Yet later generations have only superficially judged him by his appearance and have tried desperately to smear him!"

Felix thought of the enormous face in the secret room: an old, monkey-like face with a sparse, long beard that stretched almost to the hem of his robe.

Keep in mind that it was sculpted by Slytherin himself, so there's a possibility that he embellished it.

He could hardly imagine what a real Slytherin would be like, especially since he was always surrounded by snakes with long tongues flicking out.

Felix said relatively "objectively," "That speaks volumes. You see, people always tend to reject things they don't understand, like Slytherin's Parsley."

“I couldn’t agree more, Felix Heap, your view is quite insightful,” the diary praised.

Felix humbly explained, "I've seen some of Ravenclaw's manuscripts, and even from just a few words, I can imagine that magnificent era." He wrote with emotion, "Four of the most talented wizards and witches came together to usher in a new era for the wizarding world."

The diary echoed his sentiment, “That is indeed a history worth remembering.” His tone softened once more.

But then, Felix commented, seemingly casually, "I just don't understand why Salazar Slytherin suddenly fell out with the other three. Was it really a difference in ideology? You know, pure-blood ideology wasn't popular back then."

“And he also secretly built a secret chamber, leaving behind terrifying monsters within. I think—” Felix wrote word for word, “that he is destroying his own life’s work, which is typical of a dark wizard.”

In his diary, Tom Riddle couldn't help but retort, "Perhaps his secret chamber wasn't meant to purge Muggle wizards."

“Otherwise, Tom? I must remind you, much of Slytherin’s research was bloody and cruel, which affected his character.”

Tom Riddle continued his rebuttal: "But he also unveiled the truth for those who came after him. Look at his subjects of study: goblins, giants, dwarves, centaurs... His research was enough to elevate the wizarding community to a supreme position! All at a negligible cost."

“Tom, are you his crazy admirer?” Felix wrote.

“No, of course not… It’s just a partial agreement with his ideas. Wizards and humanoids are different concepts, right?” The diary tried its best to make its tone more objective. “Besides, any judgment that is out of context is hypocritical and foolish. The moral standards of wizards in that era were completely different from those now.”

“You make a good point,” Felix wrote. “However, as far as I know, these precious magical materials have not been passed down, so whether they are ‘great’ remains to be seen.”

“That was indeed the ‘greatest’ achievement.” In his diary, the young Dark Lord was clearly intoxicated, and he tried to persuade Felix.

"How did you know?" Felix asked with a confident smile.

"I'm just guessing..."

“Don’t lie to me, Tom! Your knowledge of Salazar Slytherin far exceeds my expectations, and your attitude towards him is far too protective.” Felix began to close the net. “This makes me wonder if you were the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets? You are the true heir to Slytherin!”

He wrote word by word, his force seemingly tearing through the paper. "I need an explanation, or I will have no choice but to hand you over to Dumbledore."

In his diary, Tom Riddle was extremely nervous; he hated the feeling of being "seen through."

After a long silence, a line appeared on the diary page: "Is that what you think? Do you think I lied to you? I thought—we had built a solid friendship."

Felix wrote calmly, "That's why I gave you a chance to explain."

From the Dark Lord's perspective, as long as he doesn't reveal the truth about the Horcruxes, everything is negotiable.

The diary replied quickly and hastily: "Of course not me. I'm Muggle-born, remember? I have nothing to do with Salazar Slytherin."

Felix remained silent, offering no reply, but applying pressure little by little.

Tom Riddle in his diary couldn't hold back any longer and wrote again: "But... I must admit, I did have an adventure while I was in school, and yes, I gained some advanced magical knowledge."

"Is it Salazar Slytherin's?" Felix asked, holding his breath.

"—I guess so," the diary replied briefly.

"Tell me, Tom, where did you put it?"

The diary remained silent, and the young Dark Lord was deeply conflicted. He wanted to refuse, but the professor was too perceptive. He was cornered; if he denied it, he would surely be seen as the murderer who opened the locked room—even though he was.

He increasingly hated his powerlessness and desperately wanted to escape this predicament, which drove his pride to the brink of madness.

But he quickly replied in a polite and calm tone, "That was fifty years ago, when I discovered a rather magical room on the eighth floor of the castle..."

Chapter 74 The Liar

It took about twenty minutes for the diary to tell a story of a "young boy who had a chance encounter".

While he was at school, he accidentally wandered into a room on the eighth floor of the castle. It was a huge storeroom filled with treasures collected by young Hogwarts wizards over the centuries.

"I later inquired and learned that they called this mysterious room the Flying Room or the Room of Response," the diary read. "That's where I got that part of the information—it was probably hidden by one of my former little wizards."

Felix smirked and wrote in his diary: "So, you didn't find Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets, but another hidden room? You found Slytherin's research materials in that hidden room—the Room of Requirement?"

A few words quickly appeared in the diary: "That's it."

Felix tapped his fingers on the table, thought for a moment, and wrote in his diary: "Are those research materials still in the Room of Requirement? You didn't take them with you?"

"I believe—these are Hogwarts property. Before I graduated, I put them behind a large, bubbly cabinet that looked like it had been splashed with acid. It was easy to find, and I remember there was a foul-smelling five-legged monster inside. Next to it was a rather ugly-looking wizard statue," the diary entry read.

Felix pursed his lips, trying his best not to laugh out loud.

That's interesting, absolutely very interesting.

The conversation between the two was like a complex game of wits, full of lies and misleading statements, a battle of wits to see who was more clever.

Before this, Felix never even dared to hope that he could get the information about the hidden room of the Chamber of Secrets from the diary; that was too unrealistic and would be tantamount to revealing his identity as the "heir to the Chamber of Secrets".

His purpose today was actually to try and find out one or two off-campus locations where research materials were hidden, which was one of the possibilities he speculated about. But the more likely scenario was that Tom Riddle had destroyed all the materials—the result he least wanted to see.

Fortunately, the diary directly told him about the room on the eighth floor.

It was worth all the effort he put in.

However, Felix had a premonition that since the diary chose to tell him, it meant that it wasn't important information—at least not to the Dark Lord.

But he still replied cheerfully in his diary, "Thank you, Tom, I will verify it. If I have misunderstood you, I will apologize."

"I hope so," the diary replied calmly.

Felix wrote with a touch of regret, "People didn't know what a glorious era Slytherin's research would usher in, which is why he has always been seen as an evil dark wizard. Tom, you did the right thing."

The diary didn't reply; the soul within it belonging to Tom Riddle was about to explode with rage.

Felix added, "Slytherin and Gryffindor are like two extremes. Godric Gryffindor himself was much more positively regarded: fair, brave, and just..."