The Tightening Net

Malfoy successfully piqued the interest of the Slytherin students present, and he soon began his recounting of his experiences in the Chamber of Secrets.

Of course, in Malfoy's description, all his knowledge of the Chamber of Secrets is based on family records.

"... As you walk along the verdant and mysteriously misty stone path, past the stone pillars coiled with giant snakes, you will find yourself standing in a small, circular plaza... I bet no one can remain calm after seeing what's before them. You'll feel a chill rising wildly from your tailbone, and the sound of you swallowing hard will be clearly audible in that silent, empty Chamber of Secrets..."

It must be said that Malfoy is a master storyteller. Even though he had no experience of it at all, he made the whole story extremely vivid just by relying on the information given by Sean and adding some of his own embellishments.

The Slytherin present unconsciously held their breath, completely captivated by the eerie and mysterious Chamber of Secrets of Secrets.

Malfoy took a deep breath, and seeing the eager expressions on the faces of the students around him, he wore a satisfied and smug look.

Under everyone's expectant gaze, he continued, "It was a huge, awe-inspiring statue, as tall as the entire room. You had to crane your neck as high as you could until it felt like it was going to break before you could even see the statue's face..."

"Green light surrounds the statue, and magical Runes flash incessantly on its surface. Just one glance will sting your eyes and bring tears to your eyes, and your legs will tremble involuntarily... Then!" Malfoy's loud voice shook everyone around him, "You will find that knowledge has appeared in your dizzy head! That's right, it's Ancient Spell representing supreme power!"

"With just one glance, you can learn a spell! At that moment, you will also realize who this great being is represented by the statue before you..."

Malfoy's voice was sometimes deep and sometimes melodious, and everyone was captivated by his story. By this point, everyone had a guess about the owner of the statue, but they were all equally eager to hear it from Malfoy himself.

There was a moment of silence in the Slytherin Common Room. Seeing that the performance had been effective enough, Malfoy's eyes flashed with a smug look. He stood up, stretched out his hands, and looked solemn.

"That's...the great Salazar Slytherin!"

As if it were a signal, when Malfoy called out Slytherin's name, the students in the Common Room all had their eyes light up and held their breath.

At the same time, something unexpected happened.

"Hiss—ha—" An ancient, deep whisper came from somewhere, causing everyone to look around in alarm.

Even Malfoy was startled and froze on the spot. He looked around in a panic, wondering if the mysterious commotion was because of him.

"This is what Sean said. Will he help me?" Malfoy thought with a mixture of surprise and panic.

To his surprise, this combination amplified the story's impact; what was truly alarming was why Sean could create such a bizarre commotion.

In a small, secluded Chamber of Secrets separated from the Common Room by a wall, a Basilisk wearing comical glasses was idly whispering.

So boring... I really want to go back and eat fish... I really want to go back and grill the heads of a Aero-Wing Bird...

In the Common Room, the whispers gradually subsided. The Slytherin students, who had been startled to their feet, exchanged horrified glances before turning to look at Malfoy.

Malfoy straightened his tie with feigned composure, then sat back down in his chair, his nostrils practically pointing to the ceiling.

"Hmph, this is the great Slytherin. When you can glimpse even a corner of its secrets, the whole of Hogwarts will respond to you."

The Slytherin students were stunned; they looked at each other in disbelief.

Although Malfoy had a history of boasting, the commotion before them seemed to leave them no choice but to believe it.

Common Room, the chatter grew louder and more enthusiastic.

This is the great Slytherin!

The students surrounded Malfoy, wanting him to reveal more secrets.

Malfoy waved his hand dismissively, signaling the restless students to retreat a little.

"This concerns the secrets of the Malfoy Family, and even more so the great Slytherin. How could I possibly tell you everything? Moreover, even the ancestors of the Malfoy Family failed to fully uncover the secrets of Slytherin. Hmph, don't blame me for not warning you. In the thousand-year history of Hogwarts, the Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets has buried many ignorant and fearless wizards who attempted to control Slytherin's legacy, and as a result—they didn't even know how they died."

This news calmed others down a bit, but some still raised questions.

"But the Basilisk is already dead. Besides, the Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets is reserved for Pure-blood Wizard. Why would he want to kill anyone who comes after him?"

Good question! I've been waiting for you!

Malfoy suppressed his joy and instead gave a disdainful snort.

"Whispering sound."

His attitude puzzled others, and it also made them even more curious.

When pressed, Malfoy, with an expression that said, "I'm not happy to tell you idiots, but I've decided to give you a chance," stood up and said, "Gentlemen, do you really think that anyone can be called a true Slytherin?"

The students looked at each other hesitantly, noticing the hesitation and lack of confidence in the eyes of those around them.

Malfoy continued, "Salazar Slytherin was a true ambitious man, the greatest of the Four Founders. His expectations for future generations cannot be met by simply casting a few spells in the classroom. My friends, think carefully about what kind of house Slytherin really is."

He lowered his head and sighed, concealing the pleasure in his eyes.

He enjoys the feeling of everyone listening to him, and he enjoys the ability to manipulate other people's emotions with words.

"I've even seen some horrifying news in the ancient books in my home..." Malfoy's tone turned somber.

"Speak, speak! Keep going!" The Little Snakes felt itchy all over; the Malfoy before them was more hateful than those novelists who cut off the story at crucial moments.

After reaping enough frustration and resentment, Malfoy finally let out a deep sigh and looked at everyone with a strange gaze.

"Someone once heard Salazar Slytherin's whispers..."

Everyone pricked up their ears and held their breath.

"The gaze that remained fixed on the entire castle was fixed on him, and he said... Slytherin House is becoming increasingly disappointing..."

This news struck the Little Snakes like a bolt from the blue.

They have always been the proudest Slytherin, proud of their bloodline and their house, and the Slytherin they regard as a great man...

For the first time, the Little Snakes felt helpless.

"Draco, why?" someone asked, turning around.

Malfoy silently shook his head, seemingly unaware of the answer himself.

Once the splash subsided, a hint of hesitation flashed in Malfoy's eyes. He said softly, "I'm going to start an association. The goal of the association is to uncover the secrets left behind by Slytherin, and of course, to help me and us become better and more competent Slytherin."

Upon hearing this, the other Little Snakes glanced at him, their faces showing hesitation.

Was it too early...? Malfoy was slightly flustered.

Sean told him that the proposal to establish an association should be made when the time is right, and not rushed... But just now he felt that the time was right...

Malfoy showed no sign of panic and simply walked away nonchalantly.

Crabbe seemed to want to catch up and say something, but Malfoy ignored him.

Osman, who had been watching this scene intently from the corner, suddenly brightened up.

After a day of observation, he was almost certain that the person who disgusted him was Crabbe. The guy would glance at him from time to time, and the pockets in his robe were always bulging. He even saw red liquid dripping down, but Crabbe quickly wiped away the traces, so he couldn't catch him red-handed.

That kid must be harboring resentment and wanting to get revenge on himself for being fawned over by Malfoy.

Just wait, once I officially become a member of the Special Operations Investigation Team, you'll definitely regret it... Osman's eyes darkened.

As for the story Malfoy just told, he, like most Slytherin students, believed most of it, but he still needed to wait and see before deciding whether to join the association.

However, at least one thing is certain: after tonight, Malfoy's reputation within the academy will soar, and given the right opportunity, his association will also grow stronger.

This is indeed a good opportunity to oust Crabbe and join Malfoy's side.

Of course, he needed to have evidence; otherwise, Malfoy wouldn't have ignored his punishment of his henchman at this critical juncture of the association's formation.

Having figured everything out, Osman headed towards his dormitory, but as soon as he opened the door, something hit him on the head.

Another bloody, dead rat!

"Aaaaaah!" he screamed in a frenzy.

That damned Crabbe! He and Malfoy were just heading towards the dormitory. Who else could it be but that bastard!

"Don't catch me red-handed!" Osman nearly ground his teeth to powder.

The next day, Malfoy's words spread throughout Hogwarts. Some people scoffed, some hesitated, but there was no denying that Malfoy did receive a lot of attention.

Meanwhile, Umbridge did not punish Malfoy for this; she was now almost blatantly favoring Slytherin students, and if Sean or anyone else had spread such rumors, they would have been invited to her office for tea.

Meanwhile, news of Osman's torture spread, and Umbridge investigated everyone seriously, but failed to catch the culprit.

As the days went by, Malfoy continued to tell several mysterious stories every night, and his reputation in Slytherin grew. Meanwhile, members began to join the Society of Glory, which he had founded.

Osman was still tormented by the dead rat, and his mental state had recently been on the verge of collapse. Normally, if a student from another college accidentally bumped into him, he would be scolded.

Meanwhile, Sean was manipulating a silver thread Room of Requirement.

Hermione and Daisy watched his movements, not daring to speak loudly.

The silver thread fell into the glass bottle as soon as Sean released his wand.

"Sean, are you confident?" Hermione asked.

Sean shrugged. "If it's a large fragment of memory, I can't do it with my current abilities, but if it's a repetitive fragment, it's not a big problem."

Yes, he is weaving a completely new memory.

Memory Charm, Weaving Charm, and so on all belong to the category of Memory Charm. A simple Memory Charm will only make the person under the spell forget an entire piece of content. If other wizards were to examine the memory, they would easily notice that something was wrong. Weaving Charm, on the other hand, will forge a completely new piece of memory and add it to the person's mind.

Of course, Memory Weaving is a very difficult magic, especially since it involves various changing images and scenes, and you also have to quickly fill in the gaps in someone's memory after casting Memory Charm.

So Sean chose a shortcut: he only changed one repetitive scene, and the changes to the scene were very minor.

And this, of course, was prepared for Umbridge and Little Aiken.

Now, we just wait for the right opportunity to arrive.

The next day, Umbridge announced to everyone that, in order to better manage the students, she would select a group of students to join the Special Operations Investigation Team.

Osman, who was driven almost mad by the dead rats, finally received good news: he became the first member of the investigation team.

This swept away his gloom and anger from the past few days, and he even glared fiercely at Crabbe openly.

Crabbe was completely bewildered. He had been wondering lately why the Osman were targeting him so much. Of course, he was never one to suffer a loss, so he returned the glare with an equally fierce look.

Osman was furious and began to think about how to deal with this fool.

A leisurely afternoon.

With a dark expression, Crabbe walked into the first-floor washroom. He placed a heavy package by the sink, turned on the tap, and began to scrub the contents vigorously with both hands.

A faint red color flowed down the water, and Crabbe kept muttering to himself.

"Damn rats! If it weren't for... damn it..."

"Click!" The loud sound of the shutter rang out, and Crabbe turned his head to see Osman holding the Magic Camera.

"What are you filming?!" Crabbe shouted.

Osman grinned cruelly. "You bastard, I've finally caught you..."

"What are you saying?!" Crabbe's eyes widened.

Osman completely ignored Crabbe and went straight for his wand.

"Fool, Mrs. Umbridge gave me the authority to manage the students..."

"Who do you think you are?!"

Before Crabbe could finish speaking, Osman unleashed a Scourging Charm!