The instant she refused, the Spider Silk pulling Harley swiftly sent her flying backward toward the Great Hall doors, putting distance between her and Riddle.
Several Ice Spears coalesced in midair and spun toward Riddle.
"Refused, have you? So be it. I never expected you to accept." Riddle smiled as he spoke, as though everything was under his control.
He casually waved his wand, and an invisible wall appeared before him, blocking Harley's attack.
"You want to learn certain truths, and buy time while you wait to see if reinforcements arrive. And I'm waiting for Lockhart's soul to separate from his body!"
As he spoke, Riddle hissed, controlling the Basilisk as it charged at Harley.
Meanwhile, his wand pointed at what remained of Professor Lockhart's head. "When the torso explodes completely, the soul can emerge much faster.
"Lockhart may be nothing but a boastful mediocrity, but he's skilled in memory magic, and I strengthened him myself. His soul isn't weak.
"And since I deliberately kept him in the dark, his soul is completely incapable of resisting. For someone as incomplete as me...
"Wait. Where's Lockhart's soul?" For the first time, Riddle looked stunned.
He suddenly raised his head and hissed loudly. "Loyal servant of Slytherin, buy me five minutes!"
After that, Riddle focused on pointing his wand at Professor Lockhart's corpse and chanting under his breath, as if preparing an extremely complicated spell.
Harley paid little attention to what Riddle was doing. She only had to make sure he didn't catch her by surprise.
Lockhart's spirit was already imprisoned, resting peacefully inside her Magic Mirror.
If Riddle could find it, that would be a miracle.
Harley's first priority now was to kill the damn Basilisk while Riddle searched for Professor Lockhart's "missing" spirit, so she wouldn't have to fight on