Whispers by the Ear

After class, Kyle quickly ate something in the Great Hall and then rushed to the Quidditch Pitch.

Ever since Slytherin acquired seven Nimbus 2001, even Harris has become unusually nervous.

Those brooms were too fast. Fred and George had secretly scouted the Slytherin Quidditch Team, and according to them, when the members took flight, they could only see seven pale green shadows whizzing through the air.

This is not good news for the Hufflepuff.

Originally, the equipment gap between them and Slytherin could be bridged by skill and teamwork... but now Slytherin's equipment has been upgraded, while the Hufflepuff team's skills cannot be improved in a short period of time.

With no other option, Harris could only find tactics to counter those "whales" through relentless training.

However, this idea did not progress very smoothly. So far, none of the tactics he devised had been able to carry over to the next day. They were all overturned halfway through each training session without exception.

The same applies today.

As dusk approached, Kyle returned wearily to the castle.

The intense study and training over the past month had left him feeling overwhelmed, his head was spinning, and all he wanted to do was get back to his dorm and get a good night's sleep.

"If only there were a Time-Turner..." Kyle thought to himself.

He also encountered Professor McGonagall when he returned to the castle.

I want to come find you.

"Bad news..." Professor McGonagall handed Kyle a letter. "I regret to inform you that your second application to use the Time-Turner has failed."

"Is it because there aren't any extras?" Kyle took the letter, feeling even more overwhelmed.

"That's right."

Professor McGonagall nodded. "They also specifically mentioned that this year is special, as all the Time-Turner are in use."

Kyle glanced at the letter in his hand; it contained only a few lines of text.

"Honorable Albus Dumbledore."

Unfortunately, due to certain special reasons, all Time-Turner are still in use, so we have to temporarily revoke their usage rights until June of next year.

I hope you can understand.

"... Department of Mysteries, Roderick Bode."

"Dumbledore?" Kyle whispered.

"The principal wrote the application himself," Professor McGonagall explained, "But it was still rejected."

Kyle sighed. "So I definitely won't be able to use the Time-Turner this year?"

"I think so."

Professor McGonagall glanced at him; she was naturally aware of Kyle's packed schedule.

Whether it's her Transfiguration Club or Professor Flitwick's Curse Club, the content is much more difficult than regular coursework.

Furthermore, Kyle has twelve courses to complete, so it's no wonder he desperately wants a Time-Turner.

But the Department of Mysteries wouldn't approve, and there was nothing she could do, since all the Time-Turner were kept there.

Just as Kyle looked down at the letter, he suddenly heard a sound... a sound completely different from the wind and the crackling of a burning candle.

It was an old, whispering voice, mechanical, cold, and devoid of any emotion.

"Come here... come here... I can give you anything you want."

Kyle's hand trembled, and he almost tore the letter in his hand.

"What?" He looked up abruptly.

"I mean, it's a shame, but you definitely won't be able to use the Time-Turner this year," Professor McGonagall said quietly.

"No, Professor." Kyle shook his head, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "I just heard someone talking, it sounded like they were telling me to come over."

Professor McGonagall looked around in confusion, then frowned slightly and gently twirled her fingers...

Kyle felt a gentle breeze blow past him, carrying him deeper into the castle.

About a few seconds later...

"Nobody's talking, Kyle, there's nothing around us."

Professor McGonagall said, "The nearest Mrs. Norris is also twenty feet away, and there are two walls in between, so her voice obviously can't reach here."

"Maybe I misheard," Kyle said, rubbing his ears.

"It's possible you're just too tired. It's good to love learning, but you can't push yourself too hard."

Professor McGonagall thought for a moment and continued, "Although we can't cancel the course selection now, I'll go see Professor Burbage and Professor Trelawney later to see if we can exempt you from your homework."

As for Quidditch training, I think you can put that on hold for now... In my personal opinion, you only need to attend training once a week.

Also, I'll allow you to take leave from the Transfiguration Club at any time, which should make things a little easier for you."

Charity Burbage is the professor of Muggle Studies, while Trelawney is the professor of Divination Class.

The exam scores for these two courses are relatively less important.

Professor McGonagall was unaware that, in addition to these, Kyle had also joined a "Ancient Runes Club".

Learning Ancient Runes is difficult enough, but he also had to be wary of the traps Riddle deliberately set... which made it increasingly difficult for him to keep up with the demanding schedule.

As for training and assignments... those are minor issues, not that important.

However, since Professor McGonagall had already said so, he naturally wouldn't refuse.

After saying goodbye to Professor McGonagall, Kyle left alone, filled with questions.

In Hufflepuff's common room, quite a few people were still catching up on their homework.

Cedric didn't come back with them, and as the team's Seeker, Harris placed all his hopes on him.

He's probably still at the Quidditch Pitch right now, practicing those classic Seeker feints.

Kyle greeted a few familiar faces and returned to his dorm.

Mikel and Ryan were also outside doing their homework, so he was the only one in the dorm for the time being.

Kyle lay in bed, still thinking about what had just happened at the castle gate.

Who is speaking...?

Basilisk?

It shouldn't be.

Although the Basilisk can travel through pipes in the walls and make sounds where others cannot see it, it still needs to be released by someone.

Riddle's Diary was still in his trunk; he had no chance to cause any trouble.

In the second-floor washroom, none of the props he had set up made any noise... If nothing unexpected happened, the Basilisk should still be sleeping in the Chamber of Secrets right now.

Most importantly, he heard the Basilisk's voice last year. Although it was equally emotionless, it didn't sound old... rather, it sounded quite young.

If it's not the Basilisk, then who could it be...?

Kyle rolled over in bed and stared blankly at a potted plant on the windowsill.

Surely it's not that I was just too tired and misheard.

Thank you so much to reader Du Yu for the generous donation of Qidian coins! (Very loudly)