Gryffindor's Greatsword! Lockhart and Tom Meet

Ron, panting, finally found Professor McGonagall first.

"Professor! Something terrible has happened!" Ron gasped for breath, his face flushed from running and terror. "Lucien..."

"What?!"

After hearing Ron's story, Professor McGonagall swayed violently, her face turning deathly pale. She had to lean against the wall to steady herself, almost catching her breath.

"Lucien... how dare he, how dare he chase the Basilisk!"

Her voice became shrill with extreme shock and lingering fear.

At that moment, an absurd yet perfectly timely thought uncontrollably entered Professor McGonagall's mind:

The Sorting Hat must have made a mistake!

Based on this audacious "courage," Lucien should be sorted into Gryffindor!

"Why did this Basilisk have to choose a time when Dumbledore wasn't at school...?"

Without the slightest hesitation, Professor McGonagall strode out of her office.

As she walked, she drew her wand and flicked her wrist.

Several slender and swift magical birds made of silver light instantly flew from the tip of the staff, scattering like arrows in the castle corridor and rushing towards the different professors.

The grassland had been completely transformed after being battered by violent lightning and torn apart by the Basilisk.

The charred pits and churned mud were interspersed throughout the area, and the air was filled with a strange smell of burnt flesh and blood.

The Basilisk seemed to be completely dead, lying limp and motionless in the mud.

Lucien stood still, the tiny vortexes in his eyes spinning rapidly, piercing through the rain and the Basilisk's skin, observing the flow of magic within its body.

"Alright, stop pretending to be dead."

A faint hissing sound came from the direction of the Basilisk, which seemed to have no strength left to even lift its head.

"Wait... wait a minute..."

Lucien's wand was steadily pointed at the Basilisk.

This thousand-year-old snake king has incredibly strong vitality; it actually survived being struck by heavenly lightning.

The Basilisk pleaded with broken, terrified hisses.

"I just need to borrow your heart..."

However, before Lucien could finish speaking—

The Basilisk, which had been limp as mud, suddenly burst forth with power from somewhere and launched itself forward.

But the Basilisk didn't charge towards Lucien, nor towards the castle; instead, it charged straight towards—

The direction of the Forbidden Forest!

The Basilisk thought it must have been sleeping for too long; how could the humans outside have become so terrifying?

That seemingly delicate little wizard is absolutely terrifying!

We can forget about the castle for now; let's rush into the Forbidden Forest and hide. The terrain there is complex, and there's plenty of "food" to replenish our strength...

Just as the Basilisk had crawled a short distance, a towering wall of flames, almost pure gold and radiating a sacred aura, appeared out of thin air, like an insurmountable chasm, firmly blocking its path.

Almost simultaneously, a ring of fire made of gold suddenly appeared, surrounding Lucien and the Basilisk in the center.

The flame appeared unusually "calm," emitting no heat whatsoever, as if it were merely a warm light.

However, instinct warned the Basilisk, and it dared not touch the flames with its body.

"Alright, I have other things to take care of after I've dealt with your situation."

The voice, like a demon's whisper, rang out again, this time echoing directly in the Basilisk's mind.

Lucien strode toward the Basilisk.

"Chirp!"

A familiar crimson fireball appeared, burning in the rain.

Young Fawkes flapped his still-tender wings and flew to Lucien's side.

The little paws gripped tightly a worn, patched, pointed hat— the Sorting Hat.

"Oh? Fawkes, you didn't leave the school with Headmaster Dumbledore?"

Lucien was somewhat surprised and reached out to take the hat.

The moment the hat was in his hands, the mouth-like slit on it eagerly opened and, in a bard-like tone, sang aloud:

"Look! Thunder sweeps away evil spirits, and the precious sword slays the demonic serpent!"

Where did they learn to wear that hat?

Lucien reached into the seemingly shallow interior of the Sorting Hat.

As if probing into a bottomless abyss, his fingers touched a cold and solid object—the hilt of a sword.

Pull it out steadily.

A magnificent and imposing longsword appeared in Lucien's hand.

The hilt is inlaid with a dazzling ruby the size of a pigeon's egg, and the silver-white blade gleams with a cold, icy light, as if it could easily slice through darkness and evil.

The Sword of Gryffindor!

Inside the castle, the noise was like a boiling pot.

Almost every window facing the battlefield was crowded with terrified yet curious little wizards, who eagerly held up their binoculars, while those without tried to peer into the distant meadows.

"I saw it clearly! I saw it clearly!"

"A fire has broken out! The firelight has illuminated the area!"

With the help of the burning wall of fire, they could barely make out the ferocious outline of the enormous creature and the figure standing alone in front of the giant snake.

Lucien Grafton!

A moment of silence fell near the window as soon as the name was called out.

Immediately, an even more intense discussion erupted.

"Merlin's wand! How dare he face that monster alone?!"

He will die!

Meanwhile, Harry and his two companions had just reached the castle gate.

However, the heavy gate was already firmly locked, and two armored figures with weapons stood in front of it.

It was clear that the professors had blocked the exits, preventing the students from leaving the castle to face the threat of the Basilisk.

"Go upstairs!"

Hermione gritted her teeth, turned around, and rushed towards the nearest staircase.

Beside a window, Qiu felt her heart being tightly gripped. She gazed into the distance, where the thick steam rising from the fire wall blurred her vision.

"Lucien, he..."

Autumn's voice trembled uncontrollably.

Marietta, standing beside her, quickly comforted her.

"Look, the professors are already there! The dean is there too! And there are lots of statues and armor following them, so there'll definitely be no problem..."

Qiu's friend's words of comfort did not put her mind at ease. She knew that her junior, Lucien, was very smart and outstanding, but he was, after all, just a twelve-year-old boy.

Qiu had already recognized it; the giant snake was the Basilisk she had read about in the book!

How could Qiu possibly confront such a monster?

"Hurry, hurry..."

At this moment, all Qiu could do was pray that the professors could rescue Lucien quickly.

Another window with an excellent view.

Malfoy watched helplessly as Daphne snatched his binoculars away, half of her body leaning out of the windowsill, her long golden hair swaying in the wind and rain.

Hey! Watch out!

Malfoy couldn't help but shout, "If this young lady gets too excited and falls, I'll have to reach out and grab her to prevent any casualties beyond the Basilisk's attack!"

"Draco! Where's your Flying Broomstick?!"

Malfoy's face fell.

"Big sister! Have you forgotten that there are spells that interfere with flight magic around the castle?"

"Wow, Lucien dares to fight that monster? He's got guts! He's Ravenclaw, not Gryffindor!"

Malfoy paused, gazing at Lucien, who was faintly visible in the firelight in the distance, and said in a low voice:

"You arrived late and missed that dense forest of lightning. Tsk tsk, Lucien, who was right there, wasn't affected at all. I reasonably suspect that Lucien summoned that lightning!"

"If it's magic, that's way too overpowered. Anyone who comes would be killed by it. I wonder how many spellbooks Lucien would need to teach me this move..."

Upon hearing this, Daphne was furious.

"Draco! Is this what we're thinking about now?! Even if Lucien uses such powerful magic, how long can his magic last? What if something unexpected happens..."

Having witnessed almost the entire terrifying power of that wave of lightning, Malfoy's worries about Lucien were not as great.

Malfoy, sensing Daphne's reprimand, interpreted it as Lucien's "impotent rage," and muttered under his breath:

"Alas, it's a pity I don't have any sisters, otherwise I could try to arrange a marriage with Lucien..."

Perhaps the wind and rain were too loud, or perhaps she was anxious and worried, but Daphne seemed not to have heard what Malfoy was saying.

At this moment, Malfoy's two henchmen Crabbe and Goyle, awkwardly squeezed in.

Malfoy's eyes lit up, and he immediately took another pair of binoculars from Goyle and looked towards the battlefield again.

"Oh, I knew it!"

He seemed to have discovered something, his tone carrying a hint of relief.

"That snake looks like it's dying; it's smoking, like it's burnt to a crisp..."

Malfoy suddenly stopped and adjusted the focus.

"When did Lucien get a sword? It's so Winky..."

"It's actually quite pretty..."

The exclamations, whispers, and gasps of the young wizards created a cacophony of sounds in the background.

The series of "click-clack" sounds stood out particularly.

Harry put down his binoculars for a moment, looked in the direction of the sound with a puzzled expression, and found Colin Creevey nearby holding a dark "short telescope" and frantically pressing the shutter in the direction of the distant grass.

"Colin, what you've done..."

Colin's gaze remained fixed on the camera's viewfinder, his fingers constantly moving.

"My camera broke before, so this is what Lucien lent me. The Wizarding World is truly amazing! The one that attacked me last time was such a huge snake!"

"This is absolutely sensational news! Lucien has long suggested I consider becoming a journalist..."

This seemingly absurd behavior inexplicably eased some of the heaviness in Harry's heart.

Shaking his head, Harry raised the binoculars again, casting his gaze back at the messy grass.

Torrential rain, leaping firewalls, billowing steam...

They resembled a blurry, swaying barrier, separating the person and the snake from the outside world.

Suddenly, everyone holding binoculars witnessed a scene they would never forget—

Lucien charged toward the Basilisk, his longsword slicing through the rain as he fiercely slashed at the Basilisk, roaring head!

The slender silver blade suddenly burst into a blazing, dazzling magical flame, with thick arcs of purple and blue electricity crackling and exploding within it!

This sword strike, with unwavering determination, cleaved straight down!

"Boom!!!"

A bolt of lightning fell from the sky!

Golden flames erupted from the ground!

The lightning was blinding, and the flames soared into the sky.

At that moment, everyone's attention went blank.

All that remained were thunder and rain, and the thunderous heartbeats of everyone.

A dark and cold, Chamber of Secrets.

"Gurgle gurgle--"

Lockhart added the final ingredient to the boiling crucible.

"Finally finished."

Tom taught him that this magic-enhancing potion had a very short shelf life, so he had no choice but to make it on the spot.

Lockhart looked up at the dark pipes and took a few deep breaths.

"The Basilisk is now attacking people all over the castle, and Harry should be petrified too. If he drinks this potion..."

Once Lockhart drinks this potion, he will appear as a "hero"!

He can use magnificent and exquisite magic, and defeat the Basilisk with his unparalleled courage and wisdom.

All of this was easy, because the Basilisk was in his own hands; the only trouble was directing the Basilisk to cooperate in the charade.

Defeat the Basilisk, save the petrified young wizards, protect Harry Potter, and continue the future of the Wizarding World...

Lockhart could already see future glory and brilliance beckoning him!

"I might be able to earn the Order of Merlin, First Class; that should be enough..."

Lockhart, who already possessed the Order of Merlin, Class 3, was very familiar with the rules of the award. Class 3 was fine, but Class 2 required promoting the development and progress of the Wizarding World, the "simplest" being making a significant contribution in a certain field.

As for Level 1, that's much more complicated. It requires the right timing, location, and people, since there aren't many crises that can truly impact the entire Wizarding World.

Let alone preventing such a crisis!

Now the opportunity is before Lockhart: a terrifying monster nearly wreaks havoc in Hogwarts, the school for nurturing young wizards, but all of this will be stopped by the "hero"!

Lockhart's smile was no longer composed and dignified, but rather carried an extravagance he would never have shown before. He glanced at the Old Diary open in his hand, preparing to share his joy of impending success with Tom, when suddenly a line appeared on it:

"No, you forgot to include some materials..."

Unlike the usual black handwriting, this line of text was as red as blood, causing Lockhart to frown slightly.

For some reason, Lockhart felt a sense of unease.

He took out his Peacock Quill, ready to write in his diary to ask Tom:

"I remember putting them all out..."

The next second, Lockhart's eyes widened.

Wisps of black smoke surged forth from the surface of the parchment, like venomous snakes swarming out of their nest.

The pitch-black smoke swirled and coalesced, transforming into a person in the blink of an eye.

He was a young man with black hair and black eyes, his features were sharp and cold, and there was a faint smile on his lips, slightly mocking, but his eyes were indifferent and lifeless, as if he were looking down at Lockhart.

"You..."

Lockhart was horrified by this scene; the way he appeared was completely out of character for a good person, more like the dark creatures associated with Dark Magic or curses in the adventures he had stolen.

No, Lockhart felt that this boy, who could clearly be described as handsome, was even less human than the hideous, dark creature...

"You don't recognize me anymore, 'friend'?"

Upon hearing the black-haired boy's words, Lockhart couldn't help but swallow hard and slowly took half a step back.

"Oh, haha, it's Tom! This is the first time I've seen your true face. Indeed, truly amazing."

Lockhart, feigning composure, put the Peacock Quill into his pocket, which also contained his wand.

"Um, Tom, you said there's one more ingredient missing, what is it?"