Suddenly, that strange sound rang out from ahead.
This made Hermione and her two companions stop in their tracks.
Filch shouted in a hoarse voice, "Come back! Take the other way!"
But as they backed away, the sound drew closer, following their every step.
Lavender kept glancing around, gritting his teeth in frustration, and said, "Where is it?"
The starlight and moonlight that were just there were extinguished by the dark clouds in an instant.
The corridor was pitch black.
Only Filch's hand-held lamp emitted a dim, yellowish light.
After being bitten several times by the sudden darkness, the light resembled a round cookie with many holes around its edges, barely illuminating a small area beneath their feet.
The chilling sound seemed to be squeezing out from a crack in the wall, sometimes near, sometimes far, drifting aimlessly.
No one could be sure where the sound was coming from.
The dark, deep corridor resembled the belly of a giant snake, slowly writhing with every flicker of light.
Hermione and the others retreated back to Filch's side, only feeling slightly safer when the lights enveloped them.
"What... what should we do?"
Parvati tugged at Hermione's sleeve, trembling as she asked.
"Don't forget we're wizards!" Hermione pulled out her wand. "We can protect ourselves perfectly well."
Lavender and Parvati then realized what was happening and took out their wands.
As wizards, they stood before Filch.
"Fools!" Filch yelled. "I don't need your protection!"
He squeezed to the front, his lantern trembling slightly, and frowned as he pondered what to do next.
Should we send them back to the lounge?
But we're still quite a distance from the Gryffindor common room. What if we get attacked along the way?
Should we send them to find the professor?
That's a good idea. The patrol team is nearby, and if we shout, they might be able to hear us.
Having made up his mind, Filch was about to speak when Hermione had already begun to act.
She used a megaphone Spells and shouted, "Help! Professors on patrol!"
"We're now in the corridor on the east side of the Gryffindor common room. The monster from the Chamber of Chamber of Secrets has appeared! Slytherin's Goyle and Crabbe have been petrified. The monster has us cornered here."
Hermione calmly announced their current situation and exact location.
The sound, amplified by the Spells, traveled out at an astonishing speed.
Filch turned back to look at Hermione in astonishment.
He was still pondering this when Hermione had already taken action.
This shows that Hermione is not only quick-witted and decisive in her actions, but also has an extremely accurate judgment of the current situation.
This increased their chances of survival.
Lavender and Parvati gripped their wands tightly, their faces tense, and stood close to Hermione.
"The sound seems to have disappeared," Lavender whispered.
Hermione frowned and said, "Don't let your guard down. Let's wait here for the professors to arrive."
She had barely finished speaking when Professor McGonagall's voice suddenly came from downstairs.
"Stay there, kids! We're coming right away!"
"Pick up your wands to protect yourselves, and if necessary, those around you!"
Filch listened intently for a moment.
Based on his years of experience capturing nocturnal wizards, he accurately located Professor McGonagall; the patrol was downstairs!
They'll be here soon!
Lavender and Parvati both breathed a sigh of relief.
We're safe as long as we wait here for the professors to arrive.
"Looks like we're saved."
Parvati loosened her grip on the wand, relaxing slightly.
She then realized that she had gripped the wand too tightly, and her hand was hurting.
"Thanks to you, Hermione," Lavender said, relieved. "Otherwise, we really wouldn't know what to do."
Hermione was about to speak when that strange voice squeezed out from the crack in the wall again, piercing the hearts of the group like a sharp knife.
Everyone tensed up instantly.
"It's here again!" Parvati gripped his wand tightly once more.
This time the sound came from behind them.
The handheld lamp was too dim; none of them could see what was in the corridor behind them.
The pitch-black environment deprived them of their sight, but it heightened their other senses.
Several people even forgot to use their wands to cast a Lumos.
They all heard some strange noises, as if something had fallen from the ceiling.
A putrid, foul odor filled the corridor, making their throats ache. A sickening, grinding sound grew closer, like a cold knife scraping against their skin, sending chills down their spines.
The monster is coming!
The answer suddenly popped into everyone's mind.
But no one dared to look back.
Their instinctive fear made them stiffen.
But the professors haven't arrived yet...
"Are we going to get eaten by a monster?" Lavender said, stuffing the pudding he had just brought back from the kitchen into his mouth.
"Even with garlic sauce... I hope I die from sweetness!"
Hermione gripped her wand, frantically trying to come up with a solution.
"The monster is getting closer, but the professors haven't arrived yet. What should we do?"
"A counterattack? But we don't even know what kind of monster it is, or what Spells could work on it."
"Run forward? But what if the professors come and can't find us?"
A jumble of thoughts tangled like Devil's Snare, tightly binding Hermione's mind.
"Hermione ..." Parvati warned, "It looks like it's coming!"
"I'll count to three, then we'll all turn and attack! Mr. Filch, you run forward!"
In that tense moment, this was the only solution Hermione could come up with.
Even if we can't defeat the monster, as long as we can buy some time for the professors to arrive, that will be fine.
"Okay!" Lavender and Parvati said at the same time.
"Three."
Lavender swallowed the pudding, Parvati gripped her wand tightly, Filch remained motionless.
"Two."
The monsters behind them seemed to sense someone rushing towards them at high speed, and became impatient, increasing their speed even further.
"One..."
An almost suffocating stench of decay surged up like a flood, smothering them.
The monster charged forward!
Hermione and her two companions gripped their wands tightly, about to turn and retaliate, when suddenly a bright light appeared.
It started out extremely small but extremely bright, and in the blink of an eye, it expanded and grew much larger.
What's going on?
Lavender and Parvati looked at Hermione in astonishment.
The light was coming from the necklace around Hermione's neck.
Hermione was also somewhat at a loss.
This necklace was a birthday gift from Silan; it's an alchemical artifact that, when Spells, can transform into many different kinds of birds. But Hermione hasn't Spells it yet.
How so?
Just as Hermione was wondering what was going on, the necklace around her neck suddenly turned into a streak of light and floated into the air.
The blinding light expanded instantly, illuminating the entire corridor.
They clearly heard the monster behind them let out a shriek.
This glimmer of light seemed to stimulate it, driving the monster even more frenzied.
Everyone's spirits plummeted.
It's over, it's all over.
Because of this necklace, they didn't even have a chance to struggle.
Just as the group felt as if they had fallen into an ice cave, believing they had no chance of survival, the glowing necklace transformed into a giant rooster in mid-air.
The rooster has bright and glossy feathers, a long beak, and a red comb, making it look majestic.
It fell from the sky, landed on Filch's head, and looked down at them with its head held high.
"Rooster?"
Everyone stared in disbelief at the rooster that had suddenly appeared.