Lucius's eyes widened. "How is that possible?!"
The words had barely left his mouth when he seemed to realize he had lost his composure. He hurriedly changed tack. "I—I mean, setting aside travel time, you've been back at Hogwarts for less than an hour. How could you find the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets when generations of headmasters spent their lives looking for it? Let alone rescue Ginny and capture the Heir and the Chamber Monster!"
"Malfoy, nothing is impossible. I remember clearly what I told you the night you took me away: I would only truly leave Hogwarts when everyone here had turned against me. While I was gone, they held fast to courage, resilience, and determination. They never stopped trying to unravel the legend of the Chamber of Secrets."
Dumbledore's warm, approving gaze passed beyond Lucius's shoulder-length hair and came to rest on Luo Bin and Harry. Lucius turned and studied the two of them thoughtfully.
"How does the school intend to punish the Heir? Her crimes are enough to put her in Azkaban for life!"
He's doing this on purpose. Of course he is. Lucius Malfoy would gladly make trouble for anyone if he had the chance, Luo Bin thought.
Dumbledore lifted the Black Diary from the desk. His piercing eyes watched every subtle shift in Lucius's expression. Luo Bin suspected the Headmaster had guessed that a former Death Eater had "given" Ginny the Magical Diary.
"Voldemort. The Heir of Salazar Slytherin was Voldemort. Fifty years ago, he placed the blame on Rubeus Hagrid. Fifty years later, he used this Magical Diary to control a student's mind."
"And we have Luo Bin, Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who is still in the Hospital Wing, to thank. Without them, we could never have solved the mystery of the