During the oath, no one noticed any trace of magic. Clearly, this was nothing more than chanting a slogan, and they all breathed a sigh of relief. At the same time, they felt that only Professor Holmes could have come up with a prank like this.
Seeing their expressions, Moaning Myrtle seemed to know what they were thinking, but she still said unhappily:
"Since you were disrespectful to the great guide, Moaning Myrtle, just now, you will face your first challenge before entering the Chamber of Secrets. Please gather behind the statue."
Everyone followed Moaning Myrtle's instructions and went behind the statue. There stood an enormous stone archway, with murals on the surrounding walls depicting the founding of Hogwarts.
Clearly, they needed to open the stone archway with magic to enter the Chamber of Secrets. Everyone looked at Moaning Myrtle again.
Moaning Myrtle flew a smug circle around the stone archway and said:
"Originally, you only needed to select your corresponding subject, and then the stone archway would ask you questions, letting you pass this first stage directly.
But now, things might perhaps be a little more complicated... See those round tiles on the floor around the stone archway? Tap them with your wands."
Percy first cast a Shield Charm on himself, then tapped the nearest tile with his wand. The others cautiously raised their wands at the same time, ready to deal with whatever might happen next.
At the tap of his wand, white light shone from the gaps around the tile. Then it slowly rose like a lift, finally forming a stone pedestal set with transparent glass.
One Muggle-born student present frowned repeatedly at the words flashing on the glass. He wondered whether he had wandered onto the wrong set.
"This..."
Everyone turned to him and asked, "Do