"The Life and Lies of Tom Riddle!"

After chatting with Cedric for a while, William entered the shop's Chamber of Secrets.

Upon entering the room, they saw a woman already sitting there, waiting for him and Hermione.

This is the advantage of having your own store.

At least at Hogsmeade, you don't have to go to the Three Broomsticks, which have very poor privacy; and you don't have to go to Aberforth's place, which likes to rip you off.

We have our own base!

The only drawback is that there isn't a single secret passage.

William believes:

A secret passage leading to Hogwarts must be dug inside the shop to serve as an emergency communication method.

As for those old secret passages, too many people know about them, so they can all be sealed off.

Ideally, the exit of this secret passage would be in the Room of Requirement —perfect!

Wait a minute... Is this what Aberforth was doing when he opened the Hog's Head in Hogsmeade?

On the surface, it's a bar, and they even deliberately sell strong liquor to Hogwarts students; but in reality, it's Dumbledore's secret communication hub?

After all, any smart person would do that; William could think of opening a secret passage in the store, and so could Dumbledore.

William remembered that Aberforth was a hidden member of the Order of the Phoenix, the kind who never attended a meeting.

Good heavens... Could it be that these two are putting on a show of brotherhood on the surface, but secretly they're actually showing off... a deep brotherly bond?

Just like those tobacco companies, which ostensibly harm people's health, but in reality, they're raking in money to support the country's military industry?

Therefore, don't try to Dumbledore with secrets.

His secrets are far more numerous than any you've discovered!

Rita was fixing her makeup; she hadn't been out shopping in a long time, so she cut her hair short.

However, she still wore those jeweled glasses, her eyebrows were heavily drawn, and she had a row of gold teeth, making her look like a nouveau riche.

Upon seeing William and Hermione arrive, her face immediately broke into a fawning smile.

During this time, Rita was carrying out the tasks assigned by William, transforming into a beetle to monitor the Death Eaters.

This is an important source of intelligence.

Voldemort wouldn't tell Snape everything; Rita was needed to fill in the gaps in his information.

William's generous salary and benefits allowed Rita to live a very comfortable life.

However, this money is not enough for her to achieve financial freedom for the rest of her life.

At least it's not enough to squander money recklessly; I still have to continue serving William.

Rita even changed how she addressed her major benefactor.

They used to be "Mr. Perfect" and "Ms. Flawless," but now they've become "the wealthy and powerful boss and his wife."

"Boss, who are we spying on this time?" Rita asked curiously.

For the past year, a House-elf has been keeping in touch with William, and he won't let her risk going out.

Rita was incredibly curious about being suddenly summoned to Hogsmeade.

William sat down in the chair, took the coffee Hermione had made for him, and smiled:

"I don't need you to spy on anyone for now, I need you to write something."

"What are you writing about? Is it your love story with the landlady?" Rita teased.

Hermione glared at her and said coldly, "It's about writing someone's autobiography."

"He's dying and needs a biography. That's what you do best." William took a sip of his coffee.

"I'm dying..." Rita clenched her fists and exclaimed excitedly.

"I've heard that the boss was a student of Nicolas Flamel, and since he destroyed the Philosopher's Stone, he probably won't live much longer."

What, are you planning to write about Nicolas Flamel's absurd six-hundred-year life?!

If you had firsthand information about Nicolas Flamel, you could definitely achieve financial freedom with this book.

Rita was very excited.

"Not Nicolas." William shook his head.

"Could it be Dumbledore?" Rita looked at him warily.

She has indeed collected a lot of information about Dumbledore over the years, and plans to write a biography of Albus Dumbledore after he dies.

Rita also plans to narrate the man's life from the opposite perspective.

Everyone called him a great man, Rita insisted on taking a different approach, calling him a fraud and saying he had a chaotic private life.

Whether it's true or false, as long as it's sensational enough, that's fine.

Of course, that idea was abandoned a few years ago.

Since these two are still alive, there's no way she's going to write a biography of Dumbledore.

But Rita really didn't know of any other heavyweight wizards, like Nicolas Flamel and Dumbledore, who would be worthy of her writing a biography about.

Is Scamander dying? Or is the Boy Who Lived gone?

William didn't keep her in suspense any longer. He stared at Rita and said seriously:

"I want you to write a biography of Tom Riddle."

"Tom Riddle?" Rita frowned; the name was somewhat unfamiliar to her.

Especially the ubiquitous Tom... her first thought was the owner of the Leaky Cauldron.

What's there to write about that old geezer!

"That's what everyone commonly refers to as Voldemort, the You-Know-Who," Hermione explained.

"Who?!" Rita's voice was shrill as she slammed her hand on the table, spilling coffee all over it.

"I think you heard that very clearly," William said calmly.

"William, do you know that's the Dark Lord?!" Rita's expression turned somewhat ferocious.

"What, you're afraid to write?" William tapped the table, and the water on the table began to evaporate, emitting white smoke.

"You've written so many articles for me, you're already on the Death Eaters ' kill list, are you scared now?"

"Boss, you've misunderstood." Rita suddenly smiled, exhaled a breath of stale air, and grinned:

"This man is the most terrifying demon king in history, a ruthless killer. Write his autobiography..."

"You need to pay more!!"

"That's easy." William leaned back in his chair with satisfaction. He noticed for the first time that Rita was quite plump.

"But I have no information about the You-Know-Who's past; I know nothing about his past."

Adaptation isn't about making things up... If she's writing an autobiography, shouldn't there be some basis for her statements?

"I can provide detailed information, including an interview with his former teacher, which you can refer to."

The portraits and ghosts of Hogwarts all remember Tom; they are his closest confidants.

"Then I will definitely write a biography that will satisfy you, boss," Rita said confidently.

"How long will it take for the book to be published?" Hermione had already started urging for the manuscript.

"Boss lady, I need to polish it up properly." Although Rita was on a kill list and was smothered by lice... she still wanted to see how things were going.

Ideally, the biography should be published after the Dark Lord is defeated and killed, as that would greatly reduce the danger.

"I need you to have the manuscript finished before Christmas. Aren't you a quick writer?" William's tone left no room for argument.

"Okay," Rita shrugged. "But just between you and me, it's not certain any publisher will dare to publish this masterpiece."

"Don't worry, I'll help you find a suitable publisher," William said.

Rita grabbed her crocodile bag, transformed into a beetle, and flew away joyfully.

She had already decided on the title for the book.

Tom Riddle's Life and Lies!