Inside the spacious auditorium, the candles were brightly lit, illuminating countless decorations exclusive to Halloween!
The moon hung in the middle of the sky. Wizards from the four houses were walking in one after another into the auditorium.
Following the crowd into the auditorium, Light walked over to the long table of Gryffindor and sat down, waiting for the dinner to start.
At this time, Neville poked his head over curiously and asked, "Where are Harry Potter and the other two? Why can't I see them!"
"They've got other things to do. They probably won't be able to come!" Light didn't say where Harry Potter and the others had gone, just that they were all busy.
"Really? That's such a pity. I heard that Headmaster Dumbledore has booked a skeleton dance troupe."
After knowing that Harry Potter and the others wouldn't show up, Neville looked really disappointed.
"Indeed, it's a pity! But is this skeleton dance troupe for real?" Light deftly changed the topic and asked what he was interested in.
"It should be true. The whole house is saying so!" Neville said seriously after being led to a different topic.
Just as the two were discussing whether the skeleton dance troupe would come to perform, Headmaster Dumbledore, wearing a black pointed hat and pumpkin glasses, walked onto the stage from a small side door.
He said to the wizards below, "At this dinner, I won't spoil your fun. Enjoy the festival to your heart's content!"
After saying that, the headmaster waved his right hand, and countless delicious foods appeared on the long tables.
Seeing that the meal had begun but the skeleton dance troupe hadn't shown up, the wizards around were a bit disappointed. But after being enticed by the delicious food, their disappointment turned into appetite, and they all started to eat.
Looking at the numerous delicious foods on the table, Light took out the thermal lunch box he had prepared beforehand. He ate and packed at the same time, which shocked Neville beside him!
After a sumptuous meal, the dinner was drawing to a close!
Led by Dumbledore, everyone sang the school song in unison, and the dinner ended in a warm atmosphere.
The students streamed out of the auditorium in small groups, planning to go back to the common room to take a break and then continue to have fun.
In the crowd, Light carried the thermal lunch box and walked with Neville towards the Gryffindor common room.
But just as they left the auditorium and reached the floor where the crowd was about to split up, the commotion in front suddenly died down.
Seeing this, Light's face changed slightly. As if thinking of something, he thought to himself, "No way! This still hasn't changed?"
"What's wrong?" Neville looked at Light blankly, whose face didn't look right.
"Nothing. I'll go and see what's going on up ahead. Hold this for me." After saying that, Light handed the thermal lunch box to Neville and squeezed forward.
Squeezing to the front of the crowd, Light saw the wall in front. It was Mrs. Norris, the cat kept by Filch.
At the moment, its tail was wrapped around the torch hook and hung on the wall along with the torch.
Its body was extremely stiff, looking as if it had been dead for a long time. Above the wall, someone had written in red paint:
"The Chamber of Secrets is open. Enemies of the Heir, beware!"
Just then, Malfoy also shouldered his way through the crowd and stood in front of everyone. Grinning wickedly, he addressed Harry Potter and the others, who looked worried:
"Enemies of the Heir, beware!"
"You Mudbloods are next!"
"So, it was you who did it to Mrs. Norris!" Light squeezed through the crowd and stood beside Harry Potter and the other two, directly laying the blame on Malfoy.
Hearing this voice, Malfoy's arrogant smile froze instantly.
Just as Malfoy was about to stiffen his neck and admit it under the scrutinizing gazes of the students.
"What's going on here? Make way, let me through!" Attracted by the commotion, Filch forced his way through the crowd.
Seeing Mrs. Norris on the wall, looking as if she had been dead for a long time, Filch covered his face in horror and shrieked, "My cat, my Mrs. Norris!"
At this time, Filch noticed the four of Light, who were at the front. With a ferocious look on his face, he shouted, "You, it must be you. I won't let..."
"Enough!"
A loud and resonant voice directly interrupted Filch's harsh words. All the students made way for the newcomer in unison.
Headmaster Dumbledore led the professors and walked through the crowd. After taking a general look at the surrounding situation, he walked straight past Light, who was at the front, and took Mrs. Norris down from the torch holder.
"Who found this place first?" Professor McGonagall took over from Headmaster Dumbledore and started asking questions.
Harry Potter and the other two quickly raised their hands.
"Then come with me! Filch, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger."
"And you, Mr. Ragus!" After Professor McGonagall had named the people, Headmaster Dumbledore, who was doing Research on the cat, added another name.
At this moment, Lockhart flashed a shiny smile, stepped forward, and said, "My office is close by, Headmaster. We can go there right away."
"Thank you, Gilderoy!" After Headmaster Dumbledore said that, he walked ahead towards Lockhart's office along the path separated by the students.
He left Professor McGonagall to arrange the evacuation of the students.
Light slightly nodded to Neville, who was in the crowd, holding a thermal lunch box and looking confused and shocked, to signal that it was okay.
After Headmaster Dumbledore entered Lockhart's office, he ignored the photos of Lockhart's shiny smile hanging all around.
He went straight to the desk, placed Mrs. Norris on it, and began to examine her carefully.
And Lockhart boasted beside him, "This must be a cruel Hexes. If I had been here, such a terrible thing would never have happened."
Hearing Lockhart's boasting, Filch, who was already on the verge of collapse, instantly broke down and burst into tears.
Encouraged by the response, Lockhart became even more energetic and continued to talk about his past glorious deeds.
The photos around seemed to be programmed, and they smiled even more brightly as he boasted.
"She's not dead, Filch!"
Just when Filch was crying so hard that he could hardly catch his breath, Headmaster Dumbledore directly interrupted Lockhart's boasting.
"But, but, why..." Filch sobbed and couldn't even finish his sentence.
"She's been Petrification!" Unable to stand it anymore, Light directly spoke up before Headmaster Dumbledore could say anything.
Headmaster Dumbledore took out his wand after a long time. A flash of light passed, but the stiff cat still didn't move.
At this moment, everyone's eyes turned to Light. He had no choice but to continue explaining.
"This is an extremely powerful Petrification curse. Only potions brewed from adult mandrake roots can restore them."
Just as everyone was pondering the truth of Light's words,
"I can brew the potion! I've made this potion more than a hundred times. I'm so proficient that I could do it while signing autographs."
Lockhart, brimming with confidence, broke the silence in the office.
"Excuse me, but I'm the Potions class professor here!" Professor Snape said coldly. Then, he turned to Harry Potter and his two friends beside him and asked,
"Potter~, you were the first one to arrive at the scene, weren't you?"