Chapter 164: "Tracking the Heir"

The next morning, Harry returned from his daily exercise routine to find his dormmates, Roger and Reggy, eagerly discussing the previous night's events. Their animated conversation filled their dorm room with a nervous energy.

"After last night, you're still in the mood to go out alone for exercise, Harry?" Reggy asked, his voice tinged with disbelief. "I'd be too scared to leave the castle."

Roger nodded in agreement. "Yeah, we've got a dangerous person roaming inside the castle again, just like in our first year. That message written in blood makes it all the more terrifying."

Harry couldn't help but smile at his friends' concern. "Were you really that scared? You know that message was written in chicken blood, right?" He paused, considering his next words carefully. "I think I'll be able to handle the heir, whoever they are. Since they're acting in secret, it means they're afraid of the professors, which suggests they're not too dangerous for me. However, you guys should be careful. Whatever magic petrified Mrs. Norris is undoubtedly high-level stuff."

Of course, Harry didn't tell them the whole truth. There was no need to. He knew from his knowledge of the books that the heir only attacked Muggle-borns, and he didn't think that was going to change in this world, even if Ginny Weasley wasn't the attacker this time.

Reggy's eyes widened. "Chicken blood? Thank goodness. I thought it was human blood and someone had died. Also, Mrs. Norris isn't dead?"

"No, that cat is still alive," Harry explained. "Just petrified. Though I'm not sure what could have caused it."

Roger leaned forward, his curiosity piqued. "Knowing this is very comforting. But who do you think is behind it? Who is the heir of Slytherin, and what is the Chamber of Secrets?"

Harry shrugged, feigning ignorance. "If you want to know what the Chamber of Secrets is, you can just refer to 'Hogwarts: A History'. It has information about the myths surrounding it. As for the heir of Slytherin, I have no idea."

Reggy slapped his forehead. "I left my book at home. I knew I should carry it with me all the time. Roger, let's hurry and get the book from the library before anyone else remembers and takes it!"

With that, while Harry got ready for the day, Roger and Reggy dashed towards the school library. Even though they might not learn much from the books, Harry let them go and have fun. He had more important things to do today. This might be the best time to find the person possessed by the diary since they would likely be in a very bad condition after yesterday's possession.

As Harry entered the Great Hall for breakfast, he found Reggy and Roger surrounded by his friends and other students. Reggy was reading aloud the part about the Chamber of Secrets from the "Hogwarts: A History" book he had just borrowed. Similar scenes were unfolding in many places around the Great Hall, with students huddled together, discussing the mysterious chamber in hushed tones.

Seeing Harry approach, Cedric greeted him and then asked, "You're not curious about the chamber, Harry? Why are you so calm?"

Harry smiled knowingly. "I already know the known information about the chamber. Who do you think told these two about the book?"

Elvinia, Reggy's sister, chimed in. "Now it makes sense. I was wondering how my brother was able to get the required information so quickly."

Reggy looked up from the book, his face flushed with excitement. "Don't put me down, sis. Harry, there's not much information here. It's all a myth. Is the chamber really designed by Salazar Slytherin to cleanse the school of those unworthy of learning magic?"

Reggy was careful not to say "Muggle-borns" even though everyone thought so. He didn't want to become hated by a significant group of students.

Harry considered his response carefully. "I don't think so. It was a dangerous era with many instances of witch hunts, and we don't know the real reasons for the existence of the chamber. Maybe only the founders knew. If Slytherin was so bad, he wouldn't have worked together with the other founders to build this haven of learning for all witches and wizards. Maybe the chamber and its monster were left as a last line of defense for the school in case of attacks from the witch hunters. If it was for any other reason, the other founders would have done their best to destroy the chamber and its monster after Slytherin left."

Arabella nodded in agreement. "I think so too. Someone probably hated Slytherin after he had that whole fight with Gryffindor and made up all kinds of stories to make him look evil. I don't think the founder of my house is cruel enough to harm young students."

"I agree," Harry said, his stomach growling. "Now let's end this discussion. I'm very hungry."

While Harry was having his meal, he was not idle. His eyes scanned the whole hall, searching for suspicious targets. However, it was not an easy task. Many students, after seeing the writing and the fate of Mrs. Norris, had suffered nightmares and didn't get a good night's sleep, so many people appeared exhausted and sleepy.

What Harry was searching for was a person who was exhibiting some kind of guilty behavior. If he remembered correctly from the books, Ginny Weasley had displayed this behavior after the Halloween night.

So Harry searched, narrowing the scope of his investigation for now to just Gryffindor and Hufflepuff students of the fifth year or younger. He excluded the higher years and students from Slytherin and Ravenclaw, reasoning that they would likely know the dangers of books that could write back and the significance of missing memories leading to informing the professors or throwing the book away.

If Harry didn't find anyone in his narrowed scope, he would consider expanding his search. However, Harry didn't have to resort to that or search long. His narrowed-down scope led him directly to a girl who matched all the signs of a person who had been possessed by a dark object: dark eyes, low mood, weakened magic, sleepy demeanor, and more. A discreet detection spell confirmed Harry's suspicion.

Harry didn't know who she was, but she looked like a third-year Gryffindor student. Interestingly, she had some mind shields, so Harry couldn't easily learn her identity through Legilimency. Careful not to draw attention to himself, Harry silently cast a tracking charm on her. Now that he knew the person behind the attacks, he could attempt to control the series of events in the way he wanted. He needed to plan carefully, but that would have to wait until he gathered all the necessary information.

After breakfast, it was time for classes and everyone reluctantly made their way to their respective classrooms. The Chamber story discussion did not stop though. It had spread around the school quickly. Thanks to everyone being curious about the chamber and the whole heir thing, no one bothered the Golden Trio about anything that happened last night. They seemed relieved by this unexpected reprieve from scrutiny.

But this was not the end of the Chamber and Slytherin discussion. The second-year Gryffindors, Charles's year, asked Professor Binns about the chamber during their History of Magic class. After he reluctantly told them about it, a big debate erupted in the school.

One side believed the chamber was designed to rid the school of Muggle-borns, while another side believed the chamber was left as a last line of defense for the school. The debate raged on in common rooms and corridors, with students passionately arguing their points of view.

Harry, however, believed his own inference, which was mainly because he had gotten Gryffindor's letter stating that the monster was left behind by Slytherin to protect the school. As for why the snake was attacking students now, Harry could only guess, and the most probable reasoning could be inferred from what happened so many years ago when Tom Riddle was studying at Hogwarts.

He theorized that when Tom released the basilisk for the first time, Myrtle unknowingly saw the secret. To hide this, Tom ordered the basilisk to kill her. Since Tom was the heir, the basilisk had to listen to him, but after killing a student, the basilisk must have gone against Salazar Slytherin's original orders. Due to this, the snake should have gone mad, and now there was no reason left in the creature. It was a crazed snake listening to the mad commands of the diary holder. Otherwise, the snake should not listen to a possessed person even if he or she knew Parseltongue.

As classes concluded for the day, Harry found himself with a new mission. Carefully and discreetly, he began to inquire about the Gryffindor girl he had noticed at breakfast. Although it could have been a straightforward task, Harry deliberately made it more challenging. He wanted to avoid any chance of the girl noticing his interest in her, which might spook her or alert her or Voldemort's soul piece to his suspicions. By the time he retired to the Ravenclaw common room that evening, Harry had gathered several pieces of information about the girl's identity.