After that, everyone in the corridor argued. Filch accused Harry of being the culprit, Professor Mag analyzed the situation in detail, Snape interrogated Harry in a strange manner, and Lockhart began to flaunt his great achievements again, and even wanted to snatch the task of concocting the magic potion that was originally assigned to Snape. In the end, it was Dumbledore who insisted on the principle of "innocent without suspicion" and let the three of them leave the place.
"Where have you been?!" Pansy, who was sitting at the table, asked Malfoy in a low voice. Her voice was filled with anxiety and worry. "I heard that Filch's cat was petrified. Aren't you afraid …" Pansy said to herself. Then, she seemed to think of something and looked at him carefully. "Where did you go just now?"
"Are you suspecting that I'm the murderer?" Malfoy felt a little funny and changed the topic. He could tell that the girl was worried about him.
In the end, Pansy's question was left unanswered. After Malfoy told a few jokes, Pansy's attention was diverted elsewhere.
However, the atmosphere in the auditorium wasn't very good. The originally festive atmosphere of the festival had been diluted by the petrification incident. The students no longer talked about the pumpkin ghosts. Instead, they were discussing the attack on Madam Loris. Even though most of the students didn't like Filch, they couldn't help but feel a trace of sympathy and a sense of danger when they saw Filch's soulless expression.
"Those who oppose the heir, be vigilant." What does that mean? A Ravenclaw student asked again.
"That's not the point. We should be more concerned about what petrified it," another thin boy said.
"Medusa?" Luna raised her hand high.
"Oh, little Luna, that thing doesn't exist, just like the curved-horned snoring beast you're looking for," another student said.
"I'll find it one day." After saying that, Luna lowered her head again. She seemed to be thinking about where to find her curved-horned snoring beast again.
"Medusa?" Hearing this, the girl who had her head buried in the ground trembled as if she had thought of something. Then, she raised her head and said, "In Professor Sprout's class, she told us that …"
"Are you saying there might be a basilisk in our school?" It was a gentle female voice, but everyone could feel the tremor in her voice. If Malfoy were here, he would know who this black-haired girl was — Autumn Zhang from the East.
As a result, the rumor spread throughout the entire school overnight.
All the students knew that there might be a snake monster in the school that could kill people with just a glare.
"Draco!" A few days later, Malfoy was enjoying his breakfast at Slythrin's table when he suddenly saw two shadows in front of him. They shouted at the same time, and Malfoy could feel their impatience.
"Hm?" Malfoy raised his head and raised his eyebrows, looking at the stern-looking Weasley brothers.
"What are you doing here?" Pan Xi asked. If she had never interacted with Gryffindor's students before, now that she had become a Quidditch player, she obviously had to pay attention to her opponents. The Weasley brothers were two of them.
"It's inconvenient to talk about it here." No matter if it was Fred or George, both of them had changed from their usual mischievous smiles to a serious tone.
"I know what you want to ask," Malfoy said with a wave of his hand. "That's just a coincidence. If I could really predict the future, in your eyes, I wouldn't just be earning a little money, right?"
The Weasley brothers' faces were unsettled. After a moment of silence, George asked first, "Do you still want those things?"
"As you wish." Malfoy picked up a cup of honey tea and drank it, as if he was unwilling to talk to them anymore.
"We won't take advantage of you," Fred said, and returned to Gryffindor's table with George.
"You actually did business with the Weasley family. Uncle Lucius will scold you to death." After George and Fred walked away, Pan Xi looked at him in surprise.
"You won't tell on me, right?" Malfoy looked at her quietly.
"Uh …" Without hesitation, Pan Xi denied this question, but she was very curious about the deal between them.
"You should know the soonest by this afternoon," Malfoy said.
"That's why I hate your actions of keeping people in suspense." Pan Xi looked at him angrily.
In the afternoon, the mystery was revealed.
Lockhart was the first sacrifice. Of course, it wasn't because of the Basilisk's stare.
Ever since the disaster with the Wisps, Professor Lockhart didn't bring living creatures into the classroom anymore. He chose to read long paragraphs of his books to the students, and sometimes acted out some dramatic scenes.
Therefore, in the afternoon Defense against the Dark Arts class, Lockhart and Harry were acting out "A Weekend with a Werewolf". Lockhart played himself, and Harry played the role of a Werewolf. Just as Harry's character was about to pounce on Lockhart and bite his throat, and Lockhart was about to retaliate, a discordant sound suddenly appeared in the classroom.
"Cluck, cluck, cluck." This sound was like the first domino that was dropped, and also like a bomb thrown into deep water. Following that, the classroom was filled with the sound of roosters crowing continuously.
"Everyone, keep quiet!" Lockhart was stunned by the scene before his eyes. Dozens of rooster cries had been opened at the same time. What a grand occasion it was! His voice was drowned out by the noisy crows of the roosters, and not a single sound could be heard. And from the looks of it, even if the students heard him, they would not bother with him.
Looking at the chaotic situation in the classroom, Neville secretly lowered his head. The first Rooster Crowing Letter was accidentally activated by him. He didn't expect that he would cause such a huge chain reaction.
When the news that there might be a Basilisk in Hogwarts spread from Ravenclaw, it could be said that everyone was in a state of panic. Later, they all knew that the crowing of roosters was fatal to the Basilisk, so some students had their eyes on the school's roosters. Even the trio went to look for Hagrid, only to be told that all the roosters had died in an accident. This made them smell a hint of a conspiracy.
Then, some students heard the following advertisement: "Rooster Crowing Letters, your best choice to deal with Basilisks. Two Wills for one, buy more and you'll get more. If you buy more than a hundred at once, you'll get an even bigger discount."
Needless to say, this was George and Fred's advertisement. Although they still had their doubts, it wasn't in the Weasley brothers' character to not earn money.
Therefore, almost in the blink of an eye, all the students had a few Rooster Crowing Letters on them, and Neville became the first fuse that blew up Lockhart's classroom. Of course, this should also have something to do with the dissatisfaction of some of the male students. After all, to the students who studied diligently, Lockhart really didn't have any real talent. This was also the reason why they dared to follow the trend. If this was Professor Mag's classroom, as long as she kept a straight face, Neville's careless action would probably be like a spark in the wind, unable to become a prairie fire at all.
In short, Lockhart couldn't attend today's class. He appeared to be a little angry, and even ran to Dumbledore's office to complain that the students were collectively flouting class discipline. However, Dumbledore brushed him off lightly. The reason was that it wasn't a bad thing for the students who were affected by the rumors to use this method to relax.
However, the first thing Lockhart did in the next class was to check everyone's pockets and bags. He confiscated all the Rooster Crowing Letters, causing the students to protest. However, he maintained his elegant smile and said, "When you're facing Basilisks, you won't have a chance to open those letters at all. What you need is this." After that, he strolled in front of all the students, and gave them something similar to an amulet. Then, he returned to the podium and said loudly, "This is an anti-petrification amulet that I specially made for all of you. All you have to do is place it in front of your chest, and even if you're facing Basilisks, you'll be unscathed!" After saying that, he winked at all the students. Most of the female students looked at him with starry eyes again, their faces full of admiration. Compared to the noisy Rooster Crowing Letters, this exquisite amulet in front of them was more in line with their aesthetic standards.
"Tsk." Ron pursed his lips under the podium and turned his head away disdainfully.
Harry stared at the amulet in front of him in a daze. His intuition told him that the Weasley brothers' Rooster Crowing Letters were more useful.
As for Hermione, she carefully put the amulet away and put it in her bag.