Upon his return to Hogwarts, Sagres went directly to the Headmaster's Office on the 7th floor of the castle.
Without much small talk, he immediately told Dumbledore about Lord Voldemort's Horcrux.
The Headmaster listened quietly, neither pressing for details nor showing obvious shock. His gaze merely grew complex and heavy. At last, he nodded slowly, almost imperceptibly.
Sagres could almost see a pie chart in Dumbledore's eyes—scrutiny, worry, a faint trace of gratitude, and a deeper, more profound wariness of the unknown.
"By the way, about the Duelling Club…"
"You can be in charge of it," the Headmaster said calmly. "If you're willing."
Sagres nodded without surprise—this was exactly the reaction he had expected. Or rather, it was an anticipated, unspoken acquiescence.
Finally, he gave the Headmaster a nod, not wasting a single word, and turned to leave the office, casting aside the meaningful gaze and heavy thoughts behind him.
…
The British wizarding world then entered a strange period of calm.
The Daily Prophet lightly glossed over the Chamber of Secrets attacks at Hogwarts, choosing instead to focus its attention on Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge's arm—lost in the line of duty—and the series of "heroic deeds" and "recovery reports" that followed.
Dumbledore also no longer insisted on waiting for Professor Sprout's Mandrakes to mature, but instead directly purchased a batch of restorative potions from Diagon Alley, restoring the petrified young wizards to their original state.
The school's official announcement to all students was equally concise and vague: the culprit had been a Basilisk lurking in the school's ancient pipe system.
And the crisis had been resolved—Professor Greengrass had completely incinerated it with powerful flame magic, leaving behind only a charred husk.
As for Gilderoy Lockhart?
Oh, he was "unfortunately gravely injured" in the attack and is currently receiving "long-term and meticulous treatment" at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.
Those horrifying blood-red words on the wall?
The school dismissed them lightly as "a foolish prank by some bored student," nothing more.
The young wizards were naturally full of doubts about this explanation, and whispers never ceased in the corridors.
However, the attention of the young is ultimately fleeting.
A deliberately maintained calm was enough to make fear fade; and if reinforced with a grueling exam, then even the strangest mystery would be temporarily set aside, squeezed out of mind by the heavy workload.
So, a few days before Christmas, at the suggestion of a certain professor, several Heads of House at Hogwarts organized a midterm exam, ostensibly to "assess students' learning progress."
As soon as the news spread, the young wizards, who had been absorbed in various rumors, immediately quieted down, becoming well-behaved and burying themselves in books to review, determined to cope with this sudden exam.
Only three subjects at Hogwarts escaped the "clutches" of the midterm exam: Sagres's Advanced Charm Theory and Practice, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Professor Binns' History of Magic.
Sagres felt the young wizards already had enough on their plates. After all, he had once been a student himself and should consider things from their perspective.
The students were naturally grateful for his "kindness," giving him a mental thumbs-up—of course, this was only because they didn't know it was this very "benevolent" professor who had given their Heads of House the "brilliant" idea of a midterm exam!
Heh~
…
During this time, the Department of Mysteries sent two elderly wizards in uniform, who, after a series of obscure and peculiar healing methods, successfully restored Myrtle—who had been petrified—back to her original state.
Sagres observed the entire process, noting that these old men clearly had tricks up their sleeves. Even in such an obscure field, they had a set of effective solutions.
This made him all the more interested in the research within the Department of Mysteries, and he contemplated when he might secretly conduct an on-site inspection.
…
Hogwarts soon returned to its peaceful rhythm.
With the Christmas holiday approaching, Sagres had a lighter course schedule, and in his free time, he restored all the mirrored corners, glass chandeliers, and other devices he had previously set up throughout the castle back to their original state.
The magic mirror at the entrance of the Great Hall was also put away by him.
Most of these arrangements had likely been futile, with only the mirrored corners playing a slight role in the Basilisk's attack.
Just as he was restoring the Mirror of Erised, he happened to encounter Harry, Ron, and Hermione coming out of the library, their arms full of books and assignments.
"Good morning, Professor Greengrass!"
"Good morning, all three of you…"
"Professor, isn't that the Mirror of Erised?"
Harry, noticing him restoring the mirrored corridor back into the familiar mirror, couldn't help but ask.
"That's right. I borrowed it from Dumbledore, but in the end, it wasn't needed."
"But it's not…" Ron interjected.
"Yes, Mr. Weasley," Sagres nodded, "but I made a small modification to it, so it won't reflect people's desires for now."
Hearing this, the trio immediately gathered around the mirror out of curiosity.
"It looks just like a normal mirror," Harry said, examining his reflection.
"Yes. If you're a normal person, it really is no different from any ordinary mirror."
"Uh… so what if you're not normal?" Hermione asked curiously.
"That depends on what kind of abnormality it is," Sagres smiled. "If it's like Quirrell, with Lord Voldemort's soul hidden in the back of his head, then when he passes by this mirror, it will let out a shriek."
At that moment, the smile on Sagres's face suddenly froze.
He abruptly realized that if Lord Voldemort had created Horcruxes by splitting his soul, then his own soul was no longer complete.
But could Soul Tracing detect soul fragments?
Thinking of this, Sagres grew serious and once again cast several detection spells on the mirror.
This time, as he gazed at the four figures reflected in its surface, he suddenly heard an extremely faint shriek, as if from the void, and the mirror rippled almost imperceptibly.
Sagres's eyes narrowed sharply, and he slowly turned to look at the three young wizards, a strange scrutiny in his gaze.
"What's wrong, Professor?" Harry, Ron, and Hermione immediately noticed Sagres's sudden silence and unsettling expression.
"Nothing…" Sagres's voice was calm, without the slightest ripple. "Miss Granger, could you help me return this book to the library?"
Hermione hesitated for a moment, but then nodded, took the thick book Sagres handed her, and quickly walked toward the library.
Sagres watched the young witch's retreating back, the faint shriek still ringing in his ears. He then shifted his gaze to Ron.
"Mr. Weasley, would you mind helping me retrieve those four crystal balls from the Great Hall?"
"Of course, Professor!" Ron agreed without hesitation, immediately turning and running toward the Great Hall entrance.
Sagres listened to the shriek that still lingered in his ears, his face calm and unreadable.
"Mr. Potter," he turned to Harry, his tone natural, "go help Mr. Weasley. It might be a bit difficult for him to carry four crystal balls on his own."
"Okay, Professor."
Harry didn't suspect anything and immediately followed after Ron into the Great Hall.
The moment Harry's figure disappeared through the door—the shriek in Sagres's ears abruptly ceased.
Dead silence fell.