Harry Potter: The Golden Viper

088 Celebration Banquet

A grand celebration banquet was in full swing in the Great Hall, where the original four parallel long tables had been rearranged into a square, forming a cozy circle of joy. The house-elves in the kitchen had outdone themselves, and the long tables were overflowing with all kinds of mouth-watering food, from roasted turkey and mashed potatoes to chocolate cake and pumpkin pie. The aroma of the dishes filled the air, tempting the taste buds of everyone present.

The professors did not hold themselves back, they mingled with the young wizards and happily chatted. Professor McGonagall pretended not to see the Weasley twins secretly changing the juice of the young wizards into butterbeer. Snape seemed to be comforting a gloomy Draco, who looked like he had swallowed a lemon. And when they were in the mood, Professor Flitwick and Professor Sprout even offered a waltz amid the laughter of everyone, their feet barely touching the ground.

"Actually, I noticed that something was wrong with that bathroom early on–"

Lockhart, who had not appeared in front of everyone for two months, showed up here despite Mrs. Pomfrey's dissuasion. He was pale and could only stand by leaning on the table, but he still tried to make his smile match the dazzling stars on the ceiling. His blond hair was combed back neatly, and his robes were as bright as ever.   

"But I think breaking into a girl's bathroom is not a gentleman's demeanor!"

"He dares to say that!"

Hearing Lockhart's boasting words, Harry's face turned blue with anger, and Dean next to him made a vomiting expression.

"Where did Professor Watson go?"

Hermione, who was a bit sad about Lockhart's performance, looked around for the young and thin figure.

"He and Headmaster Dumbledore left halfway." Neville answered this question. He was holding a plate full of food, but he didn't seem to have much appetite.

Harry and Hermione looked at each other, both feeling a bit bored. After a brief exchange, they took some food and left the Great Hall as well, heading to the hospital wing to look for Ron. They hoped he was feeling better after being bitten by the basilisk.

On the seventh floor of the castle, Bryan led Dumbledore to push open a smooth door embedded in the wall opposite a tapestry depicting Barnabas the Barmy trying to teach trolls ballet. The tapestry was old and faded, and the trolls looked more confused than graceful.

"At that time, I often practiced magic or brewed potions in some secluded classrooms in the castle. From the second semester of my fifth year, you and Professor Snape kept an eye on me. Once, Professor Snape seemed to smell the potion I carried on me, but he didn't say it clearly. Out of caution, I wanted to find a safe place to store my potions. I wandered around here and accidentally found this amazing room."

Squeak!

The door opened with a creaky sound, revealing a room as big as a church, and the surrounding scenery looked like a city. The towering walls were made up of things hidden by thousands of students who had long been out of this world. Most of them were basically garbage–expired potions in broken bottles, rotten and moldy food in paper bags, collapsed shelves and boxes with dusty labels, old textbooks with torn pages and scribbled notes, and so on. There were also some odd items, such as a stuffed vulture, a tiara with fake jewels, a broken mirror, and a pair of roller skates.

Bryan led Dumbledore deeper and deeper into the maze-like pile of garbage until they came to an old cabinet with bubbles on its surface. The cabinet looked like it had been exposed to some corrosive substance, and its wood was peeling off. On top of the cabinet sat a bust of a wizard with freckles on his cheeks. He wore an old hat with gray fluff on it, which had a clear circular indentation on its top.

"Here it is–"

Bryan raised his chin and said to Dumbledore with a solemn expression. He pointed at the indentation on the hat, where a small object was hidden.

Dumbledore held in his hand the broken crown that Bryan gave him last night. It was made of metal and had four spikes with rubies on them. One of the spikes was missing, leaving behind a jagged edge. He only glanced at the statue and then moved his eyes away, looking at the room he was in.

"It's indeed a good place to hide things. I can probably guess when Tom hid the crown here."

Dumbledore murmured, his voice low and serious.

"To be honest, Bryan, you have helped me a lot. For many years, I have been suspicious that Voldemort had split his soul before, and I think he might have done it more than once. But I never had any evidence. And you confirmed two of my long-standing doubts in one day."

Dumbledore said so, but he didn't see any relief on his face. Instead, his shoulders were slightly hunched and his brow seemed to be crushed by heavy pressure and drooped halfway down. His eyes were dark and troubled, as if he was seeing something horrible.

Bryan understood why Dumbledore looked like this. This was indeed a very frustating problem. To destroy Voldemort, one must first destroy his Horcruxes. But who knows how many times this madman Voldemort split his soul? And where did he hide the other pieces?

According to theory, there is no limit to the number of times one can split one's soul. As long as your broken soul is enough to support your body's activities, then splitting dozens or hundreds of times is not a problem. But in reality, human souls are not that strong. Just like a piece of paper, theoretically it can be folded infinitely many times. But in fact, after only a few times it becomes impossible to operate.

"So–" Bryan ignored Dumbledore's frowning and thinking, and walked straight to the exit. His voice was cold and sarcastic.   

"If you really think I provided some insignificant help, Headmaster Dumbledore, please don't stare at me all the time. That would make me very unhappy!"

* Scene Break *

Although his arm muscles had been ripped by the basilisk's venomous fangs, thanks to Fawkes' tears and Mrs. Pomfrey's professional treatment, Ron's arm wrapped in bandages like a mummy could move. He leaned on the pillow and listened to Harry recounting Lockhart's boasting words, and his nose was crooked with anger!

"Just ignore him, Harry!"

Ron gasped and said, "If it weren't for you, Harry, even if Hogwarts went bankrupt, he wouldn't be able to find the door to the Chamber of Secrets. By the way, didn't Myrtle get the punishment she deserved?!"

"The Ministry of Magic can't put a ghost in Azkaban, Ron." Hermione, who finally got some spirit, said rationally. "Professor Watson also thinks that judging a ghost is a very ridiculous and cruel thing."

I don't see what's so cruel about it!"

Ron twisted his nose and looked at Ginny outside the bed who drank a large glass of chocolate milk with sleeping pills and was in deep sleep. She looked peaceful and innocent, but Ron knew that she had gone through a terrible ordeal. This morning, his parents' worried and sobbing appearance beside Ginny's bed still echoed in Ron's head. He felt a surge of anger towards Myrtle, who had witnessed Ginny's suffering but did nothing to help her.

"Speaking of Professor Watson," Ron looked at Harry.

"He has decided to leave, hasn't he?" His voice was full of sadness and disappointment.

Speaking of this, Hermione's mood fell again, and even Harry sighed and looked gloomy. They both liked Professor Watson very much, and they felt that he was one of the few teachers who understood them and cared for them.

"Anyway, that's what Headmaster Dumbledore told me. He said to me that Professor Watson had completed his duty and he would leave the school soon–"

Harry said with a heavy heart. He wondered why Professor Watson had to leave so soon.

"This is really bad,"

Ron seemed to want to hug his arms, but he forgot about his right arm injury. As a result, he accidentally pulled the wound and was so painful that he grinned. He clenched his teeth and tried to ignore the pain.

"Hiss- Mom also asked me to invite Professor Watson to our house as a guest during the summer vacation. Dad also said that he almost saved our family. Come to think of it, it's true. He saved Bill and Charlie when they were in school. Now he has saved me and Ginny from You-Know-Who and the basilisk. It's really headache. This is not an easy favor to repay."

Ron said with admiration and gratitude for Professor Watson.

"I didn't save you for gratitude, Mr. Weasley."

Bryan walked in with a smile on his face and said to the three young wizards who were surprised by his appearance. He looked calm and relaxed, as if he had just returned from a pleasant walk.

"How do you feel, Mr. Weasley?" He asked Ron with concern.

"Oh, much better, Professor Watson!"

Ron said shyly with red ears. He also tried to gesture with his arm, but he was still weak and clumsy. Seeing that Ron was in good spirits, Bryan nodded with satisfaction. He sat on the bed next to them and smiled at them warmly.

"Actually, I have some gifts for you–" He said mysteriously.