Harry Potter: The Golden Viper

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As the clock struck noon on Monday, Harry sat at the long dining table in the Great Hall with a gloomy face. He had no appetite for the delicious food that was piled up in front of him. There were hills of syrupy fruit pies, grilled eels, roast beef, and lamb chops, all steaming hot and tempting. But Harry could only think of the weird imitation that Draco Malfoy had done of him in the corridor, mocking his obsession with the mysterious notebook.

"Seriously, Harry!" said Ron, who was sitting next to him, looking at him worriedly. His red hair was messy and his face was freckled with dirt from the herbology class. "I think you might have been out of your mind with that notebook, otherwise, how dare you take off your earmuffs when you were taking care of the mandrakes?"

In the herbology class that morning, Professor Sprout had arranged for them to help some mandrakes that were growing well into brighter flowerpots. The mandrakes were baby plants with human faces that screamed when they were pulled out of the soil. The students had to wear earmuffs to protect their ears from the piercing sound. Harry didn't know what he was thinking, but he took off his earmuffs directly in the middle of the task.

The consequences of doing so were self-evident. The screams of dozens of pots of mandrakes that were about to grow into adulthood directly caused Harry to fall headlong into the field ridge. He felt a sharp pain in his head and saw stars in front of his eyes. Professor Sprout was startled by this unexpected scene. She cried out and almost fainted. She rushed to Harry's side and put a large chocolate bar in his mouth to revive him.

"It's really suspicious, Harry–"

Hermione glanced at Professor Watson with two big black eyes hanging on the staff table. He was a tall and thin man with a long beard and a pointed hat. He was chatting animatedly with Professor Flitwick and Professor McGonagall, who were both heads of houses. Hermione frowned and looked at Harry.

"Why do you think a book is The notebooks that have been kept in a dark environment for fifty years are more reasonable than Professor Watson's speculation?"

Harry couldn't lie to himself that his poor state this morning had nothing to do with that notebook. It was an old diary that belonged to someone named Tom Riddle, who had witnessed a series of attacks at Hogwarts fifty years ago. Harry had found it in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, where he had also heard a strange voice that no one else could hear. Riddle's diary had shown him a memory of how he had caught Hagrid keeping a monster in the school and how he had accused him of killing a girl in the bathroom.

Riddle's memory insisted that it was the monster Hagrid kept that he couldn't name that killed the girl fifty years ago. He also claimed that Headmaster Dippet was wiser than Dumbledore. He said that they had confirmed his accusation and expelled Hagrid from school.

Riddle thought that the voice Harry had heard in Professor Lockhart's office and Mrs. Norris's attack before he was attacked might just be an ordinary snake hunting in the water pipe. He said that snakes were common in old castles like Hogwarts and that they could not petrify people like the monster could.

"-Headmaster Dippet is wiser than Dumbledore. Harry, the Ministry of Magic was more objective than it is now. If they hadn't confirmed this, how could they have easily expelled a young wizard from school?"

Ron and Hermione looked at each other. Judging from the results of the series of attacks fifty years ago, Riddle was undoubtedly correct, but emotionally speaking, they would rather believe in Professor Watson's guess.

"Let's put this aside, Harry."

Hermione said with a frown.

"By this weekend, I can go to the library with Professor Watson to look for more information… If I can find something that can kill people, and can Petrifying snake, Harry, I think it's time for you to hand over your notes!"

She meant Riddle's diary, which Harry had hidden under his pillow in his dormitory. He didn't want to give it up because he felt a strange connection with it. He wanted to know more about Riddle and his secrets.

"Are you guys discussing this afternoon's practical lesson?"

This is when Neville stuck his chubby head over from behind them. He had a round face and a nervous expression. His eyes were full of worry. "Oh, damn it, I forgot about it!"

Hermione once again looked at the top of the auditorium, where Professor Watson was still talking with the other teachers. She slammed the table down with her fist, making a loud noise that startled everyone around them. Even Harry gasped.

He knew what she was talking about. It was the practical lesson that Bryan had arranged for them. Bryan was a young and handsome wizard who claimed to be a freelancer. He had offered to teach the students some practical skills in defense against the dark arts, since Professor Lockhart was useless at it.

Because the number of young wizards voluntarily participating in practical classes had decreased significantly, Bryan first spent half of the Monday afternoon Defense Against the Dark Arts class telling the first and second grade little wizards that some ancient wizards like to explore unknown magical relics and that they often encountered dangers and traps in the ruins. He also told them what methods the black wizards outside usually use when poisoning people, such as cursed objects, dark spells, or venomous creatures. He showed them some examples of these things and how to deal with them.

In the remaining half of the time, he led a group of little wizards to a classroom on the eighth floor of the castle, where he had prepared a special challenge for them. He said that he had hidden a inferi in one of the closets and that they had to find it and destroy it before it attacked them.

A inferi was a dead body that had been reanimated by dark magic. It had no mind or soul, but it could move and attack with brute force. It was very hard to kill, since it felt no pain or fear. The only way to stop it was to burn it or cut off its head.

"Do you think that a 'freelancer' who runs errands for people, finds potion ingredients, and delivers goods will know the habits of black wizards so well?" Seamus whispered to Dean on the way to the eighth floor.

He was a boy with sandy hair and a broad accent. He looked suspicious of Bryan's background and motives.

"I have an uncle who used to be an Auror, but he retired due to injury–"

Dean's tone and expression were very mysterious,

"He once told me that there is a group of people who are not employees of the Ministry of Magic, but who make a living by arresting dark wizards. These people are called bounty hunters in private. He was a wizard hunter who hunted dark wizards before!"

Dean's deduction won the approval of many people, who nodded their heads in agreement or gasped in awe. Even Hermione, who was usually skeptical and rational, blinked her eyes with a thoughtful expression, as if she was considering the possibility of Dean's claim.

"Except for this, there is no reasonable explanation!"

Ron, who had already decided to withdraw from the practical class after the last terrifying experience, said to Harry seriously, with a hint of admiration and envy in his voice.

"I have indeed heard from my father that the Ministry of Magic sometimes cooperates with some unofficial special personnel. They fight against dark wizards, smugglers and other bad guys together, they are a group of powerful guys, but they don't like to be restrained by rules, so they didn't choose to join the Ministry of Magic–"

Although Bryan, who was at the forefront, didn't look back, but the powerful magic power endowed him with keen five senses, and he heard all the whispers of the little wizards in his ears.

Bounty hunter? Bryan smiled in his heart, amused by their naive guesses. He was not a bounty hunter who attacked a dark wizard, but a 'dark' wizard who was attacked by a bounty hunter.

"Then—" standing in front of the oak door that led to the maze in the classroom, Bryan turned around and looked at the little wizards with serious expressions. He scanned their faces one by one and read their names aloud, making sure that they remembered his instructions.

"Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger, Daphne Greengrass, Neville Longbottom, Hannah Abbott, Ginny Weasley, Michael Corner, Blaise Zabini, Theodore Nott, Eloise Midgen, Terry Boot. The students whose names I have read are in pairs and enter the maze in the classroom in order."

Bryan looked at the bluish-faced Potter and Malfoy and said with a smile, "This maze has a memory function. I have recorded the progress of your last challenge, I hope you can seize this last chance. By the way, if someone can kill the dark creatures in the maze, I will add fifty points to his academy!"

Gulu!

Harry swallowed hard, feeling his throat dry. There was finally something more in his green eyes besides fear. Throughout his student life, a little wizard could have a few chances to win fifty points for his college. Many little wizards would never get so many points from the first grade to the seventh grade!

Hermione obviously became anxious. She suddenly discovered one thing: that is, after leaving the textbooks and materials behind, her on-the-spot adaptability seemed to be far from her own satisfaction. She wished she had studied more about dark creatures and how to deal with them.

Harry and Draco reluctantly stood together again. Last time, Harry's self-sacrificing spirit did make Draco calm down for a few days, but this feeling didn't last long. Draco seemed to think that Harry's behavior was a kind of contempt for him, which made him spare no effort to mock Harry recently!

"It's different this time, Potter!"

Draco said to Harry aggressively as he entered the door. He took out a silver dagger from his pocket. It looked like it was from his usual Potions class where he used it to process potion ingredients.

"If you beg me, maybe I'll be merciful and save your life later!" Draco had privately asked Professor Watson for advice on the 'Upgraded Spell' and Harry had heard about it from other students. It seemed that he did have some insight into that spell.

"Are you sure you gave us any hints, Professor Watson?"

Begging Malfoy to protect himself?

This was more painful for Harry than killing him. He looked pitifully at Professor Watson hoping to get some confidence from him but unfortunately Professor Watson was still smiling calmly and had no intention of saying another word.

Harry's brow twitched. The first time he entered the maze Professor Watson seemed to be smiling like this too. He reminded him that it was very dark in the maze and to be careful not to fall.

Wait a minute dark? Harry suddenly widened his eyes as if he had thought of something!