Chapter 61: Another Investigator

“At least one point we can all agree on is that none of us want the Chamber opened. I think we should keep this self-inspection group going, meeting every two weeks—to stay vigilant about the diary and to share and discuss any information we’ve gathered about the true identity of the Chamber’s opener,” Malfoy concluded.

“I believe this meeting was meaningful—we’ve identified two clear lines of inquiry: motive and alibi. Everyone should now investigate who had motive to open the Chamber and who has been acting suspiciously, and bring your findings to the next self-inspection meeting for further discussion.”

Upon hearing this, the students in the room nodded in deep agreement.

“Then let’s call it a day—we’re leaving,” Cui Ge stood, bowed, and pulled Luna away.

“We’re off too—good luck with your investigation,” Ivy rose, bowed, and Ginny followed her out.

Crabbe and Goyle sat dumbly in place; Malfoy glared at them, and only then did they remember they should leave too, hurrying out in a rush.

“What do you think, Harry?” When the classroom was empty, Malfoy turned to Harry.

“If the diary is clean, then the Dark Lord has laid plans elsewhere, and the diary is merely a prop to distract Dumbledore; if the diary is tainted, then by what means did it deceive Tang Nade? The Chamber’s opener is among the eight of you,” Harry said calmly, careful not to provoke Malfoy’s displeasure.

“To avoid planting preconceived notions, I think it’s better if we investigate separately, back-to-back,” Harry chose his words carefully. “I hope to be allowed to attend every future self-inspection meeting.”

“I fully agree with your idea,” Malfoy smiled politely. “We’ll meet every Sunday at seven p.m. here from now on.”

“I truly believe, as you said, that this self-inspection group is necessary,” Harry shook his hand sincerely; no matter how poorly Malfoy had behaved in the past, at least on this matter he’d handled things with fairness.

On the way back to his dorm, Harry stepped back from the specifics and viewed the entire self-inspection group from a broader perspective. As he’d told Malfoy, there were two possible scenarios.

Either the diary is clean, in which case all eight members of the group may be innocent—innocent people paired off to investigate separately and report regularly could significantly aid in resolving the Chamber incident. Malfoy may not dare to obstruct Voldemort’s plan himself, so he invited Harry to observe covertly, covering all bases.

Or the diary is tainted, meaning the Chamber’s opener is among the eight who have used it in rotation. In this case, through each meeting’s statements, Harry could directly gather firsthand information, assess the attitudes of these eight, and watch them grow suspicious of one another and monitor each other—this is the most reasonable way to find the true culprit while preserving the facade of student decorum.

There remained one possibility he hadn’t yet considered: that Malfoy had developed deep cunning and used multiple methods to conceal his own involvement…

As Harry was organizing his thoughts, he realized he had unconsciously reached the door to the eighth-floor dormitory, and at a corridor corner, he collided with Tang Nade.

“I’m sorry, Professor, I was lost in thought,” Harry quickly apologized.

“No problem, I was in a hurry too,” Tang Nade smiled warmly, then hurried off.

Harry glanced at the corner. Only Gryffindor dorm and the Headmaster’s office were on the eighth floor; this corner was rarely used unless someone had left the Headmaster’s office and deliberately taken a longer route down the stairs—strange.

Then he saw Dumbledore emerge from the Headmaster’s office. Harry thought: perhaps he should tell the Headmaster about the diary—he might detect something Tang Nade had missed.

He hurried forward and stopped the Headmaster. “Professor Dumbledore, I need to tell you something.”

“Oh, Harry, I was just about to find you—but you seem in a hurry. Go ahead, tell me first,” Dumbledore smiled warmly.

“Malfoy told me about a clue related to the Chamber, possibly involving a diary. I suspect it’s a Dark Arts object, but Tang Nade says it’s harmless. If possible, I’d like you to examine it too.”

“First, I’m glad you and Malfoy can unite on matters of principle,” Dumbledore said. “Second, wizards don’t need Dark Magic to do harm. Since Tang Nade says the diary is clean, I believe it is. If you’re curious about the Chamber’s opener, explore other investigative paths—but stay safe, understood?”

“Alright then—what was it you wanted to tell me?” Harry sensed Dumbledore’s deep trust in Tang Nade.

“Tang Nade says he saw the Lady of the Lake—Avalon may appear in the Black Lake. That’s what I wanted to tell you. You, Ron, and Neville—you should go investigate. You might find something,” Dumbledore winked.

“That’s absurd—he’s an American. Why?” Harry was stunned and confused. “I mean, King Arthur and Avalon are British legends. Why does an American know more about them than anyone else?”

“Because he’s skilled at discovering and learning, Harry,” Dumbledore said solemnly. “We’ve all focused so hard on Merlin’s stories that we overlooked the possibility Arthur was a wizard too. Perhaps this is another path discovered by ancient wizards—and Tang Nade has found treasure in the neglected history. You should admire and learn from this spirit, Harry.”

Just like I found the jumping pot in a fairy tale that adults overlooked, Harry thought. Perhaps precisely because Tang Nade isn’t British, he can view our legends from another angle—and uncover Arthur’s legacy. That makes sense.

“I understand, Professor,” Harry accepted his lesson seriously. “I’ll keep an eye out for Avalon.”

Back in the dorm, Harry found Neville reading in bed and told him about Avalon, then began voicing his suspicions about the diary.

After listening to Harry’s analysis, Neville said: “Since Dumbledore trusts Tang Nade, we can trust him too. If the diary is clean, then perhaps Malfoy, who’s using the diary as a tool, has something to hide.”

“Actually, Harry and I have unexpectedly agreed on this matter,” Harry said. “With his help, the investigation will be much easier. But I also can’t rule out that Malfoy is playing me—so if that’s the case, it might fall to you.”

“So your meaning is: either you can efficiently team up with an innocent Malfoy, or I can investigate whether Malfoy himself is guilty—thus narrowing down the Chamber’s opener,” Neville clarified Harry’s logic.

“Exactly. The situation breaks into two possibilities: either Malfoy is guilty, or he isn’t,” Harry summarized. “I’ll proceed under the assumption he’s innocent; you’ll proceed under the assumption he’s guilty. That covers all possibilities.”

Harry scanned his dorm, preparing to gather his books for the library, when he suddenly remembered one clue he hadn’t investigated yet: the scene of Colin’s attack last night.

Considering Zhang Qiu had stayed up all night, she was likely resting in her dorm, and Ron was nowhere to be found. Harry didn’t want to go out with Neville—he decided to visit the scene alone.

Colin was attacked on his way to the hospital wing. As Harry thought this, he left Gryffindor dorm and headed toward the hospital wing. Just as he was about to descend the stairs, he noticed a professor crouched on the steps, examining the floor closely.

“Oh, Harry,” the professor greeted him, then rose naturally, brushing dust from his hands. “I’m Felix Hepp, your Ancient Runes instructor—you should take my class in third year.”

An elective professor—no wonder he’d never seen him before, Harry thought.

“Hello, Professor Hepp,” Harry nodded. “What are you doing here?”

“To be honest, I’m investigating the Chamber’s opener,” Professor Hepp said. “You’ve noticed, I’m sure—this is the site of the second attack.”

“Indeed,” Harry thought. From the posture of Colin’s petrified statue, he seemed to have been turned to stone while descending the stairs.

“Since the first attack, I’ve wondered: everyone was in the Great Hall eating—so who carried it out?” Professor Hepp continued his analysis. “I lean toward the theory that the attacker used some kind of magical trap—and Ancient Runes are indispensable for setting such traps. That’s why I’m here, conducting a professional investigation of the scene.”

“But Professor,” Harry said, “we all assume the attacker is the Chamber’s opener, and Professor Binns told us the Chamber holds some terrifying creature. Doesn’t the Halloween attack suggest the monster inside the Chamber was responsible?”

“Correct—that’s also the prevailing view among most professors,” Professor Hepp agreed. “But it’s also possible the attacker didn’t open the Chamber at all, and used some unique method to carry out the attack—deliberately painting the blood messages to steer our attention toward the Chamber.”

“You’re right—we completely overlooked such an obvious possibility during our discussions,” Harry realized Professor Hepp’s analysis had pierced his blind spot.

“Harry, we must allow for different voices, different opinions,” he said pointedly. “There isn’t just one possibility. There isn’t just one scenario.”