[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-wizard-war-at-hogwarts":3,"chapter-wizard-war-at-hogwarts-wizard-war-at-hogwarts-chapter-71":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Wizard War at Hogwarts",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2358044,4612,"Chapter 71: Slytherin","wizard-war-at-hogwarts-chapter-71",71,"\u003Cp>“After gaining new information through our exchange,” Cui Ge said, “I still stand by my view: the creature in the Chamber is likely not a Basilisk but a Gorgon—that would also explain why Slytherin’s heir is so eager to open the Chamber. The excuse about despising one’s Muggle bloodline is still too forced. If he can communicate with snakes and issue commands, who could resist an eight-hundred-year-old Gorgon, prickly and flat-chested, who acts like a loyal maid?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Luna pinched him and interjected, “Seriously now, I’m starting to think the creature in the Chamber really is a Basilisk. Compared to an outside wizard targeting Dumbledore, I believe the attacks are more likely carried out by students, since the first victim was Mrs. Norris. I suspect that when the attacker first opened the Chamber and learned the creature could kill, fear drove him to target Mrs. Norris first. Only after discovering the cat was merely petrified did he begin attacking other students.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let me add something,” Cui Ge said, his playful demeanor gone, now serious. “If an outside wizard were behind this, even if he hadn’t chosen a student as the first victim, targeting the kitchen would’ve been a better choice—it would’ve pressured Dumbledore more. But the first victim was Filch’s hated cat. That almost confirms it was a student.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let me share my thoughts,” Ginny continued after their remarks ended. “From this angle, we should consider why the second victim was Colin Creevey. We’ve investigated Colin’s classmates—no one expressed any dislike toward him. That’s strange. Considering Colin’s traits, perhaps the attacker meant to target Harry Potter fans, or those openly carrying Muggle items, or just any Gryffindor student. I think the first possibility is most likely.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Instead of wondering why Colin was targeted, I’m thinking of something else,” Ivy said. “There’s one thing I think we need to verify: do you remember Tom’s middle name?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I recall it,” Draco began, then suddenly fell silent. He didn’t speak—instead, he pulled out the diary from beneath his robe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first page bore only one signature: “Tom Riddle.” After Draco wrote a question asking for Tom’s full name, a flowing script slowly appeared: Tom Marvolo Riddle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone fell silent. Harry, unable to see the diary surrounded by the group, felt intense curiosity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I think this may not be coincidence. Let me ask again,” Draco continued writing in the diary, inquiring about Tom’s origins. Tom replied he was an orphan raised in a Muggle orphanage; his name was the only thing his mother had left him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Perhaps the Slytherin heir we’ve been searching for is among us,” Draco closed the diary. The atmosphere in the room turned heavy—this was no longer just another meeting. They had returned to their original purpose: the Eight’s self-investigation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps to ease Harry’s discomfort, Draco repeated the detail he’d just noticed: “Since the diary contains the memories of Tom Marvolo Riddle, and Marvolo Gaunt was the last recorded Slytherin heir, I suspect Tom’s background isn’t as simple as a Muggle orphan. That also explains why my father kept this diary so carefully.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Because Tom is the last living descendant of Salazar Slytherin in this world,” Draco said gravely. “As a memory preserved in a magical object, he answers any question. It’s likely one of us opened the Chamber, receiving key information from the diary—so even if that person isn’t a Slytherin heir, they are effectively one.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That makes sense,” Pansy said. “The Chamber opener is likely Ginny or Ivy—only you two would want to attack Colin because he’s a Harry Potter fan. Everyone else doesn’t even know Colin—why would they target him? If I were the opener, I’d attack those with obvious hatred toward Muggle-borns, to frame someone else.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I think you’re the Chamber opener, Pansy,” Cui Ge said sternly. “First, Ginny and Ivy are close to Colin—they even formed a Harry Potter fan club together. The two they truly dislike is Zhang Qiu. Second, if they’d learned about the Chamber from the diary, why would they reveal it? That’s equivalent to Draco voluntarily initiating this self-investigation after discovering the diary involved a conspiracy. If you reject this logic, then Draco remains suspicious. Third, you just confessed your own plan: attacking Colin would frame Ivy and Ginny—but you didn’t realize they were actually close to him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“These actions—things done unnecessarily—don’t prove innocence. It’s a false logic,” Luna said. “If Draco hadn’t organized this self-investigation and shared the news, the diary’s connection to a conspiracy would’ve been discovered eventually—and then he’d look extremely suspicious. Likewise, if Ivy noticed Tom’s middle name but didn’t mention it, others wouldn’t have the chance to use it to prove her innocence. I think Ginny and Ivy are highly suspicious—mainly because of why the second victim was Colin.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, if it were me, the second victim would’ve been Hermione,” Ginny argued. “Colin is my friend, a Harry Potter fan, and most importantly—he’s a boy. Hermione’s always near Neville; you never know when she might become a threat.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s just one angle,” Ivy said. “The main point is, you’re assuming the Chamber opener intended a series of brutal murders. What if he only meant to petrify Mrs. Norris? Maybe Tom only told him how to open the Chamber, not how to close it. Attacking Colin might’ve been the creature’s own idea.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I think that’s very possible,” Crabbe said. “Ivy’s right—the Chamber opener may not have had any specific motive. Tom said it’s human nature and curiosity. We climb mountains because they’re there. Maybe the Chamber was opened simply because it was there.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Maybe the opener just wanted a secret hiding place in the school,” Goyle guessed. “Tom misunderstood his intent. Only after opening the Chamber did he discover the monster inside—and by then, he couldn’t close it again.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Harry was starting to feel dizzy. He understood the diary’s questions, but what followed grew increasingly bizarre. While Cui Ge and Luna debated logic, everyone from Ginny to Goyle seemed suspicious—even openly revealing their own criminal thoughts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Listening to your statements, I find Ivy odd,” Draco said. “You claim the Chamber opener didn’t intend murder—but in your view, the creature inside is a deadly Basilisk.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s because I’m starting to believe the creature is a Gorgon,” Ivy said urgently. “Two victims were petrified. Rather than assuming they avoided direct eye contact by coincidence, it’s more likely the creature inside is inherently merciful. Besides, no one ever said indirect eye contact with a Basilisk causes petrification—that’s just our guess.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Assume you’re telling the truth. Then Crabbe and Goyle are suspicious,” Draco pointed out. “Why do you think the Chamber opening was accidental? If Colin was truly innocent, nearly everyone here had seven or eight reasons to want Mrs. Norris dead. Do you think the creature would prioritize attacking a cat over a human? Then why are the other pet cats in the castle unharmed?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh, I forgot to consider that,” Crabbe scratched his head. “If the Chamber opening was deliberate, the opener must’ve planned it for a long time. But how could he know to get information from the diary? I initially assumed we all found the diary by accident, so opening the Chamber might not have been planned.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But if the Chamber opener got the information from Tom,” Goyle said, “why don’t we just ask Tom?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I already said during the first meeting: Tom told me someone asked him about the Chamber, and none of you admitted it,” Draco said. “Now it seems clear—the Chamber opener is almost certainly among us, assuming the Chamber was truly opened.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you put it that way, I think there’s another possibility,” Pansy said. “Not making eye contact with a Basilisk—or the creature being a kind-hearted Gorgon—are both extremely unlikely. I’d rather believe spiders mutated and developed petrifying venom. What if the attacks were launched by Hagrid’s uncontrolled spiders, and someone planning to target Dumbledore took the chance to smear blood on the walls, turning an accident into a reopened Chamber?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Looking at the blood messages alone,” Draco said, “this entire Chamber affair was clearly premeditated. The first attack happened on Halloween. Even if the attacker stumbled upon the Chamber’s opening method by accident, he had all of October to study it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s getting late. I think we can end today,” Draco finally surveyed everyone’s expressions. “We’ll maintain our biweekly self-investigations. But if no further attacks occur, perhaps we don’t need to treat this so seriously.”\u003C\u002Fp>",1403,"2026-06-21T04:54:27.874Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","fdb3a9daf2510a69e806e6758b446e7142e92b9e3ad6d4f2840d3f86d6398efa","wizard-war-at-hogwarts-chapter-72","wizard-war-at-hogwarts-chapter-70",528,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fwizard-war-at-hogwarts-cover.jpg"]