Harry Potter and the Great Old Ones

Chapter 439 The Legacy in the Secret Chamber

"You've been inside?" Umbridge asked excitedly. "You've been inside?"

“By the way, you’re a ghost! You must have been inside.” Umbridge pressed. “Tell me what was inside? Was it Dumbledore’s secret weapon? Was it a monster Dumbledore kept inside Hogwarts?”

"Tsk." Myrtle curled her lip, turned around in mid-air, and sat lightly on the door panel of the cubicle, examining her fingernails like a graceful lady, as if she hadn't heard Umbridge's question at all.

Umbridge's face turned red with anger, her stubby fingers gripping her wand tightly.

“Miss Myrtle,” Parsevier stepped forward and smiled politely, “Do you know how to get into the space behind this sink? Do you know what’s inside?”

“I’ve never been inside,” Myrtle shrugged. “It seems to be coated with some kind of magical substance; even we ghosts can’t get in.”

“That’s such a shame…” Parsevier said. “What do you mean by a voice that sounds like it was fabricated? Have you seen anyone go in there?”

“Of course.” Myrtle laughed again. “The boy who died in the competition last semester, Tierra.”

“Tiera? Tiera was here?” Passivesley’s mind flashed back to the face of that respectful, inquisitive boy. “When did he arrive?”

“Many times.” Myrtle stretched out her fingers and counted them off one by one. “The first time he came was probably the year before last? No, no, no… it should be the year before last. He was only in second grade then, and he was still a skinny little bean sprout. The first time he came was in the middle of the night, wearing a very gorgeous but somewhat comical formal robe.”

“I had just drifted back from outside when he went in,” Myrtle said.

"And then?" Percy pressed.

“And then he came all the time,” Myrtle said nonchalantly.

"When was the last time he came here? Why does he keep coming here? What's in here?" Percy asked anxiously.

"I don't know, after all, I've never seen it before." Myrtle gestured with her hands, grinning mischievously. "But..."

As she spoke, Myrtle put on a thoughtful expression again—

"The last time he came, I think, was in June, just before the last match. I saw Tierra carrying a seamless extension case inside, and he didn't come out for two hours," Myrtle said, feigning recollection. "Yes, it was before the match, probably close to the match. Right after he came out, I saw Tierra arguing with his handsome adoptive father, Gilderoy Lockhart—"

“What? Gilderoy Lockhart?” Umbridge exclaimed in surprise. Only then did she remember that Gilderoy Lockhart was the adoptive father of the Muggle kid who died in June. “What does this have to do with Gilderoy Lockhart?”

"How would I know? Hehehe," Myrtle chuckled mischievously. "The day before the competition, when I met their parents alone, they argued fiercely. Hehehe, they kept using words I couldn't understand, like 'the path to godhood,' 'the ritual of becoming a god,' 'the Holy Father, the Holy Son, the Holy Spirit,' 'the secrets of the gods,' 'dreamscapes,' and so on."

“Wait, Dreamland?” Umbridge interrupted rudely. “You just said Dreamland?”

“Yes, the Dreamland, it’s also called Kadas,” Myrtle said.

"What did they say? What did they say about the Dreamland?" Umbridge stared wide-eyed at Myrtle as if she had suddenly caught rabies.

“I don’t know, I don’t know,” Myrtle said, waving her hand dismissively. “They were arguing too fast, and they were mixing in other languages, so I couldn’t understand them. Basically, it was that Tiera didn’t want to do something for Gilderoy Lockhart, and Gilderoy Lockhart…”

“And Gilderoy Lockhart,” Myrtle smiled slyly, “judging from Gilderoy Lockhart’s tone, it’s as if it’s a matter of life and death, as if he’ll die if he doesn’t perform that ascension ceremony. And it seems only Tiera knows how to perform the ascension ceremony.”

"That's it! That's it!" Umbridge suddenly remembered that two years ago, Gilderoy Lockhart, following up on Tiera's injury, had the Ministry of Magic as guarantor to borrow a large sum of Galleons from Gringotts, and had signed an unbreakable agreement—in that instant, countless fragmented pieces of information seemed to connect, forming a complete clue—

Clearly, this was a plan that had been in the works for at least three years.

Gilderoy Lockhart's appointment to teach at Hogwarts was clearly premeditated; he was after something from Hogwarts, or perhaps to carry out one of his plans.

Umbridge believes this plan is what is known as a deification ritual.

During his time teaching at Hogwarts, Gilderoy Lockhart met Tyella, a gifted young wizard who was of Muggle origin.

Clearly, the appearance of this young wizard completed Gilderoy Lockhart's plan, allowing it to proceed.

Therefore, Gilderoy Lohart used coercion and enticement to take in Tiera, an orphan, as his adopted son, further manipulating and exploiting him.

Gilderoy Lockhart's request for a loan from Gringotts was likely also for this purpose—

The terms "divine ascension ceremony" and "path to godhood" don't even need further explanation. Umbridge knew immediately that this must be a magical ritual that was extremely costly but also incredibly rewarding.

It's likely that the 500,000 Galleons Gilderoy took from Gringotts were funds prepared for his ascension rites. In other words, Gilderoy never intended to repay those 500,000 Galleons.

That's why Myrtle said, "It's like he's going to die if he doesn't hold that godhood ceremony soon," because if Gilderoy Lockhart can't pay back the money, he really will die.

According to Gilderoy Lockhart's original plan, he should have completed the ascension ritual within two years. After completing the ascension ritual, Gilderoy Lockhart would probably no longer be afraid of Gringotts' unbreakable agreement, so he could just spend the 500,000 Galleons.

However, things didn't go as planned. When the plan reached its final stage, Tiera suddenly broke off relations with Gilderoy Lockhart for some unknown reason and refused to help him complete the ritual.

Moreover, according to Myrtle's description, "Tiera went in carrying a seamless extension case and didn't come out until two hours later."

In other words, Tiera may have secretly hidden the potions and ritual implements related to the ascension ritual that Gilderoy Lockhart had spent 500,000 to prepare in that secret room, a secret room that only he could open.

In other words, right here, beneath this secret chamber, there might be a fully-fledged ritual worth 500,000 Galleons hidden.

Now that Tiera is dead, and Gilderoy Lohart, who failed to complete his ascension ritual, is likely on his deathbed, which means—

If I can open this secret room, all of this will be mine!

—Dolores Umbridge greedily thought:

This ascension ritual, worth 500,000 Galleons, will grant me the power I gain through it, and the absolute authority that extends from that power—all of it will belong to her!

Dumbledore, Cornelius Fudge, and the Ministry of Magic will be no match for me!

I will become the magical queen of all Britain, and everyone will submit to me!
While Umbridge was engrossed in her fantasy world, she was completely unaware that the ghostly Myrtle in mid-air was sneering.

High up in the headmaster's office on the top floor of Hogwarts, Tyrell wore a sneer almost identical to Moaning Myrtle's.

(End of this chapter)