A certain Hogwarts professor of runes

"Before you enjoy the delicious food, you will have to listen to an old man's ramblings," Dumbledore cleared his throat.

"First of all, it's great to see you all back at school, full of energy and happily sharing your experiences with your friends. But I must mention that we just went through a difficult few months last semester..."

The young wizards stared at Dumbledore's face, wanting to see what he would say.

"...There were two attacks, and a young wizard is still in a hospital bed, in a special ward." Dumbledore paused, then suddenly raised his voice, "but thanks to a few people who, through their own efforts, uncovered the truth and very bravely dealt with the monster in the Chamber of Secrets."

"Yes, we shouldn't forget their names—Harry Potter! Ron Weasley! Hermione Granger!"

All eyes turned to the Gryffindor table, and they stared at Harry and his two companions in disbelief.

"You're kidding!" one of the twins shouted, his voice echoing in the auditorium and livening up the solemn atmosphere.

Dumbledore chuckled and said gently, "Of course not, Weasley. But speaking of jokes, I'm reminded of a funny one about a troll and a dwarf—"

"Cough cough!" Professor McGonagall next to him coughed violently.

"Ah, well, let's get back to the point. Their courage has earned the unanimous praise of several professors, and for that, I award each of them two hundred points!" said Dumbledore.

Snape couldn't help but snort.

The Gryffindor dining table erupted in cheers, with enthusiastic applause. The Weasley twins rushed over to hug Harry and Ron, while Percy shouted from a corner, "That's my brother! My brother! They'll be sharing the Special Merit Award trophy!"

Hermione, seeing Katie Bell's stunned expression, said cheerfully, "See? I told you there wouldn't be any danger!"

The noise in the auditorium lasted for a few minutes before gradually subsiding.

However, most of the attention was still focused on Harry, Draco Malfoy, and Draco Malfoy at the Slytherin table, slamming a silver fork against his plate, making a "crunching" sound.

Potter! It's Potter again, everything is Potter!

"I did my part too..." he said, looking at Harry with resentment.

"Headmaster Dumbledore," a seventh-year Gryffindor student stood up, "could you elaborate? Did Salazar Slytherin really put a monster in the Chamber of Secrets to purge everyone he deemed unworthy to learn magic?"

The accusatory tone of his words was quite obvious, and the wizards at the Slytherin table all glared at him, wishing they could cast a curse on him. However, the expressions of the young wizards from the other three houses as they looked at Slytherin became silent and complex.

"I don't think so, Mr. Xavier," Dumbledore said with a very serious expression. He first glanced at the young wizards present to calm the commotion before calmly saying, "The monster in the Chamber of Secrets—the Basilisk—has existed for thousands of years, but there are only two recorded attacks this year and one fifty years ago."

"It had been lying dormant for nearly a thousand years before this. We have reason to infer that launching the attack was not Salazar Slytherin's intention."

Dumbledore quickly skipped over the previous topic: "I will place the Basilisk in the courtyard of the school castle tomorrow, and I will also invite some reporters into the school. Please behave yourselves. You may visit, but do not try to touch it. The professors will also be using special magic."

"Now, let's enjoy the food to our hearts' content."

Dumbledore sat back in his chair, waved his wand, and various foods began to appear on the table.

However, the young wizards were not paying attention to this. Dumbledore's speech was very informative, and they were all buzzing with discussion, from Salazar Slytherin himself to the monster in the Chamber of Secrets, and how the three Potters defeated it.

"What does a basilisk look like?" a young Gryffindor wizard asked Harry.

"Uh, a huge snake, whose eyes can kill."

"Cool! How big is it? Is it even bigger than the one Professor Lockhart conjured up at the Duel Club?"

Ron, his mouth full and his words muffled, interjected, "Hey bro, that's way bigger than that."

The young wizard looked at Ron suspiciously. "You really got involved too?"

"Dean, the role I played was far more important than you think!" Even though Ron's mouth was stuffed full, he couldn't help but defend himself.

Hermione Granger sat quietly to the side, without saying a word.

"Hermione, aren't you hungry?" Katie, who was next to her, looked at the little witch wearing a mask and asked her curiously.

"...I'm not hungry," Hermione said stubbornly, but she quickly pulled two pieces of parchment from her pocket and wrapped the beef pie on the plate in front of her.

The girl stared at her in disbelief, her fork frozen in mid-air.

The students' dining table was bustling, and the teachers' table was no quiet either, with some professors who were unaware of the situation trying to find out what was going on.

After dealing with Lockhart's incessant questions, Felix bypassed Professor Flitwick and questioned Dumbledore.

"Headmaster, regarding the pressure from some pure-blood families..."

"You mean this!" Dumbledore put down his knife and fork and said with great interest, "I've been in contact with most of the board members these past few days, and they all agree that it's better for me to sit in this position."

"What about the Malfoy family?"

"Lucius... unfortunately, he's facing considerable trouble right now. The other board members are very unhappy with his previous threatening behavior and want to remove him from the board. I heard he's now approached Fudge."

"That Minister of Magic?"

"Yes, if nothing unexpected happens, you will see him tomorrow," Dumbledore said with great foresight.

Felix nodded in understanding.

The dinner party ended quickly, and the young Gryffindor wizards escorted Harry and his two friends back to the common room, eagerly asking for the specific details.

Ron was an expert at this, and he began to describe it vividly.

From Harry's perspective, aside from the parts that were required to be kept secret—such as the professor's existence and the Gryffindor sword—Ron exaggerated everything else to the extreme.

Hermione quietly returned to her dorm, secretly ate the two pies, and came back satisfied.

"...So there's a reason I was punished with solitary confinement before. Actually, I didn't expect Lockhart to fall over with just a push," Ron said, spitting as he spoke with a regretful expression.

Hermione, hiding in the crowd, overheard a young wizard asking Ron, "So, you don't have to go to solitary confinement?"

Ron opened his mouth, then, like a deflated balloon, his face immediately fell.

He did bring honor to the college, but he couldn't escape the punishment for attacking an innocent professor.

In fact, Professor McGonagall had already told him about the contents and duration of his confinement, but unfortunately, he ended up in Lockhart's hands.

He had heard Harry mention the contents of confinement—writing replies to Lockhart's fans. It seemed easy, but the repetitive four-hour shifts were enough to make one question the meaning of life.