The eyes behind Lucien's lenses suddenly changed.
Pitch-black vortexes emerged deep within his dark green pupils, spinning rapidly.
He abruptly turned his head, his gaze locking onto the solid stone wall at the end of the corridor.
A cold and sinister magical presence was moving within the wall.
More precisely, it was moving through the complex pipe system hidden inside the castle.
Ancient Hogwarts was filled with countless interconnected pipes, and the Basilisk was using them to move throughout the castle.
It's here.
With a flick of his wrist, the silver-black wand slid firmly into Lucien's palm.
"Harry! What do you hear?!"
Startled by Harry's sudden reaction, Ron grabbed his shoulder anxiously and shook him hard.
Harry tightly covered his ears and spoke in a broken voice.
"That voice… it's… it's calling my name?!"
The instant those words left his mouth—BOOM!!!
A violent clap of thunder exploded across the sky, making the entire castle seem to tremble.
And at almost the exact same moment—BANG! CRACK—!
The stone wall at the end of the corridor burst apart with countless spiderweb-like fractures as rubble and dust rained down everywhere.
Lucien's wand had already swept outward.
A gentle yet powerful wave of magic instantly enveloped several stunned students standing nearby, pushing them safely away from the collapsing wall.
At the same time, Lucien slapped a hand against the pocket of his robes.
A black-and-red shadow suddenly shot out with a sharp whistle, charging straight toward the end of the corridor.
BOOM!
The wall at the end of the corridor exploded completely with a deafening blast.
Bricks and rubble flew everywhere as thick dust instantly filled the corridor like fog, obscuring everyone's vision.
And within the swirling cloud of dust, a pair of enormous yellow "lanterns" suddenly lit up, emitting a cold and sinister glow.
Accompanied by a chilling hiss, patches of bright emerald scales flickered through the dust, outlining a massive winding silhouette.
Just as those deadly yellow "lanterns" were about to fully emerge—BANG!!!!!
A violent explosion erupted in the center of the dust cloud.
A fierce magical shockwave burst outward like an invisible storm.
The enormous creature had barely revealed its terrifying form before being struck head-on by the blast. It released a muffled roar of pain as its body was violently hurled backward, smashing straight through the side wall of the corridor.
Amid flying debris, its massive figure disappeared into the torrential rain outside the castle.
The dust gradually began to thin.
The black-and-red shadow now stood silently beside Lucien.
It was an exquisitely crafted alchemical doll radiating a cold metallic sheen.
Its left arm was covered in burn marks and distortions, traces left behind by forcing violent magical energy through it in an instant.
A Philosopher's Stone embedded within its chest flashed intensely with crimson magical light.
The damage caused by such a high-output burst still placed too much strain on the mechanical structure…
Lucien glanced briefly at the doll.
It was powered by a Philosopher's Stone gifted to him by Nicolas, while the combat modules had all been personally designed and added by Lucien himself.
The load-bearing limits and energy-channeling systems still required further improvement.
Magic flowed across the surface of Lucien's wand as he silently issued another command to the doll.
Without hesitation, the alchemical construct stomped heavily against the floor and transformed into a streak of black-and-red light, smashing straight through the wall as it pursued the fleeing Basilisk.
Its purpose was simple.
Drive the Basilisk out toward the open grounds beyond the castle.
With another flick of his wrist, several bottles of petrification antidote appeared in Lucien's hand.
He immediately shoved them into the arms of the still-stunned Harry.
The Golden Trio clearly had not yet recovered from the shock of the wall exploding and the monster suddenly appearing before them.
"Some students were caught in the aftermath just now. Go check on them first."
Because at the moment the Basilisk burst through the wall, several unfortunate students had directly met the creature's deadly yellow eyes.
Although the Thestral glasses had blocked and neutralized the instant-death curse, the distance had been far too close. The powerful Dark Magic contained within the Basilisk's eyes had still petrified several students.
After giving those rapid instructions, Lucien had already stepped toward the opening smashed through the wall by the alchemical doll.
A violent wind carrying freezing rain poured into the corridor.
"Wait! Lucien, what are you going to do?!"
Hermione was the first to snap out of her shock.
The moment she saw Lucien standing at the edge of the breach, a powerful sense of unease surged through her chest.
But under the horrified gazes of the trio, Lucien had already stepped forward, his entire body falling from the shattered opening.
"Going to protect the future of the magical world."
Lucien's voice drifted upward through the wind, clearly reaching the trio's ears.
Almost simultaneously, all three rushed toward the edge of the opening, instinctively reaching out as though trying to grab the falling figure..
WHOOSH!!
A violent gust suddenly surged upward from below, forcing the three of them to squint against the wind.
Then, in the next instant, a brilliant golden figure burst through the curtain of rain and soared into the sky.
Harry, who possessed the sharpest eyesight among them, vaguely caught sight of an enormous magnificent bird surrounded by crackling arcs of electricity.
Lucien sat steadily upon its back as it shot toward the castle grounds in the blink of an eye.
"Harry! That voice you heard just now!"
Hermione suddenly grabbed Harry's arm tightly.
"That was Parseltongue! The monster in the Chamber is… it's a snake! A Basilisk!"
At this critical moment, Hermione's mind connected every clue at astonishing speed.
The gaze.
The petrification.
Harry being a Parselmouth.
The whispers that only Harry could hear.
"Go find the professors immediately!"
Hermione was still the first to regain her composure and react rationally.
Harry and Ron immediately moved as well.
Harry had only taken several steps before abruptly remembering the bottles of petrification antidote still clutched in his hands.
He quickly shoved them toward a nearby student whose face had gone deathly pale from fear.
"Give these to the petrified students!"
The three of them immediately split apart and sprinted down different corridors.
Searching together would only waste time.
Splitting up was the fastest option.
They had to find the professors quickly.
They had to save Lucien.
________
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