Return of Salazar Slytherin

[Great Snake King, you finally responded to my call!]

After failing once, Riddle adjusted his attitude slightly. Previously, he had truly seen himself as the basilisk's master, issuing commands at will. But after being ignored, he learned his lesson and began treating the basilisk with respect.

[Hungry!!!~~]

The basilisk didn't particularly want to deal with Riddle, but it had to follow Rhys's orders, so it simply shouted out its truest thought.

Riddle suddenly understood: So that was it—the reason he couldn't control the Snake King before was that he hadn't provided it with enough benefits!

Everything made sense to Riddle now.

[I am willing to offer a sacrifice to you. Please forgive my rudeness.]

He immediately began painting a grand vision for the basilisk.

And to its surprise, it was a pretty appealing vision.

The basilisk figured that if there were sacrifices involved, it wouldn't mind chatting with this little guy for a while, even without Rhys's command.

It quickly seized the opportunity, agreeing to Riddle's proposal and suggesting they return to the Chamber of Secrets for further discussion.

Riddle naturally had no reason to refuse. However, he was somewhat conflicted about who to sacrifice.

Ginny hadn't been completely drained of her usefulness yet, and handing her over to the basilisk now felt like a waste. But at the moment, soothing the Snake King was the priority—children as gullible as Ginny could be easily replaced.

He directly controlled Ginny and headed toward the girls' bathroom on the second floor.

While Riddle was conversing with the basilisk, Rhys had already locked onto his location. When he saw him walking towards the bathroom, Rice suddenly remembered a trivial matter.

...

Riddle soon arrived in the girls' bathroom on the first floor of the castle.

Decades ago, he had opened the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets here, accidentally killing a foolish girl. Fortunately, he had been clever enough to frame that big oaf and convince all the professors—except Dumbledore—of his innocence.

But that damn Dumbledore had refused to believe him!

Why? Why?!

Even after all this time, Riddle still couldn't let it go.

On one side was him: impoverished but extraordinarily intelligent, an orphan but brave and resourceful, and an exemplary student who excelled in both academics and character as a prefect.

On the other side was Hagrid: clumsy and reckless, constantly getting into trouble, causing incidents every other week, and obsessed with raising dangerous magical creatures.

Why would Dumbledore choose to believe the latter?!

Of course, the notion that someone like Hagrid was the heir of Slytherin was a stretch, but it was still the most plausible explanation at the time!

After the incident, Dumbledore had increased his surveillance of Riddle, forcing him to abandon his plans to open the Chamber. Instead, he continued to act as a model student to lull Dumbledore into a false sense of security.

However, Riddle hadn't been idle during the following two years. He created a Horcrux using his diary, preserving the sixteen-year-old version of himself within it. That way, one day, he could guide another person to follow in his footsteps and complete his unfinished work.

Riddle shook his head, driving those chaotic thoughts out of his mind, and began reciting the command to open the Chamber of Secrets in Parseltongue.

"Open~~"

The bathroom was silent. Nothing happened.

Frowning, Riddle repeated the command.

Still, nothing.

A flicker of confusion and bewilderment appeared in Riddle's eyes. Why has everything changed?

The basilisk, which had followed behind Riddle and arrived nearby, overheard everything happening outside. Suddenly, it remembered that its master—Rhys—had sealed the original entrance. While this didn't affect the basilisk's movements, a regular human could no longer use it to enter.

It had forgotten to inform the little guy outside about this.

To be fair, the basilisk didn't think it was relevant to it.

After recalling the locations of the alternative entrances left behind by its master, the basilisk relayed this information to Riddle.

Riddle: ???

[What is going on here?]

Riddle couldn't help but ask.

The basilisk ignored him, silently slithering back toward the Chamber of Secrets. It informed Riddle to hurry and follow, promising to wait for him inside.

Having no other choice, Riddle swallowed his frustration and turned to head toward the entrance the basilisk had indicated.

As he exited the bathroom, his eyes lit up: he spotted a lone boy walking toward him!

Riddle immediately recognized him—it was Rhys, the boy who had thwarted his plans earlier!

Perfect!

A wave of delight washed over Riddle. Now he had the ideal offering for the basilisk. And not just anyone—it was Rhys, the very one who had ruined his previous effort. This was practically a double victory!

The moment Riddle saw Rhys, he drew Ginny's wand and cast a Disarming Charm.

As expected, Rhys's wand spun into the air and flew out of his grasp.

Triumphant, Riddle broke into a satisfied grin.

"So, what exactly are you trying to do?" Rhys asked, his tone was very calm. He stood there quietly, gazing at Riddle as if watching a child playing a harmless prank.

That look in Rhys's eyes irritated Riddle. However, remembering that he was currently using Ginny's body to confront Rhys, he let it slide. After all, a young witch like Ginny did have an inherently deceptive appearance.

But Rhys Lint, a skilled wizard, would surely never lower his guard against anyone! This will be your first lesson, taught by me—the price being your life! Riddle sneered inwardly.

Despite having successfully disarmed Rhys, Riddle remained cautious. With a flick of Ginny's wand, he conjured a rope that bound Rhys's hands tightly.

"You want to know what I'm doing? Then come with me." Riddle gestured with the wand, forcing Rhys to follow.

To Riddle's surprise, Rhys was remarkably cooperative. He neither resisted nor asked any questions along the way.

Is he just pretending to stay calm, or does he think this is some kind of child's game? Riddle wondered. But it didn't trouble him much.

From Riddle's perspective, Rhys had no wand, his hands were tied, and the odds were completely stacked against him. As long as Riddle kept a safe distance and avoided any physical attacks, there was no way for him to lose.

And so, with Ginny's body under his control, he led Rhys into the Chamber of Secrets, following the directions provided by the basilisk.

Though the method of entry had changed, Riddle had to admit—the new entrance was far more dignified than the original.

Stepping into the Chamber of Secrets once again, Riddle felt a surge of exhilaration: he was on the brink of realizing the shared dream of himself and Salazar Slytherin!

This wave of excitement caused him to overlook some subtle changes in the chamber—such as the noticeably improved lighting, or the much cleaner state of the place compared to before.

Rhys, however, remained utterly unperturbed as he entered the chamber.

To Riddle, this lack of reaction could only mean one thing: this poor, naive boy must have been completely awestruck by the grandeur of the Chamber of Secrets!

_________

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