In the Gryffindor common room, a black notebook lay quietly on the table.
Kai Adler, Hermione, Harry, and Ron sat around it, all eyes fixed on the worn leather cover.
"Isn't this the thing Malfoy tried to shove into Ginny's cauldron?" Ron asked, glancing uneasily at Kai. "Didn't you say it was a Dark object?"
"Yes," Kai replied calmly, his gaze resting on the notebook. "There's a faint trace of Dark Magic clinging to it. And…" he narrowed his eyes slightly, "I can sense a soul fragment inside."
Hermione's expression turned grave. "Then we have to tell Professor Dumbledore—immediately!"
Kai gave a soft smile. "No need to rush. I want to examine it first."
Hermione frowned. "But—"
Kai's fingers gently tapped the book's surface. "If this is connected to the Chamber of Secrets, handing it over now would end the mystery before we understand the threat. And the person behind it would simply vanish into the shadows again."
He opened the notebook. The pages were yellowed, aged, and brittle, but there was no writing—only a name on the inside cover: T. M. Riddle.
"Riddle…" Kai murmured. He turned to Hermione. "Do you know this name?"
She shook her head. "It doesn't ring any bells."
As Kai held the book, he suddenly felt the dark enchantment stir. A tendril of cold magic coiled around his wrist and began seeping into his hand. It was subtle, but he recognized the sensation—this thing was leeching his vitality. Feeding.
He didn't pull away.
Instead, he closed the notebook slowly, eyes thoughtful.
"It's enchanted. But we won't get anything from it like this. I need to prepare for tomorrow's class—Lockhart needs some materials."
Hermione's gaze sharpened. "You're going to Lockhart's? Since when do you care about helping him?"
Kai smiled wryly. "I'll drop the notebook off with Professor Dumbledore after."
He turned and left.
Hermione watched him go, unimpressed. "As if I'd believe that."
Still, she trusted his judgment. Even if she couldn't keep up with him yet, she would someday. She clenched her fists and marched off to her dormitory.
"I need to study next year's coursework," she muttered.
Harry and Ron exchanged glances.
"He just left like that?" Ron asked.
Harry shrugged. "Are you surprised? Those two are always up to something."
"Come on," he added, nudging Ron. "I've got something the twins gave me—you'll love it."
"They gave you something and not me?!"
—
Meanwhile, Kai didn't go to Lockhart's office. As expected, Hermione had seen right through him.
He made his way toward the eighth floor—toward the Room of Requirement.
But on the fifth floor landing, he noticed a figure lurking near the stairwell, peeking nervously down the corridor.
Kai walked up behind the figure silently. "What are you looking at?"
The man jumped and turned around, alarmed—only to stiffen when he saw Kai.
"Oh! Mr. Adler. What a coincidence," the man said quickly.
Kai raised a brow. "Mr. Filch."
It was the castle caretaker—and the owner of Mrs. Norris, the first victim of the Chamber's recent attacks.
"Shouldn't you be cleaning something?" Kai asked mildly.
Filch looked sheepish. "Didn't you ask me to keep an eye out for anything suspicious? I've been patrolling every night."
Kai had almost forgotten. After calming Filch down the night his cat was attacked, he'd asked him to keep watch for anything odd around the castle. But he hadn't expected much; after all, Filch was a Squib. Without magic, how much could he really detect?
Still, now Filch's face was alight with urgency. "I saw something! Or rather, someone—twice now!"
Kai's gaze sharpened. "Who?"
"Someone skulking near the girls' lavatory on the fifth floor. Always glancing around. Like he's searching for something."
Kai looked at the notebook in his hand.
Was someone trying to retrieve it?
"Did you see who it was?"
Filch hesitated. "Not clearly. But judging by his robes and hair, it looked like… well…"
"Go on. Tell me."
Kai's voice was soft but commanding. Like a spell, it coaxed the answer free.
Filch's eyes glazed for a moment, then he said clearly, "Professor Lockhart."
So it was him.
Kai had suspected as much when Hermione mentioned seeing Lockhart acting suspiciously. This confirmed it.
The diary had passed from Draco Malfoy to Lockhart. The question now was whether Lockhart was simply a pawn, or something more.
Kai smiled politely. "Thank you, Mr. Filch. That's very helpful."
Filch bowed his head, wringing his hands. "It's an honor, Mr. Adler. Please—bring whoever did this to justice."
"I will."
Kai left and continued to the Room of Requirement.
Inside, he conjured a desk and chair, set the notebook down, and summoned ink and a quill.
He dipped the pen and wrote a simple word on the first page:
Hello.
The ink absorbed into the page. Then, a moment later, a reply formed in elegant, cursive handwriting.
Hello.
Kai smiled slightly.
What is your name?
Tom Riddle.
So the soul fragment belonged to the notebook's original owner.
Why are you here? he asked.
There was no reply for a long time.
He tried a different approach.
Do you know about the Chamber of Secrets?
This time, the response was swift:
Yes.
Then who opened it?
Again, the notebook was silent for several long seconds—until a new message appeared:
I cannot tell you.
But I can show you.
Kai frowned. A surge of magic leapt from the book and struck his mind like a focused spell.
Legilimency. A crude, invasive version of it.
But Kai was ready.
He lowered his natural Occlumency defenses just enough to let the spell enter—and simultaneously wove a fabricated memory of an ordinary student into place.
A white light filled his vision.
And then the world around him shifted.
He stood on the Hogwarts staircase, disoriented for only a moment.
This was a memory.
The soul in the notebook had pulled him into the past.
Now, he would see the truth with his own eyes.