Vid seemed to walk out from the air itself. He glanced around, neither confirming nor denying Robert's speculation, and then said:
"The basilisk has been slain, and the challenge officially ends! Regarding the performance and evaluation of each challenger in this event, we will announce the results at the end-of-term banquet, taking into account the opinions of all professors!"
"Vid Gray!" asked Delian from Slytherin, surprised, "When did you arrive?"
"I was here from the very beginning," Vid said flatly.
Delian was even more surprised: "Did you blind the basilisk's eyes? How did you do it?"
Vid glanced at him: "I didn't do it; it was the achievement of Phoenix Fawkes."
Fawkes let out a timely cry, asserting his presence, then transformed into a blaze of fire, spiraled above the Chamber of Secret, and finally landed on Vid's head.
Vid shook his head slightly, and Fawkes reluctantly perched on his shoulder, puffing out his chest to accept the students' surprised and admiring gazes.
Indeed, everyone was quite amazed, but what surprised them most was the headmaster's phoenix being so close to Vid.
Reasonable speculation: Dumbledore might be in this Chamber of Secret as well...
Students started to look around, and then they saw Professor McGonagall's serious expression.
"It's time for curfew! What are you waiting for? You should be heading back to your dormitories!" Professor McGonagall said sternly.
"Professor! We defeated the basilisk! Can't we celebrate for a while?" Fred shouted boldly.
"He's right!"
"Can we go back to the hall for a late-night snack? I'm hungry..."
Students began to clamor.
Looking at those faces filled with longing, Professor McGonagall relented slightly, "You can enjoy a late-night snack in your houses...but don't disturb the students who are already resting."
"Great!"
The students cheered unanimously.
Professor McGonagall also revealed a slight smile.
Even though she knew—the little lions from Gryffindor would wake everyone up once they got back, and then brag about their achievements several times over.
No...perhaps other kids hadn't slept at all, just waiting for them to return to hear about this episode!
Tonight at Hogwarts was destined to be a sleepless night.
Under the persuasion of several heads, students started to leave the Chamber gradually, occasionally pretending to tie their shoelaces and swiftly collecting a few fallen scales, stuffing them into their robes.
Everyone thought their actions were natural and discreet, but when most people did the same, it was quite noticeable to the surrounding professors.
Professor McGonagall turned her sight, pretending not to see;
Professor Flitwick and Professor Sprout nearly burst into laughter, barely holding back to maintain the children's self-esteem.
Professor Snape waited until everyone finished collecting and left the Chamber before coolly commenting—if anyone gets poisoned, they should use their own brewed antidote for treatment.
Immediately, two or three people turned pale, yet even then, they didn't have the heart to discard the snake scales.
The chaotic footsteps and students' excited chatter echoed through the tunnel, gradually fading away.
Only then did Dumbledore lift the Disillusionment Charm and stepped out.
At this point, Vid had already extracted another venomous fang from the basilisk.
He used Aguamenti to wash off the remaining mucus on the fang, then transformed a nearby stone into a suitably sized stone box, placing the fang inside.
The long stone box was slipped into a backpack with a reverse hand motion. The not-so-large backpack appeared as a bottomless pit, swallowing the entire stone box.
Seeing Dumbledore emerge, Vid said, "I thought Professor Snape would be the first to collect the basilisk's venom and blood!"
"He did have that intention, but first, he had to fulfill his duties as the head of Slytherin College." Dumbledore said helplessly, "So he handed the task over to me instead."
—No wonder!
Vid thought to himself.
—No wonder Professor Snape left so swiftly; Vid thought he wasn't interested in the basilisk's precious Magic Potion Materials at all. It turns out he roped in Dumbledore to be his helper.
The opportunity to have Dumbledore assist him in such mundane tasks was indeed rare. Perhaps Professor Snape feared moving slowly and missing this rare chance.
Thus Vid stood aside, watching how Professor Dumbledore handled this basilisk, which was about seven to eight meters long.
The headmaster rolled up his sleeves and swished his wand—
The giant basilisk's entire body floated upward.
Behind him, Vid widened his eyes, a faint golden glow flowing in his pupils.
It seemed as if an invisible force was gently and delicately dismantling the entire giant snake, like taking apart blocks.
Scales, venomous fangs, blood, punctured eyeballs, muscles, bones...
Separated layer by layer, elegantly like a top pianist playing a piece of music.
Vid felt dazzled by the mystery, involuntarily holding his breath.
Magic can be like this!
Magic is actually like this!
The giant carved snakes on the surrounding pillars seemed to come to life, slithering along the floor under the basilisk before transforming into large and small containers.
The dismantled parts shot toward their respective containers like birds, crisscrossing yet neatly organized, with the pleasant sound of "ding ding clang," as the originally fishy-smelling blood was now shrouded in a layer of mystical brilliance.
Until the last container was filled and covered, the floating giant snake completely vanished, not even leaving behind a single scale.
Dumbledore lowered his wand, feeling weary for the first time in a while. But when he turned around, he couldn't help but smile.
Vid, usually so indifferent, was now looking at him with eyes sparkling brightly, as if there was a Lumos Spell cast upon them.
Vid always knew Dumbledore was powerful, but the "Fire God Incarnation" was different from what he saw now.
The "Fire God Incarnation"-like Flame Curse, Vid believed he could achieve one day; he was just not currently strong enough in magic power.
But the scene that just unfolded before him...it couldn't be explained or imitated by spells, gestures, or even magic power flow.
"Professor." Vid asked sincerely, "How did you do it?"
"Hmm, well..."
Dumbledore was somewhat stumped by Vid's question; he thought for a moment and then said, "This is not something that can be directly taught, Vid. I can only say—"
"I want it to change, and it changes."
"To put it simply—magic is the manifestation of a wizard's will."
He spoke somewhat vaguely, but Vid understood.
Magic of the mind, influencing the existence and change of the physical world with willpower.
That is—
God said: Let there be light.
And there was light.