Whatever Dumbledore and the others planned to do to find that student had nothing to do with Leonard anymore.
After getting the information from Filch, Professor McGonagall had instructed Leonard to act as though he knew nothing, do what he was supposed to do, and honestly attend tonight's feast.
Although Dumbledore knew Leonard was highly capable, this was not the sort of matter a student should interfere in, so he did not object to Professor McGonagall's decision.
Watching the professors leave, Leonard, still full of doubts, did not head straight for the Great Hall to wait for the feast as Professor McGonagall had told him to. Instead, he turned and walked toward the dormitory.
The dormitory was completely empty. Everyone had already gone to the Great Hall to wait for the feast and the big meal to begin.
Which suited Leonard perfectly for doing something "not fit to be seen."
He went to his bed, opened the drawer in his bedside cabinet, and tapped inside the drawer, which looked completely empty.
At once, the wooden panel inside began to writhe, transforming into vines that parted to either side and revealed a diary with a jet-black cover.
It was Tom Riddle's diary.
Because the diary itself carried a seductive influence and had the power to devour souls, Leonard had been worried it might threaten his safety even through dragon-hide, so he had specifically hidden it here.
Using Devil's Snare imbued with Leonard's [Transfiguration] to conceal the diary meant he did not have to keep it on his person and stay on edge, did not have to worry about others discovering it, and did not have to fear that little bastard Tom Riddle tempting someone else.
After seeing the diary, Leonard pulled on a pair of dragon-hide gloves and checked it. Once he confirmed it was the real thing, he let out a sigh of relief. At the same time, he became even more puzzled about the cause of this attack.
As a transmigrator, Leonard knew something was wrong. In the normal storyline, there was clearly no incident of Filch being attacked.
In the normal storyline, all the attacks came from the Basilisk inside the Chamber of Secrets. There was no student directly attacking anyone.
And the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets was Ginny Weasley, after obtaining Tom Riddle's diary.
But now Tom Riddle's diary was in his hands, and the attack had not been carried out by the Basilisk. Which meant, quite clearly, that someone outside the plot had caused some kind of change.
"The only variable is Harris Raymons. Could he be targeting me?" Leonard's expression darkened.
Since he was already suspicious, then he might as well go straight to him. At this hour, the other professors should all be in the Great Hall. He would go there first and find Harris Raymons.
...
In the Hogwarts Great Hall, several professors were making the final preparations.
Harris Raymons was distracted. He had just heard that Filch had been attacked. Although he did not particularly like Filch either, an attack taking place at Hogwarts was definitely abnormal.
Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall had already gone to deal with it, and reliable Professor Sprout had gone with them, but for some reason Harris Raymons still had an ominous feeling.
"Something's wrong... Logically speaking, with Hogwarts as secure as it is, no one in their right mind would come here to make trouble." Harris Raymons thought for a moment, found an excuse to leave the Great Hall, and headed toward his room.
The possibility might be small, but he had to make sure.
Harris Raymons had only just left when Leonard arrived. He looked around the Great Hall, and although the professors were all checking the Halloween decorations, Harris Raymons was nowhere to be seen.
"Hey, Leonard." Professor Flitwick, who was setting floating candles adrift, spotted him and waved. "I heard you sent Filch to the hospital wing. Tell me, what happened?"
Leonard walked over and briefly explained what had happened to Filch, which made Professor Flitwick shake his head.
"Blood grapes, hm? Then Mr. Filch must have suffered quite a bit. Luckily you handled it very well, Leonard. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable," Professor Flitwick said.
"By the way, Professor, where's Professor Raymons?" Leonard asked with a smile. "He's not slacking off, is he?"
"Oh, he was here just a moment ago, but he said he'd left a potion brewing in a cauldron, so he went back first," Professor Flitwick said.
"He's not here?" Leonard narrowed his eyes.
There really was something wrong with that guy.
After exchanging a few more polite words with Professor Flitwick, Leonard quickly made an excuse to leave, eager to catch up with Harris Raymons.
"Then I won't keep you any longer, Professor," Leonard said. "I need to speak with Professor Raymons about something."
"Oh?" Professor Flitwick burst into laughter. "Looks like Harris's teaching has finally won your approval. Off you go. He should be back in his room by now."
"Yes, Professor." Leonard nodded and hurried out of the Great Hall.
He was going to intercept Harris Raymons and see what that man was really up to.
At the same time, guided by the voice of the shadow in his mind, Ron Weasley ran wildly the whole way, avoiding everyone he came across.
Very soon, he reached a secluded stairwell. Dust covered the place, and it looked as if hardly anyone ever came there. Only a humanoid statue with a monster's head stood off to one side.
Ron Weasley was panting heavily. Without caring about the dust all over the floor, he dropped down and sat on it.
The drain on his soul together with the strain on his body had left him feeling extremely weak, as if he might faint at any moment.
"Wh. What exactly just happened?" Ron Weasley briefly regained his senses. Looking at the jack-o'-lantern in his arms, he suddenly seemed to realize something and hurled it away.
"It was you. It was all because of you!" he roared. "I'm going to hand you over to Headmaster Dumbledore and ask him to purify you, you evil thing."
"Because of me?"
The shadow's unhurried voice sounded in Ron Weasley's ear. "Wasn't it you who asked me to help you attack your classmate and that Squib?"
"No... not me!" Ron Weasley shook his head reflexively. "You controlled me."
"I have no ability to control you. Your Headmaster will discover that the moment you hand me over to him. I'm only a pitiful thing trapped inside a jack-o'-lantern."
The shadow said disdainfully, "And your beloved Headmaster will definitely see that clearly. He will understand that you are lying. You are the one who did all this."
Hearing the shadow's words, Ron Weasley's face crumpled in despair. He wanted to argue, but no words came out. He could only clutch his head uselessly and bury his face between his knees like an ostrich.
As that happened, his mind began to waver. Visible traces of soul aura continuously drifted out of his body under the shadow's pull and were devoured by the flames inside the jack-o'-lantern.