"Don't worry, Mr. Dumbledore. Although I wasn't sure who the mole was before, I've already made arrangements regarding the Dark Arts artifact. Even though I don't know if it will succeed... let's just give it a try for now."
As Adelaide spoke, she comfortably took a long, deep stretch.
She hadn't just been leisurely resting these past few days; she had also been conducting an investigation.
Now that the mole inside Hogwarts had been found, as long as she could catch the cockroach diadem next, she could peacefully enjoy her campus life for the remainder of her first year.
Hearing Adelaide's confident words, Dumbledore's wise eyes immediately fixed upon her.
"Adelaide, I asked Gellert. Your family's hereditary prophecies can only see random fragments in the early stages—so, what did you prophesy this time?"
Facing Dumbledore's inquiry, Adelaide subconsciously scratched her head, a slightly embarrassed expression appearing on her face.
She vaguely shifted the topic, muttering, "Prophecy, well, I suppose... I plan to return to school two days early. I believe everything should be just about ready by then."
After saying that, she made an excuse and ran back to her room upstairs, leaving Dumbledore alone in the living room to ponder the meaning of her words.
Adelaide hurried back to her room, shut the door with a loud "bang," and quickly turned the lock to secure it.
Then, she scrambled onto the bed like a flying arrow, grabbed the thick cotton quilt, and covered herself tightly from head to toe.
Just after parting ways with Hermione, she had indeed prophesied a fragment, but the scene was truly too bizarre and absurd—just what kind of parallel dimension would such a weird thing even happen in!
Whenever she recalled that scene, which was both embarrassing and hair-raising, Adelaide couldn't help but let out a low wail from under the covers.
Heavens, how could she dream of such a situation?
In the dream, Hermione and Alice were actually coming to blows over her!
What was even more ridiculous was that the two of them weren't using any magic. Instead, like a street brawl, they were clutching each other's collars and staging an incredibly intense wrestling match right at the entrance of the solemn and majestic Great Hall of Hogwarts.
This shocking scene naturally attracted many onlookers, who gathered in a circle, either cheering loudly or shouting words of encouragement, making it quite a lively scene.
The Weasley brothers, who always feared the world wasn't chaotic enough, even started taking bets on who would win!
As for poor Adelaide, she could only stand aside helplessly, shouting anxiously at the top of her lungs, "Stop! Don't fight anymore!"
Adelaide secretly made up her mind that in this life, she would never, under any circumstances, let anyone else know of this fragment's existence... The Christmas holidays passed in the blink of an eye, and in a flash, the day for school to start drew near.
When she learned that Adelaide needed to return to Hogwarts two days early to deal with the evil Dark Arts artifact left behind by Lord Voldemort, Alice stated without hesitation that she wanted to go along as well.
Facing Alice's firm and stubborn attitude, Adelaide ultimately couldn't talk her out of it.
Fortunately, Alice had just relapsed into a black dragon from the Blood Curse the night before last, so she would be in a safe period for the next two months. They weren't afraid of a sudden curse affecting the plan.
Adelaide thought that since Alice shared an irreconcilable hatred with Lord Voldemort for the destruction of her clan, bringing her along to witness the destruction of Lord Voldemort's Horcrux might make her feel better.
With everything ready, Dumbledore personally escorted the two of them to Hogsmeade Village.
At the Hogs Head Inn, a group of Wizengamot members were already waiting quietly, guarding the large wooden crate Adelaide had requested.
Seeing the figures of Adelaide, Alice, and Dumbledore appear, the young man standing at the front of the group immediately stepped forward. He first gave a slight nod to Dumbledore in greeting, then turned around and spoke to Adelaide with a face full of respect:
"Little Master, everything is ready according to your previous requirements. There are a total of five thousand White-browed Huntsman Spiders here, all enchanted with the Screeching Charm and a Super-Tracking Charm. They are currently in very good condition and can begin the operation at any time upon your command."
After hearing this, Adelaide nodded expressionlessly and then responded in a steady and decisive tone, "Very well. In that case, our action time is set for the early hours of today. This mission is crucial; we must ensure nothing goes wrong and succeed in one go!"
Since the cockroach diadem might have inherited some of a Cockroach's nature, a bold idea had sprouted in Adelaide's mind: she decided to try an experiment.
Everyone knows that in a home environment, a Cockroach's greatest natural enemy is the 'cute' and agile White-browed Huntsman Spider.
These spiders are nocturnal creatures that usually hide in the narrow gaps of cabinets or on ceilings during the day, waiting quietly for nightfall to come out and search for food. They survive by catching cockroaches and other small flying insects.
If the cockroach diadem had not yet left Hogwarts, then when it sensed it was being tracked by an enemy, it would very likely act according to instinct and quickly hide in those dark, secluded corners, waiting quietly for the storm to blow over—after all, whether it's an ordinary Cockroach or the terrifying Lord Voldemort, they both have a special fondness for dark corners.
Based on this deduction, Adelaide had meticulously planned this operation.
Using the faint aura of the diadem remaining on Higgs as a clue, she had the Wizengamot members cast an extremely powerful Tracking Charm on the White-browed Huntsman Spiders.
These magically enhanced White-browed Huntsman Spiders instantly became the sharpest 'hounds.' As long as they caught even the slightest scent related to the diadem, the Screeching Charms pre-set on them would immediately trigger, emitting a sharp, piercing alarm to relay the diadem's specific location to Adelaide and the others.
As for why she chose this kind of spider to search for a Horcrux, Adelaide mainly considered that a creature like a Cockroach harbors a deep-seated fear of the White-browed Huntsman Spider.
This fear is not learned, but rather an instinctive reaction seemingly born into them and engraved in their souls—the irresistible dread a lower organism feels when facing a powerful predator.
Adelaide looked forward expectantly to these hair-raising White-browed Huntsman Spiders successfully awakening the fear hidden deep within the soul of the cockroach diadem.
If that happened, the cockroach diadem's resistance would inevitably be greatly weakened, thereby reducing the potential casualties her side might suffer.
Of course, if an unfortunate accident occurred—such as the cockroach diadem having already fled Hogwarts, or Adelaide's carefully planned strategy failing to work—it wouldn't matter much.
The Acromantula hatchlings in the Forbidden Forest often took advantage of moments when no one was looking to sneak into Hogwarts Castle to'scrounge for food'—so Adelaide secretly speculated that in the dark corners of this Castle that never saw the sun, there must be a great number of various bugs. She might as well view this operation as providing a free pest control service for Hogwarts!
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