Hogwarts' Golden Glory

Ron pursed his lips and said dismissively, "I know it's serious, that's why I'm going."

"Think about it, Kane always acts so high and mighty. Maybe he and Snape are up to something."

"Besides, if I go, I'll have another person to offer advice, which provides an extra layer of security."

Harry and Hermione exchanged a glance, both seeing helplessness in each other's eyes.

Harry gritted his teeth and finally relented, "Alright, Ron, you can come with us. But you must promise to follow orders and not act on your own, or we'll all be in trouble."

So, taking advantage of the early hour, the three of them avoided the crowd and hurried toward Hagrid's cabin.

Throughout the journey, Harry and Hermione remained silent, still harboring resentment towards Ron's threats and forced inclusion.

Ron, meanwhile, kept glancing around and muttering to himself.

He seemed to be plotting how to get proof that Kane was a bad guy after meeting Hagrid.

Arriving at Hagrid's hut, Harry raised his hand and knocked on the door.

Hagrid was in a good mood and was happily simmering soup.

Hearing the knocking on the door, Hagrid jumped to his feet.

The wooden spoon in his hand fell into the pot with a "clatter," splashing up a splash of soup.

"Who's outside?" Hagrid looked warily toward the door, a hint of panic flashing in his eyes.

Harry and Hermione pushed open the door, and a smell that mixed with the aroma of smoke, baked bread, and animal fur wafted out.

Hagrid was sitting by the fire, chopsticks in his hand, scooping spoons from the pot.

Seeing them enter, he smiled and said, "Hey, Harry, Hermione, what brings you here?"

Harry walked up to Hagrid and got straight to the point: "Hagrid, we want to ask about Cerberus."

Hagrid's smile froze instantly. He scratched his head. "How did you know about Lucas?"

"Louis? The dog had a name after that?"

Just then, Ron's gaze was drawn to a piece of cloth that had been raised in the corner.

He walked over curiously, took a closer look, and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Hagrid, what's this dragon egg doing here?"

"Ron exclaimed in surprise. Hagrid's face turned deathly pale upon hearing this. He jumped up and tried to hide the dragon egg."

"No...nothing, Ron, you must have misjudged." Hagrid's voice trembled slightly.

Ron, however, persisted. Charlie was a dragon breeder, so he was very familiar with dragon eggs.

"Hagrid, I'm not mistaken, this is a dragon egg. And judging by its appearance, it should be a Norwegian Spinosaurus egg," Ron said confidently.

Hagrid sighed helplessly, knowing he couldn't hide it any longer, and said, "Fine, I traded this dragon egg for someone."

Hagrid's copper pot suddenly made a loud popping sound, and Harry took the opportunity to knock over the rock cake jar in the corner.

He really didn't want to eat this anymore!

"Who would trade you for a dragon egg?"

At this moment, Ron was still preoccupied with the dragon egg, completely forgetting his original purpose for coming here.

Hagrid's beard trembled violently, and the stew pot on the stove began to overflow with eerie purple foam.

"Just a traveling merchant!" Hagrid grabbed a single, filthy cloth and began wiping the iron pot. "Wearing a black robe and a hood... uh... maybe a purple scarf too..."

"Purple?" the three exclaimed in unison.

Harry saw the hem of Snape's eternally black robe.

Ron, however, remembered that Kane always wore a dark purple tie.

The firewood in the stove crackled and popped, and a dog barked from outside the window.

"The guy said he wanted some small animals for self-defense, so I mentioned Lu Wei..."

Realizing his mistake, he covered his face with his enormous hands. "Merlin, Dumbledore will kick me out of Hogwarts!"

"Hagrid, we won't tell Dumbledore!"

Harry's eyes were full of eagerness; he couldn't wait to know.

Hermione also stepped forward; she was now beginning to believe that Harry's suspicions were correct.

Ron finally remembered his purpose for coming here and began to try to get Hagrid to talk.

"Yeah, Hagrid, isn't this related to Kane and Snape? They want what Fluffy is protecting, right?"

Hagrid was getting a little impatient at this point!

"What are you talking about? Snape is a teacher at Hogwarts, how could he do such a thing? As for Kane, I don't know much about him either!"

Hagrid denied it outright, but Ron grasped the key point: not knowing Kane meant there was still a possibility.

Harry and his two companions, upon hearing this, were naturally unwilling to let the matter rest.

"Hagrid! Tell us, what exactly is Cerberus guarding? This is extremely important to us, we must find out."

Harry's eyes revealed an unwavering determination.

"That's enough! I can't tell you anything more!"

Hagrid was already angry and wanted to get rid of the young wizards as soon as possible.

He continued, "This is a secret between Nicolas Flamel and Headmaster Dumbledore! I can't tell you!"

"Nico Flamel?"

The two asked in unison, clearly having never heard of the name.

Hermione, however, was lost in thought, because she felt as if she had seen the name before.

Hagrid realized he had said too much, so he shut his mouth and prepared to push the three of them out.

Just then, a low "clicking" sound suddenly came from inside Hagrid's cabin.

The group looked in the direction of the sound.

Suddenly, the dragon egg cracked open and emitted sulfurous fumes.

Immediately afterwards, a wet little paw emerged from the hatch.

Then, a little head popped out and cautiously looked around at this unfamiliar world.

While the group was still marveling at the birth of life...

The barking from the dog outside the window grew louder and louder.

Hermione pointed her wand toward the window.

The three of them gasped simultaneously—Draco Malfoy's pale face was pressed against the glass, and his exhaled breath condensed on the glass.

"Brilliant reasoning, Potter." The Slytherin boy looked somewhat angry. "It seems we really aren't friends."

Then he turned and ran away.

And the barking of the dogs was fading into the distance!

"What kind of good guys are those Slytherins who eavesdrop!" Ron cursed, watching the direction the other person had left in!

Harry and Hermione couldn't help but look at each other, thinking, "You're acting like you weren't eavesdropping!"

However, Ron clearly didn't understand what the other party meant, and instead began to look smug.

He was clearly very happy with today's harvest.

"How much did Draco hear?"

Hermione asked Harry with concern.

Harry shook his head, a hint of worry in his eyes.

If Draco told Kane that he suspected Kane...

Kane must be very disappointed in himself, right?