Hogwarts: Dumbledore reigned over the wizarding world.

Chapter 100 The Forbidden Forest Trip with Hermione

It's not that Vaughn is narcissistic, it's just that Deng has a history of such behavior.

This greatest white wizard of the century is respected not only for his strength, but also for his generosity in mentoring younger generations.

However, Dumbledore was known throughout his life not only for his love of mentoring younger generations, but also for his penchant for creating mystique and playing the riddle-maker, and for his mastery of feigning madness.

For the next week or so, Vaughn tried to subtly probe Dumbledore several times, but Dumbledore just smiled and refused to comment on Ilfamoni's invitation.

After a few attempts, Vaughn gave up and stopped bothering him.

Of course, the main reason is that the first-grade curriculum is becoming increasingly heavy as Easter approaches.

These courses are mainly for the exams two months later, which are crucial for college admissions. Vaughn, who usually enjoys privileges, has to go back to being a student, memorizing key points and writing papers according to the professors' plans.

As April arrives, summer suddenly seems to be just around the corner.

The young wizards discarded their fleece robes and donned summer clothes, but this still couldn't stop the torment brought by the increasingly scorching sun. The dazzling sunlight burned the earth, and the heat waves it generated raged through every classroom at Hogwarts.

If there's no sun, it's even worse. As soon as it gets a little overcast, it becomes hot and stuffy, as if you've been stuffed into a sauna. Every pore is covered by sticky air, making it hard to breathe.

With climate change, insects that had once disappeared have resurfaced, and cicadas are gradually chirping in the nursery outside the window, which is so noisy that it is irritating.

Time, amidst this pervasive "restlessness," leisurely arrives at Easter, the last holiday before summer vacation.

Easter is a very important holiday in England, and Hogwarts, which follows tradition, is no exception, with a two-week holiday for the occasion.

But any little wizard would rather not have it!

"I just can't take it anymore!"

In the library, Ron, who was staring blankly at his homework and almost drooling, tried to guess the answer by using his wand to predict the future for the tenth time, but he guessed wrong again.

Frustrated, he threw down his quill and angrily pounded his wand: "Idiot, why do you always manage to perfectly avoid all the correct answers? Not a single one right out of 30 questions!"

Sitting opposite him, Harry, staring blankly at a three-foot-high stack of homework, heard Ron's words and, with a forced effort, managed to turn his nearly numb mind and subconsciously reply:

"Maybe you should try rolling dice; I've heard it works well."

Ron slumped his shoulders in despair, utterly defeated. "I tried it yesterday, it didn't work at all. I've figured it out now, all that dice rolling and wand divination is just nonsense from those upperclassmen. I'd be a pig to believe them again!"

Harry looked sullen, clearly having learned his lesson before.

Compared to their seven years of student life, even though they were almost finished with their first year, the two were still relatively new to the field. They never imagined that the professors would become so crazy in order to prepare for the exams.

I never imagined that I would hate holidays so much one day.

Halloween and Christmas used to be so joyful, with parties, games, and celebrations... every day of the holidays was filled with laughter. In comparison, Easter is like hell!

Just a few days ago, when they were counting down the days on the calendar, eagerly awaiting Easter, they wondered why the older students looked more and more desperate as the holiday approached.

Now they understand.

Ron slumped on his desk like a lump of mud, reminiscing for the umpteenth time about the end of last month when he accidentally ate the twins' truant candy and then leisurely spent three days in the hospital with nothing to do with it.

"I've never missed Fred and George, and their pranks, more than I do now!"

"yes……"

Harry missed it even more than he did. At least Ron had been hospitalized and rested, while he hadn't had a proper, leisurely day in a long time.

It's not just because of the endless homework, but also... Quidditch!

"Hi, Harry!"

When you think of an unfortunate event or an unfortunate person, that event or person usually comes to mind.

Hearing Wood's familiar, irritating voice call his name, Harry buried his face in his arms in anguish.

But Wood clearly wouldn't let go of Gryffindor Quidditch's biggest ace.

He dodged Mrs. Pince's sharp, piercing gaze, moved closer to Harry, and pulled him along: "Hurry up, Harry, we're going to be late for practice. I finally managed to get the right to use the field today, so we need to make the most of this time to practice a few more tactics."

After Harry lost his first match to Vaughn last year, although some team members thought Harry was overrated—yes, Arya Spinnet was one of them—Wood still believed in Harry's abilities.

He took full responsibility for the failure, believing it was all due to his tactical blunders and his failure to notice in time that Harry's broom was out of control.

This touched Harry deeply. In the subsequent battles against Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, Harry finally lived up to Wood's trust and defeated these two "formidable enemies" who had been threatening the progress of the Gryffindor Quidditch Cup for the past few years.

In the match against Hufflepuff, Harry even set a record for the fastest Golden Snitch ever caught at Hogwarts.

That was a rare highlight in Harry's twelve years of life, and he personally led Gryffindor, who hadn't made it to the finals for several years since Charlie left, back to the finals.

Everything was going perfectly. Wood got the grades he'd always dreamed of, and Harry received cheers and adoration from all of Gryffindor—if Wood hadn't gone mad!

In any case, Wood, who witnessed the team's renewed glory after defeating Ravenclaw, was not satisfied and became even more "greedy".

When his team was at the bottom, he wanted to reach the finals; once he reached the finals, he wanted to win the Quidditch Cup.

The only one who suffered was Harry.

Wood learned from last year's match against Slytherin, where Harry, due to insufficient practice time and a lack of chemistry and tactics with his teammates, had to break away from the group and was subsequently surrounded and attacked by Slytherin.

This year he prepared a large number of tactics and personally supervised them.

Vaughn met Harry in the courtyard.

At that moment, he was like a helpless puppet, being dragged by the arm by the tall and burly Wood towards the Quidditch pitch.

"Wood, I still have a lot of homework to do. Can we practice tomorrow?"

"Homework can be done anytime, Harry. It's nothing compared to Quidditch. Just wait and see, I've come up with a few new tactics these past few days that will definitely turn you into the best Seeker..."

Then they saw Vaughn.

Wood looked very wary, while Harry looked delighted and frantically winked at Vaughn, hoping he would lend a helping hand.

Unfortunately, to his expectant gaze, Vaughn merely nodded at him before exchanging pleasantries with Wood, asking, "Getting ready to go to the Quidditch pitch for training?"

"Yes, Weasley."

"You can call me Vaughn, Oliver."

"...Alright, Vaughn, if you don't mind, I'll take Harry away now. With the match approaching, Slytherin has been vying for the court's usage rights, so we can't afford to be delayed!"

Faced with Wood's subtle provocation, Vaughn smiled: "Ah, sorry, Marcus is too sensitive. He sees Gryffindor as a major threat. You know, you have the genius Seeker Harry Potter."

Wood proudly raised his head slightly: "You're a genius too, Vaughn, but I believe Harry is definitely stronger than you. Although he lost to you last time, I will help him surpass you!"

Harry blushed, wanting to retort but unsure how to begin.

Regardless, Wood was speaking up for him, even though he didn't think he was better than Vaughn—after months of training, he increasingly realized just how good Vaughn was, having been involved in the team's offensive system from his very first game.

Now, several months have passed, and no one knows how much progress Vaughn has made.

Only Wood was optimistic.

After saying goodbye to Vaughn, on the way to the Quidditch pitch, he continued to cheer Harry on:

"Don't be afraid of him, Harry. Vaughn Weasley hasn't been on the pitch for months. He's wasting all his time on that werewolf... what was that werewolf again?"

"The Werewolf Affairs Committee," Harry replied. "Besides, it's a very noble thing, Wood, you shouldn't..."

"Nothing is more sublime than Quidditch!"

Wood's expression was solemn, the thin sunlight filtering through the clouds illuminating his face, making him appear holy and dignified: "Quidditch is the most meaningful thing in the world. Your thoughts are dangerous, Harry. It seems I will not only need to give you special training in technique, but also help you become stronger mentally!"

Harry: "..."

……

After saying goodbye to Wood and Harry, Vaughn went to the library, borrowed a few books, sat by the window, and leisurely flipped through them in the sunlight to pass the time.

Before long, a faint fragrance, mixed with the scent of ink from books, approached him.

Hermione rushed over to him, carrying a stack of books. "Vaughn, how's your studying going... Good heavens, what are you doing studying alchemy? And magical plants too?"

Her voice was loud, and Mrs. Pince's sharp gaze swept over her.

Ron, all alone in the distance, also peered in this direction.

Vaughn remained unfazed when his academically gifted girlfriend caught him reading an extracurricular book. "I've finished my homework, and I finished reviewing the material yesterday. Now it's my free time."

Hermione puffed out her cheeks: "Why are you always so fast?"

"Hmm!" Vaughn glanced up at her. "Girl, never tell a man to hurry up, it's an insult to him!"

"?"

Hermione tilted her head, puzzled.

Vaughn shrugged regretfully. That's the downside of being young; no one can catch a lot of his jokes. He really wants to grow up quickly!

"Okay, these don't count as extracurricular reading. I'm going to the Forbidden Forest in a bit to review them."

"To the Forbidden Forest?" Hermione quickly put on a stern face.

Vaughn casually flipped to an illustration and added leisurely, "Don't worry, Dumbledore approved it, and Hagrid is with him!"

Hermione, who was usually very strict about school rules, breathed a sigh of relief. "Are you going to find potion ingredients? I saw you even borrowed an alchemy book, could it be alchemy materials?"

Vaughn thought for a moment and nodded: "I think so!"

It's not wrong to say that Dumbledore meticulously prepared such a complex mechanism for Harry over such a long period of time, involving many kinds of things, including potions and alchemy. The shortage of materials was huge.

After flipping through a few more pages, and hearing no further questions from Hermione, Vaughn looked up and saw Hermione biting her lip, her expression hesitant.

"What's wrong with you?"

"No, it's nothing..." Hermione said, glancing at him and then at the book in front of her.

Vaughn suddenly realized: "You want to come with me?"

"...Mmm!" Hermione's cheeks flushed slightly as she nodded, a hint of anticipation in her eyes. "Is it okay?"

She's been very busy with schoolwork lately, and although she's often with Vaughn, they're mostly busy with their own things, and even when they do talk, it's usually about studying.

She suddenly really wanted to go on another date with him.

Seeing the girl's expectant expression, Vaughn grinned mischievously. "Ha, did I hear that right? Our always so proper and rule-abiding Miss Granger wants to come to the Forbidden Forest with me?"

Hermione unconsciously puffed out her cheeks, "...If it doesn't work out, then so be it—"

She stood up to leave, but Vaughn grabbed her hand, smiling brightly. "Then, Miss Granger, may I ask you to break a school rule for me?"

……

"Merlin, his smile is so greasy."

Ron, who had been secretly watching Vaughn's situation, couldn't help but shudder.

"No, I think they have a really good relationship."

A voice said from behind.

It's Nawei.

Ron didn't even turn his head: "How long have you known Vaughn? I bet he's already trying to seduce Hermione with sweet talk, the kind that's sickeningly sweet. He's always been the best at charming silly girls like this... Why are you looking at me like that?"

Ron looked at Neville, who had come close to him, with a puzzled expression.

Neville scratched his head: "Ron, I think... you seem jealous."

"Huh? What nonsense are you talking about?" Ron scoffed, shoving Neville's head away. "What is there for Hermione to be jealous of? That guy better never speak to me again, and Hermione better never come crying to me complaining that Vaughn lied to her... Jealous? You're kidding!"

Neville: "But Ron, I didn't say you were jealous of Hermione."

Ron: "...Ugh, you're so annoying!"

Only by venturing into the forest can one truly appreciate how early summer arrives in the Scottish Highlands in April.

At the edge of the Forbidden Forest, Vaughn and Hermione looked up at the tall, straight trees before them, their canopies spreading out to block out the sky, with gnarled vines hanging down from the trunks and branches, all the way down into the dense bushes below.

Those shrubs truly embody the wildness and unbridled nature of the natural order, and the abundant vitality bestowed upon them by the sun and rain during this most suitable season for plant growth.

As far as the eye can see, the dense foliage of the bushes and the scattered flowers almost fill the spaces between the trees.

The soil and roads were obscured, with only a thin layer of mist floating above the bushes, swirling and lingering among the trees, providing a touch of color beyond the verdant green, adding a touch of dreaminess.

"it's beautiful……"

"Yes, it's a bit like when we first came to Hogwarts last year, but it's not quite the same. Back then, there weren't so many bushes on the ground and in the woods, and the light wasn't so dim. Now it truly deserves the name 'Forbidden Forest'."

Hermione always had a knack for catching what others overlooked: "Looks like you came here quite a few times last year?"

Just as Vaughn was about to answer, there was a rustling sound behind him, the bushes shook a few times, and a large black dog came rushing in from outside the woods, wagging its tail.

"Hey, Tooth!"

"Woof woof!"

Toothpick dashed over to Vaughn and Hermione, its tail wagging like a fan. Behind it, the bushes shook violently a few more times, and Hagrid's enormous figure appeared before the two.

"Vaughn, sorry I'm a little late... Hermione, you're here too?"

"Hey, Hagrid, long time no see."

Hagrid carried a cloth bag and an axe. With his giant height and massive size, as well as the gloomy surroundings, he inevitably gave people a great sense of oppression.

However, when he smiled across his thick, bearded face, his warmth and innocence made it hard to think anything else: "Welcome, Hermione. Harry and Ron were talking about you the other day. They said you're buried in books every day, almost bookworms. You're here on a date with Vaughn, aren't you? Very good, kid, you should get out and see nature more often..."

Hagrid, in his rambling, inadvertently betrayed Harry and Ron, but being the usual careless man he was, he didn't notice Hermione's sudden sweet smile and clenched teeth. After exchanging pleasantries for a while, he waved to the two of them:

"Let's go, we still have a lot to do today: patrol the Forbidden Forest, and go deeper into the forest to gather some for Dumbledore..."

He suddenly stopped.

Hermione asked curiously, "What are you gathering for Dumbledore?"

"Oh...just some materials, nothing much to say, Vaughn knows." Hagrid stammered, then yelled, "Toothie, coward, get ahead and clear the way!"

"Waaah—"

It bared its teeth, its ears and tail drooping, until Hagrid gently nudged its rump. Only then did it reluctantly walk forward and use its massive body to push aside the dense bushes.

"Toothie is a little timid, but I promise, he's a great helper in the Forbidden Forest, very reliable... Come on, kids, keep up."

Hagrid picked up his bag and axe, and followed behind it, stepping along the path that Ya Ya had carved out.

Behind him were Vaughn and Hermione. Vaughn held Hermione's hand tightly, and Hermione raised an eyebrow slightly: "I thought you were gathering materials for yourself, but it turns out you're helping Dumbledore. No wonder the headmaster approved your trip to the Forbidden Forest. You two have such a good relationship..."

The girl was a little jealous.

It wasn't because Vaughn helped Dumbledore, but because she had been spending a lot of time with Vaughn lately and had keenly sensed that he and Dumbledore seemed to have some kind of little secret in common.

Many times, when she was reading with Vaughn, Dumbledore's iconic phoenix guardian spirit would suddenly appear, whisper a few words in Vaughn's ear, and Vaughn would put her down and go see the headmaster.

It's one thing if it happens once or twice, but if this happens almost every day recently, then any girl would probably start to have doubts.

Vaughn chuckled and teased her, "Hermione, can you smell it?"

"What?"

"There's a sour smell in the air; a little girl is jealous..."

"Ugh!" Hermione's cheeks flushed red as she punched Vaughn.

Hagrid, who was walking ahead, glanced back at the two flirting lovers, his beard wrinkling, and couldn't help but call out, "Alright, kids, stop fooling around in the Forbidden Forest! Be quiet!"

The Forbidden Forest is definitely not a place for recreation. This vast forest, besides being called the Forbidden Forest, is also known as the "Dark Forest." This name not only refers to the interior of the forest, because the towering trees and lush canopies block out the sunlight, but also signifies the danger of the place.

Many magical creatures live here, many of which are classified as "XXX" or higher in the Department of Magic's classification system (posing a certain degree of danger and lethality, requiring an experienced wizard to deal with them).

Vaughn had been here before and had accompanied Hagrid along his patrol route, observing many magical creatures. Hermione, on the other hand, was visiting the Forbidden Forest for the first time, and everything she saw was naturally new and exciting—aside from the herbs they learned about in their first year, students rarely come into contact with living magical creatures.

As her boyfriend and Potions Master, Vaughn naturally took over Hagrid's role as commentator, providing explanations for the newbie Hermione:

"...See that plant over there with small yellow flowers? That's rue, an herb whose juice can detoxify. As far as I know, Madam Pomfrey's most important detoxification method is rue extract."

"White sage, you can learn about it in the first year of potions. It is recorded in 'A Thousand Magical Herbs and Mushrooms.' You should be familiar with it. It is most often used to treat the splitting accident caused by Apparition."

"Eggplant, be careful not to touch it, it's highly poisonous..."

With great interest, Hermione listened to Vaughn's explanation for a few minutes, then couldn't suppress her love of learning. She opened her small handbag—the same one Vaughn had given her a few days earlier as a gift hidden inside an Easter egg—and took out her notebook to write down everything Vaughn said.

Every time this happens, she feels regretful: "I really should have brought my camera from home!"

Hagrid regretted coming out today. Vaughn and Hermione were all lovey-dovey, while he could only squat to the side, staring at Tooth in disbelief.

He's usually the one who talks nonstop, but today he had so much to say, yet he could only be like a candle, burning himself to illuminate and highlight others!

Fortunately, not long after, when they passed through a relatively open woodland, Hagrid finally had a chance to interject.

He pointed to the woodland and said to Vaughn proudly, "You probably don't know what that place is. I just discovered it a while ago—a unicorn's nest! It's incredible. Those arrogant little rascals hid their nest with magic. I passed by many times without noticing it. If you and Dumbledore hadn't taken them away and the magic hadn't worn off, I probably would never have known where they were hiding."

Hermione keenly grasped the key point; she looked at Vaughn beside her and gripped his arm tightly.

"Hmm—I had no idea you took the unicorn with Dumbledore?"

Vaughn covered his forehead speechlessly.

As soon as he finished speaking, Hagrid realized something was wrong when he saw Vaughn's speechless expression. He quickly coughed, "Ahem, I meant... Ah, look, a fairy!"

Poor acting skills.

This technique of changing the subject wouldn't fool even a child, but to save face for Vaughn and Hagrid, Hermione still looked over.

Then she saw several magical creatures with transparent, dragonfly-like wings fly out from a bush covered in small blue flowers not far away.

Fairy!

Magic Classification Level: XX

A creature with a body shape and appearance very similar to humans, but only 4 or 5 inches tall, circled in mid-air a few times. When they saw Vaughn and his two companions, they seemed indifferent and instead waved the small branches they were holding.

They chattered and squeaked at each other in a very fast-paced language that sounded like insect chirping.

This was the first time Hermione had ever seen a living fairy. In the past, the only things she could access were the raw materials she collected from them—fairy wings.

That is the main ingredient in many potions, such as the "Vorn Beauty Series" potions that Vorn is famous for, as Hermione knows.

After watching intently for a while, Hermione noticed the fairies in the air arguing more and more fiercely. Having completely forgotten about the unicorns, she couldn't help but ask, "What are they doing?"

"Oh, they're arguing," Hagrid quickly replied.

Vaughn chimed in, explaining, "The fairy only looks pretty on the outside, but she actually has a very bad temper. That chirping sound, like insects, means she's arguing."

Hermione quickly opened her notebook to take notes.

He then inquired for more details: "So the fairies have their own language?"

Seeing that her attention had shifted, Vaughn secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He gestured for Hagrid, who was about to speak, to shut up, and then walked over to Hermione to answer his girlfriend's questions:

"Whether the 'words' spoken by fairies when they quarrel are their language is still inconclusive. Some wizards agree with this view, while others think that the monotonous rhythm and lack of phonetic symbols of their insect chirps may just be simple cries, like how humans scream when they go crazy."

Hermione wrote furiously.

"So why did they start arguing?"

"have no idea."

Vaughn shrugged. "They're naturally irritable. Anything that a human might not even notice or imagine can cause them to argue, and they might even resort to violence..."

Before the words were even finished, in mid-air, one of the fairies with wings adorned with some colorful patterns cried out and suddenly waved the small branch in its hand.

"I almost forgot to mention, the small twigs they hold are somewhat like a wizard's wand, which can help them cast spells—"

Biu——

As Vaughn explained, Hermione saw a barely perceptible rainbow shoot out from a small branch and collide with another fairy.

It screamed as it was sent flying, tumbling several meters before the fairy, enraged, brandished her "magic wand" and immediately retaliated.

Soon, the air was a chaotic mess, with thin, iridescent streaks swirling around, leaving Hermione below speechless.

In the blink of an eye, the first victim appeared.

The fairy who attacked first was ganged up on by her companions. One of the fairies with completely transparent wings bit off its wing, and it fell from the sky.

It must be said that cute-looking creatures are always more likely to evoke human sympathy.

Hermione quickly forgot what Vaughn had said about these guys being naturally irritable, and hurriedly shoved the notebook into Vaughn's arms before rushing to his aid.

"Hey, Hermione, stop..."

Unfortunately, Hagrid's intervention was a beat too slow. The next moment, Hermione, who had caught the fairy, screamed—the fairy's tiny mouth bit down hard on the skin of Hermione's finger.

Given her size, the injury wasn't serious, and there was no bleeding, but it was still enough to frustrate a kind little girl.

Enduring the pain, Hermione looked dejectedly at the fairy still struggling against her skin in her hand, and said to Hagrid and Vaughn who ran over, "I'm sorry, I was fooled by her appearance."

"Don't be sad, child, you want to save it," Hagrid comforted gruffly. "But as you can see, these little creatures have no brains; they're wild animals and can't understand your intentions."

With that, Hagrid reached out and grabbed the fairy, preparing to dispose of it in his own way—

For Hagrid, fairies were nothing special; in some ways, they could even be considered pests.

These little creatures are incredibly prolific. They like to lay their eggs on the undersides of plant leaves, sometimes as many as dozens at a time. After hatching, the larvae survive their infancy by eating leaves and sucking sap. In just six to ten days, the larvae will spin cocoons, and a month later they will emerge from the cocoons and transform into celestial beings.

Since he began guarding the Forbidden Forest, the fairy has been one of Hagrid's biggest headaches.

Hermione looked longingly at the beautiful fairy, then at Hagrid's hand. Even the slow-witted Hagrid could tell that Hermione didn't want to hurt it.

He couldn't help but look at Vaughn.

Vaughn shrugged. He knew Hermione's personality better than anyone. She was quick-tempered and might seem difficult to get along with at first glance, but she was actually kind-hearted despite her sharp tongue.

Vaughn never thought that kindness was a trait to be avoided, even though he himself was not at all like that word, but he still liked kind people.

So when Hermione saved Fairy, he wasn't surprised at all, nor did he stop her.

At this point, it's even less likely that she would be deliberately reprimanded or forced to confront cruelty—there's no need to use an adult's tendency to seek good fortune and avoid misfortune to constrain the developing personality of a 12-year-old girl.

Besides, fairies aren't exactly high-risk creatures.

He would rather teach Hermione some less common knowledge.

Vaughn gestured for Hagrid to release his grip, gently stroked the still-temperamental fairy, and smiled at Hermione, saying:

"Actually, besides being irritable and easily angered, the fairy has another very interesting personality trait."

As he spoke, he picked up a leaf and transformed it into an exquisite glass bottle with a hollowed-out pattern. Under his magic, the bottle resembled a work of art carved from crystal.

Vaughn held the glass bottle close to her hand, and then Hermione was surprised to see the fairy who had been stubbornly biting her skin raise her head and stare at the exquisite glass bottle as if under some kind of spell.

Then, dragging her injured wing, she limped and actually climbed into the bottle by herself. She groped around and found the most comfortable position. She hummed contentedly, struck the most beautiful pose, and pressed herself completely against the inside of the bottle.

It's like an embossed design inside a bottle!

To Hermione's even greater surprise, as the fairy settled into the bottle and chirped, the other fairies still wrestling in mid-air immediately stopped fighting.

They scrambled down, circled the bottle a few times, and then, pushing and shoving each other, climbed into the bottle one after another.

Like the fairy at the beginning, find a comfortable spot, the most beautiful pose, and quietly cover yourself completely.

Hermione stammered, "Uh..."

"Besides being irritable and easily angered, the fairies are also particularly vain. As long as there are beautiful and shiny things for them to hide in, they will be happy to disguise themselves as beautiful and luxurious ornaments."

"We didn't have good timing last year. Professor Flitwick was quite busy. In previous years, he would catch some fairies to decorate the lanterns at Hogwarts during Christmas. Bill told us this when he came back from school. Since then, our family has also caught some fairies to decorate for Christmas."

The three left the abandoned unicorn nest. Along the way, Hermione held the glass bottle containing several fairies, which now looked particularly ornate, with great affection, while listening to Vaughn's explanation.

Hagrid listened with great interest.

"Merlin, I never knew there was such a method. It's amazing that it wasn't mentioned in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them."

"Newt's purpose in writing this book is to inform the wizarding world about the magical creatures that exist and their current situation. His intention is to raise awareness of the need to protect magical creatures. Of course, he cannot specify how to capture them."

"Newt?"

Hermione immediately grasped the key point.

Hagrid, who was just as tight-lipped as Harry, answered without any suspicion: "Newt Scamander, author of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, a noble and great man... Vaughn, when you went to see him, did you see his basement?"

Hagrid's small, bright eyes, like those of a black beetle, sparkled.

Seeing his curious yet innocent expression, Vaughn was speechless, but under Hermione's probing gaze, he could only calmly answer:

"I've seen it."

"Oh, is it really as big as the legends say? I read in the newspaper that it's home to hundreds of magical creatures: bird-snakes, thunderbirds, venomous leopards, evil bird-like creatures... and oh yes, horned camel-like beasts too!"

Hermione, who had only been exposed to magic for a year, didn't recognize any of the names Hagrid mentioned.

But Hermione, who knew Hagrid's personality well, knew that the animals he was interested in must be extremely rare and dangerous!

She took Vaughn's hand and shook it, her bright eyes full of curiosity.

Vaughn, who had initially intended to give a casual, perfunctory answer, sighed inwardly, "The harpy is an animal that can freely change its size; it can be as small as fitting into a teacup, or as large as filling the largest classroom at Hogwarts..."

"Thunderbirds can control the weather, bringing wind, rain, and lightning. You're disappointed, though. They're rare even in their native North America. Newt rescued one a long time ago, but he released it back into North America decades ago..."

"What about the horned camel?"

Listening to Vaughn's description of the characteristics and habits of those magical creatures, Hagrid's face showed envy and a strong thirst for knowledge: "I've never seen them before. Legend has it that the last pair of horned beasts in the world lived in the Scamander's basement. By now, they should have multiplied into a large family, right? Can you tell me what they look like?"

"Hmm—it does exist, but I didn't see it!"

"what?"

"I've never seen the venomous leopard or the evil bird either. These kinds of magical animals are either high-risk and high-fatality or endangered and unlikely to be seen easily..."

Hagrid deeply regretted it.

"Actually, I've always felt that Dumbledore completely misdirected his idea of ​​sending you to the Forbidden Forest to find material. Fairies and vixens are all meaningless. He should have sent you to the Scamander's basement. Just imagine, if you could borrow the venomous leopards and wretched birds from Scamander's collection and put them in..."

"Ahem!"

Seeing that Hagrid was getting more and more excited, Vaughn had to cough loudly to interrupt him.

"Oh, sorry!" Hagrid, realizing he had almost revealed something again, shut his mouth dejectedly.

Hermione, who had been listening intently, gently pinched Vaughn's hand with her soft fingers and smiled, "So, the fairy we just captured was also at Dumbledore's request? Vaughn, didn't you say you were only going to the Forbidden Forest to find some potions and alchemical materials?"

"...Yes, we need them all!"

"Yeah?"

Hermione smiled, a shallow dimple appearing at the corner of her mouth. She looked at Vaughn, who remained expressionless, and Hagrid, whose forehead was starting to sweat, and didn't press the matter further.

Although she had already sensed that Vaughn was deliberately hiding something important from her, she forced herself not to think about it.

After nearly a year of being enrolled, the girl realized that being too perceptive and inquisitive could sometimes appear aggressive, which could be extremely damaging to a relationship.

When it comes to people and relationships that you consider important, it's best to be a little "ignorant".

After nearly leaking information twice, Hagrid finally dared not say anything more, and for the rest of the time he kept his mouth shut.

Fortunately, his extensive experience did not require language. All he had to do was take Vaughn to the habitats of magical creatures he knew and watch Vaughn capture them with various forms of magic.

Throughout the afternoon, Hermione watched as Vaughn used his superb magic to capture many magical creatures she had never even heard of before.

She looks very similar to a fairy and is said to be a fox spirit, a distant relative.

Suspended in the air, they glow like light bulbs in Muggle society, and look like tiny water bubbles.

With the ability to teleport, the Ball Birds can disappear and travel to other places at will. Hermione learns for the first time that they are the "Dodos" that Muggle society claims are extinct. Wizards discover that Muggles have realized the need to protect the environment for the first time because of the extinction of the Dodos, so they begin to deliberately hide the existence of the Ball Birds.

Hermione also picked up some miscellaneous materials, such as a giant eight-eyed spider claw that had fallen off in a wooded area.

She even asked Vaughn why he didn't catch an eight-eyed giant spider.

Vaughn looked at her strangely, as if he felt sorry for her, as if she had made a terrible suggestion. Hagrid, on the other hand, was very interested and kept trying to convince Vaughn that the giant spider was only scary-looking, but actually gentle and cute.

Unfortunately, Vaughn never actually caught an eight-eyed giant spider.

As dusk fell, the Forbidden Forest adventure came to an end. In the final moments, Hermione had another new experience—Apparition.

And it's the magic of magical creatures, Dumbledore's famous phoenix Fawkes!

Vaughn summoned it by igniting a tail feather.

Hermione felt that Fawkes looked at Vaughn with great wariness, as if he was on guard against something. She remembered that last Halloween, Vaughn used Fawkes to block the Killing Curse.

Memories that had faded with time were awakened once again.

Hermione suddenly realized that she hadn't paid attention to the investigation of the Man in Black for a long time because of her busy studies, and she asked about it before parting ways with Vaughn.

Vaughn replied, "We haven't found him yet. He hasn't made any moves since Halloween. I've only identified two suspects so far, who are also the ones you suspected the most."

(End of this chapter)