Ancient Wizards Return to Hogwarts.

Chapter 82 Let's trade with local specialties from the Forbidden Forest

"What's wrong? That's what the book teaches." Hagrid asked, somewhat alarmed.

Rice proved with his actions that he was the true expert in dragon breeding. Hagrid, of course, dared not ignore Rice's words; instead, he listened attentively, trying not to miss a single word.

"A three-week-old fire dragon can already be fed meat, raw or cooked, it doesn't matter. Chicken blood is a transitional food for fire dragons before their teeth are fully developed." Rice pointed to Ron's finger. If Nobeta could bite Ron like that, he'd be eating meat a long time ago.

"And the ratio is wrong too," Rice frowned as he looked at the mixture in the bottle. "The purpose of mixing brandy into chicken blood is to get the newly hatched dragon drunk, making it easier to transport. So the brandy should be high in alcohol, and the ratio with the chicken blood should be at least three to one. The little bit of brandy in your bottle will only leave it in a drunken state—which will help it breathe fire."

Hagrid suddenly realized, "So that's why it's arranged like this! It's for easy transport!"

In the Middle Ages, dragon traders would feed the baby dragons large amounts of highly concentrated alcohol or even sleeping potions after they successfully hatched, so that they would stay quietly in the box and sleep, making it easier to transport and sell them.

Hagrid didn't need to do that.

Norbert's volatile temper may also be related to his constant state of intoxication.

After receiving Rice's suggestion, Hagrid simply cut up some chicken for Nobita and tossed it under the bed. Nobita sniffed the chicken, then immediately began to chew it with relish.

"Ha, she can even roast chicken!" Hagrid squatted to the side, watching his little dragon eat like a child, his eyes full of happiness. Ron and Daphne couldn't resist running to Hagrid's side, taking chicken strips from his hands and tossing them to Norbert's mouth.

By the time Nobeta was full, Hagrid's stew was ready.

The flavors of chicken and vegetables blended together, releasing an enticing aroma. Not a drop of water was added to the entire stew; the broth's exceptional flavor came entirely from the juices released by the ingredients themselves.

Hagrid was right; the chickens he raised did indeed taste amazing. Even Daphne ate several large pieces without caring about her image.

What's even better is that after the rock-skin cake was soaked in the vegetable soup for a while, it softened and became chewable!

Hagrid, Rice, and the other two finished the whole pot of stew and the plate of rock cakes.

"Noberta only eats this kind of food, so his nutrition doesn't seem to be very comprehensive..." Rice suddenly said this while Hagrid was gnawing on a big chicken leg.

"Oh?" Hagrid immediately put down the chicken leg he was holding. This concerned Norbert's healthy growth, and he couldn't afford to be careless.

"It's probably not enough for a fire dragon to just eat chicken. Also, the environment here is very different from a dragon's lair. It's okay for it to live here for a short time, but it won't be good in the long run."

Rice wasn't exaggerating; it was indeed true. Wild fire dragon cubs are properly fed by their mothers. Their diet isn't limited to chicken alone, and the temperature in their nests is much higher than in Hagrid's Hut, with higher concentrations of substances like sulfur. Captive-bred fire dragons require their owners to artificially supplement these substances for healthy growth.

"Then I'll get it some rabbits, wild boars, ferrets, or something like that," Hagrid said, offering a solution.

"That's good, but Hagrid, how do you plan to solve the temperature problem? Just turning on the stove won't solve the problem." Rice coaxed Hagrid, prompting him to think more deeply.

"Oh dear, what should we do?" Hagrid's face showed a hint of anxiety. "Do you have any good ideas?"

He instinctively turned to Rice for help.

"Of course, there is a magic potion recipe recorded in an ancient book in my family collection, which can be used as a nutritional supplement when raising fire dragons." Lestu revealed his true intentions.

Daphne narrowed her eyes: This time it's not a letter left by an ancient wizard?

"Oh? Could you... give me the recipe? I'll find someone to make it." Hagrid was quite embarrassed as he asked for the recipe—it was someone's ancestral potion recipe, and it was really... awkward of him to just ask for it so directly.

But all of this is for the healthy growth of Norbert!

Hagrid was really worried sick about his fire dragon.

"Hagrid, you don't need to look for anyone. Rice is an excellent potion maker himself." Ron swallowed the food in his mouth and vaguely introduced Rice's achievements in the potion field to Hagrid.

"That's amazing!" Hagrid's eyes widened in astonishment when he heard that Rice could make a potion to heal the dragon's bite all by himself.

"Fortunately, thankfully, I have a little talent for potions."

Listening to Rice's self-deprecating manner, Daphne forcibly suppressed the urge to roll her eyes—this guy's intentions were clearly not pure!

Amidst Hagrid's profuse thanks, Rice agreed to provide Hagrid with Norberta's nutritional supplements, but in exchange, he needed Hagrid to prepare some "local specialties" from the Forbidden Forest for him—such as unicorn tail hair, etc.

As the sun set, Rice left Hagrid's hut carrying a bag filled with Hagrid's spoils from the Forbidden Forest over the years, including a bottle of fresh dragon blood!

"A very fruitful haul!" Daphne exclaimed, looking at the bag in Rice's hand.

"Isn't this mutually beneficial?" Rice's lips curled up slightly. "These things would just gather dust in his hands, but in my hands, they can become precious potions—even if Gryffindor were to spring up from the ground, they couldn't blame me."

In Rais's eyes, Hagrid hanging precious potion ingredients and smoked meat together was clearly a waste of resources. Rather than letting them gather dust and rot in a corner, he should keep them and let them play their proper role.

With the help of Rice's knowledge and supplements, Nobeta grew up healthy and strong, but this did not change the fact that it had to be sent away—a consensus reached by the group and Hagrid.

Ron sent a letter to his brother Charlie, arranging a time to meet.

That day finally arrived.

Under Hagrid's reluctant gaze, Norbert was given the sleeping potion prepared by Rice, stuffed into a large wooden box that had been prepared in advance, and then taken by Harry, Ron, and Daphne to the "delivery" location agreed upon in the letter.

Daphne was willing to get involved because she had developed a bond with Nobita while raising it. On the day it was to be given away, she felt a little reluctant to part with it.

Rice didn't have as much affection for Norbert, only taking some blood from it before it left. As for the farewell, he'd leave that to Daphne and the others; he had other things to do.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

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(End of this chapter)