Hogwarts: This holy light is righteously evil.

Centered on the cliff, within a radius of 100 meters, only withered tree trunks and broken branches remain, the ground is desolate and ruined, and not a single living plant can be seen.

Puni secretly guessed that the ecological decay in this area was most likely related to the basilisk's special abilities. There was no record of such a phenomenon in any magical texts, but the basilisk's gaze was extremely destructive. Plants and trees are living organisms, and it was only natural that they would wither and die completely due to its long-term pressure and gaze.

As for the magical creatures that have completely disappeared from the surrounding area, this is a normal phenomenon. Several months have passed since Penny first sensed the basilisk awakening and displaying its bloodthirsty and restless aura on Hogwarts campus. Even though the basilisk had been dormant for a long time before, its recent frequent activities and rampages were enough to make all the creatures in the area flee.

They either became food for the basilisk monsters or migrated to avoid danger, which created the almost ecologically desolate scene before us. In particular, the basilisk monsters in the molting stage consumed a lot of energy, and their hunting needs far exceeded those of usual. Their hunting range was also wider, so the creatures in this area were naturally wiped out.

The desolate and lifeless environment plunged Puni into a new dilemma.

His main purpose in coming to the Forbidden Forest was to find the habitat of the giant eight-eyed spiders, but with no clues around him, he had no way of knowing where they were active.

Leaving the dormitory at night, sneaking into the secret room, and then arriving at the forbidden forest via the secret passage, the whole process has already taken two hours. The return trip will also take more than an hour. If this tedious journey is repeated every night, it will be inefficient, energy-consuming, and will only waste time.

Ok?

Just as Puni was pondering the optimal exploration plan.

He suddenly noticed something.

It wasn't entirely lifeless here; on the contrary, he saw a... in an open space.

dragon?

How could there be a dragon here?

And it seems quite strong?

Puni was puzzled.

After thinking it over, Puni decided to use his abilities to control the dragon and make it his servant.

"Shh!"

A beam of holy light flashed.

The dragon was then captured by Puni.

The other dragon was not an adult, but a giant dragon that looked to be still in its juvenile stage.

But it still looks very big.

"Now, besides my human companions, I finally have one of the few real pets I have, right?"

From now on, you'll be called Pipi.

Suddenly, a steady running sound came from the woods in the distance, and several figures were rapidly approaching the cliff.

Their lower bodies are those of a horse, with limbs and torso that allow for steady and swift running, while their upper bodies are in the outline of a human. Their distinctive features identify them as a centaur tribe that inhabits the depths of the Forbidden Forest.

Puni's eyes narrowed, and he reacted immediately. He quickly unfolded his invisibility cloak, completely covering himself, and leaned down to press himself firmly against Pipi's back, completely concealing his figure.

Four or five centaurs quickly ran to the vicinity, and upon seeing the venomous dragon standing at the entrance of the passage, they all stopped abruptly and instantly went into a state of high alert.

The centaur tribe is skilled in astrology and divination, and can predict future trends by observing changes in celestial phenomena. However, this ability is not absolute. Every celestial anomaly will be interpreted very differently by different centaurs, and the predicted future results will vary greatly, so it is not unique.

In addition, the centaur people are stubborn and easily angered, and extremely wary. Once provoked, they can act in extreme and ruthless ways, which can easily lead to fierce conflicts.

Puni wasn't sure if these centaurs were the ones he happened to know.

The centaurs kept their eyes fixed on Pipi's massive body, remaining vigilant for the dragon's movements and guarding against a sudden attack, while whispering amongst themselves and exchanging their thoughts.

Human language is merely a tool for the centaurs to communicate with others; for internal communication, they have always used their own ancient mother tongue.

Fortunately, Puni could understand.

Several centaurs huddled together, exchanging whispers in their native language, sharing their doubts and judgments. Their discussion revolved entirely around the giant fire dragon that had suddenly appeared in the Serpent Path. They were puzzled as to why such a powerful dragon monster would suddenly appear in this familiar forbidden forest area.

In recent months, this area has become an absolute forbidden zone for the centaur tribe. During the time the basilisk was entrenched here, three tribesmen were devoured by it, and five others were instantly killed by its gaze. The tragic casualties have made all the centaurs avoid this area like the plague.

However, the recent changing celestial phenomena gave this group of resentful centaurs a glimmer of hope. Having witnessed the tragic deaths of their companions, they harbored a deep hatred for the basilisk. Through astronomical observation and deduction, they determined that the basilisk, which had been committing evil for so long, had reached its end. It would either perish completely or its strength would be greatly reduced, making it no longer a threat.

Convinced of the auspicious omen foretold by the stars, the group disregarded the advice of the rest of the tribe and insisted on venturing into this forbidden land together, intending to settle their hatred and avenge their companions while the serpent monster was weakened.

But when they reached the cliff, the scene they saw was completely beyond their expectations. The entrance to the basilisk's lair, which had been tightly closed, slowly opened. What emerged from the deep passage was not the basilisk they had imagined, but a huge dragon with a ferocious aura.

The sudden turn of events completely stunned the centaurs. They stopped and stared intently at Pipi's body, their hearts filled with shock. They had never known that such a powerful dragon creature lived in the Forbidden Forest. For a moment, they forgot to move. Their attention was completely drawn to the dragon, and they did not notice that a human figure was hidden on the dragon's back, concealed by an invisibility cloak.

After listening to their conversation from the shadows, Puni instantly understood the whole story. Without further hesitation, he immediately gave the order to Pipi beneath him.

Pipi, who was in a lazy and casual state, switched to a different state after receiving Puni's order. He raised his head and let out a loud roar that reverberated through the forest towards the wary centaur group ahead, displaying great power.

The moment the roar subsided, scorching dragon flames erupted, instantly spreading across a vast area, filling the entire open space, completely blocking all of the centaurs' escape routes and covering their entire field of vision.

The scorching heat hit them head-on, and the immense intimidation completely shattered the centaurs' psychological defenses. The crowd roared in terror, no longer daring to linger, and turned to flee in panic.

Not all horsemen can remain calm and escape smoothly in the face of a sudden crisis. The youngest horseman in the group, who has not yet grown a beard, completely broke down. The extreme fear made his limbs stiffen and tremble uncontrollably. He was unable to control the rhythm of his run and his legs gave way, causing him to fall heavily, landing right on the path that the dragon flames were bound to spread.

Puni lay on the dragon's back, watching the scene before him through the invisibility cloak. He was somewhat surprised. He had thought that the centaurs, as the native race of the Forbidden Forest, were already used to all kinds of monster threats and their ability to react would be far superior to that of ordinary creatures. He did not expect that the mere intimidating fire attack would cause them to panic and lose their composure, unable to even do the basic evasion.

He quickly made Pipi turn its head.

And all the centaurs ran away.

"Never mind, let's come back another time. We didn't find those giant spiders, but we unexpectedly gained a dragon, which is not bad. As for what to do with you... I happen to have a pet suitcase, so you can stay in there for now."

Regardless of who put this dragon here, it now belongs to them.

......

The Great Hall of Hogwarts was bustling with noise as students leisurely enjoyed their meal. Suddenly, Marcos turned to the side, gently nudged Penny's arm, and pointed towards the exit of the Great Hall, his face full of surprise.

"Look over there! It's Headmaster Dumbledore! I feel like it's been ages since I've seen him at the school."

Penny's mouth was full of food, his cheeks slightly puffed out, and he chewed slowly. Following the direction Marcos indicated, he looked up and saw Dumbledore at the entrance of the Great Hall. He was standing there, talking quietly with Professor McGonagall, his expression serious and his demeanor composed. Penny deliberately kept his attention to himself and did not rush closer to spy, so as not to attract the attention of the two professors.

Eddie, who was standing nearby, became interested in their conversation and, with obvious respect and excitement, took the initiative to speak.

"The principal is already very busy. He holds several positions, including Chief Wizard of Wisengamo and Chairman of the International Wizarding Federation. He handles top-level matters and has many responsibilities that we ordinary students have no idea about."

It's easy to see that Eddie is a true Dumbledore supporter. Having heard countless legendary stories about the headmaster since childhood, he has long regarded him as an irreplaceable great man and role model in his heart.

But Puni's thoughts were completely different. In his eyes, apart from his unfathomable top-level magical power, Dumbledore's state of mind was essentially no different from that of an ordinary old man. His occasional casual and relaxed demeanor could add interest to a dull life, but what the years left behind was more endless reminiscence and regret. The older one gets, the easier it is to dwell on the past and feel remorse.

He knew perfectly well that the root cause of Dumbledore's eventual downfall was the various regrets and guilt of the past, which bound his true self and clouded his clear judgment. People always realize the value of the present only after they have completely lost it.

Puni finally managed to swallow the food in his mouth and was just about to pull himself out of his thoughts when he was surprised to find that Dumbledore in the distance suddenly turned his gaze and fell on their table.

Eddie instantly became excited, lowering his voice to barely contain his excitement: "Look! The principal is looking this way!"

Marcos, on the other hand, was quite relaxed. As always, he casually glanced at it and said, "It was probably just a coincidence that his gaze happened to sweep over us. There's no need to get so worked up."

Puni picked up the soup bowl on the table, took a sip of the hot soup, and said with a hint of teasing, "He did come over specifically. It's most likely that you were too excited and your movements were too exaggerated, which made the principal think that you were not feeling well."

This teasing remark left Eddie speechless. Not to be outdone, he quickly raised his hand and gently tapped the bottom of the soup bowl while Puni was looking down to drink his soup.

The sudden force from the bottom of the bowl caused it to shake slightly. Puni steadied his arm, but still couldn't completely avoid the splashing soup. The warm soup splattered all around his mouth and nose, making him look rather disheveled.

Marcos burst out laughing upon seeing this, giving Eddie an approving gesture: "Great job, Eddie! That was a brilliant counterattack!"

Qiu, sitting next to him, couldn't help but smile and gently took out a clean handkerchief, handing it to Puni and kindly letting him wipe away the stains.

Puni carefully wiped the soup off his face, smiled, gave Eddie a thumbs-up, and readily admitted defeat.

"You're pretty good; you managed to find my weakness. Next time, I'll just use a spoon to drink the soup and play it safe."

Eddie immediately objected, unwilling to let him easily change this habit: "That won't do! Drinking soup with a spoon is too formal."

Dumbledore had finished his conversation with Professor McGonagall and was walking slowly toward the students' dining table.

The next second, Eddie immediately straightened up, stood up abruptly from his seat, and shed all his embarrassment and laziness. He became reserved and upright, and took the initiative to bow and greet the approaching principal.

"Hello, Principal!"

Dumbledore responded to Eddie's greeting with his usual gentle and composed smile, his gaze falling softly on Eddie.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Camicher. Many of my teachers have mentioned you to me, praising you as a typical Ravenclaw student—intelligent, diligent, and always passionate about knowledge."

Just as Eddie was blushing and overjoyed by the principal's praise, Puni suddenly spoke up.

"It's because I'm too introverted and not good at expressing myself."

Eddie's blush faded instantly, replaced by intense anger. His face turned bright red with a mixture of embarrassment and rage. However, what prevented him from retaliating was that Dumbledore was the first to burst into laughter. This gentle smile instantly suppressed the anger in Eddie's heart, forcing him to swallow his complaints.

“Lestrange is right. Being a man of few words is indeed one of Camitchell’s few weaknesses.” Dumbledore’s smile remained unchanged as he turned his gaze to Penny beside him, his eyes filled with expectation. “But I believe that with the company of these lively and cheerful friends, this little weakness will soon be overcome. Am I right?”

Faced with the principal's gaze, Puni immediately chimed in, taking the opportunity to smooth things over for Eddie, "That's right. When Eddie first enrolled, he was extremely introverted and hardly ever interacted with anyone. Now he dares to argue and fight back with me, and he'll definitely become more and more outgoing in the future."

Eddie's expression softened slightly, and most of the frustration in his heart dissipated. But before he could fully calm down, Roger, who was standing next to him, once again interrupted him.

"He was forced into this! If he doesn't learn to speak up and argue back, he'll be bullied by Puni until he has no chance to fight back."

Puni immediately raised an eyebrow and retorted, refusing to accept the accusation of bullying, "Don't talk nonsense. You've gone way too far than me when you tease and prank Eddie."

"My skills are at best small-scale, not even a third as good as yours!"

The two argued back and forth in front of Dumbledore, their childlike behavior vividly displayed.

Dumbledore stared at the two of them playfully bickering for a couple of seconds, then his smile grew even wider.

"Youth is a wonderful thing. It is a rare blessing to have a group of close friends with whom you can bicker freely and accompany you on your journey. I am usually alone, and even when I have Fox by my side, it rarely responds to my idle chatter."

Autumn, Marcos, Eddie, and Roger were all unaware of Fox's true identity and could only listen to the principal's reflections. Only Penny immediately chimed in, offering a fresh perspective.

“Countless wizards outside envy you for having a loyal phoenix, and you are proficient in twelve ancient languages. However, no one has specifically studied whether the phoenix’s cry is an independent language. Perhaps it is responding to you every time, but we just cannot understand it and cannot perceive it.”

“Oh? That’s a perspective I’ve never considered before.” Dumbledore raised an eyebrow slightly, looking surprised.

"Principal, there's something I'd like to ask you. What methods do you use to maintain your hair and beard so that you can always keep them neat and elegant?"

Dumbledore's hair and beard were a clean, bright silver-white, with an even and full color that stood out in the soft light of the Great Hall. His hair and beard grew extremely long, with the hair hanging down to his waist and the thick beard also reaching his waist, which not only showed his long history but also revealed that he had taken great care of himself over the years. Even though his appearance had aged and he was very old, he had never neglected to take care of his appearance.

Seeing the principal's consistently neat and refined appearance, Puni was always filled with curiosity and wanted to find out her unique hair care routine.

Dumbledore was taken aback, then a clear smile appeared in his eyes, and he was in a good mood.

He chuckled softly, "No student has ever asked me for these kinds of techniques before. I've always been quite proud of the maintenance methods I've figured out, and today someone is finally willing to take the initiative to learn about them."

Puni jokingly suggested, "Since the principal has so much experience with this, he could write a whole book on hair care! I'm sure that once it's published, it will be a bestseller, and the Galleons it earns will be enough for you to fill the entire principal's office with magical snacks."

Everyone knows that cockroach piles are a unique snack in the wizarding world. They look very similar to live cockroaches and can even wriggle and jump on their own. Their appearance is terrifying and bizarre. Apart from a few wizards who like the strange, most people dare not try to eat them.

The thought of the entire principal's office being filled with swarms of cockroaches crawling around sent chills down the spines of Marcos, Eddie, and Roger, who were standing nearby. They felt a deep sense of dread and resistance.

Dumbledore was intrigued and nodded slightly in agreement: "It does sound like a good idea, but I'm usually very busy and can't confirm a completion date for the manuscript right now. Puni, you'll have to wait a long time."

“I’m not in a hurry at all.” Puni laughed lightly and calmly. “Those who really need this care method are the wizards who are suffering from hair loss and dry hair.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he changed the subject and smoothly introduced the cooperation plan he had already planned. "Taking advantage of today's opportunity, I would also like to discuss a new cooperation matter with the principal."