A Certain Magical Hogwarts

Chapter 183: Chapter 183: Mars is Bright Tonight



The night was dark, with only the faint rustle of wind in the trees.

Under the protection of Disillusionment Charms, four figures blended seamlessly into their surroundings.

Experienced and agile, they moved like seasoned hunters, skillfully avoiding Filch and patrolling professors as they made their way out of the castle toward the Forbidden Forest.

As they neared the forest's edge, loud barking erupted from Hagrid's hut.

"Fang, what is it? Someone outside?"

The lamp in Hagrid's hut flickered on. Wrapped in a furry coat, Hagrid peeked out through the door, his face meeting the biting wind, but saw no one.

"Blimey, that's the third time tonight!"

Slamming the door shut, Hagrid turned to see that Fang had taken advantage of his absence to dive into the cozy bed.

"Get out, Fang!" Hagrid scolded, "Hey—stop biting! Careful, my little baby is sleeping, don't disturb it!"

A series of barks, chair scraping, and muffled crashes followed from inside the hut.

"Enough, Fang," Hagrid said, his gruff voice resigned. "I know, I know why you're so restless. Fine, I'll introduce you to Mrs. Norris when I see Filch next.

"And don't worry, Boba Tea won't find out. Heh heh…"

A low chuckle emanated from the hut, and soon the lamp was snuffed out. Hagrid had gone back to bed.

Once the sound of his snores filled the air, the four quietly passed the hut, crossed Hagrid's pumpkin patch, and slipped into the Forbidden Forest.

Well away from the hut, Cedric finally whispered, "Who do you think Hagrid's 'little baby' is?"

Fred shook his head. "No clue. He was gone for days during Christmas, and ever since he got back, he's been acting secretive."

"Bet he's got another magical creature," George said.

The four exchanged glances.

It wouldn't be a surprise. Last year, Hagrid had smuggled in Fluffy, the three-headed dog. Finding out he was raising a dragon wouldn't shock William in the slightest.

"A dragon would be perfect," Cedric said dreamily. "Then we'd have dragon nerves for wand cores.

"Of course, Hagrid wouldn't give them up. But a Thunderbird—now that would be ideal! We could pluck its tail feathers every day."

Cedric's imagination ran wild again.

He already had a Thunderbird tail feather, courtesy of William, who had acquired it from Newt.

Thunderbird tail feathers made for excellent wand cores, though they were notoriously difficult to master. Wands with these cores were incredibly powerful and particularly suited for Transfiguration.

What made them unique was the Thunderbird's acute sensitivity to supernatural danger, allowing wands made from its feathers to anticipate and cast spells before a wizard consciously acted.

When Cedric had received the feather, he was so ecstatic that he nearly kissed William. Thankfully, William had dodged in time, kicking Cedric away to preserve his dignity.

The group ventured deeper into the forest, with William holding a rolled parchment in hand.

It wasn't the Marauder's Map but rather a map of the Forbidden Forest.

The forest was vast and dangerous, home to countless magical creatures and tribes. Wandering into the wrong territory could spell disaster.

Take the centaur tribes, for instance. Highly territorial, they would kill any wizard who dared enter their domain.

Having lived on the edge of the Forbidden Forest for fifty years, Hagrid knew the area like the back of his hand. Over the years, he had created a detailed map marking the territories of various creatures and the locations of commonly found plants.

Even Professor Sprout required Hagrid's guidance when gathering herbs from the forest.

William had managed to procure a copy of the map from Hagrid. Though the groundskeeper was reluctant to let them enter the forest, his greater fear was that they would wander into danger without even knowing the way. So he reluctantly gave it to them.

Tonight, they weren't planning to go too deep; they were only here to harvest hallucinogenic mushrooms.

The mushrooms were ripe for picking, and if left unharvested, their aroma would attract other creatures.

As a key ingredient in Felix Felicis, hallucinogenic mushrooms contributed to the potion's occasional side effect of overconfidence when consumed in excess.

The forest was pitch black and eerily quiet.

Following the marked path, they walked some distance before coming to a fork, where they turned right onto a narrow, winding trail that disappeared into the shadowy depths of the woods.

"What's that?" Cedric asked suddenly, pointing ahead.

A sliver of moonlight broke through the canopy, illuminating a patch of silver-blue blood on the fallen leaves.

William lit his wand, the glow banishing the darkness.

Under the flickering light, the pool of blood shimmered faintly.

William's expression darkened. "Unicorn blood."

Unicorns, creatures of unparalleled beauty and purity, were gold as children and turned pure white upon maturing.

They were gentle, magical beings, and few creatures in the Forbidden Forest would dare harm them.

The presence of so much unicorn blood was deeply troubling.

"That unicorn must be gravely injured," William said grimly.

"Should we split up to search for it?" Fred suggested.

"No," William said firmly. "Unicorns possess strong magical powers. I've never heard of one being attacked before, which means whatever harmed it is no ordinary creature.

"We stick together."

If they stayed as a group, William felt confident in protecting everyone. Splitting up would only increase the risk.

Following the trail of blood, they passed a moss-covered stump, the sound of trickling water reaching their ears. A stream was nearby.

They slowed their pace, straining to catch even the faintest sounds.

Suddenly, something moved in the vines ahead.

All four wands snapped up, aimed at the disturbance.

The figure emerged from the foliage, its gaze locking onto them.

It was a centaur.

From the waist up, he appeared human, with platinum hair. Below the waist, his body was that of a gleaming cream-colored horse, complete with a long silver tail trailing behind.

"Oh, it's you, Firenze," William said with a sigh of relief, lowering his wand.

"Good evening," Cedric added with a friendly wave.

Firenze, a centaur they had met a few times before, nodded in greeting.

"Good evening, young wizards," Firenze replied, his deep voice low and sad, "Were you about to attack me with your wands?"

"No, Firenze," William explained. "We found unicorn blood. Is something attacking them?"

"Yes," Firenze said, sighing heavily. He raised his head to gaze at the sky, his entire demeanor melancholic.

He opened his mouth to speak, but George interrupted with a loud comment: "The stars are bright tonight!"

"Yes, Mars is particularly bright," Fred added with a grin.

"Venus is still as dazzling as ever," Cedric chimed in. "It outshines Mars, you know."

"The moon is the brightest," William said solemnly. "Large and round."

Firenze: "…"

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