Hogwarts: Please, Just Graduate Already!

"A bunch of magical creatures living under someone else's roof, and you really think you're the masters?" Wayne sneered, waving his wand. The bows and arrows twisted grotesquely. Before the Centaurs' stunned eyes, the bows and arrows in their hands turned into man-eating pythons that coiled tightly around their arms, their bloody maws opening as they bit toward their necks.

Chaos erupted as the Centaurs tried to shake off the snakes, only for them to coil even tighter.

Their sharp fangs sank into the Centaurs' necks, drawing screams of agony. Seeing this, even the seven legs Aragog had been secretly struggling with stopped moving.

And you fucking call yourself a Hufflepuff?

If this wasn't Slytherin behavior, I'd send you a bucket of Acromantula venom every year!

Ten

A Huge Profit, and Snape's Envy

Amid miserable screams, the Centaurs fell one after another.

Wayne had not actually gone for the kill. It looked as though they were bleeding heavily, but with Centaur constitutions, those were merely ordinary injuries.

After all, they were only transformed ordinary pythons and possessed no particularly potent venom. "Neigh!"

"Neigh!"

The mother Unicorn suddenly began to whinny. Wayne roughly understood what she meant. "You want me to let them go?"

The Unicorn nodded, not a trace of impurity in her clear, innocent eyes.

The Unicorn whinnied again. Through his talent, Wayne did not understand every word, but he roughly grasped what she wanted to say.

She was probably saying that she had once been close to the Centaur tribe, and the Centaurs would share some of the vegetables and fruit they cultivated with her.

Everyone was friends, so they should stop fighting. No one had died, anyway. "I can let them go."

Wayne stroked the Unicorn's long neck. "But from now on, you have to let me come find you to play."

The Unicorn blinked in confusion.

Even if he did not say so, she would never refuse if Wayne came looking for her.

Seeing the Unicorn's expression, Wayne suddenly felt profoundly guilty. His thoughts were far too complicated.

The animal world was just that simple. If you did them a favor, they would treat you well in every possible way.

Even Aragog the Acromantula was like that. Hagrid held a special place in his heart.

For Hagrid's sake, Aragog had forcibly quit eating people over the past fifty years.

As for ordering the other Acromantulas to hunt Wayne just now, that was merely animal instinct at work. It did not stop Wayne from seeing his good qualities.

"I'll give you some face."

As Wayne finished speaking, the pythons still fighting the Centaurs turned into ropes, temporarily restraining them.

"Go talk to them, so I don't have to fight them again after I untie them." Hearing Wayne's command, the Unicorn nudged her sleeping baby up with her head and placed it in Wayne's arms before walking over.

After whinnying several times, the Centaurs stopped struggling. Only then did Wayne undo the ropes.

Covering the wound on his neck, the leading Centaur staggered to his feet and approached Wayne, the humanoid half of his body inclining slightly.

"I'm sorry for misunderstanding you, little foal."

"My name is Lachlan. Please forgive our recklessness. Seeing Hestia by your side, we thought you had captured her."

"Wayne Lawrence." Wayne stated his name indifferently. "Hestia... is that your name?"

The latter question was directed at the Unicorn. "Neigh!"

"Alright, then I'll call you Hestia from now on."

As he spoke, Wayne frowned again. "Who told you to stop? Aragog, do you not want your venom sacs anymore?"

Aragog shuddered and hurriedly ordered the remaining Acromantulas to continue providing venom.

Never provoke that calamity.

Only after seeing the Acromantulas resume milking themselves did Wayne nod in satisfaction. "Lachlan, was it? Are you the Centaurs' leader?"

"No." Lachlan shook his head. "Centaurs are all equal. There is no so-called leader. I am merely the captain of a patrol squad. During patrols, my will takes priority."

"I'm not interested in how you divide things." Wayne waved a hand. "As long as your words carry weight, that is enough."

"Although I'm letting you go today, it will not come without a price." "Did you see what happened to the Acromantulas?" Wayne pointed at the "dairy cows." "That venom is the price they paid because they angered me. So what do you intend to offer to soothe my anger?"

Wayne watched the Centaur Lachlan with leisurely interest.

Following the principle of plucking every feather from a passing goose, even a Pixie passing by would have to leave behind some droppings. These intelligent Centaurs surely had quite a few good things.

"Don't agree to him, Lachlan!"

A Centaur with jet-black fur and a full beard roared furiously, "Centaurs will never be slaves! Evil little wizard, do not dream of making us submit!"

Boom!

Before he could finish speaking, Wayne raised his hand and fired a spell. Red light blasted the Centaur far away, as if darkness had swallowed him whole.

"Bane!"

Lachlan had no time to stop him and could only watch helplessly as his companion vanished before his eyes.

"Little foal, you've gone too far!"

Lachlan said angrily, "Aren't you afraid I'll tell Dumbledore?"

"Dumbledore?" A chill radiated from Wayne's gleaming black eyes. "Even if this matter went to the Ministry of Magic, I would still be in the right."

"At worst, I've only violated school rules. But what about you? You pointed bows and arrows at an underage wizard. Which side do you think Dumbledore would take?"

"As for that foul-mouthed Centaur, I was merely teaching you the rules." "Prisoners should behave like prisoners. Your mouths are for begging mercy, not for shouting defiance."

"And call me by my name. I'm human, not a Centaur. Stop calling me little foal."

Lachlan was rendered speechless by that tirade. In the end, they had acted rashly first, instinctively treating Wayne as a poacher before understanding the situation.

"What do you want?" Lachlan lowered his head even further and asked dejectedly.

"Human gold and jewels are useless to Centaurs. We have never collected such things."

"Who wants that junk?" Wayne waved impatiently. He lacked many things, but money was not one of them.

If he ran out of Galleons, he could just keep selling gold bricks.

"I heard Centaurs are not only skilled in prophecy and archery, but are also quite accomplished in Herbology."

"Bring me some herbs, and we'll call it even." "You can decide the exact amount yourself. But if it's too little..."

Wayne gave a cold laugh. "Then don't blame me for taking a stroll through your tribe."

Seeing that Wayne only wanted herbs, Lachlan immediately relaxed. The Forbidden Forest was the Centaurs' home. Gathering herbs could not be easier.

"No problem. Please wait a moment. I'll return and bring them over."

"How much can one horse carry? They'll go back with you." Wayne was not worried that the Centaurs would leave and never return.

Centaurs were single-minded. As long as they promised something, they would definitely do it. Sure enough, seeing that Wayne trusted him so completely, Lachlan looked at him with newfound respect.

After bowing again, he ordered the other Centaurs to follow him. Judging by their direction, they were likely going to find Bane, who had just been blasted away. Wayne could not help yawning.

After all that trouble, it was probably nearly two in the morning. Luckily, tomorrow was the weekend, so he could sleep in.

The Acromantulas carefully lined up to milk themselves. By the end, every spider was completely exhausted, yet the wooden barrel was still about one-fifth short of full. Wayne smiled without smiling. "Aragog, what do you say?"

"No!"

"We can fill it!"

"I still have venom. Add my share as well!" Aragog's legs had gone numb from being hung up for so long.

Wayne clicked his tongue. The vines instantly released him, and Aragog tumbled to the ground. It took him quite a while to crawl back up.

He practically drained his own venom sacs dry before filling the final fifth.

Aragog collapsed onto the ground. "There's no more. Really, not a single drop left."

"Alright, get lost." Wayne waved a hand, shooing them away as though they were flies. Rather than feeling angry, Aragog was thankful that Wayne had kept his word and spared their lives.

As for thoughts of revenge, not even the slightest trace arose.

At Wayne's age, he would only grow stronger with time. Aragog would already be thanking the heavens if Wayne did not come looking for trouble with his tribe.

Aragog had already decided that once he returned, they would move!

The farther away from where the Unicorn lived, the better, so they would not run into that calamity again. Unfortunately, Aragog did not know that he and his descendants had honorably become Wayne's designated suppliers. They would have plenty of dealings in the future.

Not long after they left, the Centaurs returned.

This time, more than the dozen from before had come. Several additional Centaurs accompanied them, each carrying bundles of herbs on their backs.

The leading Centaur put down the herbs and walked over to Wayne. "Hello, I'm Firenze."

Wayne nodded. He remembered the name. In the near future, Firenze would become Hogwarts' Divination professor.

"Mars is very bright tonight. I warned Lachlan and the others to be careful, but unfortunately, they did not take my advice to heart."

"I am deeply sorry for this entirely unnecessary conflict, as well as Bane's rudeness."

Lachlan lowered his head in shame.

Centaur divination mostly relied on celestial signs, and Mars often represented war and disaster.

"}5$,(0-^*2+ #9[6"#5|0_%１ It's fine. You don't get acquainted without fighting, right?"

After sharp-eyed Wayne saw the quantity and types of herbs clearly, how could he still remember the unpleasantness from before? He chatted cheerfully with Firenze.

After exchanging a few words and waiting for all the Centaurs to set down the herbs,

Firenze thanked Wayne again for his mercy, nodded to Hestia, and then led the rest of his people away.

"Whine..."

It was time to part.

Hestia called softly. Wayne rubbed her head. "Alright, you must be tired after giving birth. Go back and rest."

Reluctance filled her large eyes. Carrying her baby on her back, Hestia looked back with every step before finally vanishing into the darkness. "Ho-Oh, take me back."

"Once we return to the Forbidden Forest, stay by Hestia's side for now." "Chirp chirp!"

Firelight flickered, and the Forbidden Forest returned to peace.

The next morning, Wayne went to see Cho again. The little witch blushed the moment she saw him. After Madam Pomfrey examined her and confirmed that Cho was completely fine, she discharged her from the hospital wing. She could even participate in the Quidditch match afterward.

Cho thanked Wayne profusely again. This time, however, there was no hug.

"Come to think of it, does this count as aiding the enemy?" Wayne suddenly teased with a smile. "Don't forget, Ravenclaw's opponent in November is Hufflepuff."

"Hmph."

Cho rolled her lovely eyes. "Even if you say that, I won't go easy on you."

Wayne nodded in agreement. "Definitely don't go easy on me. I'm afraid you'll lose too badly and come crying to me afterward."

"You're the one who cries." Cho protested. "I'm not the kind of girl who cries whenever something happens."

"Oh?" Wayne drew out the word. "I wonder whose eyes were all red when I came over yesterday."

"Hey, stop talking!" Cho blushed and chased after Wayne, trying to hit him. Soon, the sound of their playful pursuit echoed through the corridor.

Fortunately, Filch and Mrs. Norris were not on the second floor. Otherwise, they would definitely have given both of them detention.

Cho's lightning-fast recovery caused quite a stir in Ravenclaw.

Quite a few of them had heard Madam Pomfrey's diagnosis yesterday, yet Cho was discharged after only one night.

Not only that, she could even participate in next month's Quidditch match.

When faced with everyone's questions, Cho merely smiled and said that Madam Pomfrey had given her an extremely precious miracle medicine, which was why she recovered so quickly.

Madam Pomfrey had taught Cho to say that in order to protect Wayne and prevent Ho-Oh's secret from being exposed.

It had to be said that, when it came to caring for young wizards, Hogwarts' professors were all quite competent.

That was also one reason Wayne did not mind revealing some of his secrets at school.

Overall, the Wizarding World was still fairly peaceful. Setting aside the uncertainty brought by Defense Against the Dark Arts professors, Hogwarts truly was a haven.

He did not need to worry about Dumbledore or the four Heads of House coveting his wealth. As for everyone else...

What kind of rotten trash was worthy of his concern? If they provoked him, he would simply blast them with missiles.

Do not forget, besides being a wizard, he was also a noble!

Still, while Cho's recovery was certainly cause for happiness,

one thing worried Wayne: the atmosphere between him, Cho, and Hermione had become somewhat strange.

The three of them had often acted together before. Even when Wayne was absent, Cho and Hermione would go to the Hogwarts Library together to do homework.

Their relationship had been very good.

But ever since that night, Hermione and Cho were rarely present at the same time. Even when Wayne forcibly brought them together, they seldom spoke. When alone together, though, they acted perfectly normal. Wayne had no solution for this. He had been busy to death lately.