The Amazing Great Willow Tree

When Herbology arrived on Monday afternoon, the Young Wizards were still deeply shocked by the Great Trees outside the Greenhouse.

Ron finally understood what Luan had meant by a small magical change.

"Luan, are you sure these are the three saplings you dug up from the Forbidden Forest? Not some Great Trees planted by giants?"

Looking at the willow whose crown had already grown lush enough to hold seven or eight people, Ron could hardly believe it.

He clearly remembered fooling around with Harry on the way back a week ago, carrying willow branches that were not even as thick as a finger.

"Of course. They just grew a little faster." Luan answered with an easy expression and complete certainty.

Harry also looked in surprise at the holly tree on the other side. He had seen holly used as landscaping on Privet Drive.

Those had all been neatly trimmed, low-growing plants lining the roadside, while the one outside the Greenhouse had already grown over twenty feet tall. It was even a good deal taller than Uncle Vernon's two-story house.

Hermione looked at the grapevines covering the Greenhouse glass. Only now did she realize where the fruit they had eaten that morning had come from.

"Are you sure these force-ripened grapes are edible?"

Hermione looked at Luan suspiciously.

"Of course. At the very least, I can guarantee nothing will happen within ten days."

Ten days had passed since Luan first ate the grapes, which was why he dared say that.

After answering Hermione's question, Luan quickly entered the Greenhouse.

Professor Sprout had already installed four Oil Lamps inside, using them to replace the sunlight blocked by the grapevines.

"All right, everyone, hurry inside. The sunlight isn't very good today, so it's the perfect time to learn about Red Cap Mushrooms."

After Herbology ended, Luan found Professor Sprout and asked her about the Great Willow Tree.

"Enormous, possessing magical traits, and without any Magical Creatures guarding it."

Sprout thought for a moment and softly muttered, "Has Professor Binns started teaching the history of Ancient Magical Plants?"

Then she shook her head slightly, finding it unlikely.

Professor Binns was not only Hogwarts's sole Ghost Professor, but also its most stubborn professor. It seemed as though he had not changed the textbooks he used in class for the past hundred years.

After ruling out Professor Binns, Sprout turned to look at Luan.

"Mr. Scarlett, based on the traits you described, it should at least be a plant from five hundred years ago. Back then, Muggles had not yet developed the habit of chopping down trees indiscriminately, so many magical plants survived."

As she said this, Sprout wore a regretful expression.

To her, never having seen those magical plants was an enormous pity.

"Five hundred years ago! Are you sure, Professor?"

"Of course. It could even be over a thousand years old. Wasn't this from a record you read in the library?"

"Uh... yes, I saw it in the library. I wasn't sure whether it was real, so I came to ask you."

Seeing the puzzled look in the professor's eyes, Luan went along with it.

"All right. There's certainly nothing wrong with reading more, but I think you should first learn the herbological plants we have now. After all, those extinct plants aren't going to come back to life for you to study."

"Yes, Professor."

Luan packed up his textbooks and left the Greenhouse.

"This child isn't really going to study those vanished plants, is he?"

Sprout thought highly of Young Wizards like Luan, who displayed a talent for herbological plants in First Year.

But the direction Luan was taking in his studies left her with a faint feeling that something was wrong.

After leaving the Greenhouse, Luan went straight to the library. In the Herbology section, he found a book titled "Ancient Magical Plants."

It recorded many magical plants that had long gone extinct, as well as some ordinary magical plants of extreme age. The Great Willow Tree clearly belonged to the latter category.

--

According to my observations, once magical plants reach a certain age, especially once they surpass a thousand years, their magical traits undergo explosive growth.

-- Beaumont Marjoribanks --

Luan had seen this man's name on Chocolate Frog Cards. He was a great pioneer of Herbology.

The conclusions in the book were magical knowledge he had summarized after venturing into uninhabited regions and discovering magical plants.

Luan compared the traits of magical trees more than a thousand years old described in the book and found that none of them were as magical as that Great Willow Tree.

"Could that Great Willow Tree be more than a thousand years old?"

After carefully reading the relevant passages, Luan decided not to reveal the Great Willow Tree's secret for the time being.

After all, at Hogwarts, he was merely a student who never left the school grounds, while in Xilin, he was a half-baked spirit-sensitive who had never encountered a Spellcaster.

Although Luan could not yet assess the Great Willow Tree's value, he could guess that the appearance of such a magical plant would definitely cause a stir.

After returning the book to its original shelf, Luan left the library and went to the Great Hall for dinner.

The moment he stepped through the Great Hall's doors, he heard Ron shouting.

"Isn't it delicious? We ate this ages ago!"

At first, Luan thought Ron was talking about some dish his mother had made, but when he reached the table, he realized Ron meant Hagrid's Rock Cakes.

This food had actually appeared on the table. Luan looked up at the other three tables, and the same dessert had been placed on all of them.

"Ron said you and Hagrid invented this dish?"

Hermione's voice came from beside him. Luan caught a trace of suspicion in her eyes.

"That's right."

After answering, Luan sat down and served himself a bowl of Hagrid's Rock Cakes.

After taking a bite, he found that the fragrance of milk had replaced the tea flavor inside, making it richer and smoother.

After getting her answer, Hermione settled down and began eating Hagrid's Rock Cakes as well. The sweet, silky texture suited her taste perfectly.

Yet she increasingly felt that Luan's specialties were rather strange.

Cooking, growing trees, wood carving, slingshots.

Luan was excellent at all of those, yet his grasp of the school's basic knowledge—the things he should have mastered most—was terribly weak.

"How strange."

Hermione spoke very softly, and her words were entirely drowned out by Ron's voice.

"Luan, you're here! Hurry up and tell Seamus that we really did eat this dessert before."

Seeing Ron, Seamus, and everyone around them looking over expectantly, Luan nodded heavily.

"See? I wasn't lying to everyone."

Ron continued showing off one of his few special experiences, while Luan turned to Hermione.

"Where's Harry?"

"Wood called him away for Quidditch training."

Hermione spoke even more quietly this time. It was not that she did not want to speak louder, but because Wood had warned them all.

Harry would be Gryffindor's secret weapon, and no one was allowed to reveal it beforehand.

Everyone had kept that promise, Luan included.

However, Luan did not think the secret could remain hidden forever.

There was still over a month until Gryffindor's first match of the year, and as a Seeker, Harry inevitably had to fly very high during training.

The older students who wandered about in pairs after class would eventually discover this not-so-secret secret.

Luan did not stay in the Great Hall for long. Seeing Hagrid's Rock Cakes on the table, he decided to pay Hagrid a visit.

Before the sun set, Luan once again arrived at Hagrid's Hut.

Knock, knock, knock.

The wooden door opened, revealing Hagrid's huge, bearded face.

"Oh, come in. I was just looking for you."