At lunchtime, Snape did not appear in the dining hall. Even Dumbledore had disappeared.
At the Gryffindor table, Seamus waved a chicken leg around like a wand as he told everyone how Charles had just saved Neville and himself.
"Nice work!"
"Not bad at all!"
The Weasley Twins kept piling chicken legs and steaks onto Charles's plate as they spoke.
Fred said, "So you're actually this good. This afternoon, we can... feel at ease while researching the Bag of Holding."
George added, "Perhaps we can... conduct some more in-depth research."
Sixth Brother looked at Fourth Brother and Fifth Brother in confusion, feeling that the two of them were talking about something else entirely.
After lunch, Charles and the twins were just about to leave the castle when they ran into Professor McGonagall.
"Mr. Weasley, Mr. Weasley," Professor McGonagall said with a stern expression. "Come to my office with me. I need you to explain why the fire in the Common Room fireplace can freeze water."
Fred and George instantly wilted.
Professor McGonagall then asked Charles, "Where are you planning to go?"
Charles and the twins had already prepared an excuse. "Professor Sprout approved my planting some Moonpetal Flowers in the open ground near the greenhouses. I asked the two Mr. Weasleys to help me clear away the weeds."
Before lunch, he had given Professor Sprout the map he had marked. All the herbs had been correctly identified, so the professor had pointed out a plot of land for him on the map.
Professor McGonagall did not suspect anything. Sprout had already mentioned it to her during lunch, even joking that Charles might as well transfer houses.
Thus, Charles had to leave the castle alone and take a look around the greenhouses.
The plot Professor Sprout had given him was quite good. A small stream flowing out of the Forbidden Forest ran nearby, winding around behind the castle before eventually emptying into the Great Lake.
Charles stared at the stream and thought for a long time. Perhaps nothing would happen if he followed the water a little way into the Forbidden Forest. At worst, he could simply turn back the way he came.
Once the thought appeared, he could not suppress it. His curiosity about the Forbidden Forest soon gained the upper hand.
He looked around. There was no one nearby, so he took out his wand and followed the stream toward the Forbidden Forest.
It was already autumn. Fallen leaves covered the ground, and some of the shorter plants had begun to wither.
The trees around him were enormous. Their roots crisscrossed over the ground and were covered in moss.
From time to time, a spotted bird flew through the woods without making a sound. It was probably a Dementor.
Occasionally, a large rotten tree lay fallen among the trees, covered in mushrooms that were either brightly colored or plain-looking.
Several dead rats lay around the mushrooms, while furry Puffapods carried out their duties as scavengers.
Charles merely recorded the shapes and features of the mushrooms from a distance. He would not touch them before determining whether they were dangerous.
Black shadows appeared in the distance from time to time. They were the Thestrals raised by Hogwarts.
White figures occasionally appeared as well. They were probably unicorns.
Before he knew it, Charles had traveled a long way and arrived at the stream's source: a small lake about half the size of a soccer field.
Suddenly, a girl's scream rang out from nearby!
Charles froze. Could another student be here too?
He hurried over, and the sight before him left him stunned.
Beside a patch of blueberry bushes, a female Centaur stood at bay with a bow and arrows against five Acromantulas roughly her own size. The spiders had already surrounded her.
Just as the white webs were about to touch the female Centaur, a tremendous force yanked her into the air. She flew out of the encirclement and landed beside the lake.
When the Acromantulas saw their dinner fly away, they hurriedly turned around. Then they spotted Charles, who could serve as dinner just as well, and charged toward the lakeside.
The corner of Charles's mouth twitched. He now knew where Old Man went to buy groceries.
He pointed his wand at the fastest and largest Acromantula and cast an Accio Charm. Then he followed with a Projectile Charm, smashing the second-fastest one into a rolling heap and knocking over the third in the process.
Next, he cast a combination of the Levitation Charm and Stupefy Charm on the fourth Acromantula, slamming it hard into the ground with a sound like a burst water bag.
At that moment, the fifth Acromantula charged from another direction. Charles turned and used an Accio Charm on the quiver at the female Centaur's waist, pulled out all ten or so arrows, and sent them flying with a Projectile Charm.
The sharp arrowheads pierced through the Acromantula's shell. Its head looked as though it had grown a crown before it died on the spot.
Of the first three Acromantulas, the second was crushed to death by its own companion. The third had already climbed back up, but the Accio Charm immediately seized it and flung it toward a distant tree.
The largest Acromantula had been left somewhat dazed by the impact. Once it regained its senses, it continued charging toward Charles.
The next moment, the sounds of a shell breaking and flesh being crushed into paste rang out.
A group of Centaurs carrying bows and arrows rushed over as soon as they heard the girl's scream. When they charged out of the woods, they happened to see a human child use magic to hurl a large stone and crush the last Acromantula to death.
The Centaurs circled the area. No Acromantulas were still alive. One had been crushed to death by the boulder, a second had likewise had its head and upper body smashed by a heavy object, a third had been pierced through by a branch and hung from a tree, a fourth had an abdomen like a torn bag split open by a slit, and the fifth had arrows sticking out all over the top of its head.
Charles put away his wand and studied the Centaurs examining the scene.
The Centaurs were human from the waist up and horse from the waist down, divided at the navel. Their skin was somewhat dark, while the color of their horsehair matched their hair and varied from Centaur to Centaur. Massive bows and quivers hung from their bodies.
None of the Centaurs wore clothes, including the girl.
Charles had seen plenty in his time. He did not lose his composure over it or react too strongly, so they would not realize how much he actually cared about the matter.
The female Centaur walked up to Charles and said in a slightly trembling voice, "Thank you for saving my life. Otherwise, the Acromantulas would have eaten me."
Charles thought that he had indeed heroically rescued a beauty today. Smiling, he said, "There's no need to thank me. It was the guidance of fate."
He saw that the female Centaur looked about his age. Her skin was not as dark as that of an adult Centaur, and her features suggested that she would become a great beauty in the future.
"My name is Twilight. What's yours?"
"My name is Charles Smith."
Not long after Charles and Twilight exchanged names, the adult Centaurs arrived.
Twilight stepped forward and said to the leading Centaur, "Uncle Ronan, I was almost killed by the Acromantulas just now. This Charles Smith saved me!"
Ronan walked up to Charles and gave him a slight bow before saying, "Thank you very much for saving Twilight, brave colt."
Charles replied politely, "It was the guidance of the stars."
Ronan found his words pleasant to hear, and his attitude improved further. He asked, "Brave colt, have you been to the Forbidden Forest before?"
Charles shook his head. "I'm a first-year student at Hogwarts. The stars guided me here for the first time."
Ronan invited Charles to visit their tribe so they could properly thank him.
Charles was quite curious about the Centaurs' tribe, so he happily agreed.
However, what Ronan and the others did next left him somewhat baffled.
The Centaurs cut off all eight legs from the Acromantula corpses, then threw them into the lake.
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