Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Newt had never been one to follow the rules. Although he lived in Muggle Society and was retired himself, no one should expect him to truly give up the work and passion of his life.

The Scamander Residence's Basement had been transformed into an enormous space.

The space had been divided into different areas. On a stretch of somewhat barren grassland, Tina and Vaughn poked their heads out through a concealed tunnel hatch beneath the prairie.

Using the dry, yellowing grass as cover, each of them held a pair of binoculars.

Tina asked softly, "Do you see them?"

"I see them... One looks very excited, but the other doesn't seem interested in paying it any attention."

Vaughn replied.

Through the binoculars, they watched two enormous creatures in the distance.

Even from so far away, they could tell that each weighed at least a ton. Their skin was smooth and thick, covered in folds.

They had single horns and looked like rhinoceroses at first glance.

But when one of them began hopping about and panting excitedly, they could see its horn start to glow a fiery red.

The spot where the horn joined its head was the brightest. It swayed unsteadily, as though it were filled with molten lava.

"They're Horned Beasts. Their horns contain Explosive Fluid. The excited one is female; she can smell the musk on the male."

Tina said quietly, "Newt rescued them Last Year. Some Dark Wizards specifically went to Africa to capture them and smuggle them into Britain. Since they had been away from home for too long, it was difficult for them to return to their herd. Newt hoped to pair them up and have them start a new family, then release them into the wild..."

As she spoke, they saw through the binoculars that the hopping Horned Beast had barely approached its companion before the other one shoved it away with its rump.

Vaughn looked at Tina. "The male doesn't seem interested in the female."

"Yes. Their breeding rights depend on competition within the herd, with the winner earning the right." Tina Sighed. "There are only two of them here. Without fierce fights and dead rivals, the male can't get excited."

Vaughn shrugged. "With breeding habits like that, it's a miracle they haven't gone extinct."

"Ah..." Tina was troubled by it as well.

She continued leading Vaughn on an adventure through the vast Basement.

Over the next two hours, they visited swamps, mountains, snowfields, and forests.

They saw all kinds of Magical Creatures: horse-like lake monsters that lived in freshwater lakes, Venom Sac Leopards that loved running through forests, and Billywigs from Australia—

All of them had been rescued by Newt from smugglers. The Billywigs in particular could make people float after stinging them—literally float.

As a result, many adult Wizards and Young Wizards used them as prank toys, even though they were actually XXX-class Magical Creatures. The Ministry of Magic restricted their sale and distribution, allowing only certain confectionery manufacturers to import them—their stingers were an ingredient in Fizzing Whizbees.

Thus, a smuggling market naturally emerged.

Tina also took Vaughn for a ride on a Winged Carriage Bird. This peculiar Magical Creature looked like a clumsy Dodo while on the ground, fat and short-winged.

But upon taking flight, it rapidly changed shape, swelling into a massive balloon and floating into the air like a hot-air balloon before expelling gas and transforming into another gigantic flying form.

Its tail could extend and retract. What they called riding it was really just being wrapped up in its tail.

These were only a portion of the creatures Newt had taken in. In truth, due to demand for potions and alchemy, there were many more highly dangerous Magical Creatures that Newt had rescued from smugglers.

However, Newt had long since sent them to Reserves managed by the Ministries of Magic in various countries.

The diverse Magical Creatures left Vaughn thoroughly fascinated.

Before this, he had only encountered materials harvested from their bodies. This was his first time seeing the living creatures themselves.

"You and Rolf might become friends."

Tina said to Vaughn, "He's my grandson, and he likes Magical Creatures too."

Vaughn thought back but had no impression of the name. Still, he vaguely remembered that Loony Luna's Husband in the Future seemed to be Newt's grandson.

Could it be this fellow named Rolf?

When they finished their tour and returned to the Basement entrance, Dumbledore and Newt had returned as well. The two were casting the Undetectable Extension Charm to expand the Basement, which required tremendous spellcasting ability. Dumbledore drew his Wand.

It was made of elder wood and looked extremely similar to Vaughn's Wand—smooth, jet-black, with raised knotted joints. It did not seem particularly special.

"The Elder Wand..."

Feeling the vast, abyss-like fluctuations of Magic Power leaking from Dumbledore, Vaughn's heart stirred faintly.

But he did not stare for long. Once the expansion was complete, Newt opened an old suitcase and released the Unicorns inside. A System Panel appeared before Vaughn's eyes as well:

[Side Quest ②: Rescue the Forbidden Forest Unicorns (Completed)]

[Claim reward?]

Claim!

Vaughn silently thought. The reward was supposedly just a "language pack," so nothing unusual should happen.

And just as he had expected, nothing did.

After claiming the reward, Vaughn only felt his mind go blank for a moment. His throat and ears itched slightly, then there was no further sensation.

But he knew that he had changed.

It was not just the system prompt that appeared:

[Obtained "Unicorn Language"]

He could also hear the voices of other "people," besides himself, Tina, Newt, and Dumbledore.

"Neigh—(Where are we?)"

"Neigh—(Didn't you hear what Fawkes said? This is somewhere temporarily housing us.)"

"Neigh neigh! (Look at that ugly human child, he's peeping at us.)"

"Neigh neigh! (Hmph. Filthy, vulgar, despicable.)"

"..."

Vaughn listened expressionlessly as those snow-white, holy Unicorns—creatures that looked as though they had stepped out of a fairy tale—insulted him in every possible way.

He knew that they naturally disliked men and only liked girls.

Still, he felt that he should have waited and let Socket Man drain a little more of their blood!

That was until he heard the whitest Unicorn say, "Let's leave quickly. Dumbledore is too ugly. I don't want to stay near him."

"Exactly!" the other Unicorns chimed in.

Vaughn let out a breath and immediately felt much better.

By the time everything was done, it was already late at night. Tina made a midnight snack, with authentic American flavor.

It was hard to describe as well, but at least it was better than British "cuisine."

Dumbledore still did not get any midnight snack. Old Dumbledore did not Care About it, smiling as he took some sweets from his pocket to eat.

It was around midnight when they finally said goodbye to the Scamander family.

After leaving the cottage, Fawkes once again took the two of them back to Hogwarts by Apparition. Multiple consecutive Apparitions that night seemed to have exhausted it badly; it had even shed a few feathers.

Vaughn openly picked one up and tucked it into his pocket. Dumbledore watched him with a smile, then suddenly said as Vaughn was about to take his leave, "Vaughn, what do you think of Newt?"

"Like you said, Albus. He's a good man."

Dumbledore nodded. "He likes you very much and wants you to visit his home more often in the Future. Would you be willing?"

Vaughn recalled Newt's shy, bashful demeanor, then thought of his own personality.

He could not help looking at Dumbledore suspiciously.

What was the old man plotting this time?