The Battle in the Forbidden Forest (Two-in-One)

"Humility is good, and caution is not wrong, but those are things to consider in the future. You can certainly perform better now."

Professor Oren seemed to genuinely regard this place as a classroom, and said with a serious expression, "After all, given your age, who would really consider an eleven-year-old freshman as an opponent?"

Kyle continued walking without saying a word.

Professor Oren didn't seem to mind and continued, "I've finished speaking. Now it's your turn. Tell me, when did you discover it?"

Kyle blinked and said, "Found what? I don't understand what you mean, Professor."

"If this is your answer..." Professor Oren suddenly stopped and said coldly, "Then there's no need for us to go any further."

The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

Even Kanna, who was focused on finding Pochi, vaguely sensed something was wrong and unconsciously moved closer to Kyle.

"As Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts with a one-year term, it's not me who has a problem, it's you."

Kyle shrugged. "Everyone knows it's a cursed position. Most professors who take the job end up either wounded and sent to St Mungo's's or Azkaban."

Some were less fortunate and didn't get to visit either of those places.

Even those professors who manage to survive until the end of the semester will eventually have to resign for various reasons.

It's almost the end of the semester, and since you haven't had any unexpected incidents or resigned, there must be a problem with your immigration status.

"You're not wrong about that, tsk tsk... a cursed position."

Professor Oren sighed and said, "I used to quite enjoy being a professor, but unfortunately my identity has been discovered. I just received word that the Ministry of Magic is on its way."

Those good-for-nothings probably never imagined I was hiding in Hogwarts; they searched for me for so long."

When the Ministry of Magic was mentioned, Oren's eyes were full of disdain.

"Wait, are you saying the Ministry of Magic isn't looking for the Swooping Evil, but for you!"

"Of course it's me."

Oren scoffed, "Think about it, it's just a Fantastic Beasts, is it really worth all this commotion?"

What they want is what I have.

"What is that...?" Kyle asked instinctively.

"Are you sure you want to hear this?" Oren teased. "If you want to hear it, I can tell you."

"Uh... I don't want to." Kyle came to his senses and chuckled awkwardly, "Actually, I'm not that curious."

If the Ministry of Magic has gone to such lengths to investigate for half a year, it must involve something extraordinary, something he doesn't want to get involved in.

Upon hearing this, even the slow-witted Kanna realized what was happening. She looked at Oren in disbelief and instinctively drew her wand.

"Don't be so nervous, Miss Prince." Instead of paying attention to her little gestures, Oren looked at the tree on his left.

"Oh, look what I've found."

With a gentle wave of his wand, the fallen leaves on the ground began to wriggle, coiling around a gray-furred mouse clinging to the tree root like snakes.

"Pochi!"

Kanna cried out in surprise, her wand trembling as she stretched out her magic wand, "Let it go..."

"Let me give you one last lesson."

Oren didn't even glance at Kanna, and pointed his wand at the rat, saying, "If you want to determine whether the animal in front of you is an Animagus, the Revealing Charm is the best option."

"Revelio!"

The wand emitted a beam of blue light, and in an instant, the mouse froze in mid-air, its small gray body writhing wildly.

Oren waved his wand again, scattering leaves and dropping the mouse to the ground, followed by another dazzling flash...

Like a fast-forwarded shot of a tree growing, a head emerged, followed by limbs, and moments later, a hunchbacked and ugly witch appeared out of thin air.

The witch was hunched over, which made her look very short, and her sparse, dull hair was messy and covered her large, ugly hooked nose.

Kanna stared at the old witch before her, stunned once more. She stretched out her hand, stammering, "She... Pochi... Pochi..."

"So your name is Pochi, it's nice to meet you," Oren said cheerfully, as if he had just made a new friend at the party.

"Damn it!" The witch was furious. She pulled out a thick, short wand and glared at Oren. "I'll kill you, kill you!"

Her voice was very hoarse, as if she were sawing wood with a rusty lawnmower.

As she spoke, a beam of purple light shot from the witch's wand, heading straight for Oren's chest.

A good opportunity...

Taking advantage of the witch's attack, Kyle quickly took two Broomstick from the Mokeskin Pouch and handed one to Kanna.

"Let's go find Professor McGonagall!"

After a brief moment of surprise, Kanna understood Kyle's meaning and quickly mounted her broom, flying into the sky.

After she left, Kyle didn't fly away with her, but instead casually tossed the broken broom aside.

On the other side, Oren simply turned around to dodge the witch's spell, then chuckled and raised his wand as well.

Avada Kedavra!

A pale green light grazed past the witch's ear and struck a small spider passing by behind her.

The unfortunate spider immediately became erect.

The witch, who had just narrowly escaped death, was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground, trembling uncontrollably.

After doing all this, Oren turned around and just happened to see Kyle throwing the broom.

You always manage to surprise me.

"You said before..." Kyle chuckled, "Always keep Broomstick handy, it can save your life."

"Hufflepuff plus fifty points," Oren laughed as well. "That's the highest score I can decide."

He ignored Kanna, who had already left, and let her disappear from sight.

"Kyle, you didn't seem surprised at all, or did you already know that the rat was an Animagus?"

After Kanna left, Kyle felt much more relaxed. He stretched his stiff shoulders and nodded, saying, "I did guess some of it."

He had been suspicious ever since Kanna said that Pochi was sick.

Then, during the Quidditch Match, he used the Marauder's Map to memorize the names of those who were still in the common room at the time.

One of these names is not on Hufflepuff's roster.

However, Kyle was still only suspicious at this point, after all, the fact that there were two Animagus rats in the castle was really a bit unbelievable, and he found it hard to believe for a moment.

It's not impossible that someone might have gone to Hufflepuff that day.

So Kyle has been looking for the rosters of the other three colleges lately.

So far, only Slytherin's stories remain unread.

But... that's no longer necessary.

"Since you know, why didn't you say so?" Oren raised an eyebrow and said, "Aren't you worried about the little girl's safety?"

"Then why did you bring us to the Forbidden Forest?" Kyle shrugged. "This is Hogwarts, after all. Would she dare?"

Oren chuckled. "Looks like you're smarter than I thought."

His expression then turned cold, and he said to the witch who was slumped on the ground, "Kill that boy, and you will live."

The fight has already started?

Kyle smiled slightly and touched the ring on his hand.

But the next second, Oren's voice came again.

"You probably have some escape methods, but I advise you to wait. Remember I have a Swooping Evil? Guess where it is right now."

Kyle's pupils contracted. "You..."

In that brief moment of distraction, the rat witch's curse had already arrived.

Kyle quickly leaned back, a rather unseemly move, but thankfully he avoided the fall.

A deep purple curse struck a tree behind him, instantly corroding a large section of its trunk.

Ten minutes.

Oren placed an hourglass on a nearby stone and muttered to himself, "The Swooping Evil will be back in ten minutes. Good luck."

Ten minutes, right? Okay!

Kyle gritted his teeth, looked at the large fireball coming towards him, turned around and ran into the depths of the Forbidden Forest, hoping to use the dense bushes to avoid the witch's curse.

That's not fair.

Kyle cursed inwardly as he ran wildly through the woods.

Why is it that Harry Potter either encounters Quirrell, who is his natural enemy, or Lockhart, who is a bit dim-witted, but with him, it becomes Oren is more cunning than a honeycomb briquette?

Why should I?!

On the other side, seeing that several of her spells had failed, the Rat Witch became anxious and her chanting speed noticeably increased.

Because Oren's words were also directed at her; if Kyle is still alive in ten minutes, then she will be the one who dies.

"Petrificus Totalus!"

"Levicorpus!"

"Corrosive acid!"

Kyle ran ahead, while the witch chased after him desperately.

But as she ran, her legs suddenly gave way, as if she were stepping on water. She lost her balance and fell uncontrollably.

At this moment, Kyle also stopped. He quickly turned around and pointed his wand at a large tree next to the witch.

"Weak and powerless!"

The tree canopy trembled, and the once straight tree instantly went limp. Under the force of gravity, the supple trunk slid down like a noodle and crashed down on the witch.

The Softening Charm only makes an object softer, but its weight remains unchanged.

As a tree as thick as a millstone came crashing down on her, the witch turned pale with fright and tried to run away as fast as she could.

Kyle waved his wand, and several tree branches floated up from the ground. Then, the branches twisted and turned into sharp stone spikes that flew towards the witch.

The witch also saw Kyle's actions, and she screamed furiously, "Armor protection..."

"Boom!"

But just then, accompanied by a loud crash, the tree finally crashed down.

Countless birds were startled by the loud noise and scattered in all directions.

After the smoke and dust cleared, a large crater was left on the ground.

The witch was lying in the pit, wailing in agony.

With one arm pinned under a tree and a stone spike embedded in her leg, she was completely unable to resist.

The battle started quickly and ended even faster, leaving even Oren somewhat incredulous.

That witch was useless, but she was still an adult wizard who had mastered Animagus, right? And it just ended like that?

If Kyle used a lot of high-level spells, then Oren could accept it.

The problem is that Kyle only used five spells from beginning to end, and they were all the simplest kind.

Two Softening Charm, Levitation Charm, a basic Transfiguration, and Locomotion Charm —almost any junior wizard knows these.

Kyle wasn't too surprised, after all, he had spent two weeks reading the biography of that dueling master, so it was impossible that he hadn't learned anything at all.

Setting traps, utilizing the terrain, and beating a drowning dog are merely basic dueling techniques.

That witch was really bad too; just look at the spells she used...

Aside from the Corrosion Curse, the Levicorpus, and the Petrificus Totalus, which are all courses for students below the third grade, the only one that's a bit difficult is the Blasting Curse for fifth graders.

Besides, she's not very bright; she falls for a little acting. Kyle is even starting to suspect that her Animagus was bought.

Of course, if there's a place that sells them.

"Expelliarmus."

Kyle walked over and put the short wand into his robe pocket.

"Clap clap clap... Hufflepuff gets another fifty points." Oren clapped his hands, pointed his wand at Kyle, and said, "So, do you need me to give you time to escape?"

"Professor Oren ..." Kyle stood still, puzzled. "Why are you targeting me? Even if I took one of your Billywig, it doesn't warrant this... I can just return ten to you."

"..."

Oren's hand holding the wand trembled slightly.

"It has nothing to do with this," he said through gritted teeth. "Who told you to be Chris's son? If it weren't for his meddling back then, I wouldn't be where I am today... Wait, are you stalling for time?"

"Tsk tsk, do you really expect those idiots at the Ministry of Magic to save you?"

"I was indeed stalling for time, but not waiting for someone to come to my rescue." Kyle looked directly at Oren and said, "I have another question. Why do you think I let Kanna leave?"

"So-called friendship?"

"On one hand," Kyle shrugged. "On the other hand, there are things about me that she shouldn't see."

"What... Ah!"

Oren suddenly screamed in agony. He felt as if something had bitten his leg, and then he instantly lost consciousness.

"Expelliarmus!"

A beam of red light shot out from Kyle's wand.

Despite the excruciating pain, Oren rolled forward to dodge Kyle's Disarming Charm, and at the same time, he saw clearly what had bitten him.

Two round cabbages.

"Damn it!" Oren gritted his teeth and said, "How could there be Chinese Biting Cabbage in the Forbidden Forest?!"

"Of course I brought them," Kyle said, casting another Disarming Charm. "Hogwarts is too dangerous. Even Hagrid was ambushed. It's reasonable for a defenseless little wizard like me to carry something for self-defense, isn't it?"