First Nighttime Tour of the Forbidden Forest

Beyond the history of the birth of Goblins, some obscure texts also mentioned profound magical languages of blessings and curses. When Breeze chanted them softly, he could feel the natural magic within his body being gently stirred, though it quickly subsided; if not for Breeze's powerful perception, he might have mistaken it for an illusion.

A very strange language. Touching the parchment book, Breeze could feel his internal magic's disdain for these incantations. Clearly, he could wield his power however he pleased, so why bother utilizing this magical language?

Having no leads for the moment, Breeze placed the parchment book into the drawer of his solid wood desk, then turned to wash up and rest, as it was already too late.

The next day, Breeze spent the entire time in the turret reading the notes—the ones belonging to the previous Master of the Turret. Breeze went through the magic within them roughly, preparing for the future integration of natural magic and modern spells.

Moreover, he needed to quickly create an alchemy journal of his own; a single notebook could not support his future magical research, and it was impossible for him to carry a massive stack of them everywhere he went.

Breeze counted his Galleons, set aside one hundred, and wrote several letters, listing the items he needed to purchase on slips of paper, ready to be sent to the corresponding shops. However, he still had no leads on Trance Grass, one of his primary materials.

I'll prepare the rest of the materials first, and once I find the Trance Grass, I'll begin the crafting. Professor Sprout isn't good at hiding things, and besides the Forbidden Forest, where else in Hogwarts could Trance Grass possibly grow?

Yes, Breeze had finally decided to night-walk in the Forbidden Forest. He now possessed the strength for it, provided he didn't venture too deep. Legend had it that Hogwarts had dragons, though it was unclear if they were in the Forbidden Forest, and Breeze had no desire to encounter such dangerous creatures.

In the afternoon, Breeze arrived at the Great Hall feeling famished. No sooner had he entered than he heard Malfoy stirring up trouble again. It seemed to be because Harry had become the Seeker and had received the latest Nimbus 2000 broomstick, sponsored by Professor McGonagall, while Malfoy's boast about buying new brooms for the Slytherin team had been rejected by his father.

The reason given was that he needed to demonstrate excellence and achieve top grades in his year; allowing him to join the house team this year was already an exception.

Currently, Malfoy was still using his old broom from last year, a Cleansweep Seven.

Hermione had also received a Nimbus 2000, but Malfoy clearly aimed his hostility at Harry, partly fueled by Ron's bragging, which had irritated Malfoy.

"Oh, heavens, they are just awful."

Seeing Breeze, Hermione immediately approached him to complain: "Can't they just eat a meal in peace? Tomorrow is Monday, we need to ensure we have enough energy to preview our lessons!"

Breeze smiled without speaking, shaking his head to show his helplessness, then walked over to the Slytherin table and began to eat.

If Hermione worried less about other people's business, she would definitely have more time to study.

"A duel... tonight in the trophy room... Potter, don't you dare back out..."

After issuing the challenge to Harry, Malfoy walked back to the Slytherin table with his head held high. When he saw Breeze staring at him, he swallowed hard; one had to know that ever since Malfoy had lost 120 points for Slytherin, Breeze hadn't looked at him properly once.

"Hmph, don't look at me like that. I'll earn the points back; that's not a difficult task for a Malfoy."

Breeze raised an eyebrow and said, "I only hope my previous efforts haven't been in vain. I am not a person who likes to give up halfway. If we don't win the House Cup this year because of your negligence, then you can look forward to a nightmare next year."

Taking a bite of apple pie, Breeze added, "Don't let me hear news of Slytherin losing points tomorrow."

Malfoy's expression softened, a playful glint in his eyes as he said, "Of course not. I'd much rather hear about Gryffindor losing points."

"I hope you can focus your mind on proper matters." Breeze quickly ordered another steak. Before long, he was eighty percent full, his plates already stacked in a pile. He wasn't some young master who chewed a small piece of steak for half an hour; eating a lot didn't affect his speed at all.

After finishing dinner, Breeze prepared to go help Professor Sprout. He couldn't only go to her when he needed something; that would be too utilitarian and didn't fit Breeze's character. Besides, Breeze enjoyed dealing with plants.

As night fell, after helping Professor Sprout, Breeze wandered around outside for a while, then hurried into the Forbidden Forest when no one was watching.

Breeze tightened his wizard robes and silently cast a Warming Charm on himself to keep his body warm; the weather had turned chilly, and Breeze did not like the cold.

The Forbidden Forest was filled with massive, intertwined trees and winding, ancient vines. From time to time, there were animal droppings and common plants on the ground.

There were also some things of slight value, but what did Breeze want with those?

He turned his nose up at them. The Forbidden Forest was full of treasures; one only needed a little bit of luck to reap a full harvest.

The forest at dusk was quiet, with only the occasional sound of birds returning to their nests.

"Lumos." Breeze drew his wand and cast the light spell, illuminating his surroundings.

He then focused his attention, using his perception to search for special fluctuations in the vicinity.

Trance Grass could make people overlook it, which was why it was so scarce. Breeze wasn't sure if he could find it using his perception.

Clearly, Breeze was not lucky today.

"Awoo!"

The howl of a werewolf!

Breeze retreated silently and extinguished the light spell, immediately hearing the sound of hooves.

It was a Centaur.

"Swish!" The sound of an arrow flying.

"Leave this place. It is not the full moon!"

"Firenze, I am just lost..."

"Put away your tricks. Mars tells me your arrival here is full of conspiracy. I think I must tell Dumbledore!"

"Oh, of course, of course, I will leave. For the sake of an old friend, please deliver this letter to Dumbledore. The werewolves of our Forbidden Forest have encountered a threat... it is the werewolves from the outside who found us through their rituals..."

"They brought this conspiracy with them!"

"What?"

"You had better be certain of your words. I will find a way to get this to Dumbledore... now, please leave."

Breeze cautiously remained still until the voices disappeared, then he slowly left and headed in the other direction.

"Buzz!" A sound came from the bushes ahead.

"Thump-thump!" Immediately followed by heavy, rapid footsteps.

A troll!

The troll was covered in thick, green, warty skin, and its small, dim-witted eyes reflected Breeze Order. Seeming to be provoked, it immediately raised its club and charged toward him.

"Petrificus Totalus!"

Brie cast a spell tentatively at the troll, but the creature's high-intensity magic-resistant skin weakened the power significantly; it only stiffened for a few seconds before continuing its charge.

"Petrificus Totalus!" This time, Brie did not hold back, channeling stronger magic to strike the troll and petrifying it instantly.

Looking at the motionless troll, Brie cast a Freshness Charm and then detoured around it; the creature was too dim-witted, and Brie didn't have the time to bother with it.

"Sigh, I wonder if troll hide can be used for alchemy notes? It is the leather of a magical creature, after all... hmm, too smelly, and covered in warts, forget it." Brie glanced at the troll's back, turned away in disgust, and left.

"No wonder Snape always uses trolls to insult people; this thing has no redeeming qualities. In Snape's eyes, it's probably worse than a flobberworm—at least flobberworms are raw materials for many basic potions."

After searching for a long time, Brie had found nothing.

As he neared the edge of the Forbidden Forest, Brie spotted the green apple sapling he had previously dismissed. He took a few extra steps to pull it up, used a Shrinking Charm, tucked it into his pocket, and then walked back to Hogwarts Castle with a sense of satisfaction.

The Owlery was still too empty, wasn't it? He had to find some friends for the lush trees and Four-Leaf Vines, and besides, Brie knew how to keep them alive.

"Ha, found you!"

"Hmm, not here. You wretched little brats, I really should hang you up and whip you!" Filch held his oil lamp, scanning the surroundings with a hideous expression until he was certain no one was there, then continued walking toward the deeper rooms.

Brie stepped out from the shadows and touched his chest.

"Could it be that Filch has mastered some kind of detection magic? I clearly used a Desillusionment Charm to bypass him."

"It's you!"

"Brie?"

"Slytherin!"

Brie stared blankly at the three panicked figures. Now he knew the answer; these three were truly troublesome—no, wait, today was the day Malfoy had challenged Harry.

A duel!

"Oh, I knew it had to be a Slytherin's doing, and he's Malfoy's accomplice. Last time in Flying Class..."

"Shut up, Weasley!"

Hermione glared at Ron indignantly, then asked Brie with a puzzled look, "Why are you here?"

Brie thought for a moment, and just as he was about to fabricate a lie, he heard someone nearby choking on dust and cursing. So, Brie said, "I came out to look for a little snake."

"Malfoy?" Brie narrowed his eyes. Malfoy's platinum-blonde hair was easy to recognize; he hadn't really intended to keep hiding anyway.

"Hmph, Brie, are you that concerned about me?" Malfoy didn't expose Brie's lie, but instead lifted his chin toward Harry and said, "Potter, consider yourselves lucky..."

"Meow!"

"Oh no, it's Mrs. Norris!" Ron exclaimed. Mrs. Norris was Filch's cat, who always helped him patrol; whenever she appeared, it meant Filch was not far behind.

"Brie, you go quickly."

Hermione glared at Malfoy, then grabbed Harry and ran toward the eighth floor, with Ron hurrying to keep up.

Malfoy looked panicked and was preparing to run, but he saw Brie say to Mrs. Norris, "Please, little cat, don't report us."

After saying that, he walked toward the staircase leading to Ravenclaw.

Malfoy thought for a moment, a glint in his eyes, and immediately followed.

"You're going the wrong way, Malfoy."

"Don't be like that, Mr. Oude. I just covered for you, and being caught by Filch would mean losing house points."

Brie narrowed his eyes. When there was no more movement behind him, he stopped and said to Malfoy, "I think we must part ways here, Mr. Malfoy."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow and said, "You don't sleep on the roof all the time, do you? Winter is coming!"

"Don't trouble yourself with my affairs; you should worry about your own."

After speaking, Brie cast a Desillusionment Charm on himself and walked into the darkness. Malfoy didn't follow; he understood that prying into a Slytherin's privacy was an unfriendly signal.

"Stupid Breeze Order, a little snake who left Slytherin. I can't believe this is happening during my school career."

"Who's there?"

Snape!

Malfoy couldn't care about privacy anymore and hurriedly followed Brie into the darkness...

Please keep reading, my dears.

Since I didn't get a recommendation last Friday, I have to wait for the 100,000-word smart recommendation. I hope it helps me get a trial push this week.