Lying Low and Building Strength

After resolving the matter in the Forbidden Forest, Dumbledore looked at Eli on Firenze's back.

"If you don't mind, I would like to take my student back."

Eli's face was covered, so he could not see who it was.

Firenze took a few steps back. Though he had not heard what Eli said before fainting, Eli's covered face showed that he did not want his identity exposed.

Ronan suddenly stepped forward, standing between Dumbledore and Firenze.

"I'm sorry, Professor Dumbledore, but I believe we have an obligation to protect the privacy of the Centaur tribe's most honored guest."

Though his tone sounded calm, Ronan's grave expression revealed the tension in his heart.

Refusing one of the strongest people in the world took a certain amount of courage.

The Centaurs all moved closer to Firenze.

Dumbledore was somewhat surprised by the Centaurs' reaction. He had not expected those who had always hated Wizards to defend someone so fiercely today.

Fortunately, the one standing here was Dumbledore. As a white Wizard devoted to justice, he rarely chose to use force.

If it had been Voldemort, things would not have been so peaceful.

He helplessly pursed his lips. The gesture looked utterly out of place on a man over a hundred years old.

"Very well. Since you insist, I am proud of my student for earning your friendship."

After saying goodbye, Dumbledore Apparated away.

Ronan and the others immediately let out sighs of relief. The pressure radiating from that legendary Wizard had been far too overwhelming.

Though he was a righteous man, intimidation came from strength.

No one could ignore Dumbledore's terrifying magical power.

Ronan turned to face Firenze. "Firenze, you will be responsible for escorting our honored guest out. Remember to bring his name back."

He looked at Eli unconscious on Firenze's back, his expression complicated.

He handed Firenze a bottle containing restorative potion.

With the unconscious Eli, Firenze arrived at the edge of the Forbidden Forest, with the castle right before them.

"This is... Firenze? Where are we?"

Firenze put away the bottle and answered with a smile, "I have brought you to the edge of the Forbidden Forest. The castle is very close. How do you feel? Better?"

Eli stood up, but a wave of weakness nearly sent him collapsing back to the ground.

He had to admit, the Centaur tribe's medicine was remarkably effective. At least it had spared him a great deal of suffering.

Thinking back to what had just happened, Eli could not stop sweating.

He had been far too impulsive, releasing magic so recklessly without leaving himself even a shred of strength.

That kind of overexertion was extremely damaging.

Fortunately, Ronan no longer harbored any killing intent toward him.

Otherwise, he would have already been on his way to reincarnation when he fainted.

In any case, this incident had taught him a profound lesson.

Never act on impulse!

"Thank you, Firenze. I feel much better."

Firenze told him everything that had happened after he fainted.

By the time Eli finished listening, his back was drenched in cold sweat.

Old Dumbledore had come too!

Still, it was not surprising. He had caused such a huge commotion. If Dumbledore had failed to notice it, then the greatest white Wizard of the century would have been nothing but a hollow title.

Fortunately, Ronan and the others had not exposed his identity.

Thinking of that, Eli was rather surprised. That stubborn fool Ronan had actually chosen to protect him in the end.

That was probably the greatest gain from this trip: the friendship of the Centaurs.

"My name is Eli. Eli Hall."

He pulled down his mask.

Though Firenze had prepared himself somewhat, he still found it unbelievable when he truly saw how young Eli looked.

"My name is Firenze, the next chief of the Centaur tribe!"

He looked quite proud.

Eli smiled, then suddenly asked, "By the way, Firenze, why were you fighting that group of Acromantulas?"

At the mention of the Acromantulas, Firenze's face filled with anger and resentment.

"As guardians of the Forbidden Forest, the Centaur tribe naturally bears the responsibility of maintaining its stability. But ever since the Acromantula leader Aragog came to the Forbidden Forest sixty years ago, all kinds of creatures here have suffered under their threat!"

As though recalling something painful, Firenze turned away.

"Relying on their rapid reproduction, they expanded their population enormously in a very short time! Their territory kept growing, forcing other races to leave."

"We sacrificed many of our people to fight the Acromantulas!"

Eli solemnly patted Firenze's horse back.

Forgive him; he simply could not reach Firenze's shoulder.

"You're all admirable!"

Firenze turned around with a solemn expression. "We owe today to your help. You will forever be an honored guest of the Centaur tribe!"

He gave Eli a deep bow.

Now Eli felt embarrassed and hurriedly helped Firenze back up.

"Oh, don't say that. Protecting the forest is everyone's responsibility!"

He might have forgotten who had set the Forbidden Forest ablaze just moments ago.

Seeing Eli's playful expression, Firenze smiled as well.

"I must say, that truly was magnificent magic!"

Eli became even more embarrassed. "Stop praising me, stop. I might get carried away..."

He even looked a little bashful.

Firenze burst into hearty laughter.

The two chatted easily, and Eli liked this friendly Centaur very much.

It was already late at night, and Eli needed to return to the castle if he did not want to be late tomorrow.

Firenze looked at the sky, his expression somewhat grave. "Go back quickly. Nothing will be safe anymore. Mars has grown brighter."

Eli was completely baffled by his sudden mysterious act.

Still, Eli trusted the Centaurs' ability to predict through astrology. In the movie, this was what Firenze had said to Harry.

Eli also looked up at the sky.

"Huh? It seems cloudy today?"

"..."

The mysterious atmosphere was completely ruined, leaving Firenze rather embarrassed.

"Ahem... all right, it's getting late. Hurry back to the castle!"

Eli did not linger any longer, but he suddenly remembered something and turned back to ask.

"By the way, what was that medicine you gave me?"

That medicine truly had miraculous effects. He had overexerted himself so badly, yet it had helped him recover so quickly.

If he ever needed it in the future, it would definitely be of great use.

Firenze suddenly said with a mysterious look, "Unicorn blood!"

"Oh... what?!! What did you say!"

Eli's eyes nearly popped out of his head. Bro, you absolutely should not drink that stuff!

Whoever drank it would be cursed and doomed to a miserable death.

To his surprise, Firenze suddenly burst out laughing. "Hahaha, I'm joking. It's a potion we brewed ourselves. Next time you come, we'll give you some."

Looking at Firenze's triumphant expression after getting revenge with his prank, Eli's face darkened.

Did even Centaurs know how to scare children now?

"All right, I'm leaving."

Eli turned and left, while Firenze laughed his way back into the Forbidden Forest.

Back at the castle, Eli looked like a thief as he sneaked quietly back to his dormitory. No shooting!

He had to say it again: next time, he absolutely had to learn the Disillusionment Charm properly!

Just as Eli was timidly sneaking back.

A sudden noise from ahead nearly scared him to death.

"Peeves, you can't do this!"

Eli listened carefully. It sounded like the Weasley twins.

Those two had actually run into Peeves.

Peeves loved tormenting students most of all. Unlike other ghosts, he could touch physical objects.

In the entire castle, he only feared Dumbledore and the ghost Bloody Baron.

"Those two unlucky idiots ran into Peeves while wandering around at night. If that guy tattles on them, they'll be in for it!"

Since it was the two of them, he might as well help.

Eli quietly walked over, pressed his wand against his throat, and produced an aged voice.

"Peeves, causing trouble again, are you!"

Peeves, who had been arrogant just a second ago, instantly became meek as a lamb upon hearing that voice and vanished in a flash.

Eli stepped out, and the twins saw him, still shaken.

"Oh, I thought it really was Dumbledore!"

"We almost died!"

Eli was amused by the way the two sang in tandem.

"All right, hurry back!"

The twins looked at Eli expectantly.

"That move just now was so cool!"

"Teach us!"

Those two carefree guys gave Eli a headache.

Because of Ron Weasley, they already knew one another.

When Eli watched the movies in his previous life, he had also liked these two amusing guys very much.

"All right, all right. I'll teach you tomorrow. Today, you should go back and sleep!"

Seeing Eli agree, the twins ran off excitedly. Who knew whether they were returning to their dormitory or doing something else.

Finally back in his dormitory, Eli lay weakly on his bed.

He was so exhausted that he did not even want to move, and he fell asleep the moment he closed his eyes.

No one knew about that night's adventure, though he looked rather listless during the day.

During this period, he had mostly kept to himself. Other than magic, there was only more magic.

Eager to grow stronger, he devoted all his attention to studying.

He had never gone to the library. With Old Voldemort's memories, why would he need a library?

Voldemort's insights on magic alone had benefited him immensely.

So apart from classes, he went to the Room of Requirement to study those memories and practice magic.

At night, he secretly slipped into the Forbidden Forest to absorb souls.

It was worth mentioning that his primary target for absorbing souls now was the Acromantulas.

After that night, they had become extremely cowardly. More often than not, Eli was the one chasing them down and killing them.

They not only provided him with plenty of souls, but also a large number of giant spider corpses.

After all, these magical creatures with a danger rating starting at four stars were valuable from head to toe!

Their venom alone could sell for a hundred Galleons per pint!

Eli, who hunted Acromantulas every day, was now a hidden tycoon, just waiting to sell these materials.

Even Draco Malfoy, his roommate, barely saw him outside of class these days.

Of course, after their unpleasant encounter that day, the two had hardly spoken either.

Draco Malfoy was still that proud young aristocrat.

Their relationship seemed to have returned to how it was when they had first met.

He and Harry, Ron Weasley, and the others had also become as hostile as they were in the original story.

But what Eli had not expected was for Hermione Granger to suddenly stop him.

He had been about to head up to the Seventh Floor, to the Room of Requirement.

"Hermione? What is it?"

Hermione held a stack of books, her face full of frustration at his failure to meet expectations.

"Eli, I mean, you clearly have such great talent. Why aren't you making proper use of it?"

Eli froze for a moment, not quite understanding what Hermione meant.

"Uh..."

Seeing Eli remain silent, Hermione assumed he was ashamed and continued.

"Recently, I've never seen you in the library!"

Eli suddenly understood. I already have an expert's notes, so why would I go to the library?

But he did not blame Hermione. She meant well, after all.

"Oh... uh... I've been busy lately, so I'll explain it to you later."

Knowing how clever and persistent this little witch was, and afraid that she might really pry something out of him if they kept talking, Eli darted away.

"Hey, you!"

Hermione watched Eli race off at full speed and stamped her foot in anger. Am I really that scary?