A way to make money

Mountains and rivers seemed to leave no way forward, only for a new village to appear beyond the shaded willows and bright blossoms.

What did a pleasant surprise look like? This was it.

Third-Tier Spiritual Herb.

He had spent twelve whole years scraping by in Nameless Town, and the highest-grade spirit herb he had ever found was a mid-grade tier-one Ironwire Vine.

Even that had been rare.

His body had long since developed a tolerance to Ironwire Vine, and its effects had grown weaker with every dose.

Now, barely a few steps into the Forbidden Forest, a tier-three Seven-Star Grass was growing right in front of him.

It was like spending ten years buying scratch cards at a village store and never winning more than five yuan, then going into the city and winning five million on your very first ticket.

Now I'm really taking off!

Gerald pulled a large cloth bag from the inner pocket of his robes, crouched down, and began harvesting.

Seven-Star Grass leaves could not simply be plucked by hand. Its roots held the greatest medicinal value, so he had to pinch the base of the stem with his fingernails and cut through it diagonally to keep the spiritual potency in the roots from dissipating.

These were all instructions that appeared automatically on his panel as he harvested.

Too bad I don't have a jade box. That would be the best thing for preserving spirit herbs.

Fortunately, there were enough spirit herbs here that he did not mind wasting a little of their medicinal potency.

Hagrid turned around and looked at Gerald crouching on the ground, stuffing leaves into his cloth bag. Confusion covered his large, shaggy face.

"Say, Green, what do you want with these weeds and wildflowers? They grow everywhere in the Forbidden Forest."

Gerald's hand froze in midair as his mind raced.

"Oh, Mr. Hagrid. To tell you the truth, I've done a little research into Herbology as well. These apparently useless plants can actually be used to make certain potions. As you know, my family isn't very well-off, so I thought I might brew some myself and sell them."

Gerald's explanation was half true and half false.

His family really was poor, and he really did intend to use these spirit herbs to make things he could sell.

It was just that the "potions" he intended to make were entirely different from those in his Potions textbook.

He had never worked with potions before, so naturally, he could not brew any.

But while he knew nothing about brewing potions, he had tried his hand at pill refining a few times.

It had not been pill refining in the truest sense, merely extracting the essence of spirit herbs and turning it into a spirit elixir, but even that worked far better than simply swallowing the herbs.

He naturally could not bear to sell the other spirit herbs yet, but Ironwire Vine, which he had already developed a tolerance to, was another matter.

Spirit elixir made from Ironwire Vine could strengthen the body, nourish yin, and bolster kidney function.

Taking it over a long period would not make someone's body as powerful as Gerald's had become through Chain-Form Essence Refinement, but it could still produce a noticeable improvement.

For the wizards of the Harry Potter world, whose bodies were generally no stronger than an ordinary person's, that certainly had some appeal.

Maybe these spirit elixirs really could sell.

If he brought the Weasley brothers in to help with sales, it could be a pretty good way to make money.

Hagrid knew nothing of Gerald's thoughts, however, and asked in some confusion.

"Potions? Aren't you a first-year? Did Snape teach you today?"

"I read through the books myself over the summer holidays and memorized most of the material."

"Merlin, first-years as hardworking and knowledgeable as you are a rare sight."

Hagrid laughed in surprise and gave Gerald a hearty pat.

It was an extremely forceful pat.

Fortunately, Gerald had trained his body since childhood. Anyone else might have struggled to withstand it.

Looking at the smiling boy before him, Hagrid suddenly felt an inexplicable jolt of unease.

Gerald reminded him of someone terrifying.

When that person had still been a student at school, he had been just as polite and just as eager to learn.

Hagrid lowered his head, his black, beadlike eyes fixed on Gerald.

"Green, you didn't come here for these weeds in the first place, did you?"

Gerald's heart gave a violent thump.

Oh no. He's getting suspicious.

Hagrid might have seemed careless, but he was a half-giant in his sixties who had spent half his life dealing with all kinds of magical creatures in the Forbidden Forest. His instincts were exceptionally sharp.

If Gerard admitted it now, all his earlier groundwork would go to waste, and Hagrid would become wary of him.

But Gerald reacted quickly.

"Mr. Hagrid, you said it yourself: these weeds grow everywhere in the Forbidden Forest. If I'd really come for them, why would I trouble you to show me the way? Couldn't I just tell you and ask you to bring some back for me?"

He gestured around them. Ironwire Vine really was growing everywhere.

"Besides, if I hadn't told you what these plants could be used for, you wouldn't have thought there was anything special about them, would you?"

That was what he said, but there was no way Gerald would actually let Hagrid harvest them for him.

Each spirit herb had different harvesting requirements. Letting someone who knew nothing about them do it would be a terrible waste.

Hagrid paused and scratched the back of his head with his thick fingers, seemingly giving the question some serious thought.

A moment later, he gave an easygoing chuckle.

"You've got a point. I was overthinking things. Come on, then. Weren't you looking for your rat? I haven't shown you this way yet."

Gerald let out a breath of relief inwardly.

He had cleared that hurdle.

The two continued onward.

The deeper they went into the Forbidden Forest, the dimmer the light became.

The layer of fallen leaves underfoot grew thicker, rustling softly beneath their steps.

Fang ran ahead, stopping every so often to sniff the ground.

Hagrid led the way with his crossbow over his shoulder, while Gerald followed behind, pretending to glance around absentmindedly as he walked.

Apart from Ironwire Vine, the system displayed no further spirit herb notifications.

That was hardly surprising. Although the Forbidden Forest was rich in spiritual energy, spirit herbs were not chives; they did not grow in patch after patch.

Finding so many spirit herbs in succession today, including two tier-three specimens, was already an unexpected windfall.

Gerald had actually begun thinking about heading back.

The spirit herbs in his bag would last him quite a while.

After walking for roughly fifteen minutes, Hagrid stopped.

"Green."

Hagrid turned around, looking a little troubled.

"Any farther and we'll be deep in the Forbidden Forest. There are some... rather difficult creatures living in there. First-years really shouldn't go to places like that."

Gerald understood immediately.

The difficult creatures Hagrid mentioned probably referred to the Acromantula nest.

With his current strength, going in there would only make him an easy meal.

"Looks like we won't find your Little Gray today."

Hagrid's tone

held an apologetic note, as though he blamed himself for being unable to help.

"But don't be too upset. I patrol the Forbidden Forest every night, so I'll keep an extra eye out for you. If I see your rat, I'll be sure to bring it back."

"Thank you, Hagrid. Little Gray... never mind. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have brought my rat out of the dormitory."

Gerald raised his head and forced a brave smile for Hagrid.

"Whatever happens, I'm really sorry for all the trouble today. You spent your whole lunch break helping me look for a rat. I don't even know how to thank you."

"Don't be sad, little fellow. If we really can't find that rat, I can give you another one. What color would you like? Gray? White? I know someone who raises owls, and he keeps rats too..."

"No, thank you, Mr. Hagrid," Gerald hurriedly interrupted.

He did not keep pets.

At least, he would not keep a pet that unimpressive.

He had already picked out his first pet in his mind.

Right now, it was somewhere inside Hogwarts Castle.