Sleep! Why Won't This Dog Go to Sleep?!

William walked along the rugged path in the Forbidden Forest, cradling Fawkes in his arms.

He placed his hands on Fawkes's body and, using his unique cat-petting technique, tried to rub its skin until it was bald, so he could collect its tail feathers.

Fawkes was oblivious to William's sinister intentions, enjoying the high-class massage with his eyes closed, looking quite excited.

If it could talk, it would probably shout, "Technician #7 is great, extend the session!"

Dumbledore, oblivious to the fact that William was about to steal his phoenix, wore a smile on his face.

"William, you did something very noble tonight."

Hearing the principal's words, William shook his head. "I helped the Centaur simply because I didn't want to see them slaughtered."

Dumbledore praised, "To stand up against a dangerous dark wizard is already a noble act."

"Actually, I had my own selfish motives too," William chuckled. "Newt told me that only by helping these highly intelligent beings could I have a chance to communicate with them as equals, and even get what I wanted."

The Merpeople incident taught William a very serious lesson.

Prior to this, William did not treat these Magical Creatures as "humans," but they were indeed highly intelligent beings.

If they had been able to communicate with the Merpeople beforehand, instead of using Cedric and his group to trap and cut off Merpeople hair, the attack at Christmas would not have happened.

William is a very thoughtful person; having made a mistake once, he will not repeat it.

The Centaur was a good change for him.

If he wants to obtain the precious herbs in the Forbidden Forest, he needs to cultivate a good relationship with the Centaur.

Although Bane hated humans, Ronan and Firenze did not, and in fact, a significant portion of the Centaur did not dislike them.

As Chairman Mao said, "Make as many friends as possible and as few enemies as possible."

This principle will never be outdated.

Who knows, maybe one day Firenze or Ronan will rise to power and become the Centaur leader?

"Yes, many wizards don't realize this," Dumbledore remarked. "You're right, we really do need to befriend those Magical Creatures."

We have too few helpers!

Dumbledore gazed at the bright Mars and said sadly, "In the last Wizarding War, the Death Eaters were numerous, and they had Giant, Werewolf, and vampires as allies... We were inexperienced and outnumbered, which led to the deaths of many wizards."

"If we had been able to unite all the forces that could be united back then, we could have avoided a lot of unnecessary deaths."

Dumbledore's voice echoed through the Forbidden Forest.

"William, if you want to get along well with the Centaur, this is not an easy thing."

Centaur are very stubborn. I've always hoped to invite them to teach Divination at Hogwarts, but they're unwilling to leave the Forbidden Forest.

William raised an eyebrow. Did the principal also think Professor Trelawney was incompetent?

So why did Dumbledore keep a conman around for twelve years?

Dumbledore never does anything pointless, so could Trelawney be the hidden master of Hogwarts?

William suddenly became interested in this man everyone called a conman.

"By the way, Professor, I have another question." William hesitated for a moment, then said, "Was the wizard who appeared tonight the same one who attacked Gringotts?"

"It's him," Dumbledore answered without the slightest hesitation.

Why did he kill the Unicorn?

"Unicorn Blood can prolong life and restore strength, even if you are on the verge of death."

That man has long since lost most of his power, and his battle with you at Gringotts further depleted the power he had accumulated over the years. He needs the Unicorn Blood.

"But I remember Unicorn Blood..."

"That's right," Dumbledore sighed. "Unicorn are pure, fragile, and helpless creatures."

From the moment its blood touches your lips, you will possess a half-dead life, a cursed life.

But what was a curse to Voldemort? He had already cast a far more terrible curse upon himself.

William frowned. He had also suspected that the man might be Voldemort, but he hadn't expected the headmaster to tell him so clearly.

"So, Voldemort also controlled Quirrell to steal the Philosopher's Stone?"

"It's him." Dumbledore nodded. "He's been wandering around here since the summer holidays."

"Now that it's been confirmed that Voldemort is behind this, why are they still letting Quirrell stay at school?"

William had always thought Dumbledore was fishing and wanted to know who was really behind Quirrell's orders.

But now it seems that's not the case. The principal clearly confirmed the other party's identity and even set up obstacles. This wasn't a trap at all; it was... playing with fire.

Dumbledore let out a heavy sigh.

"William, you should know that Voldemort attacked Harry when he was a baby."

He should have died there, but he only lost most of his power.

Voldemort had told the Death Eaters many times that he had gone further on the path to immortality than anyone else.

I have some speculations about Voldemort's methods, but I don't have any key evidence yet.

I need to observe his condition further.

Most importantly, William, I need someone fully prepared to fight him to the death.

This is a test and a trial!

William frowned, as if he wanted to ask something, but Dumbledore raised his hand.

I can't tell you now, but you'll find out someday.

When you're a little older... I know you don't want to hear this... but when the time comes, you'll naturally understand."

William nodded.

"Ha, I think I hear Hagrid's voice. Let's go find him," Dumbledore chuckled. "I think he wouldn't mind making some pine nut tea to warm our stomachs."

Just as William and Dumbledore finished their conversation, a wizard in black robes had already sneaked back into Hogwarts through a secret passage.

Quirrell did not return to the Defense Against the Dark Arts Office, but instead headed towards the fourth-floor Restricted Section.

Dumbledore was still in the Forbidden Forest, and Snape, who had been bothering him, had been knocked unconscious and was hanging from a southeast branch.

Now, nothing can stop him from stealing the Philosopher's Stone.

Voldemort hadn't originally planned to act now, but tonight's developments exceeded his expectations, and he suddenly realized that now was a good time.

After tonight, there might not be another chance like this.

Even if he fails, he has a backup plan.

At Voldemort's command, Quirrell opened the door, Fluffy, stared at him with crossed eyes and bared teeth.

Quirrell trembled all over. This wasn't the first time he'd seen Fluffy, but he trembled every time he did.

"Idiot, play the song already!"

At Christmas, Quirrell disguised himself as a strange wizard, took a dragon egg to Hagrid, and tricked him into revealing Fluffy's weakness.

Hagrid, drunk at the time, said, "Only his singing can put Fluffy to sleep, anyone else can!"

So Quirrell believed him.

And they made Hagrid sing, which they recorded using a crystal ball.

Quirrell pulled a crystal ball from his pocket, placed it on the ground with trembling hands, and Hagrid's rough and unpleasant singing voice came from inside.

"Unforgettable Tonight, Unforgettable Tonight, no matter where we are, Hogwarts, our home..."

"Go to sleep!"

Quirrell looked at Fluffy expectantly.

"Three, two, one... Fall!"

But soon, his smile froze.

Sleep! Why isn't this silly dog sleeping?

(Thanks to "Daoyou Qing Liubu You" and "Fengling Shiwu" for their generous donations!)