"Oh... Merlin..."
Michael couldn't help but whisper, a hint of trepidation unconsciously appearing on his face.
After pushing through the dense forest, everyone finally saw the massive creature.
This Norwegian Ridgeback looked fully grown, its whole body strong and intimidating, muscular, covered in thick, dark-black scales that seemed to completely blend into the dark environment.
It had incinerated an area of forest the size of a small plaza, leaving the ground barren. The grayish-white rocks were covered in scorch marks and claw prints.
About fifty meters ahead, there was a dark cave. The rocks on both sides of the entrance were covered in scratches and marks left by the Dragon, looking at first glance like ancient, indecipherable writing.
At this moment, the enormous Dragon was tearing at a large fish it had thrown on the ground, half-cooked by its scorching flames. When it opened its mouth, a full set of sharp, venomous fangs were revealed, sending shivers down their spines.
"This big guy must weigh at least five tons," Padma couldn't help but shiver, whispering, "Are we really safe standing here?"
"Trust Hagrid," Harry said, then couldn't help but add, "...It should be fine."
"Get out of the way, Scarhead!"
Malfoy couldn't resist pushing past everyone to the front, shoving Harry aside. He looked at the Dragon, full of affection, and said,
"Did you see her orange-red eyes? Look at her wings, I bet they're fifty meters wide when fully spread..."
Norberta heard their voices, and her red eyes slanted over. Suddenly, her long tail lashed out!
Hagrid quickly used his hand to push, and the few people in front all stumbled backward uncontrollably. As Harry fell, he watched wide-eyed as a tail with a sharp, hooked tip swept past not far in front of him, leaving a deep gash in a nearby tree trunk.
"Sorry, are you all alright?"
Hagrid said, bending down to help them up, as if it wasn't a big deal that they had nearly had half their faces scraped off by a Dragon's tail. He said cheerfully, "Norberta is very protective of her food; you can't get close to her when she's eating."
"Thanks, Hagrid," Ron said, still shaken. "But you should've told us before her dinner."
Hermione noticed the Dragon shift slightly, its triangular head half-turned towards them, one eye secretly watching. Her scalp prickled, and she quickly said, "Don't talk, quiet!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Hagrid waved his hand and said, "Hi, Norberta, don't be scared, it's Mom!"
The Dragon let out a gust of flame from its nostrils with a "whoosh." Although the flames didn't ignite Hagrid, the scorching air still made everyone feel parched.
To everyone's disbelief, Hagrid patted the ash from his beard and said endearingly, "So clingy... she's still a baby!"
"Is Hagrid blind?" Michael looked at Wade, his voice a low hiss between his teeth. "I've never seen a sixty-foot baby before!"
He already regretted participating in this activity. It wasn't fun at all, nor was it pleasant. He'd rather be in the common room, thinking of some interesting jokes or writing a boring essay.
Wade couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter.
Many people were startled by what had just happened, but no one suggested leaving. Everyone waited patiently in the forest.
The sight of the Dragon tearing at its food was brutal, but every reflective scale on such a magnificent creature was captivating. No matter how vividly described, the creatures in textbooks couldn't compare to the shock of seeing this massive beast in person.
After more than ten minutes, Norberta finally finished eating. It then sprayed another burst of flame to burn away all the blood and filth on the ground. Only then did it find a relatively flat spot, settling down contentedly, its tail slowly swaying, and its eyes slightly closed.
"Hi, Norberta. Look—I brought a lot of friends to play with you."
Hagrid strode over.
The Dragon's eyelids lifted slightly, looking at Hagrid. It let out a low draconic roar, without any unnecessary movements.
Hagrid stroked Norberta's snout and neck, then turned and beckoned for the students to come closer.
A moment later, Harry was the first to walk towards Hagrid.
Wade could tell that Harry probably regretted his first step forward, but he couldn't bear to disappoint Hagrid, so he forced himself to keep moving closer, his steps growing slower and slower.
Norberta's gaze turned to him. Even with only half of her orange-red eyes visible, it was terrifying.
But fortunately, she remained motionless, only exhaling faint wisps of hot air from her nostrils.
"Don't be scared," Hagrid encouraged. "Norberta's in a good mood now, you can touch her."
Harry cautiously extended his hand and gently touched the Dragon's wrinkled wing, a surprised smile gradually appearing on his face.
"Come on, kids, she's not fierce at all, is she?" Hagrid called out loudly, patting Norberta's neck.
Rolf immediately ran over excitedly, and others followed one after another. Malfoy, who had stumbled earlier, observed for a while with his arms crossed before carefully walking over.
A well-fed Norberta indeed seemed extremely docile, or rather, she didn't pay any attention to the little ones around her, tolerantly allowing them to circle her, gently stroking her scales and claws.
Having hatched at Hogwarts and been raised by Hagrid, Norberta was not as wary of Wizards as her kin. When she was born, she seemed like a firecracker ready to explode, but as she grew, she became gentler.
Hagrid tirelessly cautioned, "Norberta has a good temper, but don't you dare secretly bully her when I'm not looking. She's not to be trifled with when she gets angry. Don't pull out her scales or feathers, but if they've fallen on the ground, you can pick them up."
In reality, the students here were all carefully selected by Hagrid, and Fred and George couldn't come because they were busy with classes. He knew very well that there were no troublemakers among these students.
All his words were directed at Draco Malfoy; half of Hagrid's attention was on the Slytherin.
If the Half-Giant hadn't racked his brains and failed to find a legitimate way to break the agreement, he wouldn't have brought Malfoy to his precious Norberta.
But surprisingly, Malfoy didn't secretly cause trouble, nor did he speak disrespectfully as he had with the Hippogriff last time.
He gently stroked the Dragon, his eyes full of awe and affection. He even bumped into Harry unintentionally, but he didn't even notice it was his least favorite "Scarhead."
At that moment, he looked almost like an innocent child.
Hagrid finally relaxed a little. He untied a bag from his back and distributed the jerky and fruit inside to the students.
"You can feed her some food. Norberta likes fruit too. Remember to keep your distance; just throw it from three or four meters away."
Hagrid said, giving Malfoy an extra share specifically so he'd be engrossed in feeding the Dragon and wouldn't cause trouble.
Wade also went with the flow and took some fruit. What Hagrid had grabbed for him was a whole basketful: two apples, a handful of cherries, and a few kiwis, all emitting a sweet, fresh scent.
He fed the Dragon for a while, then his expression suddenly shifted.
From the forest not far away, he heard the sound of dry branches snapping and suppressed whimpers.
Could it be that a student secretly followed them into the Forbidden Forest and got injured?
Wade listened carefully again but didn't hear any more movement.
He looked at Hagrid, who was intently watching the students feed the Dragon. After a moment's thought, he decided not to disturb him—Hagrid absolutely couldn't leave right now. Otherwise, if Norberta suddenly got agitated, the students here could be wiped out.
But Wade was also a little concerned about the sounds he'd just heard. He handed the remaining fruit to Rolf, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Here, you keep feeding them. I need to step away for a bit."
"Oh, okay," Rolf said, taking the fruit. "Be careful, don't go too far."
"Don't worry, I know."
Wade said, waving his hand nonchalantly, and walked into the forest. Fang, the hound, alertly noticed a student leaving the group. It looked at its master, then at the direction Wade had gone, quickly made a decision, and ran over.
As soon as his figure was obscured by the tree trunks, Wade cast a Disillusionment Charm, moving quickly and lightly towards the source of the sound.
"Woof! Woof woof!"
Fang suddenly ran over. Although it couldn't see Wade, it still found his location by scent, blocked his path, and barked softly, urging him to return to the group.
Wade suddenly felt like a sheepdog was herding sheep. He lifted the Disillusionment Charm and leaned down to pat the hound's head.
"There's a strange sound nearby. Maybe a student got separated. Can you help me listen carefully and see if that's what it is?"
Animals in the magical world are generally very intelligent. Hearing this, Fang stopped barking and perked its ears, listening intently.
As soon as the surroundings quieted, the sounds became much clearer—rustling… clicking… and panting.
Fang instantly became extremely vigilant, baring its teeth ferociously, looking like it could scare a small child to tears. But Wade, who knew Fang somewhat, knew that this timid dog was already scared enough to flee.
Fang only seemed exceptionally brave when he was next to Hagrid.
Hearing the clicking sound, like mandibles clashing, Wade raised an eyebrow, probably realizing what was in front of him. He pulled out his Wand and walked slowly forward, with Fang shrinking behind him.
After they rounded a bush, they finally saw the source of the sound.
They were several Acromantula, as large as horses, slowly circling a large tree. Their eight legs moved with an arrogant, swaggering gait.
"Blood," one spider said, accompanied by clicking sounds. "The smell of blood."
"Dragon's prey… escaped," another spider said happily.
"Dinner, snacks," the other spiders said, clacking their mandibles in delight.
"Quiet! Quiet! Don't attract the Dragon!" the largest Acromantula said.
At the base of the tree they surrounded, there was a hollow. Something shadowy within the darkness was breathing with difficulty, its body subtly rising and falling, occasionally letting out whimpers of fear.
"Hey!" Wade suddenly called out, stepping out from behind a tree. Holding his Wand, he asked, "What are you doing?"
All the Acromantula turned their heads at once, dozens of glowing eyes fixed on him.
"Human!"
"Stranger!"
"Hagrid's brought, a cub!"
"Eat! Eat!" the Acromantula said resentfully.
Wade felt something was off. Aragog, the leader of the Acromantula, should still be alive at this point, but these spiders seemed to have no fondness for Hagrid at all.
He didn't have time to think further. With a wave of his hand, Wardrobe Space suddenly opened, and Mihail shot out like an arrow, excitedly spitting a fine stream of flames from its mouth.
The few Acromantula that were about to pounce and hunt instantly froze. A second later, they turned and fled quickly, their eight legs seemingly desperate to leave afterimages behind them.
Mihail clicked its mouth and stood on a tree branch, looking at Wade.
After a moment of thought, Wade said, "We don't need too many Acromantula. Go control their numbers."
Mihail gave a "coo" and three long flame feathers extended from its unfolded wings.
Wade chuckled, then said, "Even one-tenth of them is more than enough."
If it weren't for the fact that Acromantula venom was genuinely precious, he wouldn't want to leave even one of these cold-blooded creatures that were destined to betray them.
Mihail happily chased after them, and flashes of fire began to flicker through the dark forest.
With Mihail in control, Wade wasn't worried about causing a forest fire. He closed Wardrobe Space, leaned down to look into the tree hollow, and softly said, "Lumos."
Bright white light illuminated the dark tree hollow. The creature inside immediately shielded its eyes and asked in fear, "Who's there?"
Wade froze.
It was clearly the voice of a small boy, squeaky and childish, sounding too young to even be in primary school.
This certainly couldn't be a Hogwarts student.
Fang suddenly got excited, approaching and barking several times, but Wade pulled it back by its collar, pushing it aside.
Wade moved closer and finally saw the little one hidden among the dry leaves.
It was a young wolf.
Its head was round, and its body was like a small ball of fur, giving it a somewhat clumsy appearance.
It had a short tail, a wet black nose that twitched slightly, and wide eyes filled with panic and helplessness. Its light yellow fur was stained with blood.
There were several terrible wounds on its back, which looked like they had been inflicted by Norberta.
Wade was silent for a moment.
This young wolf was probably a snack or a live toy Norberta had caught for herself, but somehow, it had managed to escape.
Even if it had briefly gained its freedom, it would likely die soon if its wounds weren't treated in time.
If it were just an ordinary wolf, that would be one thing, but this little guy could actually speak human language...
Wade asked, "Are you a descendant of a Werewolf?"
He had read in books that if Werewolves mated in their wolf form, they would produce a litter of true wolf cubs, but these cubs would possess near-human intelligence.
However, the books never mentioned that such wolf cubs could speak human languages.
Wade was initially surprised but then quickly thought that in this world of magic, even spiders could speak human languages, so wouldn't it be perfectly normal for a wolf cub with human blood to speak English?
"I... my father is a Werewolf..." The young wolf didn't dare to hide anything. After saying this, it hugged its head with its front paws and pitifully begged, "Please... spare me... I'll never go near the school again..."
Seeing its pathetic state, Wade sighed. With a flick of his Wand, the young wolf involuntarily flew out of the tree hollow.
It struggled in terror but then landed in a warm embrace.
"Don't move around so much, you'll die if you do. Let me help you heal."
As Wade spoke, he pointed his Wand at the young wolf's wounds and softly chanted a Healing Spell.
The bleeding slowly stopped, but the wounds weren't so easy to heal.
Norwegian Ridgeback claws likely carried some venom, making the wounds they caused difficult to recover from.
"Come back with me. It looks like we'll have to find Madam Pomfrey to heal your wounds... I wonder if she can moonlight as a vet."
Wade said, then tapped his Wand, causing the young wolf to fall into a deep sleep. He then put it in his pocket and turned to walk with Fang towards where his classmates were.
In the dark forest, a bush subtly rustled. A moment later, an amber eye peered through the gap, watching Wade's departing figure.
-----------
Machine Translation by: https:// randomtranslator.com/
Read ***+ original & fanfic translations in English, Español, Português, Deutsch, Français, or Русский
Or Translate for free at : https:// randomtranslator.com/translate
Join our Discord: https:// discord.com/invite/XXUR9nkjwa
-----------