Crazy! Absolutely crazy!
They're all insane!!
Tusky was so shocked and furious that he nearly turned and stormed off right then and there!
A half-giant who threw caution to the wind for his own safety and that of his students, and a first-year wizard who suddenly started barking orders at them.
Tusky hailed from the frigid north, priding himself on being a fierce warrior, which was exactly why he'd chosen a job wrangling dragons.
But he never imagined there could be someone even more bloodthirsty than him!
Hogwarts had gone completely wild in just a few short years!
"***!"
Tusky swore under his breath, but he stayed put anyway.
Following the kid's instructions, he raised his wand, and streams of spells burst from its tip, hurtling toward the dragon.
Seeing this, his companions snapped to attention, falling into their usual rhythm for taming dragons as they joined in, chanting incantations in unison.
One of them tapped the ground, and the earth rippled like a wave, yanking Hagrid—who was still pinned under the mother dragon's massive paw—clear across the dirt.
Hagrid tumbled to the ground, clutching the baby dragon tightly, babbling frantic thanks.
"Cut the damn thanks!" Tusky bellowed. "Don't you have a crossbow? Use it!"
Tusky had no idea how the kid had managed to freeze a rampaging adult mother dragon in an instant.
But judging by his pale face and shaking body, he knew the boy couldn't hold out much longer.
"Oh, right!"
Hagrid finally snapped out of it, shoving the baby dragon into his pocket before yanking the massive crossbow off his back, nocking an arrow and taking aim.
"Oof—"
The bowstring, thick as a grown man's finger, creaked under the immense tension.
"Twang!"
With a sharp whistle, the heavy iron arrow sliced through the air and struck true, embedding itself in the mother dragon's relatively soft underbelly!
Blood sprayed out in a gush, and a flurry of follow-up arrows soon followed, finally drawing a wail of agony and rage from the beast!
"Roar—!!"
"No!" Tusky shouted, clapping his hands over his ears. "We can't put it to sleep at all! The best we can do is wear it down!"
"That's enough."
Everyone whipped their heads around to stare at the young wizard, whose expression had remained eerily calm from start to finish.
Even in the face of mortal danger, his eyes betrayed no ripple of emotion, not a single trace of panic.
No, that wasn't quite right—not entirely without emotion.
He was thrilled!
Tusky was stunned to realize that in the young wizard's eyes, there was a spark of excitement and sheer madness!
The way he gazed at the mother dragon wasn't like staring down something terrifying.
It was more like eyeing prey!
This first-year wizard actually saw the mother dragon as his quarry!
Was it the recklessness of ignorance? Or the boldness of a newborn calf unafraid of the tiger?
Tusky couldn't say.
But he found himself unconsciously swayed by Ethan, a fresh surge of courage welling up inside him, urging him to hold the line.
Gritting his teeth, he lifted his wand once more.
At worst, he could ditch the mother dragon and Apparate away with the two of them.
Afterward, he'd face the music at most, but at least he wouldn't lose his life.
Under the relentless onslaught of spells, the mother dragon finally began to flag.
It shook its head groggily, struggling desperately to break free, its eyes still blazing with bloodthirsty ferocity.
"This is as far as we can go," Tusky said. "It's impossible to knock it out cold—"
"No," Ethan's eyes gleamed. "It's more than enough."
He could sense it now—he could stuff this unruly dragon right into the wardrobe!
Under the bewildered and skeptical stares of the others, Ethan let out a low grunt, his eyes flaring like torches as he channeled every ounce of his magic into the painting like a raging torrent!
The spherical, scorpion-tailed chain that snaked out from the wardrobe and bound the mother dragon suddenly constricted!
It began dragging the dragon inexorably toward the wardrobe!
Everyone gaped in shock.
They'd never witnessed magic like this!
Could a simple wardrobe really imprison an entire dragon?
How was that even possible?!
Yet the impossible was happening right before their eyes.
"Roar!!!"
The mother dragon thrashed wildly, its claws gouging deep furrows into the earth.
But it was weakened, drained by the barrage of spells.
In the end, it was engulfed by the swirling cascade of brilliant stardust and yanked straight into the wardrobe!
"Bam!"
The wardrobe door slammed shut.
Roars of defiance and frustration echoed from within, the door rattling with each furious impact.
After several dozen seconds, everything went silent.
"Whew!"
Ethan collapsed to the ground.
He felt like he'd just swum the entire length of the Black Lake, soaked through and shivering uncontrollably.
He'd done it.
He'd successfully sealed a rampaging dragon into a Seal Card!
He'd captured the final boss that Professor Quirrell was about to tangle with!
Ethan figured that after all this effort, Professor Quirrell ought to bow down in gratitude.
However...
His magic reserves were still too low.
Ethan glanced at the wardrobe, which had reverted to its card form—at the moment, the image showed the wardrobe firmly closed.
He couldn't keep the dragon sealed for long.
Every second, it was siphoning his magic.
"If my soul fusion degree were just a bit higher, could I seal the heavens and earth with a single breath?"
Just the thought of it was insanely cool.
Ethan waited until his breathing steadied, then looked up to meet several stares of utter disbelief.
It was as if they'd witnessed a Flobberworm trounce Dumbledore, or a troll pummel Lord Voldemort.
Ethan pondered for a second and offered an explanation: "This painting has an Undetectable Extension Charm woven into it, which is why it can hold things far larger than its apparent space."
That's not what we're shocked about!
Sure, embedding spells into a painting is incredibly rare.
But the real kicker was that this first-year wizard had just imprisoned a full-grown dragon in his weird painting.
Tusky hesitated. "...Are you a dwarf?"
Was his real age way older than he looked?
Ethan nearly choked, forcing a strained smile: "Excuse me, I'm a pure-blood human, and my wand is fourteen inches."
He could grow plenty tall in the future.
Tusky was left speechless.
Suddenly, one of his companions let out a startled "Oh!":
"Are you that Ethan Vincent from the Daily Prophet?! No wonder you're so powerful..."
He turned to Tusky and the others, who looked baffled, and explained:
"This young wizard is part of Hogwarts' special talent cultivation program, using some unknown dark teaching methods!"
"Rumor has it Mr. Vincent lives at least sixty hours a day, looping through classes and training with a Time-Turner!"
"His effective age is already over a hundred years old!"
"Oh—now it makes sense—"
Everyone's faces lit up with understanding.
Tusky was on the verge of cursing, "Have you lost your mind?" but then he reconsidered:
If it wasn't some truly exceptional training, no ordinary young wizard could pull this off.
Without that supposed background, this kid could waltz right into the Auror office and apply on the spot!
On the other side.
Harry and his friends were dumbfounded.
"Is there really a talent cultivation program? That's insane!" Ron blurted out.
Hermione rolled her eyes at him and nodded firmly: "There is."
"I think I overheard Professor Flitwick and Professor McGonagall hinting at it once."
"We don't know about it because the program's kept under wraps."
Harry & Ron: Oh, so that's how it is...?
"As expected of Ethan—getting special training from Hogwarts."
"He pulls off stuff normal people couldn't dream of... Hogwarts' secret weapon, through and through."
Hagrid scratched his head: "I've been at Hogwarts fer so many years, an' I've never heard o' any 'talent cultivation program'... Headmaster Dumbledore's deeper than the Black Lake."
What a bunch of idiots.
Malfoy rolled his eyes so hard they nearly vanished.
He strode over, dutifully handing a potion to the worn-out Ethan, his face plastered with a beaming smile.
Just then.
"Chirp, chirp!"
A raspy cry emerged from Hagrid's pocket.
The baby dragon wriggled free, its eyes much clearer now.
It stared at Hagrid for a beat.
Then, it nuzzled against him affectionately!
"Oh—my sweet little Norbert! Yer comin' out?"
Hagrid gently set the tiny dragon on the ground.
To everyone's surprise, it toddled straight toward Ethan, letting out two eager calls.
Somehow, Ethan understood what it meant.
The sealed wardrobe cracked open just a sliver, and this time, the baby dragon crawled inside on its own.
"It's lookin' fer its mum!" Hagrid burst into tears again. "A mother an' child reunion—what a heartwarmin' sight!"
Ethan glanced at the painting in his hand and said, "Don't worry. I've got a perfect spot where that mother dragon can blow off some steam and get back in a good mood."
The plan was moving ahead of schedule.
Tonight, he'd slip under the trapdoor and set up his dazzling, entertaining City of Sehn!
"Ah!"
Late that night, Quirrell, hands shaking, tended to the massive, ragged wounds crisscrossing his body.
Blood drenched his robes, and Quirrell had passed out several times from the pain.
Evil—it was too damn evil!!
He'd just been pursuing a unicorn, so why the hell had a dragon suddenly appeared out of nowhere?!!!
Had the Forbidden Forest always had those things?!
...Anyway, now I know how to get past that three-headed beast, so in the next few days, I'll lure Dumbledore away from the school and snag the Philosopher's Stone as soon as possible!"
Quirrell muttered, his face pallid, a flicker of malice and desperation in his eyes.
Hogwarts was growing more treacherous by the day. He'd originally planned to strike during the post-exam chaos when the students were scattered... But he couldn't wait that long anymore!
The moment he got his hands on the Philosopher's Stone, he'd bolt!
Quirrell ran through the steps in his mind and felt a wave of reassurance.
After all, he'd been personally involved in setting up the protections for the Philosopher's Stone, so he knew every checkpoint inside and out.
In fact, he even thought they were a tad too straightforward.
"Master, I swear, this time it'll be absolutely foolproof...."
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