Just as Pansy was still processing everything she had just witnessed, the doors to the Great Hall were suddenly slammed open.
Bang!
With a deafening crash, a male wizard stumbled in, landing heavily on the floor...
"Professor Quirrell?"
"What's going on?"
It was indeed Professor Quirrell.
Strangely enough, the purple turban wrapped around his head remained perfectly in place.
The moment someone recognized him, a few nearby wizards began stepping forward—but before they could get close, Quirrell let out a terrified shriek.
"A troll! A troll is in the dungeon corridor... I thought you ought to know!"
As he said this, Quirrell's eyes were fixed on Dumbledore, seated at the center of the professors' table.
His words sent a jolt through the entire Great Hall.
But before anyone could ask for more details, Dumbledore looked toward him, and as if he had just completed some harrowing mission, Quirrell collapsed to the floor in a faint, looking strangely relieved.
This scene made Draco narrow his eyes slightly...
Naturally, Quirrell's announcement threw the hall into chaos.
Those who understood what a troll was began screaming in fear.
Even those who didn't know what a troll was were caught up in the spreading panic, their faces filled with alarm.
Who would have expected such a dangerous creature to show up inside Hogwarts?
However...
The commotion was quickly quelled by Dumbledore's intervention.
He stood, drew his wand, and pointed it toward the air.
With a sharp bang, a loud explosion echoed above the Great Hall.
"Now, Prefects of each house—lead your students to the common rooms immediately!"
He lowered his wand, the firelight glinting off his half-moon spectacles, making it impossible to read the Greatest Wizard's expression.
"Professors, I believe we have something to attend to."
Dumbledore's presence alone was enough to calm the young wizards.
Once they'd settled down, it became clear to them—so long as the Greatest Wizard was here, Hogwarts remained the safest place in all of Britain. There was no need to worry about their safety.
Not to mention, the other professors were all here as well.
Well... except for that one professor who fainted on the spot, who didn't seem all that reliable...
...
With the Prefects organizing the students, the young wizards—no longer gripped by fear—quickly shifted their focus to excitedly discussing the so-called troll, as if they hadn't just been screaming moments ago.
Trolls.
Towering up to twelve feet and weighing over a ton, they were fearsome beasts—immensely strong, but incredibly stupid.
Unlike giants, who retained a sliver of intelligence and perhaps a trace of reason, trolls harbored a violent instinct toward all living things. They could lash out without warning or cause.
In recent years, sightings had occurred throughout Britain, Ireland, and parts of Northern Europe...
In fact, the term "troll" here wasn't limited to a single species. It was more of a general label wizards used for large, monstrous beings.
Literally, it just meant a giant monster.
The reason for this broad classification was that the differences between them weren't significant enough to distinguish clearly...
For instance—
Mountain trolls, forest trolls, and river trolls were all lumped together under the name "trolls" for convenience.
And the one now loose in Hogwarts...
Was exactly this kind of dangerous creature.
...
"Draco, what's with you? You've been staring at Professor Quirrell."
Pansy had zero interest in magical beasts like trolls. What caught her attention was Draco's strange behavior.
There was no way she believed he was genuinely concerned about Quirrell, the professor who could barely string a sentence together.
"This is Hogwarts. Don't you think it's odd? How could such a brainless creature—one that probably can't tell the difference between a dog and a cat—have gotten inside?"
"You're saying... Professor Quirrell might be lying?"
"Who knows."
Draco withdrew his gaze, shrugged, then looked toward Dumbledore, whose face betrayed no emotion.
If something really was going on, Draco refused to believe the Headmaster was completely in the dark...
Just as Draco was about to follow the Prefect back to Slytherin, Goyle and Crabbe approached him with hesitation.
"Draco, uh…"
"The Granger girl you asked us to keep an eye on…"
Their hesitant expressions made Draco raise an eyebrow.
"What is it?"
"She might still be in the second-floor girls' bathroom. She never came out, so we came here to find you."
"The second floor?"
Draco's frown deepened.
He didn't know exactly where the troll was, but the idea of Hermione wandering around the castle alone was definitely troubling.
He glanced over at the professors who were starting to mobilize, then rolled his neck slightly.
"I'm going to check. I'll be back soon."
"Draco—"
"Listen. Wait for me in the common room!"
"Ugh… fine."
One sharp look from Draco, and the previously assertive Pansy immediately softened.
In the end, all she and the others could do was cover for him, giving Draco the chance to quietly slip away into the crowd.
As for notifying a professor?
That wasn't even on Draco's mind.
He was genuinely curious about that troll.
Despite the clear danger, Draco acted as if it were no more than a goblin...
...
[Upto 50 chapters ahead for now]
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