Going into the Forbidden Forest with Hagrid was considered one of the worst detentions possible at Hogwarts.
The stories surrounding the forest terrified most students.
Werewolves.
Acromantulas.
Dark creatures hidden beneath the trees.
Nobody wanted to spend the night there.
But Lucas wasn't worried at all.
Werewolves?
He'd personally killed a transformed alpha werewolf before.
As for the ordinary werewolves he'd dealt with in Albania…
Lucas honestly stopped counting after a while.
"It's fine, Hermione," he said reassuringly over breakfast. "You know my strength."
"And besides, Hagrid's coming too. If a werewolf appears, Hagrid can probably punch it unconscious."
Hermione still looked deeply unconvinced.
Lucas quickly realised he needed to calm her down before she marched directly to McGonagall demanding his detention be changed.
Personally, he'd much rather explore the Forbidden Forest than spend hours polishing trophies or scrubbing toilets.
Saturday night arrived quickly.
At exactly nine o'clock, Lucas entered the Entrance Hall and immediately saw Argus Filch waiting with an oil lamp.
"Follow me," Filch croaked unpleasantly.
He led Lucas outside through the castle grounds while muttering darkly to himself.
"Shame they abolished the old punishments," Filch grumbled bitterly. "Back in the old days, students were chained by their wrists for days at a time."
A disturbing smile spread across his face.
"I still oil the chains in my office regularly. Just in case they become useful again someday."
Filch glanced backward expectantly, clearly hoping to see fear on Lucas's face.
Instead, Lucas merely looked bored.
Filch's smile slowly faded.
"Hmph," he muttered. "Perhaps you simply don't understand how dangerous the Forbidden Forest really is."
"There are werewolves in there. Vampires too…"
Lucas spoke calmly behind him.
"I killed several werewolves in Albania."
Filch froze.
Slowly, he turned around.
Then he met Lucas's eyes.
For one brief moment, Filch suddenly felt cold all over.
Lucas's dark pupils looked frighteningly empty beneath the lantern light.
Filch swallowed hard and immediately stopped talking.
For the rest of the walk, he silently hurried forward while trying very hard not to look behind him again.
Eventually, a familiar booming voice echoed from ahead.
"Filch! That you?"
A lantern glow appeared in the darkness.
Then Hagrid emerged from the shadows carrying his massive crossbow.
"Oh, there you are!" Hagrid said cheerfully after spotting Lucas. "Thought I'd be waiting all night."
The moment Filch saw Hagrid, he visibly relaxed.
Then he immediately turned and fled back toward the castle without another word.
Clearly, Lucas had traumatised him slightly.
Hagrid watched Filch leave before glancing down curiously.
"He didn't bother you, did he?"
Lucas smiled faintly.
"I don't think he currently possesses the emotional strength required."
Hagrid burst into laughter.
"That sounds about right."
Then his expression brightened further.
"Speaking of which, you still haven't visited my hut yet."
"Next time," Lucas promised.
Then he asked curiously:
"So what exactly are we doing tonight?"
Hagrid's face immediately darkened.
"Something's been attacking unicorns in the forest lately."
His voice carried obvious anger now.
"And not ordinary beasts either. Unicorns are powerful magical creatures. Most predators wouldn't dare go near them."
Hagrid tightened his grip on the crossbow.
"I found another dead one yesterday."
Lucas took Fang's leash casually while walking beside him.
"The horn and tail weren't removed, were they?"
Hagrid blinked.
"No… strange thing is, they were untouched."
"The unicorn just bled to death."
Lucas nodded thoughtfully.
"Then it's obvious."
Hagrid frowned.
"Obvious?"
"Something is drinking unicorn blood."
His voice remained calm.
And inside Hogwarts, there was currently only one creature desperate enough to survive that way.
Voldemort.
Although Lucas remembered this happening later originally.
Perhaps his Fiendfyre injuries had accelerated the process.
Either way…
Tonight, there was a high chance he would finally confront Voldemort directly.
Lucas quietly tightened his grip around his wand.
Together, he and Hagrid entered the Forbidden Forest beneath the dark night sky.
Because of his wrongful expulsion years ago, Hagrid still wasn't legally allowed to use magic.
Which explained the crossbow.
"We need to stay alert," Hagrid warned quietly. "Could be a beast. Could be a wizard."
"I'm leaning toward wizard," Lucas replied calmly. "Unicorns possess strong magic. Ordinary beasts shouldn't be able to hunt them this easily."
Hagrid looked furious again.
"If it's a human…" he growled, "then they're cursed already. Anyone who drinks unicorn blood after killing such a pure creature lives a half-life from then on."
Suddenly, Hagrid stopped moving.
Silver droplets shimmered across the ground nearby.
"Unicorn blood," Hagrid whispered grimly. "Fresh."
Lucas immediately cast protective enchantments over both of them.
"Protego."
Invisible barriers wrapped silently around Hagrid and himself while Lucas quietly began storing magical power for rapid casting.
The two followed the blood trail deeper into the forest carefully.
The silver stains became more frequent as they continued.
Then suddenly—
Both Lucas and Hagrid reacted at the same time.
Hagrid raised his crossbow sharply.
Lucas's wand snapped toward a nearby bush.
"Come out!" Hagrid roared. "Or I'm shooting!"
Several seconds later, something slowly emerged from the undergrowth.
Not a monster.
A centaur.
Lucas observed him curiously.
From the waist upward, the creature resembled a human man with long red hair.
Below the waist, however, stretched the powerful body of a chestnut horse.
Hagrid lowered his crossbow immediately.
"Oh. It's you, Ronan."
The centaur looked mildly offended.
"Were you planning to shoot me, Hagrid?"
"Course not," Hagrid replied quickly. "But unicorns are getting attacked again, so everyone's tense."
Then he gestured toward Lucas.
"This is Lucas Summers, one of the Hogwarts students."
"And this is Ronan."
The centaur studied Lucas quietly.
"You learn much at the castle?"
Lucas nodded politely.
"I try to."
"That is good."
Then Ronan slowly lifted his gaze toward the stars above the forest canopy.
Lucas followed his gaze thoughtfully.
"Mars is unusually bright tonight," Lucas commented casually.
Ronan froze.
He'd literally been about to say that.
The centaur slowly turned his head toward Lucas.
Before he could speak, Lucas continued calmly:
"It's always the innocent who suffer first. That pattern hasn't changed for centuries."
Ronan stared at him in silence.
Lucas looked back toward the stars again.
"Mars burns brighter than usual tonight," he murmured. "The forest is hiding dangerous secrets."
Ronan: "…"
For perhaps the first time in his life, the centaur had absolutely no idea what to say.
Because the human child beside him kept saying everything first.
Even Hagrid looked deeply confused.
Eventually, Lucas and Hagrid continued deeper into the forest while Ronan remained standing there silently questioning reality.
After several minutes, Hagrid finally muttered:
"If I didn't know better, I'd think you were a centaur too."
The silver blood trail became heavier ahead.
Which meant they were getting close.
Then suddenly—
A strange rustling sound echoed nearby.
Soft.
Dragging.
Almost like heavy robes brushing across the forest floor.
Hagrid instantly raised the crossbow again.
Lucas quietly pushed aside the bushes in front of them.
And then they saw it.
A beautiful silver unicorn lay dying upon the ground.
Its body twitched weakly.
Beside it crouched a figure covered completely in black robes.
The figure lowered its face toward the unicorn's wound…
…and drank its blood directly.
Without hesitation, Lucas raised his wand.
A strange crimson light erupted instantly from the ebony wood and shot toward the black-robed figure.
....
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