Albert raised his head, and with the help of the white light from the tip of his wand, he vaguely saw Professor McGonagall walking quickly towards him. Following behind the professor were... their roommate Lee Jordan, and... Headmaster Dumbledore.
The elderly man was looking at the three of them with a smile.
"Bud, you found them, that's great!" Professor McGonagall breathed a sigh of relief, her eyes fell on Albert, Fred and George, as if checking if her students were injured.
"It should be said... that it was Mr. Anderson who found the two Mr. Weasleys." Professor Brode explained with a smile: "When I arrived, Mr. Anderson had already rescued the Mr. Weasleys who were trapped in the mountain pear tree (guardian tree) from a large group of giant acromantula."
"Sorry, you said a group of... what?" Professor McGonagall's voice rose a few degrees, as if she couldn't believe what she had just heard
"Acromantula, Minerva." Professor Brod turned his head to look at Dumbledore. "There should be a nest of acromantula deep in the Forbidden Forest. These monsters have almost no natural enemies and have multiplied into a large group."
"I see." Dumbledore looked at Albert curiously and smiled. "However, I am more curious about how Mr. Anderson found Mr. Weasley and how he dispersed those giant eight-eyed spiders. As far as I know, those monsters are not something that an ordinary freshman can deal with."
Albert looked at Lee Jordan, cleverly avoiding Dumbledore's gaze. Even if Dumbledore did not use Legilimency, he was an expert in this area. As long as their eyes met, it would be difficult for Albert to lie in front of Dumbledore.
"Yes, in fact, I am also curious about this." Professor Brod changed the subject and kindly reminded, "But I think the most urgent thing is to send them to the school hospital first. We used the door key when we came back, and they are still... unconscious."
"You're right, Bud." Professor McGonagall nodded, stared at the three people sternly, and said, "Follow me!"
"Excuse me, come and help me support Fred." Albert ignored Professor McGonagall's stern look and said to Lee Jordan. He was also very tired and didn't have much energy to support others.
"Oh, yes, there's this dog. It seems to be Hagrid's pet. Albert seems to rely on it to find Mr. Weasley." Professor Brod pointed to Fang at his feet and said, "However, it seems that it can't adapt to Apparition."
"Don't worry, I've informed Hagrid and he will be back soon," Dumbledore said gently.
After a moment, he seemed to notice something, turned his head to look in a certain direction, and said with a smile: "Look, Hagrid is back."
Yes, Hagrid was back, coming back from the direction of Hogsmeade with an oil lamp. He was a little drunk, and a strong smell of alcohol emanated from his body. He was walking towards this side with big strides.
"Principal Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall... Professor Broad?" Hagrid held back a burp and greeted the three professors. His eyes fell on Albert and the others, and he was relieved to see that they were okay.
"I'm so glad they're okay. These little guys always like to sneak off into the woods when I'm not paying attention."
"Alright Hagrid..."
Dumbledore spoke to Hagrid about the situation, and the gamekeeper said he would take good care of his pet.
Everyone said goodbye to Hagrid and soon arrived at the school hospital.
Being woken up in the middle of the night, Madam Pomfrey was in a bad mood, but she still treated the three people diligently.
"It's nothing serious. The two Mr. Weasleys are just not used to the portkey and haven't recovered from the portkey fainting. As for Mr. Anderson, he is just too tired. He will be fine after a good sleep." Madam Pomfrey gave the diagnosis after examining the three people.
"They need to rest, and they will be fully recovered the day after tomorrow at the latest."
Now, the head nurse is ready to kick everyone out.
Unfortunately, even Madam Pomfrey can't do anything about the dead key. Just rest for a day or two and you'll be fine.
"Poppi, we need to figure out the cause and effect. It will only take a few minutes." Professor McGonagall said.
"Five minutes at most. The patient needs to rest." Madam Pomfrey frowned and handed Albert a piece of chocolate.
"Tell me, what's going on?" Professor McGonagall's tone softened a little, staring at the three people and asking.
Albert briefly explained the situation and when he returned to the dormitory to rest, he found that Fred and George had not returned.
Later, I learned from Li Qiaodan that the two people might have entered the woods and have not returned yet.
Then, Albert said that he confirmed through owls that the two were indeed still in the Forbidden Forest and was going to seek Hagrid's help. In the end, because Hagrid was not there, he could only go into the forest to find someone himself, and then asked Lee Jordan to return to the castle to ask the professor for help.
"You violated a lot of school rules along the way, but how did you find the two Mr. Weasleys and how did you escape death?" Professor McGonagall couldn't help asking, "And what about the group of giant eight-eyed spiders that Professor Broad mentioned?"
"At first, I thought Fred and George were just lost. It's easy to get lost in a place like the Forbidden Forest without a guide." Albert continued to talk about his experiences along the way. Later he said that he met a centaur and with the help of a centaur, found the direction of the bright red spark.
"The red sparks are what Albert wrote to remind us." Fred took out Albert's handkerchief, on which was clearly written: Shoot red sparks into the sky. If you have any problems, you can ask the centaurs for help. They will take you out of the forest.
"In fact, the centaurs are not very friendly." Albert said self-deprecatingly, "but the centaurs said they never attack foals, I think they mean they will not attack students. Later I said I was a friend of Hagrid, negotiated with the centaurs, and persuaded them to lead me to the direction of the red spark, and then I met a giant spider.
Dumbledore nodded. He knew the centaurs in the Forbidden Forest.
"How did you defeat the giant eight-eyed spider?" Professor Broad asked the question that everyone was most curious about.
"Thanks to Fang's warning, I was not attacked by the giant spider, but the barrier spell and the coma spell had no effect on those big spiders." Albert recalled while lying on the bed, chewing chocolate, "Later, I tried to use the dance spell on its feet to restrict its ability to move. In fact, this attempt was very successful."
"Fantastic idea, your defense against the dark arts is excellent. I am proud of you." Professor Broad nodded.
"Later, after I calmed down, I remembered the spider repelling spell I had seen by chance in the library," Albert said with emotion. "I didn't expect that this spell would have a miraculous effect on those giant spiders."
Albert slowly recounted the story of tonight, and at the end he talked about how he relied on the guardian tree to defeat most of the eight-eyed giant spiders that surrounded him...
"It's incredible." Professor McGonagall had already seen the courage and wisdom of this freshman from Albert's narration, whether it was the courage and ability he showed in finding the twins through owls and hounds, or in facing the centaurs and eight-eyed giant spiders. Even entering the Forbidden Forest in the middle of the night required great courage.
"Okay, I roughly understand the situation." Professor McGonagall gave the final verdict, "Mr. Weasley, you have seriously violated the school rules. Each of you will be deducted 100 points and will be detained for a week."
Fred and George both whined, and Lee Jordan next to them was also startled. With 100 points each, Gryffindor's few points were basically gone.
"As for Mr. Anderson." Professor McGonagall hesitated, as if considering how to deal with Albert's matter.
Finally, it was Dumbledore who spoke up. "Mr. Anderson showed extraordinary courage and wisdom in the process and saved the lives of the two Mr. Weasleys. I think this is enough for you to win the Special Contribution Award for the school. And let me think about it. You won 200 points for Gryffindor."
Fred and George both breathed a sigh of relief, as it was considered to offset the points they had been deducted. However, they suddenly felt miserable when they remembered that they would be put in detention.
"Oh, there is one more thing. Mr. Anderson saved me from being seriously injured by an acromantula when we were in the Forbidden Forest," Professor Broad said with a smile. "I think this is enough to win 50 points for Gryffindor."
"Okay, let's go first! I think we should let them have a good rest." Dumbledore turned and prepared to leave.
"There is one more thing." Professor McGonagall said suddenly.
"What is it, Minerva?" asked Dumbledore.
"What are you doing in the woods?" Professor McGonagall stared at the twins sternly.
Under such fierce coercion, the twins confessed everything.
"Where's the map?" asked Professor McGonagall.
"I threw the map in the Forbidden Forest," Albert said, "to prevent them from running into the forest and committing suicide."
"Okay, can I take care of my patient now?" Madam Pomfrey came over and brought sleeping potions to the three of them.
"Drink it, it will help you sleep well."
Albert could guess what it was.
A dose of life and death water
Under the watchful eyes of Madam Pomfrey, Albert drank the potion. The effect of the potion was immediate, and he felt his eyelids were heavy, and he closed his eyes irresistibly, and a dreamless sleep enveloped Albert.
…
"Well, you should go back to the dormitory and have a rest!" Professor McGonagall said to Li Jordan outside the school hospital: "Your behavior is very sensible. You won 10 points for Gryffindor."
After Lee Jordan left, Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall looked at Professor Broad.
"Mr. Anderson is basically right. However, I am also shocked that he was able to find Mr. Weasley." Professor Broad said with emotion: "He is undoubtedly a genius with overflowing talent. By the way, there is something I want to tell you."
"What's up?"
"I think I should resign early. This position really brings bad luck and misfortune to people." Professor Brode smiled bitterly, "It is undoubtedly a wise choice to resign early before the curse causes harm to me."
"What about Gryffindor's secret treasure that Mr. Weasley mentioned?" Professor McGonagall suddenly mentioned the map and frowned.
"There have indeed been similar legends, but nothing can be confirmed. You know, legends are not necessarily reliable, although they may have some historical basis."
"I have heard of similar legends." Professor Brod said, "Some people claim that the Big Four each left their own secret treasures in Hogwarts. They contain priceless treasures, perhaps gold, prophecies, and other powerful magical items."
"There is indeed such a legend in Hogwarts Castle, but legends are just legends after all. No one has ever found the so-called secret treasure." Dumbledore said softly.
The three of them were silent. They all had their own judgment and naturally would not easily believe the so-called legends.
Yes, legends are just legends, just like the legend of the Chamber of Secrets once circulated in Hogwarts, but no one has found the Chamber of Secrets left by Slytherin.