When Maka denied the existence of werewolves in the Forbidden Forest, Filch snorted.
"Who says there isn't? For a long time in the past, the cry of werewolves has been lingering. It was the worry of all the students in the school at that time." He sneered.
As he spoke, Hagrid strode towards them from the darkness, Fang following behind. Hagrid carried his huge stone bow and a full quiver of arrows slung over his shoulder.
"It's almost time," he said. "I've been waiting for half an hour. How about Maka, Harry, and Hermione?"
"You shouldn't be so polite to them, Hagrid," Filch said coldly. "After all, they are here to be punished."
"That's why you're late, isn't it?" Hagrid frowned at Filch and said, "You've been teaching them a lesson, huh? This is not the place for you to lecture people. Your mission is completed, and from now on I'm responsible."
"I'll be back at daybreak," said Filch, "to pick up what's left of them."
He said viciously, then turned and walked towards the castle, the lamp swaying and disappearing into the darkness.
At this moment, Malfoy suddenly turned to Hagrid.
"I won't enter the Forbidden Forest!" There was a hint of panic in his voice, which made Harry feel very happy.
"If you still want to stay at Hogwarts, you have to go." Hagrid said mercilessly, "You have done something wrong and now you must pay the price."
"Working here is the job of the employer, not the students. I thought the most we could do was write inspections or something. If my father knew I was doing this, he would—"
"He'll tell you that's what Hogwarts is like," Hagrid said brusquely. "Write a check? What's in it for you? You've got to do something useful, or get out. If you think you Father is willing to let you be expelled, so just go back to the castle and pack your bags, let’s go!”
Seeing Malfoy staring at Hagrid hatefully for a while, and finally lowering his gaze, Hagrid continued to speak.
"Okay," Hagrid said, "Now listen carefully, what we are going to do tonight is very dangerous, and I don't want anyone to be in danger."
"Come here with me first—"
He led them to the edge of the Forbidden Forest, raised the lamp high, and pointed at a narrow path that gradually disappeared into the depths of the dark forest.
"Look over there," Hagrid said. "Do you see that shiny thing on the ground? It's silver! That's unicorn blood. A unicorn in the Forbidden Forest was injured by something. It was so injured. It's very heavy. This is the second time this week. I found one dead last Wednesday - we have to try to find that poor unicorn and put it out of its misery as soon as possible."
"What if the thing that hurt the unicorn finds us first?" Malfoy asked, uncontrollable fear in his voice.
"As long as you are with me or Fang, no creature in the Forbidden Forest will harm you." Hagrid said, "Don't leave the path! Okay, now we have to split into two groups and follow the blood stains everywhere. It's all covered in blood, and it's obviously been stumbling around since at least last night."
"I want Fang!" Malfoy said hurriedly, seemingly confused by the intimidating appearance of this big hound.
"Okay, but let me remind you, it is a coward." Hagrid said, "Then, Malfoy, Neville and Fang go the same way, Maka, um... Maka, why don't you go with Fang too? How about it? I think you can help me keep an eye on the tooth to prevent it from suddenly getting scared and escaping back."
"No! No, um... Mr. McClain, you go with them, our side... um... no problem." Malfoy's resistance to Maka was obviously no less than that of the Forbidden Forest.
"Well, okay! Me, Maka, Harry and Hermione, go one way." Hagrid nodded.
"If anyone finds a unicorn, shoot a green spark, okay? Get your wands out and practice. And if anyone gets into trouble, shoot a red spark and we'll all come find you—ok Okay, everyone, be more careful, let’s go.”
The dense canopy of trees in the Forbidden Forest blocked most of the moonlight, so the forest seemed quite dark. Even though Hagrid was holding a lantern in his hand, it could only illuminate a small area around him.
"Fluorescence." Maka pulled out her wand and increased the surrounding visibility a lot.
"Thank you," Hagrid said, "This will allow us to search more carefully."
After walking for a while, they reached a fork in the road, and the two groups began to split up.
They walked in silence, staring at the ground. From time to time, you can see a silvery blood stain on the fallen leaves on the ground, giving off a faint hint of blue in the light.
Maka has stopped thinking about the Scroll of Truth. If nothing unexpected happens, she will encounter some interesting things.
"Could it have been a werewolf that killed the unicorn?" Harry asked.
"I've never seen a werewolf here," Hagrid said, "but even if there were a werewolf, it wouldn't be so fast. It's not easy to catch a unicorn. They are animals with very strong of magic, I've never heard of a unicorn being harmed before."
They walked past a thick, moss-covered tree stump, where the faint sound of gurgling water could be heard. Apparently there was a stream somewhere nearby.
There were still scattered unicorn blood stains on the winding path.
"Are you okay, Hermione?" Hagrid asked in a low voice, "Don't worry, since it's hurt so badly, it won't be able to go very far. We'll be able to soon - no, hide behind that tree." go!"
Before Hagrid could remind her, Maka had already dragged Hermione into the nearby bushes. Hagrid glanced at him, and without stopping, he grabbed Harry, carried him off the path, and hid behind a tall oak tree.
He took out an arrow, mounted it on the stone bow, and raised it ready to shoot.
Immediately, Harry also heard something seeming to be scraping and dragging on the nearby fallen leaves, making a rustling sound. Hagrid squinted at the dark path. After a few seconds, the sound gradually disappeared.
"I know," he murmured, "there is something that doesn't belong here."
There is probably no one who is more familiar with the Forbidden Forest than Hagrid. His accurate judgment did not surprise Maka at all.
"A werewolf?" Harry asked.
"A werewolf's endurance is average, but its speed and explosive power are very strong. It won't walk so slowly." Ma Ma pulled Hermione out of the bushes and looked meaningfully into the depths of the dark Forbidden Forest.
"Maka is right." Hagrid said firmly, "Okay, come with me, you have to be careful now."
Just as they were moving forward cautiously at a slower speed, they suddenly saw something moving in the open space in front of them.
"Who's there?" shouted Hagrid. "Come out - I'm armed!"
"Hagrid, that's a centaur," Maka said.
The thing walked into the clearing in response - it was a human from the waist up, with red hair and beard; but below the waist it was a brown-red shiny horse body, with a long red tail trailing behind.
Harry and Hermione's mouths dropped open in surprise.
"Oh, it's you, Ronan." Hagrid breathed a sigh of relief and said, "How are you?"
He stepped forward and shook hands with the centaur.
"Good evening, Hagrid," Ronan said, his voice low and sad. "You want to shoot me with a bow and arrow?"
"I have to be more vigilant, Ronan," Hagrid said, patting his quiver. "There's a bad guy roaming around in this forest. Oh, by the way, this is Maka McClane, Harry Potter, and Hermione Granger, are students in the school above. Let me introduce to you, this is Ronan, a centaur."
"Hello, Ronan." Maka also stepped forward and shook hands with him, "Nice to meet you."
He has always been interested in the centaurs' prophecy talent, but this did not help him much. For no matter what, prophecies are always vague and can be distorted by actual choices. So most prophecies can only be used as reference, at least that's what Maka thinks.
"Hello," Ronan said, "Are you students? Did you learn much in school?"
"Knowledge is always inexhaustible," Maca said. "Systematic teaching can enable students to gain enlightenment."
"This is very helpful for exploring the unknown." Ronan nodded.
Having said this, he moved his gaze upwards and stared at the sky above the clearing, "Mars is very bright tonight."
"Yeah," Hagrid said, looking up at the sky. "Listen, Ronan, I'm glad we met you, because there's an injured unicorn - did you see anything?"
Ronan stared up unblinkingly, and after a moment he sighed.
"It's always the innocent who suffer first," he said. "That's been the case for hundreds of years, and it's still the case now."
"Yes," said Hagrid, "but did you see anything, Ronan? Anything unusual?"
"Mars is bright tonight... unusually bright."
The words of horse people are always so uncertain, and chatting with them can easily make people anxious.
"Yes, but what I mean is, is there anything unusual near our home?" Hagrid was obviously a little impatient, "Didn't you notice some strange movements?"
"I think Ronan is trying to say that if Mars is in reverse and very bright, something worse will happen." Maka couldn't help but explain, "For example, riots, betrayal, oppression, fraud, or simply... war."
Ronan couldn't help but look at Maka, and so did Hermione and Harry, but Maka shrugged.
"Don't look at me like that, I also read it from the book." He said, "To be honest, I am not very good at astronomy and divination. I just recited them."