novelhk Chapter 507 Rune Serpent
Chapter 507 Rune Serpent
Chapter 507 Rune Serpent
Cyrus didn't know if Harry and the others had found out what the so-called top secret was from Hagrid, but if Hermione was there, Hagrid probably wouldn't be able to keep it a secret, unless he kicked out Harry and the other two as well as he had kicked out Cyrus.
He does seem to have done just that.
During Tuesday's Magical Creatures class, Celeste noticed that Hagrid was avoiding them, especially Hermione; he wouldn't even look at her.
As soon as the students were in position, he took down a dozen or so minks strung together from the shelf next to him, turned around, and walked into the woods behind the school.
"Come with me, we'll have class here today—" Hagrid said cheerfully to the students. "Watch your step, Miss Brown, it's a bit dense in the woods, but they like the darkness—"
"What things like darkness?" Xilun heard hushed whispers behind him, and many of the voices carried a hint of fear.
As is well known, in the magical world, most creatures that love darkness are not very friendly. The most famous examples in this regard are werewolves and vampires, as well as the three-headed rune, a common pet of dark wizards that appears in countless childhood nightmares of young wizards and often in wizarding fairy tales.
These horrible creatures all have a particular fondness for the dark; Hagrid wouldn't take them to see them, would he? — Given his previous teaching style, it's not impossible.
Some people began to slow their pace involuntarily, after all, there really were werewolves in the Forbidden Forest of Hogwarts—not the rational werewolves like Professor Lupin, but the real wild beasts.
Fortunately, they didn't go all the way into the forbidden forest. They stopped after ten minutes, and when they turned around, they could still see the sunlight streaming in from outside the forest.
"Ready?" Hagrid glanced at everyone with amusement, but quickly looked away when his gaze fell on Hermione.
"When I came back this time, I happened to run into Professor Kettleburn. He told me that the fifth-grade 0.WL class might have questions about the lives of magical creatures in their natural environment, and it would be best to prepare a few forest exploration lessons."
Hagrid slung the mink from his shoulder onto a tree branch and clapped his hands. "The animals we're going to learn about today are very rare, and it took me a lot of effort to get them here. To be honest, I don't really like those little guys, but since they might appear in the 0.WL exam—alright, move closer, all of you, behind me."
He turned around and made a strange, rustling sound towards the depths of the woods.
The sound echoed through the woods, and Harry felt a sense of familiarity as he listened.
Hagrid was probably imitating some kind of Parseltongue, because his Parseltongue was understandable, but very stiff, like it had a heavy accent.
People became even more frightened, and many used tree trunks as cover, nervously looking around.
When a three-headed rune snake peeked down from the tree, the witches' faces turned deathly pale, and they almost fainted on the spot.
Is it really a snake like the Neanderthal?
And judging from Hagrid's words, he went through a lot of trouble to catch it. What was he after? Did he think his classes were too popular?
Xilun didn't understand.
"Don't be afraid, everyone. This rune snake is still very young, and I've already removed its most deadly fangs. It's safe—" Hagrid said loudly, trying to calm everyone down.
Unfortunately, it's not very useful.
People's fear of rune serpents comes not only from their venomous fangs, but also from the fact that they are often associated with the most evil black wizards.
In those prophecies and stories, the image of the Neanderthal is always the most frightening.
Even putting all that aside, the image of a snake with three heads is frightening enough.
In comparison, even Louie, the three-headed dog, looks much cuter.
Even Hermione couldn't help but rub her arms.
"I still prefer the classes before Hagrid took leave," she said softly. "The Moonfox was fine, why can't we continue?"
Xilun did not speak.
Because at that moment, Hagrid was comforting everyone with an even louder voice.
"Don't be afraid. Rune snakes aren't as scary as you think. Most of the time they're quite friendly and won't bite unless provoked."
As if deliberately going against him, before Hagrid could finish speaking, one of the heads of the Neanderthal snake suddenly stretched out and bit his arm.
Like biting into a hard steel plate, the venomous fangs of the nymph, not yet fully grown, snapped with a crack and fell lightly into the pile of fallen leaves on the ground.
The sound wasn't loud, but it felt like a resounding slap across Hagrid's face.
The surroundings fell silent instantly, and everyone was staring at Hagrid.
"Oh, Professor Hagrid—" a Slytherin couldn't help but say, "You just said it won't attack wizards on its own, right?"
Hagrid's face flushed red, but he pretended not to hear and continued, "As you've seen, its teeth are actually quite fragile. If you encounter a Runewe, attacking its teeth is a good option—or you can use a Confusion Charm to confuse its three heads."
"Excuse my bluntness, Professor Hagrid," Malfoy said in a shrill voice, "but I think it would be very difficult for us to see such a terrible creature outside of the Department of Protecting Magical Creatures."
The Slytherin students murmured their agreement, and even some Gryffindor students felt that Malfoy's words made sense.
Because under normal circumstances, there are no snakes like the Neanderthal snake in Britain, especially now that it is winter, as they prefer hot, humid, and lush primeval forests.
If Hagrid hadn't brought it to the classroom, many of the students around him might never have seen what a real rune looks like in their lives.
Of course, they probably don't want to know.
"This is all for the exam, Malfoy," Hagrid said, frowning. "If you're willing to hand in a blank exam paper during the 0.WL exam, you can leave now."
Malfoy's mouth moved, and it was unclear what he said, but he didn't turn around and leave.
It wasn't because he respected Hagrid that he was here, but because it was in the Forbidden Forest. Although a ten-minute walk wasn't far, he didn't dare go back just yet. Waiting here until get out of class was over and then going back with Hagrid was the safest option.
Seeing that Malfoy remained silent, Hagrid looked away. He pulled down a few minks, intending to use food to comfort the obviously nervous rune snake.
This trick worked very well. After eating the three minks, the rune snake finally relaxed a lot and stopped trying to bite him.
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