The Forbidden Forest was a mysterious place, just as its name suggested, it was a place forbidden to enter.
However, that rule only existed in theory.
At least from the information Allen received from the twins, those reckless maniacs had gone in more than once already.
Of course, after several adventures that yielded no actual profit, they eventually gave up on that seemingly lucrative venture.
So, really, no one could blame the twins for being broke.
If they hadn't later seized the opportunity to invent prank magic products, they might have continued the Weasley family's proud tradition of historic poverty.
Which was why, for the sake of one's future financial prospects, learning useful knowledge was extremely important,
Or so Allen narrated to himself as he plucked a unicorn feather tangled in some bushes.
The Forbidden Forest was basically Dumbledore's private backyard, and Hagrid was its gardener. The "Dumbledore's Army" that Umbridge spent so long trying to find was fake, but the centaurs in the forest really did follow Dumbledore's instructions.
Even after Dumbledore's fall, they continued guarding Hogwarts and contributed greatly in the final battle.
Hagrid kept extraordinary watch over the Forbidden Forest, most of its creatures were his friends. He could constantly obtain all sorts of magical beings from here.
To be honest, even Snape, second strongest in the school, was no match for Hagrid inside the forest.
Here, Hagrid was practically a Summoner, able to call upon a whole crowd of companions at will. Add in the powerful magic resistance from his giant blood, and…
Heh.
GM! Someone over here is clearly hacking!!!
Whether he was hacking or not, Allen didn't care.
Because when he picked up his third unicorn feather that night thanks to his amazing night vision, the good-natured giant scratched his messy hair and said:
"Oh, so you're the Allen that Harry and the others always talk about, eh? You really like these, do you?"
Before Allen could respond, Hagrid casually patted Harry's shoulder and made a promise:
"Once this mess is handled, I'll give ya some later. I've got plenty. These tough feathers are great for making splints."
Allen immediately bowed to the wealthy powerhouse!
Malfoy seemed like he wanted to say something, but after glancing at Annie, he wisely chose silence,
That girl really would hit people.
Speaking of Malfoy… he really was unlucky.He had reported real information.
He was upholding school discipline.
And he still got dumped into the Forbidden Forest for punishment.
Clearly, Professor McGonagall's reaction to Malfoy's "I swear I'm telling the truth!!" was a solid:
I don't hear you, I don't hear you.
Poor kid.
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Hagrid did have a proper reason for requesting help.
Though he was surprised Dumbledore sent… well… a bunch of children, he would never question the Headmaster's decisions.
The reason was simple and serious,
There had been another death inside the Forbidden Forest.
And the victim this time was a unicorn.
These creatures were blessed, those who harmed them would suffer a fate worse than death, even as they gained powerful life force from drinking unicorn blood.
Pain and pleasure in equal measure.
Due to the scattered blood trail, Hagrid planned to split the group into two teams to track it down.
But Allen raised a hand to stop him.
"No need to split up. I can see the direction the blood moved."
"You?"
Allen nodded.
His werewolf blood's tracking instincts and the Widow's hunt-and-trace techniques both pointed clearly toward the culprit's location.
He was not splitting the group here; if they ran into Voldemort separately, he couldn't guarantee he'd arrive in time to save anyone.
To Hagrid, who only just met Allen, his words sounded like bragging.
Hagrid was the forest's caretaker, if he couldn't track it, how could Allen?
But the trust reflected on the other students' faces, including Malfoy, made Hagrid hesitate.
He chose to believe.
"Get ready, Annie, we may need to fight in a moment." Allen completely ignored the fact that Hagrid was technically the leader,
He directly seized command.
Inside the Forbidden Forest, Hagrid was a major combat force.
With three of them working together, they had a real shot at probing Voldemort's condition.
Even though some magic couldn't be used due to the strong dark aura, they could still smack him around.
Since Voldemort was currently possessing Quirrell, his remaining strength was questionable at best.
If possible, Allen didn't mind leaving him here forever.
Stopping Voldemort now and stopping him later after he gathers Horcruxes were two completely different difficulty levels.
If killing him was possible, Allen would happily give up the Philosopher's Stone.
But unfortunately, he didn't know the truth:
A Voldemort in half-soul state was not something as frail as a Horcrux fragment.
If Dumbledore could have eliminated him now, he would've already done it.
Quirrell surviving this long was proof enough.
But well, first: Allen didn't know.
Second: Dreams are important. What if it works?
However, the dream ended before it could even begin.
Just when Allen was boldly leading the group with such confidence that even Hagrid started acting obediently, his expression suddenly froze, and he let out a very colorful curse.
"Hmm? Allen, what did you say?" Harry asked, puzzled.
Allen, who moments ago had looked excited, was now filled with helpless resignation.
His hurried steps slowed and finally stopped.
He leaned against a tree and sighed:
"Nothing. Just lamenting… why there's always some idiot who ruins everything."
"Ruins… what?"
Everyone was confused.
They understood every word he said, but together, they made no sense.
"Yes. Ruined." Allen gave a wry smile.
"The culprit we were chasing was driven off, by some unrelated fools. I was this close to catching them."
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