Chapter 99: Chapter 99
The next morning, before the sun rose, Ethan went to the Forbidden Forest alone.
Holding a beaker in his hand, he was collecting dew bit by bit from the grass.
This was one of the materials needed to purify the potion. It wasn't precious, but it was troublesome to collect.
The dew had to be collected fresh, not left overnight, and couldn't be exposed to sunlight, so Ethan had to do it himself.
Magic couldn't be used during the process. After all, it was difficult to use magic to collect only the dew on the leaves of the grass. If even a tiny droplet from the ground mixed in, the whole bottle would be ruined.
The remaining ingredients—oozing grass, white fresh, moonstone, and sunlight orchid root—were all very common potion materials.
Ethan had sent an owl to Bruce's Pet Shop in Hogsmeade Village the previous day, asking the owner to help buy these materials, and it had flown back the same day.
A vague and ethereal voice sounded behind Ethan.
"Are you looking for the Crumpled-Horned Snorkack?"
"No, I'm collecting dew," Ethan replied, knowing exactly who was behind him without turning around.
"Do you need my help?" the voice asked.
"Can you?"
Ethan straightened up and turned around.
Luna was dressed as usual, with carrot-shaped earrings and a necklace made of butterbeer bottle corks, but now she also had a wand tucked behind her ear.
"Of course!" Luna said, extending her hand.
After handing her an empty beaker, Luna quickly got to work.
To be honest, Ethan should've dragged his three dorm mates out to help collect the dew. It was too slow for just one person, and the sun would rise soon.
"Do you know about the Crumpled-Horned Snorkack?" Luna asked as she worked.
"Yes, I've seen its introduction in The Quibbler. They're shy and friendly creatures that hate light and heat and prefer cold, damp places."
Ethan found The Quibbler entertaining, though he didn't think it had any real truth behind it.
"My father thinks they might be in Sweden, or maybe even in the Forbidden Forest, since it's cold and damp here," Luna said in her usual dreamy voice.
"I didn't see any Nargles around you this time—not even one!" Luna remarked, smiling.
"Isn't that a good thing?"
Ethan knew Nargles didn't really exist, but they represented negative emotions like troubles and irritability. Only Luna, with her unique perception, could sense them.
The last time they'd met, Ethan had just arrived at the Weasleys' house. Back then, he was still pondering how to get Voldemort's Horcrux notebook. His best idea had been to use the Imperius Curse followed by an Obliviate charm, but he had eventually abandoned the thought.
At this point, Ethan wasn't in any hurry. He'd wait for the right opportunity to destroy a Horcrux for the achievement reward. After all, he already had the Ravenclaw Diadem, which was another Horcrux, and he could use fiendfyre to destroy it, although that would also ruin the crown itself.
If nothing else happened, getting an uncontaminated Ravenclaw Diadem would count as an achievement. The diadem was a symbol of Ravenclaw, but now that Voldemort had tainted it, the Horcrux's influence had overwritten its original powers.
"It's definitely a good thing!" Luna nodded, affirming that she hated Nargles because they always messed with her thoughts.
"Luna, what are you doing in the Forbidden Forest?" Ethan asked.
Another little wizard who didn't always follow the rules, she had ventured into the Forbidden Forest in her very first year.
As for Ethan, Hagrid no longer minded him entering the Forbidden Forest and would even greet him when they crossed paths.
The main reason was that Ethan was safer in the Forbidden Forest than even Hagrid himself, as if it were his own backyard.
As the "Overlord of the Acromantulas," Hagrid only had a good relationship with Aragog, but Ethan could command the entire Acromantula tribe at will.
Other magical creatures were also friendly toward Ethan. Even the temperamental centaurs would greet him.
"I'm here to find the Crumpled-Horned Snorkack, and then visit the Thestrals," Luna answered.
Ethan turned to look at her. Thestrals were not known for their good temperament. Though domesticated by Hogwarts and safe enough around students, not everyone could interact with them.
Ethan had seen Thestrals hunting in the Forbidden Forest several times, and the process was always brutal and bloody.
"Aren't you curious about the Thestrals?" Luna asked.
On the day of their first year at Hogwarts, Luna had seen the Thestrals. Everyone had been curious as to why she could see them.
"Everyone has their own secrets, don't they?" Ethan replied, already knowing the reason.
Luna's mother had died in a magical experiment, and Luna had witnessed it. That wasn't the kind of memory anyone would want to talk about.
Swish!
A blue-green blur suddenly zoomed past Ethan, dropping a huge dark-brown object at his feet.
"Quick, it's a Swooping Evil!" Luna shouted, noticing the movement. She quickly put away the beaker and started running, not forgetting to warn Ethan.
Due to her father's influence, Luna believed in strange, magical creatures, but she was also knowledgeable about more well-known ones.
The Swooping Evil was an extremely dangerous and evil magical creature. It was incredibly fast. Wizards rarely escaped once targeted by it.
"I raised it. No need to run!" Ethan called after her, laughing, as he collected the carcass of the European red stag the creature had dropped.
During the summer vacation at home, Ethan bought a lot of deer from the farm, froze them, and gave them to Dennis and the others to feed Onyxia. He also brought a lot of frozen food to Hogwarts.
However, with the Forbidden Forest as a natural hunting ground, Ethan occasionally gave Onyxia something fresh. Every time he came, he would let the Swooping Evil go hunting.
The Swooping Evil only eats brains and is not interested in the rest. Under Ethan's orders, it would bring back the corpses after finishing the brains.
There are indeed many European red stag in the Forbidden Forest, otherwise, it couldn't sustain so many magical creatures.
As for Voldemort, he was still feeding on the corpse of the Mortraps. He wasn't picky and would eat anything. Even if it were a wizard's corpse, he would devour it happily.
Luna stopped and watched Ethan put away the corpse of the European red stag and the figure of the Swooping Evil quickly vanishing into the distance. She took a deep breath and continued to collect dew. She really didn't know what to say.
It's very cruel to raise a Swooping Evil at Hogwarts!
As the sun began to rise, Ethan put away the beaker. With Luna's help, it should be enough.
"Senior, have you ever seen Unicorns?" Luna asked.
Ethan couldn't just dismiss her after using her help.
For the little witch, no one would dislike unicorns, not even Luna.
"Of course! Do you know about unicorns?" Ethan replied.
Luna stood up and handed the beaker to Ethan, looking at him curiously. She remembered reading that unicorns only like pure-hearted women and aren't very friendly towards men.
"There's a unicorn herd in the Forbidden Forest. I can take you to see them!" Ethan said.
Now, all he needed were unicorn tears to complete the purification potion.
Swish! Swish!
Ethan bent his middle and index fingers to his mouth and blew hard.
Soon, a rustling sound came from the woods not far away, and many large black figures with eight long legs came toward Ethan.
Luna immediately recognized these black, furry spiders with massive claws.
They were Acromantulas, another highly dangerous magical creature rated XXXXX.
Despite knowing that Ethan had summoned them with his whistle, she couldn't help but feel uneasy. Facing these calf-sized spiders was unnerving for anyone.
"Is the Forbidden Forest this dangerous?" Luna asked.
"These are my friends from the Forbidden Forest. Don't worry. Get on them, and they'll take us there!" Ethan reassured her.
He helped Luna climb onto one of the eight-eyed giant spiders the size of a small car, then got on another himself.
Sitting on the spider's back, Ethan commanded the giant spider to move forward.
Ethan had learned this skill not long after coming to the Forbidden Forest and meeting the spiders.
Hagrid was envious of this ability, but unfortunately, his favourite eight-eyed giant spider couldn't carry him.
Aragog might have been able to, but he was too old.
Hagrid longed for a mount, but he had to wait until Norbert grew up.
The spiders stopped when they reached a spot near a lake deep in the Forbidden Forest.
After dismounting, Ethan helped Luna down.
This was unicorn territory, and the giant spiders wouldn't go any further.
With Luna, the two soon arrived at the lake. The clear water reflected the lush forest, and around twenty or thirty silver-white creatures were scattered. They had spiral horns on their foreheads, and their bodies emitted a silver-white light, giving them a sacred appearance.
"Liya, I'm here to see you!" Ethan called out, waving his arms at an exceptionally beautiful unicorn. She was the leader of the herd and a female.
Unicorns live in matriarchal societies.
Liya happily ran over, lowered her head, and rubbed her face against Ethan's chest before lifting her head again.
Ethan skillfully took out an energy cube, holding it in his palm while stroking Liya's side with his other hand.
After Liya finished eating the energy cube, Ethan withdrew his hand.
Liya didn't shed much hair anymore, just a few strands.
Unicorn tail hair and mane hair are valuable alchemical materials, with tail hair being more suited for wand cores.
The unicorn herd, untouched by Voldemort's hunting, remained peaceful and harmonious.
At that moment, two small golden-furred creatures ran over and jumped at Ethan's feet. They had only small bumps on their foreheads, which would eventually grow into horns.
These were two new additions to the unicorn tribe, born during the summer. Ethan had grown familiar with them after visiting twice this semester.
Bending down, he took out another energy cube, crushed it, and handed it to Luna, signalling her to feed them.
Ethan could see that Luna was deeply envious. Without this opportunity, she might never get close to a unicorn in her life.
Young unicorns are the least wary, making them approachable.
After playing with the two unicorn foals for a while, Ethan turned to his real task: collecting unicorn hair and tears.
Their hair was more valuable than energy cubes.
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