Chapter 60: In the Forbidden Forest with Voldemort

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The Quidditch match was over.

Ron and Hagrid found Harry as soon as the crowd dispersed.

"Thank Merlin! Luckily, Harry, you're okay!" Hagrid said, sounding greatly relieved. "Malfoy did a good thing today. Even if his father is a nuisance, there's no denying that he and Dyroth are both decent lads."

Ron, however, couldn't handle anyone praising Draco or Dyroth. "Slytherins are all liars, Hagrid! What if they're just pretending? I bet they're the ones who messed with Harry's broom!"

Hagrid's face darkened with a frown. "Now that's just nonsense! Why would they want to harm Harry?"

"Why not?" Ron shot back. "We saw Dyroth sneaking into the third-floor corridor last night. And we also saw Snape there!"

"That's impossible!" Hagrid's tone was stern. "No one's gettin' past Fluffy, not with him guarding the place."

"Fluffy?" Harry asked curiously.

"That's right. A cute little fella. Picked him up from a Greek man last year. All three heads of his were taken care by me" Hagrid puffed out his chest with pride at the mention of the creature. "Dumbledore asked me to borrow him for guarding—"

Hagrid cut himself off, realizing he had said too much.

"Guarding what?" Harry pressed.

"I've said too much already!" Hagrid's regret was evident as he clammed up. "Don't ask me more 'bout the third floor, it's top secret!"

"But Hagrid," Harry argued, "whatever it is, Snape's trying to steal it, I'm sure of it!"

"And that evil Slytherin!" Ron added, still fuming.

"Stop talkin' rubbish! Snape's a Hogwarts professor, and Dyroth is Slytherin's prefect. They've no reason to steal anything!" Hagrid scolded them, clearly frustrated.

"Whatever they are, we saw them both sneaking around the third floor last night," Ron insisted. "It's true!"

Hagrid shook his head in disbelief. "You lot are meddlin' in things best left alone. It's dangerous. The only people supposed to know what's in there are Professor Dumbledore and… and Nicolas Flamel…"

"Nicolas Flamel?" Harry echoed in surprise.

"I've really done it now," Hagrid muttered, quickly shutting his mouth. Without another word, he hurried off to his cabin, leaving Harry and Ron to mull over the name.

"Nicolas Flamel? Who's that?" Harry asked, clearly puzzled.

"Dunno," Ron shrugged. "We'll have to find out."

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Later that afternoon, Dyroth visited Hagrid's hut.

His reason for coming was twofold—first, to check how much magical material Hagrid had gathered, and second, to find out which route Hagrid would take during his night patrol of the Forbidden Forest.

Given Voldemort's dangerous character, Dyroth wanted to ensure Hagrid didn't run into him. After all, Hagrid was one of Dyroth's most reliable suppliers of rare magical ingredients.

It can even said all suppliers come from Hagrid.

"Woof woof!" Fang, Hagrid's large dog, greeted Dyroth as he approached. Strangely, the hut was unusually quiet today—no sign of Hagrid.

"Fang, where's Hagrid?" Dyroth asked.

Fang tugged at Dyroth's robe, leading him inside the cabin. As soon as he entered, Dyroth was met with the pungent smell of alcohol.

"Hagrid, what's going on?" Dyroth frowned as he saw the giant gamekeeper sitting at his table, his cheeks flushed red with drink.

"Dyroth … you're here!" Hagrid slurred, clearly having had too much. "Sit down, lad… sit down…"

Hagrid swayed as he spoke, barely able to stay upright. Dyroth used a spell to quickly catch him before he toppled over.

"What's going on? Why are you drinking so much?" Dyroth asked, his frown deepening.

"I... I think I made a big mistake," Hagrid muttered, looking more than a little guilty. "What would you do if you accidentally spilled a very important secret?"

"A secret?" Dyroth asked, pretending not to know. But inwardly, he guessed what Hagrid had done.

Hagrid had likely spilled the beans about Nicolas Flamel to Harry. This wasn't surprising—Dumbledore must have wanted Hagrid to leak the information.

"Well," Dyroth began thoughtfully, "if it was someone else's secret, your friend should probably go and apologize."

"You think so?" Hagrid asked, looking relieved at the suggestion.

"Of course. If he didn't mean any harm, admitting the mistake is the right thing to do. It might even give the other person a chance to fix things."

"You're right!" Hagrid said, standing up suddenly. "I'll go tell Dumbledore right now!"

But after just two steps, Hagrid stumbled and collapsed, completely drunk.

Dyroth sighed as he drew his wand, casting a gentle levitation spell to place Hagrid in bed. Even though Hagrid was half-giant, he wouldn't wake until morning after drinking that much. It was a perfect way to keep him from his Forbidden Forest patrol tonight.

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That night, deep in the Forbidden Forest, two figures—a tall one and a shorter one—moved through the dense trees. Despite the strange and eerie sounds surrounding them, the pair seemed completely at ease.

To anyone else, walking here at night might be terrifying, but for Dyroth and Voldemort, it was little more than a stroll.

"Mr. Grindelwald, we're not here just to wander," Voldemort hissed in irritation, watching Dyroth casually explore the forest. If Voldemort wasn't so weak, he wouldn't have to rely on Dyroth for assistance on this dangerous mission.

"Of course, teacher," Dyroth replied with a slight smile. "I'll be more serious now."

Though his words were respectful, Dyroth's actions remained leisurely. He had no intention of getting involved in the business of unicorns. Let Voldemort dirty his own hands if he wished—Dyroth wasn't here for that.

After all, the curse that came with harming such magical creatures was not something even Voldemort could easily handle. It wasn't worth the trouble for Dyroth to help.

Voldemort seethed inwardly but knew he had little choice. In his current state, any argument with Dyroth would only leave him worse off.

As they continued deeper into the Forbidden Forest, a rustling noise suddenly caught Dyroth's attention. He hesitated, wondering whether to investigate, when Voldemort's voice cut through the silence.

"Look!" Voldemort's voice was filled with triumph. "There it is! The unicorn we've been searching for!"