LIGHTNOVELONLINE 86- It’s a complete slander!
The hooded figure fled.
After it disappeared, Daphne remained on high alert. She sent a burst of red sparks into the sky and swiftly changed her position several times, wary that the hooded figure might be feigning retreat to prepare a sneak attack.
While Daphne was cautiously outmaneuvering the air, Harry gradually recovered. His headache had been so intense during the fight between Daphne and the hooded figure that he could barely keep his eyes open.
Only after the figure fled did the pain in his scar begin to subside.
At that moment, the sound of hooves pounding the ground echoed nearby. Harry sprang to his feet and pulled out his wand from his robe.
Though he knew only a few spells, holding his wand brought him a sense of security.
Daphne also gripped her wand tightly, silently praying for Hagrid to arrive quickly.
However, amidst the anxious waiting, a question popped into her mind: Why were the approaching beings riding horses? This seemed highly unusual. It was the twentieth century, not the twelfth, and cavalry had become ceremonial.
Even the traditionally conservative wizarding world no longer used horses.
So who were these riders?
Soon, Daphne's confusion was resolved.
Two centaurs, armed with bows and arrows, charged into the clearing. From the waist up, they resembled humans, but from the waist down, they had the bodies of horses, complete with tails.
Two centaurs stood before them. One had a head of black hair and a pure black horse body, while the other had platinum blonde hair and the body of a silver-maned horse, appearing younger than the black-haired centaur.
Daphne's eyes widened as she observed every detail of the centaurs. This was her first time seeing these magical creatures, who were said to possess intelligence equal to that of humans, much like house-elves and goblins.
After circling the clearing to ensure the danger had passed, the two centaurs stopped running.
The black-haired centaur examined the unicorn's corpse and the surrounding battle marks with a grim expression. The platinum-haired centaur approached Harry to check on him.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, thank you—"
"You don't look fine," the blonde centaur remarked, his gaze lingering on Harry's prominent scar.
Harry's pale complexion made the scar even more noticeable.
"You're the Potter boy, aren't you?" The centaur recognized Harry. "Why are you here? This is not a place you should be. Go back to the castle! Do you know how to ride? It will be faster." The centaur bent his front legs, lowering himself so Harry could climb onto his back.
The black-haired centaur erupted in anger upon seeing this.
"Firenze! How can you let a human ride on your back? Do you think you're a mule?!"
It was then that Daphne and Harry learned the blonde centaur's name: Firenze.
"Bane, he is the Potter boy. He needs to leave here quickly."
Upon hearing the name "Potter," Bane snorted, still looking displeased but acknowledging Harry's need to ride on Firenze.
If Voldemort were to regain power, the centaurs' situation would be ten times worse than it is now. Thus, the centaurs owed Harry, the one who defeated the Dark Lord, a debt of gratitude.
At this moment, Hagrid appeared with another centaur, one with red hair and a red horse body.
"By Merlin, Harry, are you alright? Where's that little girl, Daphne?" Hagrid, holding a giant crossbow in one hand and several spear-sized arrows in the other, ran to Harry in long strides. After confirming that Harry was fine, he remembered that Daphne was also missing.
"I'm here." Daphne, having removed her Disillusionment Charm, emerged nonchalantly from her hiding spot, petting Fang's head as he ran to her.
Upon Daphne's appearance, both Bane and Firenze frowned simultaneously. They had not noticed the little girl just moments before.
Exchanging a look, they confirmed with each other that neither had seen her, which was quite unusual.
Centaurs had excellent vision, and it was almost impossible for them to overlook something. Thus, the girl must have used magic to hide herself.
Invisibility spells were not simple, and the fact that this silver-haired girl could use one indicated she was no ordinary witch.
Considering that the creature that attacked the unicorn had already fled when they arrived, Firenze and Bane reached a seemingly absurd conclusion: the battle marks on the ground were left by this seemingly frail little girl.
With this realization, the two centaurs shifted their focus from Harry to Daphne.
"This is Ronan, that is Bane, and this is Firenze," Hagrid introduced the three centaurs to the young wizards present, then introduced the wizards to the centaurs in turn.
"Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Daphne Greengrass."
"The descendant of Adrian the 'Dragonheart' Greengrass!?" Upon hearing the name Greengrass, the three centaurs were visibly taken aback.
Hagrid and the others, including Rhys, who had been hiding, were stunned.
Hagrid and the others hadn't expected Daphne to receive additional attention from the centaurs.
The overlooking Rhys chuckled hearing a familiar name after a thousand years.
"Yes, he was one of my ancestors," Daphne nodded.
"That explains it. As expected of Dragonheart's descendant," Firenze praised.
"Dragonheart?" Harry looked puzzled. This was the first time he had heard such a strange title.
"The ancestor of the Greengrass family, who was once a student of Salazar Slytherin, famously tore out a dragon's heart with his bare hands during a battle with the creature. Hence, he was honored with the title Adrian Greengrass the 'Dragonheart'. Even after a thousand years, his legend is still passed down in this forest," Ronan explained to Harry.
Daphne added a few more details, giving everyone a deeper understanding of this Greengrass ancestor.
Adrian Greengrass had once studied magic under Slytherin. However, unlike his teacher's nature, he was hearty and straightforward, displaying traits more akin to Gryffindor.
When Hogwarts was first founded, the four founders had cleared the Forbidden Forest.
But over time, some powerful magical creatures were attracted to the rich land and migrated here.
Among them, a black dragon was the most powerful and savage, causing significant trouble for the inhabitants of the forest and the staff and students of Hogwarts.
Upon learning of its existence, Slytherin, aiming to provide training, sent his student Adrian.
In the end, Adrian lived up to his teacher's expectations and successfully dealt with the dragon in the Forbidden Forest.
"It wasn't training at all," Bane interjected disdainfully.
"It was because Slytherin had a conflict with the other three founders. They were so busy with their infighting that they didn't care what was happening here. So they sent this little guy, who didn't fit the Slytherin mold, to his death. But who would have thought, he succeeded."
Rhys, who secretly listened to the whole process, was so angry that his eyes turned black: This is a complete slander!!!
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