"Gone?"
Dumbledore was taken aback, raising his eyebrows, "What does that mean?"
Adrian had to explain, "During my battle with Voldemort, the Philosopher's Stone was accidentally destroyed."
However, Dumbledore still looked dubious.
"Destroying the Philosopher's Stone is no simple task," he said. "It requires very powerful magic."
Adrian laughed awkwardly.
After another moment of silence, Dumbledore slowly sighed, then said, "I believe you're not lying to me, Professor Westeros. However, this Stone did not belong to me. You should know it was Nicolas Flamel's Philosopher's Stone, and I'm afraid you'll need to personally explain this matter to him."
Adrian felt relieved inside, as he had feared Dumbledore would keep questioning him.
He could not say that one of his trees had absorbed the Philosopher's Stone.
"Alright," Adrian said, "I will."
"Very good." Dumbledore nodded with satisfaction.
"Ah, one more thing!" Just as Adrian was about to leave, Dumbledore called after him, "Regarding the upcoming Defense Against the Dark Arts classes..."
The night was deep, with Hogwarts Castle shrouded in silence.
Most students and professors remained unaware of the night's events.
In a little while, dawn would break.
After leaving the office, Adrian walked toward Hagrid's hut to check on him.
Quirrell had turned to ash, and the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor position was naturally vacant.
Just now, he had once again taken on the task of substitute Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.
Worse still, there seemed to be a first-year Defense class tomorrow, giving him no time to prepare.
'Ah, what a mess...'
With these small complaints in heart, Adrian arrived at Hagrid's hut.
Fluffy's body lay on the open ground in front of the hut, his three heads hanging limply, the once fierce eyes now devoid of life.
Hagrid knelt beside Fluffy, his enormous frame hunched, shoulders trembling, apparently sobbing.
Adrian could only walk to Hagrid's side and pat his shoulder.
Fluffy was probably beyond saving; the Killing Curse was already deadly, let alone one casted by Voldemort himself.
Adrian gently pressed Hagrid's shoulder: "My condolences, Hagrid..."
Hagrid looked up, saying glumly, "So you've come, Adrian."
"Fluffy was a good dog in life, he never hurt anyone... Why did this have to happen?"
Hagrid wiped away his tears, shook his head, and then said, "I need to watch over Fluffy here, Adrian. Could you help me bring the unicorn out from the Forbidden Forest? We can't just leave it lying there."
Adrian nodded.
Indeed, a unicorn's body would attract many creatures from the Forbidden Forest.
Adrian turned and walked toward the depths of the Forbidden Forest.
The sun was about to rise, with the forest faintly visible through the morning mist.
Adrian walked across the dew-covered grass, and soon reached the location of the unicorn's body.
That reddish-brown figure was still there.
"Ronan?"
Adrian said in surprise.
Ronan snorted, looking at Adrian, and slowly said, "I am here to bid farewell to this beautiful life."
Adrian stepped closer and saw that the unicorn's body had been carefully arranged, its silver mane neatly combed, and the blood stains around it cleaned—probably by Ronan.
"Centaurs respect all pure lives," Ronan's voice echoed through the forest, "Even in the stars' portents, its passing is a tragedy that should not have occurred."
"I've come on Hagrid's behalf to take it away," Adrian said softly. "We will bury it properly."
"I do not trust you," Ronan suddenly paused, staring directly at Adrian, "But this time is an exception, you—"
His words abruptly stopped.
Adrian raised an eyebrow, waiting for the centaur to continue.
However, Ronan said nothing more. He moved away from the unicorn's side, saying, "Remember to bury it in an area where unicorns roam."
Adrian nodded. Devil's Snare tendrils extended from beneath his robes, intertwining in the air, quickly weaving into a stretcher.
The Devil's Snare easily lifted the unicorn's body.
Before leaving, Ronan gazed at the brightening sky and left Adrian with one final message: "The stars bid me warn you, you can no longer escape, shadows are engulfing you. Be careful."
Adrian didn't know what Ronan had seen in the stars, but it was certain that the centaurs had deep knowledge of prophecies.
Ronan's final words must have had deeper meaning.
Unfortunately, centaurs never spoke plainly; their words were always vague.
What it meant; Adrian would have to figure out himself.
However, thanks to Ronan's warning, he had learned that Voldemort would act at this time.
Though Ronan appeared somewhat cold, unexpectedly, he was a good person. No, a good horse.
Adrian returned to Hagrid's hut with the unicorn. Hagrid had already covered Fluffy with a white cloth.
"Come on, let's first bury this poor unicorn in the Forbidden Forest," Hagrid said listlessly.
Adrian nodded.
Hagrid knew the areas where unicorns lived like the back of his hand.
After some winding around, they came to a grassy area.
This was a secluded clearing in the center of the Forbidden Forest, where unicorns typically gathered.
In the center of the clearing was a clear spring, its surface gleaming like pearls in the morning light.
Adrian noticed fresh hoof prints in the mud around the spring's edge, indicating that unicorns had been here not long ago.
"Unicorns often come here to drink," Hagrid's voice was hoarse, "We'll bury it nearby."
The Devil's Snare gently placed the dead unicorn on the flattest patch of grass by the spring, then slowly retreated beneath Adrian's robes.
Hagrid knelt down, stroking the unicorn's mane with his enormous palm, "Such a beautiful girl, I recognize that white marking on her forehead. Last spring she gave birth to a baby unicorn..."
Adrian stood silently beside him.
"We need to dig a..." Before Hagrid could finish, Adrian had already waved his wand.
The wand tip emitted a soft light, and the soil beside the spring automatically parted, forming a perfect rectangular grave.
"That will do," Hagrid continued, "Only for unicorns that die naturally can we take their horns and tail hair, but for accidentally deceased unicorns, we must ensure the body remains intact when buried."
"Why is that?"
"It would bring upon you a curse from the unicorn."
"Like drinking unicorn blood?"
"No," Hagrid shook his head, saying, "Slightly better than that, but you'd have bad luck for a long time."
This was the first time Adrian had heard of such a thing.
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