Mysterious Journey
Chapter 409: The Devil's Invitation
Grindelwald coughed lightly, somewhat inappropriately interrupting Hagrid's emotional sobs.
"At such a joyful moment, perhaps we should have a large glass of brandy, or some hot tea, to celebrate."
Compared to the rather sentimental Albus Dumbledore and Cornelius Fudge, Grindelwald, a Durmstrang graduate, clearly didn't have such deep-seated affection for his alma mater—for him, school was merely a place to acquire knowledge and skills.
Putting himself in his shoes, if Durmstrang were to announce the rescinding of his expulsion and demand that he return to school for further studies, Gellert Grindelwald would view such an act as a provocation and mockery.
"Of—of course, sorry, Professor, Minister." Hagrid's voice sounded almost tearfully happy, and he composed himself with a slight sob before opening the wooden door of the hut. "Please, come in, please…"
Eileen peered inside through the open doorway, revealing a very cluttered small space.
Hams, pheasants, and lake fish hung from the ceiling, a copper kettle simmered over a crackling fire, and a large bed stood in the corner, covered with patchwork quilts—clearly, finding a bed set suitable for Hagrid's size in the market was no easy task.
"Uh, I won't go in."
Cornelius Fudge glanced at the dead rats piled in the corner (snacks for feeding certain large horses), then at Fang, who was still baring his teeth and growling at him, and somewhat awkwardly adjusted his top hat.
"You see, Professor Dumbledore. Although Hagrid's record has been cleared, there are still some documents and regulatory paperwork that need to be processed and followed up—and, the Ministry has many things waiting for me to handle. Now that things are settled, I should get back as soon as possible."
"Very well, Cornelius, although I would like to say that sitting down for a cup of tea wouldn't take too much time."
Dumbledore shrugged, nodding with a smile. "Perhaps that is why I am not suited to be Minister of Magic? Compared to you efficient and energetic young people, the elderly tend to be rather lazy."
As Cornelius Fudge left Hagrid's hut, the atmosphere became even more relaxed.
Following Gellert Grindelwald's suggestion, Hagrid first poured them each a cup of tea after they entered the hut, then took out a bottle of his treasured brandy from beside the fireplace, generously filling a large glass for Grindelwald.
Next, Hagrid brought out a large platter of rock cakes from beside the fireplace. After seeing the two old wizards' polite but awkward smiles, he suddenly realized something, slapped his forehead, and turned around to bring out a large platter of treacle fudge from who-knows-where.
"Hm?!"
Eileen glanced at the platter of treacle fudge on the table, then turned to look at the two old wizards, whose wrinkles were almost blooming into chrysanthemums from smiling, and hummed noncommittally—a miscalculation. She had guarded against everything, but she hadn't accounted for Hagrid's stash here.
Naturally, the time that followed became very pleasant.
Hagrid began by telling the three of them in great detail about his experiences at Hogwarts, and his gratitude to Dumbledore for believing in and supporting him over the years. It was clear that although the world wasn't so friendly to Rubeus Hagrid, he had lived a relatively open-minded life over the years, thanks to Dumbledore.
As they chatted, the topic gradually turned to Eileen.
"Speaking of which, Hagrid, you should thank Eileen and Professor Binns for discovering the Chamber of Secrets."
Dumbledore took a sip of hot tea, slowly swallowed the treacle fudge in his mouth, and glanced meaningfully at a certain white-haired furball who suddenly stiffened. He paused for a moment and said softly.
"If Miss Kaslana hadn't accidentally activated Professor Binns's vitality, who knows how many years it would have taken us to discover the location of Slytherin's Chamber—aside from ghosts, finding that mysterious room hidden deep beneath Hogwarts is indeed a bit too difficult. Even so, we almost lost Professor Binns."
"Yes, I've heard."
Hagrid nodded very seriously, wiped his eyes with a large handkerchief, and said with guilt in his voice.
"Professor Binns suffered considerable magical damage in his search for Slytherin's Chamber, so much so that Mr. Otto Apocalypse has had to help with the History of Magic lessons for the recent period. Of course, thank you too, Eileen, if there's anything I can do to help..."
Want to help? That's simple.
Hearing Hagrid's words, Eileen's eyes lit up, and she quickly raised her little head—she had been waiting for this sentence. She was worried about not having a good entry point to persuade Hagrid, but he unexpectedly offered it himself.
She had originally hoped that Grindelwald and Dumbledore would take the initiative, but who knew that these two old fellows would fall so easily for a platter of cheap treacle fudge, saying all sorts of things and constantly freeloading. In the end, she had to take matters into her own hands.
"Mr. Hagrid, speaking of which, there are indeed a few things that require your assistance."
Eileen gently put down her teacup, flashed a cute smile that Grindelwald was very familiar with, and said sweetly.
"I wonder if you still remember the mass mushroom poisoning incident that occurred in the first week of school."
"Huh?! That incident! Of course, of course! How could I forget!"
The smile on Hagrid's face froze, and the large wine glass in his hand shook, spilling brandy.
Undoubtedly, this was the most serious mass poisoning incident to have occurred at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in nearly a hundred years, second only to an incident several hundred years ago when some young wizards accidentally brewed a highly volatile toxic potion in Potions class.
As the key figure in the "mushroom poisoning incident," Rubeus Hagrid felt ashamed to the point of wanting to commit suicide every time he thought about it… If any student had died as a result, he believed that at least half the responsibility would have been on his shoulders.
Since that week, Hagrid had patrolled the surrounding area of the Forbidden Forest once a day, mercilessly clearing away all fly agaric mushrooms within sight—after half a month, not to mention fly agaric mushrooms, not even a slightly larger wild mushroom could be found within a five-mile radius of the Hogwarts Forbidden Forest.
However, Hagrid was somewhat puzzled by the tone in which Eileen Kaslana mentioned this matter. It didn't seem like she wanted to blame him again, so what did this child mean…
After a few minutes of silence, the emotions in Hagrid's heart gradually calmed down. He took a large sip of brandy to compose himself, glanced at the two old wizards quietly watching beside him, and looked at Eileen with some confusion.
"I'm sorry, but I still don't understand what I can do…"
"Obviously, whether in the Forbidden Forest or in the magical world, there are many magical creatures or plants that pose a certain danger to human wizards. Therefore, I would like to invite you to participate as a consultant in the *The Quibbler – A Bite of Hogwarts* section, to share some experience about magical creatures and plants."
Eileen tapped her finger on the table, gently licked her lips, and said slowly.
"The knowledge sharing in this area needs to include not only how to take care of them, but also how to identify dangerous animals and plants, and how to respond in necessary situations, and even how to handle and cook them…"
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Goo ya! Chapter One. Current progress (25.5/28)
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