Chapter 300: The Road to the Ministry
Aurel: "..."
Immediately, he shook his head. "No, I can't just leave. I have to take him back. Don't make this difficult for me; I sneaked him out behind my uncles' backs."
Hearing this, Dylan shrugged. "Suit yourself."
He then walked over to Luna. Luna had also recovered from her stupor and stopped staring at the Unicorn.
"I didn't expect to see a live Unicorn on the last day before leaving school."
Dylan smiled. "You'll probably have more opportunities to see him later on."
Luna's eyes brightened. "Really? These creatures feel very pure to me; I like them."
Dylan nodded. "You like them? Perfect. I need to collect some of his blood. Do you want some too?"
Luna paused. "Hmm? What?"
Aurel, hearing this, immediately jumped up. "What are you doing? Are you going to cut his flesh? How can you do that! I won't allow you to force him!"
Dylan curled his lip and walked straight to the Unicorn. "Hello?"
The Unicorn blinked its large eyes, looking at Dylan with a mix of complex resignation. However, facing Dylan's raised eyebrows and hooked smile, it finally turned its head away, then lifted one hoof and extended it toward Dylan.
Aurel was dumbfounded, seeing the Unicorn's look of martyrdom combined with its willingness to comply. "Th-th-th-this..."
"Stop stuttering. Don't you think you're being terribly verbose?"
Aurel: "..."
Dylan waved his hand, then pulled out a large water cup. The Unicorn caught sight of the enormous cup out of the corner of its eye, its eyes bulging, and it immediately tried to pull its hoof back. However, before it could move, it felt its little hoof instantly gripped by Dylan.
"After being apart for so long, we need to make up for what was missed, don't we?"
With that, Dylan gently touched his fingertip to the hoof. Immediately, a speck of blood appeared on the Unicorn's foreleg, and blood began to bubble out.
Aurel's mouth hung open.
The Unicorn tried to yank its leg back, but Dylan held it fast, making movement impossible.
"Ang! Ang! Ang!" The Unicorn cried out in distress several times.
Aurel finally snapped out of it and hurriedly added, "He says if you draw that much blood, it will kill him! He's only just recovered from his injuries, he's not even completely healed!"
Dylan glanced sideways at Aurel. "I know what I'm doing."
Aurel: ...You know what you're doing? He looked at the enormous water cup Dylan was holding to the Unicorn's wound, his mouth twitching. You know a chicken feather! Know what you're doing? A chicken feather!
The Unicorn felt its blood streaming out. Seeing Dylan's earnest expression, it knew there was no escape and adopted a resigned posture. It kept its foreleg extended, while its hindquarters settled onto the ground.
Dylan didn't actually drain the Unicorn's blood, nor did he fill the whole cup. He only collected about a third of it, enough to last him for a while.
"Mm, good." Dylan gently swished the water cup in his hand, the blood inside sloshing around. Sigh, he's just too kind, too understanding. Otherwise, he'd have filled this bottle to the brim!
The Unicorn, seeing Dylan release it, immediately tried to stand up, but as soon as it moved, its vision went black. It silently sat back down on the ground.
Meanwhile, Luna watched Dylan's interaction with the Unicorn, blinking. She was curious but didn't interrupt Dylan's actions.
After properly stowing away the half-cup of Unicorn blood, Dylan's gaze returned to Aurel. "It looks like you can communicate with the Unicorns?"
Hearing this, Aurel dropped his jaw-slack expression and tilted his head back slightly with some pride. "Of course! I'm a Centaur! I'm fluent in the languages of many magical creatures! Even my uncles can't do that as well as I can!"
Dylan's eyes lit up at the declaration, and he stared at Aurel for a long moment. Aurel was originally proud, waiting for Dylan to offer a compliment or two. Instead of a compliment, when he opened his eyes, he found Dylan staring at him with a look that made him extremely uncomfortable. It was similar to the gaze of a predator he often saw in the Forbidden Forest.
What is going on??
Aurel looked at Dylan with suspicion. "What do you want? I'm telling you, you won't get any blood from me! I am a proud Centaur, and you shouldn't think that I will submit to the terror of you humans!"
The Unicorn: "..." The slightly recovered Unicorn rolled its eyes.
Dylan withdrew his gaze and let out a light laugh. "I was just looking at you. Look how jumpy you are. I'm not going to do anything to you. Why the suspicious look? Am I going to kill you, peel off your skin, cut up your meat, and then devour and absorb your soul?"
Aurel: (Д)?! "Don't tell me you actually want to do that!"
Even Luna looked over. "If you do, it's best to peel the skin off whole; it will be more valuable. I read that in a book."
Aurel: "!!!" He looked at Luna, the girl with the full head of hair who seemed somewhat cute, with profound grief. Oh no! You have betrayed me! These two are working together!
Dylan chuckled twice. "Alright, Luna, stop scaring him. I really won't do anything to you, Aurel."
The latter, however, looked unconvinced, staring at Dylan suspiciously and retreating two steps.
But Dylan didn't bother with him. Even if he were to do something to him, it wouldn't be now. He looked back at the Unicorn.
"It's been a long time, and I've missed you dearly. But since you still need to return to the Centaur herd with him, go back and get some rest. I'll come to see you when school starts."
The Unicorn, which had just stood up, staggered again. Don't visit, it's best if we never see each other again! It walked unsteadily back to Aurel's side. Aurel valiantly shielded it behind him, glaring at Dylan.
Dylan shrugged. "Though I have many things to ask, I'm not overly curious, so let's save everything for the start of the next term. I want to go back to sleep now."
Dylan waved his hand at them, then turned his gaze to Luna. "Do you still want to wander around, or shall we go back together?"
Luna blinked. "If you're sleepy, let's go back. I definitely won't find what I'm looking for today, but I'm happy to have met the Unicorn."
Dylan nodded.
The two returned to Hogwarts together. Dylan climbed into bed, putting aside all other thoughts, and fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, early in the morning, an owl flew to the window of Dylan's dormitory. Dylan let it in, only to find that the owl was delivering a letter to him. He raised an eyebrow.
After feeding the owl a few strips of meat and sending it away, he opened and read the letter.
Then, he pursed his lips. Huh? No way, they want him to attend this? With a slight flick, he tossed the letter into his bag.
...
The train whistle sounded a long, loud wail, spreading a heavy, vibrating sensation through the air. The Hogwarts Express slowly started moving. The wheels scraped against the tracks, creating a clanging, clattering rhythm. The scenery outside the window began to slowly recede.
Luna looked at Dylan opposite her. He was wearing a custom-tailored suit from the Transcendental Tailor Shop. The black velvet fabric had a subtle sheen and a rich texture, making his figure look even more distinguished. Dylan was looking down, adjusting the tie at his chest, his fingers fumbling with the silk fabric. After several attempts, he couldn't get it quite right.
Seeing this, Luna leaned forward slightly and reached out to help him adjust it.
"Ah, thank you." Luna's action was sudden, and Dylan was briefly stunned before thanking her. As Luna leaned close, her fair cheek was only inches away. Her brow was slightly furrowed with concentration, and her delicate, somewhat heroic features were lowered. Her lips were full and rosy. Dylan's breath hitched, and his gaze lingered on her face for a moment. He instinctively raised his hand and gently brushed a lock of pale blonde hair away from Luna's cheek, revealing her delicate and lovely ear.
The sunlight streamed through the carriage window, illuminating Luna's earlobe, making the small cartilage appear semi-transparent with a faint glow.
"You're dressed so formally, what are you going to do? Didn't the holidays just start..." Luna gently pushed Dylan's hand away, looked up at him, and asked.
Dylan reluctantly pulled his arm back, a look of recollection on his face. He said, "I'm going to attend a hearing, specifically a Wizengamot session."
"They need to determine if Sirius Black is innocent or not. Furthermore, they need to decide whether to issue an arrest warrant for Peter Pettigrew."
"Regarding Sirius Black? That sounds very likely to succeed," Luna nodded.
"Oh? Why do you say that?" Dylan looked at her with interest, curious to hear her analysis.
Luna smiled faintly. "I heard about this from Cedric and others; apparently, they overheard professors talking."
"It's quite obvious. Sirius Black was sent to prison during Minister Fudge's predecessor's term. At the time, he was locked directly into Azkaban without rigorous interrogation or investigation."
"Since Fudge took office, many of his actions have not been approved by British wizards, and he's faced considerable criticism."
"If he wants to stay in office, he must achieve some results, and overturning Black's conviction is a perfect opportunity."
"This allows him to strike at the former Minister of Magic's faction and target his previous rival, Barty Crouch."
"Moreover, Black is the sole heir to the ancient pure-blood family, the House of Black."
"If Sirius Black can be cleared of all charges, it's equivalent to winning over the pure-blood families."
"In short, Fudge will certainly exert influence on this matter, and combined with the self-preserving pure-blood families, their deeply entrenched power will also play a role..."
Dylan blinked, somewhat surprised that Luna had considered such details. "Does Cedric know about this too? Does that mean you all know what Sirius Black was doing at school?"
Luna smiled faintly. "The rumor of Sirius Black spread across the House in just one day."
Dylan shrugged. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Harry and the others were likely responsible for this. However, it didn't matter. With the support of Hogwarts' public opinion, Fudge would naturally know what to do.
It was impressive that Luna could analyze it to this extent just from hearing a few simple remarks from Cedric and the others. However, her view was somewhat one-sided. The pure-blood families were not a unified bloc. If it weren't for Dumbledore's maneuvering behind the scenes, those families might have seized the opportunity to stomp on Black. After all, with the decline of the Black family, a space for profit would open up, waiting for other families to fight over. Furthermore, Sirius Black was not a pure-blood supremacist. In many people's eyes, he, like the Weasleys, was a traitor to the pure-blood cause. He couldn't fight this battle alone. If it weren't for the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's faction, politicking behind the scenes, whether he could clear his name this time was truly debatable.
But regardless, since Luna wouldn't be following the path of the Minister of Magic, it didn't really matter.
The sun gradually shifted toward the southwest. Sunlight slanted through the train window, casting long streaks of light on the floor. The Hogwarts Express slowly came to a halt. After a soft "clank," it came to a complete standstill.
Platform Nine and Three-Quarters had arrived.
Dylan exchanged greetings with Luna, then stood up alone, walking through the connecting section of the carriages and onto the platform. Parents picking up their students were bustling about.
He moved through the crowd, his gaze quickly locking onto a figure near the entrance to the washrooms.
It was an old man with a white beard, tall and thin, wearing a dark wizard robe. His nose was crooked, looking like it had been broken twice. It was "Old Dumbledore."
Dumbledore had clearly been waiting for Dylan for a while. He gave a slight nod as Dylan approached. Since Dylan had never been to the Ministry of Magic, Dumbledore needed to lead the way. The two were both attending the Wizengamot session—the letter that morning was from Dumbledore—with the old Headmaster as the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot and Dylan attending as a key witness.
Dylan followed Dumbledore into the washroom, his eyes falling upon the toilet in front of him. He couldn't help but stare.
"Professor Dumbledore, are you saying that this thing is the passage to the Ministry of Magic? Are you sure?" His voice was filled with disbelief as he stared at the toilet.
He simply couldn't comprehend why the wizards' mode of transportation had to be so peculiar.
Tamoto! Transportation tools are transportation tools, and excretion tools are excretion tools. While both can be sat upon, they are not comparable! The road to the Ministry of Magic can be down-to-earth, but it shouldn't connect directly to the sewer!
"It... the Ministry of Magic has improved it." Dumbledore seemed slightly embarrassed, pausing before continuing. "You just need to rub the edge of the toilet."
.......
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