"Moo!"
Coal Ball, standing nearby, was startled.
A pair of black eyes stared blankly at the fleeting pink starlight.
Dylan was also a little surprised.
"It seems that this money was not wasted!"
He waved his wand again.
"Lumos!"
Shua~
A bright pink light dispelled the darkness in the room. Tiny particles sparkled with a charming glow, interweaving and colliding with each other. Every touch made them burst into pink starlight.
"Moo!!"
Coal Ball rushed over, pouncing at the pink starlight.
However, it was all in vain.
"Moo?"
Dylan suddenly discovered a new source of fun.
He waved his wand again.
"Crash!"
Pink stars suddenly appeared again.
Coal Ball pounced once more.
"Hey! Interesting!"
Dylan hadn't expected that his wand could be turned into a cat toy. He played with Coal Ball for almost the entire afternoon without getting bored.
It was only when he heard footsteps and voices outside the door—signaling that many young wizards had returned to the dormitory—that he finally stopped.
"Ah!"
Dylan exhaled, looking at Coal Ball, who also seemed tired. He smiled dotingly, reaching out to gently scratch its chin.
Coal Ball squinted comfortably, making a soft mooing sound in its throat while rubbing Dylan's hand with its head.
Dylan laughed at its cute reaction.
Though he had spent the entire afternoon playing, he didn't feel like he had wasted time. On the contrary, he realized that the pressure weighing on his heart had unexpectedly disappeared. His mood was much lighter, and his body felt more relaxed.
"Although eating dinner helps relieve stress, I can't always rely on food."
Playing with Coal Ball had cleared his mind in a way he hadn't expected.
"I won't do anything else today. I'll get a good night's sleep and recharge for tomorrow!"
Dylan had dinner before returning to the dormitory and falling into a deep sleep.
That evening, when Harry and Ron came back, they were still chatting. But as soon as they saw Dylan already asleep, they exchanged surprised looks.
At the same time, they unconsciously lowered their voices.
The Next Morning
"Hmm, the smell of roasted pumpkin?"
Dylan had just finished washing up and stepped out of the dormitory when a rich, warm fragrance filled his senses.
"It's Halloween."
Dylan rarely paid attention to festivals, but the smell of pumpkin made him realize what day it was.
"I remember... the Halloween dinner was when the troll appeared, right?"
Dylan walked toward the Owlery with his school bag, thinking.
"No, wait. The troll was released by Quirrell, wasn't it?"
His memory was a little fuzzy. He vaguely recalled that Harry and Ron had sneaked into the girls' bathroom and encountered the troll.
The most memorable part was that they had managed to defeat it using the Levitation Charm they had just learned.
Trolls are rare. Not only are their numbers limited, but their teeth can enhance the potency of potions. Their liver is a key ingredient in curing serious illnesses and curses, and even their mucus has unique magical properties.
At the Owlery, Dylan fed Luna, his owl, before giving her a letter to deliver to his parents.
Then, he headed to the Great Hall for breakfast.
"Well... I can't kill the three-headed dog, but I can deal with the troll, right?"
The three-headed dog was obviously placed in the restricted area by Hogwarts.
Dylan wasn't reckless enough to mess with that.
But the troll? He was just about to start experimenting with a new potion, and the troll's materials would be useful. If he could harvest them himself, he wouldn't need to go searching elsewhere.
The day's classes passed quickly.
That evening, students flooded into the Great Hall for the Halloween feast.
Dylan followed the crowd, soon catching up to Harry and Ron.
But as he got closer, he noticed that Ron looked unhappy.
"Um?"
Dylan blinked, then leaned toward Harry.
"Is Ron feeling unwell?" he whispered.
Harry glanced at Ron, who had a troubled expression, before pursing his lips.
"You did really well in Charms this morning," Harry said. "Your Levitation Charm was perfect."
"So?" Dylan tilted his head.
"So…" Harry hesitated, then sighed. "After Professor Flitwick called Hermione up to practice the Levitation Charm again, she didn't perform as well as you. Ron made a rude comment about her."
Dylan raised an eyebrow. "And?"
"She heard him."
Dylan groaned inwardly.
Ron had a bad habit of talking behind people's backs—and getting caught every time.
"In fact," Harry continued, "Ron hasn't said anything bad about Hermione in a while. But this time, she felt like he didn't even consider her a friend."
Harry blinked. "And she also thinks Ron must have been saying bad things about her for a long time."
Dylan sighed.
"So, what now? What's the situation?"
"Hermione was already crying by the second half of class," Harry admitted. "And I haven't seen her all afternoon."
Dylan rubbed his temples.
"So the plot is progressing after all…"
Originally, Dylan had planned to sneak into the bathroom, kill the troll quietly, harvest its materials, and be done with it.
Who would have thought that Ron would once again drive Hermione into the girls' bathroom?
"Who knew girls could be so troublesome?" Ron grumbled. "I told you, I was just joking! And she's just not as good as Dylan, right?"
"But you also called her pretentious," Harry reminded him.
Ron huffed. "Was I wrong? Even though she didn't do well today, she didn't have to lecture me all the time!"
"So that's how it started…"
End of Chapter 41
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