Chapter 148: Legendary Garden
Chapter 148: Legendary Garden (Request for Subscriptions, Favorites, and Recommendations)
In the Wizarding World, few people or places are considered legendary, and this Garden is one of them.
When the Castrobrusso Academy was first established, the land was rife with cruel blood sacrifices and related magic. Such a school, filled with defenseless young wizards, quickly became a target for evil wizards. Even the first Headmaster, the most powerful wizard from the Amazon Rainforest, struggled to protect the students against the overwhelming attacks.
Over time, the likelihood of young wizards falling victim to these attacks grew, and the Headmaster's dream of building the school was in jeopardy. This harsh reality troubled the first Headmaster of Castrobrusso deeply.
In this state of frustration, the Headmaster even resorted to burning herbs and observing the starlit sky to divine the future. During one such divination, he inadvertently wandered into the jungle and, while focusing on the sky, stumbled into a cave. This led to the greatest discovery in the school's history: the underground caverns now known as the Castrobrusso Garden Underground Caverns.
These caverns were filled with anti-magic stone fragments, which, though too scattered to be of any practical use, effectively concealed the secrets hidden beneath the ground from magical detection.
For the next thirty years, the school vanished from the sight of evil wizards. It reemerged thirty years later, when the accumulated wizards of Castrobrusso launched a surprise attack and cleansed the land of its corruption. Since then, the park has become a legend.
After hearing this legendary story, the young wizards from Hogwarts arrived at the park's entrance. The entrance to this legendary park was quite simple, not much different from the entrance to the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts. The only distinguishing feature was the cobblestone path underfoot and the pair of cute animals flanking the entrance.
"Those are capybaras, a local species. During the most difficult times, our ancestors survived by raising capybaras and growing mushrooms", explained a middle-aged, black-haired professor who had emerged from the garden, noticing the curious gazes of the Hogwarts faculty and students.
"By the way, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Ferdinand Gonzalez, the Herbology professor and chief Mystic Plants cultivator at Castrobrusso. It's a pleasure to meet you. You can call me Professor Ferdinand", the professor said, introducing himself with a friendly smile as he led the group forward.
As they entered the park, the cobblestone path soon turned into a soft, emerald-green moss path that led into the forest. Seeing the hesitant expressions of the young wizards, Professor Ferdinand smiled and called out, "Don't worry about damaging the moss. In the local dialect, it's called 'indestructible.' Even a dragon couldn't crush it. For nearly a century, every Quidditch World Cup has used this moss as the cushioning turf."
Reassured by the professor's explanation, the group carefully stepped onto the path. As they did, Liam felt a soft, cushioned sensation underfoot, much like walking on a top-tier handwoven carpet.
Following the path, they continued forward, with various plants growing in layers on either side. Among them were several magic plants. For example, there were wind chimes with delicate blue flowers shaped like goblets, which produced a pleasant metallic sound when the wind blew. There were also tropical trees with large red flowers that spanned the path, emitting a enticing fragrance.
After walking through a narrow cave filled with sky-blue bioluminescent mushrooms for about five or six minutes, the scene suddenly opened up, revealing a small, lush valley before them.
"Wow, it's so beautiful", Hermione said, clasping her hands together at her chest, her eyes sparkling with admiration. The other girls in the group mostly wore similar expressions, while the boys, though a bit embarrassed to show their appreciation, had their eyes light up, clearly indicating their fondness for the place.
The entire valley was carpeted with soft, emerald-green moss and dotted with tall tropical trees. In the center of the valley lay a small pond, fed by several streams flowing down from the mountains. The water was crystal clear, allowing one to see the cobblestones and aquatic plants at the bottom.
The only man-made structures in the valley were concentrated around the pond. Directly opposite the entrance, a large stone was partially buried in the ground, its upper portion flattened by human hands to form a stone platform for activities. Several students and teachers from Castrobrusso were setting up a fireplace in the center of the platform and arranging a dozen square tables covered in white linen tablecloths, laden with fruits.
As they drew closer, the Hogwarts students noticed that in addition to the fireplace, the ground was dotted with iron skewers and steel forks, and a nearby box contained various shamanic spices and meats.
It seemed that the afternoon social event would extend into the evening, with the school preparing a South American-style barbecue for the visiting guests. Although the idea of roasting meat in such a fairy-tale beautiful setting felt a bit odd, as the saying goes, there's nothing a barbecue can't fix. If there is, two barbecues will do the trick.
After exchanging greetings, everyone began to mingle, finding companions with whom they could chat. They then sought out a shady spot under a large tree to sit down and start their discussions.
Liam, Hermione, a second-year Hufflepuff student, and three younger Castrobrusso students formed a discussion group. Leading the Castrobrusso contingent was David, the tall boy who had spoken with Liam earlier in the morning. He stepped forward and shook Liam's hand. "I'm glad to continue our magical discussions this afternoon. This morning's conversation was very enlightening."
Since the Hogwarts students had walked quite a distance under the tropical sunlight, they first grabbed some fruit to quench their thirst. As is well known, tropical fruits are often more diverse in appearance and flavor compared to fruits from other regions, and this was especially true in the Wizarding World.
For example, Liam was now holding a fruit that looked like a red ball of string, about the size of an apple and as thick as a finger, with a skin as tough as tree bark. It didn't seem edible at all, and most bizarrely, Liam could feel it moving in his hand.
Seeing the puzzled expressions of the British young wizards, David suddenly realized what was happening. "Ah, this is a Flame Snake Fruit. It's quite rare, and since it only lasts for six hours, it's not well-known outside South America. Actually, eating it is quite simple."
David then went to a table, fetched a silver basin of water, and sprinkled some salt into it. He placed the Flame Snake Fruit in the saltwater. Soon, the fruit began to unfurl. David fished out a strand, bit off the leafy end, and started to suck on it. As he did, the fruit quickly withered.
"You eat it by sucking on it. You should try it", David invited them enthusiastically.
(End of Chapter)
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