Chapter 287: Dragon Egg Mixture
Chapter 287: Dragon Egg Mixture
"Xia, Xia, Sherlock!"
Hagrid stammered out Sherlock's name, carefully stepping over the pool of blood on the ground and making his way to Sherlock's side.
Sherlock was in a fairly neutral mood. While using a scouring charm to clean the blood spatters from his clothes, he casually responded to Hagrid's call.
"You haven't mistaken me. It's me, Hagrid. No need to act like it's the first time you've seen me."
Hagrid, always easy-going, quickly regained his composure, though his voice still carried a note of disbelief.
"Why are you here in the Forbidden Forest at this time? And did you kill these dragons? What exactly happened here?"
As he spoke, a raspy voice came from a short distance away.
"We’d also like to know what you went through, Sherlock."
The speaker was Mad-Eye Moody, who was limping his way into the Forbidden Forest, accompanied by a grim-faced Snape. A small silver raven was leading the way.
Sherlock's Patronus, though it didn't summon Dumbledore, still served its purpose.
"Your Patronus found me, and I immediately informed Mcgonagall. She told me Dumbledore is not at the castle tonight. Karkaroff lodged a complaint with the International Confederation of Wizards about Hogwarts having two champions. Dumbledore had to return to deal with the Confederation's inquiries. Mcgonagall stayed behind to watch over the students in the castle, so Snape and I came to check on you."
Mad-Eye Moody explained to Sherlock why he and Snape were there. Then, like the others, he turned to Sherlock, eager to hear what had transpired.
"I saw the Black-robed Figure you detected earlier", Sherlock said calmly.
Mad-Eye Moody's expression turned serious.
Sherlock then looked at Charlie, whom he had met during the Quidditch World Cup over the summer before the semester began. They were not strangers.
"Charlie, before these fire dragons arrived, did any of your dragon keepers go missing?"
Charlie was taken aback for a moment but quickly recovered, shaking his head.
"I can confirm that no one was missing. That Hungarian Horntail was quite restless, and everyone was trying to calm it down."
"Don't be tense. I was just asking, not implying anything about your people. Can you come over and help me identify this smell on my clothes?"
Charlie immediately approached Sherlock with a serious expression. As soon as he got close, he clearly detected a faint, pungent odor.
"Dragon Egg Mixture!" Charlie declared with certainty. "Not just from one dragon egg, but a mixture of many different dragon eggs. Some catalyst must have been used to maximize the scent, which attracted these dragons!"
Charlie's expression was peculiar as he continued.
"All the dragons we brought are females, and they have the highest aggression and protectiveness among dragon species. If they smelled this dragon egg mixture, they would definitely go berserk."
Sherlock's face twisted into a cold smile. The words Charlie spoke were almost exactly what he had guessed.
Mad-Eye Moody, from just a few sentences Sherlock had said, had already pieced together most of what had happened.
"Was the dragon egg mixture splashed on you by that person? Did he want to lure the fire dragon over to kill you?"
"His appearance tonight was likely for me, taking advantage of the opportunity when Dumbledore was not in the castle and four fire dragons appeared in the Forbidden Forest."
Sherlock narrowed his eyes.
"Who could this person be? They know the castle so well, it's unlikely they are a Wizard from outside, right?"
Even the thick-skinned Hagrid could sense the implications in his words and couldn't help but shiver.
The room fell silent, and no one dared to speak. The silence didn't last long, however, as Sherlock shook his head and looked at Charlie, half-jokingly, half-seriously asked,
"Killing those four dragons—won't the Ministry of Magic hold me legally responsible?"
At this, Charlie's face turned grim.
"Fire dragons are indeed protected magical creatures, but the safety of Wizards comes first. Your actions would be considered self-defense, and no Ministry of Magic would hold you accountable for that. However, dragon eggs are prohibited items, and damaging them is a serious offense. The British Ministry of Magic will likely send someone to investigate the source of the dragon egg mixture on your clothes."
This outcome was more or less what Sherlock had expected. Not having to take responsibility for killing the dragons lightened his mood considerably.
But Charlie's troubles were far from over. He continued, worry evident in his voice.
"The first task of the Triwizard Tournament is just a few days away. After this incident, the research institute will most likely refuse to lend more dragons. Even if they do, there won't be enough time."
Sherlock thought for a moment, then waved his hand dismissively.
"If it's just about the first task, that's easy to handle."
He extended his hand and snapped his fingers lightly in the air.
Crow, who had been dozing on a nearby branch, yawned in annoyance but still flapped its wings and flew into the air. It quickly located the headless Hungarian Horntail and vanished into the darkness.
A second later, the headless dragon corpse on the ground suddenly twitched.
This sudden movement startled the Romanian Dragon Keepers, who had been examining the fire dragon's body.
Then, in front of everyone's shocked eyes, the dragon corpse resurrected!
It seemed to be adjusting to its new body, and its movements were initially stiff. But as it continued to move, its control became more fluid.
Before long, it was able to spread its wings and, with just a few gentle flaps, lifted off the ground and flew into the air!
Everyone present was stunned by the bizarre scene.
The sight of a headless dragon, with blood still dripping from the neck, was eerily unsettling!
Sherlock, however, felt no such unease. He said with satisfaction,
"If you can sew its head back on, it will even be able to breathe fire normally, just like when it was alive."
(End of Chapter)
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