Chapter 509: The Murdering Forest
Chapter 509: The Murdering Forest
Rain pattered against the leaves, trickling down the slender branches as the young trees swayed, as if in response.
The man gently touched the tree canopy, a satisfied yet cold smile playing on his lips.
He was entirely cloaked in a jet-black raincoat, revealing only half his face, making it impossible to discern his features.
Around him, towering trees stood like silent giant guards, forming a tightly sealed prison.
The man seemed to say something, but the words were inaudible, only the movement of his lips visible. The sound of raindrops pounding on the waterlogged ground filled his ears, sending ripples across the puddles.
Suddenly, a tree root, thick like a python, slammed onto the ground with a loud thud, splashing water everywhere, startling anyone nearby into taking a step back.
This step backward felt like stepping into a void, a sudden sense of weightlessness overwhelming him. His body jolted, and Wade woke up.
He lay in bed, still feeling the heart-pounding sensation of a free fall.
After a few seconds, Wade realized that the rain he heard was not just in his dream but also outside.
The rain had persisted through the night.
He waved his hand, and a string of golden characters appeared in the air, displaying the current time.
[07:05]
It was seven in the morning. Kreacher should have prepared breakfast already. He wondered if the match had ended and if Lupin and the others had returned.
Wade got out of bed and dressed, his mind involuntarily replaying the strange dream he had before waking up.
A rainy night, giant trees, a black-robed wizard.
Perhaps it was just a reflection of his thoughts during the day?
Wade glanced at his desk, where the book he had been reading for amusement before bed, The History of the Quidditch World Cup, still lay open. The page showed a simple black-and-white illustration, exactly like what he had seen in his dream.
Beside the illustration, in black letters, was the title:
[The Attack in the Murdering Forest].
...
"Master Wade is awake! Kreacher has prepared breakfast!"
Kreacher greeted Wade enthusiastically, pulling out a chair for him as he approached the table.
Wade looked at the empty long table and asked, "They haven't returned yet?"
"Master, young Master Harry, and Professor Lupin have not returned because the match has not ended", Kreacher replied. "Kreacher has already sent breakfast to them. Master Wade, please eat your breakfast!"
Wade nodded, not asking any more questions.
After breakfast, he stepped out of the tent. The campsite was still quiet, with only a few government workers patrolling and some parents preparing breakfast for their young children.
Most of the children couldn't stay up late to watch the match, so their parents had likely taken them back to their tents early. But camping itself was quite enjoyable, aside from the match.
The sky remained overcast, with a low, gray cloud cover. Fine rain fell like a thousand needles, creating a spray of pearl-like droplets.
The children, wearing raincoats, laughed and jumped through the mud, like a group of snoring piglets.
Wade stood outside for a while, then decided not to return to his tent to continue reading. Instead, he headed toward the match venue.
—Not out of curiosity about the results; he knew the Bulgarian team would definitely win.
Wade just wanted to see how the players from both teams were holding up after being drenched in the rain all night. Were the spectators still as enthusiastic as before?
As he passed through the tents, he suddenly saw one made of fur patches and paused.
Thinking back to his paranoid thoughts from the night before, Wade couldn't help but laugh at himself. He walked over, intending to take another look at the tree that had frightened him.
But the area beside the tent was empty.
Wade was taken aback for a moment, staring at the brownish-gray animal tail hanging by the door. He then noticed the unique pattern of the handmade fabric, confirming that this was indeed where he had passed by last night.
Glancing down, he spotted a small mud pit beside the tent, now filled with rainwater, its surface rippling gently.
The scene was somewhat similar to what he had seen in his dreams.
But who would be so bored as to uproot a tree in the campsite?
Wade looked around, seeing the wisps of smoke rising in the drizzle, and felt a bit speechless.
— Could it be that someone got up early to cook and, too lazy to gather firewood from the forest, decided to use the tree right there?
While it was true that such a tree wouldn’t normally burn, magic could easily defy the laws of nature.
Wade cast another glance at the dark, grayish forest nearby, then headed toward the stadium.
At the entrance, a drowsy staff member, leaning against the wall, waved Wade in without much inspection.
He climbed the stairs and pushed open the door to the box, only to find the two adults looking rather listless, while Harry was still brimming with excitement.
“You came just in time, Wade,” Harry said cheerfully. “The view has improved, and I think they’ll catch the Golden Snitch and decide the winner soon!”
— Really? I think they look like they’re about to collapse.
Wade glanced at the pale-faced athletes and asked, “Have you been watching the game all night? Didn’t get much sleep?”
“What? Of course not!”
Harry said this without hesitation, his eyes glued to the binoculars, focusing on the Seekers, especially Krum from Bulgaria.
The eighteen-year-old athlete displayed exceptional flying skills and a tenacity that was almost terrifying. Although he hadn’t caught the Golden Snitch yet, he had already become Harry’s idol.
“How about you, Wade?” Sirius yawned, asking. “Did you sleep well last night?”
“Pretty good, slept through till morning. I even had a strange dream about the Murdering Forest,” Wade replied casually.
“The Murdering Forest?” Harry, momentarily distracted, turned his ear a bit closer, curious. “What’s that?”
“It’s the most infamous match in Quidditch World Cup history.”
Surprisingly, Sirius was familiar with the story and perked up, eager to share it with Harry.
“About two hundred years ago, I remember it was the final between Romania and New Spain. A bad-tempered Romanian player, after clashing with teammates, referees, and opponents, and seeing his team’s chances of winning slipping away, decided to collaborate with a Dark Wizard to cast a terrible curse on the entire forest.”
Lupin, who also knew the history, continued, “It’s said that the trees in the forest came to life, surging toward the stadium, trampling and killing countless people. The one who cast the curse didn’t escape either; he was killed by a vicious spruce.”
Harry was stunned, imagining the terrifying scene of trees from the forest charging into the crowd, slaughtering everyone. For a moment, he forgot about the game.
He murmured, “... You call that ‘bad-tempered’?”
Wade, curious, asked, “What spell did that person use? It must have been incredibly powerful.”
“Who knows?” Sirius shrugged. “Such a dangerous spell would have been classified as a Forbidden Curse immediately, and no one would be allowed to learn it. The Ministry of Magic would also seal all related documents to prevent any fool from trying to copy it.”
— Yes, sealed, not destroyed.
Wade thought to himself.
In the 19th century, the large-scale witch hunts had ended, with only a few scattered persecutions in remote areas.
But the Ministry of Magic would keep that spell, just in case there was another large-scale war and the wizarding side found itself in a desperate situation. Then, the forests around the world could become the “soldiers” of the wizarding world.
The only problem was that these “soldiers” seemed to attack indiscriminately, including wizards themselves...
(End of Chapter)
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