A few days had passed since the unicorn's death.
During this time, Hagrid had talked to many magical creatures in the Forbidden Forest and learned from the centaurs that an evil presence was lurking around the forest's edge.
So tonight, the two of them were patrolling the outskirts.
John was gradually able to keep up with Hagrid's pace, with Fang running ahead.
This large dog had a massive build but was incredibly timid.
He was even less brave than Tom.
While patrolling, a spider the size of a human head appeared in front of John.
Startled, he gripped his wand tightly, ready to cast the Blasting Curse.
"What a huge spider."
"Wait, that's one of Aragog's children."
Hagrid shouted to stop John, and with a shiver running down his spine, John watched as Hagrid seemed to communicate with the spider.
"Aragog wants to see me."
Aragog was a friend of Hagrid's, who had been raised by him when he was young. After Hagrid got into trouble, Aragog had fled into the Forbidden Forest and become an old spider.
Numbly nodding, John thought Hagrid was incredibly bold. If Ron ever encountered a spider like this, he'd probably faint on the spot.
Following the spider, they arrived at a cave.
Even before entering, John had already seen numerous spiders. Once inside, his skin crawled non-stop with goosebumps.
As far as the eye could see, there were countless spiders. The spiders the size of a human head now seemed small.
There were dozens of spiders as tall as a person.
"Gulp, Hagrid, are you sure they're friendly?" John nervously moved closer to Hagrid, swallowing hard.
Hagrid's large figure was indeed comforting, but only outside, not in the middle of a spider nest.
"Don't worry, these spiders are Aragog's children, they won't harm you."
Hagrid reassured him confidently, but John was not convinced.
Those spiders were practically drooling, and you're telling me they won't hurt me?
His left hand already gripped his wand, ready to blast any spider that dared approach with a Reductor Curse.
At the end of the cave was a gigantic grey spider the size of a car, an Acromantula, whose eyes were clouded with cataracts.
"Hagrid, you've come."
Aragog was pleased to see his old friend, and he held back his restless offspring to speak with Hagrid about the happenings in the Forbidden Forest.
"Something has entered the forest, something very evil, and it's hunting unicorns."
Hagrid had asked Aragog to investigate the unicorn killings, and Aragog had sent out his offspring to scour the forest.
"He's very powerful. Many of my children were killed. He's like a ghost, appearing and disappearing."
The Acromantulas are known to feed on humans, and while Aragog restrained his offspring for Hagrid's sake, they were not to be underestimated.
The intruder in the forest had single-handedly taken down several Acromantulas, showing a level of power comparable to Aurors.
Even though they had encountered him, Aragog couldn't manage to capture him.
Hagrid's mood grew heavier as he listened, confirming John's suspicion that the evil entity hadn't given up on the unicorns.
Unicorn blood, though cursed, could keep someone on the brink of death alive.
"I understand, Aragog."
Hagrid finished talking with Aragog and prepared to leave, but the surrounding Acromantulas began to close in.
"Aragog?" Hagrid looked at his friend in confusion.
"I'm sorry, Hagrid. I can restrain them from harming you, but they have no resistance to attacking others."
"Damn!"
Realizing the gravity of the situation, Hagrid understood he had made a mistake bringing John here.
"John, we need to go, now."
Hagrid picked up John, his enormous frame moving like a human truck.
Spiders blocked their path, but Hagrid barreled through them.
Hungry and unwilling to let a meal slip away, the spiders persisted.
John wasn't about to go easy either. He pulled out his wand and aimed at a nearby Acromantula.
"Reducto!"
A white light hit the spider, injuring it and causing it to bleed, but not killing it.
"Nice spellwork," Hagrid complimented.
Despite his size, Hagrid was surprisingly agile.
Being carried by Hagrid, John didn't need to dodge and could focus solely on attacking.
"Incendio!" He shot flames from his wand, setting a spider alight.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" A fallen log smashed into the pursuing spiders.
As John's relentless attacks continued, his magical energy started to deplete.
He quickly grabbed a stone and threw it at the spiders.
[Ding, Magic Level Up: Current Magic Level: 3]
John felt a warm surge within him, his magic replenished.
A car-sized Acromantula appeared in front of them. John aimed his wand.
"Reducto!"
This time, the white light was larger and more powerful, striking the spider and shattering it into pieces.
With his enhanced power, John turned and blasted the pursuing spiders.
Working together with Hagrid, John managed to escape the spider nest.
Outside, Hagrid apologized, "I'm sorry, John. I thought Aragog could control them."
Aragog used to have control, but now he was too old and probably didn't have many years left. The younger spiders no longer heeded his commands.
"It's okay, Hagrid. But it's best not to bring anyone else there in the future."
John had narrowly escaped death. Without Hagrid, he would have been a meal for the spiders.
Hagrid was equally shaken.
After a bit more searching in the Forbidden Forest, they concluded their patrol for the night.
Back at Hagrid's hut, John poured a large bowl of dog food for Fang.
The big dog, who had run the fastest in the spider cave, was probably exhausted.
After saying goodbye to Hagrid, John returned to Hogwarts.
He glanced at the Marauder's Map; Professor Quirrell was not in his office.
[Ding, Attribute Unlocked: Nightmare]
[Nightmare: Conceal yourself in darkness, enhancing stealth and visibility, increasing the damage of hidden attacks]
After accumulating a hundred hours of night prowling, John extinguished his wand light, his eyes adjusting to the dark.
The once pitch-black corridor became clearer, not as bright as daylight, but he could now read in complete darkness.
"This will be very useful."
With the Nightmare attribute, John could move through the corridors nearly invisible, even without a Disillusionment Charm. Using the charm would render him practically undetectable.
…
In the days that followed, John often "accidentally" encountered Quirrell.
Normally apathetic about teaching, Quirrell became exceptionally attentive to John in private.
He subtly hinted that John could come to him with any questions, even implying his extensive knowledge of the Dark Arts.
John played dumb, acting like a bookish student, but he was not entirely dismissive of the Dark Arts.
Spells like Fiendfyre were extremely powerful, unmatched by common magic.
Eventually, he asked Quirrell to teach him Fiendfyre, and Quirrell gladly obliged.
Though Quirrell wasn't very skilled with the spell, he had the support of the second Dark Lord.
Under the guidance of Quirrell and Voldemort, John finally learned Fiendfyre.
However, he was cautious, knowing Fiendfyre was highly uncontrollable. Once unleashed, it couldn't be extinguished.
Quirrell then dropped all pretenses, openly discussing the Dark Lord's philosophies with John.
John understood Quirrell's intentions and played along, occasionally showing agreement with the Dark Lord's ideals.
Annoyed but maintaining his facade, December arrived quietly.
After enduring another potion class under Snape's gloomy stare, the students excitedly discussed their plans for the Christmas holidays.
Ron decided not to go home as the Weasley family had planned a last-minute trip to Romania to visit Charlie Weasley, who worked with dragons.