Chapter 106. The Unicorns' Blessing and the Tree of Wisdom's Change
After Wesson and Hagrid finished burying the unicorn, a rustling came from the bushes.
Wesson turned his head sharply, alert.
To their astonishment, three unicorns stepped slowly out of the thicket.
One of them was a foal, toddling along behind the two adults.
Morning light filtered through the mist between the trees, laying a faint halo of gold and silver over their bodies.
"It's that little one's family," Hagrid said in a low voice. "They know the little one was killed."
The two adult unicorns paced slowly around the dead unicorn's grave, their necks bowed. Every few steps, they halted and touched the earth lightly with their muzzles, letting out a mournful cry.
Wesson and Hagrid watched them in silence.
After circling the grave once, the leading pair advanced and stopped three paces from Wesson, their forehooves tapping the ground with elegant delicacy.
The foal copied the adults, clumsily tapping the earth with its forehooves.
Wesson felt a strange warmth spread from his chest, as though he had drunk the purest moonlight.
When they had finished, the unicorns vanished into the depths of the Forbidden Forest.
The morning mist closed in again, slowly swallowing their silvery figures.
"They just gave yeh their thanks and their blessin'," Hagrid said sadly. "They know yeh avenged the dead unicorn."
Wesson nodded lightly.
"Eldra."
[Name: Adrian Wesson]
[Profession: Wizard]
[Status: Unicorns' Blessing]
Unicorns' Blessing?
It seemed he had gained something unexpected.
"Will the Unicorns' Blessing bring any benefit?" Wesson asked softly.
Hagrid scratched at his wild, bristling beard. "Dunno. There's all sorts o' tales in the wizardin' world—some say it brings luck, some say it lets yeh see through darkness… But I've never seen a blessed wizard with me own eyes."
Wesson nodded. For the moment, he did not feel any effect.
To him, a blessing from gentle creatures was precious enough in itself; it needed no extra boon to gild it.
"It's time to head back," Wesson said, glancing at the sky. "I don't reckon we've much time left to rest."
Hagrid went on to deal with Fluffy, while Wesson, upon returning to his office, went straight into the plantation.
He had to check on the Tree of Wisdom.
Although it had advanced a level, the Tree of Wisdom did not look any different from before.
It still stood at roughly twenty metres tall, with lush branches spreading outward, sheened with green light.
What was notable was that, when Wesson approached, the Tree of Wisdom leaned forward slightly, as if bowing in greeting.
[Good morning…]
A clear intention sounded directly in Wesson's mind.
The Tree of Wisdom was greeting him!
Wesson raised his eyebrows in surprise. This was the first time the Tree of Wisdom had initiated contact.
Previously, it would only answer questions Wesson asked; it would not take the initiative to converse with him.
And now, it actually had the desire to communicate.
Clearly, after absorbing the energy of the Philosopher's Stone, it had become more sentient.
Just like the Devil's Snare that had gained the "Wisdom" trait, it could communicate with Wesson.
Wesson pressed his palm to the Tree of Wisdom's trunk and felt a faint tremor.
From within the wood came a rhythm like a heartbeat, gradually syncing with his own pulse.
"Hello, Eldra," Wesson tried, asking, "Do you know who you are?"
He suddenly sensed a ripple of confusion from the Tree of Wisdom.
[I am… I am…]
[Eldra?]
"Yes. Eldra is your name," Wesson said gently.
It seemed the Tree of Wisdom's thinking was not yet mature.
After conversing with it for a while, Wesson became more certain that, for now, the Tree of Wisdom's mind was like that of a child.
It needed his guidance.
Next, Wesson focused on the Tree of Wisdom's "Energy Amplification" ability.
Based on his earlier fight against Lord Voldemort, through their soul link this ability could raise the power of his spells by a certain margin.
Of course, this amplification applied only to directly cast offensive spells—the most intuitive sign being that the beams of light from his spells became thicker and more dazzling.
As for spells like Transfiguration that required precise control, this ability had little effect.
Even so, it was a powerful gift.
Compared with truly formidable wizards, spellwork had always been Wesson's weak point.
For Wesson's combat strength, the boost was immense.
As for what amplification the "Energy Amplification" trait provided to the Tree of Wisdom itself, Wesson had not yet tested it.
When he asked the Tree of Wisdom, its answers were vague; it seemed even it was not quite sure.
By the time Wesson left the plantation, full daylight had come.
For the students of Hogwarts, a new day began at this hour.
Wesson fished out the pre-Christmas timetable from his desk. As Dumbledore had said before, with Quirrell gone, he would have to serve for a while as Acting Professor for Defence Against the Dark Arts.
Luckily, there were only a little over two weeks left until exam week, so his workload would not be heavy.
Only…
Though teaching would not be difficult, he still had to prepare end-of-term examination materials for several year groups in such a short time.
Time was a bit tight.
After he let his mind go blank for a short while in his chair—
"All right, let's go teach."
Wesson picked up his textbook and headed to the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom.
He was early. When he arrived, there were only three students inside.
It was the trio—Harry, Ron, and Hermione—huddled together in the front row, whispering.
Harry looked both exhausted and keyed up; Hermione and Ron were much the same.
It seemed none of them had slept all night.
Which was hardly surprising, given the hair-raising night they had just been through.
As Wesson entered—
"Our new professor really is Professor Wesson," Harry murmured to Ron. "I guessed right."
"What is it?" Wesson set his book on the lectern, then walked over to the three of them. "Do you have any questions? If it's about last night, I think we'd best find somewhere else to talk."
Harry shook his head. "Not that."
"Then it's…?"
Wesson looked at the three with a smile.
The three little ones glanced at one another.
At last, Harry asked, "The Philosopher's Stone—do you have it on you, Professor?"
"D'you already have more gold than you can spend, Professor?" Ron chimed in.
"And immortality," Hermione added, curious.
Wesson let out a speechless little laugh. So that was it—they were curious about what had become of the Philosopher's Stone.
It seemed they hadn't noticed the Stone's dissolution at the time.
In the end, Wesson said, all mysterious: "That's a secret."
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