The Beaters searched through the piles of fallen leaves for a long time, but in the end, they only found half of a shoe sole with bite marks.
He had been repeatedly kicking the Chomping Cabbage earlier, so his shoe was probably bitten then, and it just happened to fall off by the side when he was escaping.
Of course, it could also have been left intentionally.
Beater Hard stood there, his face as dark as if it could drip water, already anticipating what he would face next.
It was already negligence not to catch the person this time, and combined with what Oren had said before, it made him the perfect scapegoat.
The Ministry of Magic would definitely blame him for not capturing anyone, especially that pink toad...
To appease certain people's anger, a demotion might be the lightest punishment.
Hard roared at the Beaters to search for Oren nearby, but the Centaurs, who wanted to stop them, were forced back by his wand.
"That person is an important criminal of the Ministry of Magic. If any of you dare to stop the search, you will be considered accomplices!"
Under his threat, the Centaurs were angry but didn't dare to speak.
But all of this had nothing to do with Kael anymore.
Professor McGonagall arrived.
Her face was very grim. Kael had never seen her so angry before, her lips pressed tightly into a line, turning pale white.
The Defence Against the Dark Arts professor wanted to kill a student?
Professor McGonagall never thought such a vile thing could happen at Hogwarts.
Did Dumbledore leave his brain behind on Fawkes' perch when he hired Oren?
Professor McGonagall glanced around the situation briefly, then quickly walked over to Kael and asked, "Are you alright, Kael? Any injuries?"
"I'm fine, Professor," Kael said. "Thanks to the Centaurs and the Beaters, Oren didn't have time to do anything before they drove him away."
The surrounding Beaters were first stunned, then could not hide their joy.
With just a light comment from Kael, the outcome transformed from previously failing to handle things and letting a criminal slip, to successfully saving a student from a dangerous Dark Wizard.
Thus, not only were they without fault, there was even...
Well, it's fine if there's no credit, as long as there's no fault.
The Beaters gathered around, enquiring about Kael's condition with the concern of neighborhood elders, asking if there was anything amiss.
Hard was the most enthusiastic. After confirming Kael had no issues, he stated that the Ministry of Magic would fully assume responsibility for the event's consequences and losses, providing suitable compensation.
When he said this, he naturally winked at Kael.
Kael immediately understood but maintained a calm exterior.
It seemed his garden could expand a little next year.
Unlike the Beaters, Professor McGonagall obviously didn't believe Kael's story. This part of the Forbidden Forest had nearly turned to ruins, with signs of magic everywhere and fallen trees visible in every direction. The mess didn't suggest nothing had happened.
However, Professor McGonagall didn't say anything. She only cared whether Kael was safe.
At this time, Professor Flitwick and Professor Sprout also arrived.
Seeing the surroundings, Professor Flitwick clutched his chest tightly, and Professor Sprout's eyes turned red, nearly crying.
Afterwards, Professor McGonagall shooed away the solicitous Beaters, preparing to take Kael back to the castle.
"By the way, Professor McGonagall."
Before leaving, Kael pointed in a direction and said, "There is a witch under that tree; she is an illegal Animagus who had been disguising as Conna's pet to stay close to her."
Professor McGonagall was taken aback, "An Animagus?"
"Yes," Kael continued, "And after being exposed, she attacked me. Most of the charms around here are her doing."
"Merlin's beard..."
The influx of information was overwhelming, leaving Professor McGonagall slightly at a loss.
Before understanding the issue with Oren, a new illegal Animagus appeared. Why were there so many strange happenings at Hogwarts this year?
However, knowing this, Professor McGonagall obviously wouldn't ignore it. She took Kael, along with the other two professors, to the tree.
By this time, the witch had already fainted, and two Beaters were just pulling her out of a pit.
Seeing her pitiful state, Professor Flitwick sucked in a sharp breath.
"Child, you did this?"
"I didn't intend to," Kael said with his head low. "I just didn't expect her to be so weak."
Subsequently, Kael recounted the previous events briefly.
However, he deliberately skipped over the initial part, jumping straight to when he cast the first Softening Charm. After that, he told the truth about what happened.
With each passing word, Professor Flitwick's eyes shone brighter, looking at Kael like he was seeing a rising star in dueling.
However, due to the setting, he couldn't show too much excitement, merely stepping forward to pat Kael's arm.
He had already started considering whether to restart the Dueling Club.
Professor McGonagall wasn't thinking about all that; she just wanted to quickly bring Kael and this witch back to the castle.
An Animagus lurking beside a student — this must be thoroughly investigated; she didn't trust handing it over to the Ministry of Magic.
Professor McGonagall found Hard and said, "This witch is related to our student. I need to take her away."
Hard frowned. He didn't really want to let her go; after all, this witch was their only catch, and if she was taken by Professor McGonagall, he'd have nothing but half a shoe sole to report back with.
But the problem was that all three heads of Hogwarts were here. He had no way to refuse, especially after what happened just now.
Hard hesitated for a moment but finally agreed to Professor McGonagall's request.
"Only half a day, Professor McGonagall," Hard reminded her. "Tomorrow morning, we will come to Hogwarts to bring her back to the Ministry of Magic."
Professor McGonagall nodded, took out her wand, and took the witch away.
...
At this time, many people were surrounding the Forbidden Forest's edge, craning their necks, eyes unblinking, watching in the direction of the Forbidden Forest.
"Look, Professor McGonagall is coming out!" someone suddenly shouted.
A tall and a short figure emerged from the depths of the Forbidden Forest.
Conna broke from the crowd, running quickly to Kael's side.
"You, you, are you alright?"
Her eyes were red and swollen, clearly having cried.
"Ah, I'm fine." Kael said woodenly, "Though I have become a ghost, I feel quite okay."
"Huh!?"
Conna's mouth quivered, and tears instantly flowed.
"What nonsense!"
Professor McGonagall knocked Kael lightly, then helped the little girl wipe her tears, saying with feigned annoyance, "Take a good look, does he look like a ghost?"
...