"Look over there, that's a Bowtruckle. Don't underestimate these little creatures. They're shy and gentle by nature, but fiercely protective of their homes, which happen to be the trees they live in."

"They'll go for your eyes if they think you're a threat. See those claws? They're not just for show."

Vaughn and Hagrid crouched behind a tree, quietly watching a tall, silver-leaved wand tree swaying gently in the breeze. Tiny twig-like creatures darted playfully along its branches. These were the Bowtruckles, tree guardians and keepers of their woody domains.

The tree itself was no ordinary plant either. It was a wand tree, known to repel dark creatures and serve as prime material for wand shafts. Bowtruckles treated it as both home and fortress.

Hagrid whispered, "They're easy to bribe, though. Just offer them a few juicy insects, and they'll warm right up to you. Sometimes they'll even gift you a piece of the tree, makes fine wand wood."

"Every year when Ollivander comes to collect materials, that's exactly what I do. Oh-you might not know this, but Hogwarts has a deal with him. He buys wand cores and shafts for a lower price, mostly from me. I collect unicorn hairs, phoenix feathers, suitable branches, things like that. Then Ollivander gives Hogwarts students a big discount on their first wands."

As the two of them ventured deeper into the forest, Hagrid seemed to forget any earlier hesitation. His usual clumsy warmth quickly replaced the brief formality he had shown when they set out. Once he started talking about magical creatures, there was no stopping him.

And to be fair, Hagrid really knew his stuff.

Along the way, he showed Vaughn fluttering fairies, mischievous pixies, fuzzy crab-like critters with way too many legs, and even a family of Mooncalves grazing near a mossy hill.

Mooncalves, with their oversized glowing eyes and goofy expressions, looked like they came straight out of a child's dream or a cartoon. Their behavior matched the look: harmless, curious, and adorable. A few of the younger ones trotted up to Vaughn and sniffed at him with their wet little noses.

Hagrid, meanwhile, collected their dung.

"Excellent fertilizer," he said proudly. "Sprinkle it over your pumpkin patch and you'll get pumpkins as big as your head, bigger, even!"

Vaughn's expression soured. "Thanks for the visual, Hagrid. Just what I needed before dinner."

Hagrid chuckled. "Too late this year though. My pumpkins are already ripe. But next year, mark my words, you lot'll be having the best pumpkins Hogwarts has ever seen."

After they spent a few minutes watching the Bowtruckles, Vaughn glanced around and asked, as if casually, "So... has the forest been quiet lately?"

Hagrid scratched his beard. "Depends what you mean. If you're asking about kids sneaking in, your two brothers keep popping in here looking for trouble. So no, I wouldn't say it's been peaceful."

Vaughn smirked. "I'll have a word with them. I was thinking more about injured creatures. Maybe I could help, brew a few potions for them, if needed."

Hagrid stopped walking.

"You're a good lad, Vaughn," he said, visibly touched. "No one's ever offered to make potions for the creatures... not once. Actually, now that you mention it, the unicorns have been acting a little... off lately."

"Oh?" Vaughn raised a brow. "What happened?"

"Not sure," Hagrid admitted. "The centaurs tried to tell me something about it, said the stars were wrong or some such nonsense. You know how they are, always going on about fate and signs. I did see an injured unicorn about a week ago, but they're so wary. Skittish things. I couldn't get close enough to see how bad it was."

Vaughn's eyes narrowed slightly.

So his guess had been right.

The socket-faced freak must have already started harvesting unicorn blood...

He tilted his head to the canopy above. Judging from the light trickling down through the trees, it was still some time before nightfall. He turned to Hagrid.

"Do you think you could show me where you last saw it?"

"Sure, follow me," Hagrid said cheerfully, already pushing forward. "Fang, stop being such a baby! Fruity's not going to eat you! Go on, clear the path!"

Two hours later...

Hagrid led Vaughn into a small forest clearing, a rare pocket of sunlight in the otherwise dense, gloomy woods. Bushes and low shrubs flourished in the open space, some of them dotted with bright red berries.

"I cleared this area out more than ten years ago," Hagrid said proudly. "Unicorns love berries, so I planted a few bushes to keep them coming back. Ever since then, they've made this one of their favorite spots."

He waved his pink umbrella to shoo away some arguing fairies and guided Vaughn to the center of the clearing.

"Over there. A week ago, I saw a unicorn limping through here. Its leg was injured. See that patch of blue soil? That's where it bled."

Vaughn knelt down beside the muddy spot and examined it carefully.

Unicorn blood was normally a silver-blue liquid, rich with magic, almost like glowing mercury. But after a week exposed to the elements, what was left had darkened and dried.

Vaughn didn't touch it.

Instead, he raised his wand.

"Revelio."

The spell surged with purpose, shaped by both his intent to uncover the truth and the inherent mystery of magic. The wandlight struck the blue patch of earth.

First, a faint shimmer appeared, soft and silvery like moonlight, pure magic, unmistakably unicorn in origin.

But then something else appeared within the glow.

Grey wisps.

They snaked through the silver light, coiling and clinging like rot in a wound. They corroded the purity, infecting it with something foul.

Vaughn could almost smell it, the stench of decay and death.

"Dark magic," he muttered, eyes narrowing.

He wasn't a novice anymore. The book A Beginner's Guide to the Dark Arts hadn't taught him anything particularly powerful, but it had sharpened his awareness. He could feel it now, instinctively.

"What's that?" Hagrid asked behind him, confused and a little unsettled.

Hagrid, unfortunately, was a complete rookie when it came to dark magic.

Right then, a glowing panel opened before Vaughn's eyes.

[Side Quest Activated]

[Side Quest #2: Save the Forbidden Forest's Unicorns]

[Reward: Random Magical Creature Language Pack]

Vaughn blinked, then let out a quiet laugh.

Oh, Tom... Tom, Tom, Tom.

Even the system wants to make your life miserable. So don't blame me when I come knocking.

"It's nothing," Vaughn said aloud, shaking his head.

He pulled out a small, enchanted pouch from his side. Thanks to an Undetectable Extension Charm, it held far more than it should.

Carefully, he uncorked a tiny glass vial and used a spatula to scoop some of the corrupted soil inside.

"Let's head back, Hagrid. I think I need to speak with Professor Dumbledore."