"Yes, those damned horses," complained Professor Kettleburn aloud:

"Almost two months ago, they have been frequently leaving the territory that Professor Grindelwald has assigned them...... Frequent invasion of the Forbidden Forest, which belongs to Hogwarts...... It's a crime!"

"My father always thought," Draco Malfoy suddenly interjected, "those centaurs should have been hanged, they were on the side ......of the Dark Wizards in that war fifty years ago"

"Yes!" Professor Kettleburn agreed, nodding vigorously, "if it weren't for Professor Grindelwald's kindness...... As a result, they have completely forgotten all the things of the past! This is unforgivable!"

Professor Kettleburn and Professor Malfoy seemed to be very speculative, and soon began to talk about the horses.

The group began to officially enter the Forbidden Forest.

......

The originally narrow path in the Forbidden Forest has been completely covered by heavy snow.

Thankfully, the soil was also frozen hard, and as long as you didn't step into the bushes, it didn't seem to make a difference either way.

As Professor Kettleburn said, the snow on the ground is much thinner in the Forbidden Forest than outside the Forbidden Forest, and it is not as difficult to walk as outside.

"Where are we going?" asked Theodore Knott, looking around with some trepidation.

Obviously, this child seems to have a little psychological shadow about the Forbidden Forest.

"There's no need to hurry," said Professor Kettleburn unhurriedly, "let's go find a guide and follow me first......

Matthew suddenly remembered the clever "cat" he had encountered a year ago, when he first set foot in the Forbidden Forest with Professor Kettleburn...... Its name seems to be "Tom......

Probably the "guide" that Professor Kettleburn refers to is it, or a creature of its kind!

The snow weighed down the branches of the trees in the Forbidden Forest, and every now and then a large pile of snow would fall over their heads...... Crabbe was unlucky, and a large cloud of snow hit him right on his head, almost knocking him in the eye.

So much so that Professor Kettleburn had to stop, pick him up, and cast a recovery charm on him.

After some delay, they moved on.

Since it was winter, I didn't meet any animals along the way...... Most of the animals, or magical beasts, seem to have gone into hibernation.

"The Forbidden Forest is actually very safe in winter, and the 'dangerous' animals don't come out at this time...... "Professor Kettleburn explains.

Then Professor Kettleburn began to whistle in a flirtatious tone.

I have to say, the sound is particularly ugly!

They had to cover their ears......

......

About ten minutes later—

"Strange!" Professor Kettleburn stopped abruptly, looking around with some suspicion.

"What's wrong, Professor?" Matthew asked with a frown.

"It's nothing, maybe it's been too cold lately, and my guide has hibernated...... "Professor Kettleburn explained, "and we're moving on!"

Matthew sighed, forming a mist in front of him...... At the same time, he quietly pulled out his wand from his waist.

"Professor Kettleburn!" Goyle stopped abruptly, crouched on the ground and observed something for a moment, then pointed at it and shouted, "Look here, Professor......"

"What's wrong, kid?" Professor Kettleburn leaned over with some curiosity.

"Look at this...... It doesn't look like a horseshoe...... "Goyle said excitedly.

The thing Gregory Gower was referring to was a large boulder, and on the snow there was a horse's hoof-like mark—

The imprint was vague enough to be seen to be some years old, and the stone was just below a tall English oak tree, so the imprint on it was preserved...... The marks elsewhere may have been covered in fresh snow.

"Yes, that's proof!" Professor Kettleburn looked excited, "well done!"

He hurriedly took out a glass frame from the backpack behind him, and then used his prosthetic leg to wave his wand and the only normal hand to assist, transferring the horseshoe prints on the snow into the glass frame...... It's like Muggles make taxidermy.

Professor Kettleburn's movements were skillful and did not destroy the integrity of the "specimen" at all...... After completing this, he also cast a spell on the "specimen" to prevent the snow and ice inside from melting!

"That's a proof!" he said contentedly, "and I'll show it to Professors Grindelwald and Rozier on Christmas Day...... I'm sure they'll be outraged by the recent misdeeds of the horses!"

Goyle looked up triumphantly.

"Well done, kid!" Professor Kettleburn patted him on the shoulder, "let's keep looking...... There must be proof!"

"Do you want to split up?" suggested Vincent Crabbe.

Obviously, Crabbe felt a little dissatisfied with Goyle's "showmanship".

"Great idea!" agreed Professor Kettleburn, "take out your wands and practice...... If anyone finds a useful trace, or is in trouble, fire a red spark and we'll come to you......"

“...... Okay, everyone be careful...... Don't get too far away, let's go!"

......

Crabbe and Goyle looked in high spirits and hurriedly dispersed.

Matthew was obviously reluctant to disperse with the large army, because he always felt that there seemed to be some "crisis" hidden in this seemingly calm forbidden forest......

The same goes for Malfoy and Noether...... Malfoy may have the same idea as Matthew, and as for Notte, he is clearly still afraid of the Forbidden Forest.

The sun had risen, and the white snow was slightly dazzling...... At the same time, there was silence in the Forbidden Forest, except for the sounds made by their "intruders".

Matthew was searching the ground aimlessly, of no nature.

In fact, he felt that it was actually very difficult to find any traces of centaur activity after the heavy snowfall a few days ago...... Goyle just now, it was just pure luck!

Noether was not far from Matthew, he was always nervously turning his head to look around, he looked uncomfortable, as if someone was watching him.

"Matthew, look! Red Sparks!" Suddenly, Noether shouted loudly, almost startling Matthew.

However, this also made Matthew see the red spark very quickly...... He nodded, "Let's go, let's go!"

The two walked through the snow-covered bushes, and after not far they came across Draco Malfoy.

Apparently, Malfoy, like them, was attracted by the red spark......

The trio moved on together.

Five minutes later, when they reached the edge of a frozen stream, they met Crabbe.

Obviously, the red light was emitted by him.

"What's going on?" asked Malfoy exclaimed.

Vincent Crabbe was sitting on the ground, and there was a slight fear in his voice!

"Look...... Look at ......."

Looking in the direction Crabbe pointed, they saw a very cruel scene—

Above the frozen stream, a withered branch stretched out discordantly.

A rope was tied to the branch, and from the rope hung a black mass......

"That's ...... A cat?" asked Malfoy, trembling.

Not a cat, to be exact...... It is a little larger than the average cat, with very large ears and sharper teeth...... Its neck was hanging from a rope, its body was completely frozen, and its eyes were wide open and staring straight at them.

Matthew stood motionless for several seconds.

"It'...... Isn't it already dead...... This cat ......" asked Noether behind him, trembling.

"Seems so," Matthew said, grimly...... "but it's not a cat...... It's a cat, a raccoon ......."

......

"Boys, have you found anything?" Professor Kettleburn quickly came running, shouting loudly, "I see your spark......

His voice was excited.

"Look at that, Professor......" Crabbe shuddered as he pointed to the cat hanging from the tree, "is that proof?"

"What's that......" Professor Kettleburn leaned over—

Professor Kettleburn's voice stalled, and he stayed there with his whole being.

Soon, a painful expression appeared on his face:

"No...... Tom ......"

Professor Kettleburn ran over and got the hanged cat down......

But apparently it was too late...... The raccoon dog was as stiff as a hardwood plank, and it had been dead for a long time.

Except for Matthew, the rest of the Slytherin students looked at each other.

"What's wrong...... What's going on here......" Goyle was the last to come running, and he asked breathlessly.

"It's a warning!" Professor Kettleburn said suddenly.

"Warning?" several students were stunned.

"The centaurs......" Professor Kettleburn said, tucking the dead raccoon into his backpack.

His voice calmed down, and at the same time seemed a little terrifying: "Kill my guide so brazenly...... This is no ordinary restlessness...... It's a riot!"

There was silence, and several students were so frightened that no one dared to speak again.

Matthew looked around, and all he could hear was the rustling of dead winter leaves, rustling in the wind.

"That's right...... This is a riot...... We've got to get out of here!" Professor Kettleburn said, shaking his head again, "No, you need to get out of here!"

"Quick...... Follow your footsteps and return to Hogwarts......" The Conservation of Magical Beasts professor commanded in a loud voice, his voice full of majesty, "You must hurry, or the rebellious centaurs will come!"

Crabbe and Goyle have yet to react to what is happening.

Matthew didn't hesitate to run and follow the path he had come.

Matthew had already guessed this when Professor Kettleburn told them about the strangeness of the horses...... It's just that he didn't expect that the centaur riot would come so suddenly!

Malfoy was only half a beat slower than Matthew, and he quickly caught up with Matthew.

Then there was Knott.

Finally, there are the two little fat men, Crabbe and Goyle.

......

The footprints on the snow became a little confusing.

This was mainly due to the fact that they had been wandering around looking for the marks of the centaurs, and had ended up making a mess of the footprints they had come.

Matthew relied on his memory as much as he could, following the way he came, returning the way he came.

Something was moving in the surrounding bushes...... They are large in size and in large numbers......

In every bush, the sound of horses' hooves trampling on the snow was faintly heard...... It was as if they had been surrounded by horsemen.

With a shudder, Malfoy pulled his wand from his waist.

"Don't use magic!" Matthew shouted, startling Malfoy and dropping his wand to the ground.

From what they are, it seems that they have been surrounded by the horses......

Matthew didn't think they, two-legged creatures, could outrun four-legged centaurs...... And with the magic of a few of their second-year students, it is impossible to match hundreds or thousands of centaurs.

Rather than provoke them with a few meaningless spells, the most rational option now is to tie their hands down.

After all, the tradition of the centaurs is not to harm the foals, and even if they fall into their hands, there is still a chance of survival.

Another tradition of the centaurs is that they hate magic, and if they resist and injure them, they are very likely to be trampled to death by the horses' hooves.

Malfoy and the others naturally didn't quite understand Matthew's thoughts, but after being together for so long, Matthew's deterrent power in their hearts was still a little bit...... None of Nott, Crabbe, or Goyle dared to pull out their wands.

......

Finally, a huge creature suddenly burst out of the bushes on one side.

Half-human, half-horse creatures...... Above the waist is a human, with a black beard and hair, but below the waist is the body of a horse, with a tail dragging behind it.

Then came the second, the third......

More and more centaurs appeared around them, and even if they were just looking at them, there were at least twenty of them......

The horses galloped towards them.

They're about to run away!

"Ahh

It was Professor Kettleburn's voice.

Then, not far behind them, an oak tree at least ten meters high was stopped by something...... It just so happened that not long after Matthew passed, the horses were in hot pursuit.

Several centaurs were crushed under the oak trees and let out groans of pain.

At the same time, the way of the horses was temporarily blocked.

Professor Kettleburn waved his wand angrily.

At the same time, the two prosthetic limbs on his legs helped him move through the snow of the Forbidden Forest at an incredible speed......