Vid also greeted Hagrid and then said, "Professor Hagrid, we want to go to the V Zone."
"V Zone? Oh, okay."
Hagrid lifted his pink umbrella and knocked on the wall, creating an arched entrance in the wall of bushes.
"Go on, be careful." Hagrid said.
"Got it, thank you."
Vid waved his hand and walked inside.
"V Zone?" Michael walked beside him and asked, "What is this place? Why have I never heard of it?"
"It's normal that you haven't heard of it, because it's a newly developed area."
Vid said, leading the way. Michael looked back at the now-sealed entrance, and then at the ever-growing high walls on either side, feeling an unusual silence all around.
It's not usually like this——
Stepping into the maze, every step could be a trap or a challenge.
It's not just the traps set by the professors, but also those left by every student who has passed through, potentially leaving deceptive pitfalls for future entrants.
So even if you repeatedly follow the same route into the maze, you might encounter new "surprises" each time, which is what makes the Hogwarts maze interesting.
Michael reminisced about cautiously navigating the maze in the past, while comparing it to the current silence, feeling a strange unease.
He couldn't help but want to say something.
"These walls are really tall—almost taller than Professor Hagrid himself." Michael looked up at the tall green hedges and asked, "Why build them so high? Is there some secret structure hidden inside?"
"Not a secret structure, but some creatures." Vid stopped, saying, "Look, here they come."
Michael was stunned, then saw a dark green troll dragging a long wooden stick, wobbling as it appeared at the end of the passage.
He quickly turned his head, only to see a werewolf silently appear from behind, looking at the two and letting out a low growl.
From above came a low chuckle, and Michael looked up to see two people squatting on each side of the hedges... They looked human, but their eyes glowed red, and sharp fangs protruded from their mouths.
Michael: "..."
...
Half an hour later, Vid looked at Michael, who was sitting on a natural chair formed by tree roots, picking and eating pine nuts, and couldn't help but admire him a bit.
Just now, this guy had been scared white by the sudden appearance of monsters, but seeing the vampire girl on the wall, he actually said:
"Wearing so little, you must be cold, right? Also, wearing a skirt and standing on the wall, you're likely to flash, you know!"
The vampire girl snorted with laughter, and the tense atmosphere created by the other monsters vanished.
They exchanged looks, then looked at Vid, with the werewolf asking honestly, "If he doesn't run, should we still chase him?"
"Be adaptable, everyone. If a student is scared stiff on the ground, are you just going to let him go?" Vid helplessly said, "Pretend to attack, encircle to provide assistance, haven't I taught you all?"
"Oh——"
The werewolf suddenly understood and, with a flourish of its claws, unbelievably pulled out a small notebook from its stomach, then seriously noted it down.
The troll tilted its head, seeing no fight would happen for now, and dragged its wooden stick away, stomping heavily.
The handsome auburn-haired vampire bowed and said, "Summon us anytime you need."
After speaking, he jumped to the other side of the wall, and the other few vampires vanished with him.
Michael looked longingly at the direction the vampire girl disappeared, suddenly letting out a heavy sigh.
"She was the most beautiful girl I've ever seen... Pity she's not even human... not even a vampire..."
"If she were a real vampire, would you pursue her?" Vid asked.
Michael replied indignantly, "Love is not restricted by race!" Then he dejectedly added, "But I can't accept her being a puppet."
Vid teased, "There are reasons why Padma broke up with you."
Thinking of Padma, Michael started sighing again.
The last time Vid saw them sitting together, talking and laughing, he thought they had reconciled, but turns out they had completely broken up.
Padma couldn't stand Michael's gentle attitude towards every girl, often chatting and laughing with pretty girls, and they argued several times.
Michael understood Padma's anger but couldn't change his behavior.
From lovers to ordinary friends, their relationship actually improved a little——
After all, Michael has always been good to Padma.
But he was also good to other girls, which made Padma, as a girlfriend, feel angry and uneasy; but as friends, Padma could learn to turn a blind eye.
Their relationship was an area Vid had never touched, so he rarely intervened. He only mentioned it this time, then shifted the topic to Michael's recent performance——
"Honestly speaking, weren't you afraid just now?" Vid curiously asked, "Or is there a flaw in the poppet I made that you can see through?"
"Not exactly." Michael said, "A real troll might not have that terrifying aura because... you know, trolls are stupid, but poppets are not."
"Then why were you not afraid..."
"Because I haven't forgotten that it's you who brought me in here."
Michael casually said, "You surely wouldn't bring me in here to die! The school's professors wouldn't possibly allow so many monsters to roam freely in Hogwarts without noticing."
"Once I understood this, and recalled the Red Cap and other creatures in the previous Defense Against the Dark Arts Class, the conclusion was obvious, these are another batch of poppet creatures?"
Vid was speechless.
It's easy to say, but how many people can stay calm and think rationally when facing a life-and-death crisis?
Meanwhile, they finally crossed the long passage and arrived at the actual V Zone.
This place seemed like the depths of the Forbidden Forest, with giant trees intertwining to form a canopy, almost no sunlight reaching the ground, making it feel cold and damp.
There were also some dead trees around, with branches shaped like clawing figures, as if ready to devour someone.
In this chilling atmosphere, Michael adapted well. He circled around to explore and even picked some pinecones. Peeling pine nuts was not difficult for the two with magic.
He even had time to eat and comment——
"The ambiance is nice, but the place is a bit small. It would be better if it could extend further into the Forbidden Forest."
"That's not likely." Vid sat on another log and said, "Establishing the maze already made some Forbidden Forest creatures protest to Dumbledore. If it continues to extend further, they will surely be very angry."
"And beyond certain limits, the school's magic can't protect all students."
"That's a bit of a pity." Michael said, "In such a small space, everyone will quickly figure out the reality of these poppet creatures."
Not far from them, a few trolls squeezed together, awkwardly making a fire and pretending to warm themselves, their large bodies looking quite constrained.
Werewolves occasionally ran around, their slender forms frequently flashing by.
Only the vampires remained hidden, never showing themselves.
"The V Zone is just temporary." Vid said, "Professor Dumbledore invited Mr. Scamander to help, and during the holidays, they will use magic to relocate the V Zone to the underground maze, then it will be connected and not much different from the Forbidden Forest."
Michael opened his mouth wide in surprise, "Can such a thing be done? Moving an entire space?"
Vid paused, equally astonished, "You're surprised by that? Time Magic isn't more magical?"
They looked at each other for a while and decided to give up on trying to change each other's perception.
Vid asked, "Do you want to try fighting a werewolf?"
"Sure!" Michael grabbed his magic wand and joyfully jumped up from the tree root seat.
Vid clapped his hands, and a werewolf slowly emerged from the woods.