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Chapter 72: Homing Snakes

Professor Kettleburn awkwardly laughed, pretending not to hear, and lowered his head to continue examining the basilisk's body.

"This is a truly rare species. I never expected to see a basilisk in my lifetime," he marveled, looking at the basilisk's eyes. "I recall that snakes and geckos, like other reptiles, don't have eyelids. But this basilisk can close its eyes. Is it due to its innate abilities?"

Seeing Professor Kettleburn once again immersed in studying magical creatures, Professor McGonagall shot him an annoyed glance before turning back to rejoin the conversation between Dumbledore and Dracula.

However, the moment she turned her head, Professor Kettleburn performed an unexpectedly agile move for his age and slid down from the basilisk.

"Oops, I forgot Minerva was still here," he muttered quietly, then leaned on his cane and limped towards the door.

At the door, he seemed to remember something and looked back at Dumbledore.

"Albus, let's discuss where to place the basilisk in the Forbidden Forest next time when Minerva isn't around!" he called out.

Professor McGonagall, furious, rushed after him to demand an explanation from Professor Kettleburn.

Seeing her follow, Professor Kettleburn quickened his pace, tapping his cane on the ground as he went.

The two elderly people walked out of the room at a surprisingly brisk pace, as if competing in a race...

In the blink of an eye, the room where the Mirror of Erised was located was left with only Dracula and Dumbledore, standing face-to-face.

Understanding the nature of the two elderly professors, Dumbledore quickly regained his composure, walked over to the basilisk, and gently stroked its cool, smooth scales.

Although Quirrell had used some tricks to get the Ministry of Magic to send an urgent letter to Dumbledore, successfully drawing him away from Hogwarts, he didn't realize that Dumbledore was still keeping an eye on the castle and especially the Forbidden Forest.

After Dracula had chased Voldemort away, Dumbledore had taken a Phoenix named Fawkes back to Hogwarts to prevent the basilisk from causing trouble alone in the room. He had then stunned the basilisk, rendering it temporarily harmless and quiet.

This was also why the basilisk hadn't reacted at all when Professor Kettleburn climbed onto its body.

"So, this basilisk is the creature left by Slytherin to guard Hogwarts Castle?" Dumbledore asked, looking at Dracula with curiosity.

"That seems to be the case," Dracula nodded slightly. "I should have expected it. A magical creature that has survived for nearly a thousand years with such formidable abilities is probably only a basilisk."

He snapped his fingers in front of the basilisk's face, waking it up.

The basilisk opened its eyes in a dazed manner. Seeing the silver-haired demon in front of it, it instinctively closed its eyes again, shrinking into a corner, curling up into a large, unidentifiable mass...

"Professor Dracula seems to be quite familiar with this basilisk," Dumbledore said, watching the basilisk's reaction with a smile. "Oh, I almost forgot. You and Slytherin were old acquaintances, so it's not surprising that you know his pet."

Dracula smiled and nodded. However, his expression soon became less natural.

Dumbledore had mentioned that the basilisk was a pet of Slytherin's. This made Dracula suddenly recall that his previous actions—forcing the basilisk to continuously use its innate magic and depleting its magic power repeatedly for his own amusement—might have been considered abuse of Slytherin's pet.

Realizing this, he gently patted the basilisk's head, making his touch a bit more tender.

The basilisk, feeling the different gentleness of Dracula's touch, seemed somewhat flattered, closing its eyes and rubbing its head against Dracula's hand.

Aside from being slightly larger, the basilisk now really did seem to have become a domesticated pet.

"Dumbledore, do you have any thoughts on where to place this basilisk?" Dracula asked, stroking the basilisk's smooth, cool head. "It can't really be placed in the Forbidden Forest like Professor Kettleburn suggested, can it?"

"Let's skip the Forbidden Forest," Dumbledore said decisively. "Even if we disregard the impact and conflict the basilisk might have on the native species of the forest, there is another issue to consider—"

"I am well aware that many brave students might secretly venture into the Forbidden Forest. If we place a creature like the basilisk, which could kill with its gaze, in there, it would indeed be too dangerous."

"So, you are aware that students sneak into the Forbidden Forest?" Dracula raised an eyebrow at him, with a strange look. "I thought the warning you gave at the school feast about forbidding entry into the Forbidden Forest was just for show. I've never seen you enforce it."

"Ahem, occasional adventures can help develop young wizards' courage, creativity, and adaptability," Dumbledore said, clearing his throat. "So I usually don't stop them from exploring the forest's periphery, provided it's done safely."

"But how do you ensure those mischievous ones won't venture deeper into the forest?" Dracula asked.

"Don't worry. The most dangerous areas of the Forbidden Forest are protected by appropriate magical defenses, so the young wizards cannot enter them," Dumbledore said with a wink. "If they do enter dangerous areas, it would definitely be because I allowed them to."

Hearing the latter part of his statement, Dracula couldn't help but sneer and uninterestingly pop a blood-flavored lollipop into his mouth.

He had almost guessed that Harry Potter and his friends would likely face more trouble—

At the right moment, this old headmaster would definitely secretly lift the magical protections on the Forbidden Forest and allow the so-called savior to venture into the more dangerous depths of the forest, to test his courage, creativity, and adaptability.

Such long-term scheming and training were something Dracula found utterly boring.

He patted the basilisk's head and changed the subject.

"Since we're not going to place it in the Forbidden Forest, do you have any other ideas?"