"There really is a dragon!" Hermione's eyes lit up instantly upon hearing this, and her curiosity quickly overpowered her fear: "Oh my God! Such a terrifying dragon? Could it be a Hungarian Horntail?"
She said the name of the most powerful giant dragon she knew, based on the terrifying roar that just shook her to the core, she believed the dragon in the Forbidden Forest couldn't be ordinary.
However.
Faced with Hermione's speculation.
Ian shook his head.
Hermione was slightly stunned upon seeing this.
"Welsh Green Dragon?"
She guessed again.
And Ian shook his head once more.
Hermione's confidence began to waver.
"Then... could it be a Norwegian Ridgeback Dragon?"
Unwilling to give up, she continued with the process of elimination.
She named several breeds in succession.
But Ian continued to shake his head.
Hermione was thoroughly bewildered.
"These are all the dragons mentioned in the books... What other dragons are there in the books?" Hermione's face turned a bit dejected as she scratched her head, quickly searching her mind for the knowledge from the books.
At this moment, Ron's face was changing through a whole range of expressions, suddenly appearing as if he had realized something, and his expression turned serious, speaking in a low, mysterious voice.
"This might just be the secret of the Forbidden Forest! That person..." Ron glanced at Ian, hesitated, and then continued, "…he's raising dangerous dragons in the Forbidden Forest!"
This guy was still acting all secretive.
No one knew why he was so wary of Ian.
"Who?"
Hermione frowned.
Ron hemmed and hawed, finally mumbling indistinctly.
"It's... um… that person we discussed before."
His eyes darted towards Ian.
Ian rolled his eyes.
"You mean Harry, Harry Potter, right."
He simply exposed the secret that Ron thought only he knew.
Ron's eyes widened suddenly.
"How do you know?!"
His expression was filled with disbelief.
Ian sighed: "I heard all your discussions, as a matter of fact, I was right nearby at the time, and it was as if the three of you couldn't see me at all."
He still found it unbelievable. Upon hearing this, Ron's face turned red instantly, Neville hung his head in shame, while Hermione bit her lip, seemingly thinking about how to explain.
"Alright... sorry, I was just a bit worried..."
Ron was clearly very embarrassed and looked like he wanted to dig a hole in the ground and hide in it.
"Do you think Harry has a secret in the Forbidden Forest?"
Ian raised an eyebrow.
He was still curious about what Ron had said earlier about Harry, or rather Riddle, often visiting the Forbidden Forest, which was also why he was so willing to act as a chaperone.
"Yes!"
Ron quickly regained his composure and continued his "theory": "A dragon! There's a dragon in the Forbidden Forest! I bet! He's the one raising it! This might just be the secret of the Forbidden Forest!"
"That... that person is raising dangerous dragons in the Forbidden Forest! He wants to use the dragon's power to invade Hogwarts!" Ron said as he even scared himself with his own speculation, chills running down his spine.
How shall I put it?
There's always someone in Hogwarts who must not be named.
Why couldn't it be Harry?
"No, you already know that I know your view on Harry, so why do you still refer to him as that person, that person?" Ian felt a bit helpless towards this younger Gryffindor.
"..."
Ron scratched his head awkwardly.
"It's a habit."
He blushed again, deeply ashamed.
"I must say, your imagination rivals the editors at the Prophet Daily." Ian couldn't believe Ron's theories at all.
His level of knowledge was different from these three.
Dragon invading Hogwarts?
This was undoubtedly the funniest joke of the year.
"That's not imagination! It's deduction! Just think, a dragon is an immensely powerful creature. If it were really controlled by someone with ill intentions, Hogwarts would be in danger!"
"I'm serious! Dragons are extremely dangerous Fantastic Beasts!" Ron seemed angry at Ian's dismissive attitude, and he very stubbornly emphasized his point to Ian.
"Yeah, dragons are apex creatures on the food chain."
Hermione also agreed with Ron's final statement.
However.
Ian shook his head again.
"In front of an Advanced Wizard, dragons are as fragile as paper."
He spoke the truth. The trio hadn't yet realized that if dragons were truly as formidable, they wouldn't be creatures that could be imprisoned and domesticated by wizards.
In this regard.
Ron indeed couldn't comprehend.
He widened his eyes.
"How is that possible?!"
The boy clearly couldn't believe it.
"Isn't it said that in front of a dragon, a wizard's magic barely works? They have very high magic resistance." Hermione also displayed an incredulous expression.
This shows some understanding.
But not quite complete.
As for Neville.
Neville was lying under a tree, daydreaming.
"The dragon's magic resistance is high? Yes, indeed, but that's only against ordinary wizards; in our house alone, at least seven people could single-handedly defeat a so-called giant dragon unscathed."
Ian casually mentioned a number. Hermione did some quick mental calculations and wanted to ask more, but Ian raised his hand to stop her: "Alright, Hermione, the next matter doesn't concern you anymore."
His words had an unmistakable tone of finality.
Ron and Neville were stunned, looking at each other blankly, while Hermione suddenly realized, her eyes widened: "Wait! You're not thinking of handling that dragon by yourself, are you?"
Ian nodded.