Chapter 75: Seventy-Five

Here's a bonus chapter for you all! Thank you so much for waiting. I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments, and I hope you have a wonderful time reading!

Lys decided to press on. Danger wasn't guaranteed, but failing to practice potions would certainly deny her an "O" (Outstanding).

Professor Slughorn, though lenient enough to let most students scrape by, held firm to the highest standards when it came to awarding an "O."

To be cautious, Lys layered two additional Shield Charms over her existing protections. As she looked up after finishing the incantations, she understood why the forest had fallen silent.

A Tebo Warthog.

Lys had read about this creature in her books—it was formidable. Resistant to magic, thick-skinned, and fiercely territorial, it harbored a vengeful streak against intruders.

However, its hide could be fashioned into protective gloves, its tusks and bristles were valuable potion ingredients, and its blood and flesh made excellent growth stimulants for magical plants.

Yet Lys's instinctive reaction was to climb a tree.

Forgive her—while she could send her peers to the hospital in a duel, she had no means of facing this beast head-on.

A single charge from a Tebo Warthog could topple a tree as thick as a person. This one, clearly fully grown, looked to weigh at least 400 kilograms—or so Lys estimated, given her lack of concept of weight.

No matter. Lys, with Dryncorpse coiled around her neck, managed to perch herself on a sturdy branch, avoiding immediate disaster.

Exhaling deeply, she couldn't help but think that this was precisely the kind of place where her perpetually weary Defense Against the Dark Arts professor should make an appearance.

Now, for an Eye Curse. Given its strong magic resistance, she added a Sensory Deprivation Curse. She doubted a Binding Curse would restrain its hooves.

As for Severing Charms or the Reducto Curse, Lys was realistic—those would barely trim a few bristles on its back without scratching its hide.

Seated on the branch, Lys cast three Eye Curses before the warthog's aim wavered, sparing the tree trunk—and her perch—from further shaking. But the beast, now angrier, struck the tree with such force that it swayed violently.

Clearly, she couldn't afford to take her time. This tree wouldn't hold up long enough for her to wear the warthog down.

Layering multiple Binding Curses on its hooves, she finally saw some effect. Seizing the moment, Lys climbed down and used a Severing Charm to target its eyes and foreleg joints.

She hadn't wanted to leave the safety of the tree, but aiming at its weak spots from above was impossible.

The enraged Tebo Warthog charged wildly. Lys had no time to find another tree to climb and wait it out.

She resorted to firing Impediment Jinxes while dodging behind cover, occasionally striking at the wounds she had inflicted.

She was injured.

A branch? A rock? Or that close call with the warthog's charge? She wasn't sure, but her left leg could no longer support her rapid movements.

Even in this dire moment, Lys had the presence of mind to toss Dryncorpse into a pile of leaves. If she were struck down, she hoped Dryncorpse could adapt to hunting on its own.

With two rolls, Lys narrowly avoided another charge. Exhausted, she lacked the strength to keep running, which ironically made it harder for the blinded warthog to locate her.

Taking the chance, Lys lay flat and began searching for Dryncorpse.

But it was futile. Dryncorpse's patterned scales were designed to blend seamlessly with the forest floor. From her low vantage point, spotting it was impossible.

Absolutely impossible!

The warthog stood in the stream, shaking its head as if trying to dislodge something. Lys ignored it for now and cast a Silencing Charm on herself.

The warthog might resist magic, but she didn't. Every few steps, she cast Silencing Charms on herself and her surroundings.

Squinting, she searched for Dryncorpse while staying alert for other dangers. The idea of retreating to safety and returning later never crossed her mind.

But where was Dryncorpse? Sweating, dragging her injured leg along the slippery streamside path, Lys had no idea how many times she had fallen.

Even calling for Dryncorpse wouldn't help—it was a snake, after all. Ground vibrations were more perceptible to it than sound.

The warthog let out a loud grunt before collapsing into the stream. Lys decided to check on it. If it was truly incapacitated, she could search for Dryncorpse more freely.

What she saw left her stunned. Embedded in the warthog's shoulder was a snake—Dryncorpse!

Perhaps it was inexperienced in sinking its fangs into such a large prey, or maybe it was simply following its instinct to inject every last drop of venom. Either way, Dryncorpse's fangs were buried in the warthog's neck, refusing to release.

In the end, Lys had to pull it off. Gaboon vipers had potent venom and injected large quantities of it. Even if the warthog wasn't dead yet, its fate was sealed.

Lys checked her leg. It was a minor external injury, but an old wound seemed to have flared up. Gritting her teeth, she pressed on, convinced she could smell orchids. She decided to walk a few more minutes. If she didn't find anything, she would leave—the warthog's blood might attract other creatures.

Fortunately, at a bend in the stream, Lys found a patch of Sunlight Orchids. Unfortunately, many had been uprooted or trampled by the warthog.

Lys quickly gathered several handfuls and used a Levitation Charm to scatter soil over her tracks.

She left the Forbidden Forest as fast as she could.

Back at Hogwarts, Lys and Snape tried brewing the potion multiple times, but success eluded them. Other shades of blue appeared, but never the desired sapphire blue.

Frustrated, she felt like throwing the cauldron across the room! They even experimented with environmental factors like light and temperature, but Snape's tests showed no issues. While most potions required low light and cool conditions, this one had minimal such requirements.

After juggling essays and assignments for other subjects, Lys devoted significant effort to figuring out how to brew a perfect sapphire-blue potion.

Aside from the color, the potion's effects were flawless, which caught Snape's attention.

What began as Lys threatening Snape with books to supervise her brewing turned into Snape forcing her to brew the potion repeatedly. Finally, just before the Hogsmeade trip, they discovered the reason.