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"Hey, now you've asked the right person."
When Hagrid heard this, his black beetle-like eyes shone brightly. As long as the knowledge concerned magical creatures, there was nothing he did not know.
"I've been trying exactly that recently."
Hagrid deliberately lowered his voice, but for him, even lowering his voice was still as loud as a megaphone.
"Just between us, I found a Manticore in the northern part of the Forbidden Forest."
Hagrid spoke with a mysterious expression.
A Manticore was a creature with a human head, a lion's body, and a scorpion's tail. At the end of its tail were deadly stingers like a scorpion's, which could be fired in any direction. Anyone stung by one would die on the spot.
A Manticore's hide repelled almost all known spells. Although its size was not comparable to a thousand-year-old basilisk, it still belonged among the ranks of large magical beasts. In the wizarding world, people placed it alongside the Chimaera as an extremely dangerous creature. Of course, it was also just as rare.
Incidentally, Manticores, like Acromantulas, were magical creatures fond of eating humans.
"That little fellow seems to have gotten separated from its parents and was staying alone in that forest. Lucky it met me. Now we're friends. Unfortunately, there isn't a second Manticore in the Forbidden Forest. Thankfully, I've already picked out mates for it."
Hagrid did not say exactly how he and the Manticore had met, but anyone could imagine that it had not been a pleasant experience, for the Manticore.
"Little fellow?" Dudley heard Hagrid's description.
The image of a Manticore automatically surfaced in Dudley's mind.
Tall and vicious.
In any case, it had absolutely nothing to do with little.
"What did you pick for it?"
Dudley's face looked strange.
"A group of female Fire Crabs!" Hagrid said excitedly. "I think they're very suitable."
Hagrid's selection definitely had not taken the Manticore's opinion into account.
A Manticore could not be counted as a simple wild beast. Like Aragog and Sphinxes, it possessed intelligence no lower than a human's. Fire Crabs, in contrast, truly belonged to the kind of magical creature that did not have much intelligence, and they were also aquatic in nature.
To a Manticore, a Fire Crab was no different from a king crab to a human.
If you wanted a human and a king crab to make something happen... there would at least need to be some compatible anatomy, right?
Yet according to the original timeline, Hagrid had successfully bred a new species from Manticores and Fire Crabs: Blast-Ended Skrewts. A new magical creature species that was not particularly useful, but was quite dangerous.
There was reproductive isolation between species. That was common sense. Between magical creatures, the separation was even more obvious.
Being able to make two completely unrelated magical creatures interbreed and successfully produce a new species meant Hagrid was absolutely a genius breeder.
Perhaps he truly did have a method.
And so Dudley stated his request.
"I want to breed a batch of carnivorous slugs with shells."
The wizarding world did not have a species such as magical snails or enchanted snails. Among magical creatures, the only things that could count as relatives of snails were these carnivorous slugs.
In Dudley's mind, the only snail he could think of that had anything to do with magic was the magical snail from Granzort.
Unfortunately, Dudley could not obtain that for the time being.
But he was not skilled at breeding magical creatures. He only had the taming skill and had not obtained any breeding skills. If Hagrid could do it, that would be best.
"Carnivorous slugs with shells?"
Hagrid thought for a while, then patted his chest and guaranteed, "Although I don't know why you would want that sort of thing, leave it to me."
He seemed to already have an idea.
"Then how long will it take?"
Dudley asked the question he cared about most.
He could wait half a year. A year would not be much of a problem either. But if it exceeded three years, that would be more troublesome.
"Carnivorous slugs are basically in a breeding state at any time and anywhere. Much more convenient than Manticores."
"Probably one or two months."
One or two months. This time exceeded Dudley's expectations in the good direction. It was much faster than he had imagined. He could definitely wait.
"Then I'll trouble you, Hagrid."
"Heh, heh, heh." Hagrid laughed foolishly several times, seeming very happy that he could help.
The matter of breeding magical snails was temporarily handed over to Hagrid. Dudley once again went to Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets, located deeper beneath the dungeons.
After using the Lighting Charm to create a small sun in the middle of the chamber, he began searching everywhere for something.
According to the basilisk, besides placing his knowledge in the Chamber of Secrets, Slytherin had also placed his authority over Hogwarts there.
Only, one had to first pass the trial.
Dudley very much wanted to obtain Hogwarts' authority.
Unfortunately, even with the assistance of the Data Eyes, he still found nothing.
This was not the first time he had come here.
Ever since the basilisk crisis was resolved, he had come almost every day.
After confirming again and again with no result, Dudley made a trip to the library, spent some time being affectionate with Hermione, and after night fell, completed his daily training before returning to his bedroom.
Only after the light of a transmutation circle flashed across the door did Dudley sit at the desk.
He lined up two blue gemstones of different sizes.
Magic crystals.
Because some had been consumed in making red-and-white balls, one piece was much smaller than the other.
Originally, there should have been three pieces. One had been made by Dudley into a ring and given to Hermione.
Next, Dudley took out a lump of silver metal and an emerald.
These were materials obtained by breaking down Ravenclaw's Diadem.
Mithril and a gemstone containing a certain amount of magic.
This was still far from the end. Dudley took out another object.
The wand he had barely used since taking it from Ollivander, only bringing it out to keep up appearances.
Iron birch, Thestral tail hair, nine inches.
Dudley still remembered the excitement he felt when he first obtained it.
Unfortunately, he had not managed to cast even half a spell with it.
The wand looked glossy, without the slightest damage. Clearly, it had been maintained very well.
Dudley placed the wand together with those materials.
He wanted to try modifying his own wand.
With the ability of Magic Armor Modification, it might not be impossible to create a magical item capable of automatically casting spells, just like the red-and-white balls.
Of course, while he was at it, Dudley also took out the third Philosopher's Stone.
This Philosopher's Stone had not yet been processed and retained its original ruby-like appearance.
When he took out the third Philosopher's Stone, his ring accidentally touched it.
In an instant, all three Philosopher's Stones gave off a faint red light at the same time.
Before Dudley could react, he suddenly felt a trance, and a faint, almost nonexistent voice sounded beside his ear.
Gradually, gradually...
He seemed to see an ancient and enormous door slowly emerging before his eyes.
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