Luna was Luna, even in this perilous place, she maintained that calm and serene demeanor. She followed Maca closely, sometimes lost in thought, sometimes seized by whimsy, as if she had just awakened from a dream.
To be honest, this wasn't an ideal place for a leisurely stroll.
All around them was darkness, and they had to rely on wand-illuminated light to see. Occasionally, the tendrils of the Devil's Snare would reach out from behind, requiring constant vigilance. Add to that the assortment of peculiar magical creatures that could easily disrupt their tranquility...
"Maca, do you think... there might be a Crumple-Horned Snorkack here?" Luna's silver-gray eyes twinkled, and she wore a faint smile on her face.
"Who knows?" Maca pondered for a moment and then whispered, "Maybe there could be? Shall we look around?"
Luna nodded excitedly and pointed in a direction with her delicate finger.
"Earlier, I heard something calling from over there." She seemed rather thrilled, with a pure sense of joy in her eyes.
Maca followed closely behind her, watching her wander aimlessly through the maze, regardless of whether she was on the right path or not.
Being with Luna always made him feel relaxed. Even in such a gloomy and terrifying maze, her presence turned it into a carefree wilderness adventure.
Having found Luna, his mission was essentially complete.
All he had to do now was wait—as long as he remained in the maze, even if he was the last one left, the competition would continue until the last grain of sand fell in the magical hourglass.
And then, he would have to do what he needed to do...
"Luna, I'd like to ask you for a favor."
"What is it?" Luna turned to him, blinking her large eyes.
"Next, I might..." Maca hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. "Never mind... In any case, don't get close to Harry and them, alright?"
"Hmm?" Luna stared at him silently for a moment, not giving a quick answer.
They continued walking, and Maca kept his eyes on Luna's back, feeling the light-hearted mood he had before become heavier due to certain thoughts.
Just then, he suddenly heard the sounds of a battle not far ahead.
"Wait a moment."
Maca pulled Luna behind him and stopped in his tracks.
From the sounds, it seemed like Harry was in a fight with some creature. The roars, one after another, were filled with wild power, sounding much like a lion's roar.
He glanced at Luna behind him, unsure whether he should go and check.
"I've prepared well in advance for this, so this second task should be no problem..." He hesitated for a moment, then decided to take Luna away from the battle.
However, Luna wasn't as cautious as he was.
"Aren't we going to see what's happening?" She looked at Maca earnestly. "Someone's in danger."
"Aren't you in even greater danger if you go over there?" Maca joked.
Unexpectedly, Luna wasn't as absent-minded as usual. She stared straight at Maca and stubbornly repeated, "Someone's in danger."
Upon hearing this, Maca was taken aback.
"My mother often says... things we lose have a way of coming back, just not always the way we expect." She spoke and then shook her head gently. "I don't like losing things, but my belongings tend to mysteriously disappear..."
She thought for a moment and said, "It must be the Crumple-Horned Snorkacks, right?"
"Losing things?" Maca looked in the direction of the sound, thoughtfully saying, "I don't like it either, but sometimes... yeah, it must be the Crumple-Horned Snorkacks."
Luna smiled and then turned and walked toward the source of the noise.
Maca sighed softly—he understood Luna's meaning. This girl, who was sometimes lost in her thoughts and other times deeply spiritual, just wanted to tell him that some things were better not to be avoided.
Luna truly yearned for friendship and didn't want to lose it. If she accidentally did, when she faced it again, it probably wouldn't be the same.
So, when someone was in trouble, she always tried to lend a hand. Perhaps she didn't do it perfectly, but it was her own effort.
"It seems she's destined to be involved..." Maca didn't know what to do. After all, he was always powerless against these well-intentioned people.
He continued to follow Luna, quickly arriving at the scene of the battle.
The first thing that caught their eyes was a blaze of crimson fire, with an extraordinarily high temperature that distorted the air, exuding an extremely dangerous aura.
Spewing this fire was a peculiar giant creature, possessing the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a dragon. The mane around its neck danced in the wind as it ran, presenting a majestic appearance.
It was a Chimera, classified as "xxxxx" by the Ministry of Magic, a magical creature whose danger level was very close to that of a Basilisk.
And right in front of this Chimera, a figure was rising from the ground. It seemed that he had just fallen heavily to the ground, presumably to avoid the flames spewed by the Chimera.
That person was none other than Harry Potter.
At that moment, a glint of cold light flashed from a corner on the opposite side, catching Maca's attention.
"Hermione?"
Indeed, it was Hermione, who had only recently parted ways with Maca. She was standing to the side, anxiously watching Harry in the midst of the battle, and in her hand...
"Is she getting addicted to this?" Maca muttered to himself. "Dumbledore is quite generous..."
In Hermione's hand, the beautifully crafted sword occasionally reflected the light of the flames spewed by the Chimera, irresistibly drawing people's gaze towards it.
"Maca?"
Luna, who was by his side, suddenly tugged at his sleeve and softly called his name.
"Don't worry; there shouldn't be any problems for now," he reassured her while observing the situation inside. "If there's danger, I'll help out in time."
The Chimera's most troubling aspects were its endless fire-breathing, immense energy, and formidable defenses.
Once, a wizard had battled a Chimera for a full day and night while riding a winged horse. He had been repeatedly driven back by the Chimera's flames, and his regular attacks had been futile. It was only in the end, using a spear imbued with a fire-repelling charm, that he managed to kill it. The wizard was said to have perished from exhaustion shortly afterward.
"Harry, the broom's here!"
Just as Maca was carefully observing, Hermione shouted to Harry.
Harry turned around and saw his flying broomstick shooting out from a certain passage. He quickly evaded another stream of flames from the Chimera, then turned and mounted the broomstick as it passed by him.
This section of the maze had a ceiling, so it was unlikely for him to fly very high. However, the broomstick was still quite useful, at least ensuring that Harry didn't have to endure such a desperate situation while dodging the flames.
He lowered his body, narrowly avoiding a stream of fire and attempting to close the gap to the Chimera.
But the Chimera wasn't so easily dealt with.
It suddenly roared, and its lion's head shook violently, sending sheets of flames "sweeping" towards Harry. He had no choice but to pull up on the broomstick, flying a distance away.
The temperature of the Chimera's flames was extremely high, and Harry felt as though his hair was about to catch fire. If he got grazed by it, wouldn't he turn into a pile of ash immediately?
Yet, the battle had to continue because Ron was still waiting behind the magical barrier on the opposite side!
Harry made another charge, his broomstick carving a series of arcs as he attempted to get closer to the Chimera while dodging the flames.
When the Chimera attempted to unleash another rain of fire, Harry suddenly shot up, nearly brushing against the thorny top of the wall. With incredible speed, he circled around to the back of the Chimera.
However, he hadn't anticipated that there was no blind spot on the Chimera's back.
The Chimera roared angrily, and its tail lashed out with tremendous force, striking just in front of Harry. He reacted quickly, attempting to dodge the tail's whip with his broomstick, but he missed by a fraction of an inch.
The tip of the tail brushed against the branches at the end of the broomstick, and with a loud crash, the flying broomstick lost control and veered towards the thorn-covered hedge.
Seeing the Chimera roar again and open its mouth towards Harry's landing spot, flames already at its throat, Maca swiftly raised his wand and diverted the Chimera's head slightly, causing the flames to land in a different spot, sparing Harry from being turned into a skewer.
"It's quite resilient..."
His spell had considerable force, yet the creature had only turned its head slightly, without suffering any damage. In terms of magical resistance, it seemed to be even stronger than a Basilisk.
"Harry, are you alright?"
Maca continued to cast spells while engaging the Chimera, shouting loudly to Harry, who had fallen in a corner.
"Oh—Maca?" Harry struggled to get up, and he said with difficulty, "Thank you... I think my ribs might be broken... uh... hmm..."
"Well, then—" Maca said, but suddenly felt that something was amiss. He quickly cast another magical beam at the Chimera and turned to look.
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