Knock, knock, knock—
Dorset, on a small hillside.
A soft knocking echoed.
"Yes, who is it?"
Newt rubbed his head and walked out of the bedroom. He had just helped a female Nundu give birth today, and his old bones were thoroughly exhausted.
He was about to turn in early when he heard the knock.
"Strange, very few people know my address. Could it be an old friend?"
As if sensing Newt's approach, the knocking ceased.
With a creak, Newt pushed open the door.
A magnificent creature stood on the doorstep, moonlight spilling over its pale golden scales, which shimred with a lustrous glow.
Its fiery golden mane, like blazing clouds, drifted without wind, entwined in wisps of golden mist.
What truly held Newt's gaze were its eyes—like the purest glazed crystal, clear and tranquil.
Newt, who had expected a person at the door, stood there completely stunned.
In the middle of the night, a magical creature he had never seen before suddenly knocked on his door. Anyone would be stunned.
"This, this…"
"Excuse , are you Mr. Newt Scamander?"
An ethereal, pleasant voice echoed directly in Newt's mind.
Startled, Newt looked around, thinking soone was speaking to him, and peeked out on both sides of the door.
But there was no one—only the creature before him, quietly watching.
"I have a letter to deliver to Mr. Scamander."
The ethereal voice sounded again. Newt asked hesitantly, "Ah, um, I am Newt Scamander. Are you the one speaking to ?"
"Yes. You can call Lun. I am here to deliver a letter on behalf of my master."
A propitious cloud lifted the satchel from around Lun's neck, and the envelope within floated gently into Newt's hands.
Newt took the letter, planning to read it inside—the chill of the season was far too unfriendly for soone his age.
"Uh, Lu… Lun, would you like to co in?"
Newt awkwardly pronounced the na of this divine creature.
"Thank you for your invitation."
Lun stepped inside, following Newt into the house with light, silent footsteps.
When he had used telepathy to communicate earlier, he had deliberately added an ethereal sound effect.
This was his master's advice: when communicating with outsiders, use such a voice. A childish tone would lead to underestimation, and others might think he was easy to deceive.
Newt found a chair and sat down, beginning to read the letter.
He hadn't imdiately recalled which old friend the master of this never-before-seen magical creature might be.
"Dear Mr. Newt Scamander:
I am Lucien Grafton. Thank you for clarifying the Undetectable Extension Charm for …"
After reading the opening greeting, Newt suddenly rembered.
Wasn't this that junior student? Because of Dumbledore's letter, he had offered so advice on the Undetectable Extension Charm.
He hadn't expected a reply so soon. It seed that the child nad Lucien had an exceptional foundation in charms and alchemy—quite impressive, even for a much older student.
But what exactly was this magical creature that had co as his ssenger?
Newt couldn't help but look up at Lun, his eyes filled with curiosity about this unknown species.
"Mr. Scamander, is sothing wrong?"
"Ah, no."
The fluent and polite conversation made Newt feel like he was speaking with a person, and his socially anxious self instinctively shook his head.
It was a strange feeling. Although Newt was deeply passionate about magical creatures and loved interacting with them, this truly was a novel experience.
He continued reading the letter, nodding gently as he went.
From the questions posed, Newt could tell that Lucien's understanding of the Undetectable Extension Charm had indeed reached a certain depth; what he was pursuing now was the refinent of finer details.
However, when he saw Lucien's inquiry about the Erumpent, Newt frowned slightly.
Erumpent explosive fluid was extrely dangerous. Even for an older student, it was best not to co into contact with it lightly.
At the end of the letter, Lucien specifically ntioned that his pet was a very special magical creature and hoped Mr. Scamander wouldn't ntion it to anyone for the ti being.
Newt wholeheartedly agreed.
Having spent decades researching magical creatures, he was well aware that so wizards harbored greedy intentions toward rare magical species, viewing them solely as experintal subjects or sources of material.
Although his efforts over the years had led many in the wizarding world to realize the importance of protecting magical creatures, there were still a few extremists.
Newt began writing a reply, addressing Lucien's questions about the Undetectable Extension Charm, but politely declined the request regarding the Erumpent's explosive fluid:
"I'm sorry, but when dealing with such dangerous substances, it's best to have sufficient knowledge and understanding of magical creatures."
"Of course, if you are truly interested, after you graduate, I would be very happy to correspond with you…"
Just as Newt was composing the letter, Tina yawned, rubbing her eyes as she walked into the living room.
She saw Newt reading and writing letters late into the night again and wondered if Dumbledore had sent another ssage.
Just as she was about to look for Fawkes the Phoenix, Tina noticed Lun's presence.
"Newt, who's this?"
"Ah, Tina, this is, uh, this is… This is the pet of that student, Lucien Grafton, who asked about the Undetectable Extension Charm before."
Tina paused to think and recalled the child ntioned in Dumbledore's previous letter.
"Oh, I see. Actually, I was going to ask—what kind of magical creature is this?"
Newt stopped writing, looked at Tina, then at Lun.
He genuinely couldn't say for sure what kind of magical creature it was. If he had to guess, the only thing that ca to mind was the Qilin that used to live near ICW, Bhutan.
But the one in front of him was far too different from the Eastern Qilin he had rescued decades ago—whether in appearance or in its unique abilities.
"I don't know either, Tina. However, it says its na is Lun."
This answer surprised Tina. Having been married to Newt for so many years, she had beco sothing of a magical creature expert herself, but she had no recollection of such a species.
And Newt said he didn't recognize it?
Newt, the world's most renowned magical creature expert—who had traveled the globe observing and docunting countless magical creatures—didn't recognize it either?
"Then it truly is a rare species."
"Wait, wait, you just said 'it says'? It can speak?"
Tina asked purely out of curiosity. She knew so magical creatures were capable of speaking human languages.
"Good evening, beautiful lady."
When Lun's ethereal and transcendent voice echoed directly in Tina's mind, she widened her bright, salamander-like eyes.
"Huh?"
Unlike Newt, who would lower his head anxiously when eting people, Tina was warm and talkative. After her initial shock, she smiled and continued:
"Lun, did I pronounce that correctly?"
"You pronounced it correctly."
"That's good. I'm very curious—magical creatures have different aesthetics from humans, right? So why do you call beautiful?"
This question imdiately made Lun think of his master's teachings, and it quickly recalled the response his master had taught him:
"I can roughly perceive the good and evil in living beings, and your heart is very kind, possessing a beautiful soul."
The answer made Tina chuckle.
"Haha, how interesting. Did your master teach you all this?"
"No, my master taught honesty and politeness."
That made Tina even more intrigued—especially about the student nad Lucien, who would raise a magical creature with such manners.
"Thank you for the complint. Could you give your master a ssage for ? If he's willing, he's welco to visit us here. I'd be happy to have him."
Sensing her sincerity, Lun once again felt deep in its heart that its master's teachings were truly wise!
…Though it couldn't help but think—there was just a bit too much knowledge packed into them. It'd have to bring that up with his master soti…
"Tina, that child should be preparing for his N.E.W.T.s. Let's not disturb him yet."
Glancing at her husband, who had resud writing after his comnt, Tina laughed softly:
"Then he can co on holiday or after graduation. Newt, you just don't want to et strangers, do you?"
__________
11 Advance Chaps- P@treon/DarkDevil1
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