Chapter 275 The Ancient Centaur
The Centaurs formed a circle and closely surrounded the five individuals.
Around them, Evan saw a variety of Centaurs dressed in different colors, most of them looking very vigorous, with longbows and arrows hanging from their shoulders.
In the center stood a Centaur with a silvery-gray coat.
He appeared to be very old, around a hundred years of age, with deep wrinkles on his face and a whitish beard nearly reaching the ground.
He was the elder of the Centaurs, the oldest and wisest of the tribe.
As Evan watched him, the Centaur scrutinized him in return.
His eyes were very light in color, with only glimpses of white visible from a distance.
Magorian approached and bowed his head, concealing his previously irritable temperament.
He respectfully recounted their story to the elder. Evan listened as Magorian explained how the four human foals sought recognition from the Centaurs and then intended to obtain the magical object kept in the sacred temple at the colony's center.
Despite his deep disdain for humans, the elder Centaur made no attempt to disparage or undermine them. He simply recounted the facts.
The old Centaur nodded and indicated his awareness of the matter, then Magorian stepped aside. The elder Centaur stepped forward. Without speaking, he gazed intently at Evan for a while. Then he looked up at the night sky as if observing the planets' trajectories.
Just when Evan thought the elder would remain silent indefinitely, he suddenly produced an unidentified black herbal powder from his pouch.
Evan did not see how it happened, but suddenly red flames sprang forth before the elder.
He slowly tossed the powder into the growing flames, and the flames immediately changed color from red to a fantastic dark blue, accompanied by billowing smoke.
"Centaurs can make prophecies by burning various herbs and leaves, observing the smoke and fire." Hermione whispered, "I've read about it in a book, and the principle is probably similar to the crystal ball we saw."
"Except for the lines on the table, I never saw anything in that ball," Ron muttered, gazing skeptically at the Centaur.
Harry nodded in agreement with Ron.
Perhaps Professor Trelawney had left too strong an impression on him.
Until now, he had thought such prophecies were deceptive.
Unlike the three, Evan saw something different in the blue flames through the way Dumbledore had taught him. He felt a strange wave of magic, a hint of hidden magic in the smoke, reaching out to him.
He hastily stepped back, prepared to evade it.
The elder Centaur looked back at Evan, who caught the scent of burnt leaves as the smoke wafted directly towards him with the breeze. Unlike conventional spells, the eccentric magic in the smoke did not harm him. It simply swirled around Evan and headed towards Harry beside him.
This type of divination, akin to star-gazing, was unique to the Centaurs.
It was not surprising that this magic was highly advanced. Apart from the elder, Evan had never seen another Centaur employ it.
Typically, they observed the stars in the night sky and foretold destinies.
However, this time the Centaurs did not engage in stargazing but waited for the elder to make his prophecy. They remained vigilant, encircling Evan and the others as if they were animals in a zoo, silently observing the five from a distance.
Most Centaurs gazed at Harry and whispered, much like many wizards encountering him for the first time.
Only a few Centaurs who knew Sirius nodded coldly at him and then quickly averted their eyes, pretending not to recognize him.
Evan had met Ronan and Bane a month ago, and they didn't even glance at him.
In the silent crowd, the atmosphere was tense. The Centaurs had different expressions; some with mere curiosity, others with severe scrutiny, some with unexplainable anger, but most with suspicion and distrust.
They were observing from a distance and even drew their weapons.
Sirius told everyone not to lower their wands. If anything happened, they should not worry about him and leave the forest before him. Nonetheless, the Centaurs would not harm children.
Evan felt Hermione unconsciously moving closer to him. He knew she must be worried. Skillfully, he took her small hand and calmed her with his gaze.
Due to the overwhelming tension, Hermione's palms were all sweaty. She looked at the Centaurs in front of her in astonishment, and an unknown fear arose deep in her heart. Those Centaurs looked very aggressive and frightening, as if they were about to attack at any moment.
If Evan wasn't there, she would have no idea what to do.
While the Centaurs observed from afar and whispered, Firenze, with long blond hair, emerged, appearing unchanged over the past month. In this atmosphere of hesitation and mistrust, he moved with tranquility.
Everyone watched Firenze in surprise, amazed by his bold behavior. No one spoke; even the murmur of the Centaurs suddenly stopped.
"I'm very glad to see you again after twenty years, Sirius Black," whispered Firenze, seemingly unaware of the anomaly, calmly approaching.
He shook hands with Sirius, the old friend he hadn't seen in a long time.
After greeting Sirius, he turned his attention to Harry.
"Harry Potter," Firenze said softly.
"Hello, Firenze, nice to meet you!" Harry quickly shook hands with him.
"And you," said the Centaur with an unquestionable tone, tilting his white blond head. "It had been predicted that we would meet again."
His expression was calm, with no smile on his face. No one could see through what he was thinking.
"The orbit of the planets has already given signs, and our shared destiny will not end here," Firenze nodded again to Harry. "We will meet again."
He left Harry and slowly approached Evan, extending a hand.
"Likewise to you, I knew you would come, Evan Mason." His striking blue eyes gazed at Evan without blinking, and he softly said, "On the night we met, Mars, which brought war, shone brightly above our heads, brighter than ever. After that, I carefully watched its path. I saw you in this upcoming war..."
"Silence, Firenze!" Magorian angrily interrupted and shouted. "We promised not to reveal what we see so easily."
Translator's Note: Hello, here's the Magical Translator! I hope you are enjoying the story so far and are happy with the posts; I have just uploaded chapter 390 on ! If you're interested in supporting me and reading more chapters, feel free to join there! ^^