The scattered heap of stones was the giant bear, now reverted to ordinary rock after losing its magic.
The arrows strewn all over the ground had come from the Centaurs' bows.
And that enormous body lying motionless on the grass was the giant Grawp, brought down by the girls working together.
All of it formed the aftermath of a fierce battlefield between the Centaurs, the Giant, and the girls...
The result, however, was not what anyone had expected.
Everyone present kept looking back and forth between Pansy and Hermione in disbelief, as if trying to figure out what was so special about the two of them.
What kind of confidence had given them the courage to stand up to a Giant?
And what kind of brutal training had they gone through to gain the strength, and luck, to actually bring one down?
For now, those questions were destined to go unanswered.
Because the two who had accomplished that feat, Pansy and Hermione, were currently leaning against each other and gasping for breath...
The heavy drain on their magic, coupled with the crushing pressure the Giant had put on them, left them so exhausted that neither of them wanted to say a word, much less jump up and celebrate their victory.
Even so, the moment Draco looked their way, both Pansy and Hermione proudly lifted their chins and puffed out their chests, wearing adorably smug expressions as they waited for him to praise them...
"W. Well? We did pretty well, didn't we?"
"...Hmph, it was only a mere Giant... It wasn't that much."
The second that was said, it was obvious who it had come from. The line was so full of personality there was no mistaking it.
Ginny, standing nearby, immediately rolled her eyes.
What was with that shameless humblebrag...?
...
Even now, the Centaurs still refused to believe that a Giant had actually been defeated by two young witches.
Only after waiting and seeing that the Giant really was not getting back up did they reluctantly accept that absurdly unreal fact...
"Bane."
"We still can't let our guard down. Have the others tie the Giant up. We need to keep him under control. And finally... I think we need to talk to them."
"There's nothing to talk about. We're not traitors like Firenze!"
As he rejected the idea of talking, he leaped toward Draco with his companions at his side.
At the same time, the Centaurs made no move to lower their bows. If anything, they were now openly aiming at Pansy and Hermione.
What they failed to realize was that the wizard they should really have been wary of was not the girls, whose magic and stamina were both nearly spent, but Draco Malfoy, who had already noticed what they were doing.
He was the most dangerous person there...
Draco raised a brow, leaned on his cane, and turned to face the Centaurs.
"Centaurs..."
"Wizard, this is not a place you should be. Take your companions and leave."
If his tone had been a little better, if his words had been less aggressive, and if the person standing in front of them had not been Draco, then maybe the Centaurs might actually have succeeded in persuading them.
Unfortunately for them, the one standing there was Draco Malfoy...
His thumb nudged open the gap between the wand and the cane.
"Leave? Aren't you going to explain what happened first?"
"Don't be ridiculous. We have no obligation to explain anything to a wizard!"
It was hard to tell what had set them off, but with a wave of his hand, the arrows that had only been loosely trained on them before were now aimed directly at Draco.
And of course, that included the girls behind him...
"The hostility in their eyes is real. Why?"
Hermione frowned as she felt a faint prickling sting against her skin. Normally, the Centaurs had never been particularly friendly toward wizards, but they had never made it this obvious either, let alone gone so far as to attack them.
Compared to Hermione's confusion, Pansy, who had recovered slightly, merely pursed her lips.
"Instead of worrying about something that unimportant, Granger, you should be worrying about those Centaurs."
"Draco... he'll hold back, right...? Right?"
Hermione blinked, her eyes full of pity as she looked at the Centaurs. Still, she had no intention of stopping him or warning them. She was a little angry too.
No matter who it was, no one liked having bows aimed at them.
And strictly speaking, she and Pansy had just saved them, hadn't they...?
Unlike Pansy and Hermione, Ginny, who had seen the Centaurs' reaction and still did not fully understand Draco, nervously raised both hands.
"We don't mean any harm. It's just... a Giant appearing at the school really is a problem for us too, isn't it?"
Although Ginny was trying to appear harmless, her angry expression still made it obvious that she was deeply unhappy about being treated like an enemy by the Centaurs.
Still, compared to fighting back, Ginny was more inclined to sit down and talk things through.
Because this Giant seemed to have some connection to Hagrid...
...
Whether Ginny could actually convince both sides to sit down and talk was another matter.
Just as Draco was about to act, a sudden commotion broke out among the Centaurs opposite them...
"Firenze! You still have the nerve to show yourself in front of us! Is it because of this wretched Giant?!"
Firenze's appearance immediately drew all attention away from Draco and the others. Clearly, compared to Draco's group, these Centaurs hated Firenze, the one who had "gone over" to the wizards, even more.
And honestly, Firenze showing up made perfect sense.
The commotion caused by the battle between the Giant and the giant bear was impossible to keep hidden from everyone. If anything, it already felt rather late for a professor to come check on them only now...
The restless stamping of hooves.
The angry accusations.
Faced with the fury of his own people, the handsome Centaur Firenze merely shook his head calmly.
"I came only because I was following the prophecy of the stars, Ronan."
"That is no excuse. You should understand that we must remain neutral!"
"Let them leave. You should not be doing this. Dumbledore would never agree."
"Don't mention Dumbledore to me! He only wants to drag us into fighting the Dark Lord! He's no different from any other wizard!"
Firenze did not continue arguing with them. Instead, he turned his gaze toward Draco and ignored the Giant entirely.
Before Draco could understand what he was trying to do, Firenze's slightly ethereal voice rang out.
"Mars foretells that war has already begun. My people were merely provoked by the matter of the Giant. They bear you no ill will. From here, I will persuade my people."
"..."
Draco frowned. He did not understand why Firenze was saying all this to him, but in those sapphire-like eyes, he could clearly sense sincerity and hope.
Perhaps...
This Divination professor had seen something?
Could this, too, be one of the Centaurs' prophecies...?