The corridor on the right side of the fourth floor of the castle , which students were forbidden to enter , was actually no different fromthe other corridors in the castle .
However, because Headmaster Dumbledore had forbidden students from entering during the Welcome Feast, the place looked completely deserted and eerie.
"This place is nothing special!" Truman led his friends inside and closed the wooden door behind them so the others wouldn't notice someone entering the forbidden corridor .
After the door closed, visibility in the hallway suddenly decreased significantly.
The freckled boy next to Truman couldn't help but ask,"Why did Headmaster Dumbledore forbid the other students from coming here?"
Not everyone understood this; according to Dumbledore , anyone who didn't want to have an accident or suffer a painful death shouldn't enter this corridor on the right side of the fourth floor .
Did this mean there was something life-threatening in the hallway ?
"There must be something hidden here." Fred had already pulled his wand from his pocket , cast a spell to illuminate its tip , and began looking around to understand what the supposed danger was.
The others lit their wands and looked around carefully, and the atmosphere instantly became heavy.
The freckled boy next to Truman said irritably, "Everyone knows there's a secret here," and added, "Why have all the older students who just came in left?"
Lee Jordan quietly walked over to the freckled boy and whispered, "Perhaps they've already fallen into a trap and died tragically."
Since his last daring attemptto defy Gryffindor , he had been quite calm in similar situations.
The freckled boy flinched and almost screamed when he heard Lee Jordan's name .
When she came to, her cheeks immediately flushed and she glared angrily at Lee Jordan .
"This isn't funny at all," Truman couldn't help but complain.
" Since Dumbledore said this place is dangerous, we must be vigilant."
I don't want to see any of you die tragically right before my eyes.
Truman's words were meant to frighten them, but he also didn't want anything bad to happen to them.
"Okay, let's stop joking and look around."
"I have a feeling there are always unexpected surprises here." Albert put his hand on Lee Jordan's shoulder , signaling him to stop joking around with everyone.
"I didn't expect him to be such a coward."
Fred and George couldn't help but laugh, and stepped forward to look for the supposed danger.
Albert shook his head helplessly, waved his wand slightly, and the torches on the adjacent wall lit up, illuminatingmuch ofinitially dim corridor .
There were no other classrooms on either side of this corridor .
They did not encounter any danger while walking.
At the end of the corridor , a door slammed shut in front of their eyes.
Perhaps the secret was hidden inside the door.
As everyone prepared to check the situation inside the door, the wooden door suddenly burst open, and several older students screamed and ran out.
The next moment, in full view of everyone, a huge dog darted out the door and bit the leg of the last elderly student who had come running; amidst the screams and shouts of the people, it was about to drag the poor fellow back inside the door.
To tell the truth, Albert was astonished by Cerberus's size ; the creature was so massive it filled the space from ceiling to floor.
Its three heads, its three pairs of wild, darting eyes, were fixed on these uninvited guests.
Shortly afterward, Cerberus swiftly regained consciousness, a deafening roar echoing through the corridor .
He made a gesture as if he was about to leap into the crowd, forcing others to scream and run away.
Albert narrowed his eyes slightly, waved his wand , and suddenly a ball of light exploded in the hallway .
Immediately afterreleasing the student whose leg had been bitten, Cerberus waved its staff and dragged the unfortunate victim away from the ground.
The student screamed in terror as she was magically dragged across the marble floor .
When Cerberus regained consciousness , he found that his prey had already been stolen.
But Albert had already created a transparent, magical shield between the two sides .
Cerberus , in a fit of rage,slammed against the magic shield, scratching at the invisible magical shield with its claws.
Albert had no doubt that the enormous creature before him had forgotten about him, but he was absolutely certain that the unfortunate person he had just pulled back had fainted from fear.
"Quick, quick, hurry and take him away!" Albert insisted .
Most of the students who first entered this corridor had already fled.
Fred and the others, who were still standing there , seemed to be considering whether or not to cast the Stunning spell on the large dog in front of them , but after hearing Albert's words, they decided to do as he said; one person on each side supported the student's shoulders and thighs, and they quickly led him away.
Albert finallyleft the corridor andclosed the wooden door again.
Now they knew why this place was forbidden.
" You saved Kroun , thank goodness! How did you save Kroun from that big dog ?" The two students who had run away first returned and were almost in tears of joy when they saw their friend who had initially been dragged away by the big dog.
"You really abandoned your friend." The freckled boy next to Truman looked at them disdainfully, as if he hadn't turned around and run away at the first opportunity.
" I know why Dumbledore doesn't let people come here ; we almost got bitten to death just now." Both were a little embarrassed, and one of them said, clutching his chest.
Truman , breathless and filled with shock and anger, exclaimed,"What are they trying to do by keeping such a monster in the school?!" He was now clearly horrified.
"They all ran away." Fred pursed his lips in disgust, then looked at Albert and asked, "What are we going to do with this guy? He looks like he's passed out."
"Do you think everyone is as fearless as you?" someone whispered.
Albert and the others didn't run away; in fact, they rescued that person.
"Okay, calm down everyone, first send your friend to the Hospital Wing . "
" His leg has been bitten, I hope Madam Pomfrey can heal him," Albert interrupted their discussion.
Only now did he realize who the man was who had bitten his leg.
Crown Pruett .
Hmm, the class president from two terms ago , meaning the guy she met in her first year at Hogwarts .
It appears that a student president hasn't been elected this term.
"They 're not Gryffindor students ," Fred whispered .
"I know."
Albert had long noticed thatall three of them were school representatives .
The Gryffindor prefect from two , the Ravenclaw prefect from two terms ago , and the Hufflepuff prefect from two terms ago – did they all come here just for the excitement, since they weren't elected as student president?
"Excuse me, could you help me take him to the Hospital Wing ?" Fred said to Truman .
After Fred and the others took the person away, Albert looked at them both with somewhat pale faces and asked, "You cast a spell on Cerberus , didn't you?"
" I tried to stun him, but it didn't work."
"He just nodded and woke up." One of them was still a little shaken, but thanked Albert again for saving Kroun Pruett .
That man had actually stayed behind to delay Cerberus , but because he lacked the aura of heroism, he nearly had his leg bitten off, or even lost his life.
" Have you used Stupefy ?" Albert asked again, raising his eyebrow.
"We saw the big dog guarding something; there was a trapdoor inside." The Ravenclaw student suddenly exclaimed , " I bet Headmaster Dumbledore has hidden something valuable in there! "
"Probably, but our thin arms and legs wouldn't be enough to make lunch for that big dog." Albert didn't deny the point, and as he walked toward the clinic, before leaving, he turned to the two of them and asked, "Would you like to come along?"