The corpse of the unicorn was placed by Regulus Black in his own room. Thanks to the unique nature of the Room of Requirement, it was guaranteed not to be discovered. After all, he had already informed the professors that the unicorn's body had been taken away by the Dark Lord.
Regulus Black had long desired a unicorn. All four of his wands were made from unicorns, which clearly demonstrated his affinity and connection with them. However, he would never do something as foolish as personally killing one.
As sacred creatures, unicorns are imbued with a curse-like aura in their dying moments. Anyone who kills one is afflicted by an unknown curse, a curse that is difficult to identify and even harder to lift.
But Regulus Black, being a necromancer, had his methods. The "Monster Resurrection" skill from the summoning line wasn't just for show. Still, reviving a unicorn required some preliminary modifications—he couldn't afford to have the resurrected unicorn lash out with a hoof.
No complicated magic circle was needed. It was enough to simply add attributes. Through repeated experimentation, he would eventually determine the most suitable configuration.
And as a magical creature, using a unicorn merely as a mount would be a complete waste of its potential.
A unicorn's greatest power lies in its purity—and its susceptibility to corruption. That's why unicorns only approach virgins. As intelligent beings, adult humans are filled with desires. Only infant girls possess both innate spiritual purity and an untainted mind and body, which is what unicorns resonate with most.
Once corrupted by desire, a unicorn is most likely to fall and transform into a hellish Nightmare—a semi-illusory creature that devours desire.
However, Regulus Black had long since planned this out. A mount wasn't important. After considering his overall situation, he decided to categorize the unicorn using the system's altar classification method, similar to the amulet "Black Lake Temple of the Soul Elixir."
Using the unicorn's remains as the base and applying the system's specifications for a temple altar, the process was only completed when Regulus Black embedded the Red Nightmare Gem into the Nightmare's forehead, finally crafting a satisfactory magical item.
To put it simply: magical item + altar shrine = minor amulet.
[Red Nightmare Witch Monastery]
Leaving it in the inventory grants numerous additional benefits:
+777 Mental Defense
+777 Poison Resistance
+77 Lightning Resistance
+77 Ice Resistance
+77 Fire Resistance
77% chance for Nightmare Demons to carry additional magical items
Converted from a dead unicorn into an undead Nightmare
An altar on its back can summon Nightmare Demons
Nightmare Demons include: Nightmare Maiden, Nightmare Nun, and Nightmare Bishop
Gain bloodline professions: Puppet Dancer, Deceptive Warlock, Phantom Priest
Note: These correspond to the three skill branches of the Necromancer.
The pitch-black Nightmare emitted a dark mist. Though it stood right in front of you, it was still easy to overlook.
Its single horn, inlaid with the Red Nightmare Gem, radiated an illusory brilliance. Its hellfire-burning eyes glared coldly and mercilessly. Wherever its four hooves stepped, scorched trails were left behind.
However, all of this could only be seen with spiritual sight. To ordinary wizards, it appeared to be just a unicorn. As for Muggles, they couldn't even see the horn—they would simply think it was a white horse.
Regulus Black had his reasons for configuring the unicorn this way. Wasn't the Cook family still at the Headless Valley? Not even Squibs, if they could be successfully recruited into one of his skill lines, wouldn't they be powerful?
After finishing the unicorn's transformation, dawn had already broken. But since he'd been on patrol the previous night, there were no classes that morning.
Regulus Black didn't want to attract attention by seeming too unusual, so he even skipped breakfast—he'd just pretend he was catching up on sleep.
"Peeves!"
Regulus Black reconfigured the enchantments on his room's door, then summoned Peeves the Poltergeist inside.
Due to the influence of the skill [Soul Domination], Peeves could be summoned from anywhere within Hogwarts to carry out tasks.
Just as he was about to slip a banana slice into a student's clothing, Peeves suddenly sensed a strange summoning. Recognizing the command from his new master, he quickly passed through walls and gaps to reach the eighth floor. Although hesitant, after testing the boundary, he finally entered the room.
"Peeves! I've got a task for you—but first, let me ask you: you haven't told anyone about last night, have you?"
Regulus Black eyed the mischievous spirit coldly. In all of Hogwarts, no one was more annoying than him.
"How could I! Peeves is always obedient to his master!"
With exaggerated clown-like movements and expressions, Peeves did his best to show his loyalty.
"Then, I'll tell you a secret—Hagrid ate a unicorn in the Forbidden Forest."
Naturally, this so-called secret was a rumor meant for Peeves to spread. With his unique status, he was perfect for sowing confusion. After all, a unicorn was indeed missing, and Hagrid would never reveal anything about Voldemort. But the trouble with this rumor was that it could easily be proven false. If Hagrid tried to explain, it wouldn't work; if he didn't explain, that would be worse.
"This is absolutely unbelievable—but I love it when things like this happen."
Peeves could already imagine the chaos that would ensue once he spread the rumor. Hogwarts would erupt with excitement, and poor Hagrid—who would bother caring about him? Peeves was more than happy to see someone else take the fall!
Having accepted his mission, Peeves left the Room of Requirement, buzzing with excitement as he darted around the school.
"Hagrid's got quite the appetite—he actually ate a unicorn!"
"A unicorn went missing in the Forbidden Forest, and Hagrid bought a giant cauldron!"
"Big Hagrid loves the creatures of the forest—loves cooking them even more!"
These ridiculous lies from Peeves quickly spread throughout Hogwarts, leaving Hagrid feeling extremely distressed. Even little Harry came to him to confirm the rumor, and all Hagrid could do was quietly wipe away his tears in sorrow.
To make matters worse, all the lower-year students from Slytherin, led by young Master Malfoy, came together to "congratulate" Hagrid on his "good appetite."
The little snakes of Slytherin surrounded him in force, cornering him with cheerful smiles and offering their "well wishes."
Hagrid honestly wanted to smash the lot of them. This was bullying—couldn't they see he was on the verge of tears?
It wasn't until Professor Snape showed up in the distance—having had his fill of amusement—that he finally dispersed the crowd, earning a favor from Hagrid in the process.
"H-Hagrid! I think you should consider a change of scenery… maybe take a few days off,"
Professor Quirrell stammered when they ran into each other by chance, trying to offer Hagrid a suggestion.
"Time off? I've never had a vacation before…"
Clearly, the good-natured Hagrid didn't even know what a break was. Who knew how much overtime Dumbledore had paid him to keep him working so tirelessly?
This gave Quirrell quite the headache. His original plan had been to lure Hagrid out of Dumbledore's line of sight—only then could he disguise himself (Hagrid would never recognize him anyway) and extract the information he needed, especially regarding that drooling three-headed hellhound guarding the door.
"What I mean is… look, the students really have the wrong idea about you right now. If you were to disappear for a few days, they might settle down. Give it a little time, and everyone will forget about it."
In a rare moment of fluency, Quirrell explained everything clearly, worried that Hagrid might not understand.
"Oh! Alright, alright. I suppose I should take a few days off. Maybe by the time I get back, this whole thing will have blown over."
Hagrid, lacking confidence, agreed to Quirrell's suggestion. He really didn't have any better way to deal with the sudden rumor. Since he wasn't good with words, avoiding the situation seemed like the wisest choice.
Hagrid immediately went to the Headmaster's office to request a leave of absence and explained that the idea had come from Quirrell.
When Dumbledore heard that the suggestion came from Quirrell, he thought about it for a moment and then approved Hagrid's leave. He told him he could take as many days as he wanted and added that the butterbeer in Hogsmeade was excellent—Hagrid should take the opportunity to enjoy himself.
Several professors even came to see Hagrid off, which made him feel like he was leaving forever and would never return.
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