Hogwarts: I, Tom, am not the Dark Lord

"I'm sorry, Daphne." Although he felt a little reluctant, Tom still refused her. "I have a lot of things to do this holiday. I really can't spare the time to visit you."

The Greengrass family's estate is in Yorkshire, which is not too close.

"Is that so?" The little witch visibly wilted.

"I promise to come to you during the summer vacation, and by the way, see your sister who you say is cuter than you."

Tom made a promise. The Christmas holiday was short, only three weeks, but the summer vacation was two months long. Daphne thought about it and felt that it would be more cost-effective for Tom to stay at her house for one and a half months, and the two of them could go out for a trip for the remaining half month.

I felt happy again all of a sudden.

After coaxing Daphne, Tom finally breathed a sigh of relief and started thinking about his own things while eating.

After classes this week, it will be Christmas vacation. He was not lying to Daphne just now, but he was really busy.

In the Muggle world, this year's Christmas is a earth-shaking day. Someone will send a big gift to the Western world, making "democracy and freedom" completely become the mainstream.

Tom doesn't seek to become rich and powerful, he just wants to make more money so that he can achieve financial freedom in the Muggle world.

He admitted that magic was amazing, but when it came to enjoying life and having a diverse hobby, Muggles had the advantage.

Besides, he doesn’t even have his own house now, so it’s impossible for him to become a son-in-law of the Greengrass family in the future.

In the wizarding world, all his strengthening potions have been used up, and he still needs to collect new materials.

During this time, Tom had prepared Polyjuice Potion to facilitate the holiday operation.

Well, thanks to Professor Snape for the material sponsorship.

.......

Late at night, Tom had no idea how many night outings he had started this semester.

He was about to leave school, and he planned to go to the Forbidden Forest to buy some supplies to ensure that he would have enough materials during the holidays.

They had been to the outer forbidden forests before, but this time Tom planned to go deeper to find some high-level magical animals.

For example... the Acromantula.

The venom of the eight-eyed giant spider is like a panacea in the magical world, and its price is comparable to liquid gold.

Even if he doesn't need it, he can take it out and exchange it for some money when he is short of money.

Disliking the secret passage as too troublesome, Tom swaggered out of the castle's main gate this time. Now he had experience. Filch and his cats usually patrolled the second floor and above. To be more precise, they guarded Gryffindor because these lions were the most dishonest.

Ravenclaws like to stay in the common room and read books, while Hufflepuffs don't go upstairs when they come out, and usually go straight to the kitchen opposite.

Slytherin was too far away, and when they ran over there, the main building was completely empty.

Perhaps because it had snowed all day, the night sky was exceptionally clear tonight, and the moonlight shone on the quiet castle without any hindrance. Tom tightened his clothes and put a layer of constant temperature spell on himself, and then he felt much better.

The winter in the Scottish Highlands is much colder than in London. The coldest time in London is just below zero, but the lowest temperature in Hogwarts is more than ten degrees below zero.

When they reached the edge of the Forbidden Forest, Tom suddenly stopped and sniffed hard.

The aroma of broth and meat penetrated my nose and went straight to my brain.

Tom immediately became angry.

Who is so immoral to cook such delicious food late at night? Isn't this poisoning late at night?

He subconsciously looked towards Hagrid's hut. The castle wouldn't be cooking at this time, so it could only be Hagrid who was nearby.

When I looked, I found that not only was there no smoke from the cooking stove, but even the lights in the cabin were out.

I sniffed again. This smell... is coming from the forbidden forest?

Tom's eyes were full of disbelief.

Anyone having a picnic at this hour?

The poet holds.

Tom wanted to see who was so creative, so he walked into the Forbidden Forest.

The aroma that entered his nose became stronger and stronger. He could even see the smoke from the cooking stove. After climbing over a small slope and coming to a small sunken basin, Tom finally saw the 'culprit'.

Three little men who were wrapped like rice dumplings were busy in full swing. They used stones and firewood to set up a soup pot and a baking tray. The soup was bubbling in the pot, and there was not only meat but also a few long loaves of bread on the baking tray.

Even Tom didn't notice it when he touched him from behind.

Until a faint voice came: "You really have the leisure time to go out for a picnic in such a cold weather. Beef and onion soup, roast lamb legs and grilled sausages. You are quite good at eating."

The three of them screamed as if they were electrocuted, and their bodies staggered to and fro. The one in the middle fell to the ground, the one on the left squatted down and held her head for defense, and the one on the right was not standing firmly, and was about to fall and hit the boiling soup pot. Tom quickly took action, and the invisible force controlled her, and she turned over.

Such a delicious pot of soup cannot be wasted.

And the 'Zongzi' rescued by Tom finally recognized him.

"Riddle?"

Zongzi, who was squatting with his head in his hands and begging for mercy, was startled. He looked up hastily, breathed a sigh of relief, and said angrily: "Riddle, you scared me to death. I thought someone was coming to arrest us!"

As he spoke, he pulled up the fallen Zongzi, "Eleanor, don't be afraid. This is a classmate of ours."

Tom also recognized the identities of the three dumplings.

The person he rescued was Hannah Abbott, the queen of Hufflepuff. The person who complained about him was Susan Bones, a classmate. The last one seemed to be a second-year student, but I forgot his name.

.....

"Hello, I'm Eleanor Ashworth, second year Hufflepuff."

In front of the fire, Ashworth extended his hand, shook hands with Tom, and introduced himself.

"Tom Riddle, first year Slytherin."

After getting to know each other, Tom looked at the Iron Hat King and said, "Hannah, what are you doing? You have such good facilities in the cafeteria, but you don't appreciate them. You even went through so much trouble to come here and cook for yourself. What's wrong with you?"

Tom had some friendship with the Iron Hat King. Hufflepuff and Slytherin took History of Magic class together, and he had given Hannah his History of Magic homework for reference more than once.

"You're the one who's upset." Hannah and Susan rolled their eyes at Tom at the same time.

Hannah complained as she explained, "The cooking skills of the house elves are too mediocre. I'm tired of eating the same things every day. If I want something new, I have to come here myself."

"But we can't cook in the dormitory. Filch and Mrs. Norris are in the castle. Mrs. Norris has a very good nose. We can only come to the Forbidden Forest."

"You mean to say you're better at crafting than a house elf?"

"Of course, I love cooking the most." Hannah proudly puffed out her chest and raised her head.

"Really? I don't believe it. Let me try."

After saying that, without giving the three people time to react, Tom directly picked up the bowl and spoon, filled himself a bowl, and took a sip without worrying about scalding himself.

"Well, it's really good. The freshness of onions, the milky aroma of butter, and the soft and tasty beef really whet your appetite." Tom's comments were very convincing.

"Oi, I haven't tasted it yet." Hannah suddenly became anxious, and the other two hurriedly picked up the cutlery and started serving the soup.

That's it for now, let's get to work first.

Tom found it inconvenient to carry the food in his hands, so he simply turned a stone into a large round table and put the bread, soup, and barbecue on it.

Break off a piece of bread and dip it in the soup. The bread that was originally baked hard will soften immediately and completely absorb the essence of the soup. Then take a bite of the lamb leg, it is absolutely delicious.

Hannah was not bragging, her cooking skills were indeed much better than the elf's.

The meals cooked by the house-elves at Hogwarts are quite ordinary and soulless. Unless the flavor is particularly to your liking, the rest taste the same, neither delicious nor unpalatable.

But the food Hannah made was much better, better than many restaurants Tom had eaten at in the Muggle world, and had a unique aroma.

"It's herbs. I added herbs. Many herbs can actually be used as spices."

In response to Tom's doubts, Hannah gave the answer: "You will never guess that I put tambourine mushrooms in the soup."

The tambourine fungus is a type of fungus that gets its name because its cap is very hard and sounds like a drum when struck.

Tom really didn't expect that this could be used for cooking, and gave Hannah a thumbs up.

"Hannah, I, Tom Riddle, would like to call you the best little cook at Hogwarts."

Hearing such straightforward praise, Hannah lowered her head in embarrassment and said modestly, "Actually, Susan also helped a lot. The pasta she made last time was delicious. I'm still savoring the taste."

Tom immediately looked at Susan Bones eagerly.

Susan shook her head repeatedly, "We didn't bring any ingredients this time, so we can't cook..."

"So when are you going to have dinner together next time?" Tom said enthusiastically. "If you need any ingredients, you can come to me. I'm very familiar with the house-elves in the kitchen."

Hannah, Susan, and Ashworth looked strange.

It sounded so strange to say that he was familiar with the house-elf in the kitchen in front of Hufflepuff.

But none of them doubted Tom's words.

In the previous meal, almost half of the food was eaten by Tom, and the remaining half was divided equally among the three of them.

The friendship between foodies is the simplest. Everyone likes to eat, so they are good friends.

After the meal, all three of them approved of Tom.

What a good eater.

"I'm afraid there's no chance this semester." Susan laughed dryly. The holiday was in two days. Even if she was greedy, she wouldn't come here for snacks every day, otherwise she would become a little fat girl in no time.

"By the way, Tom, what are you doing in the Forbidden Forest?" Susan asked puzzledly.

Tom didn't hide anything. "I'm looking for some ingredients. The shops in Diagon Alley don't have the full range of ingredients, and they're not as fresh as the ones in the Forbidden Forest. The potency is much worse, so I might as well look for them here."

"Then you must be careful," Hannah warned. "There are many dangerous animals in the Forbidden Forest. Don't go too deep. Just search around the edges."

Tom smiled and nodded, agreeing.

Chapter 73: The Precious Riem Cow and the Disruptive Centaur

After eating and drinking, Tom said goodbye to the three foodies. After watching them return to the castle, he continued to go deeper.

Because eating took up a lot of time, Tom cast a lightness spell on himself, so he walked very fast.

He had no idea how many times he had been to the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. A map had already formed in his mind. He not only knew the routes, but also knew exactly what creatures lived in each area.

He first went to the Moon Maniac's territory to collect some feces and fed these big-eyed cute pets some food. He then went to the Monkey Frog's territory and collected some tree frog eggs.